Hayward sits in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, a diverse city of neighborhoods, parks, and campuses. California State University, East Bay rises on the hills above town, and the Hayward Japanese Gardens offer a calm, landscaped retreat with ponds, bridges, and seasonal color. Garin Regional Park preserves open hills and trails on the city's edge, and the downtown corridor has been rebuilding with shops, restaurants, and public art. The city takes its name from William Hayward, an early settler, and the Hayward Fault, a well known earthquake fault, runs through the hills nearby.