Anna Jean Cummings Park is a 95 acres (38 ha) park located in unincorporated Santa Cruz County, at 461 Old San Jose Road, Soquel, California, that opened in the summer of 2001 on the former O'Neill Ranch.[1][2][3] [4] Its nickname is "Blue Ball Park" for the art installation of "Skyballs" by Steve Gillman and Katherine Keefer, a series of four sky-blue 8-foot diameter spheres that appear to roll down the coastal prairie terrace.[5]
| Anna Jean Cummings Park | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | 461 Old San Jose Road, Soquel, California |
| Nearest city | Soquel, California |
| Coordinates | 36°59′41″N 121°57′34″W / 36.99472°N 121.95944°W |
| Area | 95 acres (38 ha) |
| Created | 2001 |
| Operated by | Santa Cruz County Parks Department |
The lower bench has a lawn, picnic pavilion, playground, and restrooms. The upper bench has natural turf baseball/softball diamonds and soccer fields, more restrooms, and a walking/jogging path that circumnavigates the playfields.
The rest of the park is rare coastal prairie, grassland, and riparian habitat with a meandering trail network. Rare and endangered species have been observed in the park,[6][7][8] according to the February 1995 O'Neill Ranch Master Plan Draft Environmental Impact Report.
The park is named after Anna Jean Cummings, a former executive director of the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County.[9]
References
edit- ^ "Anna Jean Cummings Park". Capitola-Soquel Patch. Archived from the original on July 31, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
- ^ "Anna Jean Cummings Park". Great-Kids-Parks.com. Archived from the original on July 17, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
- ^ "Anna Jean Cummings Park". Santa Cruz County Parks Department. Archived from the original on 2008-09-18.
- ^ "Friends of Anna Jean Cummings Park". Archived from the original on 2014-10-10. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
- ^ "Anna Jean Cummings Park". Santa Cruz County Parks Department. Archived from the original on 2014-04-01.
- ^ "O'Neill Ranch". Santa Cruz Birding Guide. Archived from the original on July 17, 2014. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
- ^ Birds of Anna Jean Cummings Park at Flickr.com
- ^ Anna Jean Cummings Park species listing on iNaturalist.org
- ^ "Co-Founder and current Board President John Gilchrist looks back on 30 years of land protection". Landmarks newsletter. Land Trust of Santa Cruz County. Fall 2008. Archived from the original on 2012-07-18. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
- Bookwalter, Genevieve (February 17, 2010). "Soquel residents skeptical of new soccer fields at Anna Jean Cummings". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Archived from the original on November 6, 2010. Retrieved July 14, 2014.