Pleasanton Parks are a Breath of Fresh Air

By Hacienda Network Staff Writer

Everyone who lives or works in Pleasanton knows that, in addition to the abundance of other amenities in the community, the city's neighborhood parks, sports facilities, and regional parks offer a wide variety of options if you want to enjoy outdoor activities. Whether you're looking for a basketball court, a path to jog, or a trail to hike, outdoor recreation opportunities abound in and around Pleasanton - and Hacienda. For a complete list of the area's parks and sports facilities, please refer to the map accompanying this article.

Hacienda Parks

A number of recreational areas are found right here inside Hacienda. The park has six primary outdoor features for use by all tenants and residents within the development:

A private greenbelt, or Linear Park, is available for Hacienda tenants and residents to use. The park is located adjacent to Owens Plaza Park and is best accessed through the Owens Plaza Park entrance at Rosewood Drive and Owens Drive. The park covers several acres and offers a basketball court, tennis court, picnic area, tot lot, and open lawn area.

Owens Plaza Park, which abuts the center portion of the Linear Park, spans over three acres. This park features picnic tables, benches and a tot lot and is accessible through a tree-lined entry off of Owens Drive.

Creekside Park is accessible from W. Las Positas Boulevard between Owens Drive and Stoneridge Drive as well as from the Linear Park via a footbridge over the Tassajara Creek. A large 6.6-acre open lawn space is the primary feature at this park. There are also courts for basketball and sand volleyball, and a play area with swings.

An 18-station outdoor parcourse has been installed for walkers or joggers. The course covers a 2.3-mile stretch within Hacienda. Maps of the parcourse route are available from the Hacienda web site at www.hacienda.org/pdf/parcourse.pdf.

Hart Middle School has a number of sporting facilities, including soccer fields, basketball courts, a full quarter mile track, and a gymnasium. Public use of the facilities are coordinated through Pleasanton's Parks and Recreation Department.

Hacienda has several hiking trails available to tenants and residents, with more to come in the future. The Arroyo Mocho Trail currently runs from the Alamo Canal to the Chabot Canal. At Hopyard Road, the trail crosses over Arroyo Mocho to a path along Chabot Canal to West Las Positas Boulevard. The Arroyo Mocho Trail will eventually link North Pleasanton and south Dublin under the I-580 freeway. The Iron Horse Trail extends 25 miles from Solano Way in Concord to the Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station bisecting the communities of Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek, Alamo, Danville, San Ramon, and Dublin. This popular trail provides direct links to three other regional trails, including the Contra Costa Canal Trail, the Briones to Mt. Diablo Trail, and the Las Trampas to Mt. Diablo Trail.

Neighborhood Parks

Pleasanton is also home to a number of parks that are designed to serve the city's various neighborhoods. Nearly two dozen neighborhood parks are located throughout the city for use by its residents and visitors. Near Hacienda, you'll find Sutter Gate Neighborhood Park at 4801 Sutter Gate Road, which offers a children's play area and picnic tables. Also nearby is Woodthrush Neighborhood Park, at 5051 Woodthrush Road, a good place for an afternoon walk or reading beneath a shade tree. Fairlands Neighborhood Park, at 4100 Churchill Drive, is a 14-acre park featuring two tennis courts and a children's play area.

Sports and Recreation Parks

Pleasanton offers a wide variety of sports and recreation-oriented facilities. The 103-acre Pleasanton Sports Park, for example, has nearly 20 softball diamonds for business and municipal leagues, soccer fields, and even a track for rollerblading around the park's perimeter. The Sports Park is located at 5800 Parkside Drive, just off Hopyard Road and only steps from Hacienda. Call (925) 931-5348 for league sports information.

If water figures prominently in your sports activities, Dolores Bengtson Aquatic Center at 4455 Black Avenue offers four heated pools including a large, shallow pool; a diving pool with both one and three meter springboards; a 25-meter, eight-lane racing pool; and a 50-meter by 25-yard competitive pool. Open swim times are available, as are organized water exercise programs and aqua aerobics. Call (925) 931-3420 for information.

The Tennis and Community Park at Hopyard Road and Valley Avenue offers 10 lighted courts, all open to the public. The courts are open from 9:00 am each day, weather permitting, and are frequently open on a drop-in basis. Reservations are suggested, however. Call (925) 931-3446 for information.

Regional Parks

For those seeking an opportunity to commune with nature, the 237 acre Augustin Bernal Park, located in the southwest corner of the city near Castlewood Country Club, offers many miles of hiking trails, some with spectacular views of the Tri-Valley Area. Immediately adjacent to Bernal Park is the Pleasanton Ridge Park, an East Bay Regional Park District property. Pleasanton Ridge consists of 3,163 acres of multi-purpose trails for hikers, horses, and mountain bikes. The park provides canyon views, ridgetop vistas, and access to remote, deep-canyon streams. Pleasanton Ridge can be entered via Foothill Road.

Lake Del Valle is located in Central Alameda County, about five miles south of the City of Livermore in the Arroya del Valle. The park is located on Del Valle Road, just a few miles south of Interstate 580 in Livermore. Lake Del Valle comprises 4,000 acres of park and 750 acres of lake and is a popular spot for picnicking, horseback riding, boating, fishing, and swimming.

Also nearby is Shadow Cliffs, just a mile from downtown Pleasanton on Stanley Boulevard. Once a gravel quarry, the EBRPD has developed the site into a 296-acre park including an 80-acre lake and a four-flume waterslide. Fishing is a popular activity at the park and bait and tackle are available. In addition, visitors can rent rowboats, electric motorboats, and paddle boats.

Coming Soon

A number of new parks are under construction to give you even more options in your quest for the great outdoors. Bernal Neighborhood Park will be a five-acre neighborhood park on West Lagoon Road that will be home to a children's play apparatus, a basketball court, lighted pathways, and a big open playing field.

Another park that's under construction right now is Val Vista Community Park. Val Vista will incorporate on-site parking areas, restroom buildings, snack bar buildings, a wealth of play apparatus, and three premiere soccer fields. This park will be located at the intersection of Stoneridge Drive and Johnson Drive in Northwest Pleasanton. It's estimated that it will be open in late November of this year.

The master plan for Bernal Community Park has also just been completed. Bernal Community Park is planned to be a 45-acre community park with a sports emphasis. It will incorporate lighted baseball diamonds, soccer fields, football fields, and even facilities for lacrosse. The first phase of construction is planned to break ground in September of 2004. It will be about ten acres in overall size and will consist of two lighted baseball diamonds, parking areas, an open turf play field, a children's play apparatus area, and restrooms. Completion is expected in September or October of 2005.

Finally, another new park will be under construction in spring of 2004: Alviso Adobe Community Park. The name derives from Francisco Alviso, who was one of the original Spanish land barons in the area. In 1845, he built one of the first structures in Pleasanton, an adobe house that served as his homestead. This historic park will focus on the location's native American period, incorporating native American artifacts; its Californio period of Spanish ranchers; and its dairy period, from about the 1920s until the mid to late 1960s.

Getting Around

Hacienda tenants and residents who are interested in exploring the wealth of local recreational opportunities can avail themselves of a variety of maps and resources that are available from the Association's office and on the Hacienda web site at www.hacienda.org. Contact the Association by phone at (925) 734-6500 or drop by the office at 4473 Willow Road, Suite 105.

Photo: Creekside Park, in Hacienda, offers a softball field, full basketball court, a sand volleyball pit, and a play area. Augustin Bernal Park offers hiking trails and views. A California toyon in bloom in the park.

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