How Richmond’s Pogo Park is changing the narrative of a struggling community
By Beki San Marin
Richmond, CA January 9, 2024 Frederick Law Olmsted once said that parks had the potential to serve as the lungs of a city. If he were alive today and could see the magic that unfolds at Pogo Park, he’d likely note that it’s the heart and pulse of Richmond’s Iron Triangle.
Forty-two-year-old Robin Doss has lived in Richmond for all of her life, but Pogo Park’s been a game changer for her since she discovered it a few years ago. On the kick-off of winter, during the park’s first-ever Winter Wonderland, Doss smiled from her wheelchair as she watched community members ice skate for the first time and children bounce in a gigantic snowman-shaped bouncy house or ride around the park in a train, as holiday tunes blared in Spanish.
“It makes me feel good to see children feeling happy and enjoying themselves,” Doss said.
Pogo Park’s inaugural Winter Wonderland removed the barriers of distance and cost that so often prevent people from experiencing winter fun like ice skating, which can cost $18-$20 per person and requires people to travel outside the community, which isn’t possible for many families. It also made everything from hot cocoa and electronic reindeer rides to ziplining, bouncing and skating free and centrally accessible to everyone.
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