New information boards with pictures, facts and some surprises.
A little over 13 years ago, a series of signs were installed along the trails, ponds and wetlands of the then relatively new Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in Petaluma. Each sign pointed out important details about the special flora and fauna, biological and architectural elements that occur in the area and might pique the curiosity of hikers, cyclists and bird watchers.
These signs have served their purpose well, sometimes even serving as resting (and defecating) places for birds, while reminding visitors that the trails they walk are teeming with countless native birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, plants , molds, fungi and other organisms.
Of course, most manufactured signs don't last forever. After more than a decade outdoors, this was true for the signs at Ellis Creek.
“The original signs just fell apart,” admitted Mary Kadri, president of the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance. “They broke up. You couldn’t really read them anymore.”
Thanks to a community effort involving the City of Petaluma and the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance, that is no longer the case. Ten new signs have been installed in Ellis Creek since mid-October, following nine new signs installed in adjacent Shollenberger Park in 2023.
The need to replace the initial signs presented an exciting opportunity to take a new approach to describing the sights and sounds of both parks. According to Kadri and Joanne Figone, membership and information chair for the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance, their team was more than ready to take on the challenge.
“It was just time,” Figone said.
Obtaining approval to replace the signs in the parks required approval from numerous organizations and entities. While Shollenberger is under the auspices of the Petaluma Parks and Recreation Department, Ellis Creek is under the auspices of the Petaluma Public Works Department because it is a functioning public water recycling plant site. The Wetlands Alliance's plan originally was simply to replace the signs with identical versions of what was already there.
“When I went to the treatment facility and told them we wanted to replace the signs, they said, ‘Sure. “We could do that,” Kadri remembers. “And I said, 'We'll pay half if you want to give me the digital version of what you already have,' and they said, 'You know what? We do not have the original files for this. Why don’t you just start from scratch?”
This offer presented the Wetlands Association with a remarkable opportunity.
“We saw that the signs could do so much more and say so much more,” Figone explained. “Originally, each sign had some information about the water treatment plant, but we thought it would be better if each sign had its own focus. So now there’s one sign that describes the processing plant and how it works, and the others tell different stories.”
All ten of the two-month-old signs – each featuring a combination of vivid photos, historical facts and scientific trivia – utilize state-of-the-art printing metal technologies, represent the photography of several local naturalists and include detailed Spanish translations. Some have QR codes so you can hear the songs of birds in the area and thus identify the different flying residents of the place.
The panels were designed by Morgan Parrish, an independent graphic artist who frequently works with the City of Petaluma.
The first sign encountered at the edge of the parking lot and at the main trailhead points out the basics: visitors are entering protected wetlands with sensitive natural habitats, they should stay on designated trails at all times, and use the parking lot restrooms and trash cans before hiking company.
“The next thing you come to is about the ephemeral pond and the birds and vegetation that live there,” Figone said. “The next part is about the Coastal Miwok who originally lived there. It was extremely important to get it right.”
Recognizing that the original signs were created in a bit of a cultural vacuum, Kadri met with Coast Miwok representatives to develop the information that would inform the discussion about the people who first lived on the land and continue to live on it Area. The new sign includes important historical and cultural details as well as established depictions of Miwok life before the arrival of Spanish and European settlers.
“There is also a plaque about the River Trail, where it goes and why it is closed for parts of the year each year during the bobbin nesting season,” Figone added. “There is information about the nests the birds build and why we built owl boxes in the area. There is so much important information that really expands and improves what was originally there.”
As expected, the new signs are already having an impact.
“People actually stop to read them,” Figone said. “I love visiting Ellis Creek and seeing people, sometimes families, standing there and reading the information on the signs. I love that some people, especially newbies to the trails, make it a point to read each panel as they go.”
“That’s what we were hoping for,” Kadri added. “Every panel is worth spending time with. Each serves its own purpose and tells its own story. We hope the new signs help people understand how wonderful, special and important this place is.”
David Templeton is community and arts and entertainment editor for the Petaluma Argus-Courier. You can reach him at david.templeton@arguscourier.com.