Santa Clara County Parks & Recreation Digest

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.

All over California, wildfires have ravaged iconic landscapes. Places that once seemed permanent are disappearing—and researchers are having to rethink how best to protect them.

Senate Bill 1012, a law that will require California State Parks to restrict open fires, has been unanimously passed through the Committee of Water, Parks, and Wildlife. The bill instructs parks to work with the guidelines of local fire departments. The bill could appear before the full assembly in August.

Camp Director, others quit over ancient symbols on a 1915 building, claiming they created an unsafe space.

GreenTown Los Altos held its first Family Bike Days event Saturday and Sunday, featuring guided rides with “energizer stations,” while the Los Altos Police Department sponsored a bike rodeo Sunday.

A group of downtown Los Altos retailers raised concerns about enforcement of the city’s parklet program in a letter sent to the city council and city staff last week.

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking nominations for positions on its California Desert District Advisory Council, Central California Resource Advisory Council, and Northern California District RAC.

Every day, scores of residents and visitors in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties take in views of the natural landscape, hike on nearby trails and enjoy the outdoors in spaces protected by Peninsula Open Space Trust.

Residents can now use their library cards to check out day passes for free access to more than 200 state parks. The move is part of a collaboration between California State Parks and the California State Library to provide more equitable outdoor access for all Californians.

The Santa Clara Board of Supervisors has agreed to purchase 47 acres of land between Santa Teresa and Calero county parks for $8.5 million, taking another step to limit development in the Coyote Valley.

Santa Clara County’s potential purchase of the Lehigh cement plant and quarry on the peninsula could mean conversion of the land to open space—but housing might also be in the picture.

Hiking, biking and riding trails run through the foothills, mountains and marshlands of the San Francisco Peninsula. And much of this access to nature is thanks to the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District.

City leaders want to transform one of the region’s largest homeless encampments into a dog park, disc golf course and public garden. The sprawling camp must be cleared by June 30, per an order by the Federal Aviation Administration.

In a surprise move, SeaWorld Entertainment submitted a bid to buy Cedar Fair, the parent company of California’s Great America. According to Bloomberg, SeaWorld offered $3.4 billion in an unsolicited bid. In a news release, Cedar Fair said its board will “carefully review and consider the proposal.”

When the exclusive Foothills Park opened wider to the general public at the end of 2020, it was overrun by visitors and required the implementation of a reservation system. Now things have calmed down and guidelines might change to make it easily accessible again.

Central San Jose residents fought for a park for more than three decades. Then, when they finally got it, it wasn’t maintained. Now they are lobbying for change.

Keith Ngo’s private park was shut down by county officials two years ago for land use and code violations, and now he is struggling to reopen it amid fines and what he says is a stonewall from the county.

San Jose is celebrating the reopening of Lincoln Glen Park, the second all-inclusive park in the city. The park includes play equipment for children on the autism spectrum disorder, along with those with physical disabilities and medical fragility.

Menlo Park residents are banding together to protect their city parks from being sacrificed to further development in the area.

At long last, Los Altos is enjoying a new community center following a dedication ceremony that was widely attended by the community. The state-of-the-art facility replaces the previous site: a 1940s-era converted elementary school.

Viva Calle, an annual San Jose bicycle riding event, lengthened its routes this year to include Santa Clara and Sunnyvale. As cycling enthusiasm continues to grow, the South Bay is ready to welcome riders.

Having seen a resurgence in the early days of the pandemic, roller skating continues to grow in popularity. Some South Bay Area residents are working to preserve its future.