Upcoming Events

Alhambra Watershed Council
Meetings are typically held on the first Tuesday of the month. However, the group confirms meetings on a month-to-month basis. Contact Elaine Jackson if you have questions.
We are currently working on several implementation projects. Interested community members are always welcome at planning group meetings. Come and share your ideas!

    Next meeting:
    Tuesday, August 5th, 2008 from 6:30 - 8:30 PM
    Contra Costa County Public Works Dept.
    Conference room adjacent to front entry
    255 Glacier Drive, Martinez

Martinez Flood Task Force meets the last Tuesday of the month, 6 – 7 pm at City Hall, 525 Henrietta St., Martinez. Contact City Engineer Tim Tucker for more info. at ttucker@cityofmartinez.org

Friends of Alhambra Creek meets the 4th Tuesdays, from 7-9 pm at Martinez City Hall Board Room, 525 Henrietta Street, Martinez.
See agenda. Activities: GPS mapping information and Oral History Project
Information brochures: "Living With Alhambra Creek" and FOAC in the news.

    For more information, go to www.cocowaterweb.org or contact friendsofac@california.com.

Alhambra Valley Creek Coalition Meeting
Contact Jamie Menasco at 370-1808 or avcc@softcom.net

Planting days at Sky Ranch - Contact Muir Heritage Land Trust for information at (925) 228-5460.

Strentzel Meadow Restoration Days
Join Friends of Alhambra Creek at their ongoing restoration days on the first and third Saturdays of every month, 9 am – 12 noon, at Strentzel Meadow. A beautiful meadow adjacent to Mt. Wanda, Strentzel Meadow is owned by the National Park Service and is being restored as part of a project intended to reduce flooding in the surrounding neighborhood, improve water quality and provide wildlife habitat. (See photos #1, #2, #3, #4, #5 .)

For information contact Elaine Jackson

Click for directions to Strentzel Meadow

Prior Events

  • Alhambra Creek Cleanup - Saturday, April 29, 2006 at Martinez Adult Education Campus
  • Sky Ranch Project Celebration - Friday, December 9th, 2005
  • Growing Native Plants for Creekbanks - Tues., October 4th, 2005

  • Alhambra Creek and Coastal Clean-up - Saturday, September 17, 2005
  • GPS Mapping of Alhambra Creek
  • Creek Stewardship Workshop - September 19th, 2005

  • The Alhambra Creek Restoration and Environmental Education Collaborative Project held a Groundbreaking Ceremony on October 22 at the Martinez Adult & Continuing Education Ctr. Representative George Miller, Senator Tom Torlakson, Assemblyman Joe Canciamilla, Supervisor Gayle Uilkema and Mayor Rob Schroeder attended. For more information contact Beth Pardieck)


    Resources

    Alhambra Watershed Council Brochure

    Mason Creek Study

    Alhambra Creek Watershed Flooding and Downtown Revitalization

    Information about native plants suitable for home gardens, and non-native invasive plants to avoid

    Alhambra Creek Watershed Management Plan (April 2001)
    Available on CD, hard copy or in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.
    This 242-page document is the product of the three years of work by the Alhambra Creek Watershed Planning Group. The document has a wealth of information about Alhambra Creek and is illustrated with color maps and photos.

    To use the CD you will need a PC with MS Word and a CD-ROM drive. We recommend that you copy the 140 MB Word document to your hard drive for easier access. To obtain a CD, please contact Lisa Anich (925) 672-6522 x 110.

    Alhambra Creek Watershed Plan - Goals and Recommendations Table

    The Alhambra Watershed Management Plan Appendices is a comprehensive companion to the Plan with natural resource information (water, geology, soils, and wildlife biology) as well as watershed enhancement guides and resources. Unfortunately, the Appendices are not available in electronic form. However, the Appendices can be borrowed from Contra Costa RCD.

    About the Alhambra Creek Watershed

    Alhambra Creek Watershed Map
    (A new map published in 2003 is available. The map includes orth photos and shaded relief views of the watersehd, 50 and 100-year floodplains, restoration projects, trails and open space. It can be obtained from Lisa Anich)

    The Alhambra Creek Watershed covers approximately 16.5 square miles in north central Contra Costa County in Northern California and encompasses a portion of the City of Martinez. Currently, land in the upper Alhambra Creek Watershed is used for parks and recreation, grazing, tree farming, and semi-rural living. The main stem of Alhambra Creek flows through open space, wildlife habitat, residential neighborhoods and commercial area. Valley floors of the upper watershed are residential/agricultural and the lower sections are residential/commercial. The creek passes through downtown Martinez and then discharges into the Carquinez Straits through a tidal wetland. There are no reservoirs and no heavy industry in the watershed. An oil refinery is located just over the ridge to the east, and two railroads and a freeway cross the watershed.

    About the Alhambra Creek Watershed Plan

    In November 1995, the Environmental Alliance, a local non-profit organization, asked the Contra Costa Resource Conservation District for assistance in preparing a watershed management plan for Alhambra Creek. The two organizations began to build community support and seek funding to support a planning group.

    The City of Martinez had experienced flooding on a yearly basis and had been searching for solutions to this problem for many years. The floods of 1996 galvanized the people of Alhambra Creek watershed. The town of Martinez experienced heavy damage and the upper watershed was damaged by severe erosion, flooding and silting. The community realized that to solve these problems the entire watershed system needed to be evaluated.

    The stakeholders in the watershed were identified and asked to participate through the Coordinated Resource Management and Planning (CRMP) process, forming the Alhambra Creek Watershed Planning Group. A diverse group of stakeholders contributed to the plan:

    RanchersEnvironmental Alliance
    FarmersCattlemen’s Association
    ResidentsMuir Heritage Land Trust
    East Bay Regional Park DistrictAlhambra Valley Improvement Association
    National Park ServiceFriends of Alhambra Creek
    City of MartinezMartinez Chamber of Commerce
    Contra Costa CountyUrban Creeks Council
    Contra Costa Resource Conservation DistrictContra Costa Flood Protection and Water Conservation District
    Citizens Land AllianceEnvironmentalists
    Central Contra Costa Sanitary DistrictContra Costa Farm Bureau
    TeachersHomeowners
    Business OwnersMunicipal workers

    From 1996 to April 2001, the planning group received grants from the California Department of Conservation, the Contra Costa Clean Water Program, and CALFED to fund the salary of the Watershed Coordinator and to pay publication and meeting costs. The watershed plan was published in April 2001. At that point the group changed its name to the Alhambra Watershed Action Group. The group is now working towards implementing the plan's goals.

    Goals Presented in the Alhambra Creek Watershed Management Plan

    1. Reduce flood damage and conserve stormwater.
    2. Prevent excessive erosion and conserve soil resources.
    3. Protect and improve water quality.
    4. Reduce wildland fire damage.
    5. Encourage coordination of City and County General and Specific Plans with each other using the watershed as a planning unit.
    6. Support economically and environmentally sustainable land uses while protecting private property rights.
    7. Promote a sense of a watershed community.
    8. Maintain and restore fish and wildlife habitat and native plant communities consistent with environmentally and economically sustainable land use.
    9. Maintain and enhance the quality of life by providing increased opportunities to appreciate and enjoy watershed resources.

    • Contact

    Carol Arnold
    925-672-6522 x106

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