May 2018 Advocacy Minutes

Advocacy Meeting

May 7, 2018 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.

4499 Ruffin Road, San Diego, CA 92123

Ben Stone - Advocacy Committee Chairperson/Vice-President SDMBA

 

Meeting begins at 6:05 PM

 

  1. Welcome and Introductions (Susie Murphy)

 

Attendance:

Kevin Loomis - President

Ben Stone - VP

Susie Murphy - Executive Director

Al Allison - Treasurer

Matt Bartelt

Sean Murphy

Seth Hanson

Jose Galaz

Allison Harmon

Mike Lowry

Drew Arnett

Dave Irelan

Mark Webb

Bob Ponting

Robyn Blackfelner

Philip Erdelsky

Tim Butrum

 

Special guests:

Richard Murphy - Escondido Creek Conservancy

Sara Godfrey - Center for Natural Lands Management

David Hekel - Senior Ranger at SDRP

 

Announcements:

  • New CityBeat bike guide for bike month - an article written by Tim Ingersoll is included in this month’s CityBeat Bike Guide

  • Flyers for San Diego Regional Bike Summit - working in conjunction with SD Bicycle Coalition

  • Thursday, Friday and Saturday event in Balboa Park

  • Saturday - field trip and ride events

  • Regional and bi-regional (US/Mexico) bicycle issues will be discussed

  • Saturday - big fundraising party at the Velodrome, dubbed the “Velobration”

 

  1. Questions or comments?

  • Question about Boulder Oaks - Ramona:

    • What is going on from an MTB perspective?

      • Part-way through the CEQA

      • Once the CEQA goes through, then the plan will go out for a bid. A broad meeting will happen soon and Ben will be able to follow up.

      • Encouraging county to stay consistent with guidelines - county parks has been very helpful

 

  • New advocacy attendee from Ramona, Tim Burtrum - is eager to help and rides often in Cuyamaca/Laguna and would like to help volunteer

  • Looking for a liaison for Goodan Ranch - potential new and really nice trail there

  • County Trail Coordinator - Meg Diss had been excited about completing Trans-County Trail. Ben has walked her around Black Mountain, as well

 

  1. Donation presentations to San Dieguito River Park, the Escondido Creek Conservancy, Center for Natural Lands Management from Arch Ride proceeds (Susie Murphy)

    1. SDRP Dave Hekel - Senior Ranger at SDRP

      1. Supportive of not only our events, but also of the Quick n Dirty race series which begins May 10th, Belgian Waffle Ride, etc. Supportive of having MTB events on the trail systems

      2. Check for $500 to SDRP to support the mountain bike patrol

      3. Runs mountain bike patrol with 35 active members - these folks make sure everyone is safe and knows where they are going. Dave created an app for the patrol as well.

      4. Dave comments

        1. Trail are looking great

        2. Building part of the Coast to Crest trail through Pamo Valley - in discussions to continue it and will be a very cool piece of trail.

      5. Question for Dave - from Allison Harmon: did “crest to coast” ride from Julian to Solana Beach. There is a new visible section along Pamo Valley - are new volunteers welcome?

        1. A: Dave is starting to look for new volunteers soon. Sections of it are not quite built but it is a work in progress. Hopefully, this will be finished by next year sometime!

      6. Dave and Susie did a trip in 2016 doing the “crest to coast” ride down to the beach - if anyone wants information about this ride, please ask Susie/

 

  1. Escondido Creek Conservancy

    1. Richard Murphy - President of Escondido Creek Conservancy

      1. East of escondido and land near Harmony Grove

    2. Donation to work on trail projects in the area - $500

    3. SDMBA will be meeting more with Anne, Executive Director for the Escondido Creek Conservancy, in hope to partner on more trail work  in the area

    4. Priorities are conservation and recreation - appreciates help and support from SDMBA. Some members on the board are mountain bikers.


  1. Center for Natural Lands Management

    1. Sarah Godfrey - Center for Natural Lands Management

      1. Area that we work with the most closely is La Costa

    2. Partnership has been a long evolution

      1. Conservation science and research is a priority and it is wonderful to have support with trail maintenance, bike station, and CNLM has received lots of great feedback from the community

      2. How long ago did you meet Rich Julian?

        1. About a 15 year evolution between Sara’s boss and Rich. The relationship is great now. Respect has been built and continues to grow.

    3. REI Work Day - did trail work along Copper Creek, an area that includes old copper mines

      1. Helped with fencing and strategic trail management

      2. Will do excellent signage and show entrance signs/potential maps.

    4. Getting involved in La Costa

      1. Prioritized projects have been identified - will need a crew of people interested in La Costa to work as soon as it rains.

      2. Working with the City of Encinitas to design connector trail between Encinitas and La Costa

      3. The “Copper Creek Falls Trail”  that leads down steep banks to the water is not a legal or recognized trail

  2. All of these groups helped with the Arch Ride

    1. The Arch Ride has been happening for nearly a dozen years and has turned into a huge fundraiser and fun ride for SDMBA members.

    2. Had almost 100 volunteers to support 300 riders this year (2018)

  3. From part of proceeds we give back to our donors for select projects

 

  1. New Membership Program (Susie)

    1. April 30th - official first day of SDMBA independent from IMBA

    2. Had a lot of people sign up at different levels

    3. If you haven’t reached expiration date with IMBA/SDMBA, you are still a member but will want to sign up before expiration date with SDMBA!

      1. Register by June 30, Zumwalt’s has donated a Specialized Stumpjumper Comp EVO (Over $3000)

    4. Spread the word to your friends

      1. All your dues will stay in San Diego

      2. Very important for Laguna and Orosco Ridge projects as well as supporting SDMBA in general for operating expenses

    5. Want to gear up to hire another person - Trail Coordinator position along with planning which would move us to another level

      1. A lot of work takes 2-4 years or more, next fall a lot of projects will be hitting the ground

      2. Having a person in this type of role is important, we want to be ready for land agencies when they are ready

      3. Looking at Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz, for example - they have 5 full-time staff people and are doing amazing things.  

    6. Join if you haven’t, thank you if you have!

 

  1. Cleveland National Forest: Orosco Ridge Public Comment Period deadline 5/25/18 (Ben Stone)

    1. Ben met USFS Joey Martin in November 2016, things have happened quickly

    2. Scoping document being done on Orosco Ridge project until May 25th (you can submit comment, letter, support)

    3. Renderings of project with trail direction and recommended signage

    4. Send a lot of comment letters!

      1. Chris Dowling took a job in Montana, so we lost the district ranger from Palomar. Not sure yet who will take his position.

      2. Make sure that we have plenty of support for the project. Original letters are especially important.

      3. They have received about 300 letters of support, these ultimately probably will be published. Electronic format is fine. Does not have to be technically oriented! 500 comments is our goal.

    5. Letter of support from Ramona Chamber of Commerce

    6. Submit comments! They are due by the 25th of May.

    7. We are paying for staff time on this project for the NEPA studies as well as the planning and design.  About $70,000 in so far that has been donated by individual and from a $15,000 REI Grant.

    8. Will try to work with other groups, such as hunters, equestrians

      1. Two climbing trails and much of the trail is multi-use, about 10 miles (but will still be narrow)

    9. Would like to break ground during the winter of this year

    10. Question: did you contact Ramona Trails Association? (Trail advocacy organization for many user groups)

      1. A: Ben has met with them 4 or 5 times, and they are neutral on this project

      2. Ramona High School mountain biking team has been very eager about this project as well

      3. Letter of support from San Diego Trail Alliance has also been requested

 

  1. Cleveland National Forest: Mt. Laguna (Ben Stone)

    1. Lindsey - District Rec Ranger for Descanso Ranger District

      1. Territory is Alpine, up to the middle of El Cap reservoir

    2. Met to talk about Mount Laguna

    3. Major landmarks on trails map

      1. Wooded Hill, Los Gatos

      2. Areas circled are unspecified reroutes, but trail may not be able to be rerouted

      3. Blue trails are existing trails, red areas are new trail planned around marsh area. One trail will be moved up into treeline

      4. Other cool update - non-system trail (Wooded Hill) will become part of system and will have a new climbing route up to it.

        1. Want Wooded Hill and Los Gatos entrance to start from the same place. Will still stay a trail downhill and will even be enhanced, potentially with A and B lines.

        2. Open to building wood/rock features along old county road as long as it can be built and maintained. Wooded Hill will be a downhill trail.

          1. Will go to Santa’s Village to see what a good example of this is

          2. Focus MTB activity in this area

      5. Section of Gatos before section of rerouting

        1. New banked turn instead of a sandy turn that is there now.

        2. Some changes to section of trail including Chico.

        3. End of Gatos - last section before trench, that section will go off to the right before that. Still would be a 5-6% downhill

      6. Reroutes on Red-tailed Roost

      7. Reroutes to Fillory Flat connection

      8. Penny Pines to Pioneer Mail - gets you off of sunrise highway

      9. Connector from Agua Dulce to Red-tailed Roost - connects the staging areas

      10. Ben would like to have trail maps of the trails that go up to the Observatory (non-system trails)

      11. Connection to Lucky 5

      12. Only first few miles of this project are forest service property (will move quickly), next ones are in Anza Borrego (which will take longer)

        1. Penny Pines to Pioneer Mail will probably be finished first

      13. 2018 REI grant will help us cover this for $15,000.

      14. This will be a difficult project but Lindsay will be a big help for us, will give us an idea about environmental review and any potential pushback, archaeological sites, etc.

    

  1. Sycamore/Goodan Ranch (Ben)

    1. Ranger Maureen wrote a letter about the County property

    2. Will know more this week about what the status of the plan is

    3. One public meeting has already been had with input

      1. County is under some pressure from many sides, has been offered partnership from us

      2. Need a liaison there ultimately


  1. East Elliot (Kevin)

    1. Everything north of the 52 is not legal

    2. Plan for Stowe trail permits - will have Marines in a few times to collect applications from residents in residential area

  • New base commander is coming in, Kevin when he steps into new position

  • Once a week Marines are still patrolling the area, it rotates days

  • Please renew your permit if you need to renew! Permit webpage

 

  1. Rockhouse/Mother Miguel Update (Jose)

    1. Mother Miguel is the official name

    2. Working on the groundwork for the last few months

    3. Old trail/switchbacks and the “scar”  - straight trail

      1. A new bridge will be built in the next couple of weeks, similar to bridge in Rancho San Diego. There will be a new entrance

      2. New switchbacks are long traverses that meet where the tight switchbacks are. Some sections of tight switchbacks will remain.

    4. More work pending

      1. turn #2 switchback, building a retaining wall with some boulders.

      2. Most of the new trail is built.

    5. All is hand built by volunteers

      1. Last trail work day - almost 50 volunteers showed up along with archaeologists

    6. Going to make a better pathway where the new switchbacks are - upper part will not be touched yet

    7. Every weekend there is trail work out there  and some weekday prep has been happening

      1. very tough ground to break, more trail users will be using it

    8. One more trail day next month on the tight switchbacks. Bridge building will start not this weekend (Mother’s Day Weekend) but the following weekend.

      1. We will need help from people who have done rock work on switchback #2 for transporting rocks and moving them around in the next 2 or 3 weeks

    9. New overlook about halfway up, will have a panoramic view

    10. Will be rideable but not be an easy ride at all, whole new alignment

    11. Will be recommended to be an up trail ultimately in order to create new downhill trails on the other side

 

  1. Black Mountain Open Space Update (Matt Bartelt)

    1. Completed part of the arsenic repair, Miner’s Ridge is now open and no more closed trails on Black Mountain!

    2. To be done

      1. connector from bike repair station to East Ridge - to be worked with for arsenic repair - there will be days that trail is closed for this work

      2. One more section on nighthawk - pink paint to pink paint

      3. Black Widow  - stuck because of endangered species and trail cannot be worked on until August

        1. Will start in August (scoping the brushing) and cutting will happen when water comes

 

  1. Penasquitos Update (Matt Bartelt)

    1. Bad news: Postings on Facebook and other social media over the weekend

      1. significant changes done to Tunnel 4 - city went in and did initial brushing of canopy that was low

      2. G-out spot was brushed out and made a go around

      3. Loose dirt - done by Alpha Project, trail was widened to 36 inches and filled in some areas with loose dirt

    2. SDMBA will come back and correct the trail when we are able to

      1. Gina - head ranger - will give better heads up to Matt so that mountain bikers are able to give feedback

      2. The reason the work happened - Alpha Project was contracted with Black Mountain and needed extra work

    3. Good news: red lines are existing trails

      1. Green lines are new trails being developed

      2. New connectors are on the map listed and are done deals

      3. Will put in new singletrack to the south

      4. Barchesky property - Caltrans stepped in to take the property. Valley will be mitigated

      5. Caltrans will acquire property, will be able to be rerouted but will have to be available to equestrians

        1. Caltrans does not require scoping

      6. There will be a loop that is rideable

      7. When mitigation starts, we cannot be riding in the area that is closed

        1. There will be large closures while this is happening with ticketing.

        2. This will be a 6-10 month period

      8. Work will be done to close Tunnel 5 on a complete basis

      9. No new movement on Archdiocese property

        1. Major plan to build in the area, high rise buildings called “The Preserve”

      10. Caltrans property is a done deal, mitigation dates are not for sure yet.

        1. Matt will update with future dates

 

Old Business (Non-discussion items)

  1. Tecolote Trails plan - (Evan) - (In progress 2018)

  2. Sycamore Goodan Ranch Update (Ben Stone)

  3. Fanita Ranch Trails Plan (Ben Stone) (Unknown)

  4. Castlerock project date June 2016 grading has begun (One year) Ben

  5. Black Mountain/Black Widow (Matt 2017 -19)

  6. Sweetwater Summit Bike Park - Design Phase (Jason Showalter)

  7. Del Mar Mesa Surrounding Development

  8. Rock House / San Diego Wildlife Refuge- update (Jose/Jason)

  9. Otay Valley Regional Park - (Jose)

  10. Tijuana River Valley (Jose)

  11. Palm Canyon Update (in Progress)

  12. San Diego County PLDO Funds

  13. Village 13 Projected Date (First Quarter 2017)

  14. Mission Trails Master Plan (Summer 2018)

 

Meeting ends at 7:59 PM

 

Minutes recorded by: Siobhan Baloochi, SDMBA Secretary

 

Next meeting: June 4, 2018.  4499 Ruffin Road, San Diego. Second floor.