Today's meeting of the county Parks Advisory Committee will not be a snoozer.
The committee, which meets at 4 p.m., will discuss a proposed master plan for Ellison Park and the other parks along Irondequoit Bay. But tensions over the plan are peaking, with various groups upset over different aspects of it.
Town of Brighton staff sent over a press advisory this afternoon noting that Supervisor Sandra Frankel will attend the meeting and that she'll offer some comments on the plan, since she believes there are a number of issues that still need to be addressed. No surprise there; the town submitted six pages worth of written comments on the plan. But the town also says that it's likely the plan will be "rubberstamped" at the meeting, which shows a more aggressive approach on the town's part.
The plan, which was released last month, has drawn a lot of criticism from a variety of user groups and individuals. Genesee Regional Off-Road Cyclists is the only group to endorse it as-is. They've pushed for the plan to include bike access to county trails, and the plan calls for an 18-month trial period in Tryon Park, as well as the construction of a shared-use trail in Irondequoit Bay Park West.
That recommendation has received varied reactions from environmental and parks groups. The local Adirondack Mountain Club chapter, for example, is OK with an 18-month trial period for the bikes. But bikes shouldn't be allowed in the park until the trails are properly designed and built, say written comments submitted by the group. And Bay Park West should be off-limits to bikes until the Tryon trial period ends, the comments say.
Monroe County People for Parks members are upset that the plan contains a last-minute change in the length of the trial period from 36 months to 18 months. Member could back the shorter period, however, if it starts in the spring of one year and ends in the fall of the next - that way there are two seasons of use to study, say comments submitted by the group's director, Cassandra Petsos, on behalf of its board. Petsos also worries that if hikers and bikers share the existing narrow trails, there will be safety issues.
But mountain biking isn't the only issue of concern. People for Parks and Brighton officials want the Landing Road entrance to Ellison Park to remain closed - the plan recommends reopening it.
The proposed location for a dog park is also an issue for both groups; they prefer that the park be located instead in an underutilized section of a park known as Willow Grove, which is near water and parking.
Not all of the feedback has been negative. Comments generally support the recommendations to increase paddler access to the parks, as well as instituting sustainable trail practices.
Comments for "PARKS: Passion and politics " (1)
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Sherry Kraus said on Mar. 26, 2009 at 1:10pm
As the representative of the Town of Brighton, I participated in the meetings of the Parks Advisory Committee charged with the creating the Master Plan for Ellison Park. Just weeks before the March meeting, in which the Committee made its final vote on the Plan, I was informed by Parks Director Larry Staubs that I would not be allowed to vote on the Plan because I was only there as a "liaison" for the Town and not a Committee member appointed by Maggie Brooks. Nonetheless, I submitted to the Committee the comments and concerns of the Town of Brighton regarding certain recommendations of the Master Plan. While there has been a great deal of publicity regarding the controversial aspects of the Plan (allowing mountain biking on certain hiking trails), there has been no publicity regarding an equally controversial provision in the Master Plan that, if implemented, will significantly detract from the enjoyment of the park for most park users. That provision is two sentences added to the final draft of the Master Plan without prior notice or discussion with the Committee or the public and provides for opening to vehicular traffic the internal park road that extends from North Landing Road in Brighton, past Fort Schuyler, across the bridge over Irondequoit Creek , around the mountain to Pavilion Lodge. This "road" is the primary walking path for walkers, bikers, dogs and entire families with their children (many in strollers) through the heart of Ellison Park. The portion of the road descending from the parking lot on North Landing Road to the bridge is the most frequented pedestrian walkway in the park and one of the few areas that stays dry during all seasons of the year. An earlier proposal some years ago by the Parks Department to open the road to vehicles was abandoned after great opposition from park users. It was concluded that opening this road to vehicular traffic (other than to its present limited access to park maintenance vehicles, emergency and sheriff's partrol vehicles and handicapped access) would severely detract from the enjoyment of the park for park users. The Town of Brighton has expressed its opposition to this provision also on the grounds that it will open up new and additional public safety issues for park users and result in possible increases in vandalism and destruction of park property. Additional concerns expressed by the Town in the Master Plan include the design and placement of the dog park at a site which will likely fail to attract dog users fro the park at large. The Committee vote to recommend the Master Plan be adopted notwithstanding the Town's recommendations for change on these points. The Master Plan will likely go before the County legislature for approval and required modification of parks laws in its May session.
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