by the Tualatin Wildlife Alliance. McCurdy
lives adjacent to the Tualatin Mountains and
is opposed to new trails.
Once again improvements to cycling access in an off-road area near Portland is in jeopardy because of opposition from people who claim the new trails will harm wildlife.
Back in November we shared exciting news that Metro planned to develop two parcels (out of four) in their North Tualatin Mountains Natural Area just north of Forest Park. Unlike the City of Portland, that so far has failed to adequately manage bike access in its parks, Metro worked with mountain bike advocates from the early stages of this project in order to create a plan that included a significant amount of new singletrack trails. The first draft of the plan released in November included about 10.6 total miles of unpaved roads and trails that would be open to bikes in the Burlington Creek and McCarthy Creek parcels. We called it “a historic step forward” for off-road cycling in Portland.
But things have changed in the past four months. Metro has altered the initial plan amid increasing pressure from people who oppose biking in the area.
A new draft of the trail plan released last month (PDF) has removed 2.7 miles of bike-accessible trails from the McCarthy Creek parcel.
Below is Metro’s first draft trail plan map of the McCarthy Creek parcel:
And here’s the latest draft (note the absense of trails in the upper right corner):
An upstart group called the Tualatin Wildlife Alliance says they don’t want any biking in this area due to its potential impacts on elk and wildlife habitat in general. Hank McCurdy, a Portland real estate developer who lives off McNamee road near the McCarthy Creek parcel, is the leader of the group and has set up a “Save Forest Park Corridor” website. He and other people opposed to biking have been profiled in the Willamette Week (last June) and in the NW Examiner (in November).
Their main argument (which McCurdy makes in this recent video he uploaded to Youtube) is that Metro “promised” that money raised from voters via a natural areas bond measure to purchase the Tualatin properties would be used for preservation only. “Now Metro wants to turn more than 200 acres of this sensitive land into an outdoor adventure park with a dense network of trails for mountain bikers, hikers, and runners,” reads the copy on the Save Forest Park Corridor website.
McCurdy and others against the bike trails are threatening to oppose future bond measures if Metro doesn’t comply with their demands. One woman told the Willamette Week that she’s so upset over the proposed bike trails that she’s dropping Metro from her will. “She had planned to donate some of her 33 acres [near Forest Park],” reads the story.
(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)
The language of the Metro bond measure that voters passed in 2013 does not say cycling must be excluded from natural areas. In fact the bond measure McCurdy is referring to explicitly gives Metro the option of creating bike-specific trails in the Tualatin Mountains. “Various parcels near to but outside of Forest Park are currently or could be used by walkers or cyclists to access nature close to Portland,” reads the bond measure. “…This project would explore the potential to provide quality cycling and hiking experiences for formal single track cycling and walking trails, and as appropriate, construct the facilities.”
But McCurdy and his supporters are undetterred. They’re planning a protest rally in front of Metro headquarters on NE Grand Avenue at noon tomorrow (April 8th) where they’ll demand that Metro shelve the trail plan entirely until an independent ecological study is completed.
— Dan Moeller, conservation program director at Metro
To bolser their case McCurdy points to a recommendation made by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) in a letter to Metro dated February 23rd (PDF) that states, “Avoid/Minimize construction of new trails and other infrastructure, especially in areas of high quality habitat.”
Reached via phone today, Metro’s Conservation Program Director Dan Moeller said they heard “great concern” from neighbors about the elk grazing habitat. He said community feedback and science are key considerations when they develop plans. “Using a combination of those two factors we decided, at this point, it was best to remove that trail from the plan.” But Moeller adds that the decision is not final. “We also left room in the document for us to consider more information that we may have by the time we develop the McCarthy site.”
As for the elk, Moeller told the NW Examiner back in December that the state has already told Metro that the North Tualatin Mountains area “is not a major elk refuge” and that it has been officially designated a “de-emphasis zone” for elk.
Metro plans to first develop the Burlington Creek site as a first phase of this project. Then, Moeller said, with lessons learned and more time for study and observations of habitat impacts, they will re-assess the McCarthy plan. While Metro removed a bike trail from McCarthy, they’ve also added more bike access at Burlington Creek where the current trail plan calls for 7.6 miles of bike access including 4.9 miles of trails.
during an open house event in December 2014.
As for the letter from ODFW, Moeller said it doesn’t tell Metro anything they already didn’t know.
“If the yardstick is absolutely no impacts to habitat we’re not going to meet it with this project,” he said. “We’re not going to meet it with any project. We’ve always recognized that.” Moeller said Metro’s mission is complex because they are committed to preserving natural areas while also providing access to nature in urban areas. He pointed out there would be only 10 miles of trail in the 1,300 acres Metro owns. “75 percent of the land would have no trail or fewer trails then we began with. Overall, it’s a very small footprint.”
Off-road cycling advocates with the Northwest Trail Alliance have seen this horror movie before. The group’s president, Kelsey Cardwell, says the political threats being made by McCurdy and others “shows their true colors.” “Their main concern isn’t the preservation of these properties,” she added in a comment to BikePortland via email yesterday. “They are the homeowners in the area and don’t want people to be able to access the public lands in their backyard.”
Cardwell says conservation is a common red herring in access debates and that, “Environmental and recreational goals should and can complement each other.” Echoing an argument NW Trail Alliance has been making for years now, Cardwell added, “Access can support preservation, prevent dumping and illegal camping. It can promote healthy environmental stewardship through educational opportunities, and since this area is right near a school, there’s a lot of potential.”
Cardwell wants Metro to put the McCarthy Creek bike trail back in to the plan because it was removed simply because of threats made by neighbors who oppose it and there is no evidence to support that it would have a negative ecological impact.
For off-road advocates it’s yet another setback. NWTA Advocacy Chair Andrew Jansky said it’s annother disappointing example of how powerful people can influence projects. “The cycling community provided input, participated in a good public process, and even met with the councilors and the council president to express our support for Metro and the result that was presented at the final open house,” he shared with us via email. “Then in the ensuing time, anti-access folks have been hammering on councilors with emails, calls, videos etc pushing to close more areas and eliminate trails.”
Metro is set to have a public hearing on the North Tualatin Mountains plan April 14th and its scheduled to be adopted by Council April 21st.
— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org
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