[bouldercouncilhotline] Hotline: Questions for West TSA hearing

[kohls at bouldercolorado.gov]

Sender: Appelbaum, Matt

Colleagues and staff,

Since I'll arrive late for the meeting on the 15th, I will list some of my questions here in advance.  Hopefully they can be answered fairly easily (either on the 15th or on the 30th) without turning into research projects.  These are in no order of priority, and many more important questions and issues are well covered in the documents we've received.  My apology if some of these are also already dealt with in those materials; in some cases I just need some clarification.

-- Although many social trails will be closed, a significant number will be designated (particularly in the Shanahan area).  Given that any trail creates a damaged corridor, fragments larger open spaces, and requires effort to maintain and patrol, I'd like to better understand why so many will remain.  Is it, in many cases, simply the fact that these trails are heavily used, particularly by neighbors, and closing them would be "impossible?"  Do some really provide important access (as opposed to simply avoiding a short walk to an existing trail)?  If it weren't for the concern that they would be recreated even if "closed," would OS staff recommend closing more of them?  And although the theory is that designating some of these social trails will keep people from creating new ones, how will that be enforced given that people are allowed to walk off-trail?

-- Towhee is understandably proposed to be closed to dogs.  Given its extraordinary environmental sensitivity, and thus the need to reroute a good chunk of it, why leave it open at all given the existence of multiple parallel trails?

-- As a result of a long effort over a decade ago, a deal was struck with the Shanahan Ridges HOAs regarding public and private access to OS.  I'm not at all fond of private access (or the deal that was made, for what it's worth), and so I'd like to know if the two key private accesses on Stony Hill must definitely remain open as such for use by HOA members only?

-- Parking is obviously a problem along Shanahan Ridge, and is apparently not allowed along a long stretch of Lehigh/Greenbriar (although one wouldn't know it from the lack of signs).  Just looking at the physical road issues, could parking be created along much of the south side of that road, perhaps using the ROW and/or a tiny sliver of OS?  Are there any other possible locations for parking so that Boulderites who aren't lucky enough to live up there can more easily access the most spectacular (my opinion, of course) portion of OS?

-- How do we manage for-profit/group activity on OS?  Do we think such users are getting the permits they need?  Are the fees set correctly?  Could we simply prohibit for-profit group use?  Could we prohibit parking/drop-off for such uses (in OS lots and also in the adjacent neighborhoods)?  Anecdotal evidence suggests that some larger group activities skirt the rules by appearing to break into several smaller groups; is that the case, and if so, how could we deal with it?

-- The charts that attempt to show the trail miles available to dogs on V&S make the (questionable) assumption that there is a gain when a current social trail becomes designated, even though that social trail is now, and has been for decades, available for V&S use.  I'd like to see two additional charts.  One would change that assumption, counting social trails that will be designated as existing V&S trails.  The second would show the statistics (with or without social trails) about dog regulations on trails as they existed just before the VMP was passed.

-- Many access trails for climbing have been, and more are proposed to be, combined and better defined.  I'd like to know how many miles of trail are effectively for the sole use of climbers?  How many of these are in the HSA?  Are there access trails and/or climbing routes that are in particularly environmentally sensitive areas?  Have any climbing routes ever been effectively "closed" (and not just seasonally)?

-- I think we've already gotten some estimates about this, but I'd like to know the percentage of green tags that are held by non-city residents.  I'd also be interested in a best-guess as to how many green-tagged dogs don't have city licenses.

-- There may be various rationales for creating non-dog trails, but I think the most/only compelling one is to allow certain populations to more comfortably use OS, such as very young children, elderly folks, etc.  That would seem to suggest that shorter, easily accessible trails (unlike the serious climb on Saddle Rock, for example) might be appropriate.  Are there places in some of the Recreation Areas that could serve this purpose better, such as the Chautauqua meadow, a short loop on Flagstaff, a loop on Red Rocks, perhaps using the to-be-designated social trail (which is otherwise an example of a very odd trail to designate, I think) near McClintock to create a no-dog loop, etc. (where, in all cases, walkers might need to be with dogs for some of their trip, but would be dog-free for perhaps 80%+ of their time)?

-- Assuming, for the sake of this question, that the Saddle Rock and lower Greenman trails keep their status quo regarding dogs that they've had for many decades, what is the rationale for keeping upper Greenman as no-dog?  Is a significant part of that trail in a extraordinarily environmentally sensitive area (and if so, why aren't we rerouting it since people surely do damage as well)?  Is it no-dog to try to create a dog-free trail to Green Mountain -- even though at best that provides only about 50% of a no-dog experience, and for people doing a loop, less than 30% no-dog?  What's our theory here?

-- If bikes are allowed on all or part of the South Boulder Creek trail, can it be constructed (as a single shared trail) so that conflicts with hikers are minimized?  There would seem to be examples that work (up to a point, like S. Boulder Creek north of S. Boulder Road), perhaps due to their flatness and good sightlines (and perhaps relatively low bike traffic), and others that don't work very well (like Marshall Mesa and Doudy Draw), perhaps due to their steepness and bad sightlines (and perhaps relatively high bike traffic).  Which would better characterize this part of S. Boulder Creek trail?  Are there ways to slow down bike traffic?  Are these concerns even more difficult to deal with on the connecting routes, which would descend fairly steeply from Greenbriar, and then steeply again in an extremely heavily used section of the Mesa Trail?  Could even some fairly short sections of parallel trail help resolve these issues to some extent?

-- There are several ideas for creating connecting trails to Betasso and Walker, as well as (finally!) placing bike lanes on Eldorado Springs Road.  This is a best-guess question: what are realistic time-frames and costs for creating such facilities?

-- Irrespective of the resolution of some of the more contentious issues raised in the West TSA (and other parts of OS), there will obviously continue to be very high use of the system by people, dogs, and in specified areas, bikes.  How helpful would in be, in trying to protect/preserve the OS environment/ecosystems even as human use increases, to require that use to remain on-trail (effectively, on-corridor, since some leeway is needed) in all of the areas designed as HCA or Natural?

Thanks -- Matt