Information on Sacramento County Park and Recreation Districts
Recreation services are provided in Sacramento County by five different types of governmental entities: dependent park districts, independent park districts, county service areas, cities, and the County Regional Park System. There are thirteen Park Districts, two County Service Areas, three City Parks Departments, and one County Regional Park System. The enabling legislation for recreation and park districts is contained in Public Resources Code Section 5780 et. seq. The enabling legislation for County Service Areas is contained in Government Code Section 25200.
Although park districts have the statutory power to provide for the maintenance and operation of a fire department, garbage collection and disposal, and street lighting, all park agencies within Sacramento County restrict themselves solely to the provision of park and recreation facilities and programs. Park agencies range in size from one square mile (Arden Manor Park District) to seventy five square miles (Cordova Park District). The City of Sacramento park and community services department has a service area of ninety four square miles.
Park and recreation agencies developed in Sacramento County in three phases. During the first phase, which spans the fifteen-year period from 1935 to 1950, four districts were formed pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 5780. Each of these districts was formed as a dependent district, i.e., the Board of Supervisors acts ex officio as governing body of the district and establishes general policy and approves the annual budget. Each of these districts has an appointed advisory board, which handles day-to-day affairs and supervises overall operation.
The second phase of the park and recreation lasted from 1950 to 1959. During this period, eight recreation and park districts were formed. However, in each case these districts have complete autonomy with elected boards of directors and are totally independent of the County of Sacramento and the Board of Supervisors.
The final phase, from 1960 to the present, realized the creation of eight County Service Areas. Today only two remain (CSA #3 and CSA #4 – Zones B, C, and D). The other six were dissolved during the park agency reorganization of 1970-71, or subsequent reorganizations and their respective territories were annexed to or formed into autonomous or dependent park districts.
The Board of Supervisors acts as the governing body of each remaining County Service
Area; therefore, a County Service Area can be likened to a dependent park district.
Sacramento County Park and Recreation Districts
