Lewis Station Park
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St. Helena, California

Lewis Station Park Restoration

A neighbor-led project to restore this downtown pocket park with native plantings, shade, and better seating — in partnership with the City of St. Helena.

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About

About the restoration

Lewis Station is a beloved downtown pocket park at Church Street and Hunt Avenue, about half a block from Main Street. The land was given to the City by Rosa Lee Lewis in 1975, and community members came together to create a seating area with an arbor and trees. Over the years the trees died and the arbor became unusable — and with no significant improvements in 50 years, this ideally located park is calling for a refresh.

Beginning in September 2025, a group of dedicated residents worked through some fourteen resident and City staff meetings — alongside the City's Parks & Recreation Department and landscape designer Becke Oberschulte, with contribution by arborist Bill Pramuk — to shape a thoughtful restoration, developed in coordination with the City's Parks and Trails Master Plan. The plan brings healthy shade, drought-tolerant firewise native plantings, restored seating and facilities, and a more welcoming place to gather. It was presented to the Parks & Recreation Commission in June 2026, and the community is now invited to help bring it to life.

Led by Kathy Carrick, Tracy McBride, and Nancy Morrell, with landscape designer Becke Oberschulte and contribution by arborist Bill Pramuk.

Lewis Station Park today — picnic tables, a large boulder, and mature trees on a paver courtyard beside the rail line at Church Street and Hunt Avenue in St. Helena, California
Lewis Station Park today — a beloved pocket park at Church Street & Hunt Avenue in St. Helena.

The Park Today

What's already there

Today the park offers three picnic tables, an accessible bathroom, a plaque honoring Rosa Lee Lewis, an existing Valley Oak, and three other mature trees in its southern corner.

Two railroad artifacts — a Southern Pacific crossing sign and a metal track switch — recall the park's place along the historic Napa Valley rail corridor, and there may also be room for public art.

Two of the park's three picnic tables on the paver courtyard, with young trees and the rail line beyond.
The three picnic tables on the paver courtyard.
The park's small accessible bathroom building, its side wrapped in a large green honeysuckle vine.
The accessible bathroom, wrapped in honeysuckle.
A bronze plaque honoring Rosa Lee Lewis, mounted on a natural boulder in a gravel bed beside the rail line.
The plaque honoring Rosa Lee Lewis.
A historic Southern Pacific railroad crossing sign on a weathered wooden post at Lewis Station Park, with the rail line and downtown St. Helena behind it.
The historic Southern Pacific crossing sign.

About Us

The team behind the restoration

The residents and partners steering the Lewis Station rehabilitation.

Four members of the Lewis Station Park restoration committee smiling around one of the park's picnic tables, with the rail line and downtown St. Helena behind them.

The committee at work at one of the park's picnic tables.

This little park could hardly ask for a better-suited crew. Between them, the committee brings 30 years of running St. Helena's parks — including adding seven new ones to the city — professional landscape design, a Master Gardener's deep knowledge of California native plants, decades of community beautification work, and memories that reach back to planting the original park in 1978. All four have deep roots in St. Helena, and all four share the same goal: turning this downtown pocket park into a shady, welcoming heart of town.

The committee works in partnership with the City of St. Helena.

Kathy Carrick

Former City Parks & Recreation Director

Kathy has lived in St. Helena for 46 years, arriving in the spring of 1980 to lead Parks and Recreation for the City of St. Helena. With a Master's degree in Municipal Recreation Administration and a 30-year tenure in which she added seven new parks to the city, she is — in her own words — a "parks person." She looks forward to seeing Lewis Station renovated into a park that the community and visitors alike will use and enjoy.

Tracy McBride

Napa County Master Gardener

Tracy has lived part-time and full-time in St. Helena her whole life — as a child, she'd race her modified monkey-bar bike to the Hunt Avenue railroad crossing just in time to meet the afternoon train as its caboose rolled by. As a Napa County Master Gardener, she knows how vital native plants are to local birds and insects, since California natives have co-evolved with our wildlife over thousands of years. Her hope is that within a few years, Lewis Station becomes a model garden showing how drought-tolerant landscaping can also support wildlife and offer a small pocket of nature right in the heart of town. Tracy also served on the St. Helena General Plan Update Steering Committee.

Nancy Morrell

St. Helena Beautification Foundation & White Barn Board Member

Nancy is a board member of the St. Helena Beautification Foundation and the White Barn. In 1978, she and her small daughters — members of 4-H — joined others in the community to help plant the original Rosa Lewis Station Park.

Becke Oberschulte

Landscape Designer

After completing her studies in horticulture and landscape design at Cal Poly, Becke moved to St. Helena in 1979 to work with David Whiting of Whiting Nursery. She went on to establish Monkeyflowers, a landscape design and contracting business. Becke has served on the St. Helena Beautification Foundation and has volunteered on multiple landscape and gardening projects for the kids at St. Helena Public Schools. She welcomes the opportunity to work with a dedicated group of volunteers and the City of St. Helena to bring the Lewis Station project to fruition for multiple generations to enjoy.

The Plan

What the restoration includes

Developed by the volunteer committee with City staff — low-water, low-maintenance, fire-smart, and planted to support native bees, butterflies, and birds.

Highlights of the design

  • A centrally placed Coast Live Oak — a majestic California native that will one day give 50+ feet of shade.
  • Firewise, drought-tolerant plantings — Ceanothus, Western Redbud, and Arbutus (a relative of the native Pacific Madrone), needing minimal water once established.
  • A shade structure over the picnic areas for cool, comfortable gathering.
  • New seating — three new benches with backs, plus natural boulder seating.
  • Restored facilities — bathroom refresh, fencing along two sides, and a renewed irrigation system and controller.
  • Sheet mulching & soil enhancements plus a new garbage & recycling station to keep the park healthy and tidy.

There are no fireproof plants — these species were chosen for their fire resistance, along with their low water needs and value to native pollinators.

The Palette

Signature plantings

A mature Coast Live Oak with a wide spreading canopy shading dry grass, the kind of tree planned as the centerpiece of Lewis Station Park.Photo coming soon

Coast Live Oak

The park's centerpiece — an iconic California native destined for 50+ feet of canopy and shade.

Learn more →
A young multi-trunked Western Redbud in full summer leaf, growing in a mulched bed beside a chain-link fence.Photo coming soon

Western Redbud

A California native chosen as the park's dedication plant, with vivid spring blooms.

Learn more →
Ceanothus, California lilac, covered in clusters of blue flowers.Photo coming soon

Ceanothus

California lilac — a drought-tolerant native prized for its clouds of blue flowers.

Learn more →
Arbutus, a drought-tolerant evergreen with smooth reddish bark.Photo coming soon

Arbutus

An evergreen with handsome bark and berries (a relative of the native Pacific Madrone), low-water and firewise once established.

Learn more →
Coming in later phases: a drinking fountain, water-bottle refill station, dog water bowl, bike rack, interpretive signage, a dog-waste station — and hopefully public art.

Visualize It

Maps & the concept plan

The committee's conceptual plan for the park, and where Lewis Station sits in downtown St. Helena.

Hand-drafted site plan for Lewis Station Park at one-eighth inch scale, showing four multi-stemmed Arbutus, five Western Redbud, one Coast Live Oak and eight Dark Star Ceanothus laid out between the railroad fence line, Church Street and Hunt Avenue, along with a proposed shade structure, benches, boulders, a paver patio, the restroom, and a recycling and garbage station.

The park plans

The drought-tolerant, predominantly California native plants are chosen to support native bees, butterflies, and birds and once established, may need little to no irrigation. The plantings can be expanded with even more natives over time, serving the community as a native plant demonstration garden.

Conceptual plan for Lewis Station Park showing proposed planting, seating, and shading: a Live Oak, Arbutus Unedo, Redbud, and Ceanothus around the existing Valley Oak and mature trees, with new benches, boulders, a shade structure, waste and recycling, and a future water station and bike rack, bounded by the railroad tracks, Hunt Avenue and Church Street.

Conceptual plan

The committee’s proposed planting, seating, and shade design — a centrally placed Coast Live Oak, native Ceanothus and Redbud, Arbutus (a Pacific Madrone relative), new benches and boulders, and a shade structure over the picnic area. Objects approximately to scale and subject to change.

Where to find us

Lewis Station Park sits along the historic rail corridor at Church Street & Hunt Avenue, half a block from Main Street in downtown St. Helena.

Get directions on Google Maps →

Save the Date

Information sessions & volunteer day — this fall

Come learn about the restoration at a short info session, then join us to get the new plants in the ground. No experience needed; all ages welcome.

October 2026
Oct 1 & 3
Two sessions
Thu 4pm · Sat 1pm
Information Session

Learn about the restoration

A short session at the St. Helena Public Library meeting room on the restoration plans — plus how to use sheet mulching to suppress weeds in your own garden, and top resources for choosing native, climate-friendly plantings. About 45 minutes; drop in to either session.

Thursday, October 1 at 4pm
Saturday, October 3 at 1pm

Fall 2026
October
Tentative
Date to be announced
Mulching & Planting Day

Community Volunteer Day

Neighbors come together to plant the firewise natives and spread mulch across the new beds. Tools and guidance provided.

Sign up to be notified

An exact date hasn't been set yet — sign up above and we'll send the details.

Stay in the Loop

Get updates

Sign up to hear about volunteer days, planting dates, and progress on the restoration — or email us at lewisstationsthelena@gmail.com.

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Progress

Status updates

Follow the restoration from first idea to planting day. We'll keep this timeline current as milestones are reached.

August 2025

Neighbors begin planning

Residents kicked off the effort with roughly ten community meetings, plus four sessions with City staff and a consultation with arborist Bill Pramuk, to review ideas and identify the park's needs — over 50 volunteer hours in all.

June 15, 2026

Presented to the Parks & Recreation Commission

The volunteer group presented the plan to the Commission, with input from Public Works staff.

August 11, 2026

Approved by City Council

The St. Helena City Council authorized accepting donations and pursuing the renovation — with letters of support from residents and community organizations. View the Council meeting record →

Fall 2026

Planting, irrigation & community mulching day

City staff install the new plantings and irrigation, neighbors gather for a community sheet-mulching day, and the new benches and boulder seating go in.

Winter 2026 – Spring 2027

Restroom, shade & fencing

Restroom exterior restoration, shade structure installation, fence repair, and hopefully public art complete the project.

Community Support

Backed by the community

The restoration has broad neighborhood support — and press coverage of the park's revival.

At the August 11, 2026 City Council meeting, the plan drew letters of public support from neighbors and community organizations before the Council voted to move it forward.

St. Helena Beautification Foundation St. Helena Historical Society Western Monarch Society of Napa County 11 letters of support
Lewis Station Park, the subject of the St. Helena Star's coverage of the volunteer restoration effort.
St. Helena Star · Aug 26, 2026

Help on the way for St. Helena’s neglected Lewis Station Park

The Star's Jesse Duarte reports on the volunteer effort to polish this "neglected gem" — renovating the bathroom, creating shade, adding benches and a drinking fountain, and planting a Coast Live Oak near the center of the park. "It could be the heart of our town if it was more inviting with more greenery and shade," Kathy Carrick told the City Council.

Read the article
City of St. Helena Newsletter · Edition 85 · Sept 17, 2026

The park restoration in the City’s newsletter

The City of St. Helena featured the Lewis Station Park restoration in Edition 85 of its community newsletter.

Read the newsletter

Support

Support the park

Contributions go toward plants, irrigation, mulch, shade, and materials for the restoration. Any amount helps.

Why your support matters

  • A natural park in the center of downtown — for residents, visitors, employees of nearby businesses, children walking home from school, and young adults looking for a place to gather.
  • A welcoming, shaded respite in nature for individuals and groups, with accessible seating and a bathroom for anyone who needs a place to rest or picnic.
  • A point of community pride — an attractive park with real historical significance.
  • Quality infrastructure designed to last, setting the stage for more native planting across our environment.

Questions, or prefer to give another way? Email us at lewisstationsthelena@gmail.com.

Make a contribution

Gifts are made through the Napa Valley Community Foundation.

Donate online

Gifts to the Lewis Station Park Improvement Fund are held by the Napa Valley Community Foundation and granted to the City of St. Helena for the park. Opens in a new tab.

Community Voices

Share what you love about the park

Lewis Station belongs to all of us. Tell us your favorite memory, what you're most excited to see, or why this little park matters to you — we read every submission, and favorites are shared below.