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The Knowland Park dumps, and the Alice in Wonderland world of zoo assurances: Where is the ‘stewardship’?

Zoo debris dumped in Knowland Park

During hearings on the zoo’s expansion development project, Friends of Knowland Park and other environmental groups repeatedly raised the issue of lack of proper stewardship of Knowland Park, and lack of city oversight of the zoo’s management of Park resources. Despite the fact that the zoo is paid by the city to be stewards over the entirety of Knowland Park, it has never really even acknowledged the Park as a Park.

In addition to raising the issue of inadequate monitoring and control of invasive plant species in the Park, the Friends submitted color photos and Google Earth images showing multiple dump sites in the Park, including manure dumping near the site identified for the proposed interpretive center building and restaurant. In its response, the zoo denied dumping manure at all and did not even address the manure dumping at the interpretive center site, focusing instead on a composting area near the veterinary hospital site. However, the manure pile at the former site was mysteriously removed sometime during the weeks immediately following this meeting. Continue Reading →

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Bad News for Knowland Park: Judge Grillo Decides Zoo Expansion Plan Is Not a New Project

This heritage Coast Live Oak, Oakland's namesake, will be cut down to make room for the Interpretive Center.

Yesterday Judge Evelio Grillo issued his final ruling in our lawsuit, stating that the Zoo’s current expansion plan into Knowland Park is merely a modification of the 1998 Amended Master Plan project.   Sometimes in the court of law it’s possible  to find that up is down and black is white.  Such is the case here.  Our attorneys – Shute, Mihaly, & Weinberger – argued eloquently that the Zoo’s plan, which adds a veterinary hospital and an aerial gondola, quadruples the size of the Interpretive Center, and includes other major changes that were detailed in our briefs, results in a new project.  In the end, the court disagreed, and the accompanying photos show who loses as a result of the court’s decision.

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Extra! Extra! Stop the Presses! After over four years of pressure, City lists Knowland Park on its Parks Website

After over four years of pressuring City elected officials and staff to allow the public to know that Knowland Park exists, Friends of Knowland Park today celebrate a small victory: the Park is FINALLY listed on the City’s website: (http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/opr/s/Parks/index.htm).

Part of the list of Oakland's 128 Parks. Only four are linked to web pages containing further information.

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