Richmond Greenway
The Richmond Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle path in Richmond, California.[1]
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Route
It runs along what was formerly the right-of way of the Santa Fe Railroad parallel to Ohio Avenue, between the end of the Ohlone Greenway adjacent to the intersection of Macdonald and San Pablo Avenues, and Point Richmond.[1] There is a connector from the trail to the Macdonald 80 Shopping Center in the North & East neighborhood.
The trail is landscaped with community gardens, native vegetation, daylighted portions of Baxter Creek, and an artificial creek channel used to filter pollution along its frontage.[1]
In the future, it may connect in Point Richmond with a bikeway through Point Molate. Pedestrian bridges may be added in the future to cross major avenues such as San Pablo Avenue and 23rd Street. An additional side project will add a bike lane/bike trail between the Richmond Greenway and the Ohlone Greenway at Potrero Avenue via 23rd Street, Carlson Boulevard, Cutting Boulevard, and Potrero.[2]
History
Beginning in 1904, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway lines carried freight through the city of Richmond.[3] These transit networks enabled much of Richmond's considerable industrial activity. As a result, the Richmond Greenway was host to numerous "environmental hardships."[4]
During the late 1960s Richmond resident Lillie Mae Jones became a Greenway activist, working to turn the right of way of the former Santa Fe Rail Line.[5] She organized community cleanups, created a garden and an animal farm, and took groups of children to the Greenway to teach them about nature and pollution. Ms. Jones's advocacy "made possible the park we enjoy today." [6]
In 2006, an organization called Friends of the Richmond Greenway started organizing community events, advocating for the trail's expansion and helping with maintenance. The organization's mission is "to serve as a collaborative of local organizations and community members that work together to transform the Richmond Greenway into a beautiful and healthy space that meets the diverse needs of our community".[7]
Notes
- Residents Cleanup Greenway. Vanessa Carr. Richmond Confidential. 18-01-2011. Retrieved 21-01-2011.
- Richmond Greenway opens: Trail long time in creation, Contra Costa Times, by John Geluardi, May 15, 2007, retrieved May 25, 2007
- Greenway Description, Rails to Trails Conservancy, retrieved October 15, 2018
- EPA Small Grant Success Story, by Matt Freiberg, 2010, retrieved Oct 15, 2018
- Richmond Activist Lillie Mae Jones Dies, East Bay Times, by Karina Iofee, September 16, 2016, retrieved October 14, 2018
- Pathway of Environmental Justice: Honoring Lillie Mae Jones and the Richmond Greenway, Ebb and Flow, by Sharon Gibbons, August 15, 2017, retrieved October 14, 2018
- http://www.richmondgreenway.org/
External links
