Briarhill Neighborhood Polecat Priority List Exhibit D-4
March 11, 2013 The following list of trail head issues and design elements was developed by Briarhill 2/3 neighborhood residents living near the end of Collister Dr. to mitigate the concerns related to the proposed Polecat Gulch trail head to be installed nearby. These contributors represent a group who has an intimate knowledge of the history, characteristics, and values of the Polecat gulch natural area. Also, this group will be highly impacted by the effects of the proposed trail head and will endure those effects for many years to come. We hope the city will use our knowledge and understand our concerns so we may live in harmony with the facility and the people it will bring. Please give our list of priorities thoughtful consideration and incorporate these elements into the design proposals for the trail head. This list is not intended to be an allinclusive list of all the concerns. Rather, it represents the minimum standards for the major issues. Hopefully the city will conduct their due diligence and implement the trail head with thoughtful and thorough design. Further, we wish to be included in future Polecat trail head development decisions. We respectfully submit this list of priority issues and welcome discussion or feedback regarding their feasibility. The following names have contributed to or currently support the ideas expressed herein: John Watts, 5954 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Katy Watts, 5954 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Gabriel Garber, 5999 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Katherine Young, 5998 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Daniel Young, 5998 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Neil Handyside, 5971 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Mary Handyside, 5971 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Riley Fuller, 5985 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Andrea Wisnefsky, 5985 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Robert Cooke, 5985 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Skyler Parker, 5985 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Kraig Hutchinson, 5985 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Milt Coffman, 5471 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Shawn Rebholz, 5955 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Patrick Courtright, 5612 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. Mariah Courtright, 5612 Collister Dr. Boise, Id. 1
I. SITE LOCATION: Residents support an analysis of placing the trail head further away from the neighborhood to minimize negative effects of the proposed trail head including noise and potential fires. By placing the trail head only 500 feet further away, the conditions residents currently value and enjoy such as privacy, serenity, security, and aesthetics will be maintained. A. The City of Boise needs to consider placing trail head at proposed design represented in Exhibit A. B. Corresponding road construction offers improvement of a substandard, narrow, rutted road that is sloping towards the gulch. Additional length of road improvement will provide a safe and adequate corridor for trail users, emergency vehicles, fire trucks, goat hauling trailers, tenant horse trailer, etc., accessing the existing farm house or trail system. II. UNAUTHORIZED/ILLEGAL ACTIVITY: This area has a history of attracting people who wish to engage in criminal activity. Within the last year, residents living at the end of Collister Dr. have been involved in several dangerous incidents by people seeking a nearby rural area to conduct illegal activity in. The following designs elements help mitigate this problem: A. GATE: Installing a gate at the cul-de-sac to close the trail head at night remains a top priority for the Briarhill neighborhood residents. Closing the parking lot at night will lower the potential for crime, disturbance and fires. Gate should be automatically controlled to ensure reliable access to trail head users in the daytime and neighborhood security at night. Exhibit D offers an example of an operating schedule. Gate should include an automatic sensor in road to allow vehicles to exit from inside the site after dusk, when gate is closed. The city s alternative of a one-way tire shredder seems dangerous as bike and pedestrian traffic will likely use this entrance after hours and in low light conditions. B. Install a light pole in the cul-de-sac C. Include a pedestrian/bike passage next to gate at cul-de-sac. D. Install sign at gate with operating schedule. 2
E. Install pole fencing around cul-de-sac and around trail head to prevent unauthorized vehicle use off roads. A retaining wall along the northwest side of improved road should be used to aid in unauthorized off road vehicle use. Examples of pole fencing are shown in Exhibit B and Exhibit C. III. FIRE: With an increase in vehicles and people at this trail head, the potential for fire is greatly increased. With vast acres of foothills land above this trail head and homes nearby, the risk of fire must be mitigated. The location of the city s chosen trail head concept places the trail head only 500 feet from existing homes. With the intervening fuel load composed of grass, bushes and sagebrush, little response time is allowed for home evacuation in the event of a fire. This poses a great risk to life and property. A. Move trail head location further away from residents. B. Close the trail head parking lot at night. C. Place no smoking/no fireworks signs at trail head kiosk. D. Mow vegetation on city property to create a fire break where city property imposes a hazard to private property that cannot be mitigated by property owners. E. Conduct hazardous fuels reduction around trail head. Residents support continuation of the goat renting program. F. Update FIRE-UP survey of this urban interface. Analyze Firewise measures that can be implemented. G. Consult with the city and BLM regarding a fire response strategy. Ensure city and BLM fire engines can access gulch and gates. IV. SAFETY: The Collister road and cul-de-sac often have children playing and riding bikes on the pavement. The increased traffic associated with the proposed trail head will pose an increased risk to children. Ensuring their safety is a priority. A. Install additional speed limit signs. 3
B. Install no parking anytime signs with double arrows to prevent culde-sac parking. C. Consider traffic calming measures. D. Have city police intermittently monitor and enforce speed limits. V. ROAD DESIGN: The nature of the current dirt track road will require thoughtful reconstruction for long term stability. Due to the granitic and clay soils, the stability and surface conditions are often in variable and poor condition. Portions of the road are currently sloughing off towards the gulch. During wet weather, portions become muddy and slick. This project provides an opportunity to improve the entire length of the road to the farm house for multiple public benefits. A. Road design elements should provide adequate and appropriate slope stabilization, drainage, sub-base depth, and surface material to ensure long term road integrity. B. Slope retention along the northwesterly side of the road will require a permanent, anchored retaining wall to eliminate road slip and bank erosion. C. Regardless of the site chosen for the parking lot, road improvement to the farmhouse offers important value and should be considered. VI. TRAIL HEAD DESIGN: There has been much discussion on the expected level of use this proposed trail head will receive. The neighborhood consensus is that the existing Cartwright Road trail head to the Polecat trail system is better suited as a primary trail head for the system and should be managed as such. The proposed Collister Dr. site should act as a secondary trail head. The Cartwright trail head has better public road access and has better potential for development to accommodate amenities such as horse trailer parking, additional stalls, and bathroom facilities. A. Consider placing a vault toilet at both the Cartwright and Collister trail heads to encourage balanced use at both trail head sites. If cost becomes an issue, a vault toilet at the Collister site would be a lower priority at this time. Future need could then be analyzed and accommodated. 4
B. A parking lot with 12-15 stalls appears suitable and should adequately handle peak use at the Collister site. C. Pole fencing should be installed around parking lot. D. Horse trailer access at the Collister site is strongly opposed. The Collister road and site conditions are not suitable for horse trailer traffic. The Cartwright trail head offers better horse trailer access. E. The city s proposed site will negatively affect the privacy, view shed and tranquility of existing residents. These values are reasons residents have chosen to live in this area. Mitigation measures have been suggested such as lowering the parking lot and building a berm. Since the city s proposed site is on a sloped hillside with end view of parking lot facing homes, it appears the suggested mitigation measures can do little to mitigate the privacy and aesthetic concerns. Should the city s site proposal be imposed, adequate mitigation measures need to be further analyzed to determine if better measures exist. Trail head location at the alternative option expressed in Exhibit A would eliminate need to install proposed privacy mitigation measures. F. A year or so after the implementation of the Polecat trail head, a general analysis of the impacts, both good and bad, should be conducted to better create the kind of trail head the city, users and residents want. Issues that should be analyzed are those expressed within including levels of use, adequate facilities and mitigation of negative effects. The Briarhill 2/3 neighborhood would like to be involved in future development and management issues related to the Polecat trail head. Sincerely, Residents of the Briarhill 2/3 neighborhood. 5
GATE SCHEDULE CITY OF SCOTTSDALE MCDOWELL SONORAN PRESERVE Lost Dog Wash, Sunrise Trailhead Gateway, and Tom s Thumb Trailheads Open Close Open Close January 1 st 7:02 am 5:31 pm 7:02 am 5:01 pm January 15 th 7:02 am 5:42 pm 7:02 am 5:12 pm February 1 st 6:54 am 5:59 pm 6:54 am 5:29 pm February 15 th 6:42 am 6:12 pm 6:42 am 5:42 pm March 1 st 6:25 am 6:25 pm 6:25 am 5:55 pm March 15 th 6:07 am 6:36 pm 6:07 am 6:06 pm April 1 st 5:45 am 6:49 pm 5:45 am 6:19 pm April 15 th 5:27 am 6:59 pm 5:27 am 6:29 pm May 1 st 5:09 am 7:11 pm 5:09 am 6:41 pm May 15 th 4:57 am 7:22 pm 4:57 am 6:52 pm June 1 st 4:49 am 7:33 pm 4:49 am 7:03 pm June 15 th 4:47 am 7:39 pm 4:47 am 7:09 pm July 1 st 4:42 am 7:42 pm 4:42 am 7:12 pm July 15 th 4:59 am 7:38 pm 4:59 am 7:08 pm August 1 st 5:11 am 7:27 pm 5:11 am 6:57 pm August 15 th 5:20 am 7:13 pm 5:20 am 6:43 pm September 1 st 5:32 am 6:52 pm 5:32 am 6:22 pm September 15 th 5:41 am 6:33 pm 5:41 am 6:03 pm October 1 st 5:52 am 6:11 pm 5:52 am 5:41 pm October 15 th 6:03 am 5:53 pm 6:03 am 5:23 pm November 1 st 6:17 am 5:35 pm 6:17 am 5:05 pm November 15 th 6:30 am 5:25 pm 6:30 am 4:55 pm December 1 st 6:44 am 5:20 pm 6:44 am 4:50 pm December 15 th 6:55 am 5:21 pm 6:55 am 4:51 pm Notes: Gate times are changed the first and fifteenth of each month to coincide with the change in day length through the year. In general, the gates will open 30 minutes prior to the official sunrise and close at sunset, with the exception of the Sunrise Access Area, which closes 30 minutes before sunset to reduce impacts on the adjacent neighborhood. If the first or the fifteenth fall on a Saturday, the gate open/close time will be changed on Friday. If it falls on a Sunday, it will be changed on Monday. Updated December, 2012