A $6 million donation from a family with deep ties to Big Basin Redwoods State Park will fully fund construction of a new Redwood Ecology Interpretive Center, marking a major milestone in the effort to rebuild the park following the devastating CZU Lightning Complex Fire of 2020.
Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks announced the transformational gift from the Reyneri family, which is making the donation in memory of Dr. Cesare Reyneri, who died in 2024. The new facility will serve as a central gathering and educational space for visitors exploring California’s oldest state park, which lost 97% of its acreage to the fire.
“This gift is to help revitalize and reimagine Big Basin so that future families can enjoy it as much as we have,” said Barbara Reyneri, Dr. Reyneri’s wife.
The family first discovered Big Basin in 1959 and spent decades hiking, picnicking and enjoying the park’s towering old-growth redwoods and abundant wildlife. Dr. Reyneri, who grew up near the Alps in Northern Italy, developed a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors that extended well beyond the family’s visits to the Santa Cruz Mountains.
“He was an early advocate of the environmental movement,” said Bonny Hawley, executive director of Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks. “For 40 years, he stewarded family acreage in Mendocino County, planting thousands of trees.”
Hawley said Barbara Reyneri approached Friends looking for a meaningful way to honor her husband’s legacy. The resulting gift is the largest donation the nonprofit has received in its 50-year history and the first major philanthropic contribution toward rebuilding facilities at Big Basin.
“It will fully fund the entirety of this building,” Hawley said. “We are just really excited and grateful.”
The approximately 2,400-square-foot interpretive center will be located in the park’s main day-use area, near the entrance to the Old Growth Loop. Plans call for outdoor exhibits beneath a covered pavilion, displays exploring the park’s ecology and history, and a staffed information desk where visitors can learn about trails, tours and other experiences.
State Parks interpretive staff and docents will help visitors understand the forest’s natural resources, including its remarkable recovery from the 2020 fire.
“Since State Parks started the Reimagining Big Basin process more than five years ago, the goal has been to create inclusive and welcoming facilities while prioritizing stewardship of this resilient forest,” Hawley said in the announcement. “This legacy gift from the Reyneri family will build a new landmark that will greet park visitors for generations to come.”
The interpretive center is part of the Facilities Management Plan adopted by the State Parks Commission in July. The plan establishes a phased approach to rebuilding permanent infrastructure, including trails, campgrounds, utilities and visitor facilities. Construction of the center is expected to take place within a broader first phase of work, with a potential timeline of two to five years, Hawley said.
The reimagined park will look substantially different from the destination visitors knew before the fire. The former main day-use area contained numerous buildings and parking lots and attracted as many as 1 million visitors annually.
The new design reduces the built footprint around the old-growth redwoods, reflecting public feedback that protecting the ancient trees should be a priority. A larger visitor center, including a camp store and café, is planned near the new Saddle Mountain entrance, while the Redwood Ecology Interpretive Center will welcome visitors arriving by car or shuttle into the historic heart of the park.
“The whole footprint is going to be pulled back,” Hawley said. “By the time you get to the main day-use area, it will be much more calm and where you would start your hikes or go picnicking, and have more of an experience in the forest.”
The CZU fire destroyed nearly all recreational amenities, along with operational facilities and staff housing. In the two years following the disaster, State Parks undertook extensive cleanup, hazardous-material removal and demolition while the region was also navigating the Covid-19 pandemic.
Big Basin reopened to visitors in 2022, and recovery has continued incrementally. Friends works with State Parks to operate the entrance kiosk and day-use parking reservation system and to support the return of camping and other visitor opportunities.
The organization recently welcomed its 250,000th visitor since the park reopened, Hawley said. She described the forest’s regrowth as one of the most encouraging signs of progress.
“It is amazing to see how the forest is rebounding, how those redwood trees are sprouting every which way,” she said. “The understory and the wildlife are back, and it’s amazing. It’s really a sign of resilience.”
Friends, which supports more than 30 parks and beaches in Santa Cruz County and coastal San Mateo County, established its Fire Recovery Fund shortly after the disaster to help address immediate and long-term needs.
Although the Reyneri donation secures funding for the interpretive center, other portions of the rebuilding plan still need financial support. Hawley said the recovery will require a combination of public funding and private philanthropy.
“We hope that it inspires others to give,” she said.
For the Reyneri family, the gift also represents a return to a place that helped shape generations of family memories. During a recent visit, Barbara Reyneri and family members saw the park for the first time since the fire. Hawley said they were pleasantly surprised by the forest’s resilience and new growth.
Big Basin will celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2027, offering another opportunity to reflect on the park’s history and its future.
Community members can support the recovery by visiting thatsmypark.org/donate and selecting the Fire Recovery Fund. More information about rebuilding plans is available at reimaginingbigbasin.org.
