Xler8
Well-Known Member
You would hope so, however in today's time the only things that prevail are greed and unity. And it's known that the latter is on the endangered or nonexistent list.
Watchung News 12/9/2016
- Thread starter KenS
- Start date
You would hope so, however in today's time the only things that prevail are greed and unity. And it's known that the latter is on the endangered or nonexistent list.
TheLonerider
Well-Known Member
I long for the day when if someone goes to the gov't and says "you should pass a law based on my phobia" the gov't tells him to see a shrink and that's the end of it.
Sadly right now gov't policy seems based of absurdities.
Sadly right now gov't policy seems based of absurdities.
thegock
Well-Known Member
I'm a "Law Abiding Citizen".That being said, each of us should ask ourselves how many Freeholders' meetings we have attended.
This may be the last chance for a while to express ourselves on a proposal regarding access to trails in Union county.
Stay positive and stay focused. Get there early on Thursday for a 7pm start.
#freeWatchung
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terrabike01
Well-Known Member
Its now or never!!! Don't forget to email the Freeholders today and attend tonight's meeting if possible. Gotta show a force in numbers. There's no reason why we have to drive hours away to ride a bike on a trail legally.
Eddy-V
Member
A fellow MTBer just spoke with a freeholders aide. He said they probably won't have time to look at emails but told him they definitely look at the website they set up to take comments. He said they'd read those before the meeting. Cut and paste your email to that.
Kevin,
As per our conversation, below is the link where you can leave your comments regarding the Watchung Reservation Trails Master Plan.
www.ucnj.org/bike-trails-input
Thank you.
Teron Dow
Freeholder Aide
Union County Board of Chosen Freeholholders
Kevin,
As per our conversation, below is the link where you can leave your comments regarding the Watchung Reservation Trails Master Plan.
www.ucnj.org/bike-trails-input
Thank you.
Teron Dow
Freeholder Aide
Union County Board of Chosen Freeholholders
Great color... Thanks
I can't make tonite unfortunately but I posted the following on the ucnj.org comments page. Best of luck tonite everyone, hopefully logic and fair play will prevail.
-----
Greetings. I serve as a volunteer coordinator for trail building in the Morris County Parks system, a close neighbor to Union County. I am over 50 and an avid mountain biker, hiker and kayaker. Over the past 15+ years, involving around a hundred individual volunteers (mainly mountain bikers, a decent number of hikers and a handful of equestrians, all working side by side on a common goal) we have spent approximately 4,000 hours toward building and maintaining roughly 10 miles of trail in Lewis Morris Park and parts of Patriots Path. We apply IMBA techniques to ensure proper trail design and sustainability.
I am writing to urge Union County to take the same open minded approach to allowing multi-use trails taken by Morris County 15 years ago. We have proven that multi-use works, and that outdoor enthusiasts of many stripes can and do get along. There will always be detractors in every group, but whether one looks at Morris County (where there are several parks and trail systems that permit multi-use, including mountain biking) or NJ as a whole ( where all but two counties allow mountain biking) or the US in its entirety (where multi-use proliferates in every state) it is clear that successful multi-use trail systems are well supported and highly effective.
I think you will also find that outdoor enthusiasts, in particular mountain bikers, are a highly motivated group when it comes to volunteering. As participants in a sport that was poorly and inaccurately maligned from its inception in the 70's and indeed through the 80's and early 90's, we've had to work that much harder to demonstrate the value that good trails bring to a community and to debunk the lingering myths about trail user conflict. You can count on a solid volunteer base to help build the trails - with proper techniques - and also to maintain them in great shape.
Please vote to approve the initiative to establish mountain biking trails in Watchung Reservation. I am certain the community and the County will benefit greatly from a positive decision.
Thank you for your consideration.
-----
Greetings. I serve as a volunteer coordinator for trail building in the Morris County Parks system, a close neighbor to Union County. I am over 50 and an avid mountain biker, hiker and kayaker. Over the past 15+ years, involving around a hundred individual volunteers (mainly mountain bikers, a decent number of hikers and a handful of equestrians, all working side by side on a common goal) we have spent approximately 4,000 hours toward building and maintaining roughly 10 miles of trail in Lewis Morris Park and parts of Patriots Path. We apply IMBA techniques to ensure proper trail design and sustainability.
I am writing to urge Union County to take the same open minded approach to allowing multi-use trails taken by Morris County 15 years ago. We have proven that multi-use works, and that outdoor enthusiasts of many stripes can and do get along. There will always be detractors in every group, but whether one looks at Morris County (where there are several parks and trail systems that permit multi-use, including mountain biking) or NJ as a whole ( where all but two counties allow mountain biking) or the US in its entirety (where multi-use proliferates in every state) it is clear that successful multi-use trail systems are well supported and highly effective.
I think you will also find that outdoor enthusiasts, in particular mountain bikers, are a highly motivated group when it comes to volunteering. As participants in a sport that was poorly and inaccurately maligned from its inception in the 70's and indeed through the 80's and early 90's, we've had to work that much harder to demonstrate the value that good trails bring to a community and to debunk the lingering myths about trail user conflict. You can count on a solid volunteer base to help build the trails - with proper techniques - and also to maintain them in great shape.
Please vote to approve the initiative to establish mountain biking trails in Watchung Reservation. I am certain the community and the County will benefit greatly from a positive decision.
Thank you for your consideration.
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rlb
Well-Known Member
I just received an email from Bruce Bergen (nice to know he's reading) stating that the meeting has been cancelled due to a water main break.
http://ucnj.org/
http://ucnj.org/
rlb
Well-Known Member
Well said. I pretty much tried to say the same things, though my letter was in the voice of a Kindergarten student.
TheLonerider
Well-Known Member
I wrote the following,
"It has come to my attention that there is a resolution pending that would kill proposed mountain bike access in Watchung Reservation. I must go on record as saying that this should not be allowed to happen.
As a citizen and cyclist who has been involved in the process of trying to get trail access for three years, I am well aware of both the nature of the mountain bike ban, and the issue of mountain biking at Watchung.
The ban itself has shameful origins, being created in a backroom by the unelected, in 1995, without, by the county's own admission in response to my OPRA request, without any public input.
Worse, the county said "it had been determined" that mountain biking had to be banned because of trail problems and user conflict, but could provide no documentation of any. When pressed in repeated OPRA requests they provided only a handful of news articles about mountain biking disputes at other parks -- one as far away as Connecticut.
None were about Watchung. They also provided a trail study -- of two trails at South Mountain, a park in another county. Not only was this not about the situation at Watchung, it also post-dated the decision to ban us by almost a full year.
While there was never documentation of a reason to ban mountain biking in 1995, however, there is ample evidence now, 20 years later, and in the intervening years, that mountain biking is not a problem. Virtually every other county in New Jersey allows it to some degree, state parks as well. The NJ DEP, Department of Environmental Protection, even has links regarding mountain biking on its web site and endorses the activity.
I was there in February at Galloping Hill Golf Course when county officials and a rep of contractor CME promised mountain biking access at Watchung. However, in the intervening three years cycling taxpayers have watched as, time and again, the county failed to make good on the words it uttered. I was there at many freeholder meetings when Freeholders, including Chairman Bergen, said they supported the idea of mountain biking, and promised access by Spring of 2017. It is well into Spring of 2017, yet there is no access, Instead, freeholders appear to be considering a proposal to kill access by mountain bikers.
As I said at one freeholder meeting, an error only becomes a mistake if you persist in it. The error of this ban, concocted hastily 20 years ago, in an end run around the electoral process, has gone on far too long. It is time for Union County to end this shameful ban and finally allow some fair park access so that Union County cyclists can enjoy just a small fraction of what citizens in normal counties take for granted as their right: The ability to use the parks they pay for.
I ride, I vote, and I AM NOT GOING AWAY."
Ride on,
Lonerider
"It has come to my attention that there is a resolution pending that would kill proposed mountain bike access in Watchung Reservation. I must go on record as saying that this should not be allowed to happen.
As a citizen and cyclist who has been involved in the process of trying to get trail access for three years, I am well aware of both the nature of the mountain bike ban, and the issue of mountain biking at Watchung.
The ban itself has shameful origins, being created in a backroom by the unelected, in 1995, without, by the county's own admission in response to my OPRA request, without any public input.
Worse, the county said "it had been determined" that mountain biking had to be banned because of trail problems and user conflict, but could provide no documentation of any. When pressed in repeated OPRA requests they provided only a handful of news articles about mountain biking disputes at other parks -- one as far away as Connecticut.
None were about Watchung. They also provided a trail study -- of two trails at South Mountain, a park in another county. Not only was this not about the situation at Watchung, it also post-dated the decision to ban us by almost a full year.
While there was never documentation of a reason to ban mountain biking in 1995, however, there is ample evidence now, 20 years later, and in the intervening years, that mountain biking is not a problem. Virtually every other county in New Jersey allows it to some degree, state parks as well. The NJ DEP, Department of Environmental Protection, even has links regarding mountain biking on its web site and endorses the activity.
I was there in February at Galloping Hill Golf Course when county officials and a rep of contractor CME promised mountain biking access at Watchung. However, in the intervening three years cycling taxpayers have watched as, time and again, the county failed to make good on the words it uttered. I was there at many freeholder meetings when Freeholders, including Chairman Bergen, said they supported the idea of mountain biking, and promised access by Spring of 2017. It is well into Spring of 2017, yet there is no access, Instead, freeholders appear to be considering a proposal to kill access by mountain bikers.
As I said at one freeholder meeting, an error only becomes a mistake if you persist in it. The error of this ban, concocted hastily 20 years ago, in an end run around the electoral process, has gone on far too long. It is time for Union County to end this shameful ban and finally allow some fair park access so that Union County cyclists can enjoy just a small fraction of what citizens in normal counties take for granted as their right: The ability to use the parks they pay for.
I ride, I vote, and I AM NOT GOING AWAY."
Ride on,
Lonerider
Shorepoints
Well-Known Member
TheLonerider
Well-Known Member
Happy Easter/Passover to all. When anyone finds out anything new re: this resolution or the issue in general please let us know, eagerly awaiting.
Ride safe, stay cool.
Lonerider
Ride safe, stay cool.
Lonerider
Shorepoints
Well-Known Member
We are doing everything we can to find out what caused Bergen's change of heart on this whole resolution. There is really no rhyme or reason behind it. Meanwhile we are continuing to lobby every resource available to make sure the resolution does not pass, if indeed it gets voted on.
Shorepoints
Well-Known Member
We have been in contact with the mayors of Westfield and Summit so far and they are in support of our efforts. If anyone can contact the mayors of Scotch Plains, Mountainside, and Berkeley Heights, please let me know.
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
The Mayor of Summit sent out a mass email to residents urging them to attend last weeks meeting in opposition of the trail plan.
Shorepoints
Well-Known Member
Jim we have heard from her since then and she said in writing she is in favor of a compromise on the issue that allows biking.
#politics
