City Of Glendale Trails Master Plan

[kanga]

As some of you may be aware, the City of Glendale has been holding public hearings on developing a Master Plan for the management of the trails, and for the construction of new ones.

I have been to most of the meetings, along with Hans from CORBA and many of the OTB club members and other mountain bikers, hikers, and equestrians. We've provided lots of input and assistance to the city and they've taken that input and come up with a master plan that includes:

- Three new trails in the Deukmejian Wilderness Park
- Three new trails in the San Rafael Hills
- A Bike Skills Park in the San Rafael Hills
- A Bike-only designated trail (four-cross or DH style)
- Three new singletrack trails in the Verdugo Hills
- Signage, parking and other improvements to existing trails

While our suggestions were quite extensive, they had to limit their proposals to something that can realistically be accomplished, and including all the trails we suggested may overwhelm the council and would be more difficult to get council approval for.

They have been extremely accommodating and willing to work with us as mountain bikers, and are doing everything the way things should be done! It's a pleasant change from many other battles being fought over trail access in other areas.

The proposed trail plan is available on their website at:

http://www.ci.glendale.ca.us/parks/C...aster_Plan.asp

Glendale city council is voting on the proposal tomorrow night, Tuesday, January 8.

The Trail Master Plans for the San Rafael Hills, the Deukmejian Wilderness Park and the Verdugo Mountains are scheduled for review at the January 8, 2008 City Council Meeting. This meeting will be in the Council Chambers located at 613 East Broadway 2nd Floor, Glendale, CA 91206. The Council begins at 6:00 P.M.

If any of you are able to attend the meeting and show support, please do so. For those who can't you might send an email to Jeff Weinstein (his email is on this page)showing your support, your trail use history (hiker, mountain biker, etc), and he will present those letters of support to the council. Your letters of support don't need to be as long or detailed, just show your support if you are so inclined.

Here's a start.... This is what we have sent to the council via Jeff Weinstein:

City of Glendale
613 E. Broadway, Room 200
Glendale, CA 91206

January 7, 2008

Re: Citywide Trails Master Plan

Honorable Mayor and Council members,

On behalf of CORBA and local mountain bike riders and trail users, we wish to express our support for the City of Glendale Citywide Trails Master Plan proposals. We and many CORBA members, OTB Mountain Bike Club Members, and other trail users have been riding and hiking trails in and around Glendale for upwards of twenty years, and are excited about the current proposals.

CORBA, the Concerned Off-Road Bicycle Association is a non-profit volunteer-run organization whose mission is to promote mountain biking, trail access, and sustainable trail development and maintenance in the greater Los Angeles area. CORBA operates under the guidelines of IMBA, the International Mountain Biking Association and is an IMBA member organization. Over the past 20 years, CORBA has worked with private, local, state and federal agencies to build and maintain multi-use trails, to educate the mountain biking community through classes and special events, and give back to the environment through volunteer trail maintenance programs. CORBA has also been instrumental in securing multi-use designation on existing trails, ensuring that all trail users have access to local resources, whether their activity of choice is hiking, trail running, mountain biking or horse riding.

It has been a great pleasure and a labor of love to work with the Glendale Parks Department's Jeff Weinstein and Sean Toro over the past nine months at the trails master plan public hearings. We have been informally surveying the local geography, poring over maps and satellite images, and brainstorming as to what the area's most crucial trail system needs are. We've returned our findings and thoughts at the public hearings hosted by your Parks Department.

The Verdugos, Deukmejian Wilderness Park, and the San Rafael Hills are incredible local resources that, sadly, are grossly under-utilized by the local community. On nearly all the existing local trails there is a high “barrier to entry.” Most of the existing trails and fire roads have significant elevation changes. These “climbs,” as we call them, are not particularly beginner friendly, and essentially limit access to the trails system to those who are already fit and well-trained. Additionally, it is difficult to put together routes that allow trail users to do a continuous hike or ride without doubling back on the same trail. No easy “loops” exist.

We feel that the current trail proposals address these issues by adding vitally needed trails and routes that will help lower the barrier to entry, allowing beginner trail users, families, and local youth to build up their strength and fitness gradually, while enjoying the outdoor resources in their own back yards. The existing proposals provide several trails without significant elevation gain and provide connections between existing trails making it possible to do “looped” hikes and rides with minimal repetition of the trails used. These looped trail options are much more enjoyable to most trail users.

Another aspect of the proposal that we fully support is the addition of a bike skills park and a bike-specific trail area. Giving Glendale's youth a place to ride safely, learn and improve their bike handling skills in a controlled environment and have fun whilst doing so, will be a great asset to the community.

Many cities around the country have realized the numerous benefits of providing designated bike parks. These benefits include increased community involvement and improved community spirit, a healthier, fitter community, increased property values, and the nurturing and support of up-and-coming young athletes. Having a central location for bike riding attracts families and teens, and allows them to learn about proper trail etiquette and trail stewardship.

When these parks grow and become centers of attraction, they generate revenue for the local economy by increasing visitation from surrounding areas and increasing spending in local businesses. Bike Park facilities also provide a venue for community events for fundraising, educational events, and sporting events. They can also be used for after-school programs and competitive sports programs.

Three notable projects that come to mind are the Collonade project in Seattle, the Woodward Bike Park in Fresno, and the Highbridge Bicycle Park in New York City. In each of these examples the local government worked co-operatively with local mountain bike groups (such as CORBA and OTB Mountain Bike Club) for the benefit of all. When cities support and encourage cycling, the local cycling community returns the favor by supporting the trail system through volunteer trail maintenance and construction, volunteer patrolling of the trails to ensure safety and sustainability of the trail system, and more experienced riders can help guide and educate younger cyclists.

It is within CORBA's mission, and our sincere hopes, that CORBA can continue to work with the City of Glendale in helping the proposed new trails and bike park become a reality, and offer ongoing assistance in their maintenance and management.

To summarize, CORBA and the local mountain biking community fully support the proposed Citywide Trails Master Plan, including the development of new multi-use trails, improvement and maintenance of existing trails, the designation and creation of a bike-skills park and bike-specific trail, and the addition of parking, restrooms, and proper signage as required to all the above.

We know these additions will have only positive returns for the Glendale community as a whole. We therefore urge the council to approve and support the Citywide Trails Master Plan as proposed.

Sincerely,
CORBA

[MTBMaven]

Thanks for posting and thanks for all your efforts working with the City of Glendale in getting several new trails for us bikers!!! Great work

[Pain Freak]

Wow, awesome letter. You nailed it, thanks! I'll put something together and email it off.

[kanga]

A little more explanation is in order.

For many STR folks, Glendale is somewhere you've driven right by to get to the San Gabriels and beyond. Glendale's open space consists of the Verdugo Hills (West of the 2 freeway), the San Rafael Hills (East of the 2 Freeway) and Deukmejian Wilderness Park (at the foot of Mt. Lukens). There are some great single track trails in the Cherry Canyon area of the San Rafael Hills and some challenging single track climbs including ROTV with 21 switchbacks in Deukmejian, but most of the rest of Glendale's trails are a network of fire roads with significant climbs. They're great for training, but are too steep for most beginners, and are not particularly challenging or exciting. But the sunset and evening views of the city are incredible!

On the Glendale City Master Plan page there are three downloadable PDF files which are the maps for the proposals. They show existing trails and property lines. The proposed trails are displayed as "areas" through which a trail will be built, not as mapped out trails, as the final trail routes will be determined by a proper survey, EIR, and working with groups like CORBA and IMBA. The highest priority trail proposals are highlighted on the maps.

The Parks department has been great to work with and are fully supportive of mountain biking. They're presenting their recommendations to the council for approval tomorrow night.

If all goes well and this is approved we can move on to the next phase..... trail and bike park design!

Thanks!

[EMrider]

Many thanks for the work and support you've given this project. I have already written a letter of support to Jeff and have been getting his regular email updates. Glad to see that the big day has finally arrived. I'm optimistic, but won't pop the cork till I know the outcome of tonight's vote.

[El Presidente]

Great news! The Glendale City Council approved the trails Master Plan! New trails and SoCals first bike park! I say first because there will be more!

More info on the CORBA site:http://www.corbamtb.com/issues/VerdugoHills.shtml

[kanga]

The official word:

On Tuesday, January 8, 2008 the Glendale City Council unanimously approved the Revised Trail Maps for the San Rafael Hills, the San Gabriel Mountains (Deukmejian Wilderness Park) and the Verdugo Mountains. This is the first major step in the Citywide Trails Master Plan process.

Safety on the trail was the only concern raised by the Council. We explained that most trail users are well educated regarding basic trail safety and that volunteer patrols will be developed to assist Park Rangers.

During the next few months we will produce a “Planning Document” that addresses trail development guidelines, operations and maintenance standards, signage packet, volunteer programs, etc.

I anticipate having a public workshop in the spring to review the new “Planning Document” before we go to the Parks Commission and the City Council.

The Council was very impressed with all the hours that were spent by the citizens in the review and development of the new maps. Sean and I cannot thank you enough for all the time that you spent assisting us on this project. The letters that were sent in support of our work and the presentations made to the Council all helped show the commitment by the public and the need for this type of program.

The Council spent time recognizing the new donation of 175 acres of open space to the city. It was perfect timing for us to be at the meeting with our plan to access the existing open space acreage and provide loops and connections throughout the mountains and hills.

We will be working on some trail grant applications that may need letters of support, so get ready for a call for assistance. I am also trying to set up a basic trail maintenance class for the spring......stay tuned.

But, for now you deserve a break, so get out on a trail and enjoy! Jeff W.

Jeff Weinstein - Trails and Open Space Specialist

City of Glendale

So there's more work ahead, but this process looks like it could be rewarding for everyone!