West Sacramento officially reopened Heritage Oaks Park on Thursday, cutting the ribbon on a nine-acre overhaul that weaves tribal history into playground design, splash pads and open green space at 1300 Lake Washington Boulevard. The renovation marks the end of a years-long transformation for a property that once hosted a private zipline course and now returns to the public as a free, city-run gathering spot.
City leaders built the park's new theme in direct partnership with regional tribal nations, according to KCRA. Kate Smith, West Sacramento's director of Parks & Recreation, said the city worked with tribal representatives throughout the design process, and the station reports that the Wilton Rancheria, Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, and Shingle Springs Rancheria all collaborated with the city on the park. That collaboration shows up most visibly in an oak tree playground structure featuring a wise man's face along with carved sleeping deer and squirrel figures, plus a separate spray pad themed around a canoe, a teepee structure, and additional tribal and wildlife figures, per the same report.
From Zipline Course to Public Parkland
Before its redesign, the site was home to Tree Top Sacramento, a private zipline and aerial ropes course strung through the property's oak trees, which closed because of rising insurance premiums, according to the West Sacramento News-Ledger. The city's partnership with the zipline operator began in 2016, and it broke ground on the master plan overhaul in August 2025, the newspaper reports. Beyond the headline playground and splash pad, the finished park includes a BMX skills course, noted by KCRA, along with an outdoor amphitheater, a public plaza with a picnic pavilion, a botanical demonstration garden, natural turf areas and boardwalk trails, according to the City of West Sacramento.
How the $7.8 Million Project Came Together
The roughly $8 million design and construction project was funded through a mix of local and federal dollars, KCRA reports. The News-Ledger's breakdown puts the total at $7,833,175, with $4.83 million coming from local park impact fees charged on new real estate developments and $3 million arriving via a federal Land and Water Conservation Fund grant awarded in July 2022. KCRA reports that U.S. Representative Doris Matsui helped secure the federal allocation through her advocacy.
A New Café Comes to the Park
Visitors can now grab food at Emile's Café at Heritage Oaks Park, run by the grandchildren of Emile “Whitey” Boisclair, who opened West Sacramento's beloved Whitey's Jolly Kone drive-in back in 1963, according to ABC10. The café's arrival ties the overhauled park to six decades of local food history even as the surrounding grounds take on an entirely new identity centered on tribal recognition.
Part of a Citywide Park-Building Push
Heritage Oaks Park's debut lands amid a broader wave of municipal investment in West Sacramento's public spaces. The city reopened Westacre Park in July 2026 after $7.8 million in upgrades and broke ground the following month on a $64 million overhaul of Bryte Park that will eventually bring a new aquatics facility and amphitheater by 2029, per the News-Ledger. West Sacramento also expanded its park inventory to 40 public parks in July 2025 when it broke ground on Washington Park, a half-acre space built as part of the Four40 West housing development, as Hoodline previously reported.
Community Celebration Set for Saturday
The public is invited to a Party in the Park celebration at the new site on Saturday, October 17, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to KCRA. The event gives West Sacramento residents a chance to explore the reimagined grounds, from the carved oak playground to the BMX course, before the park settles into its new role as a year-round community space.
