Cesar Chavez Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cesar Chavez Park is a city park of Berkeley, California named after César Chávez.[1] It can be found on the peninsula on the north side of the Berkeley Marina in the San Francisco Bay and is adjacent to Eastshore State Park. Cesar Chavez Park has an excellent view of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Marin County. Mount Tamalpais and the ubiquitous high elevation fog often frame the sun as it sets, which allows for particularly excellent sunsets.
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[edit] Description
Cesar Chavez Park is a peninsula extending into the San Francisco Bay. It is part of the Eastshore State Park. It has few trees and a lot of grassy hills. There is a path that runs the parameter of Cesar Chavez Park with park benches evenly spaced. Parking is somewhat unorthodox with people parking on grass along the road that runs adjacent to Cesar Chavez Park. This adjacent road runs towards the San Francisco Bay, but ends near the edge of land to a square where you may find rarely open parking spots. Cesar Chavez Park is often too busy for there to be easily available parking spots, hence the common practice of people parking alongside the road.
[edit] Activities
Popular activities at Cesar Chavez Park include high school classes and enthusiasts firing model rockets, people flying kites, picnicking, and people walking their dogs.[2] It is also common for people to jog or walk at Cesar Chavez Park. While Cesar Chavez Park is surrounded by the San Francisco Bay, water access is not possible because of the rock and boulder barrier that runs the entire perimeter of Cesar Chavez Park.
[edit] Accessing the park
Cesar Chavez Park is accessed by taking the University Avenue exit on Interstate 80 and going westbound away from University of California, Berkeley to Spinnaker Way. You must pass the Berkeley Marina, then you will reach Cesar Chavez Park.
[edit] History
"Originally known as North Waterfront Park, this open space was built on a former landfill that dated back to 1957, when dikes were constructed for the purpose of containing municipal waste. In 1969, a Marina Master Plan was adopted setting aside the landfill area for unstructured recreation. The landfill was completely sealed in 1991 and the park opened soon thereafter. It was renamed after Cesar E. Chavez, noted union leader and founder of the United Farm Workers of America, in 1996. The approximately 17-acre off-leash dog area was recommended by a special Task Force created by City Council and was approved with modifications by the City Council in 1998 after a long period of public hearings and review by various commissions."[3]
