The Hayward Area Recreation and Park District (HARD) held its second public meeting to update the San Felipe Park Master Plan on Thursday, January 15, 2015. In this meeting, two concepts were presented which were drawn from public input at the first public meeting.

Additional features suggested for the park include:

• Adding an access trail at the rear of the park. Families residing at the rear of the Park have to walk down B street, to 7th then up D Street.
• A perimeter trail including a par course
• A dog park
• Expanded plaza areas around the community center to take advantage of the breathtaking views from the park.
• A multi purpose amphitheater
• Moving the basketball courts closer to the street to provide visibility.

More details will be posted on the HARD Master Plan Updates. We had a very good turnout. We hope for even more folks at the next meeting date (still unscheduled).

As an aside, there was a positive discussion of the sidewalks HARD installed along the park frontage. This simple project has had a huge impact on park usage. Since their installation there has been an uptick in visits by families with children and a noticeable drop in the presence of undesirable elements. I encourage everyone to thank HARD for keeping their promise to the community. Let’s all encourage the County to move forward on their promise to extend these sidewalks up to Maud.

I walked to the meeting last night and was surprised a how dangerous that walk is after dark. D street is not very well lit, traffic is heavy and a bit too fast. Note there are no Cross Walks on D street. The community asked HARD about installing cross walks, but HARD indicated that they can’t install them. We need to once more ask the county to do this. Crosswalks would make a safe tie in between Sulfur Creek Nature Center and San Felipe Park.

My take away from this meeting was an appreciation for a responsive taxpayer funded organization. HARD has a canodo culture. In all my dealings with them they always seem to ask the question “how can we get this done?”

The next Fairview Stakeholders meeting is Wednesday, January 21 6:30 PM at the Castro Valley Library.  Perhaps we can get an update from the County on the status of sidewalks for D street and their funding sources. We also should get date set for upcoming Transportation and Planning Committee meeting to be held at the Castro Valley Library. That meeting will cover County sign off on the Jelincic Property; high turnout is essential for this meeting.