California’s state park system is at a crossroads. As a system, California’s state parks have persisted even in the face of challenging and shifting political, social, and environmental priorities. Yet, after more than a century of leading the way in preserving and protecting precious resources, today’s pressures – including proposals for wholesale shutdowns, current and indefinite closures, a $1.2 billion deferred maintenance backlog, and more – are  the most challenging the system has ever seen.

These crises cannot continue to define our state parks. We need a new vision for our state parks for the next 100 years and beyond. A Vision for Excellence for California’s State Parks report is now available and provides a statewide vision for the future of California state parks.

When fully realized, that vision results in an excellent California state park system that will:

• Celebrate Our Enduring Heritage

  VISION STATEMENT: California’s state parks inspire people with the natural and cultural heritage that defines the state: from wind-swept beaches to ancient forests and high mountain tops, from the pioneering spirit of the Gold Rush to the present-day pioneers, from its original peoples to its newest immigrants.

  California’s state parks reflect the character and unique “brand” that is the Golden State. Its 280 park units make up the largest state park system in the United States and contain unparalleled natural features and historic and cultural resources. By telling, retelling, and interpreting key history, geology, and cultural facts, our state parks celebrate California and what it means to be a Californian. Maintaining these features and continuing to celebrate the stories told by our state parks is essential.

  Excellence in celebrating our enduring heritage will be met when:

  • All Californians are aware of their state park system and the amenities and resources the system offers and protects.
  • All Californians feel ownership in their state parks system.
  • All visitors experience the wonder and inspiration that parks provide through exposure to, and interpretation of, the extraordinary natural features and authentic cultural places in parks.
  • New state parks prioritize access in areas currently park deficient and where stories of California’s heritage have not yet been told.
• Welcome Visitors

  VISION STATEMENT: California’s state parks belong to the people of California and welcome visitors to enjoy the diverse natural places and historic resources that provide inspirational, spiritual, and recreational opportunities.

  At the heart of an excellent state park system is the experience of its visitors. Cultivating and maintaining an environment where visitors are welcomed and provided access to services and amenities, which increase their affinity for state parks, is a fundamental facet of an excellent state park system. State parks need to be physically available to all residents, both physically, as well as in ways that bring park information to those who cannot easily go to parks by themselves.

  Excellence in welcoming visitors will be met when:

  • All state parks are open, accessible, and welcoming.
  • High quality, affordable recreational opportunities, for both day-use and overnight visits, are available throughout the state park system for all.
  • Every state park has well-maintained amenities, public access points, clean restrooms and facilities, and available staff to assist visitors.
  • All visitors have access to basic park information and materials to help them plan trips to state parks, in a language they understand.
  • Every Californian has access to equipment and/or programs to aid them in using and enjoying state parks.
  • Every Californian in an urban area has access to nearby state parks through public transit.
• Teach Californians

  VISION STATEMENT: California’s state parks provide lifelong opportunities for children and adults to explore, discover, and experience the natural environment, heritage, and rich stories that state parks contain.

  Through visits to state parks, all Californians have an opportunity to gain new information, skills, and knowledge that can shape lifelong learning. Preservation of cultural and historic artifacts and narratives are a key part of the story that California’s state parks tell, and ability to interact with and experience those stories in a personal way creates opportunities that extend all Californians’ knowledge.

  Excellence in teaching Californians will be met when:

  • Interpretive materials and displays at state parks are up-to-date, relevant, appealing for a modern audience, and tell diverse California stories.
  • All historical and cultural artifacts in the state’s collection are safely and properly protected and available for the public to experience through high quality display and exhibition.
  • All California children have opportunities to visit state parks as part of class-related trips and virtual visits through school-connected technology.
  • Educational materials and/or curriculum for highlighting or incorporating state parks in core content standards—especially math, science, and history classes—are available to all California educators.
  • All California youth have opportunities to play, learn, and explore the outdoors in state parks.
• Safeguard Resources

  VISION STATEMENT: California’s state parks safeguard irreplaceable natural and cultural resources and utilize contemporary science and management practices to ensure their protection and preservation for the future.

  “Protecting resources for the future” is not only a value of the state park system, but also its active, ongoing purpose. Currently, a network of key partners are supporting stewardship goals through natural resource planning, managing conservation easements or other buffer lands adjacent to state parks, helping protect cultural resources, and more. Those partnerships can be used even more effectively to take advantage of contemporary resource stewardship data and expertise that exist in organizations and within scientific institutions.

  Excellence in safeguarding resources will be met when:

  • All state parks are secured by permanent legal protection against development threats and non-mission uses.
  • Regular assessments of natural and cultural resources in all parks are conducted to guide management decisions and resource allocation.
  • A system-wide master plan that addresses current needs and forecasts future needs in the face of climate, environmental, and population change is developed and regularly updated.
  • Every state park has a current park-specific plan and budget that includes resource management, interpretation, cultural, historic resource, facilities management, and public access plans.
  • System-wide resource management is guided by current science-based techniques, best practices, and ongoing research.
  • Expertise of researchers, scientists, academic leaders, and practitioners in natural, cultural, and historic resource fields is actively sought and incorporated into resource management practices in state parks.
• Connect Individuals, Organizations and Partners

  VISION STATEMENT: California’s state parks engage individuals and a broad network of public, private, and non-profit partners in flexible, innovative, and inclusive approaches to protect park resources while delivering a high-quality visitor experience.

  In the face of declining public funding, partnerships with public, non-profit, business and community groups are more important than ever. Partners can provide long-term stability, engage the local community, encourage stewardship and land management practices, provide assistance with maintenance and acquisitions, and provide a voice for the parks. California’s state parks can become a “hub” for collaboration among recreational, conservation, or cultural and historic preservation entities and systems. Successful and effective partnerships that fully engage local communities, non-profit supporting organizations, concessionaires, and others are fundamental to the future success of California’s state parks.

  Excellence in connecting individuals, organizations, and partners will be met when:

  • All partners to the state park system have capacity, leadership, and mission-related expertise to add value to resource protection and/or visitor service goals.
  • All visitor-facing park employees and park partners are trained in visitor service and prioritize visitor experience and hospitality within their career paths.
  • All state parks welcome volunteers to assist with visitor services, interpretation, education, and resource protection and restoration.
  • Concession and park business opportunities are aligned with visitor needs and encourage visitor use and resource protection goals.
  • Local businesses, community groups, key stakeholder groups, leaders, and residents are involved in decisions about enhancing, changing, and improving park facilities and services.
  • Creative, entrepreneurial, and inclusive approaches to park operations are encouraged through flexibility and incentives for locally based decision making.
  • Philanthropic organizations and partners collaborate with state parks to identify programs and projects that will enhance park uses and complement core park services.

Making this vision a reality will require dedication and collaboration among the public, the non-profit sector, businesses, institutions, and policymakers within five strategic areas for action:

In addition to the work looking for long-term funding, CSPF has also been working on a new visioning process for the future of California’s state parks, our Park Excellence Project. This project goes beyond simply surveying Californians on their satisfaction with state parks. The goal of the project is to delve into their opinions about the purpose of our state parks and to generate a discussion about state park experiences, programs, and services desired by Californians.

Along with our project partner, Save the Redwoods League, CSPF embarked on that public dialogue in 2010. CSPF members may remember an online survey was conducted in February 2010, which garnered over 6,000 responses. Coupled with a statewide telephone poll, outreach to key park constituency groups, and interviews with experts from other park systems, the survey findings created a wide-ranging picture for what makes up excellence in our state parks. Key themes that emerged include the need for our state parks to continue to protect our heritage, improve ways to welcome visitors, create new opportunities for teaching and educating Californians about the precious natural, cultural and historic resources, and more.