Our San LorenzoValley parks are not only as diverse as they are beautiful; they are also unique among County parks. Here’s why — every single one of our San LorenzoValley parks was built with the help of community volunteers and with very little cost to the county budget.
Now, a renaissance to improve and repair our treasured parks is underway.
To save costs during the 2008 to 2013 recession, the County laid off Parks employees and Parks became a division of the Department of Public Works. The Parks, Open Space and Cultural Services Department has now been restored as a stand-alone department and we have hired Jeff Gaffney as the new Director. Jeff, who previously worked as the State Parks District Superintendent of the Hollister Hills and HungryValley areas, has a lot of energy and good ideas for our parks.
Here are some highlights of plans for San LorenzoValley parks.
– At Ben LomondPark, a dam structure which had been stored along the banks of the San LorenzoRiver in the park has been removed. The days of being able to dam the river to make a swimming hole are gone; federal and state officials have made it clear that these types of dams won’t return in the foreseeable future. The dam had become a rusted eyesore, stored and unused for more than a decade in the park.
– Plans are also being made to remove the cyclone fencing along the river and replace it with something less forbidding.
– Many of us remember the days of swinging into the river at the park, picnics on the river banks and the Saturday night square dances. The river provided the recreational and social life of Ben Lomond. While we can’t go back to rope swings and dams, our goal is to restore access so that we can once again wade and play in the river.
– At HighlandsPark, improved access to San LorenzoRiver is again the goal. There are a number of existing trails from the park to the river that will be cleaned up for kids and their dogs to explore. Roofs are being repaired and replaced on several buildings in the park and long needed improvements are being made to the main house and the grounds surrounding it.
– At QuailHollowPark, Jeff Gaffney is investigating the possibility of installing tent and camp style cabins that can be rented for overnight guests. Trails are being expanded and improved with efforts of volunteers and Friends of Quail Hollow. Resources are also being protected with a creek restoration project that has primarily been funded with grants.
– At Felton Covered Bridge Park, the historic FeltonCovered Bridge will get a new roof. Shakes are currently being made and bids are out for a roofing contractor. The re-roofing work should be done this winter. A few new picnic tables have been installed and more are coming. Ideas of how better to use the area around the volleyball court are also being considered.
Highway 9 has reopened
Highway 9 has re-opened to one-way traffic and is expected to be completely open by October 2. The highway has been closed between Felton and Santa Cruz for about nine months, a closure that was difficult for residents, visitors and businesses.
Graniterock Company, the contractor, said the limited access, exceptionally steep slopes, hard granitic foundation materials, large trees and stumps and a constricted work window to avoid environmental impacts contributed to the delays in completing the road stabilization project.
This closure was particularly painful because we also had road work and traffic delays most of the summer on Graham Hill Road. While we all appreciate that the work has to be done, when I realized that it was all scheduled to be done at once, I met with all the involved agencies to try to avoid the “perfect storm” of construction events. The result wasn’t perfect — it was still a painful traffic summer — but I appreciate that San Lorenzo Valley Water District and others made changes to their schedule to ease the bumps a bit.
Bruce McPherson is the Santa Cruz County Fifth District Supervisor
