A grand opening ceremony will be held for the Bohol Circle Immigrant Park Saturday, Jan. 21. The event is scheduled to take place from 2 to 4 p.m. The event will have a ribbon cutting ceremony and remarks from city officials. Also, members of the Bohol Circle will perform at the event.

At its Nov. 1, 2022, meeting, the City Council voted to name the waterfront park on Fifth Street in Alameda Landing after Bohol Circle. After the meeting, members of the group shared their excitement on social media.

“Tonight is the end of a very long journey, one that encompasses the very spirit in which Bohol Circle was created: perseverance, community, and resilience,” wrote members on the Bohol Circle Organization Facebook page. “There are several people to appreciate for the success of this huge endeavor namely: Bob Balandra, Cynthia Bonta, Gary Cagaanan, and Jon Philip Abello Jr. for starting the journey several years ago.”

The City of Alameda honored Bohol Circle by naming a street, Bohol Circle Lane, after the group at Alameda Landing. But Bohol Circle members hoped the city would further honor them by naming a public park after the group. This park will be the second park in the San Francisco Bay Area to be named in association with the Filipino American community. The first being Delano Manongs Park in San Jose.

The Bohol Circle organization worked with the Parks and Commissions Committee to organize the event. Music and light refreshments will be offered at the event.

The Bohol Circle Immigrant Park itself was established in 2022. The park is located at 2901 Fifth Street, at the end of Fifth Street off Mitchell Avenue on the estuary.

The park has the unique feature of being mostly on a pier. It includes a playground with a ship theme, group picnic area, chess and corn hole games, fish cleaning station, dock for non-motorized watercraft and a water taxi shuttle, large open concrete area for events, fitness equipment, connection with the San Francisco Bay Trail and seating along the public water promenade.

This park will serve residents of new and existing homes in Alameda Landing and connects the San Francisco Bay Trail to Estuary Park.
The park will be open from dawn to dusk. No loitering will be allowed after dusk. The park will have lighted athletic facilities open until 10 p.m. No alcohol or smoking is allowed at the park.

Bohol is a province of the Philippines, in the country’s Central Visayas region. It comprises Bohol Island and numerous smaller surrounding islands. Bohol is known for coral reefs and unusual geological formations, notably the Chocolate Hills.

Immigrants from the region started the social group in Alameda in 1936.

The group started with just 16 members, according to an article in Alameda Magazine (“Meet One of the Country’s Oldest Filipino American Social Societies,”). Today, the Bohol Circle Center is located at 1815 Union Street.

To learn more about Bohol Circle, visit www.alamedaca.gov/boholcircle.

For more information on the park, contact Alameda Recreation and Parks Department at 510-747-7529 or email arpd@alamedaca.gov.