January 2023

NEWS & FEATURES

Highlights and Adventures in the Year Ahead

The new year is an opportunity to feature recent accomplishments and look forward to activities and adventures in 2023.


In 2022, the Park District offered full interpretive and recreational programming, celebrated the completion of notable public access projects, and continued fuels reduction projects that reduce wildfire risks.


Highlights include:

• Brickyard Cove at McLaughlin Eastshore State Park, Berkeley

• Tyler Ranch Staging Area at Pleasanton Ridge, Sunol

• Renovated Visitor Center at Sunol Wilderness Regional Preserve, Sunol

• Shadow Cliffs Interpretive Pavilion, Pleasanton

• Coyote Hills Chochenyo Language Trail Markers, Fremont

• Anthony Chabot Fuels Reduction Pilot Project, Castro Valley


This year, the Park District is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Trails Challenge. We look forward to having visitors explore 20 new trails on the 2023 Challenge.

Exercise Caution in Parks After Storms

Many Regional Parks are open for visitors. The safety of visitors is very important, so please continue to follow any closure signs and stay mindful of conditions. Even if there is no rain, do exercise caution in the days ahead as the ground is saturated and falling tree limbs and mudslides may be potential hazards. Visit ebparks.org before heading out to check on specific parks and trails.

Swearing-in Ceremony For Newly-Elected Park District Board Members

The Park District held a swearing-in ceremony for four newly-elected board members during its January 17, 2023 Board of Directors meeting with Congressman Mark DeSaulnier and one of the Park District’s longest serving employees delivering the oath of office.


New Board Directors Olivia Sanwong for Ward 5 and John Mercurio for Ward 6, along with Colin Coffey in his second term for Ward 7 were sworn in by Congressman DeSaulnier, who was also recognized for his many contributions to the Park District. Board Director Dennis Waespi, in his third term for Ward 3, was sworn in by Karen McClendon, a Park District employee with over 38 years of service who remains a stalwart in the District. More Info.

Retirement of Longtime Board Members

Board members Ayn Wieskamp (left) and Beverly Lane (right) retired at the end of 2022 after a combined 52 years of service on the Park District Board of Directors.


Director Wieskamp, who represented Ward 5, concluded her successful tenure with the ribbon-cutting celebration of the Shadow Cliffs Interpretive Pavilion in Pleasanton. Other signature park openings in her time on the board included Brushy Peak Regional Preserve and Dumbarton Quarry Campground on the Bay.


Director Lane, representing Ward 6, channeled her passion for history and protecting open space into the preservation of cultural resources in the District and establishing new trails and parks, including as an early advocate for what would become the 32-mile Iron Horse Regional Trail.


The board members will be remembered and honored for their legacy of accomplishments for the Park District.


Compass article: A Legacy of Leadership

Volunteer Storm Clean-Up Projects Being Scheduled

Show Your Love for Parks!

After weeks of being battered by damaging storms, the Regional Parks will need lots of volunteer help getting cleaned up. The first events are scheduled in Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline, where the annual shoreline clean-up event scheduled on January 16 was canceled due to hazardous weather conditions. Sign up for one of our post-storm clean-up events, and check back often as more projects will be added as parks reopen. 2023 Post-Storm Cleanup Projects

Interpretive Pavilion Opens at Shadow Cliffs

On December 14, 2022, the Park District celebrated the opening of a new outdoor interpretive pavilion at Shadow Cliffs in Pleasanton. The new pavilion will serve as an outdoor visitor center for naturalist-led programs and provide information about recreational opportunities available in the parks lesser-known 116-acre nature area, including trails for hiking, biking, and nature watching. More Info.

30th Anniversary of the Trails Challenge

Celebrate 30 years of the Park District's Trails Challenge! The annual Trails Challenge program has promoted healthy recreation in nature for the past 30 years by providing 20 designated trails ranging from easy to challenging in a variety of parklands and shorelines throughout the District.


Free printed guidebooks are available now at participating Visitor Centers, while supplies last. T-shirts will be available starting Saturday, January 21. Download the guidebook here: www.ebparks.org/tc

8th Annual Virtual Park District Youth Job Fair Coming in February!

Explore the many paid seasonal and year-round jobs available in the Park District at this year's Virtual Youth Job Fair on Saturday, February 11, 2023 from 10 am to 1 pm. Whether you like spending time outdoors, working with the community, or lifeguarding, we have a wide variety of opportunities for youth, young adults, and students. The Job Fair is designed for applicants who are ages 15-24, although the minimum age requirement for most jobs is 16 years old. Application and interview tips will be provided! More Info.

Lifeguards Wanted for 2023 Swim Season 

The Park District is hiring more than 50 new lifeguards for the 2023 swim season at its 12 East Bay swim facilities. All new lifeguard positions are seasonal, full-time positions from May through September. Applicants must be at least 16 years old by April 22 (first day of Lifeguard Academy). Apply by March 27 to join our ranks! More Info.

IN THE PARKS

Chochenyo Language Trail Markers Unveiled at Coyote Hills

Coyote Hills is the ancestral homeland of the Tuibun Ohlone peoples, who have thrived with the land and spoken the Chochenyo language since time immemorial. Thank you to the Muwékma Ohlone Tribe and their language committee for their translations and efforts to restore Chochenyo words to Coyote Hills. More Info.

Park District staff and Student Conservation Association members use a Swedish tree-hook to carry out channel-clogging logs

Habitat Helpers Enhance Black Rail Nesting Area at Point Pinole

Late last year, Park District staff and Student Conservation Association members spent five days braving mud and high tides to improve environmental conditions for several special status wildlife species at the Giant Marsh at Point Pinole Regional Shoreline in Richmond. Since 2003, Park District staff, volunteers, and private and public agencies have removed 320 tons of channel-clogging debris and 455 cubic yards of non-native plants from Point Pinole. The debris removal has improved tidal marsh current cycling, enhancing California black rail (a state threated species) nesting habitat and reducing mosquito breeding sites. The restoration efforts over the years have paid off as the California black rail population has increased by fourfold at this marsh.

IN THE COMMUNITY

Winter 2023 Compass Magazine Available Online

The latest issue of Compass magazine is now available online! Read the latest news from the Regional Parks Foundation, including how Foundation-funded programs for youth are inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards. Compass Winter 2023.


Learn how you can support the Regional Parks Foundation and become a member.

Careers in Nature 

Enrollment is open for the 2023 Spring semester in Merritt College’s Natural History and Sustainability Program. Merritt College offers a certificate of achievement program in conservation and resource management that provides students with a practical approach to ecological management practices. Some courses are taught by current and past Park District staff, and courses are sometimes taught in Regional Parks! Students learn basic concepts of environmental science to prepare them for more specialized coursework and help qualify them for entry-level employment. Sign Up for Spring Courses

FEATURED ACTIVITIES

Tilden Fungus Fair: Sat. Jan 28 and Sun. Jan 29 from 10am-4:30pm

View hundreds of local mushroom specimens, mingle with the mycological community, and enjoy presentations, cooking demonstrations, mushrooms art, and more at this two-day special event. Or watch from home – presentations will be live-streamed on YouTube. Saturday, Jan 28 and Sun, Jan 29; 10am-4:30pm at Tilden Nature Area’s Environmental Education Center. 


Upcoming Activities

Sat, Jan. 28, 10-11am, Marine Fossils of Black Diamond, Black Diamond Mines


Sat, Jan. 28, 10-11:30am, Who Dung It?, Coyote Hills (check park program status)


Sat, Jan. 28, 11-11:45am, Jr. Paleontologist, Sunol


Sat, Jan. 28, 11:30am-12:30pm, Funky Fungi, Ardenwood


Sat, Jan. 28, 2-4pm, Shorebirds of the Bay, Crab Cove


Sun, Jan 29, 9-10am, Testing the Water, Big Break


More...

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East Bay Regional Park District | 1 (888) EBPARKS | info@ebparks.org

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