DirtTreaders, see the SDMBA update copied and pasted below. If you want to follow this issue closely, I recommend checking the SDMBA FaceBook page.
-----------------------------------------
Legal Stowe Trail Within Reach??
https://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/view ... 02,32.9231(This is an interactive map, you can click on parcels for ownership, zoom in and change from topo to satellite)
All of us here at the San Diego Mountain Biking Association (SDMBA) believed the article in the August 26, 2016 edition of the San Diego Reader was a premature announcement for a couple reasons. The first reason is we want everyone to understand THIS TRAIL IS NOT OPEN; you can be ticketed or detained for entering this area. The second reason is although we have lobbied the federal government hard to get this trail legalized and recognized, there are private owners on the southern end of this trail and we have still not figured out the best possible alignment.
How did all this happen and how did we get here? After the confiscations of bikes on MLK weekend in January, 2016, we hosted a significant public meeting in early February where over 300 members of the public came to voice their anger and frustration. SDMBA asked the public and their members to focus that frustration on their federal representatives. Those Congressman then applied pressure to Military locally and in Washington, D.C. At one point this issue went all the way to Commandant of the United States Marine Corps. During the months preceding those meetings several field visits were made with Congressman Duncan Hunter’s office, San Diego County Parks & Recreation, Supervisor Dianne Jacob’s Office, SDMBA and the Marines. Phone calls, meetings with maps talking about the future of this area and alternative routes were discussed for hours at length. Hypotheticals of houses abutting trails that lead directly onto military property were discussed and consequences of having no legal option or route between Poway and Santee.
The importance of this route cannot be understated, this is the only logical connection between Mission Trails and Sycamore Goodan Ranch. We have looked at every option possible for how to link Poway and Santee. At every avenue there have been roadblocks not to mention this route is historic and currently exists on the ground with no new construction required.
We were asked to keep any potential deal quiet while the Military and all interested parties tried to work out a concrete alignment. Now that news has broken, we can explain a couple issues and answer some questions. One, this trail will potentially require the buy in of several landowners, Homefed, City of San Diego and County of San Diego. The map attached represents the most classic form of the Stowe Trail, as you can see from the southern end several parts go through private parcels, the future trail to be built on Pardee’s property will get us about a ⅓ of a mile to military property, but a couple parcels need to be acquired by the City of San Diego. We have been lobbying the City of San Diego to turn their attention to purchasing property in this area for the last 2 years prior to these issues as we always knew this is a key to any legal connection. To this day, no new property has been purchased. But we continue to explore another possible alignment on the East side of Santee Lakes with Homefed as an alternative connection.
Are we getting access to more than just Stowe? Sidewinder, 3 Barrels, Iron Treads etc. were not part of this conversation. For a number of reasons those are too close to sensitive areas of the base and will also not be part of the future trail system within Mission Trails East Elliott. We also had to offer many concessions as part of any legal Stowe Trail in the form of assisting the military in decommissioning trails that lead onto their property and getting the community to buy into this. Although many Mountain Bikers have nostalgic feelings towards these trails, we would hope that most when asked the question of would you trade these trails for a legal Stowe Trail the answer would be yes.
Is this guaranteed access to Stowe for ever? We explored several different options, we pushed for a sale of the property to the County of San Diego or a lease. We explored this ad nauseam, and the best possible option, easiest and fastest to get this done was a permitted access agreement. Other options could have been pursued, but some would have required congressional approval or could have risked years of limbo. Permitted access does have risks as it is not permanent, but it is very difficult to take something away from the public once given to them. Public outcry worse than before would be likely, and we have a much closer relationship with the Military now than we ever have had before.
What’s next? We are trying to nail down a potential alignment, we are hoping this can happen this year, but we are tied to construction on Mast & Medina for Pardee’s Castlerock development. We think this issue has highlighted how much can be done with advocacy. In a relatively short period of time, our community has been able to get so close to a legal route purely out of public pressure.
Ben Stone
Vice President
San Diego Mountain Biking Association
regarding the East Miramar area that has been an issue as of late. Something to the effect that the trail may be kosher to ride soon as the Marines will allow access. Any thoughts on this Bankerboy?
