SARA President's Message

It has been 50 years since Save the American River Association's "birth" and 39 years since the SARA-initiated bond issue to purchase the first 4,000 acres of what today is the American River Parkway was passed by more than 72 percent of the voters.

SARA was founded specifically to make the Parkway a reality. SARA spearheaded the effort, rallied the community, and even raised sufficient funds to purchase and donate seven acres of land adjacent to the American River. Today, that land, located in the La Riviera/Larchmont neighborhood, is known as Sara Park.

The creation of the Parkway was a proud community effort. Families, students, leaders of the business and education communities, and elected officials were universally behind the establishment of this unique community asset. It truly took a village to make it happen. However, in the giddiness of the time, a stable, long-term funding solution was not included to assure that the Parkway would be funded for generations to come. Today, we are paying the price for that oversight.

Our Sacramento County Regional Parks and Open Space(s) are in crisis. Due to huge County budget shortfalls, funding for County Regional Parks - which includes the American River Parkway - has been severely reduced. Parks staff has been drastically reduced. There are only 11 rangers today, vs. 22 just a couple of years back. The maintenance staff has experienced similar reductions.

The result is that restrooms, turf areas, litter and trash cans are attended to less frequently. Graffiti is becoming much more prevalent as well - sprayed on the pavement, underpasses and signage. Several signs have been ripped from the ground, or otherwise damaged. A large number of llegal campers are still occupying many areas in the lower reaches of the Parkway. The dangerously understaffed ranger staff is responsible for all 15,000-plus acres of Regional Parks - spread all over the county. The Parkway alone now receives over 8,000,000 visits a year. The assigned resources cannot possibly protect the assets.

From inception, County Regional Parks has been funded from the County General Fund, along with several other Tier 3 Quality of Life departments. It has become clear that the county will not, anytime soon, be able to fund Parks at a level that users consider safe and clean.

What Is Being Done?

Initiated by SARA, a Grassroots Working Group (GWG) was formed to study and make recommendations regarding governance and funding alternatives, raised funds to hire experienced professional parks consultant organizations: Trust for Public Land and The Dangermond Group. They will offer their conclusions, conduct polling to measure community acceptance and provide a feasibility study. Results are due by the end of the first Quarter.

GWG members are meeting with a variety of stakeholder organizations, including recreation groups, neighborhood associations, chambers of commerce and service organizations to get the word out that a crisis does indeed exist. The Sacramento Metro Chamber has endorsed the GWG's efforts.

What Can You Do?

Once again, it is going to take the entire community to Rescue Our Regional Parks and Open Space.

- Be informed
If you belong to a neighborhood association, recreation group, service club, or any other formal or informal organization, please schedule a GWG presentation. Presentations are 10-15 minutes plus Q&A and may be requested by sending an e-mail to: info@sarariverwatch.org.

- Spread the word
After checking out the Grassroots section of the SARA Web Site, or attending a GWG presentation, share the concern with your friends, family and co-workers. Attend SARA's 50th Anniversary celebration and Rally for Regional Parks: June 4th at William Pond Park. Details for the June 4th event will follow in the next Riverwatch and will be posted on the SARA Web site.

Goals and Milestones

SARA realizes that we must strengthen our base by increasing our membership, not only to maintain our visibility, but to fund our Parkway outreach, education and advocacy efforts via membership donations. If you are reading this and are not a member, please join SARA now. SARA needs your voice, added to ours, now! Click Here for details and a link to membership.

SARA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Therefore, your donations may be eligible for a tax deduction.

JOIN TODAY!
THE PARKWAY IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY
TO PROTECT AND PRESERVE!