HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-21-2017 Item 8, RugglesCOUNCIL MEETING: R COVED
ITEM NO.:
FEB 21 2017
SLQ CITY
From: Ruggles Joanne [
Sent: Monday, February 20, 2017 2:46 PM
To: E-mail Council Website <emailcouncii@slocity.org>
Subject: Concerns About Night Hiking on Bishop Peak
Madame Mayor and City Council members,
My husband and I have had the privilege of living on the slope of Bishop Peak for 25 years. We designed our
home with the assistance of two on my former architecture students that I taught years before at Cal Poly. That
home (heavily scrutinized because it was in the city's viewshed) won an Obispo Beautiful award the year after
it was completed. Because of our desire to use native plantings including over two dozen oak trees, many birds
and animals now reside on or visit our 2 1/2 acre site that directly borders the open space on Bishop
Peak. During the time we have been here, we have never considered fencing our property because it is clear that
these wild animals consider this land their own, and that our occupancy is temporary.
We have just been advised that the city council is once again considering whether night-time use of this open
space should be allowed. For that reason we are writing to ask that you please be aware that the city's
consideration of night-time hiking on Bishop's Peak poses serious problems for our existing neighborhood, as
well as for the animals that reside in this wild area at the city's edge.
Nighttime use puts the homes, property and citizens in our Bishop Peak neighborhood at increased jeopardy of
fire. While our daytime temperatures are generally mild, nighttime hikers (or overnight campers) who
experience our region's cold night weather are more likely to consider a camp fire as a good idea to keep warm.
Unfortunately a wildfire that starts at night on the mountain could likely prove to be disastrous to a sleeping
neighborhood.
Nighttime users are less likely to read existing signs providing the regulations that inform their use of the trail
and open space. Hiking after dark increases the likelihood of individuals leaving the trails, and getting lost or
injured. If rescue activities increased as a result, our city would face additional cost and liability exposure for
those efforts. Furthermore residents of the existing neighborhood who have a reasonable expectation of the
quiet necessary for sleep can similarly be compromised by nighttime use and the associated rescue activities
occurring on the mountain.
Nighttime use will compromise the health and vitality of the animal and bird populations that exist within this
open space area. Most animals come out under the protection of darkness to hunt and feed. Only when water or
food supplies are low, do you see these animals in daylight. After living on this property for 25 years we know
that many songbirds, owls, hawks, turkeys, wild cats, coyotes, foxes, deer, and other wild animals share this
beautiful place with us. While it is not often that we see them out in the daytime, we have see them enough (or
find evidence of them) to know they are living here with us. We are sharing a few photos of the animals we
have observed on our property.
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(My husband took these rare telephoto shots last summer of a bobcat who was crossing on the side of our
property next to the hiking trail.)
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These wild creatures should not be denied their natural habitat. Because their primary time to hunt and feed is at
night, we have an ethical duty to help them survive and our grandchildren deserve to find them still thriving in
the wild.
For these many reasons, we do not believe allowing nighttime access to Bishop Peak is wise. Thanks for
listening to our concerns.
Joanne and Philip Ruggles
San Luis Obispo, CA