Ojai's Cluff Vista Park

Created 19 January 2006

There is a small, special park in downtown Ojai:   Cluff Vista Park.   This little triangle-shaped park is unique in every way.   The plants in this park are almost entirely plants native to the Ojai Valley and surrounding mountains, with a few native to further reaches of California, and only two species that are not native to California.

The land on which this park sits had been vacant for nearly a decade, formerly the site of Adamson's Shell gas station.   The underground fuel tanks under the station's gasoline tanks had leaked for years, contaminating the soil, and threatening to also contaminate the groundwater aquifer, which is used for domestic purposes.   The gas station was closed and torn down, and the soil began a long, slow remediation process to reduce the contamination to acceptable levels.   But the land was vacant, with a chainlink fence around it, and not at all attractive.   Longer ago, a row of small cottages lined the east side of Rincon Street, behind Adamson's Shell.   Those were torn down years before the gas station was razed.

It was decided in 2001 by a number of Ojai citizens, including Shiela and Don Cluff and leaders of the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy and city council, that this small piece of property would be a good spot for a little park, and the seed was planted.   Money was raised, designs drawn, plant palettes made, and decisions made, led by the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy.   The community came forth with money donated to the cause, the city worked to purchase the property, and the plans sprouted.   Bostrom & Associates with Van Atta Associates landscape architects designed the new park.   I provided a long list of plants indigenous to the Ojai Valley and surrounding mountains, and the park took shape on paper and in the minds of the designers.   With the final design selected, Orion Landscaping won the contract to install the landscaping, and they continue to maintain the park.   A dedication ceremony was held in 2002, with the whole town turning out, and now, we have this wonderful park, named in honor of the most generous donors, the Cluffs.

The park has several garden themes and landscape aspects, including a butterfly garden, a riparian (streamside) landscape, a sage-scented garden, a grass meadow, and other themed gardens; seven gardens in all.   There is also a Discovery Trail, Donor Plaza, and the two trellised paths.   The park has two fountains, symbolizing the sun and the moon, connected by an ephemeral stream.

This webpage provides some photographs of what this park looks like today, in November 2005 and January 2006, and provides a good overview of the features of this unique park.   However, it is so much better to visit the park in person, where you can touch, and smell the fragrances of each plant, to watch the butterflies and hummingbirds feed on the nectar of the wildflowers, to listen to the water of the two fountains, and to stroll along the various meandering paths that link the various themed gardens together.   You will also find native wildlife tracks in the walkways and path borders.

And as a little game, see if you can find one major difference with the park design with how it actually is.   Hint: look not within but on the periphery to see it more clearly, and none of the photos show this clearly.   To improve your changes, there are actually three features to choose from (maybe even more).   Send me you answer via email (found somewhere on this website).   An aerial photo of the park taken in 2003 is provided below for comparison.

Links to Additional Cluff Vista Park webpages

Links to other Ojai websites featuring Cluff Vista Park

Scenes from in and around Cluff Vista Park

This first page provides an overview of the park, with a sampling of the different features of this unique park.   Additional pages that follow provide a more in-depth study of each of the park features.

Overlook Circle