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“What we really want to do is make sure this is a gateway to a national park” — a vibrant hub that highlights the cultural and natural history of Alcatraz and the broader Golden Gate National Recreation Area, said Chris Lehnertz, CEO of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, the nonprofit agency managing the ferry landing for the National Park Service.

The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy has been working toward expanding the waterfront Alcatraz Embarcation Plaza at Pier 31, the launching point for the Alcatraz ferry, since at least 2017. The Parks Conservancy is partnering with commercial real estate agency Maven Properties to find an operator for a new restaurant or cafe space in the updated plaza.

Speaking with Parks Conservancy Program Manager Sara Leon Guerrero, CBS News highlights how the re-detection of the San Francisco leaf-cutter bee is a hopeful sign and conservation success.

One Tam, a partnership among the National Park Service, California State Parks, Marin Water, Marin County Parks, and the nonprofit Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, ensures “the long-term health of Mt. Tamalpais,” the conservancy said. The species, “endemic to the Bay Area,” has been documented less than 100 times, the conservancy said.

"This is hopeful news in a time when we are hearing a lot about trouble for insects, especially pollinators," expressed Sara Leon Guerrero, Community Science Program Manager at the Parks Conservancy.

“Now, our scientists can learn more about this special species’ ecology,” the Parks Conservancy said in a social media post. “It’s hopeful news for Mt. Tamalpais’ biodiversity, and for other species that could still be out there.”

The Civil War Parade Grounds in the Presidio bustled with families, friends, and their pets at the second Parks Conservancy hosted the second Parks4All: Brewfest.

Amy Meyer was a key figure in the creation of a huge national park centered around San Francisco’s Golden Gate — a park that includes everything from Alcatraz Island, a redwood forest, a dozen beaches spread along a dramatic coastline, 140 miles of trails, 758 historic buildings covering more than 128 square miles, an area more than 2½ times the size of San Francisco. Last year it attracted 14.9 million visitors.

A recent addition to the field is a camera trained on peregrine falcons on Alcatraz Island off the San Francisco coast. The live stream, a collaboration between the National Park Service and Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, has attracted more than 130,000 users, according to the conservancy.

In a single square acre, the Black Point historic gardens pack quite a punch of late-spring blooms. Poppies, silver bush lupine, elegant Clarkia, mustard, wild radish, yellow bush lupine and yarrow stretch out in the sun. Rock phacelia, stone crop, tidy tips and borage line the walls.

Just decades ago, peregrine falcons were largely absent from California. But now, a pair of the birds are nesting on Alcatraz Island in what officials call a "tremendous conservation success" – and you can watch their family live online.

This is the first year the public can watch the live broadcast of Larry, her unnamed partner, and her four chicks — all approaching 1-month-old and almost ready to fledge — courtesy of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.