East Bay Regional Parks Celebrating 90 Years

In the late 1920s, thousands of acres of watershed land in the East Bay Hills suddenly became available for development. Now, 90 years later, East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) invites the public to celebrate its milestones and history of environmental conservation and nature preservation. 

The district is hosting a series of yearlong events starting this Saturday at the Hayward Regional Shoreline on West Winton Avenue for a King Tide Walk between 12 noon and 1:30 p.m. 

“We invite the public to enjoy their regional parks and shorelines and celebrate with us throughout the year at events and programs commemorating our years of service to the community,” said Park District General Manager Sabrina Landreth. 

EBRPD has 73 regional parks available for hiking, biking, swimming, horseback riding, boating, fishing, picnicking, camping, and nature discovery. The district manages more than 125,000 acres of parklands, 55 miles of shoreline, and more than 1,300 miles of trails in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. 

“Wherever you live in the East Bay, there is a beautiful regional park close to you,” Landreth said. 

In the early days, city officials hired renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and National Park Service’s Chief Naturalist Ansel Hall to survey the watershed lands for potential park use. The resulting 1930 Olmsted-Hall report titled “Report on Proposed Park Reservations for East Bay Cities” brought national credibility to the effort and is largely considered the founding document of the East Bay Regional Park District. 

Four years later, in the heart of the Great Depression, civic leaders placed a measure on the ballot to establish the Park District and tax themselves for land preservation. The measure passed on November 6, 1934, by a resounding 71 percent – even during trying times and economic instability.  

On June 4, 1936, the District purchased land from the East Bay Municipal Utility District to create its first three parks – Upper Wildcat Canyon (Tilden), Temescal, and Roundtop (Sibley). 

In addition to walks at the Hayward Shoreline, EBRPD has scheduled a nature and science event at the Sunol Wilderness Regional Preserve in Sunol on Saturday, January 27, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. There is also a series of Sunday walks scheduled in February where the public can explore the southern end of the new Thurgood Marshall Regional Park in Concord—Home of the Port Chicago 50—and learn about the natural history of the land and the contribution of Black Americans to the area.

For more information about the Park District’s 90th Anniversary, including events and activities, visit www.ebparks.org/celebrating-90-years.