An additional 153-acres have been added to Big Basin Redwoods State Park in Boulder Creek – the first expansion of the park in 15 years. This permanent expansion of this land – called the NoraBella Property – was made possible through a $2.415 million acquisition from the Sempervirens Fund, a non-profit organization that works to protect and preserve coast redwood forests, wildlife habitat, watersheds, and other natural features of the Santa Cruz Mountains.
The acquisition is significant, especially in light of the park’s regrowth following the CZU Lightning Complex fires in August 2020 which burned over 97 percent of Big Basin, California’s oldest state park, founded in 1902. Eventually Santa Cruz-based Verve Coffee Roasters co-founder Colby Barr purchased the property from Santa Cruz County in June 2020 and the Sempervirens Fund acquired it from Colby in February 2021. Portions of the NoraBella property offer locations to build some of the park’s necessary operations facilities, making the acquisition important for rebuilding the park as well as for conservation. California State Parks staff are working collaboratively to establish a new vision for the park, new management plans for the park’s natural resources, a new facilities plan to guide rebuilding the park’s future infrastructure, and a forthcoming trails plan to guide the park’s renewed recreational experiences for visitors.