HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-21-2017 Item 17, CulhaneCOUNCIL MEETING:_3-a I- RECEIVED
ITEM NO.:__--_,�.. I�
MAR 16 2017
61*01
From: Connor Culhane <
Sent: Thursday, March 16, 2017 2:02:46 PM
To: E-mail Council Website
Cc: Hill, Robert; Carscaden, Doug
Subject: CCCMB Proposal for SLO Open Space Hours of Use (Item 17, 3/21/17 Agenda)
Madame Mayor and Council Members,
On behalf of the Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers, I'd like to submit the following proposal in regards
to Item 17: Study Session for Open Space Hours of Use Evaluation on the 3/21/17 Council Agenda.
CCCMB (Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers) and the City of San Luis Obispo have a long
history of productive partnerships. CCCMB has long been a strong advocate for city open space,
actively encouraging our members to support open space with their dollars and their volunteer time.
CCCMB volunteers, in co-operation with city staff, built many of the trails the public uses to access
and enjoy open space, including the Johnson Ranch loops, the Johnson Ranch Connector,
Wednesday, Ocean View, the Froom Ranch trails, King Trail, and the east side of Mariposa in the
Irish Hills. On Cerro San Luis, we worked to build the first half of the M Trail in the 2000's, and are
currently working with City Rangers to construct the 2nd half of the M Trail. CCCMB volunteers also
provided weekly labor to help the City build the new Reservoir Canyon hiking -only trail and the Old
Prospector (Irish Hills) hiking -only trail. In the Stenner Springs open space area we built Elevator,
Stenner Flow, and The Eucs bike skills area. Additionally, CCCMB maintains miles of legacy trails
throughout the city open space areas, ranging from the Irish Hills to West Cuesta Ridge.
In the spirit of this co-operative relationship we'd like to provide input on the issue of open space
hours of use. We acknowledge this is a sensitive issue, but do believe it's appropriate for the city
council to expand the hours in some city open space areas which are open to public use. We support
a policy change that provides meaningful and significant trail access to hikers, trail runners, and
mountain bikers who, typically due to work and family constraints, are not able to access the open
space during open hours, especially during the darker periods of the year. Two important components
of access are the number of miles of trail available to public use and the hours those trails would be
open. We think there are multiple ways the council and city staff could craft a plan that would provide
meaningful trail access. Our recommendation below is meant to inspire a broad discussion of the
issues and possible solutions as well as to encourage you to consider the desires of many hundreds
of trail users who have been the cornerstone of support for open space. These are suggestions which
seem effective, appropriate, and simple.
We suggest year-round hours of access of 5:00am-9:00pm for Johnson Ranch, Irish Hills, Cerro San
Luis, and Stenner Springs. We also suggest that as the city adds new open space areas, the City
should consider, on a case-by-case basis, the hours of use for each new area. This policy proposal is
supported by CCCMB members (approximately 85% of a recent member/supporter survey with 139
responses) and the CCCMB Board of Directors. We understand there are complex issues related to
hours of use, including neighborhood compatibility, habitat protection, public safety, and emergency
services resources, and invite the council to think creatively on how to address those issues while
providing for meaningful and significant access during the darker times of the year. Below, we
address the above listed concerns and elaborate further on why we believe a 5:00am-9:00pm hours
of use policy would be appropriate:
While it's important to have some before/after work access for trail users, after dark use will
most certainly still be a small fraction of day time use, and limited to more "hard-core" trail
users who are comfortable and experienced using trails in the dark. Thus, impacts to both
trailheads and wildlife will be less significant than day time use. Furthermore, the limited
academic literature on this topic does not establish a consensus of the effects on wildlife of
after -dark use of trails. While some impact is assumed, we also know there is significant
adaption on the part of wildlife, and that after -dark levels of trail usage by human trail users
remain significantly below day -time levels. We support the council's decision in February to not
consider 24 hour access, but we do think a 5:OOam-9:OOpm policy for Johnson Ranch, Irish
Hills, Cerro San Luis, and Stenner Springs would be appropriate.
CCCMB has requested the 2015 and 2016 search and rescue logs for city open space. It
seems unlikely that we will obtain those before your March 21 consideration of this
question. Despite the lack of concrete data, it seem reasonable to say that most rescues have
taken place on Bishops Peak. It also seems likely that most users who have required
assistance have been hikers who have twisted an ankle or have become lost or
exhausted. Obviously any trail user can suffer an accident at any given moment. However,
CCCMB believes that generally speaking night-time trail users are much more likely to be
familiar with a trail and more experienced in using it than day -time users. We believe that
allowing expanded access in other areas is not likely to substantially increase rescue related
costs. Furthermore, there have been at least two cyclist/pedestrian vs. car fatalities on the
roads this year in the SLO area, not to mention many other injuries. Riding or running after
work on the roads with cars is certainly more dangerous than using trails, and accidents
involving cyclists on the roads also consume emergency services resources. Year-round after
work trail access for runners and cyclists may decrease the risk of users being involved in
accidents necessitating emergency services.
Outside of Bishop Peak, most open space trailheads have not had significant neighborhood
compatibility issues. In fact, many open space trailheads are not located in neighborhoods at
all. Johnson Ranch, Irish Hills, Cerro San Luis, and Stenner Springs are accessible via
trailheads that are not located in neighborhoods. If problems associated with after -dark use of
neighborhood trailheads do develop over time, the City could limit after -dark trailhead usage to
trailheads that don't interact with neighborhoods.
CCCMB recommends the council establish a 5:OOam-9:OOpm year-round hours of use policy for
Johnson Ranch, Irish Hills, Cerro San Luis, and Stenner Springs open space areas. This would allow
hikers, trail runners, and mountain bikers to access trails before and after the workday and family
obligations. We urge the council to consider flexible solutions that provide responsible trails users
with significant and meaningful access to open space trails in the darker times of the year.
Respectfully,
Connor Culhane
President - Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers
Christie O'Hara
Vice -President - Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers