California’s state park system is the largest and most diverse natural and cultural heritage holdings in the nation. Yet the century-and-a-half-old system has been in perpetual crisis mode for several decades, battered about by funding shortfalls and repeated threats of closures. How California parks — from redwood forests to coastal bluffs and historic monuments — will continue to survive is a story that ardent citizen supporters are striving to determine.
August 09, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
While park advocates around the state expressed shock and anger over the discovery of a secret stash of $54 million …
July 31, 2012 by David Loeb
It’s certainly not hard to apply words like “outrageous” and “appalling” to the current scandal surrounding $54 million dollars in …
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June 04, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
With state park closures only a month away, California lawmakers are scrambling to send long-lasting aid to the state park system and keep the gates open.
May 09, 2012 by Bay Nature
Writer Joan Hamilton spoke with interviewer Henry Tenenbaum on KRON4 Sunday, May 6 about the state parks closures slated for …
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May 02, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
For the past 35 years, Valley of the Moon Natural History Association has been helping greet and educate visitors at the Jack London State Historic Park in Sonoma County.As of May 1, however, it’s taken charge of the whole park: 1,400 acres, 10,000 artifacts, and more than a dozen historic buildings.It’s an unusual situation, born of California’s budget woes. The state says it no longer has the money to keep Jack London open, but the surrounding community sees the park as a vital public asset. So locals are investing their own time and money to create something new — what Valley of the Moon board president Greg Hayes calls “a community-operated state park.”
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April 25, 2012 by Christine Sculati
Candlestick Point State Recreation Area in southeast San Francisco is California’s first urban state park, and offers city-dwellers a slice of nature along the Bay. State budget cuts landed it on the list of park closures, even though a massive redevelopment project next door promises to deliver $50 million to Candlestick.
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April 19, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
For residents and businesses in the Anderson Valley, 845-acre Hendy Woods State Park has an importance far beyond its size. It’s one of few public open spaces in this mostly rural region, and now residents are doing their best to make a plan to keep the park open.
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April 17, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
McGrath State Beach has plenty of visitors and plenty of revenue. So how did it end up on the closure list? The park’s sewer line was broken, and the state couldn’t afford to fix it. But the local community rallied around the park, raised the money to fix the sewer, and now the park will stay open.
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April 16, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
If any landscape can be called iconic, Mono Lake surely makes the cut. But with no revenue, the state park here faced closure–until John Muir’s great-great-grandson joined with local park supporters to rescue the park. With a new parking fee in place, the park is safe, for now.
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April 10, 2012 by Joan Hamilton
Samuel P. Taylor State Park in Marin is a popular destination for many of the millions of people who live within a short drive of this secluded redwood forest. With the park facing closure, the National Park Service stepped in to pay park operating costs.
Publisher’s Circle hike at Rockville Trails
May 13, 2013 by Judith Katz
