By Kenneth Miller, Publisher
Legendary sportscaster Jim Hill served as the host for the unveiling of the freshly refurbished basketball courts at Edward Vincent Park on April 15 that are now available for public use.
Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, Jr., District 4 Councilmember Dionne Faulk and District 2 Councilmember Alex Padilla joined PepsiCo Senior General Manager Jonathan Thompson which was responsible for funding the project with a $140,000 investment.
“What a wonderful day to celebrate. As the leader of our Pepsi business here in LA, I have deep love for the City of Inglewood. It’s a city that we been partnering with and servicing for the last 60 years. We also have many of our employees that have been born and raised, gone to school here in Inglewood and continue to work here in this community. What a special community it is. It has a unique since of pride and purpose and these are some of the same values that we have at PepsiCo that why it was such an easy decision for us to come on with the refurbishment of these courts at Edward Vincent Park,” said Thompson.
The courts not only look fantastic but are also a symbol of clean and sustainable future that both the City of Inglewood and PepsiCo strives towards.
“These beautiful courts are a direct reflection of PepsiCo purpose to achieve zero net emission by year 2040, reduce or use by first time plastics and impact our communities in a very positive way,” Thompson added.
Partners that were also instrumental in the joint efforts include Project Backboard, the mural on the court was the work of a local artist who aspired to capture the cultural heritage of the City of Inglewood.
The courtside benches were created by ByFusion Global Inc. which used 3,950 pounds of repurposed plastic waste.
Following the official presentations, a basketball clinic was held by non-profit Outside J.