A Community Comes Together in Silicon Valley
At Greenbelt Alliance, we’re dedicated to getting growth right in the Bay Area. That means safeguarding our farms and forests from sprawl development and creating thriving neighborhoods within our cities and towns. But good growth decisions don’t emerge automatically. It takes people coming together and getting engaged in decisions about how their communities grow. Fortunately, there are inspiring examples of this happening around the Bay Area and Greenbelt Alliance is playing a… Read More
Novato Backs Strong Growth Boundary
On a unanimous 5 – 0 vote, the Novato City Council recently finalized the ballot measure to renew the city’s existing urban growth boundary for 25 years on the November 7, 2017 ballot. Greenbelt Alliance, Marin Conservation League, and Sierra Club deliberated with Mayor Athas, councilmembers, and city staff late into the evening at the July 11 public hearing to fine-tune the ballot measure through a productive and positive exchange. The evening… Read More
Introducing the Bay Area Greenprint: A Blueprint for Conservation
With so much innovative technology and trailblazing research, the Bay Area is drowning in data. But a dataset is only as good as its interpretation. Greenbelt Alliance has worked collectively with The Nature Conservancy, Bay Area Open Space Council, American Farmland Trust, and GreenInfo Network to harness data to help practitioners make better land-use decisions that incorporate natural and agricultural values. After over two years of collaboration and endless iteration with experts… Read More
Two Big Victories for Coyote Valley
Coyote Valley, south of San Jose, has experienced many environmental victories and some defeats in the decades-long battle between dooming it to sprawl versus restoring its natural and working landscape. Advocates defended this 7,400-acre valley of farmland, wildlife, and crucial water resources from the sprawl that hit the South Bay in the 1960s, but it could still be lost to unnecessary development radiating from San Jose, Morgan Hill, and Gilroy today. Greenbelt… Read More
Investing in Your Legacy Through Greenbelt Alliance
Andy and Sara Barnes speak with passion about their city living experience. “It’s a privilege to live in a dense city like San Francisco and have access to exceptional open space and cultural amenities in surprising quantities,” offers Andy, Greenbelt Alliance’s former Board Chair and a currently active Board Member. He and Sara co-chaired our annual fundraiser, Savor the Greenbelt, in 2015. In addition to being active and generous current supporters of… Read More
Creating a Park and Open Space District in Solano County
Greenbelt Alliance’s primary campaign in Solano County over the next 3 years will be the creation of a countywide park and open space district. Solano County is the only county in the 9-county Bay Area that does not yet have a district. Greenbelt Alliance is working closely with the County, each of the 7 Solano cities, park district advocates, and residents of Solano County to make the district a reality. What is… Read More
Park Profile: Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve
“Because the Mare Island Preserve is a ready-made combination of cultural history, wild lands, and incredible scenic vistas, it’s a magnet for users from local and regional communities and beyond. The potential to be considered as a part of a regional park system is appealing. What we’ll want to focus on here is continuing to protect the fragile and unique resources that make it so magical for park users.” – Myrna Hayes, Mare… Read More
Community Separators Put to the Test
Just months after 81% of Sonoma County voters passed Measure K to protect community separators for the next 20 years, a luxury resort is being proposed on the north edge of Santa Rosa in the Windsor-Larkfield-Santa Rosa Community Separator. Greenbelt Alliance and our allies are concerned that the size and scale of the luxury resort and event center are inconsistent with community separator policies, zoning, and Measure K. It is also in… Read More
Crafting a Vision for Sonoma County
Whether you live here or visit, everyone agrees that Sonoma County is pretty great for its rolling hills, dramatic coast, and everything in between. Yet we face many challenges ahead to conserve and restore these lands and achieve thriving neighborhoods for all in the next 20 years and beyond. Looking forward, Greenbelt Alliance is excited to be working with county supervisors and community partners to launch an update of the General Plan,… Read More
Solano County Office Opening
On June 13th, Regional Representative Amy Hartman officially opened the doors to our new Solano County-based office in downtown Fairfield. The Solano County team is excited to get to work on several pressing issues in the area, including the creation of a Solano County Regional Park and Open Space District, the renewal of the Fairfield Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), and supporting the newly-adopted Heart of Fairfield plan that will reinvigorate and revitalize… Read More