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Re: RC: trail preservation...have a question



Have you heard about the park dedication ordinance?  After designating trails on a map of a county - including through private land, the trails, being designated stay on this map until the property is SOLD by the landowner to a developer. At that time the buyer, the developer must consider putting a trail through the new property before developing or contribute like dollars to build a trail.  This ordinance was in place in the East Bay area of California and that is why after 50 years of development, we were able to include trails to connect 60 parks in Alameda and Contra Costa County.  We did not take anyone's property or assume we could use private land.  We just waited until it was sold. Sharon Saare knows all about this. She (and George Cardinet) put together a film called Trails for Today and Tomorrow.


At 10:08 AM 3/21/00 -0500, you wrote:
In a message dated 03/20/2000 10:55:28 PM Pacific Standard Time,
superpat@gateway.net writes:

<<  As we devise a plan for re-routing the trail, it will
 still be necessary to go through a small portion of some of the private
 land. It would be helpful to know if what I remember hearing is correct.
 Does anyone out there know if and where I can find information about the
 necessity for private land owners to allow access to trail when the trail
 has been in use for a number of years? >>

I don't know what the rules are, but as a private property owner, I would be
livid if someone tried to claim that just because people had used the right
to go through my property for X number of years, they had a permanent right
to do so.  In Europe, there is so little space compared to what we have in
this country, that riding/hiking trails go right through someone's front yard
and this is accepted as the norm.  This is not the case in this country, and
we hold our private property rights dear.  If I were in your place, I would
make an appeal to the property owner for right of way, but I surely wouldn't
approach that owner with any attitude of having the right to use his land
just because it had always been that way.  Humility and appreciation work
where assumption of rights and force do not.  Been there, done that.....  We
love to share our land, on certain occasions, with the general public, and
for neighbors...all the time.  But come on with an assumption of your right
to use our land, and them's fighting words!
BTW, there is probably more park land in this county than any other county in
the state or country, but some people don't want to use IT; they're looking
for someplace to get away from the public, from rules and from control by the
rangers.

Barbara


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Nancy DuPont, Executive Director
Heritage Trails
1350 Castle Rock Road
Walnut Creek, CA 94598

Our Mission: To preserve and protect trails and answer the question, "Where are you going to ride your horses, and where are you going to keep them."
Telephone (925)937-7661 FAX (925) 943-7431


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