Pescadero Community Space

Let's build something great together

Archived announcements can be found at the bottom of this page

When you pause at the corner of Pescadero Creek Road and Stage Road, look out the window.

You may notice a post office and small shops who cater to thousands of visitors each weekend. You may notice picnic tables and strung lights that brighten our restaurant outdoor spaces. You will surely see cyclists, motorcyclists and families enjoying the uniqueness of this special place.

But there’s something missing in our small, coastal community. Bathrooms. A bandstand. A water fountain. A brightly painted mural. Where do the children play? Where do local artisans, farmers and ranchers share their creations? Where does this small community educate, interact with, and celebrate our working men, women, and families?

A Dream Realized

In 1976, 2004 and again in 2019, local community members gathered to engage in a town planning process. These well-organized and inclusive processes documented residents’ desire for many necessary things including accessible, beautiful and functional public spaces with such simple and essential amenities as bathrooms, drinking fountains, trash cans, bike parking, a playground and a place for Farmers Markets and food trucks.

Something for all of us, right in the heart of town.

Imagine the Possibilities

And now the community has an opportunity to realize this long-awaited dream. Thanks to the support of Supervisor Don Horsley, the county has secured a location in downtown Pescadero for the design and creation of our very own community gathering space.

Join the Effort

Have an idea or comment?! Let us know at ideas@pescaderoplaza.com

We’re inviting all community members and friends of Pescadero to contribute their wisdom, time, and skills to bring our special gathering place to life. Your contribution is valuable! We will use this site for updates and calls for action. Bookmark it and Stay tuned – be ready to engage via meetings and surveys – gather your thoughts, ideas, and advice. Think about what you want / need in this space.

Phase I Activities:

Community Space site identified
Site Purchased

Phase II Activities:

Form a community team to work with our partners to design and develop the community space
Fundraising Community Capital as needed

Time Line

Share Your Thoughts Here

Have a great idea for a community space feature?! Scroll the gallery and then share your ideas, thoughts or advice in the comments below.

Idea Gallery

Announcements Archive:

Announcement 04.04.24

We did it!

The Community Space steering committee, representing Pescadero's diverse residents, has gathered significant input from the community. Through various outreach efforts, 620 residents from all walks of life, including students and those in agriculture, shared their perspectives. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with a remarkable 93.5% approval rate for building a community space. Thank you to those who responded.

This project directly aligns with many of the critical needs identified in the 2019 Planning Process. We will look to provide things like much-needed public restrooms, convenient trash, and recycling receptacles, and, most importantly, a community-designed gathering space that could host things like farmers' markets, makers' spaces, and other things that locals want. Additionally, we may be able to enhance the current county right-of-way parking lot, potentially expanding its capacity, and solving ongoing structural and use issues.

This project has the support of the PMAC, previous and current San Mateo County District 3 Supervisors, Senator Becker, Assemblymember Berman, and Congresswoman Eshoo. This broad backing underscores the project's far-reaching appeal.

Many more opportunities for community input are coming soon. Well done Pescadero!

Announcement 03.06.24

Help Shape Pescadero's Future!

The Pescadero Community Space Survey is now open! Whether you live, work, or go to school in Pescadero, Loma Mar, La Honda, or San Gregorio, your voice matters.

This short survey will help us understand whether to move forward with your vision. Your feedback will be crucial in determining what happens next for this exciting project.

Take the survey and make your mark! Click here for the survey or scan the QR code above. Please respond by March 25th.

Together, we can build something special for our community!

You can also email your ideas or questions to ideas@pescaderoplaza.com or choose the chat option below.

Announcement 2.29.24

On February 26th, the Pescadero Community Space steering committee held its third meeting. We started two community outreach subcommittees. One focused on creating an outreach survey and one focused on how to share and deliver the survey.

Our next meeting will focus on what the two subcommittees accomplished.

Email your ideas or questions to ideas@pescaderoplaza.com or choose the chat option below.

Announcement 2.22.24

On February 12th, the Pescadero Community Space steering committee held its second meeting. It was a productive review of the current project. Our next meeting will focus on how to conduct community outreach to confirm what the community wants in this special place. Keep an eye out for opportunities to share your opinions on what we as a community can build here. Stay tuned to this site for further updates.

Email your ideas or questions to ideas@pescaderoplaza.com or choose the chat option below.

Announcement 2.2.24

On Jan 25, 2024, we held the PCS steering committee kick-off meeting. We received an update from SMC County Parks Director Nicholas Calderon. We talked about how we got here and then got to work on establishing the logistics of working together and the initial next steps.

Stay tuned to this site for further updates.

Email your ideas or questions to ideas@pescaderoplaza.com or choose the chat option below.

11.2.2023

We appreciate your patience while coordinating with SMC Parks to set up the Pescadero Community

Space (PCS) "kick-off" meeting. SMC Parks is working on crafting some interim community outreach. Once we have the SMC Parks plan, we’ll schedule the kick-off meeting.

Again, we appreciate your patience while we wait for this important next step from SMC Parks.

Please stay tuned for more information and meeting invitations.

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8.26.2023

We had a great Q&A meeting at the site on Wednesday, Aug 23rd. Lots of ideas were shared, and lots of concerns brought to light. So much potential. Stay tuned as we finalize the formation of the steering committee.

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8.26.23

Community Space Steering Committee Formation Q&A Aug 23, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

The meeting will take place outside on the Community Space Lot, formerly the Dias lot at the SouthWest corner of Stage Road and Pescadero Creek Road. The county has purchased this lot and SMC Parks Department will be developing it as a Community Space, with a $2 million gift from the state. A core group of local volunteers has been working to form an equitable Steering Committee to lead bilingual outreach and community engagement for the project. The Steering Committee will be collecting community feedback about the project from all corners of the community and presenting it to the Board of Supervisors and the Parks Department throughout the design and construction of the project. Please feel free to bring a folding chair if you wish, otherwise this will be a "stand-up" meeting. This is an opportunity for anyone who has already applied or is considering applying to join the Steering Committee for the Community Space Project to ask questions, although since we are building this plane as we fly it, we can't guarantee we can answer them all yet!

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3.6.23

This is happening!

We’re in the process of contracting with a facilitator to help us Identify stakeholder groups and recommend a structure to ensure the steering committee we create reflects an inclusive and equitable representation of voices across the community. They will help the committee members develop a shared understanding of vision, purpose, roles, and desired outcomes through a participatory process and assist in creating policies and best practices for structure, self-governance, decision-making, accountability, and conflict resolution. They’ll provide guidance for envisioning a robust, inclusive, and equitable public engagement process and they’ll help us develop an RFP for solicitation of full public engagement and project design/development consultants and coordinate contractual requirements with County representatives.

Project timeline coming soon.

Questions or comments? Email us at ideas@pescaderoplaza.com.

You can also share your thoughts here or scroll to the bottom of this page.

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11.10.22

On November 1st, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors under the leadership of Board President Don Horsley unanimously approved the purchase of the corner lot at Pescadero Creek Rd and Stage Rd. This lot will be the future site of a community space for Pescadero. This is just the beginning of something amazing for our community.

Stay tuned for more information such as - How will community engagement be conducted, how will property ownership/responsibility be managed, and how will what we create be maintained.

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10.5.22

On 11/1 The SMC Board of Supervisors could approve the purchase of the property at the corner of Stage Rd and Pescadero Creek Rd for the future development of a Community Space. If approved, the County, in partnership with us and our area stakeholders will design and develop this space through a series of community outreach and development meetings. Our neighborhood: residents, farmers, ranchers, students, and businesses, will decide what our community needs and builds in this community-driven space. Whether you support or oppose this opportunity, it’s important that your voice is heard. Please consider sending your comments to boardfeedback@smcgov.org or attending the Board of Supervisors meeting in person in the county chambers (400 County Center RWC).

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8.1.22

Great news! The community space project has secured an additional $2 million dollars and now has $3 million dollars in total to purchase the land and build a space for our community. Thank you to CA Assembly member Berman and San Mateo County Supervisor Horsley for their continued support and engagement.

We’re waiting to see what property(s) the County will be able to purchase for this project and how we will structure a community engaged steering committee in partnership with and guidance from San Mateo County and our other community stakeholders.

We’re also partnering with Puente, one of our most integral local stakeholders for leadership, guidance, and advice as we prepare for this exciting project.

Stay tuned here for further updates or attend Sustainable Pescadero and PMAC meetings for more info.