Brentwood Parks, Trails, and Pools: A Resident's Guide

A listing says "close to parks and trails," and the buyer pictures a paved path to the Delta out the back gate. Then they move in and find a landscaped strip along a sound wall. Both exist in Brentwood, and the city keeps a list that tells you which one you are looking at.

How many parks does Brentwood have, and where is the list?

The city keeps a document called the Park Matrix — a plain table of every park with its address, acreage, and amenities. It is the closest thing Brentwood has to a master list, and most residents have never seen it.

The matrix runs from pocket parks of a tenth of an acre (Fiorita Pocket Park on Fiorita Way, 0.08 acres) up to the Sunset Park Athletic Complex at 655 Sunset Road, which covers 39.8 acres. Between those, Summerset Commons Park at 1511 Regent Drive holds 13.1 acres, Veterans Park at 3841 Balfour Road holds 10.5, and Heron Park at 950 Garin Parkway holds 10.8.

The city also publishes a GIS ParkFinder app, the tool to use when you want what is near a specific address rather than a list.

Where can you walk or ride a real distance in Brentwood?

The Marsh Creek Regional Trail is the answer for anyone who wants more than a loop around a neighborhood green. It is a paved, multi-use trail about 6.5 miles long, running from Creekside Park in Brentwood to the Delta shoreline at Big Break in Oakley. The East Bay Regional Park District, which manages it, states the trail is flat and presents no slope difficulties for persons in wheelchairs.

The trail is open between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. unless otherwise posted. Dogs, bicycles, e-bikes, and horses are all permitted. When the full alignment is finished, the district plans a 14-mile trail connecting the Delta to Morgan Territory Regional Preserve and Round Valley Regional Park.

Marsh Creek Regional Trail

Paved and flat from Creekside Park to the Delta shoreline at Big Break.

Open 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. unless posted. Dogs, bicycles, e-bikes, and horses allowed. Planned to reach 14 miles when the full alignment is complete. Source: East Bay Regional Park District.

6.5 miles

current paved length

Check before you go this month. The East Bay Regional Park District has posted a closure on the Marsh Creek Regional Trail between Creekside Park in Brentwood and East Cypress Road in Oakley on select weekdays from August 17 through September 22, 2026, for pavement work. The trail is scheduled to be open Saturdays and Sundays during that window.

Inside the city, Dakota Park at 480 Ridgewood Court carries a half-mile walking trail that connects the trail system from Sunset Road south to Mallard Park and beyond. Miwok Park and Trail at 1700 Regal Drive covers 7.9 acres. Marsh Creek Trailhead Park at 1941 Concord Avenue covers 9.33 acres and functions as an access point rather than a destination park.

Which Brentwood parks have restrooms and lighting?

This is the question people ask most, and it deserves a straight answer about the source.

The Park Matrix does include a restrooms column, but the published table does not carry a lighting column at all. So no guide can hand you a lighting grid, mine included; that information is not in the city's published table.

Apple Hill Park at 1866 Central Blvd. is the one park in the matrix marked for every amenity column the city tracks: baseball, soccer, basketball, bocce, barbecues, bike racks, play areas, picnic tables, benches, restrooms, shade structure, and rentable status, plus game tables, bocce courts, and an exercise station. At five acres, it is the most complete single park on the city's own list.

For any other specific park, the ParkFinder app or a call to the city at (925) 516-5400 will confirm restrooms and lighting faster than any third-party site.

The pool is on Griffith Lane, and it is heated

The Brentwood Family Aquatic Complex sits at 195 Griffith Lane on a 7-acre site, alongside the Brentwood Skate Park at the same address and the Brentwood Senior Activity Center next door at 193 Griffith Lane.

The complex heats its pools to stay between 78 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit, the range the National Pool and Spa Association recommends. The city notes that in fall and winter, cool air off the San Francisco Bay pulls water temperature down faster in the shallow pools than in the competition pool, and recommends a warm wrap, a towel, and possibly a rash guard for swim activities in that season. Hours and admission change by season, so the aquatic complex page is the place to check the current schedule.

Five parks have free water play

Five parks in the city's matrix are marked with a water feature, the free alternative to a pool admission on a hot afternoon.

Brentwood parks with a water feature

• Blue Goose Park, 1765 Adams Lane, 5.04 acres
• City Park, 710 Second Street, 2.94 acres, also has a gazebo
• Dolphin Park, 2325 Atterbury Lane, 1.88 acres
• Mallard Park, 668 Ray Street, 1.7 acres
• Rainbow's End Park, 1626 Marina Way, 0.8 acres

Where are the dog parks?

The city's Park Matrix marks four parks as dog parks: King Park at 1379 Bauer Way, Dakota Park at 480 Ridgewood Court, Magpie Park at 2840 Michalia Lane, and Pioneer Park at 1481 Pioneer Square. The city's dedicated dog parks page describes two of them in detail.

King Park has two fenced play areas, one for smaller dogs and one for larger dogs, with play apparatus, benches, and both human and canine water fountains. Mutt Mitts are provided.

Dakota Park also has separate small-dog and large-dog areas, with benches under shade structures and a turf area outside the fenced sections holding picnic tables and barbecues.

If you are looking at Trilogy, I keep a separate list of things to do near Trilogy at the Vineyards, and a comparison of the 55+ communities in Brentwood.

"Trail access" means two different things in a listing

Neither is a reason to walk away from a home. They are reasons to know what you are buying. How district charges show up on the bill itself is in Why Is My Brentwood Tax Bill So High? Mello-Roos, Explained.

---

If you are weighing neighborhoods and want to know what is within walking distance of a specific address, not what the listing says, send me the address. I'll pull the parcel against the ParkFinder map, measure the walk to the nearest real trailhead, and tell you whether the greenbelt behind it carries an assessment.

(925) 200-0717 — I answer my own phone, seven days a week, and a trail question takes about five minutes.

This post is for general informational purposes only and is not legal or tax advice. Park amenities, trail closures, and pool hours change; confirm current conditions with the City of Brentwood or the East Bay Regional Park District before you go.

Margie Lupo, Broker Associate, SRES® · eXp Realty of Northern California, Inc. · DRE #01193496 · Brokerage DRE #02188495 · Equal Housing Opportunity

Sources

• City of Brentwood, Park Matrix: park count, addresses, acreage, amenity columns. Accessed September 9, 2026.
• City of Brentwood, Park Information: Park/Maintenance Division acreage, ParkFinder app. Accessed September 9, 2026.
• City of Brentwood, Trails: Class 1 trail and bike lane mileage. Accessed September 9, 2026.
• City of Brentwood, Dog Parks: King Park and Dakota Park details. Accessed September 9, 2026.
• City of Brentwood, Brentwood Family Aquatic Complex General Information: site size, pool temperatures, seasonal notes. Accessed September 9, 2026.
• East Bay Regional Park District, Marsh Creek Regional Trail: length, hours, permitted uses, accessibility, planned alignment, and the 2026 closure. Accessed September 9, 2026.