By Khalida Sarwari
After nearly a year of discussion, Saratoga city officials at last put a plan in motion to bring the Quarry Park project a step closer to reality.
The Saratoga City Council approved a master plan for a proposed 64-acre property known as Quarry Park at the June 4 council meeting. Council members also approved an environmental document and authorized the initiation of the first phase of the project.
The city hired PlaceWorks, formerly the Planning Center DC&E, last year to develop the master plan.
“I think this is a wonderful document,” Councilman Manny Cappello told representatives from the design firm. “I think it describes a park that is very fitting for this particular site as well as the community at large, and so I think you guys have really done a nice job of capturing what I think are our values here in Saratoga.”
Located on state Highway 9 near the Saratoga Village and Hakone Gardens, the property was purchased by the city in 2011 with the goal of developing a park that will promote public access and recreation, encourage resource protection and develop local and regional trail connections. The park is expected to be open in the next two or three years with its full potential unveiled over the next two decades. City officials have maintained that they plan to preserve important habitats and the historic features on the property. The city’s goal is to eventually connect the park to the existing Skyline-to-the Sea trail.
Once completed, the park will offer hiking trails, a boardwalk trail, picnic areas, staging areas, parking, recreational facilities, event space and a grassy meadow.
Councilwoman Jill Hunter expressed concern that an event facility would take away from the natural and historical qualities of the space.
“I think this is such an incredibly exciting thing to happen for Saratoga,” she said, “but I really want this to be someplace that’s just so special to go to, and not to think of parties.”
Concerns were also raised at the meeting by members of the Saratoga Heights Homeowners Association regarding references in the master plan to private roads in the Congress Springs Lane area. At Councilman Howard Miller’s suggestion, the council directed city staff to speak to those residents and make the necessary clarifications in the document.
With the council’s approval of the master plan, the next step for the city will entail creating a phasing schedule and determining a budget for each phase. Because of budget restraints, the project will be done in phases, according to city officials.
The first phase includes basic improvements to the staging area and lower parking lot, installation of an informational kiosk, improvement to some of the existing trails, along with habitat restoration efforts. Additionally, site furniture and directional and interpretive signage would be installed, and the historic picnic area restored. This phase will also include the development of gravel parking lots and the clearing of trail paths to connect with picnic areas.
The city is allocating $574,000 for the Quarry Park master plan implementation in the upcoming fiscal year. The design of the first phase will start this summer and construction is scheduled to begin the following summer.
Subsequent phases will include the installation of restrooms, benches, possibly an open-air museum, barbecue pits, a drinking fountain, pond observation platform and natural playground.
The timeline for the additional phases will be determined as the city identifies funding sources, including grant opportunities.
