Park District Receives CPRS Outstanding Park and JEDI Impact Awards
Park District Receives Outstanding Park Award and JEDI Impact Award from the California Parks and Recreation Society District 3
On Tuesday, June 21, 2022, the East Bay Regional Park District Board of Directors was presented with the 2021 California Parks and Recreation Society (CPRS) District 3 Outstanding Park Award for Dumbarton Quarry Campground and the Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion (JEDI) Impact Award for its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. The Park District is the first-ever recipient of JEDI Impact Award.
“The Park District is honored to be recognized for the Dumbarton Quarry Campground project and our DEI efforts to ensure parks remain safe, welcoming, and enjoyable for all,” said Board President Colin Coffey. “Our dedicated park staff should be commended for their contributions that helped make these projects and other happen.”
The awards were presented by CPRS District 3 Board President Nicole Roa at the June 21, 2022 Park District Board of Directors meeting.
“The CPRS District 3 Annual Awards Program is designed to recognize those who assist in the critical role of facilitating and creating community, professionals, collaborative partners, and businesses, as well as outstanding facilities, parks, programs, and special events,” said CPRS District 3 Board President Nicole Roa. “The CPRS District 3 Annual Awards Program recognizes excellence of agencies, individuals and professionals in the Park and Recreation field who demonstrate the spirit of ‘Parks Make Life Better’ and the missions of parks and recreation..”
Outstanding Park Award – Dumbarton Quarry Campground on the Bay
Dumbarton Quarry Campground on the Bay is the District’s first urban campground along the San Francisco Bay and one of the newest large campgrounds opened in California in three decades. The campground is located in Fremont on the site of a former rock quarry that provided aggregate for critical infrastructure projects throughout the Bay Area from the 1950s to 2006, including San Francisco International Airport, Oakland International Airport, highways, and other major infrastructure projects. Over 15 million tons of rock were removed during its operation, creating a large pit that at one point was the lowest elevation in the entire United States at approximately 310 feet below sea level.
The process to convert Dumbarton Quarry into a public park started in the 1970s when the quarry’s landowner DeSilva Gates applied for a mining permit and began negotiating with public agencies to turn the quarry into a public park after it closed, which it did in 2006. However, instead of simply closing the quarry, a plan was developed to refill the quarry pit with excavated dirt and use the proceeds generated to construct the campground at no cost to taxpayers.
Today, the re-envisioned rock quarry includes 63 family campsites (60 with recreational vehicle hookups). Other amenities include a camp store, two shower buildings, a playground and day use area, reservable picnic sites, and access to scenic trails in Coyote Hills Regional Park and Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge.
Dumbarton Quarry Campground on the Bay is an example of a successful public-private partnership. Dumbarton Quarry Associates, a DeSilva Gates Company, provided $15 million for the construction of the campground.
Outstanding JEDI Impact Award – Reaffirming Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for All
In 2021, the Park District reaffirmed its commitment and efforts to ensure regional parks were safe, welcoming, and enjoyable for all. The District listened to those who have felt overlooked and unheard, and enacted several changes in policy and procedure to make the Park District more equitable and inclusive. DEI efforts included special programs and the naming of the District’s new regional park at former Concord Naval Weapons Station, “Thurgood Marshall Regional Park - Home of Port Chicago 50.” DEI programs included staff implicit bias training, survey and listening sessions, UN International Day of Peace, and numerous interpretive programs promoting and putting into practice DEI principles.
For more information, visit www.ebparks.org/awards.
