Recap: Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting 9/25

The Santa Cruz Parks and Recreation Commission meeting on September 25th was another step forward for more mountain bike access in city parks, as the commission voted 7-0 to approve the updated draft Parks and Recreation 2030 Master Plan Draft for review by City Council on October 10th. While the latest draft has fewer details about specific projects, it provides the City with a framework to reevaluate trail access and calls out mountain bike access as a specific use to be planned for. “Realistically this was the best outcome we could have hoped for given the contentious nature of the discussion about mountain bike trail access. This is a definite step towards bringing more mountain bike access to Santa Cruz” Executive Director Matt De Young said of the meeting. The meeting started with a vote to approve a letter to City Council members written by a sub-committee of the Parks and Recreation Commission, which was formed to focus on this agenda. The letter was written to serve as clarification of the changes the commission made to the draft. It suggested that the commission might consider such ideas as “mountain bike only trails” to alleviate user-conflict, among others. The letter was approved with a 7-0 vote and will be passed on to City Council October 10th. Next up was the approval of the 2030 Master Plan Draft. First, Matt De Young presented on behalf of Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz. His presentation focused on the current state of the draft and the numbers of anti-mountain bike supporters versus multi-use and mountain bike-specific supporters. Evidence of disparity: Summary of Letters and Input on Mountain Biking From Joint Session Meeting

• Opposes mountain biking in Pogonip. (19)
• Opposes mountain biking in DeLaveaga Park. (8)
• Opposes mountain biking in any open space. (10)
• Identifies safety issues with allowing mountain biking on hiking trails. (15)
• Describes that more mountain biking opportunities are needed. (149)
• Progressive, directional downhill trail in Pogonip. (155)
• Supports multi-use trails in Pogonip. (153)
• Supports multi-use trails in DeLaveaga Park. (151)

Matt ended his presentation asking the commission if the focus could be changed from “if we will we implement mountain biking into city parks” to “how will we implement mountain biking into city parks”. Peter Scot of Friends of Pogonip was next on the agenda, and took his time to point out that his club also has an active petition with unsolicited comments, which can be read here. After these presentations there were twenty minutes of public comment. A notable speaker was Janneke Strause, Executive Director of Bike Santa Cruz County, a local bicycle advocacy non-profit. She noted that more mountain bike access led to safer places for kids to recreate away from roads, and leads to more cyclists choosing to commute by bicycle, ultimately leading to a healthier, happier, and more environmentally friendly community, to name a few. She ended her comment echoing Matt’s ask for the conversation to be changed from “if” to “how”. After public comment, the Parks and Recreation Commission took a moment to speak amongst themselves, where the public heard many positive views on mountain biking. Commissioner Shalberg noted that “mountain biking has arrived”, and Commissioner Falkowski expressed his contentment with the outcome, and his approval of mountain biking to be implemented into city parks, adding “The Emma McCrary Trail is the most sustainable trail in the park”. He also said he believed it served as a good model for a trail and would like to see another trail like it. What now? The next meeting on October 10th with the City Council will be a big one. The City Council will have one last chance to amend the plan before it undergoes environmental review. We want to thank the City Council members, Parks and Recreation Commission members, City Parks staff, and all of our supporters for working hard to stay engaged with this process- it has been a long road but it will be worth it. Thank you! Next Meeting… City Council Meeting October 10th City Council Chambers 809 Center Street, Santa Cruz 95060