April 17, 2020 — For many years, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission has granted a use permit to College of San Mateo for the Crystal Springs Cross Country Course. The College has maintained it and allowed its use for cross country meets and for community recreational use.

In recent years, the College has stopped using the course except for an occasional meet every 2-3 years. In that time, other groups such as high schools and other running organizations have dramatically increased their use of the site for meets. The College has concerns about its risk and liability with these uses, the staff time it takes to continue management, and the limited ability of use groups to provide insurance to cover their events. The College cannot take responsibility for a site that is no longer part of our core operations.

Having all but stopped using the course, the College has made the difficult decision to transition away from its management of the course. Our goal is to facilitate a transition to another organization by the end of 2020. Until then, cross country events and community access will continue uninterrupted (subject to local shelter-in-place restrictions).

College of San Mateo does not want to see this community resource go away. We simply cannot continue managing the facility. We have begun the process of reaching out to local high school districts and other community groups to see if a community-based solution can be identified. We are also in touch with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which has been a valued community partner with us for so many years, and we hope that a transition can be negotiated.