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S
<br /> 8 Planning May 2001
<br /> tions to the rest of the Bay Area, " says Tom ers and mitigate their concerns, " he says . But
<br /> Mikkelson , Bay Trail board member and as- if an owner is still resistant, ' the county seeks
<br /> sistant general manager of the district. The to acquire an alternative alignment around
<br /> district manages over 35 miles of completed the property—an expensive option for the
<br /> y Trail within k local
<br /> Bay parks along the bay. jurisdiction .
<br /> The Bay Trail Working with utility companies "`` '''=, .: ,
<br /> panies can also ""
<br /> 1 Project is working to secure S .;.-� ` ;i r' . ,
<br /> more formal relationships with other land be a c Y4rti = _` _ :Is , .' r
<br /> challenge . For two and a half years, h `
<br /> management agencies , such as the U. S . Fish Greene County officials have been negotiat- � ..
<br /> and Wildlife Service and the California De- ing with a local utility for a 10 -mile easement c
<br /> partment of Fish and Game . Both agencies between Cedarville and South Charleston .
<br /> are involved in an increasing number of wet- Now, says Schneider, a tentative agreement .: ; ` I- . • � '
<br /> k e tj
<br /> land restoration projects in areas where the has been reached that would allow access
<br /> trail is not complete , alon the � y� z Co
<br /> g utili ty corridor. However the util- n :.,
<br /> t 4',:
<br /> S. �.. Z-a.rrf• •L.!'+]Yj ��.y'• iY�SyCyen��' • . t�•!;• •!,1`4: '�'� ��
<br /> u. yq . L51.Y+'fi� j1"s'IYLttd�•.�21}. . y
<br /> " Our goal is to establish a planning process i has the authority under the agreement to 6� b " ~ } ,
<br /> g P g P tY tY g Jacob Laken /,
<br /> where criteria and standards are identified, so move or close the trail—at the county's ex- �B& I iia
<br /> quality public access is an option in restora- pense . Schneider says negotiations are con- NVOXESTL
<br /> Lion projects , " says Rick Parmer, chair of the tinuing for a more secure easement. Colorado River
<br /> Bay Trail board of directors and interpretive
<br /> services supervisor for. the fish and game de- Working with the feds
<br /> partment. The challenge is different in Arizona, where NK IBAB c
<br /> 70 percent of the Arizona Trail corridor passes FOREST
<br /> Roadblocks through U. S . Forest Service lands , and a sig-
<br /> Local opposition is an ever-present challenge nificant portion of the trail crosses land man- t
<br /> when it comes to completing a long- distance aged by the National Park Service and the
<br /> ST ! v
<br /> trail involvin man different landscapes and Bureau of Land Management , The trick here , P
<br /> g Y P g fi ti
<br /> many different interests . Resistance may come says Eric Smith of the Arizona Trail Associa- INh . ' _ t
<br /> from environmentalists, landowners, or busi- tion, is to overcome different federal land '`
<br /> jG �" A
<br /> ness groups . Trail planners faced with these management philosophies .
<br /> challenges must use their negotiating skills to Smith notes that the National Environ- IP
<br /> work out a compromise . mental PolicyAct largely guides the process of
<br /> = -
<br /> The Bay Area is a case in point. After years identifying an alignment on federal lands . MaI '
<br /> of wetland destruction and bay fill, numerous "You can have a dream alignment pickedi°°° "
<br /> 4 ;a ;-__
<br /> pro) ects are now under way to reestablish tidal out, " he says , " but working through the NEPA
<br /> Foul
<br /> marshes and seasonal wetlands along the bay process requires that you make many com- Mete -s
<br /> shore . In northern Marin County, the State promises . " For example, " as the trail align- e
<br /> Army Corps of ment moves into the mixed spruce areas of the
<br /> Coastal Conservancy and the
<br /> Engineers have plans to restore over 2 , 600 forest, the likelihood of encountering the en-
<br /> acres of the former Hamilton Army Airfield dangered Mexican spotted owl is high, requir-
<br /> and adjacent lands to wetland habitat , ing that considerable modifications be made . "
<br /> The restoration project is within the city of To ensure consistency in the management
<br /> Novato . City residents and the city's general of the trail , says Smith, the Arizona Trail s
<br /> plan policies support a continuous shoreline Partners developed a trail management guide ,
<br /> path. b But some environmental groups and land which recommends criteria for environmen- j
<br /> management agencies have expressed opposi- tally sensitive alignments (among them : sce- IP
<br /> --
<br /> tion to allowing public access to the edge of the nic viewpoints, points of interest, and prox- completed Arizona Trail
<br /> (spine secdow may need
<br /> restored wetlands, fearing harm to plants and imity to campgrounds) . signing & huprocements)
<br /> Proposed Trail * see i
<br /> wildlife. The Bay Trail Project is now working In Coconino County, planning for the trail
<br /> with the city on a trail realignment thatwot d be alignment is under way in Grand Canyon
<br /> sensitive to wildlife habitat. National Park . The challenge here is to fit the
<br /> Some property owners in Greene County, Arizona Trail into the National Park Service' s
<br /> Ohio , are resistant, too . "The biggest chal- Grand Canyon Greenway Program, which Lovely is working to incorporate the Arizona
<br /> lenge of the project, " says Randy Bennett of aims to accommodate the growing number of Trail alignment into this system. "The federal
<br /> the Ohio to Erie Trail Fund, " is convincing park visitors by providing alternative trans- agencies that signed the memorandum of under- t
<br /> private property owners along the former rail- portation systems and increased pedestrian standing see the value of the Arizona Trail and its
<br /> road corridor that it is in their best interest to and bicycle access to the rim of the canyon . completion. However, the trail does not always fit
<br /> allow the trail through their property. " The program includes construction of a 32 - into each agency's management plan as a high
<br /> Jim Schneider of the Greene County Park mile network of multipurpose trails along the priority, " she says. The county is now exploring
<br /> District says these owners often fear a loss of South Rim . trail alignment options that would coincide with
<br /> privacy. "We work hard to convince the own- Coconino County trail planner Cynthia the National Park Service's transportation plans .
<br />
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