NEWS UPDATE
County parks reopened!

At the final budget hearing on September 28, the San Mateo County Supervisors unanimously approved a motion to add $187,489 to the Parks Department budget in order to keep all County parks open seven days a week.

The Parks department is already working to reopen the four partially-closed parks (Edgewood, Junipero Serra, San Pedro Valley, and San Bruno Mountain) as soon as possible - perhaps as early as October 5.

Huge thanks to the many, many of you who spoke up on this issue - the Supervisors heard from more than 100 citizens who asked that they reopen parks. Our voices were heard! This decision is a clear signal that the Supervisors have committed to our parks as a County priority. Special thanks to Supervisor Jerry Hill for his leadership on this issue.

The reopening of the parks is critical for a number of reasons - not only to protect, manage, and ensure access to these public resources, but also to enable volunteer efforts and classroom use of all the parks, something that goes on nearly every day.

Of course, this is a temporary fix to this year's budget - and will ensure that the parks remain open through June 2005. But the County's Parks and Recreation budget has shrunk steadily over the last 15 years, and is woefully inadequate. CGF will continue to be involved in the Task Force working to develop a dedicated source of funding for the parks.

Please also take time to visit one or more of the San Mateo County Parks - you can find a list, map, and description of them here.