California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Tuesday a major expansion of California’s state park system, unveiling three new parks in the Central Valley and a plan to add 30,000 acres to existing parks by the end of the decade.
The initiative, called State Parks Forward, will push California’s total number of state parks to 283, more than any other state in the country. The announcement was made on Earth Day at the site of one of the new parks along the San Joaquin River near Fresno.
The three new parks span roughly 330 miles across the Central Valley. Feather River Park in Yuba County would sit on nearly 2,000 acres along the Feather River, offering a boat launch, riverside beach, and flood management benefits. It would be the first state park in Yuba County.
San Joaquin River Parkway in Fresno and Madera counties would consolidate 874 acres of existing public properties along the San Joaquin River, creating a recreation hub near one of the state’s fastest-growing population centers. The third site, Dust Bowl Camp in Bakersfield, is a two-acre historic labor camp listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The camp served as the real-world inspiration for John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath” and contains the only original buildings remaining from that era anywhere in California.
“Now through State Parks Forward we’re bringing more parks to more places, particularly in the Central Valley, a beautiful region that has too often been overlooked for new parks, while at the same time making critical progress to conserve 30% of our lands by 2030.” – California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.
All three properties are publicly held and can be acquired at little to no cost to the state. State Parks will begin a public engagement process before submitting a visioning report to Newsom this fall.
Three land donations totaling 804 acres to existing state parks have already been completed as part of the initiative, including additions to Montgomery Woods State Natural Reserve and South Yuba River State Park.
