Supervisor Fiona Ma: When There's a Will ...

Shortly after midnight on Aug. 6, vandals set fire to a children's play structure at the South Sunset Playground, destroying most of the main structure and melting the underlying rubber matting.

This single, meaningless act of violence has been devastating to the children and families that rely on the park. It is all the more disheartening since this structure is relatively new, having been renovated less than 3 years ago.

On Aug. 12, I held a press conference at South Sunset to condemn this senseless act and to seek the community's help in identifying the perpetrators. The investigation on this incident is still open and the police are urging any members of the public with information on this case to call the police department's arson division at (415) 920-2944.

At the press conference, I also kicked off the South Sunset Playground Rebuild Fund. In a time of tight budgets, there are no contingencies for tragedies, such as the South Sunset arson, so funds to rebuild the structure and play area will need to be privately raised. I am happy to report that donors have already stepped up to the plate to help out.

The Mills Corporation has made a $5,000 donation to start up the rebuild fund and we have secured commitments from other corporations as well.

However, it will take more than just this to get South Sunset rebuilt quickly.

According to the SF Recreation and Park Department, preliminary costs for replacing the structure are estimated at more than $100,000. In order to raise the necessary funds, we will need the neighborhood to pitch in and get involved. The Neighborhood Parks Council (NPC), which is the fiscal sponsor for the rebuild effort, is helping organize neighbors around South Sunset so that we can protect the park and other parks throughout the Sunset and Parkside districts for the future. They recently hosted a public meeting at South Sunset to talk about vandalism, how to address it and, specifically, how to rebuild the damaged playground.

The staff at NPC discussed park stewardship through community clean-up days, community gardens, and using systems such as ParkScan and Parks Connect to help monitor activities in the park and to prevent future vandalism at other District 4 facilities. The group is also working with our office on a "pennies for playground" campaign, which would distribute piggy banks to collect spare change for the rebuild.

If you would like to get involved in the effort to rebuild South Sunset Playground or make a donation to the playground rebuild fund, contact my office or the Neighborhood Parks Council at: 451 Hayes St., second floor, San Francisco, CA 94102. Please reference South Sunset Playground.

For more information or to get involved in park activities for other facilities in District 4, contact my office at (415) 554-7460.