Ceres renames Eastgate Park after this local Latino leader who served on the council
The Ceres City Council on Monday renamed Eastgate Park after the late Guillermo Ochoa, who is known for his service in the city and Latino community.
A committee recommended the change after residents most often asked the city to honor Ochoa in a park naming contest held between January and February.
Ceres’ first Latino council member, Ochoa served for six years from 2005 to 2011. Ochoa was also active in the the Latino Community Roundtable and Hispanic Leadership Council and co-owned Garcia’s Market in Empire. He died in 2015 at age 54 of natural causes, The Bee previously reported.
More than 50 residents requested Ceres rename the park at the corner of Eastgate Boulevard and Kiwi Drive after Ochoa. Former Vice Mayor Lisa Mantarro Moore, a member of the ad hoc committee that recommended the namesake, said the contest was a suggestion process, not an election process. Another 48 people recommended renaming it Veterans Park, and Moore said honoring veterans in other ways is important.
“The work that Guillermo Ochoa left on this community is undeniable,” Moore said during the meeting. “He lived in the neighborhood where the park is erected. This opportunity to recognize him and his work is once in a lifetime.”
Several people thanked the council on Monday for considering Ochoa, including his daughter Kimberly Ochoa. Yamilet Valladolid, manager of government affairs for Golden Valley Health Centers, said she knew Ochoa as a friend and mentor. She referenced how he also advised the Ceres youth commission and Ceres High School.
“Not only did he invest in the residents of Ceres overall in the city, but also in the youth,” Valladolid said.
Eric Alvarez of the Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce also urged officials to reflect the diversity and culture of Ceres with the park renaming. Ochoa inspired him to study politics at the graduate school level and return to Ceres, Alvarez said.
The city received 181 name submissions in total. Council Member Bret Silveira, who represents the district where the park is located and served on the committee, said many Ceres residents deserve recognition. But Ochoa’s namesake received a lot of community support, he said.
Council Member Linda Ryno cast the only dissenting vote against renaming the park to honor Ochoa.
“The people that live there call it Eastgate Park,” Ryno said. “I think everyone calls it Eastgate Park. For that reason, as much as I think Guillermo was a nice person, I would like to see it continue as Eastgate Park.”
Renaming the park will cost about $3,000 because the city needs a new sign, City Manager Tom Westbrook said. The city should receive the sign in about three months, he added.
The existing budget for the park will cover the cost of the sign and installing it, Westbrook wrote in a staff report. The council awarded an about $860,000 contract to construct the park in April 2020. After crews place the sign, the city expects to hold a ribbon cutting ceremony.
