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Master Planning Case Study: Albert Park
San Rafael, California
Bocce Courts at Albert Park - one of the improvements resulting from the master planning process.
 Albert Park, an 11.5-acre park in downtown San Rafael, California, had fallen into decline by the early 1990's such that transients colonized a five-acre portion of the park. Local residents initiated meeting with San Rafael's Director of Parks and Recreation to discuss these issues and to help the city revitalize the west side of the park.
The city
formed the Albert Park Renovation Committee and held public meetings facilitated
and
guided by the Director of Parks and Recreation to identify the range of park
constituents,
desired park improvements, and amenities. Committees were formed around distinct
planning
areas within the new park and different user or interest groups in the community
adopted
and maintained specific pieces of the park. Each group, in partnership with the
city,
planned, fund raised, and sought donations in labor and materials from within
the
community. The committees have proceeded on their own time schedule,
guided and
facilitated by the city's Parks and Recreation Department. To date, much
work has
been completed and use of the park has increased dramatically. Additional park
improvement
phases are still in the works.
Albert Park: Step By Step Master Planning Process
- Albert Park is an 11.5 acre facility in downtown San Rafael that features
baseball
diamonds, tennis courts and an active community center. By the early
1990's, a five
acre portion had been colonized by transients.
- In 1992, local residents initiated a series of meetings with San
Rafael's Director
of Parks and Recreation, Sharon McNamee to discuss these issues and offered to
help the
city revitalize the west side of the park. The goals were to increase activity,
to create
a safer setting for neighborhood use, to better integrate the park with the
adjacent
community center, and to enhance the existing assets in the park, including a
creek area.
- The city formed the Albert Park Renovation Committee, which worked with city
staff to
identify park users and desired park amenities. The park components that were
settled on
in public meetings included bocce ball courts, a tot lot, a playground,
volleyball,
basketball, picnic areas, a patio/ porch on the recreation center, and a formal
Italian
garden. The city authorized a revision of the master plan for the park, and
Project for
Public Spaces was hired to work with residents on park layout and design.
- To build community involvement and to implement the plan, committees were
formed around
distinct planning areas within the new park, such as the bocce courts,
playgrounds, and a
garden. A porch committee worked to create an open porch that would connect the
community
center with the park. A local club called Gruppo Lonatese, after San
Rafael's sister
city in Italy, was raising funds to build a formal Italian garden at the back of
the
community center, which will include a bronze crest from their sister city,
Lonate
Pozzolo.
- Different user or interest groups in the community adopted and maintained
specific
pieces of the park. Each group, in partnership with the city, have planned, fund
raised,
and sought donations in labor and materials from within the community. The
committees each
have proceeded on their own time schedule, guided and facilitated by the
city's
Recreation Department.
- One resident found old photographs of the park that revealed that there were
once bocce
courts along the street, adjacent to what once was an Italian neighborhood.
Excited to
reconnect the city to its heritage, local residents became enthusiastic, formed
a
committee to raise support for bocce. The Marin Bocce Federation, an all
volunteer non
profit organization was then formed to raise money to build and run the
facility.
Federation members visited public bocce courts in nearby Bay Area towns and were
informed
by visits to bocce facilities in Italy and Switzerland by Italian community
members with
links to Lonate Pozzolo, where many of San Rafael's Italian residents trace
their
ancestry.
- The city approved a proposal the federation submitted, along with $50,000
seed money and
$40,000 loan to begin construction. The Federation raised the rest of the
$500,000 needed
to complete the project from donations of money, materials, and labor. A
"Buy a
Brick" campaign was conducted for the patio construction (bricks were sold
for $50 a
piece). Many local residents, business leaders, and local clubs and
organizations played a
role in the success of the project. Within two years, the group has transformed
an unused
piece of park into six world class outdoor bocce courts surrounded by a brick
patio.
- Carlene McCart, a parks and recreation commissioner, recalls that the
proposal was
attractive to the city for the following reasons: a) The plan placed the courts
along the
street, creating activity in the most visible site in the park; b) The group had
secured
sponsorship and in-kind donations before the approval. The city knew that the
faster this
project began, the more impact it would have on other projects being developed
in the
park; c) Bocce appeals to all ages and types and according to McCart, San Rafael
was
"hungry for an adult sport that was less physical than softball or
volleyball.";
and d) The federation wanted to build top-of-the-line courts that would attract
tournaments and attention to the city.
- The new courts attract about six hundred players each week. In the Bay Area
at large,
the pastime of bocce is also on the rise. There are an estimated twenty thousand
players
and several established leagues in the region. Bocce is a family oriented
activity, one
which many people can enjoy regardless of age, gender or physical condition. The
court
facility is managed and maintained by the Marin Bocce Federation. The Federation
charges
$310 per team per season (there are three seasons) to participate in the Marin
Bocce
Federation League. The federation also charges a small fee for court rental
during open
play periods. A small concession stand provides beverages and occasionally
caters meals.
Dolly Nave, vice president of the federation, ran the entire facility as a
volunteer for
the first three years it was in existence. Now the federation has hired one
staffer to
maintain the courts and plantings and run the league.
- Bocce players and their families come nightly from all over San Rafael, with
wine,
picnics, and barbecues. Seniors, who use the community center extensively, but
rarely
ventured into the park before, have organized a daytime league of their own.
Local
politicians and city managers hold meetings at the park and show it to
outsiders.
Television features, newspaper reports, and a newsletter have attracted bocce
enthusiasts
from all over the country as well as from Europe. Expansion of the facility to
eight
courts will allow for world-class tournament play. The two new courts are
currently under
construction summer of 1998 and the finishing touches on the court complex are
underway.
- The formal Italian garden was completed in 1997 spearheaded by Gruppo
Lonatese and
facilitated by generous supervision and donations from a local contractor:
Ghilotti
Construction, Inc. The $200,000 project was completed quickly and boasts hand
painted
tiles on a new central fountain purchased by supporters as a fund raiser and a
major new
roadway was constructed along the north park boundary. Part of the design of the
roadway
was to provide a pedestrian and visual link up from A Street to the San Rafael
Mission and
to better connect the park to the downtown area.
- In 1997, a new master plan was prepared for Mahon Creek which is the
southern boundary
of the park. The creek will be enhanced with bike trails, improved vegetation,
visual
access, and serve as a pedestrian and bike link through town. The creek borders
the new
office complex of a major corporation and the corporation underwrote the cost of
the
design and extensive community input. The corporation will most likely assist
with the
overall construction of the creek facilities and enhancement project.
- Additional park improvement phases include a large elementary age
children's
playground, basketball and volleyball courts, as well as a patio/ porch on the
south end
of the Community Center.
- Tremendous volunteer efforts have been a significant part of the success of
the bocce
project, and the planning for the garden and other facilities. The community has
used
every connection it could muster, getting donations and support from myriad
local businesses and civic groups. The city had to be extremely flexible in allowing construction to take place, since work was contracted quickly, and a great deal of authority had to be delegated to the various groups who adopted areas.
Read about Albert Park as a Great Park Place.
Photograph copyright PPS.
Return to The Process of Master Planning page.
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