Board Takes First Step to Open Long-Closed Doolan Canyon Preserve

The East Bay Regional Park District Board voted unanimously to begin opening the 800-acre Doolan Canyon Regional Preserve to the public — nearly two decades after the land was first acquired — while also celebrating news that the Trust for Public Land has secured an option to purchase the 161-acre Golden Gate Fields property in Albany, signaling the district's most aggressive expansion push in years.

• Board directs staff 7-0 to begin managed public access at Doolin Canyon, starting with guided tours and phasing toward broader opening over two years

• Trust for Public Land enters option agreement to buy Golden Gate Fields, backed by $20M in Measure WW funds, with $175M more needed for the largest new East Bay shoreline park in decades

• Park police report 367 arrests, zero homicides, and near-full staffing — 74 of 76 sworn positions filled — with D.A. charging rates up 50%

• $1.4M contract awarded for two Tilden Park bridges that will restore upstream passage for native rainbow trout

• $937K approved for construction management of the $16.4M Tidewater shoreline park in East Oakland

• Board approves AB 481 equipment report, previewing a drone-as-first-responder pilot that could deliver flotation devices before officers arrive

The board's most extensive discussion of the evening — spanning more than two hours — ended with a unanimous 7-0 roll call vote directing staff to begin managed public access at Doolan Canyon Regional Preserve, a sprawling property in the heart of the Tri-Valley that has never been open to visitors despite acquisitions dating back to 2007.