Point Reyes Light - September 29, 2005 Forest Knolls Park plan snags on town residents By Dan Miner Forest Knolls Park could move one step closer to renovation Saturday, Oct. 1, when the county will present plans to interested community members at the park. The county then expects to bring the plans before the Board of Supervisors Oct. 25 for final approval. Not all are excited about the proposal. Some residents of Forest Knolls have been voicing their concerns about the process since a meeting in January. The park was last renovated 15 years ago, said Fred Mundy, a volunteer of the planning committee. Principal planner for County Parks Steve Petterle explained that somewhere from two to two-and-a-half years ago, the county began to hear concerns in the community about the safety of the park. Mundy described its condition then as "dangerous," with play structures with sharp edges, large blackberry bushes in the middle of the playground, torn fences around the play areas, and a water fountain that did not work. He said it also fell short of American Disabilities Act regulations and needed to be updated to meet requirements for handicapped access. Planning process not a picnic The county then created an "ad hoc" committee, said Petterle, intended to "make suggestions to reflect the interests and concerns of the community." That group became the park planning committee and is composed of members of the San Geronimo Valley Planning Group. After the January meeting, county planners revised their designs based on the worries of some residents. They then presented a revised plan in June which also met resistance in the community. The plans presented at the upcoming meeting will be revised from the last ones, but Petterle warned that they have not changed much. Here are the details of the latest park plan: • A portable toilet, in the place of what is now a willow tree. • A paved path about 100 feet long from the parking area past the playground and picnic area to the portable toilet, connected to a 40-foot paved path from the corner of Guadalupe Avenue and Montezuma Road. • A walnut tree that in previous plans faced removal will now be left alone. There will also be several plantings, among them four arbutus bushes and several big leaf maples. • Due to state and federal regulations, the play structures will be either plastic or metal, not wood, which can be very difficult to maintain, said Petterle. The planning committee, which was intended to act as a liaison between county planners and the community, has come under fire by residents who feel that its influence with the county has left them without a voice in the process. "I just want to see the planning process involve the community that live there," Forest Knolls resident Josh Traub told The Light. Mundy, however, pointed out that months before any of the meetings he had hung a sign at the post office inviting any and all suggestions. "I think I got two phone calls," he said. County and planning committee workers said that they have taken steps to address the community’s concerns. "We recognize the character of the San Geronimo Valley and Forest Knolls and have taken that into consideration," said Petterle, "We’re trying to keep the changes to a minimum." Lose a tree, lose the shade Other questions from residents include the necessity of cutting down the willow tree, development creating runoff that would endanger protected salmon in a nearby creek, and the possible violation of the town’s aesthetic by the play structures. "Cut down the willow and with it goes the shade," said Forest Knolls resident Kate Hart, an outspoken opponent of the planning process so far. "Why should we cut down a tree even if it only has 20 years left and is in decline?" A county arborist in March recommended the removal of the willow tree, saying, "Bearing in mind the damage done to the tree through poor pruning practices, cavities, and its lack of vigor, I don’t think that this is a very high value tree for the long outlook for the park. I recommend [it] be removed." Petterle explained that the willow’s location away from play and picnic areas make it an ideal spot for the portable toilet. He also addressed concerns about the creek, saying "We’re not planning on doing anything that’s going to impact the creek." He added "that habitat needs to be preserved." Point Reyes Light Cover | News | Coastal Traveler