I love this park, but the people are what keeps this place low on my preferred parks for paddleboarding. To start with the good, there's plenty of parking (enforced Pay-By-Phone), right on the water close to Regatta Grove, with well lit walking paths, plenty of shaded seating, great sculptures to wander around, and a kayak launch.
It's also dog-friendly (leashed), which is so helpful to have in such a central location, but so many dog owners let their dogs run free whether or not they have good recall, and not all owners are mindful of their dogs. Don't get me wrong, I love a good pup visit when I'm sitting out, but I've seen some aggression play out and the owners are nowhere near their dogs to separate them.
However, I've definitely had things stolen at this park - while transporting paddle gear between the launch and parking areas, folks are not shy about grabbing bags and running off. I've deflated a paddleboard right next to my car, and in the time it took me to roll everything up, someone had seen me distracted and grabbed a backpack straight out of my trunk and went straight to a Foot Locker to try to charge $800 worth of gift cards. Don't be fooled by the police vehicles parked nearby the marina - they're only there to protect the boats. And MPA is around to ticket, but never really there when thefts happen.
Lesson learned, bring nothing of value to this park and bring friends to watch each others backs. read more