For five years, Berkeley’s Damon :) Guthrie has brought Point Isabel to life in the PIDO Pointer and on our Comics page online. His exclusive cartoons—told through the eyes (and noses) of our four-legged regulars—capture zoomies, squirrel drama, and everyday hilarity, often with a gentle nod to protecting the shoreline we love.

Now it’s your turn: Enter our New Yorker–style caption contest (but with more mud and slobber) at www.pido.org/comics. Damon will judge.

Winner and runners-up earn a fun prize—and major bragging rights.

Submit by May 1.

As a benefit of being a PIDO member, you’re invited to shop the Columbia Sportswear Company Employee Store and receive 40% off full retail pricing from March 6–29, 2026. The store is stocked with the latest gear from Columbia’s family of brands, including Columbia, SOREL, Mountain Hardwear, and prAna.

PIDO members can visit either the Richmond location (at Mountain Hardwear headquarters, 1414 Harbour Way South) or the Union City store. To enter, simply show your digital invite (printed or on your phone) along with proof of affiliation. Each invitee may bring up to four guests per visit. If you are a PIDO memnber and did not receive this offer via email from PIDO,. contact us at info@pido.org.

Note: This offer is valid for in-store access only and is not available online.

PIDO Chair Diane Livoti wrote a feature that appeared in Bay Woof: Point Isabel Regional Shoreline may be small, but it’s the busiest park that allows dogs off leash in the East Bay—and making it work takes skill.

In 2023, Point Isabel Dog Owners (PIDO) launched Off-leash Skills 101, a free, 90-minute training workshop held right in the park to help dogs and their people navigate off-leash life safely and successfully. Created with veteran trainer Birgit Hafermann, the program focuses on essentials like recall, awareness, and preventing conflicts.

The next of these small, free sessions are tentatively scheduled, pending permits, for April 25 and June 13, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. near Mudpuppy's Tub & Scrub. Professional dog trainer Birgit Hafermann shares tips and techniques for successful off-leash dog walking. Email skills@pido.org to reserve a spot or get on the waiting list.

Participate in one of two East Bay Regional Park District plan engagement webinars for community organizations and members of the public in Ward 1 – West Contra Costa County. These interactive sessions will focus on training participants to use District Plan engagement tools, share feedback, and help spread these tools within your organizations and communities.

Webinar dates (10:00–11:30am):
Thursday, January 22 – Register here
Tuesday, March 10 – Register here

The Park District recognizes that community members and organizations engage with EBRPD in different ways and at different levels. The engagement tools—including a questionnaire and budgeting activity—are designed to support meaningful discussion across those varying levels. While these tools are the primary way to provide input during this phase, feedback is always welcome via email at DistrictPlan@ebparks.org.

Richmondside Reporter Zack Haber covered the North Point Isabel Cap Resilience Project that is being spearheaded by East Bay Regional Parks. Haber spoke with several PIDO board members including Lew Jacobson and AJ Benham.

“Where else can you go with this kind of acreage on the water and let your dog play off-leash?” Benham told Richmondside. “It’s just such a unique combination of a beautiful environment, dogs can play here, and everyone gets along, generally.”

Haber further detailed different perspectives on the project, including from PIDO member Mary Barnsdale and director of conservation for the Golden Gate Bird Alliance, Whitney Grover.

The full story by Haber which also provides critical historical context can be found here.

Through a funding partnership with California State Parks, the proposed project seeks to beautify and improve the project site’s resilience to sea level rise by enhancing the existing remedial cap to provide long-term, sustainable recreational use of the park through effective grading, drainage, and planting to prevent soil erosion.

You can read the complete proposal here: https://ceqanet.lci.ca.gov

Public Comments are accepted until 10/20/2025.

See PIDO’s comment submitted to EBRPD here.

San Francisco Chronicle reporter Peter Hartlaub writes that a mistaken bike trip leads to a delightful discovery of Point Isabel Regional Shoreline—an expansive, off-leash haven for dogs and their humans, reclaimed from industrial waste.

Hartlaub interviewed several PIDO board members: “When I come to Point Isabel, I feel like I’m walking on history,” said Sam Goldsmith, with his German pinscher, Dolma. “There were a lot of human interactions to create what we have. And that feels so special.”

Once marred by pollution and neglect, Point Isabel is now a thriving, community-driven sanctuary with scenic views, local charm, and a heartwarming spirit of canine camaraderie.

The feature story appeared on the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle, May 17, 2025.

Several years ago, EBRPD’s Regional Parks Foundation granted $10,000 to PIDO to help with the production of a history of the Point Isabel area from prehistory up to the park’s 50th anniversary this year. From July through September of 2025, the Point Isabel History Project is making the draft available for comments, corrections, and additions. The final document will be available in 2026.

To review the draft and learn about any 50th Anniversary celebrations at the park, visit www.point-isabel-history.org.

El Cerrito Historical Society is hosting a free talk by Mary Barnsdale about the project at 7 p.m. on April 10 at Hana Gardens Senior Center, 10870 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito. The event is free and will serve light refreshments. (map)