SLO COUNTY TRAILS COMMITTEE
Meeting Notes for April 12, 2005
Attendees: Kathy Longacre, Greg Bettencourt, Nancy
Graves, Dorothy Jennings, Kathe Hustace, Doug Buckmaster,
Visitors: Rick Mathews (new district 5 Parks Commissioner)
Helena Finger (Bob Jones Trail Advocate)
Parks Staff: Stacey King
1. Call to Order: Meeting was called
to order by Kathy Longacre at 6:10 p.m.
2. Presentation: Nancy Graves of Coastwalk
and the California Coastal Trail gave a presentation regarding
continuing efforts to promote, build and maintain the California
Coastal Trail. The current emphasis is to get families and
children interested and participating with the goal to have
a 1200-mile long continuous trail from the Oregon border
to Mexico. All of the segments of the trail are actually
local trails and the goal is to get people off the highways
along the entire route.
Discussion ensued regarding the needs of the Coastal Trail.
Doug Buckmaster made a motion to have the Trails Committee
endorse having a Parks Commissioner sit on the Coastal Trail
Committee, Nancy Graves seconded it and the motion was carried.
It was also noted that the Coastal Trail needs to have more
exposure and involvement with the State Recreational Trails
Committee.
3. Public Comment: None
4. Review and Approval of Previous Meeting
Notes: February 8, 2005 notes reviewed and approved.
5. Trail Committee Applications: None.
6. Preservation of easements and policy:
It was noted that there will be a meeting April 28, at 6:00
p.m. at the Vets Hall in SLO where Jim Caruso of SLO Planning
Department will give a presentation on the Santa Margarita
Ranch Ag Cluster Subdivision of 150 homes to the SLO Parks
Commission. All interested parties should attend.
7. Discussion ensued regarding contacting
the Ag Tourism group and regarding membership on the Trails
Committee and the fact that trail policy was pulled from
the Parks and Rec Element hearings for discussion with staff
and the Ag commissioner. Committee agreed to email Jan for
status report on Trail Policies. Information regarding Trail/Ag
interface was distributed by Kathe Hustace.
8. Greg Bettencourt reported that the
trail possibilities from the campground to River Road were
looking really ugly over the County owned property. Access
would be manageable if an easement could be acquired from
a property owner.
9. Staff Report: Ernie del Rio was
absent.
10. Immediate goals and objectives:
a) Anza Trail: two projects initiated and funded by the
Upper Salinas-Las Tablas Resource Conservation District
will enhance the Salinas River and several intersecting
creeks in the Paso Robles and Atascadero areas.
b) Lopez Lake: The plans for the High Ridge Trail are on
McMaster's desk. Attempts are being made to determine the
trail possibilities on the BLM acquired property.
c) St Margarita Loop: There are no public trails as part
of the St Margarita Ranch Ag Cluster Development.
d) Nipomo: It will be 6-8 months before the Plan is developed
for Nipomo Park.
e) The road abandonment in the Lopez area gives access to
Big and Little Falls and a minimum 5 ft equestrian and hiking
corridor easement will be retained. Horse camp looks good
and the trail was in good shape.
11. Volunteer Trail Program: will have
special group training if and when 4 or 5 individuals can
make the arrangements for the class.
12. Dorothy Jennings, Parks & Rec
Commissioner, reported that the County has 2 million dollars
in transportation enhancement money. Public works, planning
and parks are going to get together to plan for expenditures.
The Bob Jones Trail has a high priority. Also the trail
from Prado Road to LOV Rd is supposed to be built this year.
Helene Finger from the public indicated she has a strong
interest in the Bob Jones Trail and would like to work on
that project.
13. Adjourn: meeting was adjourned
by Chairperson, Kathy Longacre at 7:50 p.m.
Trails Committee Meeting Notes
February 8, 2005
In attendance: Ernie Del Rio, Jan DiLeo, Dorothy
Jennings, Bruce Hilton, Lydia Francis, Kathe Hustace, Juvie
Ortiz, Nancy Graves, Greg Bettencourt later
1. Call to order: 6:10 p.m. Since chair
Kathy L. nor vice chair Greg B. were there, Dorothy J. offered
to chair the meeting.
2. Public comment: None
3. New applications: None
4. Review and approved minutes of previous
meeting 10/19/04. Approved by consensus
5. Preservation of Easements: Discussion
of easements conditioned in Templeton documents, concern
about county road abandonments, Jan DiLeo to report on road
abandonment issue in Upper Lopez Cyn Rd. during staff report.
Kathy H.: Policy on easements and road abandonments needs
to change, so that it's more opportunistic and automatically
creates trail accesses on any county road abandonments.
Jan suggests that the committee review the policies in the
new P&R Element to make sure this issue gets in. Concern
is that different departments: i.e. Public Work's and the
Planning Department are leads and don't always let Parks
know. Jan says that she is being notified more regularly
now. Discussion of exploring opportunities with other agencies
and open space mitigations are important issues coming up:
Trails on Ag. Lands, Ag. Tourism angle, meetings with Farm
Bureau needed. They have strongly opposed trails/public
access in the past, is there room for dialogue with them?
6. Staff Report: Ernie, Jan
a) Inactive members- in the past if a member missed 3 consecutive
meetings they were automatically taken off the committee.
New direction is to keep them as inactive members and notify
them that they have been placed on inactive status.
b) Appeal to Parks and Recreation Commission for more trail
committee members, especially in South County
c) High Ridge Trail Connector-Environmental Review is being
performed by the Morro Group
d) Bob Jones Bike Trail significant damage due to storms
e) Details of Upper Lopez Drive Abandonment, county's position
on accepting the easement. After a detailed explanation
by Jan a motion was made by Bruce H. and seconded by Greg
to use the following language in the easement acceptance:
"Half of road width to a minimum of 10' and a maximum
of 20' on any portion of the paved county road to be used
as a separated multiuse trail corridor." This motion
passed unanimously.
f) Santa Margarita Ranch development plan, comments should
go to jcaruso@co.slo.ca.us , hearing Feb. 18th 9:00am. There
is great concern by the committee that open space, trail
corridors to the town of Santa Margarita, and trail corridors
in general are inadequate. Other concerns were voiced about
housing density, and vineyards. All need to write letters
on this project. The question was asked if Park and Recreation
Commission. will be involved in Environmental Impact Report?
7. Providing connectivity: Juvie Ortiz,
report on California Coastal Trail Committee(CCT) formation.
Juvie repeated some inspiring words from the CCT presentation.
This presentation will be shown at next Trail Committee
meeting.
8. Park and Rec Element update: New
workshop schedule starting March 1, 2005 the first Tuesday
of the month at the Vets Hall in San Luis Obispo, all committee
members should have this schedule and provide input.
9. Immediate goals and objectives: Goals
and Objectives for 2006.Nancy and Lydia will start drafting.
a) Anza Trail- Lydia progress with city of Paso Robles,
concern about Nipomo not being represented
b) Nipomo master plan is on hold. Ernie
c) Nipomo Pathways no report
d) Santa Margarita Lake Loop- Greg - Environmental Determination,
need to ID corridor
e) California Coastal Trail- Nancy met with SCC in December,
specific project managers assigned to Coastal Trail, Tim
Duff for Central, CRTC meeting, and CCT committee formation
10. County Trail Volunteer Assistance and
Monitoring: Ernie, Training modules scheduled, vests
will be are acquired, Lydia had questions about this first
rollout, Ernie said we will be working out details as program
grows.
11. New Business: California Trail
Days is April 23-24, 2005. Are there any plans? State parks
is building ADA access at the Heron Rookery, Coast Walk
board meeting in Grover Beach that weekend Nancy will check
if board can do something.
12. Old Business: None
13. Adjourn: 8:30 p.m. Next meeting
is April 12th, 2005
