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Albany residents press council to pull Ocean View Park meadow from sand volleyball proposal
Summary
Dozens of residents urged the Albany City Council to remove the Ocean View Park meadow from consideration for a permanent sand volleyball court, citing loss of rare open space, impacts to redwood roots and parking. City staff said the project is on hold while staff studies alternative locations and further analysis.
Dozens of Albany residents told the City Council on Oct. 6 that a proposed permanent sand volleyball court at Ocean View Park would remove one of the few remaining unprogrammed meadow spaces west of San Pablo Avenue and could damage mature redwoods.
The comments came during the public-comment period, where multiple residents said they had collected signatures opposing siting the court in the meadow and asked the city to relocate the project and conduct broader community outreach.
The mayor and city manager acknowledged the concerns and said the volleyball proposal would be paused. City Manager Nicole said staff is taking additional time to analyze locations across the city and will report back; she said any Ocean View Park project for volleyball is "on hold" while staff examines alternatives.
The strongest public opposition came from speakers who said the meadow is a rare open green refuge adjacent to a redwood grove. Yishan, speaking for a community group, said opposition now exceeds 500 signatures and asked the council to "please relocate the court to a more suitable sustainable site and instead invest those tax dollars in restoring and aerating the green meadow, helping our Redwoods continue to strive for future generations of Albany residents." Joe Matera, another resident, said the meadow already hosts two permanent grass-volleyball poles and that installing a sand court would require excavating about three feet of soil and could harm horizontal redwood roots and create maintenance problems with falling needles.
Speakers also raised parking and equity concerns, saying Ocean View Park is heavily used for picnic, playground, tennis/pickleball and ball fields and that west-of-San Pablo neighborhoods lack comparable parkland. Several speakers suggested upgrading the existing grass volleyball area with a permanent net as a lower-impact alternative.
City staff acknowledged the concerns and reiterated that more analysis is under way. The city manager said staff will consider alternative locations and further community outreach before advancing any specific design for the meadow area.
The council did not take formal action on the project at the Oct. 6 meeting; staff were directed to continue the analysis and report back to the council when ready.
Looking ahead, the city manager and parks staff signaled interest in a public forum or joint meetings with resident groups to lay out design options and mitigation measures should the project resume consideration.
