ABSTRACT
In 1928, open space advocates from Oakland, Berkeley, and surrounding communities in California saw a golden opportunity to create a regional park system across the bay from the City of San Francisco. Robert Sibley, an engineering professor at the University of California, envisioned the preservation of East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD's) excess holdings as parklands stretching for 22 miles from Wildcat Canyon, east of Richmond, to Lake Chabot, east of San Leandro. By a margin greater than two to one, the voters of seven cities in Alameda County approved the formation of the East Bay Regional Park District and agreed to tax themselves to pay for it at the rate of five cents for every $100 of property value. In addition to the East Bay Regional Park District, other public agencies have preserved key environmental lands in Alameda County.
