Santa Clara County Parks & Recreation Digest

Twenty years after East San Jose residents began advocating for more open spaces in their community, city leaders have completed a key step in expanding the neighborhood’s celebrated Five Wounds Trail.

Palo Alto city leaders gathered on a dusty field to celebrate the city's first expansion of a park in at least two decades.

The Biden administration is one step away from designating the first national marine sanctuary nominated by a tribe. Tribal members of the Chumash, who have lobbied for the creation of this Central Coast preserve for more than a decade, would be involved in managing it.

With Foothills Nature Preserve seeing a surge of visitors, Palo Alto is preparing to install new pathways, parking areas and traffic-calming measures.

Castle Rock State Park expanded on Aug. 15 when the Sempervirens Fund sold six properties to the state of California for $4.21 million. Nestled on the border of Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, Castle Rock now covers more than 5,400 acres.

Rengstorff Park is set to be home to a Magical Bridge playground, which is designed to be accessible for people of all ages, including those with physical and cognitive disabilities.

Three decades of commitment to preserving nature and connecting communities will be celebrated by the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority in 2023. The celebration will include the fall opening of Coyote Ridge Open Space Preserve.

After a controversial decision to block the reappointment of a parks and recreation commissioner, the Santa Clara City Council has decided on his replacement.

The state budget allocated $1.5 million to improving Lake Cunningham, which for years has suffered under the weight of faulty infrastructure and poor water quality.

The number of visitors to Palo Alto’s Foothills Nature Preserve in 2022 dropped 24% compared to 2021, but rangers note that unexpected problems are cropping up having to do with the lack of cell phone coverage.

California lawmakers passed the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act, permanently protecting the iconic and imperiled species.

One of San Jose's oldest parks wants to remake history again after more than 150 years. St. James Park, located on nearly seven acres in the downtown core, is getting a complete makeover.

A stunning property once owned by rock singer Chris Isaak moved a big step closer to becoming a new public park—the first of its kind in more than 50 years—when the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to approve an $11.6 million construction contract to build amenities at Tunitas Creek Beach.

Friends of Levitt Pavilion San Jose hosted its first springtime concert in St. James Park, the latest step in establishing a permanent outdoor performance venue. The shows will take place despite an appeal in a lawsuit to stop the revamp of the park.

Plans to revamp the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds into a sports and recreation facility have been progressing for more than a year, but it's unclear when shovels will hit the ground.

The Palo Alto City Council added new members to the Human Relations Commission while favoring existing members for the Parks and Recreation Commission.

Moving forward, young teens and children who take a trip to California’s Great America will need to do so with a chaperone. Now, any guests 15 years old or younger must have a chaperone who is at least 21 years old.

A proposed downtown San Jose landmark may have a new home after years of deliberation. The promoters of the "The Breeze of Innovation"—a design that would use hundreds of swaying rods powered by wind to light up at night atop a viewing platform and cafe—want to built its landmark at Plaza de Cesar Chavez. The San Jose City Council unanimously agreed to study whether the proposed location works and to create a master plan to improve the park.

The Los Altos Teen Center, housed inside of the Community Center, was recently renovated. Anyone in grades 6-12 may attend for free, and operating hours are 3:30-6:30 p.m. on weekdays.

Growing up, Helen Chapman was surrounded by acres of nature. She pursues her passion for preserving open space as the chair of the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. And Coyote Valley is her crown jewel.

The boom in electric-powered bicycling is reducing car travel, lowering carbon emissions and introducing homebodies to the great outdoors. But the activity is on a collision course with an equally cherished environmental ideal: peace and quiet.

A 50-acre piece of land along Coyote Creek sits deserted and is frequently home to encampments, yet San Jose still hesitates to support a coalition's pursuit to turn it into a park.

The Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year by achieving a milestone of conserving 30,000 acres of open space. This open space includes 16 agricultural and natural resource conservation easements covering 5,146 acres.

Henry W. Coe State Park was named as a possible location as California attempts to find new places where people can ride dirt bikes, dune buggies and ATVs.

San Jose police officers will soon routinely patrol an area that once was the city’s largest homeless camp in an effort to help revitalize the region.

As the revitalization of Memorial Park continues, Cupertino residents are being asked whether they want the space to focus on local gatherings or to focus on nature.

JLL will prepare a dozen regional strategic plans to help the state marketing organization promote smart, sustainable tourism over the next decade.

With e-bikes growing in popularity, Palo Alto officials are racing to keep up with the changing legal landscape and impose new rules aimed at protecting sensitive habitats.

Avi Kwa Ame National Monument will protect sacred Native American sites, wildlife.

The local landmark that hosts daytrippers and hostel guests alike is about to undergo renovations that could increase public access.

For the first time in three years, visitors won't need to book ahead to enter the park in 2023.

Goodbye (for now) to ice skates, hello to roller skates: SJ’s Circle of Palms holiday ice rink makes way this winter for a roller rink.