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Monterey County Parks & Recreation Articles



King City Rustler logo LOCAL NEWS
King City’s Downtown Plaza beautification plans to be topic of meeting

KING CITY — The 30th annual joint meeting of King City Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture and King City Rotary Club to promote Beautification Week is planned for Wednesday, June 15, at noon. Unlike last year when the groups gathered …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Salinas City Council allocates $8.1 million to build the first community center in District 5.

On May 10, Salinas City Council unanimously approved $8.1 million from the general fund to build what will be the city’s first community center in District 5. “We want something of similar value to the Hebbron Family Center,” Library and…

Image caption: A red-tailed hawk on a light pole overlooking downtown Santa Cruz.
Citizen Science

Sometimes making the community better manifests as a better understanding of how nature works. Local birders lead the way.

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Drama surrounds Del Rey Oaks’ Measure B; the fate of FORTAG hangs in the balance.

The campaigns surrounding Measure B, a Del Rey Oaks ballot initiative that if approved would preclude adding most new trails in the city, are starting to ramp up.

King City Rustler logo LOCAL NEWS
Pinnacles National Park begins new sign-making operation

SOLEDAD — Pinnacles National Park recently purchased and assembled a new sign-making machine, which will help the Pinnacles Trail Crew to update the park’s trail signage more efficiently. “Anyone who has hiked along multiple trails in Pinnacles knows that proper …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Marina train tracks draw two unsolicited vendors offering up recreation concepts.

Over the summer of 2021, a new attraction got the attention of people in Marina: handcar tours, a ride on the abandoned train tracks that run along the west side of Highway 1 in a cart, pushed by up to…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Somehow, some way, increased access will happen for Carmel-area State Parks. But not yet.

In 2018, before the County Board of Supervisors banned parking on the east side of Highway 1 across from Point Lobos due to safety concerns, State Parks was working on a potential solution to an intractable safety problem: an overflow…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
With a boost from the feds, the county can finally address infrastructure needs at its parks.

After more than a decade of deferred maintenance on water and sewage infrastructure in parks managed by Monterey County, the infusion of American Rescue Plan Act money in 2021 is allowing County Parks to dust off some long-contemplated plans.

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Climbing advisories in effect at Pinnacles National Park

SOLEDAD — Annual measures to protect nesting raptors of Pinnacles National Park, located five miles east of Soledad, were reinstated as of Jan. 18. According to Park Superintendent Blanca Alvarez Stransky, 12 pairs of Prairie and Peregrine Falcons produced a …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Wilderness regulations put Monterey County last in line for a federal reforestation effort.

The presence of wilderness areas in Monterey County complicates the region’s ability to benefit from new federal legislation written by the county’s representative in Washington, Congressman Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel Valley.

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Salinas Valley park projects receive $26M in state grants

SALINAS VALLEY — Nearly $26 million has been awarded for park projects in the Salinas Valley as part of the state’s “Outdoors for All” initiative to enable all Californians to access parks and open space. California State Parks announced Dec. …

Image caption: There are more than 300 community service districts in California.
Community Services Districts, Explained

Community service districts can do most anything a city government can do. Here’s how they work and how to start one.

Image caption: The Frog Pond is a big concern for some Del Rey Oaks residents who oppose FORTAG, but the park district that owns and maintains the pond fully supports the trail project.
Vision Quest

MC Weekly follows two CSUMB professors with a visionary plan for a region-wide recreational trail. If only everyone could see it so clearly.

Image caption: The ski resort once called 'Squaw Valley' has changed its name, which resort owners acknowledged was racist and sexist.
Ski Resort Changes ‘Derogatory, Offensive’ Name

The name change of one of California’s most historic ski resorts is part of a statewide and national trend to reexamine offensive place names.

Featured

There are more than 300 community service districts in California.
Community Services Districts, Explained
Areas that the county overlooks can form their own local governments.
The Baldwin Hills area in South Los Angeles is one region where a state conservancy would keep open land accessible to the public.
California’s 10 State Conservancies: How They Protect Parks and Open Land
Starting in 1976, the legislature began creating agencies to buy up open land, and keep it open.
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