SACRAMENTO, Calif.— California State Parks today announced the selection of 19 local projects that will receive grants totaling $6.7 million from the California Habitat Conservation Fund Grant Program. These grants will help local agencies with the protection, restoration, and enhancement of wildlife habitat to maintain California’s quality of life. Since 1990, approximately $84 million has been allocated to habitat conservation projects throughout California.
“Protecting California’s biodiversity is critical as approximately 40% of the estimated 5,500 plant species found in this state are found nowhere else on Earth,” said State Parks Director Armando Quintero. “With funding from the California Habitat Conservation Fund, local, state and nonprofit organizations can work toward California’s 30×30 initiative that seeks to protect and restore biodiversity, expand public access to nature, and mitigate and build resilience to climate change.”
State Parks’ Office of Grant and Local Services (OGALS) conducted a competitive review process which is funded by the California Wildlife Protection Act of 1990 (Proposition 117). This grant program includes seven sub-categories: Deer and Mountain Habitat; Wetlands; Trail; Riparian Habitat; Wildlife Area Activities; Rare, Endangered, Threatened, or Fully Protected Species Habitat; and Anadromous Salmonids and Trout Habitat.
Grant awardees by county and sub-category include:
Alameda County
Riparian Habitat
Hayward: Hayward Area Recreation and Park District, Sulphur Creek Restoration at D and Clay Park, $597,000 – Restore a riparian habitat on 4.25 acres by managing non-invasive plants, cleaning the site and creek, installing habitat enhancement features, stabilizing the creek bank, carrying out riparian plantings and re-vegetation.
Wildlife Area Activities
Oakland: City of Oakland Department of Parks and Recreation and Youth Development, Welcome to Wildlife: Oakland Youth Outdoors, $200,000 – Expand the Welcome to Wildlife: Oakland Youth Outdoor program in Peralta Hacienda Historical Park. Educate participating youth on the East Bay’s flora, fauna, concept of ecological change, wildlife and habitats, connection to the natural world, and introduce them to the region’s parks.
Humboldt County
Wildlife Area Activities
Eureka: City of Eureka, Camp Cooper Environment Education Camp, $126,257 – Provide an eight-week Outdoor Environmental Education Summer Camp with an emphasis on environmental stewardship, wildlife habitats, conservation, and interpretation for youth ages 5-12 over a four-year period at Cooper Gulch Park.
Trails
Fortuna: City of Fortuna, Vancil Community Forest, $171,000 – Acquire approximately 6.25 acres to link together Rohner Park and Vancil Reservoir to create a contiguous forested area with trails.
Lake County
Trails
Cobb: County of Lake, Cobb Community Park and Trail, $207,500 – Acquire approximately 12.88 acres to create the new Cobb Community Park with a defined trail system.
Los Angeles County
Wildlife Area Activities
Glendale: City of Glendale, Nature Education Program, $336,250 – Provide a weekly outdoor education program during summer months and school breaks.
Trails
San Pedro: County of Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation, Friendship Park Trail Enhancements and Signage Project, $200,000 – Construct 1,160 linear feet of new trail, improve 950 linear feet of an existing ADA trail, decommission multiple user-created trails throughout the park, and install interpretive signage and trail counters within Friendship Park.
Orange County
Trails
Huntington Beach: City of Huntington Beach, Shipley Nature Trail Restoration Project, $383,309 – Create 850 feet of new trail to complete a loop trail and construct new interpretive signage.
Placer County
Trails
Tahoe Vista: North Tahoe Public Utilities District, North Tahoe Trail Access Improvement Project, $1,029,005 – Construction of one-quarter mile of trail with stairway to extend the Pam Emmerich Memorial Pinedrop Trail.
Riverside County
Trails
Moreno Valley: City of Moreno Valley, Equestrian Park & Nature Center Trail Enhancements, $122,500 – Renovate 750 linear feet of trails, construct two new restrooms, and install solar lighting, informational kiosks, horse troughs, seating areas, and a shade structure with seating area.
Wildlife Area Activities
Riverside: Riverside County Regional Park and Open Space, Knee High Naturalists, $184,552 – Provide a series of parent and toddler environmental education classes to showcase the natural wonders within Hidden Valley Wildlife Area.
Santa Barbara County
Trails
Carpinteria: City of Carpinteria, Carpinteria Bluffs II Trail Segment, $183,438 – Construct a new section of 500 linear feet of trail that will extend the Carpinteria Coastal Vista Trail.
San Bernardino County
Trails
Rancho Cucamonga: City of Rancho Cucamonga, Cucamonga Canyon Land Conservation, $1,000,000 – Acquire 122.09 acres of land at the foothills of the mountains, known as the King Family Trust, for conservation.
San Francisco County
Wetlands
San Francisco: City and County of San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, India Basin Shoreline Park Living Shoreline, $756,728 – Restore and enhance existing wetlands by contouring the shoreline, planting over 13,000 square feet of mid and high marsh zones, and constructing a pedestrian path and overlook bridge that will provide access into the marsh.
Wildlife Area Activities
San Francisco: City and County of San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, Greenager Program, $200,000 – Engage teens from underserved communities in the southeast and northeast sections of San Francisco with service-learning projects through the city’s parks and wildlife areas, as well as provide opportunities to become stewards and advocates for environmental change.
San Francisco: City and County of San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, Youth Stewardship Program, $200,000 – Engage K-12 students in environmental education and service-learning projects throughout San Francisco’s parks and open spaces.
Solano County
Wetlands
Vacaville: City of Vacaville, Peña Adobe Park Pond Restoration, $100,000 – Restoration and enhancement of the lining, filtration, and aeration of the pond, enhancing the vegetation, improving the wildlife habitat, and creating access to the pond.
Sonoma County
Deer and Mountain Lion Habitat
Santa Rosa: County of Sonoma, McCormick Ranch Acquisition Phase 2, $650,000 – Acquire approximately 197.52 acres of McCormick Ranch to protect the wildlife corridors and the Columbian black-tailed deer and mountain lion habitats.
Trails
Sonoma: City of Sonoma, Sonoma Overlooks Trail Rehabilitation, $91,634 – Renovate the Sonoma Overlook Trail and add retaining walls.
California State Parks’ Office of Grants and Local Services (OGALS) develops grant programs to provide funding statewide for local, state, and nonprofit organization projects. Since 1964, more than 7,400 local parks throughout California have been created or improved through OGALS’ grant funding. Since 2000, OGALS has administered over $3.8 billion in grant funding throughout California.
The California Department of Parks and Recreation, popularly known as State Parks, and the programs supported by its Office of Historic Preservation and divisions of Boating and Waterways and Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation provide for the health, inspiration, and education of the people of California by helping to preserve the state’s extraordinary biological diversity, protecting its most valued natural and cultural resources, and creating opportunities for high-quality outdoor recreation.
