Despite citywide cutbacks, employee furloughs and layoffs, the city of Rocklin is going ahead with its policy to replace old playground equipment in the new budget.

A total of $357,000 has been earmarked to add playground equipment to three parks; Gayaldo Park on Aitken Dairy Road, Corral-Alva Park on Brookshire Drive and Margaret Azevedo Park on Wildcat Boulevard and $100,000 has also been set aside to replace 20-year-old playground equipment at Sierra Meadows Park cycled for replacement in the new budget, according to city officials.

“Here is one thing they have decided to spend your money on that doesn’t make sense,” said Tom Hudson, chairman of the Placer County Republicans.

Hudson is campaigning against Measure A in an all-mail ballot special election Aug. 25.

“Priorities are in the wrong place,” Hudson said. “If you really don’t have the money to maintain the parks, does it make sense to construct playgrounds?”

The measure will reinstate $499,000 in special tax revenue, which expired in June, that the city uses to help pay for its $3-million annual park maintenance expenses.

“It’s really a problem of prioritizing spending,” Hudson said. “It is not a problem that there is not enough money. The fact that they can’t come up with money for park maintenance is laughably ridiculous.”

A closer examination of the budget reveals funding for park playground equipment for the next fiscal years comes from numerous sources, but not the park maintenance tax. According to city officials, the city will pay for the playgrounds primarily with $331,000 in state grants and $26,000 in county grants that are expected to expire in 2011 if the funds are not used for park development.

“Some people don’t understand the playground money does not come out of the general fund,” said Councilwoman Kathy Lund who voted in support of the new budget. “We can’t use the funds for anything else.”

The $100,000 set aside for Sierra Meadows Park comes out of the city’s Park Repair and Development Fund, which is one reason Vice Mayor Scott Yuill did not support the new budget.

“With the city’s current financial condition, I think any money for parks that cannot be leveraged with grant or similar money, needs to be scrutinized very closely,” Yuill said.

Twenty-year Rocklin resident Janie Johnson, who lives a block away from Sierra Meadows Park, agrees with Yuill.

“My three boys still use the park,” Johnson said. “I’m a huge supporter of parks and voted, ‘yes’ on Measure A. But $100,000 is a lot of money.”

Her 18-year-old son Gary Johnson disagrees.

“I think it is in need of replacement,” Gary Johnson said. “(Sierra Meadows) park has been vandalized so many times and never been replaced. It is the oldest playground in Rocklin. I think it is not a bad idea.”

The Johnsons’ neighbor David Dutra takes his grandchildren to the park and said the expense is unnecessary in this economy.

“I don’t feel that it has to be replaced, it’s still in good shape,” Dutra said.

City Manager Carlos Urrutia said after weighing other concerns, the city decided to stay with the policy of replacing the playgrounds.

“The staff feels that the playground replacement program should not be abandoned because it would be penny wise to not do the maintenance that is required,” Urrutia said. “When playgrounds get old, they require more maintenance and also become safety concerns; we want to avoid potential lawsuits.”

He also said not taking advantage of the grants would be foolish when the economy has created a bidding environment that has saved the city nearly 20 percent in construction costs.

For Hudson, the fancy accounting is a poor excuse for city employees whose incomes are shaken by furlough Fridays.

“If I were employees I would be pretty upset for that priority,” Hudson said.

Yuill said he’ll bring the issue back up for discussion when the council considers even more cuts at a budget hearing Aug. 29.

“I voted no because I don’t think the play structure needs to be replaced,” Yuill said. “We will actually have an opportunity to review this subject.”

Jon Brines can be reached at jonathanbrines@yahoo.com.