How to Donate Amenities Around Town and Get Your Name on Them

From the city of San Clemente:

The San Clemente City Council approved the Celebrate, Acknowledge, Remember, and Enhance Program (C.A.R.E.) at its meeting on July 15.

This program replaces the city’s Memorial Bench program. Effective today, the C.A.R.E. program, complete with the available amenities and application, can be viewed on the city’s website at www.san-clemente.org.

In response to public inquiries to donate and name public amenities, the city’s Beaches, Parks, and Recreation Commission subcommittee and city staff put together this program which enables the public to donate amenities to the city on city-owned property for public use.

The prior program which focused on memorial benches, was not a formal policy-guided program and therefore requests were considered on a case-by-case basis. The city was not recouping the full cost of maintenance of these benches, nor did it have a replacement strategy in the event the benches were vandalized.

The new C.A.R.E. program is designed to address public benefit, full cost recovery, public perception, space availability, design consistency, lifespan and ensure a more streamlined process.

The C.A.R.E. program was developed with a Beaches, Parks & Recreation subcommittee, City staff and public input to ensure a program was created that balanced the needs of the community with those desiring to provide a public amenity that provides a personal tribute.

The Beaches, Parks & Recreation Commission recommended approval of the C.A.R.E. program at its June 10 meeting.

With City Council’s final approval, city staff can now proceed with the implementation of phase one of the C.A.R.E. program, initially offering customized benches and picnic tables, while conceptually approving the proposed tile mural and customized stair risers.

The purchased amenities will be installed within one year of application and funds. For more information, call (949) 361-8237 or email Recreation@San-Clemente.org.