Contacts

Mail:
Friends of Bidwell Park
PO Box 4837
Chico, CA 95927

e-mail:
Information: info@FriendsOfBidwellPark.org
Webmaster: web@FriendsOfBidwellPark.org

Friends of Bidwell Park Frequently Asked Questions

Who are Friends of Bidwell Park?

Friends of Bidwell Park (FOBP) is a park advocacy organization, formed in April of 2003. Our focus is on preserving and protecting the natural resources of Bidwell Park, increasing the volunteer opportunities in the park, and community outreach focusing on providing education about the park's natural resources.  Currently, we are not a membership organization because we don't have the resources to manage membership lists, arrange for regular member meetings, write and distribute newsletters, etc. We received our IRS 501(c)(3) non-profit designation in January 2004.

If you're not a membership organization, who are the "Friends" in Friends of Bidwell Park?

Anyone who volunteers in the park or contributes to organizations that directly help the park can be a Friend of Bidwell Park. We try to facilitate volunteerism and encourage donations by letting people know how they can help the park, via information on our web site. We work closely with the City of Chico in supporting volunteer efforts in the park.

How do you spend the money that's donated to FOBP?

Most of our early donations were used to pay the fees and administrative costs associated with setting up a new non-profit organization. Donations have been spent on supplies and specialized tools that we need in order to be efficient in our invasive plant removal program. These tools are available for use by other organizations and individuals when we're not using them. We purchased an inexpensive GPS units to map rare plant species and invasive plants.  In 2007, we sponsored a free CEQA workshop that was attended by 27 individuals including members of the Chico Avenues Neighborhood Association, Altalcal Audubon, Sierra Club, Butte Environmental Council, City of Chico staff, Mechoopda tribal members, and others.  We'v paid the registration fees for our board members and others to attend workshops, seminars, & symposiums so that they can learn more about natural resource management.  We've donated money to the Park Division to help pay for a park intern position, buy native plants and a water pump, pay for debris boxes for major invasive plant removal projects, and help pay for removal of Spanish broom. In 2010, we're paying for quarterly aerial photos of Upper Park to provide baseline information about park conditions.  Here's a summary of our latest financial report.

What has FOBP done so far?

See our list of accomplishments and a list of some of the awards we've received.

What are your plans for the next year?

We'll continue to co-sponsor walks in the park focusing on its natural resources, such as geology, soils, invasive plants, riparian plants, and wildlife. We're trying to increase the number of volunteers for park projects by contacting community organizations to explain the various park volunteer programs. We've proposed a project to remove all the old wire fences in Upper Park. We'll also continue to expand our trash pickup & invasive plant removal programs, and increase the amount of information on our web site. We are also discussing plans to create a Bidwell Park summit that would bring together local environmental groups and others in order to improve collaboration for the benefit of the park.

What projects are you working on now?

See our list of current projects.

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by: Friends of Bidwell Park