South Bay land lovers rejoice: Henry W. Coe State Park is going to be open to the public for at least three and a half more years.
Henry Coe is the largest state park in Northern California with over 87,000 acres of open space. It's popular among hikers, mountain bikers, backpackers and those seeking an escape from suburbia.
California State Parks’ Director Ruth Coleman announced Monday that the Department has now signed an official agreement keeping the park open until June 2015.
They credit the fund raising of the group State Parks and the Coe Park Preservation Fund (CPPF), which is made up of private citizens who were willing to pay for the maintenance and operation of the park (which will still be done by state parks' staff).
Specifically a man named J. Daniel McCranie of ON Semiconductor and Cypress Semiconductor was named as the top donor. He said keeping the park open was especially important during these "stress-filled" days.
"Henry W. Coe State Park is a local treasure, a beautiful, wild place that’s readily available to all of us in Silicon Valley," said McCranie.
The parks department said it hopes others will follow McCranie's lead and donate their personal funds to keep other parks open.
Here's what the money will buy:
- two full-time State Park Peace Officers
- one full-time maintenance worker
- two full-time seasonal park aides
