Park of the Week: Memorial Park

One of San Ramon's biggest prides and joys is the city's amazing park system. Our city has a whopping 53 parks spread throughout our vast community, ranging from small neighborhood playgrounds to multi-acre, multi-feature parks.

Each week we'll be highlighting one of our city parks, showing you photos, listing park features, and telling you what's special about them. We have so many parks that it will take Patch more than a year to profile each of them. So if you have a special park you'd like featured next, let us know!

Park of the Week: Memorial Park

In addition to being one of the largest in San Ramon's park system, Memorial Park is also one of its most treasured. The City planned to name the park Alta Mesa Park but, during construction, the City Council elected to change the name to Memorial Park in honor of San Ramon resident, Tom Burnett, and the other victims of Flight 93 who were killed in the September 11, 2001, attacks.

The park was dedicated on September 11, 2002, and a commemorative plaque was placed at the base of a flagpole at the park's cornerstone. The surrounding meadow is home to a grove of memorial trees in remembrance of other locals who have passed.

The rest of Memorial Park's 16 acres are filled with an abundance of recreational activities. Adjacent to the flagpole is a full-size baseball field where San Ramon Valley Little Leaguers step up to the plate. Hungry players and their fans can enjoy a post-game barbecue in the shaded picnic area found a slight walk up the hill from the diamond.

Memorial Park also features two playgrounds, one designed for older children and another for toddlers. Combined, the play areas have plenty of new equipment for kids to climb over, slide down or swing on.

While children play, adults can relax on several surrounding park benches or play a game of bocce ball on the court nearby.

Memorial Park is also home to San Ramon's popular BMX Track. The track, popular with riders of all ages, is free and open to the public for recreational use, dawn to dusk, daily except during scheduled races.

For animal lovers the highlight of the park is the 1.3 acre dog run and dog park, with designated areas for small and large pups. In the dog days of summer owners will appreciate the area's shaded canopy, which offers some respite from the sun and the sand storms created by canine cavorting. Note that kids under five aren't allowed inside the dog park for safety reasons, so make sure to plan accordingly if you are bringing pets. 

Have you visited Memorial Park? What's your favorite thing to do there? What do you wish the park offered that it doesn't? Share your views with other Patch readers by adding your comment in the box below.