Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Bikers’ and climbers’ stake in Mission Trails park

Master plan meeting touches on the Boulders, adding acreage

The Boulders may soon be in Mission Trails Regional Park
The Boulders may soon be in Mission Trails Regional Park

At the April 17 meeting on the Mission Trails Regional Park master plan update, speakers included rock climbers, mountain bikers, and property owners. Topics for the first two groups included access and the Quail Brush power plant. Property owners talked about land proposed for addition to the park. A landowner considered it notable to mention that the meeting occurred during the week before Easter.

The draft EIR (environmental impact report) scoping meeting included overviews of the update and the multiple species conservation program (MSCP) developed concurrently with the plan. The update covers the nearly 5800-acre park and additional land in two areas.

The approximately 1360-acre West Sycamore land was designated part of the park when the San Diego city council approved the Sycamore Estates Development Agreement in 2001.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Also eyed for addition to Mission Trails is the approximately 2500-acre East Elliott area, which is bounded to the east by residences in Santee, to the south by SR-52, and to the north and west by Miramar. According to the update, 850 acres of that land is in private ownership. The other 1650 acres includes some 648 acres owned by the city and the 693-acre Sycamore Landfill.

In 1997, the MSCP identified most of East Elliott as multiple habitat planning area, and the East Elliott community plan was changed to designate the area as open space.

Property owner Stephen Goldfarb said the MSCP would have given the city 75 percent of the land "at no charge." In return, property owners could develop the remaining 25 percent, "but someone in the city decided they wanted all the property."

Jack Zarour said the week was "special" because it was Holy Week. After speaking about his faith, Zarour said his father bought East Elliott land in 1982. He said the city made an offer in 2010 and "then took the property out just before Christmas. [His father] lost hope; he stopped eating" and died in February 2013. "There needs to be proper compensation."

Also on private property is the Boulders, a climbing area on Mast Boulevard in Santee. Property owners allow access, said Adam Kimmerly of Allied Climbers of San Diego. He said climbers want access to remain open if the land is added to the park.

"Climbers have been excellent stewards of the land," he said, adding they were honored by the Santee City Council for removing graffiti.

Jason Showalter of the San Diego Mountain Biking Association recommended that the update "address how the trail plan and EIR work together."

Mark Schulze, who climbs and bikes in the park, urged people to contact the California Energy Commission about Quail Brush. He and speakers including Stephen Houlahan of Save Mission Trails objected to Cogentrix's request for a second-year suspension of their application to construct the plant on Sycamore Landfill Road. (The deadline for public comment is April 23.) Houlahan also recommended "stronger language against industrial zoning" in the plan.

Furthermore, Cheryl Martin, who lives near Cowles Mountain, said she was "very pleased" with an update recommendation to add parking on the Barker Way side of the mountain.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Gonzo Report: Stinkfoot Orchestra conjures Zappa at Winstons

His music is a blend of technical excellence and not-so-subtle humor
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Stinkfoot Orchestra conjures Zappa at Winstons

His music is a blend of technical excellence and not-so-subtle humor
The Boulders may soon be in Mission Trails Regional Park
The Boulders may soon be in Mission Trails Regional Park

At the April 17 meeting on the Mission Trails Regional Park master plan update, speakers included rock climbers, mountain bikers, and property owners. Topics for the first two groups included access and the Quail Brush power plant. Property owners talked about land proposed for addition to the park. A landowner considered it notable to mention that the meeting occurred during the week before Easter.

The draft EIR (environmental impact report) scoping meeting included overviews of the update and the multiple species conservation program (MSCP) developed concurrently with the plan. The update covers the nearly 5800-acre park and additional land in two areas.

The approximately 1360-acre West Sycamore land was designated part of the park when the San Diego city council approved the Sycamore Estates Development Agreement in 2001.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Also eyed for addition to Mission Trails is the approximately 2500-acre East Elliott area, which is bounded to the east by residences in Santee, to the south by SR-52, and to the north and west by Miramar. According to the update, 850 acres of that land is in private ownership. The other 1650 acres includes some 648 acres owned by the city and the 693-acre Sycamore Landfill.

In 1997, the MSCP identified most of East Elliott as multiple habitat planning area, and the East Elliott community plan was changed to designate the area as open space.

Property owner Stephen Goldfarb said the MSCP would have given the city 75 percent of the land "at no charge." In return, property owners could develop the remaining 25 percent, "but someone in the city decided they wanted all the property."

Jack Zarour said the week was "special" because it was Holy Week. After speaking about his faith, Zarour said his father bought East Elliott land in 1982. He said the city made an offer in 2010 and "then took the property out just before Christmas. [His father] lost hope; he stopped eating" and died in February 2013. "There needs to be proper compensation."

Also on private property is the Boulders, a climbing area on Mast Boulevard in Santee. Property owners allow access, said Adam Kimmerly of Allied Climbers of San Diego. He said climbers want access to remain open if the land is added to the park.

"Climbers have been excellent stewards of the land," he said, adding they were honored by the Santee City Council for removing graffiti.

Jason Showalter of the San Diego Mountain Biking Association recommended that the update "address how the trail plan and EIR work together."

Mark Schulze, who climbs and bikes in the park, urged people to contact the California Energy Commission about Quail Brush. He and speakers including Stephen Houlahan of Save Mission Trails objected to Cogentrix's request for a second-year suspension of their application to construct the plant on Sycamore Landfill Road. (The deadline for public comment is April 23.) Houlahan also recommended "stronger language against industrial zoning" in the plan.

Furthermore, Cheryl Martin, who lives near Cowles Mountain, said she was "very pleased" with an update recommendation to add parking on the Barker Way side of the mountain.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Mid-range fleet scoring bluefin limits off Ensenada

Rockfish to open at all depths April 1st (no foolin’)
Next Article

Looking back at race relations in Coronado

A former football player recalls the good and the bad
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.