The North Hills Community Association focus on Gardens & Community
Firestorm Memorial Garden
Created in 1993 and dedicated in 1994, the Firestorm Memorial Garden honors the Oakland hills residents who lost their homes and lives in the 1991 Oakland Hills Firestorm. A bronze sculpture at the southern end is surrounded by low walls bearing the names of the 25 people who died in the firestorm. A drinking fountain honors Oakland Fire Department Battalion Chief James Riley, who died trying to save others. The garden is an official stopping point on Oakland’s Scenic Route.
Gateway Emergency Preparedness Exhibit Center
Installed in 2002/2003 alongside Highway 24 just to the west of the Caldecott Tunnel, the Gateway Exhibit Center educates visitors about vegetation management and emergency preparedness. With its fabulous views of the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, the Center has become a popular attraction, especially for bikers on their way up to Grizzly Peak. Designed pro bono by local architect and fire survivor Peter Gray Scott, and maintained by volunteers, the center hosted the 10th and 20th Firestorm Anniversary ceremonies.
The Fire Resistant Demonstration Garden at Gateway models Oakland’s requirements for defensible space, including plants and mulches appropriate to our climate and topography.
Gardens & Community News & Notes
Ice Cream Social Highlights!

Hello Fellow Neighbors, It’s already been a week since the NHCA held their Ice Cream Social. What a great day it turned out to be. More than 100 people ventured to the Gateway Garden and Pavilion where we had mild weather, a beautiful garden venue and wonderful views of the Bay. Recap below: Free Ice […]
Reminder: Ice Cream Social on August 19th

A friendly neighborhood reminder! The North Hills Community Association Ice Cream Social – Plant Sale/Raffle Fundraiser is coming soon! Please come out and visit with your neighbors, enjoy our beautiful community garden, while delighting in free Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream. Our District 4 Councilwoman Janani Ramachrandan, as well as other city officials, are also planning to stop […]
The ‘We Care’ Hills Gardeners – Summer ’23 Garden Newsletter and Ice Cream Social Invite

Click here to read the latest from the NHCA Garden Committee
Acknowledging BrightView Landscape Services Community Garden Partnership

North Hills Community Associations is acknowledging. and commending BrightView Landscape Services and the personal commitment of BrightView Management including Karine Stuimer, Miguel Navarro and Loren Olson to the enhancement of the Gateway Garden & Pavilion and the Firestorm Memorial Garden. Read Full Statement Here
Gazing and Grazing with the Goats!

Gazing and Grazing with the Goats! We had a large turnout for our first community pop-up event on Tuesday, June 20, from 4-6 pm. Lots of nearby hills neighbors, along with others not so nearby, came to view the goats on the hills across from the Gateway Garden and Pavilion along Hiller Drive. Children and adults […]
‘WE CARE’ The Hills Gardeners – Weekly Friday Garden Day @ Gateway Garden & Pavilion

Please join us each Friday from 9am to 11am to garden with your fellow Hills neighbors! Location – Hiller Drive & Tunnel Road Activity – Weeding, deadheading, mulching, laughing Needed Supplies – Preferred garden gloves, clippers, shovel, or you can use our on-site garden tool library Bring your friends and spread the word. Gateway Garden […]
The Berkeley Project – Starts Out the ’23 Gateway Garden Season with a Bang!!

The Berkeley Project – Starts Out the ’23 Gateway Garden Season with a Bang!! After many pre-planning negotiations, The Berkeley Project leader Katlyn said they wanted to come and work at Gateway Garden ‘Rain or Shine’ on Saturday March 4th, so the A Team showed up and got to work straightaway removing the weeds at the […]
2023 Garden Season Kick-Off with Bentley School at the Firestorm Memorial Garden!

2023 Garden Season Kick-Off with Bentley School at the Firestorm Memorial Garden! On a beautiful clear sunny day with a break in the winter storms, Vicki & Dan welcomed Ryan Nepomuceno and his Bentley design class composed of 14 eager middle school students at Firestorm Memorial Garden to kick-off the NHCA 2023 garden program. This is Bentley’s 2nd […]
Oakland Tech Inaugural Day at Gateway Garden – Sunday Nov 13th

Oakland Tech Inaugural Day at Gateway Garden – Sunday Nov 13th Another volunteer day spent in the Gateway Garden! On Sunday, November 13, Dan and Vicki met with members of the Ecology Club from Oakland Technical High School to help with garden cleanup. This volunteer garden day was initiated by Ava Stern who started Oakland Tech’s Ecology […]
The Berkeley Project II, Saturday November 5th – Cal Students Did It Again!!!!

The Berkeley Project II, Saturday November 5th – Cal Students Did It Again!!!! The Berkeley Project is a group of students with the mission of helping to bridge the gap between students and the community, and to foster a spirit of service. Today was a particularly special day in that this was one of their large-scale events that includes over 1,000 […]
The Berkeley Project – STRIKES ONCE AGAIN!!

The Berkeley Project – STRIKES ONCE AGAIN!! On a beautiful, crisp, clear October 23rd Sunday morning, Vicki & Dan once again welcomed 25 of “The Berkeley Project” student volunteers to Gateway Garden to finish up late season detailing to get ready for Winter. Many of the students took a bus to a local meeting spot […]
Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) – Mulching Away at Firestorm Memorial Garden, Thursday October 12th

Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) – Mulching Away at Firestorm Memorial Garden, Thursday October 12th On a beautiful crisp Fall Thursday morning, Vicki & Dan welcomed a dozen volunteers from two Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) groups to help spread mulch at the Firestorm Memorial Garden. This effort was done to prepare the garden for Winter after BrightView […]
Inaugural Bentley School Volunteer Garden Day – Firestorm Memorial Garden Sept 26th

Inaugural Bentley School Volunteer Garden Day – Firestorm Memorial Garden Sept 26th If you have been following the ongoing work-in-progress highlighting a string of garden event posts this season (over the past 6-months), you’ll know that we have just finished the Gateway Garden ’22 program in September. We recently had a mulching event that covered […]
INCREDIBLE!!! – Sequoyah Community Church Nails It at Gateway Garden!

To kick off the Fall season, Vicki & Dan welcomed an energetic young group of 20 volunteers from Sequoyah Community Church on September 24th to help complete the garden maintenance plan to get ready for Winter. MISSION – Finish mulching the remaining Zones 6, 7, 8, plus 11A/11B and 12 at Gateway Gardens. This effort follows the […]
Chevron Day @ Gateway Gardens & Pavilion – Sept 15, 2022

Chevron Day @ Gateway Gardens & Pavilion – Sept 15, 2022 On a beautiful early Fall Thursday morning, Vicki & Dan welcomed 18 hard-working Chevron volunteers to help at the Gateway Garden. The objective was to follow the garden maintenance plan in getting the garden ready for Winter after a Summer of garden clean-up and detailing with the help of […]
Oakland Parks & Recreation Foundation/ Schnitzer Steel Conquer Gateway Garden!

Oakland Parks & Recreation Foundation/ Schnitzer Steel Conquer Gateway Garden! On a bright and sunny August 25th afternoon at Gateway Garden & Pavilion NHCA gardenco-chairs Vicki Oliveira and Dan Conolly held their first corporate garden volunteer event with Oakland Parks & Recreation Foundation and partner Schnitzer Steel from Oakland. It was a hard-working Schnitzer group […]
HUGE SUCCESS – 1st Annual Ice Cream Social and Fundraiser – Aug 20, 1-4 pm

HUGE SUCCESS – 1st Annual Garden Ice Cream Social & Fundraiser Ice Cream, Raffle Prizes, Music, Balloons and most importantly, a beautiful, refreshed Gateway Garden to wander through and enjoy!! We had a warm sunny day with some cold and sweet ‘free’ ice cream in hand, chatting with 100+ of your other NHCA neighbors, friends and garden partners. Local […]
OPD Grubensky Bench Ceremony

City of Oakland police Officer John Grubensky was killed as he tried to evacuate a family from their home during the deadly Oakland Hills Fire on October 20, 1991. When his body was found he was laying on top of a woman’s body whom he was trying to rescue. The firestorm was due to an […]
NHCA Garden Committee Summer Update & Ice Cream Social

Click here to read the latest news from the NHCA Garden Committee
Acknowledging BrightView Landscape Services Community Garden Partnership

North Hills Community Association is acknowledging and commending BrightView Landscape Services and the personal commitment of Mr. Jeroen Wright and staff to enhance our NHCA Gateway Garden Pavilion. Read Full Statement here
Weekly Community Get Together at Gateway Gardens & Pavilion: Friday 9 to 11 a.m

Dear North Hills Neighbors, As you drive along Caldecott Lane and turn onto Tunnel Road, you are greeted by the beautiful Gateway Gardens & Pavilion which both serves as a grand entrance to our homes but also a reminder of the grave responsibility we have in living in these hills. The Gateway Gardens are maintained by us, […]
Hey, What’s Happening @ Gateway Gardens? Lot’s This Season!

Just ask the Goats, Garden Volunteers and the BrightView Landscaping team. Over the past few months, the Gateway Garden Committee has solicited these services to remove the garden’s invasive grasses and plants. The garden is in great shape for the North Hills Community volunteers to maintain the Gateway Garden moving forward. Join us each Friday […]
NEW GARDEN COMMITTEE WEEKLY ACTIVITY – Gateway Gardens & Pavilion

Location – Hiller Drive & Tunnel Road Activity – Weeding and mulching What to bring? Gloves, weeding tools, clippers Bring your friends and spread the word! The Gateway Gardens is a wonderful North Hills asset and Gardening Friday’s are a wonderful way to get some fresh air, a little exercise, and to meet new and […]
Gateway Gardens Park and Pavilion – UC Berkeley Project Day – April 16, 2022

The Berkeley Project Team strikes again! The week started with everyone carefully studying the weather. Should we, or shouldn’t we? California hasn’t received much rain all year, but with a 90% chance of rain in Berkeley on Saturday, we weren’t sure if we could pull this off considering it could turn out to be a […]
Great Resource: Wild Life in the North Hills

“This website documents wildlife and wild plants found in the hills on the border between Oakland and Berkeley, California. The area covered is roughly bounded by Tunnel Road, Domingo Avenue, Claremont Canyon Regional Preserve, and Grizzly Peak Blvd., with emphasis on Claremont Canyon and the surrounding hillsides” Check it out here
UC Berkeley project day

On a beautiful sunny day, Saturday, March 12, about 20 UC Berkeley volunteers helped with weeding in the Demonstration Garden on Old Tunnel Road. The North Hills community Association garden committee, led by Celine Gyger, organized the event. It was a great success as the students are very energetic and bagged several dozen giant green […]
In brief on the news: Piedmont/Oakland boys group assists fire prevention efforts

Read the article in the East Bay Times here. originally published september 15
Scouts Complete Stair Repair

Scouts Complete Repair of 62 Steps at Gateway Fire Resistant Demonstration Garden Mason Chen, an Eagle Scout candidate from Piedmont Boy Scouts Troop 15, led a major effort over the spring and summer to replace a number of deteriorated steps in the garden. He and his team added Trex decking boards to the top of […]
Scouts Install Edging Along Firestorm Memorial Garden Sidewalk

Over the past few weeks, scouts from Piedmont Boy Scouts Troop 15 helped Eagle Scout candidate Nathan Catalano install Trex edging along the sidewalk on Hiller to retain the soil from the Firestorm Memorial Garden. As part of his project, Nate had to measure sections to determine how much Trex was needed. Using donated Trex […]
Water Conservation resource

Here is a useful link from EBMUD on water conservation.