[00:00:01]
YES. OKAY. WELCOME, EVERYONE.THIS IS THE TRAIL STUDY SESSION FOR THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ON FRIDAY, MARCH 1ST, 2024, BEGINNING AT 1:13 P.M.. MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL?
[ROLL CALL]
YES, PRESIDENT ECHOLS.HERE. DIRECTOR ROSARIO IS ABSENT, AND PRESIDENT ECHOLS.
HERE. GENERAL MANAGER LANDRETH.
HERE. GENERAL COUNSEL BOURGAULT.
HERE. AGM GOORJIAN HERE, AND AGM CHIEF OF POLICE FILICE.
I DON'T THINK HE'S HERE TODAY.
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
DIRECTOR WAESPI, CAN YOU PLEASE LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE? SURELY. PLEASE JOIN ME.
OKAY, AND DIRECTOR SANWONG, CAN YOU PLEASE READ THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT?
[LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT]
YES. THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT'S HEADQUARTERS IS LOCATED WITHIN THE HUICHIN TERRITORY, ON THE UNCEDED LANDS OF THE OHLONE CHICANO SPEAKING PEOPLES WHO HAVE CONTINUOUSLY LIVED UPON THIS LAND SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL.THEY REMAIN INTRINSICALLY CONNECTED TO THE LAND THEY HAVE STEWARDED SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL.
TODAY'S MEETING IS HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT.
THIS MEETING IS HELD IN A STUDY SESSION FORMAT TO ENCOURAGE BOARD MEMBER CONTENT.
OKAY. THIS MEETING IS HELD IN A STUDY SESSION FORMAT TO ENCOURAGE.
[INAUDIBLE] TEST. THIS MEETING IS HELD IN A STUDY SESSION FORMAT.
ARE WE GOOD? OKAY. I'M GOING TO START START BACK AT THE TOP OF THIS.
TODAY'S MEETING IS HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT.
THIS MEETING IS HELD IN A STUDY SESSION FORMAT TO ENCOURAGE BOARD MEMBER COMMENT AND DISCUSSION.
WE ARE PROVIDING LIVE AUDIO AND VIDEO STREAMING.
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT CAN DO SO.
ONE LIVE VIA ZOOM TWO BY SUBMITTING AN EMAIL THREE IN PERSON AT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ADMINISTRATIVE HEADQUARTERS IN OAKLAND, OR FOUR BY LEAVING A VOICEMAIL. THIS INFORMATION IS NOTED ON THE AGENDA.
IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MEETING PROCEDURES, WE WILL BEGIN.
SEEING NONE, CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA, PLEASE?
[APPROVAL OF AGENDA]
SO MOVED. THANK YOU.IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND? THANK YOU. OKAY.
MOVED BY DIRECTOR WAESPI AND SECONDED BY DIRECTOR MERCURIO.
ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? OKAY. IT LOOKS LIKE THAT'S UNANIMOUS.
MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS?
[PUBLIC COMMENTS]
YES, PRESIDENT ECHOLS, WE HAVE ONE PERSON IN THE ROOM, KELLY ABREU, AND THEN WE HAVE SOMEONE WITH THEIR HANDS RAISED IN THIS ROOM.[00:05:07]
OKAY.BRUCE BEYAERT, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
KELLY. ALL RIGHT, NOW IT'S WORKING.
YEAH. I WANTED TO GO DO A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE TELL YOU ABOUT THE PITFALLS IN TRAIL DEVELOPMENT FOR ONE IS JUST THE USUAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT ISSUES. YOU KNOW, PROJECT MANAGEMENT, LIKE AT COYOTE HILLS, WHEN YOU SCHEDULE A ONE YEAR TRAIL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT, AND NOW IT'S SCHEDULED TO BE TWO YEARS, IT'S A ONE YEAR DELAY.
IT'S TWICE AS LONG AS ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED.
IN FACT, HALFWAY THROUGH THE PERIOD AFTER THE FLOODING, THE OFFICIAL SCHEDULE AS OF LAST AUGUST CALLED FOR COMPLETION THE FOLLOWING MONTH, AND AS OF LAST AUGUST, YOU ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THE FLOODS. SO BY PUTTING OUT A COMPLETION SCHEDULE FOR ONE MONTH LATER IT'S INDICATIVE OF A DISCONNECT WITH YOUR WITH YOUR ACTUAL PROJECT TIMELINE. THEN THERE'S ACTING OR TAKING IRREVERSIBLE MEASURES BASED ON FALSE ASSUMPTIONS.
SO THERE WAS A 60 CAR, 50 CAR FREE PARKING LOT AT THE ENTRANCE TO MISSION TO COYOTE HILLS.
IT GOT BULLDOZED IN NOVEMBER OF 2022.
THE BECAUSE YOU WERE GOING TO PUT IN A FARM STAND YOU WERE GOING TO BE GROWING FOOD FOR PEOPLE.
THE FARM STAND HASN'T HAPPENED.
THE COVER CROPS ARE STILL THERE.
NOBODY GROWS EDIBLE FOOD THERE, AND CHANGE OF PLANS, BUT THAT PARKING LOT IS STILL DESTROYED, AND AT THE SAME TIME, THE PARKING LOT WAS DESTROYED.
THEN THERE'S THE SCARFACE TRAIL AT MISSION PEAK FAMOUS THING WITH PRESS RELEASES IN 2015 GOT BUILT.
THERE WAS TWO YEARS AGO MANAGEMENT SAID, OH YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO GO OUT THERE.
WE'RE GOING TO REDO THAT. WE'RE GOING TO FIX IT.
REMEMBER THE SCARFACE TRAIL AT MISSION PEAK? WE'RE GOING TO UPGRADE IT.
WE'RE GOING TO, AND THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN.
IT'S BEEN TWO YEARS, AND THE SCARFACE TRAIL IS STILL BECAUSE IT'S THE INCLINE IS TOO STEEP.
YOU CAN'T BUILD DIRT ROADS AT A VERY STEEP INCLINE.
IT'S JUST NOT GOOD FOR CIVIL ENGINEERS, AND I'M NOT A CIVIL ENGINEER, AND THEN FINALLY THERE'S THE ISSUE OF SIDEWALKS ON COMMERCE DRIVE, WHERE YOU CAN'T PUT THE CITY DOESN'T WANT TO ALLOW PARKING ON THE STREET BECAUSE THAT SIDE OF THE STREET DOESN'T HAVE SIDEWALKS, AND IT OCCURRED TO ME THIS MORNING AT, YOU KNOW, LIKE 3 A.M., I WOKE UP.
I SAID, WAIT A MINUTE, I'M GOING TO PARK MY CAR TODAY ON PERALTA OAKS COURT RIGHT HERE.
MY CAR IS PARKED HERE, AND THERE'S CARS PARKED ON THE OTHER SIDE FOR THE CORONER'S OFFICE, AND DID YOU KNOW THAT NONE OF THESE CARS HAS A SIDEWALK? NONE OF THESE PARKING SPOTS HAS A SIDEWALK, AND THEY LET YOU PARK HERE IN OAKLAND? OF COURSE, IT'S NOT THE CITY OF FREMONT.
IT'S THE CITY OF OAKLAND. SO IT'S A WHOLE DIFFERENT JURISDICTIONAL REGIME.
IT'S A WHOLE DIFFERENT WAY OF THINKING WHERE NOBODY HAS A PROBLEM ALLOWING PARKING ON PUBLIC STREETS WITH NO SIDEWALK HERE, RIGHT IN FRONT OF HERE, BUT IT'S A BIG PROBLEM IN FREMONT.
MR. BEYAERT, CAN YOU HEAR ME? BRUCE, CAN YOU HEAR ME? AM I LIVE NOW? YES. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES, SIR.
BRUCE BEYAERT HERE, CHAIR OF TRACT TRAILS FOR RICHMOND ACTION COMMITTEE.
WE'D LIKE TO THANK THE DISTRICT VERY MUCH FOR TAKING THE LEAD IN DESIGNING AND GETTING READY TO GO OUT FOR BID TO BUILD THE MELODY BAY TRAIL. WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY OF RICHMOND, WHERE THE CITY WILL PAY FOR CONSTRUCTION ON ITS PART USING GRANT FUNDS RESULTING FROM APPLICATIONS REPAIRED BY TRACT, BUT THIS MORNING, I'D LIKE TO THIS AFTERNOON REMIND YOU OF THE IMPORTANCE OF SECURING THE EASEMENT PROMISED BY CHEVRON TO EXTEND THE BAY TRAIL FROM POINT MOLATE TO THE CITY OF RICHMOND'S POINT SAN PABLO PROPERTY.
THE DISTRICT GOT AN AGREEMENT FROM CHEVRON 1415 YEARS AGO NOW THAT CHEVRON WOULD DONATE THAT AGREEMENT, BUT THAT HASN'T HAPPENED, AND THERE ARE SOME REASONS FOR THAT.
IT'S BEEN ON THE BACK BURNER FOR 15 YEARS.
SO I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE DISTRICT TO GET BACK ON TOP OF THAT.
[00:10:02]
IT'S COMPLICATED BECAUSE THERE'S UNDERLYING RAILROAD EASEMENTS, BUT I THINK THERE'S A WAY TO WORK THINGS OUT AT PERHAPS GETTING A FLOATING EASEMENT FROM CHEVRON, BUT IT'S REALLY CRITICAL TO GET THAT EASEMENT LINED UP TO EXTEND THE BAY TRAIL FROM POINT MOLATE TO POINT SAN PABLO.THE SAN PABLO PENINSULA OPEN SPACE PLAN SAID RECREATIONAL USE AT POINT SAN PABLO WAS THE KEY TO SUCCESS OF AN OPEN SPACE PLAN OUT THERE, AND IF YOU DON'T HAVE LAND TENURE, THE DISTRICT WILL NOT BE ABLE TO TAKE THE FIRST STEPS OF GETTING GRANTS FOR PLANNING AND DESIGNING THAT TRAIL.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. BEYAERT. DO WE HAVE OTHER COMMENTS? NO, PRESIDENT ECHOLS.
OKAY. SO THEN WE CAN MOVE ON TO OUR AGENDIZED ITEMS.
[ACQUISITION, STEWARDSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION]
SO FIRST WE HAVE OUR TRAILS.OKAY. THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
MY NAME IS SEAN DOUGAN. I'M THE TRAILS PROGRAM MANAGER, AND I'M HERE TO FACILITATE THE 2024 TRAILS STUDY SESSION, AND I AM JOINED IN THE ROOM TODAY BY ROBERT KENNEDY, CHIEF OF MAINTENANCE AND SKILLED TRADES, AND CAPTAIN TERRENCE OR JOE COTCHER FROM PUBLIC SAFETY, AND I'LL GET INTO A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHY I HAVE THEM HERE TODAY WITH ME, BUT OF COURSE, THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHER INDIVIDUALS IN THE ROOM, SO IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS THAT SOMEHOW WE CAN'T ANSWER, WE'LL GET YOU AN ANSWER TODAY, AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO A GREAT DISCUSSION.
SO YOU'LL SEE THAT WE'RE USING A SIMILAR FORMAT THAT WE HAVE WITH THESE STUDY SESSIONS, WHERE I SHARE SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT WE ARE IN VARIOUS STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT WITH IN MY SHOP AND IN OTHERS LIKE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION.
I'LL GIVE AN UPDATE ON THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT SCHEDULE MOVING FORWARD, REAL BRIEF, AND THEN GET INTO THE TRAIL INVENTORY THAT WE ARE EMBARKING UPON THIS YEAR AND SOME ISSUES WITH DATA COLLECTION, AND THEN THE SECOND HALF OF THE OF THE WORKSHOP WILL WILL FEATURE ROBERT AND JOE TO TALK ABOUT TRAIL MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS AND TRAIL MANAGEMENT.
IT'S CURRENTLY IN DRAFT FORM, BUT THESE THREE FOCUS AREAS ENCOMPASS ALL THE WORK AND DISCIPLINES AT THE PARK DISTRICT THAT GO INTO THIS WORK, AND THE THREE MAIN PILLARS JUST REAL BRIEFLY.
DEVELOPMENT, MAINTENANCE AND MANAGEMENT.
DEVELOPMENT INCLUDES PLANNING, FEASIBILITY STUDIES, DESIGN CEQA, NEPA, ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITTING, GRANT ACQUISITION AND THEN EVENTUAL CONSTRUCTION. SO THAT'S ALL WITHIN THAT BUCKET.
TRAILS MAINTENANCE INCLUDES THE CYCLICAL GRADING, CLEARING, TREAD WORK INSTALLATION OF RETAINING STRUCTURES, DRAINAGE FEATURES, PERMITTING CLEARING CULVERTS AT TRAIL CROSSINGS, POTENTIAL REROUTES, AND OF COURSE, PAVING ON OUR EXISTING TRAILS.
SO TAKING CARE OF WHAT WE'VE BUILT IN THE DEVELOPMENT PHASE, AND THEN THE THIRD TRAILS MANAGEMENT IS POLICY CREATION, ADOPTION AND ENFORCEMENT OF TRAIL USE POLICIES AND RULES USER CONFLICT RESOLUTION RESPONSE TO EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES, TRAIL USER ACCESS AND EQUITY, TRAIL ETIQUETTE AND EDUCATION AND ANALYSIS OF USE PATTERNS AND DATA COLLECTION, AND OVERARCHING.
ALL OF THESE BUCKETS IS, OF COURSE, OUR DISTRICT MISSION TO PROTECT NATURAL RESOURCES.
SO IT'S EMBEDDED IN ALL OF THESE AND IT'S INVOLVED IN ALL OF THESE.
SO WHY IS THIS, WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? RIGHT. WELL, BECAUSE PARDON ME I'M LOOKING AT MY NOTES HERE.
[00:15:03]
BECAUSE EVERY DIVISION AT THE PARK DISTRICT TOUCHES TRAILS IN SOME WAY, AND SO WHEN WE MOVE FORWARD, WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT TRAILS AND THE TRAILS PROGRAM, NOT JUST IN DEVELOPMENT, BUT WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT THESE ALL OF THESE PILLARS, BECAUSE WE WANT A HOLISTIC AND UNIFIED VISION MOVING FORWARD TO HELP THE PARK DISTRICT MOVE FROM SURVIVING IN THE TRAILS BUSINESS TO THRIVING THE TRAILS BUSINESS.THEY'RE INTRICATELY WOVEN TOGETHER.
RIGHT. SO CHANGES TO ONE IMPACTS THE OTHERS.
FOR EXAMPLE, SUSTAINABLE TRAIL DESIGN COULD LEAD TO A MORE MANAGEABLE LEVEL OF MAINTENANCE REQUIRED, AND WITH MINIMAL EROSION AND IMPACTS TO NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES. ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE OF TRAILS ENCOURAGES USERS TO ACTUALLY STAY ON THESE DESIGNATED PATHS AND NOT TRY TO SEEK OUT OTHER SAFER, MAYBE MORE DIRECT OR NOT BLOCKED CORRIDORS, AND THEN LASTLY, PROPER DESIGN AND MAINTENANCE OF TRAILS CAN ALSO HELP USERS MANAGE THEIR OWN ACTIVITY AND THEIR OWN SPEED, FOR INSTANCE, AND THEIR OWN BEHAVIOR, THUS MINIMIZING AREAS OF POTENTIAL CONFLICT AND MINIMIZING THE NEED FOR OUR PUBLIC SAFETY TO TRY TO BE EVERYWHERE, ALL AT ONCE.
SO WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT HERE ARE THE THREE TYPES OF TRAILS THAT THE PARK DISTRICT MANAGES.
YOU HAVE YOUR UNPAVED ROADS AND FIRE ROADS ON THE LEFT.
YOU HAVE NATURAL SURFACE TRAILS OR SINGLE TRACK TRAILS, WHICH IS PRETTY MUCH THE INDUSTRY STANDARD FOR DESCRIBING THAT TYPE OF TRAIL, AND THEN WE HAVE OUR PAVED REGIONAL TRAILS, AND EACH ONE OF THESE TYPES OF TRAILS HAS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT APPROACH TO DEVELOPMENT, MAINTENANCE AND MANAGEMENT AND THEY CAN'T BE APPROACHED IN THE SAME WAY.
SOMETIMES AT NIGHT THAT AND WORKING WITH UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD, BUT PRETTY MUCH THIS TOO.
SO THIS IS OUR DISTRIBUTION OF WHAT TYPES OF TRAILS THAT I JUST DESCRIBED TO YOU, AND OF COURSE, YOU SEE, OUR UNPAVED RANCH ROADS AND FIRE ROADS ARE THE MOST MILEAGE THAT WE HAVE AT THE PARK DISTRICT, AND THIS IS A REFLECTION OF WHAT WE RECEIVE WHEN WE BUY PROPERTIES, AND THIS WILL CONTINUE TO CHANGE.
THESE PIE PIECES WILL CHANGE OVER TIME.
NOW THE UNPAVED TRAILS, THE 200 MILES AND THE GREEN PIE, THAT'S THE PIE PIECE THAT EVERYBODY WANTS A PIECE OF AND THAT WILL CHANGE AND SHOULD CHANGE. WE'VE BEEN HEARING FROM OUR PUBLIC THAT THIS ISN'T ADEQUATE ENOUGH, AND WE'RE HEARING HEARING THAT IN MULTIPLE WAYS, SIMPLY BY THEM ASKING, BUT ALSO BECAUSE OUR ESTIMATES SHOW THAT THERE IS PROBABLY DOUBLE THIS AMOUNT OF BOOTLEG TRAILS IN OUR PARKS.
SO THAT'S ANOTHER WAY OF COMMUNICATING, SOMEWHAT OF A CRY FOR HELP.
NOW, THE PAVED TRAILS WILL ALSO CHANGE, AND IF YOU LOOK AT OUR 2013 MASTER PLAN MAP AND LOOK AT ALL THE PINK LINES ON THAT MAP THAT'S ABOUT I DID SOME MATH HERE, AGAINST MY BETTER JUDGMENT.
THERE'S ABOUT 430 ADDITIONAL PROPOSED MILES TOTAL ON THAT MAP, AND ROUGHLY 120 ARE PROPOSED TO BE PAVED, AND SO THROUGH TIME, THIS RED PIE PIECE HERE WILL GROW, BUT THE QUESTIONS I ASK AND THINK ABOUT WITH THIS IS SHOULD THESE BE SHOULD THESE BE EQUALLY DISTRIBUTED? IT'S UP FOR DISCUSSION, UP FOR DEBATE.
I DON'T BELIEVE THAT'S POSSIBLE, BUT PERHAPS THAT'S A THAT'S ANOTHER DISCUSSION POINT WE CAN HAVE, BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE PAVED TRAILS AND WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING TO DO AT THE PARK DISTRICT, IT'S PRETTY LOFTY, 120 MILES.
IT COSTS ABOUT BETWEEN 3 AND $5 MILLION TO BUILD A HALF A MILE OF PAVED TRAIL.
SO LET'S SAY 5 MILLION PER HALF, I'M SORRY, 5 MILLION PER MILE.
TO BE SAFE. TIMES 120 IS ABOUT 600 MILLION THAT WE WOULD NEED TO COME UP WITH, AND IF WE WERE MANAGING THESE PROJECTS OURSELVES, AND THAT'S THE OTHER DISCUSSION, IS: IS THAT ALL OUR JOB? IS THAT ALL OUR ROLE? WE'VE SEEN THAT IT REALLY ISN'T OUR FEDERAL AND STATE MONIES COMING IN.
WE'RE LEVERAGING THAT VERY WELL.
OTHER JURISDICTIONS AND DEVELOPERS BUILD THESE TRAILS AND THINGS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THIS PERSPECTIVE OF WHAT IT IS NOW AND ALSO GET YOU THINKING ABOUT SOME OF SOME OF THE WAYS THIS COULD CHANGE AND WILL CHANGE BUT THIS IS YOUR STUDY SESSION.
SO OUR GOAL TODAY IS NOT TO STAND HERE AND TALK AT YOU.
WE WANT TO WE WANT TO HAVE THIS DISCUSSION.
I REACHED OUT IN JANUARY AND I ASKED FOR SOME TOPICS THAT YOU MIGHT WANT TO TALK ABOUT.
[00:20:01]
GOING. YOU DON'T HAVE TO STRICTLY STICK TO THESE QUESTIONS IF YOU DON'T WANT TO.OF COURSE I KNOW YOU. YOU WON'T, BUT WE'RE HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT WHATEVER IT IS THAT COMES UP TODAY.
REGARDING TRAILS, I MEAN, AND ONE OF A GREAT EXAMPLE IS RECENT JUST A FEW DAYS AGO, WE HEARD, YOU KNOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT STEEP FIRE ROADS AND WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT STEEP FIRE ROADS.
OKAY, SO I WILL PAUSE FOR A SECOND AND WE WILL PAUSE AFTER EACH ONE OF THESE SORT OF UNITS, I GUESS YOU WILL, AND ASK IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS BEFORE I GET INTO SOME PROJECT UPDATES.
THERE'S NOT A LOT HAS CHANGED SINCE SEPTEMBER WHEN I WAS HERE LAST TALKING ABOUT THESE, BUT THERE ARE SOME UPDATES I WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU, AND THEN, OF COURSE, I HAVE MY STORY MAP THAT HAS ALL 20 THAT YOU 20 PROJECTS THAT YOU HAVE IN YOUR PACKET THERE.
IF YOU HAVE ANY INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT, WE CAN ZOOM AROUND AND KIND OF GO WHEREVER YOU'D LIKE, BUT I DO HAVE SOME SPECIFIC UPDATES I'D LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU TODAY, SO I'LL ASK IF I'LL PAUSE FOR A SECOND.
REAL QUICK, AT THE BEGINNING YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT FOUR PILLARS.
I DIDN'T SEE IT IN THE PACKET.
COULD YOU JUST REVIEW IT? THREE PILLARS? YES. I AM KIND OF INTERCHANGING PILLARS, DISCIPLINES OR ELEMENTS OF THE TRAILS PROGRAM, AND THAT'S DEVELOPMENT MAINTENANCE AND MANAGEMENT.
YOU ALSO SAID SOMETHING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGY TOOLS AND HOW THAT'S A PART OF IT.
WAS THAT PART OF THIS THREE PILLARS? YEAH I WOULD YEAH, I WOULD PUT THAT INTO INTO THE MANAGEMENT PILLAR.
OKAY. YEAH, MANAGEMENT IS QUITE A LOT.
THANK YOU, AND THEN WITH THE PREVIOUS SLIDE WITH THE TWO QUESTIONS, ARE YOU HOPING THAT WE INTEGRATE THOSE TWO QUESTIONS INTO EACH OF THE PROJECTS WE'RE ABOUT TO REVIEW? OR IS THAT AN OVERARCHING CONVERSATION THAT YOU WANT TO HAVE WITH US TODAY? A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH.
THE INTENT WAS TO HAVE THESE GET YOU THINKING ABOUT AN OVERALL OVERARCHING CONVERSATION.
THEY WEREN'T SPECIFIC TO THE PROJECTS, BUT OF COURSE, IT WE'RE I'M OPEN TO WHATEVER YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT, ESSENTIALLY, AND THEN I THINK THAT'S ALL OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE FOR RIGHT NOW.
ONE IS BIGGEST CONCERN, AND THEN THE OTHER ONE WAS, YOU KNOW, THOSE THREE, YOU KNOW, AND SO I GUESS WE'RE JUST GOING TO BRING THEM UP AS WE NOTICE THAT IT INFECTS WHAT WE'RE TALKING.
I'M SORRY. THIS IS LET ME CLARIFY.
I THINK IT'S THE MOST APPROPRIATE TIME.
CAPTAIN JOE COTCHER WILL COME UP.
HE HAS SOME STATISTICS, SOME ENFORCEMENT, SOME INCIDENTS STATISTICS AND SOME CITATION STATISTICS, AND HE AND, YOU KNOW, DURING DURING HIS SEGMENT, WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT, BUT THEN WE ARE GOING TO BREAK AND JUST TURN IT OVER TO THE BOARD AT THE END AS WELL TO CONTINUE THAT CONVERSATION.
SO DOES THAT HELP? OKAY. IT'S KIND OF A NEW FORMAT, BUT I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE I'M REALLY I'M PUMPED FOR IT.
OKAY. THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE HAVE QUESTIONS BEFORE WE CONTINUE? OKAY. LOOKS GOOD.
GREAT. OKAY. SO I WANT TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON THE POINT MOLATE.
YEAH, HE CAN GO AHEAD AND FINISH IT BECAUSE WE'RE JUST DOING THE FIRST ONE AT THIS POINT.
BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT MR. LAFORCE HAS COMMENTS ON ALL THREE.
SO WHICH WE WILL ALLOW THREE MINUTES ON EACH.
SO I JUST WANTED TO BE CLEAR AS WE FLOW FROM ONE TO THE NEXT, BUT OKAY.
THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING THAT I AND THAT SOUNDS GOOD.
THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO YOU. THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME.
PRESIDENT ECHOLS. I RECOMMEND THAT YOU HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT SESSION AFTER ITEM ROMAN NUMERAL SIX.
[00:25:05]
IS THAT WHAT YOU JUST SAID? OR WELL, I WAS ACTUALLY THINKING THAT WE WOULD TREAT EACH ONE OF THESE TOPICS AS A SEPARATE TOPIC.THE ACQUISITION, STEWARDSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION.
THE SUB THE SUB POINTS IN THERE.
OKAY. I MEAN HOWEVER YOU WANT TO DO IT IS FINE, BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT YOU NEED TO HAVE IT AFTER EACH ONE IF YOU WANT TO JUST BUNDLE THAT AND HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THAT. IT'S BASICALLY THIS IS ALL ABOUT TRAILS, AND THEN YOU COULD HAVE ONE, BUT YOU HAVE DISCRETION TO DO IT HOWEVER YOU WISH.
WELL, I'LL STICK WITH THE WHAT I ALREADY ANNOUNCED, BUT IF BUT DON'T FEEL OBLIGED TO USE THE WHOLE TIME, MR. LAFORCE. OKAY.
WELL, I KIND OF ASSUMED IT WAS GOING TO BE AT THE VERY END.
OH THAT'S FINE, WE CAN DO IT THAT WAY THEN.
OKAY. SORRY IF THIS IS CONFUSING.
OKAY, I'M GOING TO START HERE.
WE ARE WORKING WITH THE CITY OF RICHMOND TO, AS YOU KNOW, THE PROPERTY CHANGED HANDS.
SO WE'VE BEEN DESIGNING AND MANAGING THIS PROJECT UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT ALL THE LAND HAD BEEN ACQUIRED AND WE HAD RIGHTS OF WAY, BUT WHEN THE LAND CHANGED, THAT SLIGHTLY CHANGED IN CERTAIN AREAS, AND SO WE WERE CONTEMPLATING, IF YOU RECALL, CONTEMPLATING SPLITTING THE PROJECT IN HALF POSSIBLY IF THOSE THOSE ISSUES COULDN'T BE RESOLVED. WELL, THEY'RE SUCCESSFULLY NEGOTIATING THOSE, AND IT LOOKS LIKE WE ARE ABSOLUTELY GOING TO BE ABLE TO BID THIS ENTIRE PROJECT AS A 2.5 MILE GAP CLOSURE PROJECT OF THE BAY TRAIL, WHICH IS GREAT NEWS.
THEY'RE ALWAYS LAST. IT'S OKAY.
WE'RE JUST WORKING OUT SOME FINAL ISSUES THERE.
WELL, IS NOT OWNED BY RICHMOND ANYMORE, AND SO THOSE ARE MINOR DESIGN CHANGES.
THE. THE DELAYS ARE HAPPENING.
SIMPLY BECAUSE WE'RE REFINING THE DESIGN, BUT WE DID WE DO HAVE A SLIGHT DELAY.
I'M LOOKING TO SEE IF I CAN GET ANY PICTURES FOR YOU, AND WE HOPE TO WE REALLY WERE SHOOTING FOR MID-MARCH, BUT IT REALLY COULD IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE LATE MARCH, BUT DON'T WORRY.
WE THINK WE'RE STILL GOING TO GET COMPETITIVE BIDS ON THIS BECAUSE OUR CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT FIRM THAT WE'VE HAD ON BOARD FOR QUITE SOME TIME NOW HAS BEEN SHOPPING THIS PROJECT AROUND WITH LOCAL CONTRACTORS, AND THERE'S A FEW THAT WE KNOW ARE VERY INTERESTED IN THIS.
SO WE'RE HOPING FOR COMPETITIVE BIDS, AND WE, WE WILL BE GETTING THE ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE THIS WEEK FOR THE 100% DESIGN PLANS, AND AT THAT POINT, WE WILL KNOW WHETHER WE HAVE AN ISSUE WITH FUNDING OR NOT, AND OF COURSE, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE PROJECT WILL COST UNTIL WE ACTUALLY GET THE BIDS, BUT I JUST WANT TO PUT YOU ON NOTICE THAT IT'S BEEN WHEN A PROJECT LASTS THIS LONG AND TAKES THIS LONG, AND THEY ALL DO, THE COSTS CONTINUALLY GOES UP.
ANY QUESTIONS ON POINT MOLATE? NO? OKAY. AS FAR AS PHASE TWO, WE ARE WORKING TO EXTEND THAT AGREEMENT WITH CHEVRON TO GET THAT EASEMENT FOR THE SECOND PHASE SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE OUR DISCUSSIONS. WE ARE VERY BLESSED TO HAVE A TEAM AT CHEVRON.
I ACTUALLY HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THAT.
SO SEAN, WHICH EXACTLY THAT I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHERE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WITH THE EASEMENT BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S, THERE'S SEVERAL DIFFERENT PLACES, AND JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR IF YOU COULD ADDRESS BRUCE BEYAERT'S POINT AS WELL.
OKAY. SO THE PROJECT HERE IN YELLOW IS OUR PROJECT THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, THE 2.5 MILES FROM THE BRIDGE TO WINEHAVEN. HALF OF IT IS RICHMOND'S.
YOU CAN KIND OF SEE IT IN ORANGE.
[00:30:01]
THERE IT GOES. ALL. IT WAS MEANT TO GO ALL THE WAY OVER TO THE MARINA HERE.THIS AREA, IF I CAN ZOOM IN WAS A PART OF THE AGREEMENT THAT THE LOWER YELLOW PROJECT PORTION WAS IN BACK IN 2012, WHEN CHEVRON AGREED TO GIVE THE PARK DISTRICT AN EASEMENT FOR A TRAIL HERE.
HOWEVER, THEY DISCOVERED AFTER THEY PROMISED THAT THERE WERE STILL RAILROAD RIGHTS ON A LOT OF THAT PROPERTY, AND UNFORTUNATELY, THE TRAIL REALLY THE HOW IT'S A BOTTLENECK HERE REALLY CAN'T GO ANYWHERE WITHOUT TOUCHING THAT RAILROAD PROPERTY.
SO ESSENTIALLY, CHEVRON DOESN'T HAVE THE COMPLETE RIGHTS TO, TO GIVE US AN EASEMENT, AND SO WE WILL HAVE DISCUSSIONS WITH CHEVRON AND, AND HOPEFULLY THEY'RE A UNIFIED FRONT IN SPEAKING WITH THE RAILROADS AS WELL MOVING FORWARD HERE, BUT JUST TO PUT THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE, WE'RE REALLY FOCUSED ON PHASE ONE, AND SO UNTIL WE KIND OF GET THAT OUT TO BID AND UNDER CONSTRUCTION AND EVEN COMPLETED, WE REALLY YOU KNOW, ARE HARD PRESSED TO REALLY FOCUS ON PHASE TWO, WHICH IS GOING TO BE EQUALLY AS EXPENSIVE, IF NOT MORE, AND WILL PROBABLY TAKE JUST AS LONG.
GOOD. WELL, I'M REALLY GLAD TO HEAR THAT YOU'RE YOU'RE WORKING WITH A TEAM ON CHEVRON WHO IS RESPONSIVE AND SEEMS ALIGNED WITH THE VISION, AND I DO UNDERSTAND THAT , YOU KNOW, THIS HAS BEEN TIED UP BECAUSE OF THE, THE RAILROAD TRACKS, BUT I'M GLAD I THINK THAT MAKES SENSE.
IF WE CAN ENGAGE THE PARTIES AND TRY TO GET THIS WORKED OUT, AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO, TO I MEAN, I KNOW YOU GOT TO GET THE PHASE ONE KICKED OFF, BUT MAYBE WHILE THAT'S IN PROCESS, WE CAN WORK OUT THE PROBLEM OR REACH A SOLUTION WITH THE RAILROADS AND BE READY TO GO WHEN WHEN THE TIME COMES TO START, WORK ON PHASE TWO.
HOPEFULLY THAT ADDRESSED THOSE CONCERNS.
SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PAVEMENT.
SO WE HAVE SEVERAL MILES OF PERMITTED TRAILS IN PLEASANTON RIDGE, AND BUT TWO OF TWO OF THE MOST READY ARE THE MARIPOSA TRAIL AND THE PHILIP SCHOLZ TRAIL, AND WE ARE STILL PLANNING TO START CONSTRUCTION ON THOSE THIS YEAR.
I DID WANT TO POINT OUT THAT ABOUT THREE WEEKS AGO, WE HEARD WE WENT THROUGH A WHOLE YEAR'S PROCESS TO DETERMINE AND A MEET AND CONFER PROCESS TO HIRE AN OUTSIDE CONTRACTOR TO BUILD TRAILS FOR US.
IT'S ONE METHOD IN A TOOLBOX OF HOW WE CAN BUILD TRAILS HERE.
WE HAVE A LOT OF TRAILS TO BUILD, AND WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WORKING ON OTHER THINGS BESIDES TRAILS CONSTRUCTION, AND THAT COMPANY WAS WE ENTERED INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THEM, AND THEN ABOUT THREE WEEKS AGO, THEY CALLED US AND SAID THAT WE WERE GOING OUT OF BUSINESS, AND SO WE ARE GOING TO GO TO THE NEXT CONTRACTOR THAT PROPOSED, AND IT MIGHT SET US BACK A LITTLE BIT, BUT WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO GET THESE TWO TRAILS BUILT THIS YEAR STILL.
THESE PROJECTS ARE HARD ENOUGH TO BUILD ALREADY.
THIS INDUSTRY IS NOT A STRONG IT'S NOT A REALLY ESTABLISHED.
THE TRAIL BUILDING INDUSTRY IS NOT AS ESTABLISHED AS OTHER CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES, AND SO THIS IS JUST PART OF US FIGURING OUT THE BEST WAY TO BUILD THESE, AND WE'LL WORK THROUGH THIS, BUT BUT I WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE THERE.
I'M LAUGHING TO KEEP FROM CRYING, BUT WE THINK WE HAVE A WAY FORWARD, AND WE I WILL SAY, TOO, THAT THE MARIPOSA TRAIL HERE, WE'VE CUT OUT SOME OF THE MORE IMPACTFUL AREAS, AND WE'VE BASICALLY CUT THAT TRAIL IN HALF, AND ONE IS TO CUT COSTS, BUT ALSO THEY STARTED IDENTIFYING BRIDGES THAT WE NEED TO BUILD, AND WHEN THAT'S REALLY THE LAST RESORT, WE JUST DON'T WANT TO BUILD BRIDGES OVER DRAINAGES.
ONE THING THAT, YOU KNOW, WHEN I LOOKED AT THE MAP THAT WAS INCLUDED IN OUR PACKET.
THAT IT MADE ME THINK OF BECAUSE I THINK TECHNICALLY THIS IS IN WARD THREE, BUT I KNOW A LOT OF THE CONSTITUENTS THAT LIVE IN THE CITY OF PLEASANTON ARE VERY INTERESTED IN THESE PROJECTS, AND MY COMMENT IS, WHEN THERE ARE PROJECTS LIKE THIS THAT MIGHT BE OUTSIDE OF, I'LL JUST GIVE THIS AS A SPECIFIC EXAMPLE OUTSIDE OF WARD FIVE, BUT I KNOW ARE VERY MUCH OF INTEREST OF THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN WARD FIVE.
IF THERE'S SOME WAY THAT IF THERE'S UPDATES SHARED THAT IT'S NOT JUST SHARED WITH, YOU KNOW, THE WARD THREE DIRECTOR WAESPI, BUT ALSO SHARED WITH MYSELF, BECAUSE I KNOW I WOULD DEFINITELY LIKE TO JUST STAY IN THE LOOP ON THESE PROJECTS, AND I'M NOT SAYING I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF THERE WAS ANY UPDATE SHARED WITH DIRECTOR WAESPI, BUT JUST GOING FORWARD, I
[00:35:09]
THINK THERE'S A LOT OF PARKS THAT MAYBE OVERLAP IN TERMS OF INTEREST, AND I CAN GIVE, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER EXAMPLE, I KNOW WE SHARE FREMONT, AND I WOULD LIKE TO JUST BE INCLUDED IN ALL OF THE, YOU KNOW, FREMONT TRAILS AND PROJECTS THAT MAYBE ARE IN WARD THREE, BUT ARE OF INTEREST TO PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN WARD FIVE.SO THAT'S JUST ONE COMMENT I WANTED TO SHARE WHEN LOOKING AT THE MAP, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IN REGARDS TO THIS SPECIFIC PROJECT, YOU KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING UP ON THE PLEASANTON RIDGE IS SOMETHING THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN PLEASANTON LIKE TO TALK TO ME ABOUT.
YEAH. THANK YOU FOR THAT COMMENT.
OKAY. GO AHEAD. OH, SORRY, DIRECTOR WAESPI.
YEAH, I WAS JUST WONDERING, AND WE'RE ALL GETTING A LITTLE LIGHT HERE, BUT, I MEAN, DO WE HAVE A CHAPLAIN IN THIS DEPARTMENT THAT WE COULD TALK TO THE SHOLZ FAMILY ABOUT THIS WHO HAVE SUFFERED FOR A LONG TIME DONATING MONEY FOR THEIR SON AND HUSBAND EVERYTHING ELSE.
WHO THOUGHT HE'D GET A TRAIL OR THEY'D GET A TRAIL OUT OF THIS, AND NOW WE'RE.
THAT IS NOT ONE OF THEM, BUT WE DID MEET WITH WITH EMILY SCHOLZ AND THE FOUNDATION.
LAUREN AND I MET WITH HER RECENTLY, AND THIS WAS RIGHT BEFORE.
RIGHT BEFORE I HEARD THAT THE COMPANY WAS GOING OUT OF BUSINESS, AND I COMMITTED.
WE'RE GOING TO BUILD IT THIS YEAR, AND SO I'VE GOT TO MAKE THAT CALL STILL, BUT WE STILL THINK THAT'S WHY I'M STILL PUSHING FOR THIS BECAUSE IT IS ACTUALLY IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IT'S THE TEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF PHILIP SCHOLZ DEATH THIS YEAR, AND HIS BIRTHDAY IS ON WOULD HAVE BEEN OCTOBER 5TH.
SO WE'RE REALLY SHOOTING FOR THAT DATE AND WE'RE STILL SHOOTING FOR THAT DATE, BUT SHE HAS NOTIFIED US THAT THERE'S ACTUALLY A LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY IN THE FOUNDATION THAT SHE WOULD LIKE TO CLOSE OUT AND MOVE ON, AND IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF AROUND 60,000 MORE DOLLARS, WHICH IS GREAT BECAUSE THESE TRAIL PROJECTS ARE COSTLY, AND WE COULD USE THAT.
SO DO WE EXPECT THAT OCTOBER 5TH IS WITHIN REASON? RIGHT NOW, IT IS.
WE'RE MEETING LATER THIS MONTH WITH THE OTHER CONTRACTOR, AND WE'RE HOPING THAT THEY CAN GIVE US A SCOPE, AND THEN I WILL BE RETURNING BACK TO YOU WITH A CONTRACT TO HIRE THEM AS SOON AS I CAN, AND THEN WE CAN GET THEM GOING.
IT'S SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAIN TRAIL STEWARDSHIP.
THE OTHER FIRM WAS FROM COLORADO, IF YOU RECALL.
SO THERE'S SOME GOOD THINGS THERE, BUT RIGHT NOW I THINK IT'S STILL DOABLE, DIRECTOR WAESPI, BUT I WILL KEEP YOU AND OF COURSE, DIRECTOR SANWONG AND THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. APPRIZED OF WHAT? WHAT HAPPENS HERE. THANK YOU.
WELL, LET ME TRY SOMETHING HERE BECAUSE I KNOW YOU HAD THOSE TWO QUESTIONS AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT POSSIBLY INTEGRATING SOME OF THEM IN HERE, AND MAYBE I'LL JUST PUT THIS OUT HERE, BUT WE COULD DISCUSS IT AT THE END, BUT ONE THING I KNOW THAT IS A PRETTY FAIRLY LARGE TREND ON PLEASANTON RIDGE IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF UNSANCTIONED TRAILS.
I GUESS WE'LL SAY IN THINKING ABOUT TECHNOLOGY APPS, A LOT OF THESE DIFFERENT APPS WILL ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO GO ON THESE UNSANCTIONED TRAILS. SO I'M GOING TO LEAVE THIS AS A QUESTION.
I'M NOT LOOKING FOR AN ANSWER RIGHT NOW SINCE WE'RE GOING PROJECT BY PROJECT, BUT MAYBE AT THE END OF THIS WORKSHOP, THAT'S SOMETHING TO MAYBE DISCUSS, BECAUSE SOMETIMES WITH THIS GUIDANCE OF, YOU KNOW, THESE THIRD PARTY APPS TELLING PEOPLE, OH, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, IT'S OKAY TO GO, YOU KNOW, ON THIS TRAIL THAT'S NOT SANCTIONED.
WE CAN HAVE DANGEROUS SITUATIONS THAT HAPPEN.
SO I THINK WHEN WE'RE THINKING ABOUT TRAILS, THAT'S AN IMPORTANT TOPIC THAT I KNOW WE WON'T ANSWER TODAY, BUT ONE THAT I WANT TO MAKE SURE IS INCLUDED IN THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT TRAILS IN GENERAL.
THANK YOU, AND I SHOULD MENTION MY STAFF IS LISTENING AND TAKING NOTES IF I'M NOT TOO DISTRACTING FOR ME, BUT I THINK YOU WILL BE INTERESTED IN THE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE TRAIL INVENTORY THAT I'LL GET TO IN A BIT BECAUSE IT DOES.
IT RELATES TO THIS PARK AND THAT ISSUE DIRECTLY.
YES, THANKS, AND ACTUALLY, I'M GLAD YOU MENTIONED THE NAME OF THAT.
THAT OUTFIT, BECAUSE I KNOW THEM A LITTLE BIT.
I MEAN, THEY'RE REALLY ORGANIZED.
I'M WONDERING ABOUT THAT SOUTHERN ONE THOUGH.
THE ONE THAT'S. YEAH, THAT ONE THERE.
ON THE MAP IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO ANOTHER TRAIL THAT RUNS ROUGHLY PARALLEL TO IT, AND I'M JUST THINKING IS THAT BEING BUILT TO CREATE A TRAIL THAT'S NOT AS STEEP BECAUSE IT'S LONGER THAN THE ONE THAT'S NEXT TO IT.
WHY IS THERE TWO TRAILS NEXT TO EACH OTHER? YEAH.
[00:40:05]
BEHIND THIS. I DO KNOW THAT THIS WAS THIS IS THE MOST RECENT EXAMPLE OF A LAND USE PLAN THAT LOOKED AT TRAILS MORE CLOSELY, LOOKING AT OPENING NEW TRAILS, LOOKING AT RESTORING BOOTLEG TRAILS, LOOKING AT ADOPTING BOOTLEG TRAILS AND DECOMMISSIONING ROADS AND ROAD TO TRAIL CONVERSIONS, AND WE'VE DONE SOME OF THAT ALREADY.A LOT OF TIMES THERE'S UTILITIES THAT NEED THAT, LIKE PG&E, THERE'S A LOT OF UTILITIES THAT THEY NEED TO ACCESS, ETC, AND ALSO OUR MAINTENANCE STAFF IS NOT THEY HAVE TO BE ABLE TO GET TO THESE PLACES AS WELL.
SO I WOULDN'T SAY IT'S MEANT TO BE A REPLACEMENT, BUT THAT ROAD IS NOT THE RECREATIONAL EXPERIENCE THAT MOST ARE LOOKING FOR AND THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A LOT OF PUBLIC INFLUENCE ON THIS PLAN, ESPECIALLY FROM THE BIKING COMMUNITY, AND SO THE RESULTS OF THE OF THE PLEASANTON RIDGE LAND USE PLAN IS SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF ABOUT 17 NEW MILES OF TRAIL WITHIN THIS PARK, AND THIS IS ONE OF THEM. YEAH. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S THE BEST ANSWER I CAN GIVE YOU AT THE MOMENT, BUT I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, EVEN IF YOU DON'T.
I'M JUST YEAH NO, IT SOUNDS LIKE.
I MEAN, I'LL JUST TO MY FOR MYSELF.
THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE A BETTER, A BETTER TRAIL TO USE THAN WHAT'S ALREADY THERE.
ALMOST BY DEFINITION, WHAT WE WOULD BUILD FROM SCRATCH.
WOULD BE BETTER THAN WHAT SOME RANCHER DID WITH HIS OWN BULLDOZER IN THE 1940S, YOU KNOW.
SHALL I MOVE ON? YES, PLEASE. OKAY.
OKAY, SO I HAVE SOME GOOD NEWS AND SOME NEWS ON THIS PROJECT.
THE SO THIS IS THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY TRAIL IN IN MARTINEZ.
AS YOU KNOW, THIS WAS ORIGINALLY A CITY OF MARTINEZ TRAIL.
TURN OF EVENTS, IT'S NOW OUR PROJECT.
WE'RE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH MARTINEZ.
SOME GOOD NEWS IS THAT WE ARE WORKING ON OUR FINAL DESIGN PACKAGE TO UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD FOR THE CROSSING, WHICH IS I'LL BRING THIS UP.
THEY WERE ASKING FOR A LOT OF THINGS HERE.
KIND OF THE CADILLAC OF ALL AT GRADE CROSSINGS.
SO THEY'RE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THIS.
THEY'RE ASKING US FOR CROSSWALKS AND SIGNALS AND LIGHTS AND THINGS.
WELL THEY BACKED AWAY FROM SOME OF THAT WHICH IS GREAT.
SO IT'S GOING TO LOWER SOME COST.
WE'VE SUBMITTED SOME DATA TO THEM THAT HAS RELIEVED THEIR CONCERNS ABOUT CROSSING OF BARRELS, ETC., BUT IN OUR AS WE FEDERALIZED THE PROJECT AND WE ENGAGE WHEN IT BECAME FEDERALIZED, WE HAD TO THEN WORK UNDER NEPA AND THEN THAT MEANS WE'RE WORKING WITH CALTRANS AND THAT'S ANOTHER REVIEWER IN THE ROOM.
RIGHT, AND IN PARTICULAR, THERE'S A WHOLE HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES IN THIS AREA.
THE RAILROAD ITSELF IS BEING CONSIDERED.
A HISTORIC RESOURCE AND IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE ADOPTED AS SUCH, WHICH IS EXTREMELY IS YEAH.
THE WHOLE THE WHOLE ALIGNMENT.
SO SO THERE'S ISSUES IN THERE, BUT WE'VE ALSO FOUND SOME CULTURAL RESOURCES ON OUR PROPERTY TO THE LEFT THERE ON THE SEGMENT THAT'S REALLY ALREADY BEEN BUILT.
SO WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THE SECTION 106 PROCESS WITH CALTRANS AND THEN THE DESIGN PROCESS OF THE TRAIL ITSELF WITH UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD, AND WE THINK WE'RE GETTING CLOSE.
WE'VE MOVED IT AS FAR AWAY AS WE CAN.
YOU CAN SEE HERE WE COME DOWN, THERE'S A BRIDGE THAT WE BUILT THAT MARTINEZ BUILT YEARS AGO THAT'S JUST WAITING TO HAVE A TRAIL CONNECT TO IT, AND THEN WE GO BEHIND THERE'S SIGNAL CABINETS, BUT THERE'S THESE PINCH POINTS OVER HERE.
THIS ENTIRE SITE IS EXTREMELY FLAT.
SO THIS HAS BEEN THE MOST DIFFICULT PORTION TO DESIGN FOR OUR ENGINEERS, AND SO WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE OVER THERE BY THAT ORANGE CONE, AND UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD DOES NOT WANT WATER TO GO NEAR THEIR BALLAST BECAUSE IT COULD SETTLE IT AND FOUL IT.
[00:45:06]
SO I'M ONLY POINTING THIS OUT BECAUSE THIS COULD BECOME A BIG ISSUE WITH UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD, AND DRAINAGE IS ALREADY THEIR MAIN CONCERN BESIDES SAFETY. SO WE HAVE SOME DESIGN WORK TO DO ON THIS AND WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE IF SOMEBODY SAID, OH, JUST BUILD A BOARDWALK.YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOW PUTTING THE PROJECT IN AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT COST CATEGORY, AND WE HAVE TO START ASKING OURSELVES WHAT WE WANT TO SPEND, FOR WHAT BENEFIT WE'RE GETTING AND WHETHER WE'RE THE ONES THAT SPEND THAT.
SO I DON'T MEAN TO BRING ANY BAD NEWS.
THIS PROJECT IS MOVING FORWARD.
CCTA IS IS TAKING OVER MANAGEMENT OF IT AS SOON AS WE CAN FINISH CEQA AND NEPA AND PERMITTING, AND THERE'S STILL WAITING TO RECEIVE IT, BUT I JUST WANTED TO SHARE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES, AND SO WHEN YOU SEE DELAYS AND IT'S NOT HAPPENING FAST ENOUGH, OR THEN YOU MAY KNOW WHY.
OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? YEAH I THOUGHT SO.
SO MY IMPRESSION WAS THAT BASED ON EXISTING MEANING, MAYBE SOME POINT IN THE PAST ESTIMATES OF COSTS, WE WERE CLOSE TO BEING FULLY FUNDED ON THIS PROJECT.
FROM WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, IT'S SUGGESTING THAT WE'RE NOT FULLY FUNDED, AND SO WHAT ARE NOW THE COST ESTIMATES? I'M NOT SAYING THAT AT THIS STAGE.
WE ACTUALLY ARE GETTING VERY CLOSE TO BEING FULLY FUNDED IF THEY APPROVE THIS DESIGN, IF THEY SUGGEST, HOWEVER, THAT OUR DESIGN IMPACTS DRAINAGE AND THAT THEY WON'T APPROVE IT, OR THAT WE HAVE TO SAY, UPGRADE THEIR CULVERT UNDER THEIR TRACKS THAT'S BEEN BLOCKED FOR 20 YEARS.
THAT'S A DIFFERENT CONVERSATION AND THAT'S PREVENTING THEM FROM FOLLOWING THROUGH WITH THEIR OBLIGATION WITH THE MOU THAT WE HAVE FROM 2016, AND SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I'VE BROUGHT UP WITH OUR LEGAL TEAM BRIEFLY, BUT NOT IN DEPTH, BUT JUST PUTTING EVERYONE ON NOTICE THAT UNION PACIFIC ASKS FOR EVERYTHING AND THEY WON'T APPROVE OUR PLANS IF IT'S IMPACTING THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE.
I MEAN, IF THE RAILROAD PROVES.
TO, YOU KNOW, COMES UP WITH A DEMANDS THAT ARE UNWORKABLE.
HAVE WE EVER STUDIED ALTERNATIVES JUST USING THE STREET? WELL, THERE IS SOME PRIVATE PROPERTY NEXT DOOR.
I'VE SPOKEN TO THIS INDIVIDUAL THAT IS POSSIBLY AN OPTION TO TRY TO GET A LITTLE DIFFERENT RIGHT OF WAY, BUT THAT AGAIN, THAT'S A COST AND THAT'S ANOTHER DELAY.
WELL, YEARS I KNOW, BUT THIS MIGHT JUST NOT HAPPEN.
WE DO HAVE DESIGNED DRAINAGE DITCHES AND TRAPEZOIDAL CHANNELS TO POOL THIS WATER AS OF RIGHT NOW, AND IF WE CAN SHOW THAT THE CAPACITY OF THE FLOODWATERS COMING INTO THIS AREA CAN BE HELD WITHIN THOSE CHANNELS AND STILL ALLOW UP ACCESS, WE COULD BE SUCCESSFUL.
OKAY. I APPRECIATE YOUR OPTIMISM.
I HAVE TO BE I'M SURE MY BOSS IS GOING TO KICK ME FOR EVEN BRINGING IT UP, BUT THESE ARE CHALLENGES THAT WE DEAL WITH, AND THIS PROJECT IS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT SITES TO DESIGN A PROJECT WITHIN.
THANK YOU. ANYBODY ELSE HAVE QUESTIONS ON THAT ONE? I HAVE A QUESTION BEFORE YOU MOVE ON.
ANYONE ELSE BEFORE I GO? SO AT THE RISK OF GETTING INTO THIS.
I'M REALLY THIS IS VERY INTERESTING THAT THERE IS SOME TALK ABOUT DESIGNATING THE RAILROAD AS HISTORIC, AND SO I'M JUST WONDERING, LIKE, WHO ACTUALLY MAKES THAT DETERMINATION AND WHAT WILL THAT MEAN? NOT JUST FOR THIS PROJECT, BUT OTHER PROJECTS WHERE WE HAVE RAILROADS INVOLVED OR THIS RAILROAD INVOLVED, THIS PARTICULAR RAILROAD.
THAT'S A REALLY GOOD QUESTION.
I ACTUALLY DON'T THINK I'M GOING TO TRY TO ANSWER THAT.
FAIR ENOUGH. I'LL JUST I'M JUST GOING TO PUT IT OUT THERE AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER IT TODAY, BUT DEFINITELY WOULD BE INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE ABOUT THAT BECAUSE THAT SOUNDS LIKE THAT COULD BE A REALLY BIG DEAL.
I HAVE NO IDEA IF THIS IS THE SAME, BUT I KNOW SUNOL, NILES RAILROAD IS IT HAS A HISTORIC DESIGNATION AND IT'S CONSIDERED A MOVING MUSEUM OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES. SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S GOING TO BE THE SAME DESIGNATION OR NOT, BUT THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING OF COMPARISON.
[00:50:05]
POSSIBLY. I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY IF THAT'S A GOOD COMPARISON, BUT THE NILES CANYON RAILWAY IS ACTUALLY THE HISTORIC ALIGNMENT OF THE TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD, SO THAT IS QUITE PROTECTED AND IS A HISTORIC RESOURCE.I MY GUESS IS THAT IT'S NOT THE SAME, BUT I THINK ANNA MARIE, OUR CULTURAL RESOURCES COORDINATOR, AND I WILL BE HAVING A CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE, BUT THIS IS WHAT WE WERE TOLD FROM CALTRANS.
SO JUST SOME RFPS THAT WE'RE RELEASING.
WE HAVE WRITTEN, WE'RE JUST WAITING TO FIT IT INTO OUR WORKLOAD.
THE IRON HORSE TRAIL FROM MARSH DRIVE TO IMHOFF DRIVE.
WE WANT TO RELEASE THAT RFP FOR DESIGN AND FULL DESIGN AND PERMITTING AND CEQA FOR THIS.
THERE'S AS YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A THREE MILE PLAN FOR THIS PROJECT.
THERE'S THREE MILES LEFT TO BUILD TO GET TO BENICIA BRIDGE.
I'LL ZOOM OUT A LITTLE BIT HERE.
THE CURRENT TERMINUS IS AT MARSH DRIVE.
THE COUNTY FINISHED THEIR BRIDGE.
WE HAVE THE TRAIL ACROSS THAT AND JUST WAITING FOR THIS, WE HAVE TO WE HAVE TO EXTEND THE TRAIL TO A LOGICAL TERMINUS, WHICH WE'VE DETERMINED TO BE IMHOFF DRIVE.
IT GOES UNDER HIGHWAY FOUR, AND WE'RE GOING TO GET INTO THAT THIS YEAR.
WE'RE EXCITED TO EXTEND THAT, AND IMHOFF HAS SOME BIKE INFRASTRUCTURE ON IT HAS SOME BIKE LANES, AND SO WE THINK THAT'S A GOOD PLACE TO STOP IT FOR NOW AND NOT CREATE A DEAD END YOU KNOW, UNHOUSED CORRIDOR, WHICH IT ALREADY IS.
SO WE THINK THIS IS THE BEST CHOICE, AND WE HAVE WE HOPE THAT THE 1.6 MILLION THAT WE HAVE IN A FUND THAT'S BEEN MITIGATION FUND, FUND FROM THE TOSCO REFINERY WHEN THEY CLOSED THE PORT CHICAGO HIGHWAY OR, I'M SORRY, WATERFRONT ROAD WITH THE REFINERY.
THEY MITIGATED WITH SOME FUNDING.
SO WE HOPE WE HAVE ENOUGH TO DESIGN AND BUILD THIS SECTION.
SO WE'LL WE'LL SEE, AND THEN CALAVERAS RIDGE TRAIL.
I'M SORRY. WE HAVE A SCOPE WRITTEN FOR CEQA COVERAGE ON THIS.
WE HAVE AN ON CALL CEQA CONTRACT IN PLANNING, AND WE'RE HOPING TO USE ONE OF THOSE CONTRACTORS.
WE'VE GIVEN THEM THE SCOPE, AND WE'RE WAITING FOR SOME COST ESTIMATES BACK, BUT WE HAVE WE HAVE GOTTEN ALL THE RIGHT OF WAY WE NEED IF YOU'LL RECALL, THE EAST BAY MUD CANCELED THE LICENSE AGREEMENT THAT LAFAYETTE HAD WITH THEM FOR A PORTION OF THE TRAIL ACROSS THEIR LITTLE.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU CALL THIS LITTLE FISH, THIS RESERVOIR PROPERTY HERE, THE SHAPE OF.
ANYWAY SO WE WERE ABLE TO WORK WITH THE DEVELOPER ON THIS SIDE AND RERECORD AN EASEMENT AROUND, AND THEN THE GOLDWYN FAMILY HAS AGREED TO DONATE THIS EASEMENT TO US AT NO COST, AND SO WE'RE HOPING TO GET GET THROUGH CEQA AND BUILD THE SECTIONS THAT AREN'T ALREADY ON ROAD.
SO ONCE WE ONCE WE WHOOPS ONCE WE GET THROUGH THIS PERMITTING PROCESS, I DON'T KNOW WHAT I JUST DID.
I MIGHT NEED YOUR HELP, THOUGH.
THAT'S BETTER. CAN YOU SEE IT BETTER? THANK YOU. HOW DID? HE'S MAGIC. HE'S MAGIC OVER THERE.
THIS ONE HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE.
THIS IS ACTUALLY IN DIRECTOR ROSARIO'S WARD.
WHO I JUST NOTICED HE'S NOT HERE, AND SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR A WHILE.
IT DOES INCLUDE A PIECE OF PROPERTY THAT HAS.
IT'S ACTUALLY NOT IN LAND BANK.
IT'S CALLED THE DA SILVA PIECE.
I HESITATE TO BUILD A TRAIL THERE.
SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING THAT OUT, AND THEN OF COURSE, LAST BUT NOT LEAST, WE RECEIVED.
I THINK IT'S STILL ZOOMED IN A LITTLE, BUT IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET, WE HAVE MONEY TO ANALYZE THE WILDCAT FLOW TRAIL UNDER CEQA, AND WE'RE PREPARING THAT RFP NOW, AND WE'RE GOING TO RUN A FEW MORE STUDIES TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT GOOD COVERAGE ON OUR PLANT SPECIES.
[00:55:03]
WE HAVE HIRED POINT STRATEGIES TO COME UP WITH SOME DESIGN ALTERNATIVES WITHIN THAT CORRIDOR, AND THEN WE HAVE THEM LOOK AT SOME OF THE CIRCULATION AND SOME OTHER AREAS THAT WE WILL ADDRESS AS ALTERNATIVES IN THAT CEQA DOCUMENT, AND I THINK THIS, THIS RFP SHOULD GO OUT WITHIN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO, AND WE HOPE TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE THIS DONE UNDER A YEAR, BUT WE'LL SEE, AND WE'LL KEEP MOVING FORWARD. YES.WILDCAT, I'M A BIT ALARMED THAT WE'RE DOING A CEQA ANALYSIS ON THAT PARTICULAR ALIGNMENT AND VARIATIONS OF THAT ALIGNMENT. THERE WAS AN ALTERNATIVE SUBMITTED.
NORMAN'S HERE. I MEAN, THERE WAS A SIERRA CLUB AND NATIVE PLANTS.
THERE WAS A VERY DISTINCT ALTERNATIVE.
IF MY MEMORY IS CORRECT ALIGNED AROUND ALVARADO MORE, AND SEVERAL OF US SUGGESTED AT THE TIME THAT DESERVED SIGNIFICANT STUDY, AS WE PROVIDED SIGNIFICANT STUDY OF THE BICYCLE COUNCIL'S PROPOSAL THAT THIS DEPICTS.
SO I USE THE WORD ALARMED BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW THAT THIS PROCESS IS MAYBE YOU CAN CORRECT ME, BUT THIS PROCESS IS TAKING INTO ACCOUNT AND GIVING SERIOUS STUDY AND ANALYSIS AND ASSESSMENT OF THAT ALTERNATIVE SUGGESTION.
THE PROJECT THAT WE ARE PROPOSING AND OUR PREFERRED ALIGNMENT IS THIS ONE, AND THAT'S WHAT IS GOING TO BE ANALYZED UNDER CEQA AT THIS POINT, THE ALVARADO AREA. WELL, FIRST OF ALL, LET ME BACK UP.
THERE IS ALMOST THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING THAT IS IMPACTED WHEREVER WE CHOOSE TO BUILD A TRAIL.
OH SURE. YEAH, AND SO WE HAVE RECEIVED A LOT OF COMMENTS.
WHY NOT OVER THERE. WHY NOT OVER THERE INTERNALLY? WHY NOT? WHY HERE? HOW ABOUT OVER THERE? AND EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK THERE'S SOME SOME ISSUE.
NOT ONLY THAT, BUT PALEONTOLOGICAL AS WELL.
SURE, AND SO BUILDING IN THAT AREA, MEETING OUR GOALS, THERE'S LESS ROOM AND POSSIBLY OTHER IMPACTS TO PLANT SPECIES AND, AND WHIPSNAKE HABITAT, AND SO WE WILL TAKE A LOOK AT THAT AS AN ALTERNATIVE AND LOOK AT ELSEWHERE, BUT WE ARE NOT AT THIS POINT PLANNING TO DO A RIGOROUS LEVEL OF STUDY OF THOSE OTHER AREAS.
OKAY. WELL, SO MY RESPONSE IS AT THE TIME.
I TOOK THE POSITION THAT I'D LIKE A RIGOROUS STUDY OF AN ALTERNATIVE TO THIS ALIGNMENT, OR VARIATIONS OF THIS ALIGNMENT, IF ONE WERE SUBMITTED, BECAUSE I THOUGHT THOSE WHO WERE CRITICAL OF THE WAY THIS WAS ALL HANDLED DESERVED THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT AN ALTERNATIVE AND HAVE IT RIGOROUSLY STUDIED.
YOU KNOW, SEAN, JUST TO BE FAIR, I TOOK THAT POSITION LONG AGO.
SO, I MEAN, THIS ISN'T A NEW BOARD MEMBER SUGGESTING SOMETHING TO THROW A WRENCH INTO IT.
I WAS VERY CLEAR IN THAT POSITION, AND I THINK I HEARD IT FROM DIRECTOR ROSARIO MAYBE.
BRIAN HOLT, CHIEF OF PLANNING TRAILS GIS.
VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE PROPOSALS THAT CAME FROM SIERRA CLUB, NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY AND OTHERS.
WE HAVE TAKEN A LOOK AT THOSE, AND WE'VE TAKEN A LOOK AT EACH OF THE ALTERNATIVES IN COMPARISON TO THIS, AND REALLY WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO IS YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT PROJECTS, RIGHT? DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT PROJECT OBJECTIVES WOULD SERVE A COMPLETELY, ENTIRELY DIFFERENT USE THAN WHAT THIS TRAIL PROPOSES.
SO THIS TRAIL IS THE PROJECT THAT'S BEFORE US, AND OF COURSE IT'S THE BOARD'S DECISION.
IF WE GO FORWARD WITH THIS PROJECT.
IT WOULDN'T BE IT WOULD BE KIND OF APPLES AND ORANGES TO SAY, WELL, LET'S JUST DO THIS PROJECT OVER AT ALVARADO, REALLY AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT TYPE OF PROJECT, AND THAT WOULD SERVE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF USER.
[01:00:04]
SO WE'VE KIND OF TAKEN THE POSITION THAT REALLY IT COULD BE I MEAN, THE BOARD COULD DECIDE, WELL, WE COULD DO THAT PROJECT AND THIS PROJECT OR WE DO THAT PROJECT AND NOT THIS PROJECT, OR WE DO NOTHING AT ALL.SO I GUESS JUST TO DIRECTLY ANSWER YOUR QUESTION AND TO, TO MEET YOUR NEEDS REGARDING UNDERSTANDING THE ALTERNATIVES, I WOULD SUGGEST THAT YOU THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE AND MOVE THIS PROJECT FORWARD THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS.
WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT, OUR CULTURAL RESOURCES GROUP, OTHERS THAT REALLY IF THERE'S ANY PLACE FOR US TO DO THIS TYPE OF A PROJECT, IT'S REALLY IN THIS LOCATION AND THEN, OF COURSE, IT'S THE BOARD'S DISCRETION IF THIS IS THE TYPE OF PROJECT THAT WE WANT TO PROVIDE, BUT REALLY WE NEED THAT ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE COULD ALSO COME BACK WITH A WITH A DISCUSSION ON KIND OF THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF BIKE FACILITIES OR DIFFERENT TYPES OF BIKE TRAILS AND WHAT COULD BE ACCOMMODATED IN DIFFERENT PLACES.
SO THE SORT OF DOWNHILL FLOW TRAIL EXPERIENCE THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED HERE IS NOT SOMETHING THAT COULD BE ACCOMPLISHED AT ALVARADO OR AT SIBLEY QUARRY, WHICH WAS ALSO SUGGESTED, WHICH WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, MORE AKIN TO A BIKE PARK, WHICH AGAIN, MIGHT BE A DESIRABLE TYPE OF FACILITY, BUT IT REALLY APPLES AND ORANGES.
SO THAT'S KIND OF HOW WE'VE LOOKED AT IT AS STAFF.
YEAH, AND ALL OF THAT I SUPPORT AND I BASICALLY SUPPORT A TRAIL HERE, AND I'VE BEEN SUPPORTIVE OF THIS TRAIL, AND I WENT OUT OF MY WAY TO SUPPORT THE PROCESS DESPITE THE CRITICISM, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I'M JUST TRYING TO BE CONSISTENT, AND THAT WAS THAT.
I'D LIKE TO KNOW AND HAVE, AT LEAST FOR MY INFORMATION, AND AGAIN, I'M JUST ONE FOR I SUPPORTED THIS WOULD BE TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION THAT YOU'RE DESCRIBING OF INDEED THIS PROPOSAL IS APPLES AND ORANGES OF DIRECTORS.
THIS ONE IS A DIFFERENT KIND OF TRAIL THAN THIS ONE.
THIS ONE HAS SOME CULTURAL RESOURCE.
THIS ONE IS NOT AS STRAIGHTFORWARD AND AS BENEFICIAL AS THE ONE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
I INVITE AND WOULD ENJOY ALL THAT CONVERSATION.
I JUST WANT TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION BEFORE I VOTE TO PROCEED WITH AN EXPENSIVE STUDY OF THIS ONE.
OH, WE'VE STUDIED THESE ALTERNATIVES.
WITH THAT TRAIL, I WOULD INVITE THAT DISCUSSION AND ALL THE DISTINCTIONS YOU'RE MAKING.
I THINK THAT'S A THANK YOU, DIRECTOR COFFEY.
I THINK THAT'S A REASONABLE PROPOSAL.
WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO AN EIR FOR FOUR DIFFERENT PROJECTS.
RIGHT, AND JUST WITH THE INTENT OF ONLY SELECTING ONE.
SO SO I THINK IT'S ENTIRELY REASONABLE TO UNDERSTAND EACH OF THE ALTERNATIVES BEFORE VOTING ON THIS AND I THINK YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE COULD LOOK AT BRINGING FORWARD JUST SORT OF A DISCUSSION OF, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF BIKE FACILITIES ARE THAT WE GET REQUESTS ON AND WHERE THOSE TYPES OF THINGS ARE FEASIBLE AND REALLY, FRANKLY, WHERE THEY'RE APPROPRIATE, BECAUSE THERE IS A QUESTION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT SHOULD PERHAPS OTHER AGENCIES OR CITIES BE PROVIDING VERSUS THE PARK DISTRICT? RIGHT. I DESCRIBED MY INTEREST.
YEAH. I DO THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND BETTER WHAT THE ALTERNATIVES ARE, AND I APPRECIATE WHAT SEAN SAID ABOUT YOU KNOW, AT LEAST BASED ON THE PRELIMINARY LOOK AT THAT ALVARADO PATH THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE MAY BE SOME ISSUE WITH SOME OTHER CULTURAL RESOURCES THERE, AND SO I WOULD JUST LIKE TO UNDERSTAND THAT BETTER. SO I AGREE THAT WE SHOULD HAVE A DISCUSSION, AND HOPEFULLY, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY IT DOESN'T HAVE TO CAUSE A BIG DELAY.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU'VE ALREADY DONE THAT PRELIMINARY WORK OR IF YOU HAVEN'T, YOU KNOW, LET'S DO IT, BUT IT WOULD JUST BE HELPFUL TO, TO AGAIN, UNDERSTAND THE ALTERNATIVE BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE FULL CEQA REVIEW OF THE OTHER ONE I'M SEEING HEADS NODS.
SO I'LL LOOK TO KEN AND OUR GENERAL MANAGER, BUT I WOULD THINK THAT'S A GOOD DISCUSSION TO HAVE.
YEAH. YES, DIRECTOR SANWONG? DID I HEAR YOU JUST SAY, YOU KNOW, LOOK AT OTHER OPTIONS THAT COULD BE OFFERED BY OTHER JURISDICTIONS AND CITIES.
[01:05:01]
IS THAT WHAT YOU JUST SAID, OR WAS I THINKING? I THINK ONE ONE OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT STAFF IS HAVING, BECAUSE WE DO RECEIVE, WE RECEIVE LOTS OF REQUESTS FOR DEVELOPING BIKE FACILITIES. OF COURSE, THERE'S A LOT OF INTEREST, AND IT'S NOT JUST BIKE FACILITIES.YOU COULD USE A WHOLE NUMBER OF DIFFERENT EXAMPLES, WHETHER IT'S FRISBEE GOLF OR BASKETBALL OR ANY NUMBER OF THINGS, AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE HAVE IS REALLY, YOU KNOW, WHAT KIND OF A FACILITY IS APPROPRIATE WITHIN EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT LAND VERSUS, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS WHAT SHOULD BE ACCOMMODATED BY CITIES OR OTHER AGENCIES.
SO SOME OF THESE FACILITIES YOU KNOW, WE MIGHT SEE AN AREA WHERE WE HAVE CITY COMMUNITY PARKLAND NEXT TO REGIONAL PARKLAND, AND , YOU KNOW, PART OF THE CONVERSATION THAT WE'RE HAVING AT THE STAFF LEVEL IS, WELL, PERHAPS THAT BIKE ACCESS COULD BE OR SHOULD BE ACCOMMODATED WITHIN CITY PARKLAND VERSUS THE MORE, YOU KNOW, NATURAL OR PROTECTED PARKLANDS THAT WE MIGHT OPERATE.
I'M NOT SUGGESTING THAT'S THE CASE IN THIS SITUATION.
IT MAY BE I'M NOT NECESSARILY STATING THAT, BUT THAT'S WHERE WE HAD KIND OF SAW SOME OF THE PROPOSALS FOR FOR LANGUAGE ABOUT ESTABLISHING A BIKE PARK IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT SAY LIKE THE PLEASANTON THE JUMP PARK OVER IN PLEASANTON, YOU KNOW, THAT MIGHT NOT BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD DO WITHIN OUR PARKLANDS AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT BUT THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT WE HEAR FROM THE BMX PARK, RIGHT.
THAT'S NEXT TO, AND THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT WE HEAR FROM CYCLISTS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD PERHAPS DO SOMETHING THAT THERE MIGHT BE SOME LOCATIONS THAT WE DO LOOK AT THAT WE HAVE HAD THE OYSTER BAY BIKE PARK PROPOSAL ON THE TABLE FOR SOME TIME.
SO THERE MIGHT BE PLACES WHERE THAT'S APPROPRIATE, BUT AGAIN, I THINK THE POINT I WAS TRYING TO MAKE IS AS WE'RE MOVING FORWARD ON THIS, WHICH IS A SORT OF DOWNHILL NARROW TRAIL EXPERIENCE.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S CERTAIN PLACES THAT YOU CAN DO THAT, AND IDENTIFYING A CERTAIN LOCATION WHERE IT'S A, YOU KNOW, A BIKE TRACK OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT'S NOT ACCOMPLISHING THE SAME THING THAT THE USERS ARE SEEKING FROM THIS EXPERIENCE.
THAT'S WHERE IT'S KIND OF APPLES AND ORANGES.
YES, AND I THINK THIS IS A REALLY IMPORTANT POINT, JUST FROM A BIGGER, BROADER IN GENERAL PERSPECTIVE, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT MAYBE OUR CONVERSATION AFTER WE GET THROUGH THE PREPARED SLIDES AND PRESENTATIONS IS JUST THINKING ABOUT HOW WE INTERACT WITH, YOU KNOW, CITIES AND OTHER JURISDICTIONS, BECAUSE I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT CONNECTING POINTS.
IN FACT, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NEXT TO THAT BMX BIKE PARK THAT YOU REFERENCED AT SHADOW CLIFFS, THERE'S ALSO A WALKING TRAIL THAT LEADS RIGHT INTO OUR WALKING TRAILS AT SHADOW CLIFFS AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT CONNECTIONS.
SO HOW WE WORK WITH THESE OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
OKAY, I'M JUST SAYING THIS FROM A BROADER PERSPECTIVE WHEN WE GET TO OUR DISCUSSION.
THANK YOU. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY, AND COMMENTS NOTED.
WE'LL CONTINUE TO DISCUSS WITH STAFF ABOUT HOW WE CAN MOVE THAT CONVERSATION FORWARD.
THOSE THOSE ARE THE PROJECT UPDATES I HAVE.
AS I MENTIONED WITH JUST TO CLOSE THIS OUT, YOU KNOW WE HAVE PROPOSED SO MANY TRAIL PROJECTS OVER THE YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN HERE, AND MANY OF THEM GET SHOT DOWN WHEN WE'RE ANALYZING THESE AND WE HAVE OVERANALYZED THIS, WE ARE SEEING THAT THERE ARE REALLY NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS THUS FAR, AND SO THE NOTION OF GOING SOMEWHERE ELSE, AND LIKE, IF WE WOULD HAVE FOUND SOMETHING THAT WAS THAT WAS A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT, THEN THAT SORT OF TRIGGERS, HEY, LET'S GO LOOK ELSEWHERE THAT WE'RE NOT SEEING THAT HERE, AND SO THE QUESTION THAT ME AND MY STAFF HAVE IS, WHY WOULD WE GO SOMEWHERE ELSE IF THIS IS LOOKING LIKE A GOOD SPOT? SO THAT IS ALL I'LL SAY ABOUT THAT.
SO THAT'S THOSE ARE THE PROJECTS I HAVE TO BUT THERE ARE 20 HERE OR 19 IF THERE ARE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT PROJECTS THAT YOU SAW IN THE PACKET, I'M HAPPY TO ADDRESS THAT NOW, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO GET GET THE LAST TWO SLIDES DONE, AND THEN I'LL BRING UP ROBERT KENNEDY TO DISCUSS SOME OF THE MAINTENANCE ISSUES.
OKAY, I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
YEAH. GO AHEAD, DIRECTOR WAESPI.
OH, I WAS GOING TO LET YOU GO AHEAD AND DO YOUR LAST ONE, SEAN.
I HAVE A QUESTION BEFORE OKAY, THERE WE GO. YOU SHARE? DID I STOP? CAN I DO A NEW SHARE THAT WORKS?
[01:10:02]
JUST HIT THAT AND I'M GOOD? OKAY, GREAT. THANK YOU.OKAY. SO JUST TO GO WITH THE THEME OF CONTROVERSIAL AND COMPLICATED PROJECTS, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT, SHALL WE? OKAY, SO WE HAD A GREAT UPDATE BACK IN SEPTEMBER OR OCTOBER AND RECEIVED SOME FEEDBACK.
WE'VE RECEIVED A LOT OF PUBLIC SURVEY INPUT, A LOT CONTINUOUS INFORMATION COMING FROM THE PUBLIC ACTUALLY, ON THIS, WE'VE MET WITH THE EQUESTRIAN COMMUNITIES AND THE STABLES AROUND THE AREA.
OF COURSE, WE'RE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH THE LOCAL BIKING COMMUNITY.
WE ARE AGAIN REMINDING YOU THAT THIS WAS MEANT TO BE A TWO YEAR STUDY, AND THE PILOT ZONE ON THE RIGHT HERE IS WHAT TOOK A LOT TO COME UP WITH AND TRY TO FIND A BALANCE IN HERE AND THIS WE'VE DEPLOYED ALMOST 20 CAMERAS AND COUNTERS.
SO WE'RE MONITORING THAT, AND WE THINK THAT AFTER THIS SEASON THAT WE SHOULD HAVE A GOOD HANDLE ON WHETHER OR NOT WHAT'S WORKING AND WHAT ISN'T AND WHAT WE MIGHT WANT TO TRY ELSEWHERE IN THE PARK DISTRICT.
WE ARE PLANNING A COMMUNITY MEETING SOME PROBABLY LATE MAY.
I DON'T HAVE A DATE FOR YOU YET ANOTHER, YOU KNOW, MEETING AT ALHAMBRA CREEK STAGING AREA OR AT THE PICNIC AREA THERE INVITING AS MANY PEOPLE AS WE CAN AND COLLECTING MORE INFORMATION ON THAT AND ALSO EDUCATING THE COMMUNITY OUT THERE.
AS WE ENTER THIS NEXT SUMMER WE WANT TO HAVE SOME MORE TABLING, NOT AS RIGOROUS AS WHEN WE STARTED, BUT WE DEFINITELY WANT TO HAVE SOME OF OUR VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL OUT THERE WITH TABLES AND CATCHING FOLKS.
WHAT WE'VE FOUND, AND I'LL GET INTO SOME OF THIS DATA, BUT WHAT WE'VE FOUND IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE COMING FROM OUTSIDE OF THE AREA THAT MAY OR MAY NOT REALLY ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON, WHICH IS SEE IF YOU CAN KIND OF SEE THAT THROUGH OUR DISCUSSIONS.
THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE AROUND HERE, THEY GET IT NOW, RIGHT? IT'S THE FOLKS THAT HEAR ABOUT THIS AND COME HERE THAT.
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME VOLUNTEER EVENTS AGAIN THIS YEAR, SOME RESTORATION EVENTS.
THE RESTORATION IS HOLDING UP.
WE SEE THE DATA AND IT'S, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO CONTINUALLY VISIT THESE SITES TO SEE AND THEN THIS FALL, WE'RE GOING TO RELEASE ANOTHER COMMUNITY SURVEY, KIND OF A CLOSEOUT, I GUESS, IF YOU WILL, A QUESTIONNAIRE FOR FOLKS AND GET SOME FEEDBACK TO MOVE FORWARD AS WE GO POST PILOT PROJECT, AND WE DETERMINE WHAT WE WANT TO DO WITH THIS AREA AND THE REST OF THE PARK MOVING FORWARD.
THIS PARK IS ONE OF THE TRAILS, ONE OF THE PARKS IN THE TRAILS INVENTORY, AND I'LL GET INTO THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE, AND THEN ON DECEMBER 4TH, 2024, AT BOARD EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE WILL PRESENT SOME OF THESE FINDINGS AND, AND SOME OF OUR IDEAS TO THE COMMITTEE, AND WE'RE REALLY LOOKING TO SUNSET THIS PILOT PROJECT. THE TECHNICAL SUNSET DATE IS REALLY APRIL OF 2025, BUT WE WANT TO HAVE TIME TO SORT OF ANALYZE THE DATA, COME UP WITH SOME OTHER SOLUTIONS, TAKE IN SOME OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE'VE BEEN RECEIVING BEFORE AND DURING THE PILOT.
WE'RE NOT MAKING ANY RULE CHANGES.
WE'RE NOT CHANGING THE ODD/EVEN DAYS.
WE ARE CHANGING SOME SIGNAGE AND SOME OF THE SOME OF THE COUNTERS AND SOME OF THE MESSAGING, BUT IN ORDER TO MAKE GLOBAL CHANGES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PROJECT, WE'VE JUST DETERMINED THAT IT'S A LOT OF WORK.
THE MESSAGING, THE MAPS WOULD ALL HAVE TO CHANGE THE SIGNAGE, AND SO WE'RE GOING TO RIDE IT OUT FOR TWO YEARS AS WE WERE COMMITTED TO IN THE BEGINNING, AND WE CAN WE'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN THE MEETING IS IN MAY, AND OF COURSE, YOU'LL HEAR MORE IN DECEMBER.
YOU MENTIONED FEEDBACK, AND I KNOW WHEN WE HAD THE SURVEY ON OUR WEBSITE, THAT WAS ONE MECHANISM FOR FEEDBACK, BUT DO WE HAVE ANY SORT OF FORM AND I'LL BE HONEST, I'M ON THE WEBSITE RIGHT NOW, THE EAST BAY PARKS WEBSITE FOR THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT.
DO WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SOMEONE TO GO ON THIS WEBSITE AND BE ABLE TO SUBMIT A FEEDBACK COMMENT? AND THEN WE HAVE IT AUTOMATICALLY TAGGED AS PART OF THE PILOT PROJECT? OR IS SOMEONE ON THE BACK END HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT STILL SIFTING THROUGH THAT? YEAH, WE HAVE A PILOT PROJECT AT EBPARKS.ORG, AND WE'RE CONTINUOUSLY SEEING THAT.
WE ALSO THERE'S A SUBMIT A FORM.
YOU CAN SUBMIT A COMMENT FORM THROUGH THAT OR ON THE WEBSITE AS WELL, AND WE'RE MONITORING THAT THOSE COMMENTS I WILL SAY THEY'VE GONE DOWN, BUT WE ARE TRYING TO BE PROACTIVE AT ENGAGING WITH AT LEAST THE COMMUNITY OUT THERE AND THINGS.
HAVE YOU TRIED TO CLICK THE LINK?
[01:15:02]
IS IT HOPEFULLY WORKING? I SEE THE EMAIL.I DON'T SEE THE FORM RIGHT NOW, BUT I'M ALSO NOT LOOKING SUPER CLOSE BECAUSE I'M ALSO TRYING TO.
OKAY. YEAH, THERE'S BUT MY OTHER COMMENT BECAUSE YOU MADE A COMMENT.
SO THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE NEAR THE PARK ARE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THIS PILOT PROJECT PROCESS, BUT IT'S PEOPLE THAT ARE MAYBE DON'T LIVE AS CLOSE TO THE PARK, MAYBE ARE COMING TO THE PARK WHO HAVE LESS FAMILIARITY, BUT MAY ALSO HAVE FEEDBACK THAT YOU WANT TO INCLUDE IN THE PROCESS, AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE TRACKING AS WE'RE GETTING COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK. YOU KNOW, MAYBE THE PROXIMITY TO THE PARK WOULD BE ONE METRIC TO TRY TO KEEP TRACK OF.
I KNOW WHEN I HEAR FROM THE MOUNTAIN BIKING COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, IN THE TRI-VALLEY REGION, THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY VERY FAMILIAR WITH THIS PILOT PROJECT, AND I THINK SOME OF THEM ARE GOING ARE TAKING THEIR BIKES HERE JUST TO SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING, AND I DON'T KNOW IF THEIR FEEDBACK IS MAKING IT BACK TO US, BUT I DO KNOW THAT THERE ARE FOLKS THAT ARE MAKING AN EFFORT TO GO HERE JUST TO SEE WHAT WE ARE DOING.
YEAH, NO, YOU'RE RIGHT, IT'S VERY POPULAR, AND YOU KNOW, IN THE SOCIAL MEDIA SPACE THE, THE GROUP, THE, THE STEWARDS OF BRIONES AND OTHER BAMBI BAY AREA MOUNTAIN BIKE GROUP THEY HAVE THOUSANDS OF FOLLOWERS AND THERE'S A LOT OF CHATTER IN THERE ABOUT THIS, AND WE FOLLOW THAT AND WE GET A LOT OF FEEDBACK AND WE HEAR OF A LOT OF THINGS TOO IN THERE BUT THIS HAS REALLY TAKEN ON A LIFE OF ITS OWN IN THE WAY THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS REALLY EMBRACED THIS, ESPECIALLY THE STEWARDS OF BRIONES, AND THEY'RE NOW THE BIKING COMMUNITY APPEARS TO BE SORT OF LOOKING TO THEM AS LIKE, WHAT'S GOING ON, WHAT'S THE NEW THING LIKE AND THEY ARE MORE OR LESS THE MIDDLE MEN, IF YOU WILL, IN HELPING MANAGE THIS, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT WE WERE SHOOTING FOR WITH THE BIKING COMMUNITY AND WHAT WE AIM TO DO, AND THE REST OF THE DISTRICT IS HAVE THEM SELF-POLICE THEMSELVES TO SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO CONSTANTLY BE DOING THAT RIGHT BUT YES, WE ARE GETTING THE FEEDBACK THROUGH THE EMAIL AND THROUGH THE WEBSITE AND WE CONTINUOUSLY DO.
SO I KNOW IT'S WORKING, BUT YEAH, LIKE I SAID, WE'RE GOING TO RELEASE ANOTHER SURVEY AND TABLING ETC, AND DO ANOTHER SORT OF INFORMATIONAL BLAST IN THE SPRING BEFORE THE SUMMER COMES, AND THEN REAL QUICK, WHAT ABOUT FEEDBACK FROM OTHER I GUESS FENCE LINE NEIGHBORS.
I HEARD YOU USE THAT AT OUR RETREAT.
I LIKE I LIKE THAT DESCRIPTION.
YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE PEOPLE THAT MIGHT LIVE NEAR THESE PARKS MIGHT HAVE COMMENTS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE BIKING COMMUNITY, AND I'M NOT SURE IF WE'RE RECEIVING THAT FEEDBACK AND HOW.
I KNOW I'VE BEEN TALKING TO A LOT OF THE FENCE LINE NEIGHBORS AT DEL VALLE, AND THEY HAVE THEIR OWN FEEDBACK IN REGARDS TO MOUNTAIN BIKE RIDERS IN THAT PARK, AND I'M NOT SURE IF THAT'S EVEN SOMEHOW BEING CAPTURED RIGHT NOW AS PART OF THIS PILOT PROJECT.
I THINK IT'S OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF THIS PILOT PROJECT, BUT YOU KNOW HOW WE MIGHT APPLY WHAT WE'RE LEARNING HERE TO OTHER PARKS, I GUESS, IS REALLY OUR NEXT PHASE AND OUR NEXT STEP. SO THIS IS MORE OF JUST A COMMENT THAT I'M SHARING, BUT I THINK THAT THESE CONVERSATIONS ARE HAPPENING ACROSS THE DISTRICT.
SO THIS TIME I WANT TO PRAISE YOUR PROCESS IN THE IN THAT I'M VERY PLEASED TO HEAR THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE PROACTIVE AND NOT JUST WAIT TILL NEXT APRIL OR APRIL 25TH TO BRING US A BUNCH OF FINDINGS AND INSTEAD BE PROACTIVE IN WHAT BRINGING US WHAT'S EMERGING AS SUCCESS AND POTENTIAL FAILURES OF THE PROJECT AND THE TEST AND ALL THAT.
SO, I APPRECIATE I JUST WANT TO REITERATE ONE OF THE FACTORS THAT I'M HOPING YOU ALL TAKE INTO ACCOUNT AS YOU LOOK AT HOW YOU KNOW, FOR LACK OF WE'VE NEVER COME UP WITH BETTER WORDING FOR THIS STUFF, BUT BETTER BEHAVIOR ON THE PART OF THE MOUNTAIN BIKERS IN TERMS OF RESPECTING THE TRAILS THAT HAVE BEEN RESTORED.
IN EXCHANGE FOR BEING GIVEN THESE, THESE THREE EXCLUSIVE USE TRAILS.
YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF US HAVE BEEN I'M LOOKING AT DENNIS VERY SKEPTICAL THAT WE WERE GOING TO BE ABLE TO EFFECTIVELY PROTECT THE RESTORED TRAILS AND PREVENT THE CREATION OF NEW ROGUE TRAILS ELSEWHERE.
SO THIS BRINGS ME BACK TO JUST THE POINT I'VE BEEN I THINK THIS IS AND I WANT TO PREFACE THIS BY ALL IN ALL, YOU KNOW, I GO OUT THERE ALMOST WEEKLY AND WALK UP AND DOWN ALHAMBRA VALLEY.
IT'S PART OF MY ROUTINE, AND MY SENSE IS WITH OUR CONSTITUENCIES HIKERS, BIKERS AND EQUESTRIANS,
[01:20:06]
THIS IS VERY SUCCESSFUL.THERE WERE A WHOLE BUNCH OF FAMILIES THAT LIKE GOING OUT THERE ON THE DAY BIKES AREN'T THERE, YOU KNOW? SO EVERY AND I'M HEARING FROM EQUESTRIANS ARE JUST THRILLED TO HAVE THAT DAY WHEN BIKES AREN'T THERE, AND SO I'M GETTING THE SENSE THAT WITH OUR CONSTITUENCIES, IT'S VERY SUCCESSFUL AND SO I ONLY EMPHASIZE THIS ONE FACET THAT I'M CONCERNED ABOUT IN THE END, AND THAT IS ENFORCEMENT OF THE ENFORCEMENT THAT WOULD BE NEEDED TO PREVENT.
NEW ROGUE TRAILS FROM BEING DEVELOPED OUT THERE, AND THAT I'M HOPING YOU FOLKS, AS YOU LOOK AT THESE TRENDS AND IF IN FACT, THAT IS AN ISSUE AND IS SOMETHING YOU'RE GOING TO IDENTIFY AS A PROBLEM, THAT YOU TAKE THE ONE FURTHER STEP OF THINKING ABOUT, WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT THAT? BECAUSE I DON'T WANT.
YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST REALLY PERSONAL TO ME.
IT'S JUST I'M REALLY FEARFUL THAT THERE'S A FEW BAD ACTORS THAT RUIN THIS FOR THE OTHER MOUNTAIN BIKERS WHO ARE REALLY INTO HELPING US RESTORE TRAILS GETTING THE PEER PRESSURE OUT THERE TO TRY TO GET THE BEHAVIORS FOCUSED ON WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT THIS FOR MOUNTAIN BIKERS.
SO I'M JUST CONCERNED ABOUT THAT SMALL GROUP JUST RUINING IT, IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN, AND SO HOW DO WE ENFORCE AND RESPOND IF, IN FACT, THAT'S GOING ON AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS FROM MY TONE, YOU I HAVE A SUSPICION THAT'S STILL GOING ON.
SO I'M JUST EMPHASIZING THAT BE A PART OF WHAT YOU BRING BACK TO US.
ANYONE ELSE? OH, DIRECTOR CORBETT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANKS FOR ALL THE PRESENTATION TODAY.
WILL THERE BE SOME ADDITIONAL REPORTS ON THE OYSTER BAY SHORELINE AREA? I HEARD ALMOST EVERYTHING YOU ASKED.
SORRY ABOUT THAT. SOME MORE TO TALK TO US ABOUT LATER, BUT THE OYSTER BAY SHORELINE AREA.
OH, RIGHT. A LOT OF WORK HAS, YOU KNOW, CHANGED OVER THE LAST YEAR.
SURE. THE ARE YOU REFERRING TO THE OYSTER BAY INSIDE THE PARK? THE BIKE SKILLS PARK? YEAH, AND HOW IT CONNECTS TO OTHER TRAILS.
WELL, SO THE OYSTER BAY BIKE SKILLS PARK IS A PROJECT THAT WE DO NOT HAVE, LIKE ON OUR ACTIVE 2024 LIST, BUT THERE HAS BEEN DIRT DUMPING IN THAT AREA FOR YEARS.
THERE'S A PRELIMINARY DESIGN, HOW IT COULD BE PHASED, ETC.
THAT FEASIBILITY STUDY IS ONLINE ON OUR PROJECTS PAGE, ON OUR WEBSITE.
I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO CHECK THAT OUT.
THERE ARE THERE'S SOME INFRASTRUCTURE THAT NEEDS TO BE BUILT THERE.
FIRST THERE'S PARKING, BUT IT'S ALL SORT OF GETTING TEED UP AND READY TO MOVE TO A NEXT STEP IF THE BOARD WANTS THAT TO BE A PROJECT THAT WE DO PURSUE.
AGAIN, IT'S IN THE LAND USE PLAN.
I GET A CALL EVERY YEAR FROM SEVERAL PEOPLE ABOUT WHERE'S THAT? WHY ISN'T THAT DONE YET? YOU KNOW, SO IT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT ALSO CHECKS A LOT OF BOXES.
WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR PRIORITIZATION MATRIX FOR OUR PROJECTS, IT'S IN AN EQUITY PRIORITY COMMUNITY.
IT'S YOU KNOW, IT IT'S ALREADY IN A PARK THAT'S A LANDFILL.
SO THERE'S NOT A LOT OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS TO IT.
RIGHT? SO IT'S A GREAT PROJECT, BUT IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE BRIAN SORT OF MENTIONED BRIAN HOLT THAT YOU KNOW, AS WE MOVE FORWARD IS WHAT IS THE PARK DISTRICT'S ROLE AND ARE WE THE ENTITY THAT PROVIDES THIS TYPE OF TYPE OF FACILITY OR NOT BUT HOW IT CONNECTS TO OTHER TRAILS.
YOU KNOW, THE BAY TRAIL GOES THROUGH OYSTER BAY, AS YOU KNOW.
I KNOW YOU'VE MENTIONED GOING NORTH TO SAN LEANDRO MARINA.
THERE YOU KNOW, I DON'T HAVE MUCH INFORMATION ON THAT, BUT YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY LOVES OYSTER BAY.
EVERY TIME I'M OUT THERE, THEY TELL ME NOT TO TELL ANYBODY ELSE ABOUT IT.
THAT'S HOW MUCH YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE.
[01:25:01]
IT'S KIND OF A KIND OF A HOP AND PARK.SO I THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD LOCATION FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS, BUT YEAH, I THINK ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I MIGHT ALWAYS BRING SOMETHING UP ABOUT MENTIONING IT, FINDING OUT WHERE WE ARE IS HOW MANY YEARS HAS IT BEEN SINCE THIS PROJECT BEGAN? PRACTICALLY BEFORE WE WERE ALL BORN.
MAYBE NOT THAT FAR, BUT, YOU KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT THINGS THAT WERE TALKED ABOUT TODAY, BUT I'D CONTINUE TO WANT TO HEAR MORE ABOUT WHEN WE'RE GOING TO GET TO A COMPLETION ON THAT, AND A LOT OF IMPROVEMENT HAS HAPPENED OVER THE LAST YEAR AND THE YEAR BEFORE THAT, BUT THERE'S SO MUCH WORK STILL TO BE DONE THERE, AND, YOU KNOW, I'D LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE AND MORE ABOUT WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GET TO THE END OF THAT? THERE'S SOME HUGE CHALLENGES ON THAT PROPERTY, BECAUSE WHAT THAT LAND WAS USED FOR PREVIOUSLY AND STILL WILL BE USED FOR WHICH I KNOW, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT, BUT I'D LIKE TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT MORE HOW FAR AHEAD WE ARE ON THAT AND HOW WE MOVE THAT UP, BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN WAITING TO MOVE FORWARD FOR HOW MANY YEARS, HOW MANY YEARS IT'S BEEN.
YEAH. WELL HOW MANY? SEVEN. I'M THINKING I THINK IT'S MORE THAN SEVEN.
WHEN THE OYSTER BAY LAND USE PLAN WAS MORE THAN SEVEN YEARS.
I KNOW IT WAS BEFORE I WAS EVEN ALLOWED TO VOTE YET WHEN PEOPLE WERE WORKING ON THIS.
SO, YOU KNOW, I'M VERY THANKFUL TO SEE THAT IT'S IN HERE, BUT I'D LIKE TO KNOW MORE AND MORE HOW WE'RE GOING TO MOVE FORWARD AND GET IT GOING.
TONS OF WORK HAS BEEN DONE RECENTLY TO ADD ADDITIONAL SOIL AND DEAL WITH SOME OF THE OTHER PROBLEMS ON THAT LAND, BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S AN AMAZING PLACE RIGHT THERE ON THE BAY, AND WE DO HAVE SOME ADDITIONAL FOLKS THAT USE THAT PROPERTY FOR, YOU KNOW, CERTAIN TYPES OF USE.
IT'S VERY, VERY SUPPORTIVE, BUT I JUST WHEN IS THIS EVER GOING TO HAPPEN? I SWEAR THIS PROJECT HAD STARTED LONG BEFORE I EVEN HAD THE ABILITY TO VOTE, YOU KNOW, THE AGE TO VOTE, BUT NOW WE'RE HERE AND WE'RE GETTING CLOSER. WE'RE GETTING A LOT CLOSER THAN WE WERE.
WHEN I BEGAN LOOKING AT THIS, BUT CAN YOU TELL ME DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GET GOING TO COMPLETE THIS AND FINISH IT? THERE ARE SOME.
I'LL JUST ADD THIS. THERE ARE SOME PARTS TO THAT LAND WHICH WILL BE DIFFICULT TO ALWAYS CONTINUE TO IMPROVE JUST BECAUSE OF THE WAY THE SOIL HAS TO BE DRAINED, ETC., ETC..
YOU KNOW, IF THIS IS SOMETHING WE WANT TO MOVE FORWARD ON, IT IS GETTING QUEUED UP.
THEY'RE FINISHING POURING DIRT THERE SOON, AND IT'S MATCHING THE PLAN THAT WE THINK WILL WORK FOR SOME FORM OF A BIKE PARK, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, LIKE LIKE THE OTHER PROJECTS THAT YOU'VE COME AND SPOKEN TO ME ABOUT I THINK IT WOULD BE GOOD TO MAYBE HAVE A SEPARATE MEETING OR AN OFFLINE DISCUSSION ON IT, AND IS THAT DOES THAT SOUND FAIR? YEAH, AND I JUST WANTED TO CHIME IN REAL QUICK BECAUSE I AM LOOKING AT KEN'S EYES AND THE CLOCK AND WE HAVE A LOT LEFT TO COVER THAT.
WE CAN ABSOLUTELY FOLLOW UP DIRECTLY WITH YOU, DIRECTOR CORBETT, AND THERE WILL BE OPPORTUNITY AS PART OF YOUR YOUR BUDGET PROCESS IN THE SUMMER FOR US TO DIG INTO THIS A LITTLE BIT MORE. SO BUT I THINK WE PROBABLY SHOULD.
YEAH. I HAVE ONE MORE I APPRECIATE I DO APPRECIATE, THOUGH, THAT IT'S IN THIS LIST, BUT IF YOU WOULD GO BACK AND JUST SEE HOW MANY YEARS IT'S BEEN SINCE WE BEGAN ON THIS LAND.
SOME REALLY GREAT WORK AND IMPROVEMENT VERY RECENTLY, BUT, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE EVER GOING TO GET THAT THING DONE, I GOT TO GET GOING A LITTLE MORE. ALTHOUGH I'M VERY IMPRESSED WITH WHAT HAS BEEN DONE MOST RECENTLY AND GETTING IT TO MOVE FORWARD, BUT I'M JUST I HAVE TO MENTION THAT WE NEED TO BE WORKING ON THAT PIECE OF PROPERTY JUST BECAUSE LOOK AT THE HISTORY OF IT AND YOU'LL SEE WHY.
NOTED. FOR SURE, AND MANY OF THESE, IT'S A STORY OF MY LIFE.
YOU KNOW, THE TRAILS, THESE TRAILS, PROJECTS AND ANY PROJECT, THEY TAKE A LONG, LONG TIME.
SOMETIMES I LOOK AT SOME, AND I WONDER ANYWAY.
SO THANK YOU ON THAT ONE WOULD BE WHAT? YEAH THANK YOU.
THIS ONE IS ACTUALLY ONE THAT IS I THINK BECOMING RIPE.
[01:30:02]
OLDEST PARCELS AS WELL WOULD YOU SAY? I'M SORRY WHAT WAS THAT? ONE OF OUR OLDEST PARCELS THAT STARTED AND HASN'T COMPLETED.OKAY, SO I ALWAYS HAVE TO BRING THAT UP.
OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO LET SEAN DO HIS LAST SLIDE HERE.
YEP. SO I DID WANT TO TALK ABOUT ON FEBRUARY 20TH ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, THIS BOARD APPROVED A CONTRACT WITH AECOM TECHNICAL SERVICES TO PERFORM A TRAIL INVENTORY IN THREE PARKS PLEASANTON, RIDGE, BRIONES AND DEL VALLE.
THIS RFP WENT OUT AT THE END OF LAST YEAR.
WE HAD ABOUT $50,000 TO DO THIS WORK, AND WE RECEIVED THE PROPOSALS BACK.
THEY RANGED BETWEEN $200,000 AND $600,000, AND IF YOU START TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE CAN SCALE TO THE TO THE REST OF THE DISTRICT, THAT STARTS TO GET EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE.
SO WE HAD TO KIND OF CIRCLE THE WAGONS AND NARROW DOWN THE SCOPE.
WE'VE CHOSEN AECOM TO DO THIS WORK IN THESE THREE PARKS, AND THE REASON WHY WE CHOSE THEM IS BECAUSE THEY'RE TAKING A AN APPROACH THAT ALLOWS THEM TO DO THIS INVENTORY A LOT FROM THE DESKTOP.
SO THEY'RE USING DIGITAL ELEVATION MODELS, LIDAR DATA AND THEN THEY WILL GO VERIFY THAT IN THE FIELD BY WALKING, AND SO THEY'RE GOING TO BE IDENTIFYING IMMEDIATE SAFETY HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS.
THIS TRAIL CLASSIFICATION IS ANOTHER DISCUSSION, BUT STATE PARKS AS THEY LOOK AT IT IT'S SORT OF LIKE HIGHLY DEVELOPED AND USED ALL THE TIME VERSUS BACK COUNTRY, AND YOU START TO KIND OF BE ABLE TO PRIORITIZE MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES, AND YOU'LL PROBABLY HEAR MORE ABOUT SOME OF THAT APPROACH FROM, FROM ROBERT KENNEDY.
WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT WE'RE GOING TO TAKE ALL THE DATA THAT WE ALREADY HAVE ON BOOTLEG TRAILS, STRAVA DATA, GPS DATA THAT WE HAVE FROM OUR SMALL TRAILS CREW, AND WE'RE GOING TO PROVIDE THAT TO THEM, AND THEY'RE GOING TO GO VERIFY AND LOOK AT THESE BOOTLEG TRAILS IN THESE PARKS.
ARE THEY BEING USED? ARE THEY JUST GAME PATHS TO A WATER TROUGH, OR ARE THEY BEING ACTIVELY CONSTRUCTED AND GET KIND OF GET A HANDLE AROUND THAT GREEN PIECE OF THE PIE THAT I SHOWED YOU EARLIER AND THEN OF COURSE, YOU CAN SEE ALL THE REST OF THE ITEMS THAT WE'RE GOING TO GET.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAD TO PUT A PAUSE ON, THOUGH, AND WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO GET AS MUCH OUT OF IT AS WE CAN, AS WE HAD TO TAKE OUT A LOT OF THE ASSESSMENT AND SORT OF LIKE CATEGORIZATION OF ERODE-ABILITY AND SOME OF THE LIKE, YOU KNOW, CONDITION INDICES THAT WE WERE WE ASKED THEM FOR EVERYTHING AND WE GOT BIG NUMBERS AND WE HAD TO TONE IT DOWN, BUT A LOT THE REASON WHY THIS MAKES SENSE FOR US IS BECAUSE A LOT OF THAT DATA COULD GO STALE RIGHT AFTER THE WINTER.
RIGHT. SO WE GET THIS ASSESSMENT DATA.
HERE YOU GO ROBERT KENNEDY HAVE HAVE GO GO FIX THIS.
RIGHT, AND THEN THERE'S A SLIDE OR A FLOOD OR 16 ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS AND IT ALL GOES STALE.
RIGHT. SO WE, WE'RE CIRCLING THE WAGONS HERE.
WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN DO THIS FOR THE WHOLE PARK DISTRICT AT A REASONABLE COST, SOME IN-HOUSE, SOME CONTRACT, AND THEN AND THEN SCALE IT OUT. WE'RE LOOKING AT PROBABLY PICKING OFF A FEW PARKS PER YEAR.
SO YOU MAY SEE LIKE A BUDGET REQUEST OR IF IT GETS TO YOU BUDGET REQUEST FOR, YOU KNOW, WE'RE THINKING PROBABLY AROUND 25,000 PER PARK WITH THIS, THIS, THIS METHODOLOGY, BUT WE'LL SEE IF THIS WORKS. WE'LL SEE IF THE DATA IS WHAT WE GET OUT OF THIS DATA, AND WE'RE HOPING TO USE THIS DATA TO START MAKING DECISIONS MIXED WITH OUR OTHER GIS LAYERS TO DETERMINE WHERE WE NEED TO FOCUS OUR EFFORTS AND CLOSURE, RESTORATION AND POTENTIALLY ADOPTION.
SO, AND THAT WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO PAUSE AND TURN IT OVER TO ROBERT AND HE CAN TALK ABOUT OTHER CONTROVERSIAL THINGS MAYBE.
WELL, HOLD ON BEFORE YOU BRING ROBERT UP.
I KNOW DIRECTOR WAESPI HAS BEEN WAITING VERY PATIENTLY TO ASK A QUESTION.
I'M SORRY, DIRECTOR. IT'S OKAY.
I JUST WANT TO BRIEFLY JUST SAY I ADMIRE THE WORK OF YOU AND YOUR STAFF.
EVERYWHERE I GO, TRAILS, CONFERENCES.
WE ARE THE ENVY OF MOST EVERYBODY AROUND.
WITH THAT SAID, I WAS WONDERING.
THE CHOUINARD TRAIL, I KNOW THAT'S I UNDERSTAND COMPLETELY.
IT TAKES A LONG TIME. IT TAKES A LONG TIME, BUT WE'VE IDENTIFIED AND I KNOW WE'VE HIRED GHD AND THEY'RE CONSIDERED A ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURE AND CONSTRUCTION SERVICES FIRM. IS ARCHITECTURE PART OF THIS CONTRACT? BECAUSE I'M VERY WORRIED ABOUT THE CHOUINARD WINERY, THE PHYSICAL BUILDING THERE, WHICH HAS BEEN DESCRIBED AS A CULTURAL RESOURCE BY SOME OF US SOME OF OUR PEOPLE IT'S HAS A TREMENDOUS INTERPRETIVE OPPORTUNITY FOR AGRICULTURAL HISTORY IN THAT AREA OF WINEMAKING, ONE OF THE OLDEST WINERIES AND IT'S SITTING THERE GETTING WET.
[01:35:02]
WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT BEFORE.HAS ANYBODY DONE A HOME INSPECTION OR HAS ANYBODY DONE AN INSPECTION? DOES THE ROOF LEAK? DO THE WINDOWS, ARE THEY ROTTING OUT? ARE WE GOING TO DO THE THING THAT WE'VE DONE A COUPLE OF TIMES BEFORE IN THIS DISTRICT AND LET IT ROT, AND THEN DOES IT SAY, OH, WE SORRY BOARD, WE COULD NEVER PRESERVE IT.
REGARDING THE EXISTING CONDITION OF THE BUILDING AND WHAT'S BEEN DONE THERE.
I CAN'T I CAN'T NECESSARILY SAY WHAT STUDIES HAVE BEEN DONE.
I KNOW WE HAVE SOME PEOPLE ARE IN THERE LOOKING AT IT.
THERE'S DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE CAN DO WITH THAT SITE WHETHER IT'S A REALLY ACTIVE USE AREA OR WHETHER IT'S A VERY, YOU KNOW, PASSIVE PASSIVE TRAIL GO THROUGH AND FRANKLY, YOU KNOW, A CONVERSATION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, IF THE BUILDING NEEDS TO BE RETAINED OR RESTORED, I DON'T KNOW THAT THOSE DECISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE AND IF WE'VE REALLY HAD THAT FULL DISCUSSION.
SO THAT'S PART OF WHAT THE STUDY WHAT THE STUDY IS LOOKING AT IS WHAT COULD THAT BUILDING BE REPURPOSED FOR AND IS IT SOMETHING THAT MAKES SENSE FROM AN OPERATIONAL POINT OF VIEW? IS IT SOMETHING THAT WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN AND IS IT SOMETHING? IT WORKED WELL, IT WORKED GREAT AS A WINERY, BUT WE DON'T NECESSARILY KNOW THAT IT WILL WORK GREAT AS A PARK FACILITY.
I KIND OF SAY WE'VE GOT SORT OF WE'RE KIND OF RIGHT NOW LOOKING AT THE GOLDILOCKS SORT OF SCENARIO HERE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE FULLY RESTORED IN SOME LEVEL OF YOU KNOW, REAL ACTIVE USE WHERE WE HAVE, SAY, NATURALISTS OR STAFF IN THERE.
OR IT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE A PLACE WHERE, YOU KNOW, A TRAIL GOES THROUGH AND THERE'S NOT AS MUCH NOT AS MUCH, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC INTERACTION THERE, AND THAT'S A DISCUSSION THAT, YOU KNOW, WE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF ASSUMPTIONS, BUT I DON'T NECESSARILY THINK WE HAVE A SOLID DIRECTION OR STUDY ON THAT YET. OKAY.
THANK YOU. I HEAR THAT YOU'RE LOOKING INTO IT.
I WOULD HOPE YOU WOULD INCLUDE THE BOARD IN SOME OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS.
WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND SORT OF WHAT THOSE USES ARE.
SO THANK YOU. YEAH, AND THEN YOU KNOW, IT'S I KNOW IT'S GETTING LATE.
IT'S GOING TO TAKE TOO LONG, BUT CAPPING A LANDFILL, AND THAT'LL BE 100 YEARS FROM NOW.
YEAH, I THINK TRYING TO GET A TRAIL.
QUICK COMMENT ON THE TRAIL INVENTORY SLIDE.
I'M ASSUMING THAT'S FOR EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT LAND THAT'S MANAGED OR OWNED BY US.
SO IT DOES NOT INCLUDE PRIVATE PROPERTY OR OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
SO I GUESS MY COMMENT AND THIS MIGHT CUE UP FOR WHEN WE SEE PUBLIC SAFETY, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF PRIVATE PROPERTY AS WELL AS OTHER JURISDICTION PROPERTY NEAR BOTH PLEASANTON RIDGE AND DEL VALLE AND I KNOW THAT THERE HAD BEEN AT LEAST ONE SERIOUS BIKE ACCIDENT ON PRIVATE PROPERTY LAST YEAR, AND PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE THAT IT'S NOT, YOU KNOW, PROPERTY THAT.
WE MANAGE YET? YOU KNOW WHEN THIS HAPPENS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE OUR STAFF THERE, WE'RE INVOLVED, AND SO MAYBE WHEN WE GET TO THE PUBLIC SAFETY PORTION, JUST TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. THANK YOU.
DIRECTOR WAESPI HAD ONE LAST THING.
SO, ROBERT, JUST SO YOU KNOW AND BUT WE WILL MAKE IT TEN MINUTES.
I'M WONDERING IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE AN ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE.
WHAT'S AN ENGINEER? WHERE DO WE GET OUR ENGINEERS? HOW MUCH DO WE PAY ENGINEERS FOR THESE ESTIMATES, AND THAT'S IT.
THAT'S A QUICK QUESTION. THAT'S A QUICK ONE.
SO IN SHORT, I'M TEASING YOU THE THAT SO IT HAS TO BE A REGISTERED ENGINEER AND WE HIRE A CONSULTANT ENGINEERS TYPICALLY FOR LIKE THE POINT MOLATE PROJECT, FOR INSTANCE, WE HAVE NCE NICHOLS CONSULTING ENGINEERS, AND THEY TAKE THE DESIGN AND THEY DETERMINE HOW MANY LIKE THE MATERIALS THAT WILL GO INTO THAT DESIGN FOR EACH OF THE ELEMENTS.
[01:40:09]
SOMETHING. RIGHT, AND THEY DO THAT FOR EVERY ELEMENT.RIGHT, AND IT'S AN ESTIMATE BASED ON THE DESIGN.
SO THEY CALL IT AN ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE, BUT WE USE THAT AND WE PROVIDE THAT IN THE BID PACKAGE, AND THEN EACH OF THOSE LINE ITEMS THAT HAS BEEN ESTIMATED BY THE ENGINEER, THEN THE CONTRACTOR THAT WANTS TO BID ON THE PROJECT WILL PUT THEIR PRICE IN THERE, AND THEN WE'LL COMPARE THE TWO, AND SO YOU MAY GET MORE A BID THAT'S MORE THAN OUR ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE OR YOU MAY GET LESS, AND WE'VE SEEN BOTH, AND SO THAT'S KIND OF IT IN A NUTSHELL AS FAR AS THEIR, YOU KNOW, THEIR RATES, AND YOU KNOW ENGINEERS ARE EXPENSIVE RIGHT TO GET THIS, BUT IF WE GO INTO A CONTRACT WITH AN ENGINEERING FIRM TO DESIGN OUR TRAILS THAT'S INCLUDED IN THAT IN THE DESIGN, YOU KNOW, IT'S PART OF THE BID PACKAGE.
THANK YOU. DOES THAT HELP? YES. OKAY.
SO WE WILL BREAK FOR TEN MINUTES AND RE ADJOURN AT 3:04.
OKAY. WE HAVE ROBERT KENNEDY, CHIEF OF MAINTENANCE AND SKILLED TRAILS.
WELCOME AND HE'S GOING TO PRESENT ON TRAIL MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS OVERVIEW.
AS YOU KNOW, OUR SKILLED TRADES TEAM IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MAINTENANCE OF OVER 1330 MILES, AND THAT CONSISTS OF BRUSHING, CLEARING, GRADING, WATER CROSSINGS, RETAINING WALLS AND CONSTRUCTIONS, CULVERT REPAIR AND INSTALLATION, POND RESTORATION, SAND MOVING, PAVEMENT REHAB AND MAINTENANCE, ALL WITH 24 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES.
THE ROADS AND TRAILS SUPERVISOR, THE NEW SMALL TRAIL SUPERVISOR, HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATORS, PARK CRAFT SPECIALISTS, PARK RANGERS, A SMALL TRAILS CREW LEADER AND AWP SUPERVISOR, A PARK.
PROJECT MANAGER AND A PROJECT COORDINATOR, AND A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE.
WE ALSO HAVE THE ABILITY TO WORK WITH OUR PARTNERS IN STEWARDSHIP TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE.
PLANNING TRAILS AND GIS TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE EQUITABLE ACCESS AND OUR PARTNERS IN PUBLIC SAFETY AND OPERATIONS TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING HEALTH, LIFE AND SAFETY MATTERS.
OPERATIONAL IMPACTS, AND EQUAL ACCESS AS WELL.
SORRY. YOU HAVE IT ALL PLANNED OUT, AND THINGS KIND OF TAKE A TWIST.
OUR FULL TIME SMALL TRAILS CREW HAS TAKEN ON THE CHALLENGE OF MAINTAINING OUR NARROW.
NATURAL SURFACE TRAILS AND INFRASTRUCTURE.
FROM FOOT BRIDGES TO RETAINING WALL STRUCTURES TO BRUSH CLEARING FOR OUR NETWORK OF SMALL TRAILS, BUT THE MAIN CHALLENGE THAT WE FACE IS JUST THE VAST AMOUNT OF WORK THAT WE HAVE TO DO.
GIVEN THE WEATHER IMPACTS ON OUR TRAILS AND THE HIGH USAGE IT'S IMPERATIVE FOR US TO DETERMINE WHAT OUR MAINTENANCE PRIORITIZATION FOR MAINTENANCE AND OUR STANDARDS FOR OUR NETWORKS ARE PRIORITIZING HELPS US DETERMINE WHAT TRAILS AND ROADS TO FOCUS ON, WHICH ENSURES THE SAFETY OF THE PERSONNEL, OPERATIONAL STAFF AND OUR VISITORS. DETERMINING THIS SET OF TRAIL STANDARDS ALLOWS US TO ALSO COMMUNICATE TO OUR VISITORS WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN THEY VISIT OUR PARKS.
BEING ABLE TO PRIORITIZE THAT WITH OUR STAFF WITHIN THE DISTRICT IS GOING TO BE IMPERATIVE TO US BEING ABLE TO PROVIDE THAT SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY, AND THOSE THAT PROGRAM AND OPERATE OUT OF OUR PARKS, WE HAVE OVER 120 MILES OF PAVED TRAILS, AND WE'VE GOT A PROGRAM TO MAINTAIN AND RENOVATE OR REHAB THAT 120 MILES, AND THEN AGAIN, THE UNPAVED NATURAL SURFACE, SINGLE TRACK TRAILS CONSISTS OF 200 MILES.
[01:45:01]
620,000FT². SO YOUR ROADS AND TRAILS TEAM AND YOUR SMALL TRAILS TEAM DO A LOT OF HEAVY LIFTING IN THE DISTRICT, AND BEING ABLE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE INVENTORY THAT WE HAVE, PRIORITIZING THAT WORK, MOVING INTO THE STANDARDIZATION OF HOW WE CLASSIFY OUR TRAILS ALLOWS US TO, AGAIN, PROVIDE THAT LEVEL OF SERVICE THAT'S NEEDED.WE ALSO DO EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
WE ALSO DO SHORELINE HARDENING, AND THEN WE ALSO MITIGATE HAZARDS.
I'M SURE YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH CROWN BEACH, AND SO THIS IS A PROJECT THAT OUR STAFF WORKS ON.
I WORKED ON PREVIOUSLY IN 2022, WHERE WE WERE HARDENING THAT SHORELINE DUE TO THE SEVERE STORMS THAT WE HAD RECEIVED THAT YEAR, AND THE FACT THAT THE SAND IS FLEETING ON THAT BEACH, IT'S LITERALLY BEING WASHED FURTHER AND FURTHER UP SHORE, AND SO OUTSIDE OF TRAILS MAINTENANCE, OUR HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATORS AND OUR ROADS AND TRAILS STAFF ARE ARMORING SHORELINES, PROTECTING OUR PATRONS AND ENSURING THAT ASSETS ARE HERE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS TO COME.
SO THIS IS POND 36 AND WE DID A RESTORATION HERE, AND THE REASON WHY I PUT THIS ON OR IN THIS PRESENTATION AS IT RELATES TO TRAILS, BECAUSE THE DAM THAT REINSURES THE VIABILITY OF THAT POND IS ACTUALLY A ROADWAY, AND SO THAT'S A SERVICE ROAD AT EVMA ROAD OR AN OPERATIONAL ROAD FOR A PARK STAFF THAT MAINTAINED THIS LOCATION, AND SO WHENEVER OUR PARK STAFF GO OUT OUR ROADS AND TRAILS, I SHOULD SAY WE LOOK AT IT WITH A 3 TO 5 YEAR LENS AND SO OUT OF THAT 1010 MILES, YOU'RE LOOKING AT 170 TO 200 MILES OF GRADING AND MAINTENANCE ANNUALLY BASED ON THE GIVEN YEAR.
OR CAN WE DO OUR CYCLICAL PRIORITIZATION WHEN IT COMES TO WORK AND AGAIN 1010 MILES THAT WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR OF ROADS AND FIRE ROADS AND EVMA ROADS.
3 TO 5 YEARS TO GET THROUGH THAT.
YOU TALK ABOUT MOVING HEAVEN AND EARTH.
THAT'S WHAT OUR ROADS AND TRAILS TEAM DOES ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, AND THEY DO IT TO PERFECTION.
WE'VE GOT EVERYTHING ELSE THAT HAPPENS IN THE DISTRICT.
WE'VE GOT THE INSTALLATION OF CXT RESTROOMS. WE'VE GOT OUR TCP PROCESS THAT I JUST SHOWED YOU A SLIDE IN, AND THEN WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON ADA COMPLIANCE.
SO THE WORLD OF TRAILS MAINTENANCE DOESN'T ALLEVIATE US FROM THE PRESSURES OF BEING ABLE TO MAINTAIN ALL OF OUR OTHER DISTRICT ASSETS, AND OUR ROADS AND TRAILS TEAM DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB AT MAINTAINING THESE ASSETS, BUT WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS A STANDARDIZATION OF THE WORK THAT WE DO SO THAT ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, OUR PUBLIC SAFETY FOLKS WILL KNOW THAT THE ROADS THAT THEY OPERATE ON AND PATROL ON ARE UP TO SPEED.
OUR PARK OPERATIONS STAFF THAT RELY ON THESE ROADS TO PROVIDE EQUITABLE SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITIES THEY SERVE ARE MAINTAINED AND IF THERE'S ANY PROGRAMMING ELEMENTS THAT HAPPEN WITHIN THOSE PARKS, THEIR NEEDS ARE MET AS WELL.
BECAUSE IF WE DON'T HAVE OUR TRAILS, WE CAN'T PROGRAM, FOLKS CAN'T VISIT OUR PARKS, AND WE CAN'T CREATE THAT EQUITY THAT MANY FOLKS DEPEND AND RELY ON TO ENJOY OUR PARKS, BUT THIS IS JUST A PLETHORA OF IMAGES THAT SHOW YOU THE VAST SKILLS AND ABILITY OF OUR ROADS AND MAINTENANCE TEAM.
YOU COULD SEE CULVERT INSTALLATION, YOU CAN SEE DEBRIS REMOVAL, YOU CAN SEE OUR PAVING INSTALLATION.
WE ALSO WORK ON UTILITIES, SO WE HAVE TO POTHOLE AND ENSURE THAT WATER LINES AND SEWER LINES ARE AVAILABLE, AND THAT HAPPENS TO BE RIGHT IN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR TRAILS, BUT ERICH AND HIS TEAM, THEY DO A MAGNIFICENT JOB JUGGLING ALL OF THESE RESPONSIBILITIES TO ENSURE THAT WE'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, A PATH OF TRAVEL, A SAFE PATH OF TRAVEL, AND AGAIN, JUST CREATING THESE EXPERIENCES FOR GENERATIONS TO COME AND, YOU KNOW, BASK IN THE NATURAL ELEMENTS.
THIS IS OUR NATURAL NATURAL SURFACE TRAILS.
WE NOW HAVE A SMALL TRAILS CREW THAT IS FULLY STAFFED.
PATRICK DEMMONS AND HIS TEAM OF EIGHT ARE MOVING FORWARD TO REALLY MAINTAIN THAT
[01:50:04]
ASSET, AND THESE ARE ALL TRAILS THAT ARE LESS THAN EIGHT FEET IN WIDTH AND FROM THIS LENS, WE'RE LOOKING AT A MIX OF SMALL EQUIPMENT AND HAND TOOLS.SO WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT A 3 TO 5 YEAR TURNAROUND FOR OUR ROADS AND TRAILS AND FIRE ROADS, WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR NATURAL SURFACE TRAILS, THAT'S A FIVE YEAR, 5 TO 6 YEAR LENS.
SO THAT'S 33 TO 40 MILES ANNUALLY THAT OUR SMALL TRAILS CREW CAN MAINTAIN, AND AGAIN, WE'RE LOOKING AT DOING, YOU KNOW, MINOR BLADING BECAUSE WE'VE GOT OUR SUTTER 300 THAT'S GOT A FOUR FOOT WIDE BERTH ON IT.
SO WE'VE GOT A PLETHORA OF PROJECTS THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON HAZARD REMOVAL BOULDERS THAT MIGHT FALL DOWN ONTO OUR TRAILS AND PATHWAYS, TREES THAT MIGHT CROSS THE NARROW SURFACE TRAILS, AND THEN THE CONSTRUCTION OF RETAINING FEATURES.
THESE FOLKS ARE SKILLED IN THE WORK THAT THEY DO.
WHEN WE'RE OUT OF THERE, WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO COME BACK FOR 5 TO 6 YEARS.
SO WE DO A DETAILED THOROUGH JOB, AND THEN WE'RE ALSO TRAINING THE STAFF AT THAT PARK LOCATION SO THAT THEY CAN DO A PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE IN BETWEEN, YOU KNOW, OUR TIME BEING ABLE TO TOUCH THOSE FACILITIES AND WE'RE NOT JUST THROWING GRAVEL DOWN WHEN WE DO GRAVEL APPLICATIONS, WE PUT GEO GRIDS SO THAT IT DOESN'T SPREAD OUT BECAUSE OF THE HEAVY TRAFFIC IN CERTAIN AREAS.
SO WE REALLY THINK ABOUT THE APPLICATION OF MATERIALS, AND AGAIN, LOOKING AT THAT 5 TO 6 YEAR LENS OF WHEN WE LEAVE THIS PARK, IT'S GOING TO BE IN GOOD SHAPE AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO COME BACK, AND, YOU KNOW, AS I SAY, PAINTING THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE, ONCE YOU'RE YOU'RE DONE PAINTING, YOU GOT TO START ALL OVER AGAIN.
WE DO. WE HAVE THAT SAME KIND OF LENS HERE WITH OUR SMALL TRAILS AND OUR ROADS AND TRAILS.
WE DON'T DO THIS ALL BY OURSELVES EITHER.
I'VE GIVEN COUNTLESS PRESENTATIONS ABOUT OUR YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS, AND HOW WE COORDINATE WITH OTHER VOLUNTEERS, AND HAVE PARTNERED WITH CIVICORPS AND SCA CREW, AND THIS IS THEM IN ACTION ALONGSIDE OF OUR SMALL TRAILS, CREW AND ROADS AND TRAILS CREW TO BE ABLE TO DELIVER ACCESS TO OUR TRAILS, HABITAT RESTORATION AND SAFE CROSSINGS BRIDGES THE RETAINING WALLS TO CULVERT INSTALLATION AND SPLIT RAIL FENCING, AND A LOT OF THIS MATERIAL IS HIKED IN.
OUR STAFF STRATEGICALLY HAVE TO STAGE EQUIPMENT.
WE STRATEGICALLY HAVE TO STAGE MATERIAL AND THROUGH THE MAGIC OF ERICH AND HIS CREW, WE'RE ABLE TO DELIVER PROJECTS FOR OUR CONSTITUENTS.
THIS DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN ALL BY ITSELF.
THEY'VE DELIVERED FOR A NUMBER OF OUR PARKS TO BE ABLE TO GIVE US A MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT PLANS FOR THE TRAILS MAINTENANCE, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS EXPANDING WITH ALL OF OUR OTHER PARKS AND THEN ALSO EXPANDING TO OUR ROADS AND TRAILS CREW, AND A PART OF THIS PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND COORDINATING BUDGETS ALLOWS US TO ADOPT SOME OF WHAT OUR NEIGHBORING PARTNERS DO IN THE STATE.
THIS IS WHAT IS DONE THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, AND WE'RE JUST FOLLOWING SUIT, AND SO THEN THAT ALLOWS US TO AGAIN SET THE PRIORITY, SET THE STANDARDS SO THAT WHEN OUR CONSTITUENTS COME INTO OUR PARKS, THEY KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT, AND THAT'S OUR BIGGEST CHARGE DEFINING OUR TRAILS, OUR STANDARDS, AND OUR USE TYPES AND CLASSIFICATIONS.
THAT HELPS US WITH OUR PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE.
RIGHT, AND THAT'S THE POSTURE THAT WE WANT TO BE IN.
WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO PREDICT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE IN THE DISTRICT NEXT.
GIVEN THE SEASON AND THE CHANGING CLIMATE, WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ADJUST AND BUILD IN A RESPONSE FOR EMERGENCIES BUT IF WE CAN BE CONFIDENT WITH OUR DISTRICT TRAIL STANDARDS AND OUR TRAILS CLASSIFICATION THAT ALLOWS US TO
[01:55:05]
PRIORITIZE THAT WORK.SO, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW IS DEFINING OUR TRAIL TYPES.
SO RANCH ROAD SERVICE ROADS, FIRE AND PATROL ROADS AND RECREATIONAL ROADS, YOU KNOW, RECREATION HAS TO DO WITH EVERYTHING THAT OUR VISITORSHIP DOES, AND SO ARE WE MEETING THEIR NEEDS, AND SO WHEN I TALK ABOUT DISTRICT STANDARDS, I'M TALKING ABOUT A LEVEL STANDARD, A B LEVEL STANDARD OR A C LEVEL MAINTENANCE STANDARD, AND AS WE WORK THROUGH THIS PROCESS YEAR IN AND YEAR OUT, WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO KIND OF REPORT BACK AND LET YOU KNOW WHERE WE ARE ALONG THAT PROCESS AND STANDARDIZING AND CREATING TRAIL CLASSIFICATIONS FOR OUR PARKS AND TRAILS NETWORK.
BIGGEST PRIORITY FOR ME WHEN I LOOK AT THAT PRIORITIZATION STRUCTURE IS HEALTH, LIFE AND SAFETY.
I THINK I'VE SAID THAT ON A NUMBER OF PRESENTATIONS.
I RECENTLY GAVE A PRESENTATION AT BOARD OPS TALKING ABOUT OUR STORM RESPONSE, AND I LAID OUT OUR PRIORITIZATION STRUCTURE, ONE BEING HEALTH, LIFE AND SAFETY, TWO BEING OPERATIONAL AND EQUITY IMPACTS AND THREE BEING SCHEDULED PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE, AND IF WE PUT OURSELVES IN THAT POSTURE, I CAN ENSURE THAT THE FIRE ROADS AND SERVICE ROADS FOR OUR PARK OPERATIONS AND PUBLIC SAFETY ARE MAINTAINED ANNUALLY SO THAT THEY CAN PATROL OUR PARKS AND KEEP OUR PATRONS SAFE AND IN THE EVENT OF EMERGENCY, THEY CAN GET THERE EXPEDITIOUSLY, AND THEN FOR THE OPERATIONAL AND EQUITY COMPONENT, JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE ACCESS FOR ALL OF OUR CONSTITUENTS.
SO 1330 MILES, PUTTING ALL THIS TOGETHER SO THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND HOW DO WE BETTER SERVE OUR COMMUNITIES AND ENSURING THAT OUR ROADS AND TRAILS STAFF AND OUR NEW SMALL TRAILS CREW CAN PROVIDE THAT LEVEL OF SERVICE? SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE'RE FACING ANNUALLY ARE THE PERMIT AND REGULATORY COMPLIANCE.
I WOULDN'T SAY THAT THEY'RE SPEED BUMPS.
THEY'RE NOT WALLS OR ROADBLOCKS.
THEY'RE SPEED BUMPS. WE HAVE TO WORK WITH OUR REGULATORY AGENCIES, FISH AND WILDLIFE, ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND THE STATE WATER BOARD TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THEIR NEEDS TO BE ABLE TO GET SOME OF THIS WORK DONE, BUT THAT COMPRESSES OUR WORK WINDOW DOWN TO THREE MONTHS.
SO FROM AUGUST 1ST TO OCTOBER 31ST IS WHEN WE HAVE AN OPERATING WINDOW.
SO EVERYTHING THAT I JUST LAID OUT BEFORE YOU HAS TO BE PLANNED, COORDINATED AND SCHEDULED, AND IF IT DOESN'T FIT WITHIN THAT WORK WINDOW, WE'RE PUSHING THAT OFF TO THE NEXT SEASON AND HOPEFULLY WE DON'T SEE 16 ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS.
IS THAT WHAT YOU SAID? THEY DON'T COME THROUGH AND THINGS WILL HOLD, BUT THAT'S PROBABLY ONE OF OUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES, AND I KNOW OUR PARTNERS IN LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS AND ALSO OUR PARTNERS IN STEWARDSHIP HAVE MADE SOME GREAT STRIDES IN CUTTING THE GREEN TAPE, BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE TO DO AND THEN, YOU KNOW, NO FAULT OF OUR OWN, WE'VE GOT A BACKLOG OF OVER 200 PROJECTS THAT NEED TO BE DONE, NEED TO BE COMPLETED WITHIN TCP, AND SO PRIORITIZING THE MAINTENANCE OF OUR TRAILS ADA COMPLIANCE, RESTROOM INSTALLATION AND TCP WORK IS WHAT WE JUGGLE ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, ALL WHILE FITTING IN, GRADING, TRAIL WORK AND BASIC STRUCTURES, AND I WANTED TO BE SHORT AND SWEET BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S PROBABLY A LOT OF QUESTIONS, SO I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT AND OPEN THE MIC UP. GREAT.
I KNOW YOU ALL HAVE QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS.
THANK YOU. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU.
YEAH. THANKS, ROBERT, FOR ALL THAT, AND YOU DID A GOOD JOB WITH THE PICTURES, TOO.
SO WHEN WHEN WE ENCOUNTER A YEAR LIKE LAST YEAR, WHEN THERE'S JUST SO MUCH DAMAGE AND WE HAVE TO DO A LOT OF RESTORATION AS CLOSE.
AS CLOSE TO BEYOND THE RAINY SEASON AS WE CAN MANAGE.
ARE WE ARE WE PRIORITIZING THEM? I KNOW THIS DIDN'T HAPPEN LAST YEAR, BUT MAYBE NOW IT WILL.
THAT WHEN? WHEN YOU'VE GOT A LAND BANKED PROPERTY WITH DAMAGE AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT THE LAND BANK STUFF GETS DONE AFTER THE PROPERTIES WHERE THE PARKS THAT ACTUALLY HAVE PEOPLE USING THEM.
ARE WE DOING THAT NOW? YEAH. SO WE WORK CLOSELY WITH PUBLIC SAFETY AND OUR OPERATIONS FOLKS TO REALLY DETERMINE WHAT ARE THOSE OPERATIONAL IMPACTS TO YOU AND YOUR TEAMS SO THAT WE CAN PRIORITIZE THAT WORK AND THEN WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT THAT THROUGH THAT EQUITY LENS AND CREATING, YOU KNOW, EQUITABLE ACCESS FOR OUR CONSTITUENTS, AND SO OUR EYES AND EARS, OUR BOOTS ON THE GROUND, OUR PARK STAFF AND THE COMMUNITY COMING FORWARD AND LETTING US KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON, AND THEN DO WE HAVE ACCESS.
[02:00:04]
SO IF IF THE GROUND IS STILL SOFT AND IT'S HEAVILY SATURATED, WE'RE GOING TO DO MORE DAMAGE THAN GOOD.SO WE'VE GOT TO KIND OF WORK OUR WAY FROM EAST TO WEST BECAUSE IT'S DRIER IN EAST COUNTY, AND, YOU KNOW, WE GET SOCKED IN WITH THE FOG AND THAT THE COOL BAY BREEZE AND THINGS DON'T DRY OUT TILL LATER ON IN THE SEASON, AND THAT PUSHES US INTO TCP.
SO WE'RE CONSTANTLY DOING THIS DANCE OF EVALUATING CAN THIS LAST ANOTHER SEASON OR DO WE REALLY NEED TO JUMP ON IT NOW AND THEN SOMETIMES IT'S JUST A NO GO BECAUSE WE CAN'T GET OUR EQUIPMENT THERE. YOU KNOW, THESE ARE HEAVY PIECES OF EQUIPMENT, BUT YES, NON-FREQUENTED PARKS THAT ARE CLOSED OFF TO THE REST OF THE COMMUNITY.
THAT'S GOOD OKAY, I APPRECIATE THAT.
THANK YOU. THAT'S GOOD. THE OTHER THING I WANTED TO JUST KIND OF COMMENT ON IS USAGE OF THE STATE TRAILS MANUAL, THAT I HAVE ONE OF THOSE. IT'S A THICK BINDER, AND IT'S, YOU KNOW, HAVING LOOKED THROUGH IT NUMEROUS TIMES, IT IT COVERS SO MANY DIFFERENT COVERS, STUFF WE DON'T EVEN HAVE, BUT, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IT'S A USEFUL RESOURCE.
IT COVERS, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY JUST ABOUT ANY.
CONDITION THAT WE MIGHT ENCOUNTER HERE.
SO I LIKE THAT BECAUSE I THINK IF YOU FOLLOW THAT MANUAL AND YOU AND YOU AND EVERYONE IS COMMITTED TO FOLLOWING IT, YOU'RE GOING TO BE DOING YOUR MOST EFFECTIVE WORK.
SO I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT, AND I HOPE THAT EVERYBODY WHO NEEDS TRAINING IN THAT CAN GET IT.
I KNOW THAT COULD BE HARD SOMETIMES, BUT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, AND THEN, AND HERE'S THE BIG ONE.
WHEN WE START HAVING VOLUNTEERS AGAIN, WE NEED ENOUGH STAFF OUT THERE TO SHOW THEM HOW TO DO IT THE RIGHT WAY BECAUSE IT'S NOT INTUITIVE, AND YOU SEE THINGS HAPPENING NOW.
I'VE SEEN THINGS HAPPENING OUT THERE THAT ARE NOT SUSTAINABLE, AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S GREAT TO HAVE THEM THERE, BUT IF YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE THEM THERE, YOU MIGHT THEY MIGHT AS WELL BE DOING IT RIGHT. SO ANYWAY, I APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU DO, AND I KNOW, I KNOW WE'RE IT JUST I FEEL LIKE WE'RE MAKING WE'RE GAINING GROUND ON THIS OVER THE YEARS THAT WE'RE CORRECTING THINGS AND MAKING PROGRESS SO THAT IN 20 YEARS, MAYBE I'LL PICK A NUMBER.
OUR TRAILS ARE NOT GOING TO BE AS DEMANDING OF US AS THEY ARE RIGHT NOW.
SO, YES, I'M GLAD YOU BROUGHT THAT UP BECAUSE THIS IS ONE OF MY TALKING POINTS.
I FIGURED SOMEBODY WAS GOING TO TALK ABOUT TRAINING, BUT THAT IS A KEY PILLAR TO OUR SMALL TRAILS CREW, AND PATRICK DEMMONS HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN SEARCHING OUT SOME OF THESE NEW TRAININGS AND PARTNERING, AND SO IT'S AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR GROWTH FOR THE SMALL TRAILS CREW IS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AND A WELL-TRAINED STAFF CAN ACCOMPLISH MORE WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY AND WILL BE MORE LIKELY TO RETAIN THESE STAFF MEMBERS WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT BECAUSE THEY'RE GROWING NOT ONLY IN THE SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE, BUT JUST HOW THEY CAN DELIVER SERVICES TO OUR COMMUNITIES, AND SO OUR SMALL TRAIL SUPERVISOR IS WORKING TO PROVIDE GROUP TRAINING FOR THE SMALL TRAILS CREW, AS WELL AS DIFFERENT PERSONNEL EN MASSE AND IN PARK OPERATIONS, SO THAT WHEN WE GET TO A PARK AS THE FULL FORCE MULTIPLIER, WE'RE BRINGING IN PARK STAFF. SO THEY'RE LEARNING THESE TECHNIQUES AND GETTING THAT VALUABLE TRAINING.
SO WHEN WE'RE GONE, THEY CAN CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN THAT.
PATRICK HAS SIGNED UP OUR FOLKS IN THE WILDERNESS FIRST RESPONDER COURSE OUT OF SAUSALITO AT THE END OF FEBRUARY WE'RE WORKING WITH TRAILS UNLIMITED TO DO TRAILS MAINTENANCE EQUIPMENT TRAINING FOR OUR SWACO, OUR SETTER THREE HUNTER AND OUR MINI X, AND THAT'S A GROUP TRAINING DAY, AND THAT WILL HAPPEN IN BETWEEN MAY AND JUNE, AND THEN THE CALIFORNIA TRAILS AND GREENWAYS CONFERENCE WILL BE ATTENDING, AND THAT'S AT THE END OF APRIL.
AGAIN, WE'RE USING THAT TRAIN THE TRAINER CONCEPT.
SO AS OUR STAFF GET TRAINED UP IN THE SMALL TRAILS CREW, THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DELIVER THAT KNOWLEDGE DOWN TO OUR PARK STAFF AND THEN JUST KIND OF CONTINUOUSLY CONTINUE THIS ONGOING MAINTENANCE. DIRECTOR COFFEY.
ROBERT, YOU KNOW, THE BOARD IS VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THE SMALL TRAILS CREW EXPANDING, THE SMALL TRAILS CREW, EXPANDING THE CIVICORPS AND WEP PROGRAMS, ALL TO BOLSTER OUR ABILITY TO HANDLE ALL THE MULTI-LAYERED, MULTIFACETED NEEDS THAT THE SMALL TRAILS CREW FITS.
[02:05:07]
WORK, AS I RECALL, AND AS SEAN REPORTED, THEY'RE GONE, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE BRINGING BACK ANOTHER CONTRACT FOR A SANTA CRUZ BASED TRAILS CREW.SO THE ISSUE TO TEE UP IS WE ALL LIKE TO SEE EXPANSION.
AS YOU SPOKE OF THE SMALL TRAILS CREW OF OUR YOUTH EMPLOYMENT EFFORTS TO BRING YOUTH IN TO DEVELOP OUR ABILITY TO DO THESE TASKS.
SO I, AMONG OTHERS, ARE HESITANT TO GO OUT AND HIRE OUTSIDE CONTRACTORS, NONUNION CONTRACTORS TO DO THE WORK, AND SO WHAT I WANT TO TEE UP IS WHEN YOU BRING THAT OR WHOMEVER AMONG OUR STAFFS, STAFF AND DIVISIONS ARE GOING TO BRING THAT CONTRACT TO US. IT WILL BE USEFUL TO KNOW THAT THERE HAS BEEN AN ANALYSIS OF HOW COST EFFECTIVE IT IS TO USE THESE OUTSIDE CONTRACTORS FOR SMALL TRAIL CREW WORK INSTEAD OF HIRING MORE OF THESE PATRICK DIMONS, CREWS AND SILVERCORP PEOPLE TO DO THAT STUFF RIGHT.
SO THAT I WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE'RE TRACKING BECAUSE THERE IS A, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S IT GOING TO COST US? HOW OFTEN DO WE NEED THESE FOLKS WHEN YOU BRING IN OUTSIDE CONTRACTORS TO DO THAT KIND OF WORK, ESPECIALLY THAT WORK, BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE ALL HEAR TREASURE AS OUR OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE YOUTH EMPLOYMENT JOBS AND JOBS FOR OUR EXISTING UNION EMPLOYEES.
DULY NOTED. OKAY, DIRECTOR CORBETT, I DON'T HAVE TOO MUCH MORE TO ADD THAN WHAT IS ALREADY BEEN STATED WITH REGARD TO YOUR WORK, BUT ONCE AGAIN, AMAZING WORK AND I KNOW YOU'LL SAY IT'S THE STAFF TOO THAT'S DOING ALL THE WORK AND I'M SAYING THAT TOO. BUT JUST AMAZING WORK AND IMPROVEMENT OVER THE TIME I'VE BEEN HERE AS WELL.
SO THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
I DON'T NEED TO REALLY ADD TO WHAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE SAID, BUT GOOD WORK.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR EVERYBODY WHO'S INVOLVED.
IT'S A TEAM EFFORT. DIRECTOR WAESPI.
GREAT. THANK YOU ROBERT, AND THANKS TO ALL YOUR STAFF FOR ALL THE GREAT WORK THEY'RE DOING.
I GUESS MY QUESTION WOULD BE ROADS AND TRAILS YOU WRITE DOES INCREDIBLE WORK AND GREAT WORK IN THERE, BUT THEY NEED PEOPLE TO RUN DOZERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT ARE WHAT'S YOUR STAFFING LEVEL ON ROADS AND TRAILS? SO, IN TOTAL, WE'VE GOT 24 EMPLOYEES IN ROADS AND TRAILS.
HOW MANY VACANCIES? THREE. ONLY THREE.
CORRECT. OKAY, GREAT, BUT I BELIEVE THEY'RE BEING FILLED, RIGHT? OKAY. SO YEAH. SO ONE.
THAT'S GREAT TO HEAR, AND I'M WHAT'S THE STATUS OF THE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM FOR ROADS AND TRAILS? THAT IS ACTUALLY THE VACANT POSITION.
WE'RE HOLDING THAT OPEN FOR THE APPRENTICE, AND ARE WE GOING TO HIRE THAT PERSON SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE? WE'RE WORKING ON THE DETAILS OF OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH HAYWARD ADULT SCHOOL, AND SO AS WE ONCE WE'VE COMPLETED THAT PROCESS, THEN WE'VE ALREADY STOOD UP THE COMMITTEE AND WE'RE MEETING, BUT THAT'S WE'RE DRIVING FORWARD WITH THAT.
GREAT, AND ON THE SMALL TRAILS CREW.
SO IT'S ONE SUPERVISOR, EIGHT CREW MEMBERS.
YEAH, I THINK I MISSPOKE, SO I WAS NOT READING MY NOTES CLEARLY.
OKAY, GREAT, AND THEY ARE WE I KNOW WE OUR PLAN WAS TO GET CIVIC CORPS TO WORK RIGHT ALONG WITH THEM AND LEARN THOSE SKILLS AND GET THOSE JOB SKILLS AND TRAINING.
DO WE HAVE A COMMITTED CIVIC CORPS CREW THAT COMES OUT THERE? THERE ARE EIGHT PERSON CREW, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN.
SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR PREPARING THE PRESENTATION, I THINK.
[02:10:03]
CHALLENGE, RIGHT? IN REGARDS TO HOW TO, YOU KNOW, SHARE THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING AND UNDERSTANDING WHY WE'RE DOING IT.I KNOW WE STILL, ESPECIALLY LAST YEAR, BUT EVEN NOW, IF THERE'S PARKS THAT ARE CLOSED BECAUSE OF SOME, YOU KNOW, WEATHER IMPACTS, YOU KNOW, WE WILL HEAR A LOT OF COMMENTS ABOUT THAT.
AND I THINK THE RESPONSE TO THAT IS, YOU KNOW, SHARING THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE THESE CHALLENGES, WHETHER IT'S, YOU KNOW, A CLIMATE RELATED OR INFRASTRUCTURE RELATED IMPACT AND HOW WE CONTINUE TO THINK ABOUT THIS COMMUNICATIONS CHALLENGE, I THINK WILL BE ONGOING, EVEN THOUGH I BELIEVE WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB WITH IT.
I THINK THAT THERE'S STILL MORE THAT EVOLVES ALONG THESE LINES.
THAT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT I THINK EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS.
SO HOW TO COMMUNICATE THAT PIECE OF THE PUZZLE, AND THEN THE OTHER PIECE WITH THE CHALLENGES, I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT PERMIT AND REGULATORY COMPLIANCE, AND, YOU KNOW, I'LL SHARE A QUICK STORY.
YOU KNOW, WHEN I WAS AT SUNOL REGIONAL PARK AT THE END OF JANUARY, I NOTICED THAT WE STILL HAD A LOT OF YOU KNOW, SOIL AND, AND LAND DIRT THAT HAD MOVED WITH THE ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS AND WERE, YOU KNOW, THE ELEVATION WAS UP ALONG ONE OF OUR SIGNPOSTS, AND I MADE A COMMENT TO STEVE CASTILE.
I'M LIKE, WHY AREN'T WE FIXING THIS? I FEEL LIKE WE COULD GET VOLUNTEERS OUT THERE AND, YOU KNOW, DIG THE SIGNPOSTS OUT OF THE DIRT.
HE SAID, OH, HOW CLOSE TO THE CREEK WAS THAT? I SAID, OH, IT'S VERY CLOSE TO THE CREEK, AND HE SAID, WELL, THERE'S A PERMITTING ISSUE AND I REALLY SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT, BUT DIDN'T IN THAT MOMENT, AND MY POINT HERE IS THAT EVEN THOSE OF US WITH KNOWLEDGE DON'T ALWAYS MAKE THOSE CONNECTIONS EITHER, AND SO THAT'S A COMMUNICATIONS CHALLENGE, TOO, THAT I THINK WE'RE JUST GOING TO HAVE TO CONSISTENTLY BE THINKING ABOUT AND WORKING ON, AND THEN THE OTHER PIECE OF THIS WHEN THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, OUR CHANGING CLIMATE AND, YOU KNOW, THIS IDEA THAT, YOU KNOW, NATURE MAY RUN ITS COURSE, AND, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE MAINTENANCE AND RESTORATION, YOU KNOW, THERE MAY BE SOME CASES WHERE WE MAY NOT ALWAYS WANT TO RESTORE SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN DAMAGED, AND HOW DO WE HAVE THAT CONVERSATION? AND IT COULD BE SOMETHING VERY BELOVED BY THE PUBLIC AS WELL, BUT MAYBE DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO RESTORE, AND I'LL USE AN EXAMPLE FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE, BECAUSE THAT WAY WE MAYBE DON'T HAVE AS MUCH EMOTION ABOUT IT, BUT, YOU KNOW, ON THE NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE LICENSE PLATE, THEY LIKE TO PROFILE WHAT THEY CALL THE OLD MAN IN THE MOUNTAIN, WHICH IS THIS GRANITE STRUCTURE THAT LOOKS LIKE THE PROFILE OF A MAN.
AND IN 2003, BECAUSE OF SOME DIFFERENT WEATHER AND DIFFERENT IMPACTS, IT FELL OFF THE MOUNTAIN.
THE OLD MAN FELL OFF THE MOUNTAIN, AND SO IT WAS A BIG DEBATE IN THAT STATE WHETHER OR NOT TO RESTORE IT, AND ULTIMATELY THEY DECIDED NOT TO, BUT I MEAN, THIS IS A VERY BELOVED, YOU KNOW, ICONIC SYMBOL, AND NATURE RAN ITS COURSE AND, YOU KNOW, DESTROYED THE SYMBOL, AND SO I THINK THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE FACING IF WE AREN'T ALREADY FACING IT, BUT WE WILL CONTINUE TO FACE AS WE GET ALL THESE EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, AND I THINK THIS ADDS TO THE CHALLENGE AND THE COMMUNICATIONS CHALLENGE OF THIS, AND I JUST WANT TO SHARE THIS LONG COMMENT, BECAUSE I THINK THIS WILL BE SOMETHING THAT'S ONGOING.
THANK YOU. WELL, I HAVE A FEW COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS AS WELL.
SO. SO FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
I REALLY ENJOYED LEARNING MORE ABOUT THE BREADTH, BREADTH AND DEPTH OF WHAT YOU DO.
IT REALLY IS EXTRAORDINARY, AND YOU AND YOUR TEAM ARE DOING AN INCREDIBLE JOB.
I REALLY APPRECIATE IT, AND I ALSO LIKE THE PHOTOS TOO ON THE SLIDES.
GOOD JOB ON THAT, AND I'M EXCITED TO HEAR THAT THE SMALL TRAILS CREW IS FULLY STAFFED NOW, AND ALSO, OF COURSE, THAT YOU'RE FOCUSED ON EXPANDING THE YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM.
I LOVE THAT THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO MAY NOT EVEN BE FAMILIAR WITH OUR PARKS TO SEE A NEW CAREER POSSIBILITY FOR THEMSELVES AND GET THIS EXCELLENT TRAINING AND THEN REALLY A CAREER LADDER INTO GREAT JOBS HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT OR ELSEWHERE.
OH, I, YOU KNOW, I DID HAVE A QUESTION YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT LIKE WHEN THERE'S WHEN THERE'S ISSUES AND HOW, LIKE A STORM AND DAMAGE AND HOW EQUITY MIGHT PLAY INTO THAT. SO, I HAVE A SPECIFIC QUESTION.
SO, YOU KNOW, I KNOW LIKE OUT IN PANOLA, I WENT OUT TO LOOK AT IT THE, THE BIG THE TRAIL THAT GOT WIPED OUT BY A LANDSLIDE OUT THERE ON THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY TRAIL, AND THAT REALLY IS THE ONLY SORT OF LONG PATH THAT PEOPLE HAVE TO WALK OR RUN OR BIKE.
[02:15:06]
THE ONLY OTHER ALTERNATIVE IS SAN PABLO AVENUE, AND SO I WAS JUST I KNOW THERE'S LOTS OF ISSUES WITH THAT ONE BECAUSE YOU NEED MONEY.IT'S EXPENSIVE. THERE'S A LOT, YOU KNOW, A LOT RIGHT THERE GOING ON, BUT I'M JUST WONDERING, DOES THAT HELP TO, YOU KNOW, PRIORITIZE THAT ONE OR HOW DOES THE EQUITY PIECE WORK IN THAT? THAT IS A BIG PART OF OUR EVALUATION, AND I KNOW THAT PROJECT IS CURRENTLY WITH DECO RIGHT NOW, AND SO THAT'S STILL MOVING FORWARD, ALTHOUGH YOU HAVEN'T HEARD A LOT OF PROGRESS ON THAT, THAT IS A TOP PRIORITY, AND THEY ARE LOOKING TO MEET DEADLINES THAT THEY SET FORWARD, BUT IT'S VERY COMPLEX.
SO THERE ARE MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS INVOLVED WITH THAT WITH THE UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD AND THEN THE REFINERY AS WELL, AND SO AS WE NEGOTIATE, YOU KNOW, OUR EASEMENT, WHICH IS THE TRAIL THAT'S THE BOUNDARIES OF, YOU KNOW, OUR JURISDICTION.
SO IT'S JUST IT IT IS AT THE TOP OF OUR LIST.
I AND I DO APPRECIATE THAT IT IS VERY COMPLICATED.
SO OBVIOUSLY VERY COMPLICATED AND AN EXPENSIVE PROBLEM TO FIX TOO, AND SO I GET THAT.
WERE YOU GOING TO ADD SOMETHING YOU LOOKED LIKE YOU WANTED TO ADD SOMETHING? OH NO, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT IS ROBERT ANSWERED THAT CORRECTLY, AND THERE ARE SOME OF THOSE PROJECTS WHERE WE SAT DOWN WITH LAST YEAR'S STORM DAMAGE AND TO SAY, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULDN'T EVEN WAIT FOR FEMA ON THESE BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THESE ARE AT SUCH A HIGH PRIORITY, AND YOU KNOW, AS PRESENTATION STARTED WITH PUBLIC ACCESS, AND THAT'S REALLY HOW THEY EVALUATE THAT.
SO I JUST WANTED TO DOUBLE DOWN.
EXCUSE ME. WASTING TIME WAITING FOR FEMA BECAUSE YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY THAT TAKES A REALLY, REALLY LONG TIME, AND IF THESE SOME OF THESE THINGS AREN'T FIXED, I MEAN, THEY'RE JUST GOING TO GET WORSE WHEN WE HAVE MORE RAINSTORMS, AND I'M NOT EVEN GOING TO PREDICT WHAT'S GOING TO COME NEXT THIS YEAR, BUT HOPEFULLY WE'RE.
WELL, I WON'T JINX IT, BUT YEAH.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT, FOR YOUR WORK ON ALL OF THAT.
NO PROBLEM. LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOOD.
THANK YOU. SHORT AND SWEET, LIKE YOU PROMISED.
GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS JOE COTCHER, POLICE CAPTAIN WITH THE PARK DISTRICT POLICE DEPARTMENT.
PRESIDENT ECHOLS REST OF THE BOARD.
VERY, VERY HAPPY TO BE HERE WITH YOU TO HAVE A DISCUSSION WITH YOU ABOUT TRAIL MANAGEMENT.
REALLY TWO THINGS THAT WE I WANT TO GET ACROSS TO YOU TODAY IS GIVE YOU SOME IDEA OF OUR METHODOLOGY OF RESPONDING TO ISSUES ON THE TRAIL AND THEN TO PROVIDE YOU SOME STATISTICS FROM 2023 TO SHOW YOU OUR CAPABILITY AND KIND OF WHAT TO EXPECT.
FOR THIS PRESENTATION, I'LL BE USING BICYCLE STATISTICS.
BY NO MEANS IS THAT THE ONLY THING THAT AFFECTS TRAILS WHEN IT COMES TO MANAGEMENT OR ENFORCEMENT, BUT IT IS A VERY CONVENIENT AND LARGE GROUP FOR US TO BE ABLE TO SHOW AS AN EXAMPLE. SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND DIVE RIGHT IN.
SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT RESPONSE METHODOLOGY IT COMES BACK TO A PROBLEM TRIANGLE FOR US.
THIS IS SOMETHING ALL OF YOU HAVE PROBABLY SEEN BEFORE IN SOME FORM OR FASHION, BUT IT BREAKS DOWN INTO THREE, THREE SIDES OF THAT TRIANGLE EDUCATION, ENVIRONMENT AND ENFORCEMENT. SO WHEN WE TAKE EACH THIS PROBLEM TRIANGLE AS A WHOLE, THE STRONGER THAT WE HAVE EACH ONE OF THOSE SIDES, THE MORE IMPACT WE'RE HAVING ON SQUASHING THAT, THAT CONCERN, WHATEVER THAT CONCERN IS, WHETHER IT IS ILLICIT BICYCLE USE OR ROBBERIES, IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU PUT INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE TRIANGLE.
IF YOU USE THIS METHODOLOGY, YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THAT.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT EDUCATION A LOT OF WHAT I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT IS BALANCE AND COOPERATION.
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT PUBLIC SAFETY CAN DO ALONE.
[02:20:02]
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE RELY ON OUR PARTNERS, OBVIOUSLY, AS YOU'VE HEARD EARLIER FROM DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, FROM TRAILS AND ALSO FROM PUBLIC AFFAIRS.WE REALLY NEED A STRONG EDUCATION PIECE TO MAKE SURE THAT MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO ARE COMING TO RECREATE, UNDERSTAND WHAT THE RULES ARE SO THAT THEN WE SEE A GREATER INCREASE IN RULE FOLLOWING, AND IF THAT'S NOT THE CASE, THEN WE DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO ENFORCE THOSE RULES.
SO YOU SEE, PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SOCIAL MEDIA OPS STAFF IS A HUGE FORCE MULTIPLIER FOR US.
OUR VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL IS A HUGE RESOURCE ON THE EDUCATION SIDE OF THIS TRIANGLE.
AND ALSO OBVIOUSLY OUR OFFICERS WHO ARE OUT THERE EVERY SINGLE DAY.
WHEN YOU TAKE A LOOK AT THE BOTTOM SIDE OF THE TRIANGLE ENVIRONMENT, WHEN WE SEE THAT ACCESS IS EQUITABLE, WHEN WE ARE MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE PUBLIC, THE RATE AT WHICH THAT PUBLIC FOLLOWS OUR RULES GOES UP, WHICH MEANS THAT MAYBE THERE'S LESS ENFORCEMENT THAT NEEDS TO TAKE PLACE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MAINTAINING THE STATUS QUO OF WHATEVER THAT PARK IS OR WHATEVER THAT TRAIL IS.
SO, AS SEAN HAS TALKED ABOUT QUITE A BIT TODAY TRAIL DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT NEEDS TO BE WELL THOUGHT OUT, AND IT NEEDS TO ENCOURAGE THE APPROPRIATE USE OF WHAT WE WANT CITIZENS OR PATRONS TO COME TO THE PARK AND USE OUR PARKS FOR, AND OBVIOUSLY, I'M STANDING HERE IN A POLICE UNIFORM.
ENFORCEMENT IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE.
OFFICERS NEED ACTIONABLE INFORMATION TO BE ON THE SPOT AT THE TIME OF THE VIOLATION TO BE ABLE TO COMBAT THE PROBLEMS THAT WE'RE FACING WITH ILLICIT TRAIL USE, WHETHER THAT'S DOG WALKING BICYCLES OR WHATNOT.
ORDINANCE 38 IS NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART.
IT IS OUR FOUNDATION OF A LOT OF THE WORK THAT WE DO ON A DAILY BASIS AS POLICE OFFICERS, AND THAT ORDINANCE NEEDS TO BE UPHELD OR ELSE IT'S NOT WORTH MUCH.
SO WE HAVE TO BE OUT ENFORCING ORDINANCE 38.
THIS IS THE WAY IN WHICH WE INTERACT WITH PARK STAFF, WITH THE PUBLIC, AND A WAY FOR THEM TO TELL US WHAT THEY'RE SEEING ON A DAILY BASIS SO THAT WE CAN THEN FORMULATE A PLAN TO GO OUT AND COMBAT THAT ISSUE.
SO A PATROL PRIORITY IS A REQUEST FOR DIRECTED PATROL FOR A DEFINED ISSUE AT A DEFINED LOCATION.
PATROL PRIORITIES ARE CREATED IN MULTIPLE WAYS.
REPORTS FROM THE PUBLIC, EITHER FROM PARK WATCH REPORTS, CALLS TO DISPATCH, AN OFFICER DETAIL, ETC.
WE DO A REALLY GOOD JOB OF LIAISING WITH PARK OPERATIONS WITH OUR PARTNERS IN OPS, WITH UNIT MEETINGS AND OFFICER TO RANGER INFORMATION SHARING ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS, AND THEN FINALLY, YOU ALSO HAVE OFFICER OBSERVATIONS.
IN 2023 BICYCLE RELATED PATROL PRIORITIES, WE HAD 78 SEPARATE PATROL PRIORITIES RELATING TO BICYCLE ISSUES, AND THESE INCLUDED SPEED THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT, ILLICIT TRAIL USE, AND SPECIFICALLY THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT, WHERE WE SPENT APPROXIMATELY 99 HOURS ADDRESSING THOSE PATROL PRIORITIES IN THAT PARK.
OVERALL, OFFICERS SPENT 127 HOURS IN DIRECTED PATROLS.
FOR BICYCLE RELATED ISSUES THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT.
SO YOU CAN SEE THE RATIO OF HOW MUCH TIME WE ACTUALLY SPENT AT THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, WE HAVE OUR PATROL OFFICERS.
WE'RE A 24 OVER SEVEN OPERATIONS.
THERE ARE FIVE REGULAR PATROL BEATS, NOT COUNTING ANY OF THE ADDITIONAL CONTRACTS THAT WE FULFILL, AND OFFICERS ARE RESPONSIBLE TO RESPOND TO CALLS, ACTIVE, ACTIVE CALLS FOR SERVICE, CONDUCT PROACTIVE PATROLS OF THE DISTRICT AND PROPERTIES, AND ADDRESS THE PATROL PRIORITIES AS POSSIBLE.
SO, THEIR FOCUS IS REALLY DRIVEN BY CALLS ON THE RADIO OR THEIR OWN ABILITY TO GO OUT AND FIND AN ISSUE AND THEN COMBAT THAT ISSUE. WHEN WE MOVE DOWN TO THE SPECIAL ENFORCEMENT UNIT, THAT METRIC OR THAT METHODOLOGY SOMEWHAT CHANGES.
THESE EIGHT PERSONNEL TWO SERGEANTS, TWO EQUESTRIAN OFFICERS, TWO MARINE OFFICERS WHEN FULLY STAFFED AND TWO DUAL SPORT OFFICERS ARE FOCUSED ON THE SPECIFIC DIRECTED PATROL THAT WILL MAKE AN IMPACT ON THESE IDENTIFIABLE ISSUES.
THEY ARE CAPABLE OF ALTERNATIVE MODES OF PATROL AND TRANSPORTATION, WHICH GETS THEM TO THE POINT WHERE THAT ENFORCEMENT NEEDS TO TAKE PLACE EASIER OR MORE EFFICIENTLY, AND THEY ARE LESS TIED TO THE DAY TO DAY CALLS FOR SERVICE THAT MAY COME IN THROUGH DISPATCH.
[02:25:04]
THE LAST BUCKET THAT I'LL SPEAK OF IS OUR VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL.I KNOW THAT ALL OF YOU HAVE QUITE A BIT OF EXPERIENCE WITH OUR TSP.
CURRENTLY, WE'RE AT 151 VOLUNTEERS.
THAT'S HIKING, BIKING, EQUESTRIAN, AND COMPANION DOG.
IN 2023, THEY SPENT APPROXIMATELY 6300 HOURS OF WORK IN THE PARK, BEING EDUCATION SOURCES OR A SMILING FACE IN THE PARK FOR US TO KIND OF PROJECT ORDINANCE 38 167 OF THOSE HOURS WAS SPENT SPECIFICALLY AT THE BEHRENDS TRAIL PILOT PROJECT.
SO AT THIS POINT, I WANTED TO MOVE INTO SOME STATISTICS AND TALK ABOUT SPECIFICALLY INCIDENCE.
SO, FOR 2023, WE HAD 21,473 INCIDENTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR THAT SPANS EVERYTHING THAT WE DID INCIDENT WISE.
THE TOTAL BICYCLE AND E-BIKE INCIDENTS THAT WE HAD WAS 145.
SO, WHEN YOU BREAK THAT DOWN, THAT'S ABOUT 0.67% OF TOTAL INCIDENTS FOR 2023 WERE BICYCLE RELATED, WHETHER THAT WAS E-BIKE OR REGULAR BICYCLE.
SO, OF THOSE 145 TOTAL BICYCLE INCIDENTS 42 INVOLVED E-BIKES.
THAT'S 29% AND 103 INVOLVED JUST REGULAR PEDAL BICYCLES.
BREAKING THAT DOWN EVEN DEEPER INTO CASES THERE WERE 1483 CASES OF THAT.
41 OF THOSE CASES WERE BICYCLE OR E-BIKE RELATED, AND THAT ACCOUNTS TO ABOUT 2.7% OF TOTAL CASES IN 2023, WHEN YOU BREAK DOWN CASES BY BICYCLE AND E-BIKE.
THERE WERE FOUR CASES FOR E-BIKES, ONE IN THE BRIONI PILOT PROJECT.
35 OF THOSE WERE ACCIDENT RELATED.
THE OTHER TWO WERE FOR ILLEGAL AND ILLICIT TRAIL CONSTRUCTION, AND THEN THAT FINAL NUMBER FOR THE ENTIRE DISTRICT, MY OFFICERS ISSUED 23 CITATIONS FOR BICYCLE RELATED ISSUES, AND 22 OF THOSE WERE IN THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT AREA.
I JUST HAVE A QUICK QUESTION AND THEN I'LL IF ANYONE ELSE HAS.
SO WHAT IF, YOU KNOW OFF THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD, WHAT IS THE BIGGEST INCIDENT? I MEAN THE PERCENTAGE BECAUSE THAT'S REALLY TINY PERCENTAGE.
I WOULDN'T KNOW THAT OFF THE TOP.
SO, I'M WONDERING WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR THE OTHER 99 PLUS PERCENT OF INCIDENTS.
I JUST HAVE A QUICK JUST A QUICK QUESTION.
SO, SAYING THAT THERE WAS 23 BIKES THAT WERE IN SOME OF THE, YOU KNOW, ITEMS THAT HAPPENED.
HOW MANY TIMES DO PEOPLE HEAR FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT THERE'S THAT THEY'RE BEING ASKED NOT TO DO SOMETHING? PLEASE DON'T DO IT THIS TIME.
AND YOU KNOW, WE WON'T GIVE YOU A TICKET THIS TIME, BUT NEXT TIME.
SO, WHAT SORT OF NUMBERS DO WE HAVE? WARNING PEOPLE TO DO THE RIGHT THING, BUT THEY DON'T NECESSARILY GET A TICKET THAT FIRST TIME.
SO I UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION CORRECTLY.
YOU'RE SPEAKING OF WARNINGS GIVEN.
YES. SO THAT'S NOT A STATISTIC THAT I INCLUDED, BUT THAT IS SOME INFORMATION THAT I COULD GET BACK TO YOU WHEN I DO DO THE RESEARCH ON THAT, BUT IN YOUR GENERAL THINKING, DO WE GIVE A LOT OF IDEAS TO PEOPLE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT GIVING YOU A TICKET THIS TIME, BUT DEPENDING ON THE SPECIFIC SITUATION, I KNOW THAT SPECIFICALLY, IF YOU TAKE THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT, FOR EXAMPLE, WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME IN THE FOREFRONT OF THAT ON THE EDUCATION SIDE OF OUR TRIANGLE MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE UNDERSTOOD WHAT WAS EXPECTED OF THEM, THE BEHAVIOR THAT WAS EXPECTED.
SO IN SITUATIONS LIKE THAT IT'S A MUCH LARGER PROPORTION OF WARNINGS TO CITATIONS BECAUSE OF THAT
[02:30:10]
SPIN UP TIME ACROSS THE REST OF THE DISTRICT, I WOULD HAVE TO GIVE YOU AN OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD GUESS, BUT IT'S PROBABLY 2 TO 1 OF MORE SO TOWARD GIVING WARNINGS THAN GIVING CITATIONS.YEAH, I LIKE TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT, AND ALSO IF IT DOES IMPROVED, IT DOES IMPROVE THE PROJECTS BECAUSE WE'RE WARNING PEOPLE, AND THEY JUST DON'T DO IT THE NEXT TIME.
I'D LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THAT.
WHEN I START THINKING ABOUT HOW MUCH TERRITORY THERE IS TO COVER AND HOW MANY OFFICERS YOU HAVE, I.
I TRY TO UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT I DO NOTICE THAT A HUGE PROPORTION OF YOUR ACTIVITY HAS BEEN IN THE BRONZE PILOT PROJECT AREA, AND THAT'S APPROPRIATE BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING WE'RE TRYING THAT'S NEW AND IT REALLY NEEDS TO BE.
SO THAT'S GOOD, BUT IN THE MEANTIME, THERE'S OTHER AREAS THAT I HEAR ABOUT YOU KNOW, IN FACT, I HAVEN'T I'VE NEVER HAD A PERSONAL, HAVE I? MOSTLY WHAT I HEAR ABOUT IS THE IRON HORSE TRAIL, AND WHAT I HEAR ABOUT IT ON THE IRON HORSE TRAIL IS GENERALLY BETWEEN DANVILLE AND THE SOUTH BOUNDARY OF WALNUT CREEK, AND WHAT I HEAR IS SPEEDING BY, LET'S JUST SAY ANY BIKE.
I GO OUT THERE AND I DON'T SEE IT EITHER.
AND SO I THINK IT'S GETTING AND THEY FEEL LIKE THEIR SENSE IS THAT IT'S GETTING WORSE.
WHO'S GOING TO CATCH ME? YOU KNOW? SO I FEEL LIKE THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME KIND OF PRESENCE OUT THERE BY SOMEBODY WHO WHO CAN.
EITHER ISSUE A WARNING OR A CITATION.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT UP IN A PRIORITY, I THINK, YOU KNOW, SOON.
NOW, I DID MEET WITH SOME FOLKS RECENTLY, AND WE WERE WE KIND OF KICKED IT AROUND, AND I ASKED THEM, I SAID, WELL, WHAT DO YOU THINK? WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD DO? THAT'S ALWAYS A GOOD TECHNIQUE, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU'RE GOING TO I DO THAT MYSELF.
THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW WELL, PEOPLE DON'T READ SIGNS, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T THE WORD 15 AS IN MILES PER HOUR, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, LOST. SO THEY, THEY THEY'D LIKE TO SEE SOME EDUCATION GO ON OUT THERE IN THEIR AREA, AND THE LATEST FOLKS THAT I SPOKE WITH WERE FROM ALAMO, AND THEY THOUGHT THAT WE SHOULD HAVE WE SHOULD BE ATTENDING.
WE SHOULD HAVE A TABLE. WE SHOULD HAVE WE SHOULD DO TABLING AT PUBLIC EVENTS THAT ARE HELD IN THAT AREA ON EVERYTHING IN ALAMO IS NEAR THE IRON HORSE TRAIL, SO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING THEY WOULD HAVE WOULD BE NEAR THE TRAIL.
SO, LIKE IF THERE'S A FAIR THERE'S A CAR SHOW THERE IN THE SUMMER, THINGS LIKE THAT WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, WE CAN PUT UP A TABLE, HAVE BROCHURES, WHATEVER, HAVE SOMEBODY WITH A UNIFORM THERE AND KIND OF SPREAD THE WORD.
I THINK THERE'D BE A LOT OF INTEREST IN THAT AND THOSE FOLKS.
SO, SO WHEN I SAY THAT, I THINK I MEAN ALAMO AND DANVILLE BOTH, YOU KNOW ULTIMATELY I THINK WHAT'S GOING ON OUT THERE IS THAT THE TRAILS JUST NOT BIG ENOUGH FOR ALL THE USAGE. IT'S LIKE A IT'S LIKE A ROAD THAT OR, YOU KNOW, OR SOME OTHER FACILITY, A SIDEWALK THAT'S NOT WIDE ENOUGH.
IT'S A TRAIL THAT'S NOT WIDE ENOUGH, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TRY TO GET INTO THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S GOING ON, AND AGAIN, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE OFFICERS OUT COVERING THIS GIANT AREA THAT'S, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS IT, A THIRD OF THE SIZE OF RHODE ISLAND OR WHATEVER IT IS, I DON'T KNOW. E SIZE.
SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK ABOUT OTHER POLICE ACTIVITY, POLICE EFFORTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE IN OTHER PLACES AROUND THE COUNTRY, AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S SOME MOVEMENT GOING ON WHERE NOT ALL RESPONSES TO CALLS ARE MADE BY SOMEONE WHO LOOKS LIKE YOU WITH A BLUE UNIFORM AND A GUN, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE THERE.
[02:35:04]
SO, AND THAT WORKS REALLY WELL.I THINK IT'S KIND OF THE SOCIAL WORK KIND OF MODEL, YOU KNOW? SO I WAS JUST, YOU KNOW, THINKING THAT MAYBE IF WE HAD SOMETHING THAT WAS NOT THAT LEVEL OF TRAINING AND AUTHORITY WHERE THEY HAD, BUT THEY STILL HAD THE AUTHORITY TO, NUMBER ONE, ISSUE WARNINGS, NUMBER TWO, ISSUE CITATIONS.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT MAYBE WE COULD ABSORB.
WE COULD, WE COULD, WE COULD MAYBE CONVERT SOME POSITIONS INTO THOSE, GET MORE COVERAGE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT AS EXPENSIVE AS A REGULAR SWORN OFFICER, AND I KNOW, LIKE IN THE CITY OF WALNUT CREEK, THEY HAVE RANGERS THAT ARE IN THERE.
THEY THE RANGERS IN THE CITY OF WALNUT CREEK OPEN SPACE, HAVE A UNIFORM.
I'M NOT SURE IF THEY HAVE A WEAPON OR NOT, BUT THEY ISSUE CITATIONS AND I'VE SEEN I'VE ACTUALLY SEEN THEM DO IT, YOU KNOW, PAINTBALL STUFF GOING ON, YOU KNOW ALL THAT KIND OF THING. SO I'D LIKE TO PROPOSE THAT WE LOOK INTO SOMETHING LIKE THAT, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE CAN LEVERAGE, GET MORE LEVERAGE WITH THE MONEY THAT WE SPEND ON TARGETED, AND THIS MIGHT BE A TEAM THAT MOVES AROUND DIFFERENT PLACES AROUND THE DISTRICT ON THOSE EITHER IN SOMETHING LIKE BRIONI'S OR ON THOSE REGIONAL TRAILS THAT ARE PAVED WHERE THERE'S I'M SURE IT'S NOT JUST THE IRONHORSE TRAIL.
THERE'S IT'S IN OTHER PLACES, TOO, WHERE THERE'S JUST LIKE CRAZY, RECKLESS STUFF GOING ON, AND I'M IT'S JUST A IT'S JUST A MIRACLE THAT THERE HASN'T BEEN A SERIOUS INJURY THAT I'VE, THAT I'M AWARE OF.
MAYBE THERE HAS BEEN FOR THAT.
SO AND THEN THE LAST THING, MAYBE AS PART OF THAT OF THE EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH THAT WE MIGHT DO IN THESE AREAS IS THAT WE SURVEY THE, THE, THE TRAIL USERS AND GET THEM TO OFFER FEEDBACK AS TO WHAT THEY CONSIDER TO BE THE.
THE BIGGEST RISKS OUT THERE? WHAT DO THEY CONSIDER THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS AFFECTING THEIR USE OF THE TRAIL? SO THOSE ARE MY IDEAS.
IT'S A LOT TO CHEW ON. I KNOW, BUT I JUST AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WHEN I ESPECIALLY WHEN I'M DOWN THERE IN THE SAN RAMON VALLEY THAT I KEEP HEARING ABOUT THAT AND IT'S AND I SEE IT AND IT REALLY NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED.
ALL RIGHT. THANKS. DIRECTOR SANWONG.
I DO ALSO FOLLOW OUR EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT POLICE'S SOCIAL MEDIA, AND I DID SEE ACTUALLY RECENTLY THAT OUR HORSE UNIT WAS IN DANVILLE, I THINK WITHIN THE LAST TWO WEEKS.
SO ANY WAY WE CAN CONTINUE TO ELEVATE THAT MESSAGE? SO IT IS OUT THERE, BUT WHETHER OR NOT THE FOLKS THAT DIRECTOR MERCURIO IS TALKING TO ALAMO SEE THAT? I CAN'T COMMENT EITHER WAY, BUT WE DO HAVE PEOPLE OUT THERE, AND WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO BEST MAKE SURE THEY KNOW THAT, AND I THINK I CAN ALSO SHARE THAT I KNOW OF AT LEAST ONE SERIOUS INJURY THAT DID HAPPEN ON THE IRON HORSE TRAIL AND ON THE ALAMEDA COUNTY SIDE.
SO IT THERE IS SOME AND I DON'T KNOW IF IT EVEN GOT REPORTED TO US.
WE MAY NOT HAVE ALL OF THESE CASES INCLUDED IN OUR RECORDS.
I THINK THE OTHER IMPORTANT POINT HERE, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT WAYS TO ISSUE WARNINGS AND CITATIONS, YOU KNOW, IT WAS ONLY IN NOVEMBER THAT WE LOOKED AT THIS NEW WAS IT WE'RE CALLING IT A FINE SCHEDULE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE CITATIONS.
DO I HAVE THAT CORRECT THAT? YOU DO. YEAH. BECAUSE I KNOW YOU PRESENTED BOTH TO THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE AND THEN WE VOTED AS A BOARD I BELIEVE IS ON CONSENT.
OR IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED BY US AS A BOARD.
YES, AND SO RIGHT NOW THAT IS SITTING WITH OUR WITH PUBLIC SAFETY, BUT THERE IS THAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO REVISIT IT IN REGARDS TO PARK RANGERS OR OTHER STAFF POTENTIALLY.
AM I AM I CAPTURING THIS CORRECTLY? SO CURRENTLY AS IT AS IT'S CURRENTLY WRITTEN ADMIN CITATIONS ARE FOR SWORN STAFF TO ISSUE.
IT'S JUST ANOTHER OPTION BETWEEN ARREST TRAFFIC CITATION OR ADMINISTRATIVE CITATION, DEPENDING ON THE SEVERITY OF WHAT'S OCCURRING AND EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING.
[02:40:05]
YEP, YEP.OKAY, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT OUR VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL REAL QUICK.
I THINK THEY DO SUCH AMAZING WORK, AND I KNOW DIRECTOR WAESPI AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEND TIME WITH SOME OF OUR MEMBERS OF THE VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL AND THE PLEASANTON HOLIDAY PARADE BACK IN DECEMBER OF 2023, AND THEY WERE SO INTERESTING TO SPEND TIME WITH BECAUSE THEY SAID, OH, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD NEXT YEAR, WE SHOULD HAVE SIGNS ABOUT THE, YOU KNOW, MOST COMMON THINGS THAT WE SAY, AND THEY STARTED LISTING THAT AND THEY SAID WE SHOULD HAVE A SIGN THAT SAYS, YOU KNOW, PUT THAT DOG ON A LEASH AND THAT'S NOT REALLY A TRAIL, AND, YOU KNOW, PICK UP THAT PIECE OF GARBAGE BECAUSE THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT THEY SHARED WITH US, AT LEAST THE PEOPLE THAT WE WERE IN THE PARADE WITH OF THE MOST COMMON THINGS THAT THEY'RE SHARING AND THAT THEY'RE SAYING WHEN THEY'RE OUT ON PATROL IN OUR PARKS, AND I THOUGHT THAT WAS REALLY INTERESTING TO HEAR, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SHARE HERE IN THIS CONVERSATION AND JUST HOW IMPORTANT THE VOLUNTEER TRAIL SAFETY PATROL IS IN REGARDS TO THINKING ABOUT TRAIL SAFETY, AND THEN I THINK EARLIER I HAD MADE A COMMENT, YOU KNOW, I THINK ONE OF OUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES IS, YOU KNOW, WHILE WE ARE REALLY, YOU KNOW.
YET THERE IS A LOT OF PRIVATE PROPERTY AND OTHER JURISDICTIONS THAT COME UP ONTO OUR LAND, AND I KNOW I CITED A CASE, I KNOW OF A SERIOUS INCIDENT THAT HAPPENED ON A BIKE, NOT ON LAND THAT WE MANAGE, BUT NEAR DEL VALLE, AND, YOU KNOW, TO THE AVERAGE PERSON, THEY MIGHT NOT EVEN KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BECAUSE IT'S THAT CLOSE TO DEL VALLE PARK, AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK ABOUT THE HUMAN SAFETY ELEMENT AS WELL, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, WE DO, JUST AS HUMAN BEINGS HAVE A DUTY TO SHARE THAT, YOU KNOW, GOING INTO THIS PRIVATE PROPERTY, FIRST OF ALL, IT'S ILLEGAL.
SECOND OF ALL, YOU KNOW, MAY NOT ALWAYS BE SAFE, EVEN THOUGH OTHER PEOPLE APPEAR TO BE DOING IT, AND IT CAN RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY AND INJURY, AND I DON'T KNOW HOW WE MANAGE THAT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T NECESSARILY SPEND ALL OF OUR RESOURCES IN REGARDS TO THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OR OTHER JURISDICTIONAL PROPERTY THAT'S OUTSIDE WHAT WE'RE MANAGING.
PLUS, ALSO WHEN THERE IS A SERIOUS INJURY, WHEN THERE IS A SERIOUS INJURY ON LAND NEAR, LET'S SAY DEL VALLE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GOING TO LOOK TO US BECAUSE WE ARE THAT AGENCY THAT'S THERE THAT HAS STAFF THAT ARE STATIONED THERE.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE HOW WE MANAGE THAT.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT DOES EXIST, AND SO HOW THAT IS PART OF OUR COMMUNICATIONS, I'M NOT SURE.
JUST KIND OF COMING OUT ORGANICALLY IS WHAT I, WHAT I'D LIKE TO EMPOWER THE BOARD IS WHEN YOU ARE GETTING THESE CONCERNS FROM CONSTITUENTS, I REALLY WANT YOU TO PUSH THEM TOWARDS US AND PROVIDE THEM, AND WE CAN MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE INFORMATION ON HAND BUT PROVIDE THEM INFORMATION FOR DISPATCH.
WE CAN'T SOLVE AN ISSUE WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT.
THE SIMPLE FACT THAT AN INCIDENT GETS CREATED, THAT THERE'S A SPEEDING BICYCLIST ON BOLLINGER CANYON ROAD OR CROSSING BOLLINGER CANYON ROAD, THAT IS INFORMATION THAT THEN WE CAN TAKE AND DEVELOP A PLAN.
IF WE SEE THAT RISING TO THE TOP OF AN ISSUE, THAT WE CAN THEN LOOK AT AND SAY, OKAY, AT 12:00 LAST WEDNESDAY OR EVERY WEDNESDAY AT LUNCHTIME, WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE SPEEDING BICYCLISTS IN THIS AREA.
I CAN PUT AN OFFICER AT THAT SPOT AND MAKE AN IMPACT.
SO ANY HELP THAT YOU COULD GIVE US IN THAT WAY WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
OKAY. THIS IS HELPFUL. THANK YOU.
[02:45:01]
THANK YOU, DIRECTOR COFFEY.MY ONLY THOUGHT, CAPTAIN, IS I, TO ME, IT'S ALREADY ON ALL OF OUR RADAR THAT THERE ARE BIKES SPEEDING CONSTANTLY ON THE REGIONAL TRAILS.
IN MY CASE SAW THE MAJORITY COMPLAINTS I GET MOSTLY IN PERSON OUT THERE IN THE WORLD IS BICYCLES SPEEDING BY US ON THE BAY TRAIL.
IT'S IRON HORSE, TO ME IT'S THE BAY TRAIL.
THE SALIENT POINT I THINK WAS MADE IN THE BRIEF.
WE WERE PRESENTED FROM THE CHIEF, WHICH STARTS OFF WITH LIMITED STAFF ON A DAILY BASIS.
PUBLIC SAFETY PERSONNEL ARE RESPONDING TO THE IMMEDIATE EMERGENCY NEEDS AND SO FORTH.
YOU KNOW, AND IT'S HARD TO TALK ABOUT THIS BECAUSE THERE'S THIS SEVERE FEAR OF SOUNDING CRITICAL OF OUR POLICE FORCE WHEN, YOU KNOW, I'M A HUGE FANBOY OF OUR POLICE, AND AS YOU GUYS KNOW, THIS, AND OUR OFFICERS BUT YOU LOOK AT THE STATISTICS OF PUBLIC SAFETY ENCOUNTERS WITH BIKES THROUGHOUT 2023 OR 78 ENFORCEMENT ISSUES ENCOUNTERS, 145 BIKE INCIDENTS, THE, YOU KNOW, IN EACH AND EVERY CATEGORY OF PUBLIC SAFETY ENCOUNTERS INVOLVING BICYCLES, THESE NUMBERS ARE REALLY LITTLE AND REFLECTIVE OF THE IDEA, AND IT'S NOT JUST BICYCLES OR IN PARK MOUNTAIN BIKERS BEHAVING BADLY.
WE, YOU KNOW, HAVE THE PARKING LOT SMASHING WINDOWS ISSUES.
I MEAN, THEY'RE THESE ARE SOCIETAL ISSUES, AND I'M BECOMING MORE AND MORE AND MORE IN TUNE WITH THIS AS A FUNDAMENTAL ENFORCEMENT PROBLEM THAT THE PARK DISTRICT HAS.
AND I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS NEWLY APPOINTED TO THE BOARD IN 2017, AND I'M JUST REMEMBERING THIS BECAUSE NORMAN'S HERE, ONE OF MY, YOU KNOW, THE MEETING, THE REQUISITE MEETING WITH NORMAN AS A NEW BOARD MEMBER AND, AND HE SPENT THE ENTIRE SESSION WITH ME SAYING, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT YOUR INTENT, YOUR DESIRES, YOUR RULES AND ALL THAT.
IT'S YOU FOLKS HAVE A SEVERE PROBLEM ENFORCING THEM, AND I JUST, I, YOU KNOW, I JUST REMEMBER THAT CONVERSATION WHEN I WAS FIRST APPOINTED TO THE BOARD, AND, YOU KNOW, SO IT'S BECOMING MORE AND MORE CLEAR THAT IS AN ISSUE.
SO I'M JUST ECHOING DIRECTOR MERCURIO IN SAYING THIS IS A GROWING PROBLEM, BOTH IN THE PARKS AND ON THE REGIONAL TRAILS BECAUSE OF ESPECIALLY POST COVID, THE VOLUMES OF USERS WE HAVE, BE IT BICYCLES PEOPLE OR JUST EVERYONE.
SO, WE'RE HAVE INCREASED VOLUMES.
WE'RE CONSTANTLY OUR WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING SINCE COVID IS CONSTANTLY BALANCING EVERYTHING WE DO BY HOW WE'RE DEALING WITH THESE VOLUME ISSUES.
SO ONE FACET OF THAT IS ENFORCEMENT.
IT'S A PROBLEM, AND WHAT DIRECTOR MERCURIO AND I THINK DIRECTOR SANWONG WERE TRYING TO ARTICULATE IS WE NEED SOME LAYER OF ENFORCEMENT THAT IS BETWEEN A PARK RANGER AND A, YOU KNOW, A SWORN OFFICER IN MY VIEW. I RAISED THIS IN LIGHT OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE CITATIONS CHART THAT WE GOT AND THE CHANGES THAT WERE MADE TO IT SUBSEQUENT TO THE FACT THAT THIS DISTRICT, ALONG WITH MID-PENINSULA, ENACTED A STATUTE THROUGH THE STATE LEGISLATURE ENABLING US TO ISSUE CITATIONS FOR NUISANCE.
INSTEAD OF HAVING TO SUE PEOPLE, ALL OF A SUDDEN, WE HAD THE ABILITY TO WRITE CITATIONS, AND I ASKED COUNCIL JASON DOES THAT INCLUDE BICYCLISTS DESTROYING HABITAT, AND HE SAID ABSOLUTELY, AND SO, YEAH, I HAVE THIS WONDERFUL IDEA.
WE SHOULD HAVE A FORCE OF HABITAT SECURITY PEOPLE.
LET'S HAVE A LET'S HAVE, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WHO ARE ABLE TO WRITE CITATION.
I DON'T KNOW WHETHER THEY CAN WRITE SPEEDING TICKETS, BUT IF THEY COULD, THAT WOULD BE PERFECT.
AGM GOORJIAN SAID, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A PROBLEM WITH THAT.
[02:50:01]
ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL, SECURITY PERSONNEL BETWEEN A POLICE OFFICER AND MAYBE JUST, YOU KNOW, A PARK RANGER WHO DOESN'T HAVE THAT TRAINING.THERE IS SUBSTANTIAL TRAINING INVOLVED BECAUSE WHEN YOU WRITE A TICKET TO A SPEEDING, BUT THAT PERSON COULD BECOME HOSTILE, AND I GET THAT, BUT I ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT WE HAVE THIS NEW TOOL WITH BEING ABLE TO USE NUISANCE, AND WE DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO HAVE SWORN POLICE OFFICERS.
I USED THIS EXAMPLE BEFORE PATROLLING OLD BRIONES ROAD, THE CREST AND BRIONES, WHERE THE BICYCLISTS LIKE TO JUST CREATE TRAILS GOING OFF OF THAT ROAD. WE DON'T, YOU KNOW, SO SOME COMBINATION, IF WE CAN FIGURE IT OUT, HOW IT'S DONE AND WHAT THE BUDGET IMPLICATIONS, WHAT THE POTENTIAL FUNDING IS, THEREFORE, TO CREATE A HABITAT SECURITY FOR US, OR, YOU KNOW, EQUIVALENT OF WHAT THE CITIES WHO HAVE SPECIAL OFFICERS WHO JUST WRITE PARKING CITATIONS AND THERE ARE THESE MODELS OUT THERE, AND I THINK WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT THEM AND FIGURING OUT HOW WE DO THAT.
IN LIGHT OF THE INCREASE IN VOLUMES AND THE DIFFICULTIES WITH ENFORCING AND ESPECIALLY IN PARK WITH PRESERVATION OF HABITAT AND ON THE REGIONAL TRAILS, THE, THE VOLUME OF COMPLAINTS WE GET.
I JUST WE SHOULD AT LEAST FIGURE SOMETHING OUT, AND THAT WAS PART OF WHAT I WAS SUGGESTING TO SEAN AS HE COMES BACK AT US WITH RESULTS FROM THE BRIONES TEST PILOT IS THINK ABOUT ENFORCEMENT AND LET'S TRY TO BE INNOVATIVE ABOUT IT, EITHER WITH THE TYPE OF SECURITY PEOPLE WE CAN TRAIN AND ENGAGE, AND I EVEN HEAR OF AGENCIES PATROLLING PARKS WITH DRONES, YOU KNOW, SO THERE'S WAYS TO DO THIS AND MODELS OUT THERE, AND I'D REALLY LIKE US TO WORK AND I THINK I'M JUST ECHOING WHAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE BEEN SAYING.
THANK YOU, AND WHAT YOU FOLKS DO IS WITH THE RESOURCE, IT'S JUST FANTASTIC WORK YOU DO, AND WHEN I'M OUT THERE, I JUST HEAR NOTHING BUT PRAISE FOR OUR POLICE FORCE AMONG OUR CONSTITUENTS AND OUR MAJOR USERS.
YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK THEY EXPECT THERE TO BE POLICE JUST OUT PATROLLING THE RAILS ALL THE TIME, BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES, I THINK, A TO LOOK AT INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES TO PURSUE.
YES, SIR. APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION IMMENSELY.
THANK YOU. THANKS, JOE, FOR THE REPORT, AND THANKS FOR ALL THE STATS.
I AM KIND OF LOST AND CONFUSED NOW WITH ALL THESE GREAT COMMENTS.
SO I GUESS THE THING THAT REALLY MATTERS TO ME OR I'M CONCERNED WITH IS.
ARE THERE STATISTICS? HAVE THERE BEEN ANY? HOW MANY BIKE ACCIDENTS DID WE HAVE IN THE PARK DISTRICT? AND I KNOW THAT'S BIKE VERSUS BIKE, BIKE VERSUS PEDESTRIAN, BUT I KNOW YOU HAVE ALL THE STATS.
IS THAT AN IMPORTANT STAT? WELL, OKAY.
SO, IN 2023, WE RECORDED 39 BICYCLE ACCIDENTS, BOTH E-BIKE AND REGULAR BICYCLE.
THERE WERE A HANDFUL OF SERIOUS INJURIES THAT OCCURRED THERE.
FROM THIS IS JUST OFF MY RECOLLECTION.
THERE WERE CASES OF BIKE VERSUS BIKE AND BIKE VERSUS PEDESTRIAN.
I DON'T HAVE THAT BREAKDOWN FOR YOU, BUT OVERALL, IT IS A EITHER A BICYCLIST ON A ON A TRAIL THAT'S MAYBE OVER THEIR HEAD SKILL WISE, OR A GOING OFF OF THE IRON HORSE TRAIL ONTO A DEFECT ONTO THE SIDE OR TREE ROOT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
MAYBE NOT WEARING APPROPRIATE PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT, BUT THAT IS THE SCOPE OF WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
OR IN POSSIBLY TAKING OFF ON A BOOTLEG TRAIL THAT WASN'T BUILT TO STANDARD AND IS A LIABILITY TO US.
SO I GUESS, AND I'M FOLLOWING UP, I KIND OF KNEW THE ANSWERS HERE, BUT I'M FOLLOWING UP.
SO DID ANYBODY SUE ANYBODY THAT RAN INTO HIM ON A BIKE? DID ANY BIKE? DID ANY PEDESTRIAN THAT GOT HIT BY A BIKE SUE US? HAVE WE HAD ANY CLAIMS IN THE PARK DISTRICT SAYING, HEY, I TOOK OFF ON ONE OF YOUR TRAILS AND I BROKE MY NECK, ARE YOU GOING TO PAY FOR IT? DID WE HAVE ANY CASES LIKE THAT IN THE LAST 2 OR 3 YEARS? WELL, I'M AWARE OF AT LEAST ONE CLAIM IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS WHERE A BICYCLE HIT LIKE A PARKING BUMPER STRIP, AND THEY TOOK THAT TO SMALL CLAIMS COURT, AND THE PARK DISTRICT PREVAILED.
THERE'S A LOT OF IMMUNITIES FOR TRIALS AND FOR TRIAL BEHAVIOR.
THE POLICE HAVE DISCRETION AS TO WHETHER TO ENFORCE OR NOT REQUIRED TO ENFORCE ORDINANCE 38.
[02:55:03]
THEY CAN ONLY BE WHERE THEY CAN BE.NO WE DON'T WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF INSTANCES WHERE PEOPLE ARE SUING US OVER THIS TYPE OF.
MY OPINION CHANGES WITH THAT BECAUSE I HAVE THE SAME OPINIONS THAT EVERYBODY ELSE DOES.
I HIKE EVERY DAY IN THE PARKS AND I GO, JIMINY CHRISTMAS, LOOK AT THAT GUY ZOOMING DOWN THE HILL AT ME, AND THEN I GO, WAIT A MINUTE, I'M GOING UPHILL AT ONE MILE AN HOUR, TRUDGING, BREATHING HARD.
HE'S COMING DOWN AT 13 MILES AN HOUR.
IT LOOKS LIKE 70 WHEN THEY'RE COMING DOWN AT YOU, BUT IT'S NOT.
I'M GETTING PERCEPTIONS IF NO ONE'S GETTING HURT.
I GUESS THE I'M REALLY CONCERNED WITH PEOPLE THAT, AND I KNOW THIS IS THE WAY EXTREME, BUT THAT DUDE THAT WAS OUT THERE IN ANTHONY CHABOT CUTTING DOWN TREES AND CREATING A TRAIL AND WAS OBSERVED FOR A LONG, LONG TIME, AND THEN IT WAS A BIG DEAL THAT WE ARRESTED HIM.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT GUY? SO THAT'S A CHALLENGE OF WHEN WE LOOK AT THE SPECIFIC ENFORCEMENT THAT IS IMPORTANT TO US AS A DISTRICT CONVEYING THAT TO EITHER DISTRICT ATTORNEY TO CONVEY CHARGES FOR WHATEVER THAT IS, IS A IS HARD.
THERE'S QUITE A LOT OF CHANGE THAT'S GOING ON IN LAW ENFORCEMENT, PUBLIC SAFETY AND OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM, AND THERE'S ONLY SO MANY RESOURCES THAT GO AROUND. OUR OFFICERS, AND ESPECIALLY OUR DETECTIVES, DO AN AMAZING JOB OF TRYING TO CONVEY THE IMPORTANCE AND HOW MUCH OF AN OUTLIER FOR THAT SPECIFIC INCIDENT THAT GENTLEMAN WAS AND THE DAMAGE THE GENERATIONAL DAMAGE THAT WAS CAUSED BASED ON HIS ACTIONS OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, I DON'T KNOW WHERE THAT CASE CURRENTLY SITS, BUT I COULD GET YOU THAT INFORMATION.
I'D LOVE TO HEAR THAT INFORMATION, BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S KEY TO EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING AROUND HERE.
I CAN TELL YOU THE POLICE DEPARTMENT SPENT QUITE A LOT OF TIME, A LOT OF RESOURCES.
WE, I BELIEVE, SPOKE WITH SEAN SPEAKING ABOUT OR PARK STAFF, AT THE VERY LEAST SPEAKING ABOUT WHAT IT'S GOING TO TAKE TO RESTORE THAT AREA AND HOW MUCH MONEY AND HOW MUCH TIME AND HOW MUCH EFFORT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PUT FORTH TO GET THAT SPOT BACK TO THE WAY IT WAS BEFORE HE MADE A DECISION TO SCAR THE LANDSCAPE IN THAT WAY.
SO, A LOT OF PERSON POWER WAS SPENT ON THAT CASE SPECIFICALLY.
I'D DEFINITELY LIKE TO HEAR THE OUTCOME, AND I'M SURE WE CAN FIND THAT OUT.
RIGHT. BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT, AND THEN JUST COMING AWAY WITH IT, I THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT ENFORCEMENT AND I SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT, BUT IF WE'RE ONLY OF THE 30.
THREE CITATIONS LAST YEAR, 32 OF THEM WERE IN OR NO.
23 CITATIONS LAST YEAR, 22 OF THEM WERE IN THE PILOT PROGRAM.
ONLY ONE IN THE REST OF THE DISTRICT.
IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU GUYS.
I KNOW IT'S TOO BIG, BUT I ALSO THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, AND EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT HIKES THAT I WOULD BET 90% OF THE ACTIVITY THAT OCCURS ON TRAILS OCCURS WITHIN ONE MILE OF EVERY TRAILHEAD AND 1300 MILES.
THERE'S NO NEED TO GO OUT AND ON BRIONES CREST TRAIL, BUT, YOU KNOW, COMING OUT OF LAKE CHABOT TO THE NIKE SITE FOR THAT FIRST HALF MILE AND THE TEN HILLS AND WHERE IT'S TONS OF ACTIVITY AND THE POTENTIAL OF PEOPLE GETTING HURT AND THE POTENTIAL OF SOME BOOTLEG TRAILS IN THAT AREA, I THINK IT'S I THINK IT'S I THINK IT'S JUST COMMON SENSE, AND WE TALKED ABOUT PEOPLE'S FEELINGS ABOUT THINGS.
TO HAVE A POLICE OFFICER DRESSED LIKE YOU'RE DRESSED IN A NICE BLACK AND WHITE, DRIVING DOWN THE I LOVE IT WHEN I USED TO SOME, I FORGET WHO I'M NOT GOING TO SAY WHO IT WAS, BUT WOULD DRIVE DOWN THE TEN HILLS TRAIL.
THE DOG ATE IT. YOU KNOW, THE FEAR AND TREPIDATION OR THE.
COMPLIANCE. THAT WAS SORT OF IMPLIED.
I THINK THAT JUST DRIVING BY IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
ARE OUR FOLKS CSOS, I APOLOGIZE, I'M SORRY.
THE PEOPLE THAT DRIVE IN THE WHITE TRUCKS CSOS.
I KNOW THERE'S PROBABLY A BETTER NAME.
HOW MANY OF THOSE FOLKS DO WE HAVE.
GREAT. BECAUSE I AGREE WITH COLIN.
[03:00:02]
SPEED RACING TRACK FOR ANYBODY THAT'S SPEED RACING DOWN THAT HILL, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT MIGHT BE WORTHWHILE JUST TO GET THAT WORD OUT THERE AND GET ONE CITATION OUT THERE SPEAKS VOLUMES.I THINK, SIR, YOUR POINT IS WELL TAKEN, AND STATISTICS GIVE YOU A BASIC LEVEL OF FACTS, BUT THE PERCEPTION OR THE PERSPECTIVE THAT YOU PUT ON THOSE STATISTICS DO MATTER, AND THAT'S I SEE PART OF MY ROLE IN THIS, AND WHEN I LOOK AT THOSE ENFORCEMENT STATISTICS FOR BICYCLE CITATIONS, WHAT I SEE IS WHEN YOU GIVE US A DEFINED GOAL AND WE IMPLEMENT OUR TRIANGLE, RIGHT, WE GET EVERY ASPECT OF THE DISTRICT INVOLVED IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THAT SPECIFIC, FOCUSED LOCATION.
I CAN GIVE YOU RESULTS THAT YOU WANT.
IT IS WHEN THE AREA IS ILL DEFINED.
THANK YOU. DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING OTHER? YES. THANK YOU.
ARE THERE ANY PARTICULAR PARTS OR PARKS IN THE DISTRICT THAT HAVE MORE OF THESE ISSUES TO DEAL WITH? ANY PARTICULAR PARKS AREA.
IF YOU SEE AN INCREASE OR IF YOU KNOW OF A PARK THAT HAS AN ELEVATED LEVEL OF MULTI USE, YOU'RE GOING TO SEE TRAIL CONFLICT, AND CONFLICT MAYBE IS TOO STRONG OF A WORD. WE'RE NOT ACTUALLY SEEING FISTICUFF CONFLICT.
SO TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION BRIONES, TILDEN, PLEASANTON, RIDGE, LAKE CHABOT ALL OF OUR REGIONAL TRAILS ARE NOT ONLY USED FOR RECREATION, BUT ALSO, WE SEE DRAMATIC INCREASES AT COMMUTE TIME IN THE MORNING, LUNCHTIME AND COMMUTE TIME AT NIGHT.
OUR TRAIL, OUR REGIONAL TRAILS ARE BEING UTILIZED AS THEY'RE INTENDED TO KEEP PEOPLE OFF OF ROADWAYS, DRIVING VEHICLES, BUT THAT INCREASED USAGE HAS PROBLEMS THAT BECOME ASSOCIATED WITH IT.
SOMEBODY WHO'S USED TO A LEISURELY STROLL AT 1130 ON THE IRON HORSE TRAIL MAY AT SOME POINT FOR 15 MINUTES GET 15 OR 16 BICYCLES THAT ARE TRYING TO GET TO LUNCH AND THEN BACK TO WHERE THEY WORK.
SO. ANYWHERE THAT AND ALL OF YOU KNOW, THE PARK DISTRICT IS AS WELL AS I DO.
YOU I THINK YOU ALL KNOW WHERE THE HIGH LEVEL OF, OF BIKE USAGE IS, AND THAT'S ALSO CHANGED SOMEWHAT BY WHAT WE'VE CREATED OR THE WORK THAT SEAN'S, SEAN IS CURRENTLY ENGAGED IN.
SOME OF THAT HAS MOVED NORTH TO CROCKETT HILLS BECAUSE OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THAT PROJECT THERE FOR BICYCLE SPECIFICALLY, BUT THAT'S THE GENERAL GIST.
SO, IS THAT IS THAT THE FACT IT PLACES WHERE THERE'S MORE OF THOSE ISSUES? YOU GET MORE AND MORE ISSUES, PROBLEM ISSUES WITH BIKE USERS.
PARTICULAR DISTRICTS ARE MUCH, MUCH WORSE.
WHAT I FOUND IN MY EXPERIENCE IS THAT EACH INDIVIDUAL PARK USER IS VERY CONNECTED TO THE PARK THAT THEY USE AND THE WAY IN WHICH THEY USE IT, AND IT'S VERY NEAR AND DEAR TO THEM, AND IF THAT STARTS TO CHANGE, YOU GET A VERY STRONG, SOMETIMES EMOTIONAL REACTION TO THAT PERCEIVED CHANGE.
YEAH, AND I THINK YOU CAN TELL THAT SOME PARKS ARE USED MORE BY THESE KIND OF RACING BIKES JUST BECAUSE OF THE WAY THEY, YOU KNOW, THE WAY THE ACTUAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE LAND IS IN THOSE PLACES, AND SOME ARE MUCH HARDER THAN OTHERS.
OKAY. I THINK DIRECTOR MERCURIO HAD ONE LAST THING.
YES, ONE. ONE THING THAT OCCURRED TO ME HERE, AND THAT IS KEEP IN MIND, WE SHOULD KEEP IN MIND THAT JUST BECAUSE SOMEBODY ISN'T HIT BY A BICYCLE DOESN'T MEAN THAT DAMAGE HASN'T BEEN DONE.
I MEAN, I WE CAN ALL DO ANECDOTAL REPORTS HERE.
SOMEBODY WENT BY ME, NO CALL OUT, NO BELL AND BRUSHED MY SHOULDER, GOING AT LEAST 15 MILES AN HOUR.
IT'S LIKE, AND I PROBABLY SAID SOMETHING THAT I WOULDN'T TELL MY MOTHER, BUT ANYWAY IT WAS BECAUSE IT WAS SO OUTRAGEOUS, YOU KNOW? SO KEEP IN MIND THAT WE MAY PEOPLE MAY GIVE UP ON OUR REGIONAL TRAILS.
[03:05:05]
I'M GOING TO FOCUS ON THOSE IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, BECAUSE THEY KEEP HAVING THESE INCIDENTS OF THESE THINGS HAPPENING.THEY DON'T DO ANY ENFORCEMENT THERE.
I DON'T GO THERE ANYMORE BECAUSE IT'S ALL OVERRUN BY BIKES, AND THEY DON'T THEY DON'T.
I DON'T GO THERE ANYMORE, AND I DON'T WANT THAT HAPPENING TO THE IRONHORSE TRAIL, ALTHOUGH SEEMINGLY THAT WOULD SOLVE THE CONGESTION PROBLEM, BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO.
I'LL JUST ASK YOU RIGHT NOW, PLEASE DO SOMETHING ON THE IRONHORSE TRAIL BETWEEN DANVILLE AND ALAMO.
WELL, THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH, CAPTAIN, FOR THE PRESENTATION AND FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK.
I I'M HEARING YOU LOUD AND CLEAR, JUST IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, THE BREADTH OF THE TERRITORY THAT YOU ALL POLICE, AND YOU DO HAVE A SHORT A SMALL, A RELATIVELY SMALL STAFF, AND I REALLY DO APPRECIATE YOUR, YOUR EFFORTS AND ALSO YOUR, YOUR WILLINGNESS TO, TO BE HERE AND PRESENT AND HEAR WHAT ALL WE HAVE TO SAY, AND, AND SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, I THINK MY TWO BIG THINGS, ONE IS REALLY THE NEED TO PRIORITIZE, WHICH YOU'VE SAID AND OTHER BOARD MEMBERS HAVE SAID, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY YOU CAN'T COVER EVERYTHING, AND, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY THE AS OTHERS HAVE SAID, THE BRIONES PILOT PROJECT THIS YEAR WAS OR AND IS A PRIORITY, AND SO THAT IS APPROPRIATE THAT WE SEE THAT LEVEL OF CITATIONS AND OUT THERE AND, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER THING REALLY IS I APPRECIATE YOUR ASKING US FOR INFORMATION BECAUSE YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT THAT IF AND IF YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE IT ON YOUR RADAR, HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY DEAL WITH IT? SO I YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT WE SHOULD, IF ESPECIALLY FOR SPECIFIC THINGS THAT WE HEAR ABOUT OR THINGS THAT HAPPEN REGULARLY, OR IF THERE'S ONE PERSON THAT WE SEE OR WHATEVER, OR SOMEONE'S COMPLAINING, I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE DO NEED TO RELAY THAT INFORMATION TO YOU BECAUSE PEOPLE MIGHT TALK TO US, THEY MIGHT NOT TALK TO YOU.
SO IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU, YOU GET THAT INFORMATION.
I MEAN, I REALIZE THE GENERAL STUFF LIKE, OH, A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE SPEEDING.
IT'S NOT GOING TO BE VERY HELPFUL, BUT IF THERE'S, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S OTHER STUFF THAT IS HELPFUL, WE DEFINITELY SHOULD AND CERTAINLY I WILL RELAY IT TO YOU IF I HEAR ABOUT IT, BUT WITH THAT, I JUST, YOU KNOW, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR WORK AND YOUR PRESENTATION AND IT'S VERY, VERY INFORMATIVE.
THEY WEREN'T BEGGING TO BE AT A BOARD WORKSHOP, AND THEY AND I, BUT I THINK THIS FORMAT WAS REALLY GOOD TO HEAR THIS DISCUSSION AND HOW IT RELATES TO THE TRAILS WORLD, AND I KNOW IT'S PROBABLY TIME FOR IT'S TIME FOR PUBLIC COMMENT, AND THAT'S ALL WE HAVE TO PRESENT TODAY, BUT I AND SO I'M JUST GOING TO SNEAK OVER HERE AND THAT'S ALL THREE MAJOR TOPICS, THAT'S ALL, BUT WE DO HAVE A PUBLIC COMMENT, AND MR. LAFORCE HAS BEEN WAITING PATIENTLY AS WELL.
SO, I WOULD HOPE TO BE ABLE TO PUT SOME THOUGHTS TOGETHER IN WRITING AND GET THEM TO THE BOARD.
I TOO APPRECIATE ALL THE INFORMATION.
THIS HAS BEEN VERY INFORMATIVE, AND I THANK THE, THE STAFF IN PARTICULAR FOR PUTTING THIS TOGETHER.
IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT SUBJECT AND ISSUE, AND WE LAID OUT THE REAL DIFFICULTIES IN, IN PROBLEMS THAT YOU HAVE WITH ANY PUBLIC AGENCY WITH ESSENTIALLY LIMITED RESOURCES TO DEAL WITH ALL THE PROBLEMS AND ISSUES THAT THEY HAVE.
FIRST I APPRECIATE DIRECTOR COFFEY'S COMMENTS ABOUT HAVING A RIGOROUS AND FULL ANALYSIS OF ALTERNATIVES FOR THE WILDCAT FLOW TRAIL PROPOSAL, AND I THINK THAT WHILE I APPRECIATE WHAT THE STAFF HAS SAID, I THINK THE PUBLIC NEEDS TO KNOW WHERE THIS DOCUMENTATION IS THAT SHOWS THAT IT'S COMPARING APPLES TO ORANGES, OR THAT THEY DID AN ANALYSIS THAT LED THEM TO FEEL THAT THE WILDCAT LOCATION WAS THE BETTER LOCATION.
[03:10:06]
I'VE NOT SEEN ANY OF THAT DOCUMENTATION AS TO HOW THAT ANALYSIS WAS DONE, WHAT THE DATA IS AND WHY THE CONCLUSION WAS REACHED THE WAY IT WAS. I THINK THAT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR TRANSPARENCY TO HAVE THAT INFORMATION AVAILABLE, AND I THINK THE BOARD MEMBERS HAVE IDENTIFIED THAT I REALLY THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE A LAND USE PLAN AMENDMENT DONE FOR THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT.IT'S A RECREATIONAL PROPOSAL, RECREATIONAL UNIT PROPOSAL THAT FALLS UNDER THE CLASSIFICATION THAT REQUIRES A LUPA, AND FINALLY, WITH REGARD TO THIS, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THERE WAS REFERENCE TO A DONOR DONATING MONEY FOR THIS.
I'VE YET TO SEE OR ANY DOCUMENTATION THAT IDENTIFIES WHO THIS DONOR OR DONORS ARE.
SO, I WOULD HOPE THAT WE WOULD GET SOME INFORMATION AS TO WHO THE DONOR OR DONORS ARE.
WITH REGARD TO OTHER ISSUES, I THINK THERE TO ME, THERE WAS A I THINK THERE NEEDS TO BE FURTHER AND MORE AND DEEPER EVALUATION OF THE IMPACT OF ROGUE TRAILS AND HOW THEY GET HOW WE CAN SOMEHOW DEAL WITH THEM.
AS PART OF THIS ISSUE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRAILS.
I KNOW I'VE HEARD FROM MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE SAID THAT THE HIKING TRAILS IN THE BRIONES AREA ARE VERY IN VERY POOR CONDITION AND CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS. THESE ARE THE HIKING TRAILS, AND SO THAT NEEDS TO BE.
I HOPE I CAN JUST SAY A FEW MORE COMMENTS IF THAT'S OKAY.
SO, THEY'RE THE VAST MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WHO USE BRIONES.
YOU ARE CLEARLY LIKE EVERY PUBLIC AGENCY, AN AGENCY WITH LIMITED FUNDING.
I KNOW WHAT THAT'S LIKE, AND I THINK THERE NEEDS TO BE A METHODOLOGY FOR HOW YOU'RE GOING TO ALLOCATE YOUR LIMITED RESOURCES AMONG THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF USERS.
YOU KNOW, IF 90% OF THE USERS ARE HIKERS OR PEDESTRIANS, THEN ONE COULD REASONABLY ARGUE THAT 90% OF YOUR FUNDING ON TRAILS SHOULD GO TO PROMOTING OR PRESERVING PROTECTING HIKER USE.
WHILE 8% AGAIN USING THE BRIONES STATISTICS ARE FOR BIKES, THEN MAYBE ONLY 8% OF THE FUNDING FOR EITHER FOR CREATION OF TRAILS OR MAINTENANCE OF TRAILS GOES FOR THAT PARTICULAR USE.
THAT'S ALL I'M POINTING OUT HERE TODAY, BUT I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME WAY OF HOW YOU'RE GOING TO BE ALLOCATING YOUR LIMITED RESOURCES IN A WAY THAT'S FAIR AND EQUITABLE TO THE ACTUAL USER GROUPS THAT USE THE TRAILS, AND FINALLY AND I'LL JUST SAY ON THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, FROM I REMEMBER FROM THE NOVEMBER, I THINK IT WAS THE EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING THERE WAS THE STAFF REPORTED THAT THE COST FOR THE MAINTENANCE OF THE WILDCAT TRAIL WAS GOING TO BE FLOW TRAIL WAS GOING TO BE LIKE $300,000.
THERE WAS A NUMBER THROWN OUT WHERE THE STAFF BASICALLY SAID, WE DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY.
I'LL HAVE TO GO BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WAS SAID AT THE MEETING.
THAT RAISES A LOT OF ISSUES AGAIN, AS TO PRIORITIES AND ALLOCATION OF USES.
FINALLY, WITH REGARD TO THE ENFORCEMENT ISSUE.
YEAH, THIS IS A BIG THIS IS ALWAYS A PROBLEM.
I APPRECIATE ALL THE COMMENTS FROM THE FROM THE BOARD ON THAT, AND THEY'VE HIT THE I THINK THE NAIL ON THE HEAD THERE, PARTICULARLY DIRECTOR AGAIN, DIRECTOR COFFEY SUGGESTING WE HAVE TO LOOK AT OTHER WAYS TO DEAL WITH THESE, HOW WE DEAL WITH ENFORCEMENT.
OF THE 21,473 INCIDENCES WERE OR TYPES OF, YOU KNOW, OCCURRENCES THAT SO WE GET SOME PERSPECTIVE AS TO WHAT REALLY IS AT HEART GOING ON IN TERMS OF ENFORCEMENT AND COMPARE IT TO WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE BICYCLE USAGE AND THOSE ISSUES.
I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT. THERE'S A LOT HERE TO GO OVER, BUT I THINK I'VE SPOKEN ENOUGH.
[03:15:03]
THANK YOU. THANK YOU.WE HAVE ONE MORE SPEAKER IN THE ROOM, AND THEN WE HAVE SCOTT BARLOW IN THE ZOOM ROOM.
KELLY, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES, SIR.
QUICK COMMENT ON THE PUBLIC SAFETY AT YEAH, I'D SUGGEST ALIGNING WHAT YOU'RE DOING OR WHAT THE SIGNS YOU PUT UP WITH THE EVENTS, PUBLIC SAFETY EVENTS THAT YOU'RE SEEING.
FOR EXAMPLE, AT MISSION PEAK, EVERYONE KNOWS THAT EVERY WEEK OR ROUGHLY ON AVERAGE, ONCE A WEEK, YOU GET SOME MEDICAL EVENT, HEAT RELATED HEAT STROKE, WHATEVER, AND THE LAST SIGN I SAW, BEAUTIFUL NEW SIGN.
THIS IS A CREATIVITY OF THE PARK DISTRICT.
SOMETHING ABOUT POISONOUS MUSHROOMS. YOU KNOW, MAYBE, WELL IT MAY, THEY'RE DANGEROUS, I AGREE, AND I LOVE MUSHROOMS. THIS IF YOU LOOK AT THIS MAP WITH TRAIL DEVELOPMENT, TRAILS PROGRAM AND THERE'S 1920 DOTS ON HERE, AND IF YOU DRAW A LINE DOWN THE MIDDLE OF IT AND YOU LOOK AT THE RIGHT-HAND VERTICAL LINE, YOU LOOK AT THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE OF THE VERTICAL LINE.
YOU SEE VERY FEW DOTS OUT THERE, AND I JUST WANT TO HEAD OFF THIS AND EXPLAIN WHY THERE'S A FEWER NUMBER OF DOTS ON THE EAST SIDE IS ACTUALLY JUSTIFIABLE.
MAYBE THIS IS THE RIGHT WAY TO DO TRAILS DEVELOPMENT, BECAUSE IF YOU LOOK AT THIS MAP, THIS POPULATION DENSITY MAP AND IT SHOWS FEWER PEOPLE OUT THERE.
SO A LOT FEWER SHOWS A LOT OF PEOPLE ON THE LEFT, FEWER PEOPLE ON THE RIGHT.
SO MAYBE THERE SHOULD BE A LOT OF DOTS IN OAKLAND OR WHEREVER, AND THEN ANOTHER THING ABOUT THIS PATTERN IS YOU GET THIS NEW STANDARD PATTERN OF LAND DEVELOPMENT WHERE YOU PEOPLE PUT URBAN, URBAN LIMITS, URBAN, WHATEVER BOUNDARIES, AND YOU GET SO THE SUBURBS WERE BEING BUILT OUT AND THEN SUPPOSEDLY NOW WE'RE GOING TO STOP AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE LAST ROW OF HOUSES OUT THERE AND THE THERE'S GOING TO BE A NATURAL CONFLICT, A NATURAL DIVERGENCE, A NATURAL DIVERGENCE OF INTERESTS WHERE THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE LAST ROW OF HOUSES WANT TO KEEP THAT EMPTY.
THEY DON'T WANT ANYTHING GOING ON OUT THERE.
THEY DON'T WANT THESE HIKERS OR BIKERS OR DOGS OR ANYTHING TO BE WALKING UP AND DOWN, WHATEVER.
THEY WANT IT ALL EMPTY AND BEAUTIFUL VISTAS.
WHEREAS AGENCIES LIKE THIS LIKE TO BUY THE LAND THEN MAYBE MAKE A PUBLIC TRAIL OUT OF IT WHICH IS A DIFFERENT INTEREST WHERE YOU HAVE DO THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT URBAN ZONE, SHOULD THEY BE ABLE TO GO OUT AND VISIT PARKS? OR ARE THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE ON THE LAST OUTER RING? SHOULD THEY BE GIVEN PREFERENCE AND PRIORITY, AND ALLOWED TO KEEP EVERYTHING EMPTY FOR THE MAJESTIC GLORY OF THEIR VISTAS? THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
ALL RIGHT. WELL, I THINK UNLESS THERE'S SOMETHING.
I APOLOGIZE, I'M GOING TO HAVE TO MOVE IN THE ZOOM ROOM TO.
I CAN'T SEE THE ZOOM ROOM, SO EXCUSE ME IF THAT'S OKAY.
DON'T WANT TO CUT ANYBODY OFF.
JUST GIVING HIM A FEW MINUTES TO GET OVER.
SCOTT, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, I CAN HEAR YOU.
OKAY, SO YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
BOARD AND STAFF, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE COMMENT TODAY.
SCOTT BARTLEBAUGH, BICYCLE TRAILS COUNCIL OF THE EAST BAY.
THANK YOU FOR ALL THE TIME YOU SPENT TODAY.
YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO START YOUR VIDEO NOW.
I'D LIKE TO RESPOND TO A FEW OF THE THINGS THAT I HEARD TODAY.
I THINK CAPTAIN KOCHER HAD THE, HE CALLED IT THE TRIANGLE OF ENFORCEMENT, AND ONE OF THE LEGS OF THE TRIANGLE HAD TO DO WITH EQUITABLE ACCESS. I HEARD THE BOARD MEMBERS, MANY OF THE BOARD MEMBERS DWELLING ON THE ENFORCEMENT PART OF THE TRIANGLE, BUT
[03:20:06]
I DID NOT HEAR ANYBODY TALK ABOUT THE LACK OF EQUITABLE ACCESS AND THE IMPACT THAT IT HAS ON THE SITUATIONS.THAT IS A SIGNIFICANT LEG OF THE TRIANGLE, AND IT DRIVES A LOT OF THE BEHAVIOR.
I THINK THE BROWNIES PILOT IS, IS SOME EVIDENCE TO THAT THEORY WITH PROVIDING ACCESS THERE, ALTHOUGH IT'S TEMPORARY. THAT HAS SEEN CHANGES IN BEHAVIOR.
SO, I URGE YOU TO CONSIDER THAT PART OF THE PRESENTATION TODAY.
I THINK IT'S VERY SIGNIFICANT.
WITH RESPECT TO THE WILDCAT FLOW TRAIL PROJECT.
WE DID NOT BELIEVE THAT IT IS A RECREATION UNIT.
AS WE LOOK AT THE MASTER PLAN.
A SINGLE TRAIL, A PROJECT FOR A TRAIL DOES NOT FIT WITH THE DESCRIPTION OF A RECREATION UNIT IN THE MASTER PLAN.
WE THINK THAT IS A GOOD PROJECT.
I THINK STAFF HAS MORE INFORMATION AND COULD HAVE PREPARED A MORE DETAILED PRESENTATION OF OPTIONS THAT WERE CONSIDERED, AND I DON'T THINK IT'S REASONABLE TO EXPECT THEM TO ALL BE EVALUATED AT THE SAME LEVEL.
I THINK NORMAL RECOGNIZED PROJECT METHODOLOGY WILL GO THROUGH A SCREENING CRITERIA TO LOOK AT A VARIETY OF OPTIONS AT A HIGH LEVEL, AT AN ECONOMICAL LEVEL AND THEN NARROW IT TO THE MOST LIKELY CANDIDATES OR A SINGLE CANDIDATE AND THEN GO INTO MORE DEPTH INTO DETAILED DESIGN AND REVIEW FOR THAT. SO I THINK IT IS UNREASONABLE AND NOT THE BEST SPENDING OF TAXPAYER MONEY TO REVIEW EVERY OPTION AT THE SAME LEVEL OF DETAIL. SO.
THANK YOU FOR ALL THE TIME YOU PUT INTO THIS.
THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO MAKE COMMENT AND ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR DAY.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, EVERYBODY, FOR SPENDING THE AFTERNOON WITH US.
A VERY INFORMATIVE WORKSHOP TODAY, AND WE ARE ADJOURNED AT 4:49 P.M..
THANK YOU.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.