Cool Cities Letter to the City Council & Park and Recreation Commission, Central Park Master Plan

                                                          

                                                                                  

May 5, 2015

This letter is submitted on behalf of the members of the San Mateo Chapter of the Sierra Club Cool Cities, an initiative to address local issues impacting climate change, as well as connect grassroots environmental champions. The matter of the proposed changes to the Central Park Master Plan were discussed at an open meeting on April 22, 2015.

Dear San Mateo City Council and the Park and Recreation Commission,

Thank you for taking public comment on the proposed update for the Central Park Master Plan.

Overall, the sentiment of the group supported improvements to the existing facilities and grounds as opposed to any major changes to the park’s current plan and diverse functionalities.

Below we offer a more detailed vision, but to summarize, the interventions we support are:

1)    Water reductions measures

2)    Building a greener, and more aesthetic and accessible parking            structure and recreation center

Those interventions which we strongly oppose are:

1)    Removal of any trees, especially heritage

2)    Converting the southwestern corner from a group picnic area to a         parking lot

We thank you for your time and consideration.

Kind regards,

San Mateo Cool Cities

We Support

1)    Water Improvement

As is becoming increasingly apparent, water is a precious resource in California. We believe the city of San Mateo should demonstrate a commitment to reducing water use in Central Park. This can be done by:

·         Replanting certain beds with native plants which do not require regular watering

·         Use sensors to indicate when sprinklers should be used

·         Decrease, or do not increase, the square footage of lawn

2)    Building and Structural Improvements

While generally resistant to major changes to Central Park we acknowledge the parking structure and community center could use some significant capital improvements, such as:

·         Seismic upgrades to the parking structure and tennis courts

·         Better accessibility parking for the recreation center

·         A new recreation building after an evaluation of community demand

·         Green building and sustainability principles guiding all new park construction

We Do Not Support

3)    Tree Removal of Any Kind

The Central Park Master Plan should provide more explicit verbiage protecting the parks many mature trees. On hot days, the mature trees are critical for keeping the park cool enough for use. Please improve protection to the park’s tree by:

·         Explicitly prohibiting the removal of heritage trees except in cases of disease

·         Improve park signage to draw attention to our most significant trees

4)    Paving Over the Southwestern Picnic Area

We strongly disagree with the proposals which locate a parking lot in the existing picnic area at the southwestern corner of the park. We contend:

·         The large, centralized picnic area allows for multiple groups to use the area simultaneously and it should not be broken up

·         Paving over any area of the park should be strongly discouraged

·     The few additional parking spots provided do little to meet overall demand, while doing a great deal of damage to the parks footprint and amenities