This Quarry Park bike ban proposal really riles me and I vociferously object to the concept:
1) According to my kids and their friends, who until this spring enjoyed QP almost daily, and still go there sometimes, these same neighbors leave their dog droppings on the trails, and steal wildflowers from public land. They want this public park as their own private preserve. The young kids and young adults and others who use the park organized a very successful clean-up last spring, and removed a lot of broken glass and other debris brought in by others. They love the place, and I would say they do much more to keep it somewhat cleaned up and safe from crime than any of the neighbors. Parks are NOT just for people whose yards border them - They are for us all! Not everyone can afford to go out to Blackhawk every day, even if they did condone the waste of gasoline to get there. 2) It would be great public policy to leave other decisions to the full commission as well, for this might prevent a repeata of the unannounced, unilateral decision last spring to destroy the huge and delightful array of bridges, ravine logs, ramps and jumps that a number of people built there over the previous year or two. The commission should help all users design and fund a biker-hiker plan for the park that will return the kinds of features that many users find very enjoyable. After the destruction wreaked by a city crew this spring, my kids could not help but feel that "a lot of adults are just jerks!" and I could do little to dispel that notion. The commission should embrace this opportunity to give the adults of the future a better world view than that. Or would they prefer that these kids devolve into the disgruntled youth who go around spraying graffitti all over private walls and public surfaces? The users and neighbors need a forum for educating one another about their values and to figure out ways to accommodate one another so their core needs are met. "Get outta here, you kids!" isn't going to cut it. 3) I hope the full commission will arrange to meet with the users on-site sometime very soon and learn first-hand about the situation there. 4) Thanks to the University's never-ending thirst for traffic-growth-at-any-cost-to its-neighbors, I've already got a meeting to attend that night. Also, the kids who use the park are at 7:30 home completing their homework. If someone would share and voice my views at this meeting, I would appreciate it. Thank you! > ---------- > From: CALLAWAY, Renee[SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 1:41 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: [Bikies] Biking in Quarry Park > > I emailed James Morgan who is the City's staff person for the committee > and here is what he had to say about the agenda item related to Quarry > Park: > > There is a request from some neighbors to eliminate bike use in the park > for environmental reasons. I expect that the Commission will listen to > the those present and then will probably refer the item to the Facilities > Sub-Committee who will have to investigate, probably hold additional > meetings with everyone affected by any change and then to come back in > with a recommendation to the full Commission again. The Park Commission > meeting tomorrow is open to the public (7:30pm Warner Park Community and > Recreation Center) and you can register at the door to speak for whatever > position you are supporting. This will be a policy decision for the Park > Commissioners to decide on rather than an administrative change from our > staff. > Jim Morgan > Superintendent > > -----Original Message----- > From: Alison Dwyer, Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 1:05 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: [Bikies] Biking in Quarry Park > > > It has been announced that the Madison City Parks Commission is > considering prohibiting bicycles from Quarry Park, on Madison's near-West > side. Located behind Whole Foods (street address anyone?), it is one of > the only places in Madison to take a mountain bike on trails. The area is > relatively small, and dense with trails, an urban playground for many. A > local man told me that the use of the trails has increased a lot in the > past five years...(more demand=cut off of supply?) > > To register your opposition, please attend the Madison City Parks > Commission Meeting at Warner Park Recreation Center, WED, OCT. 9, 7:30PM. > > > _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.danenet.org/mailman/listinfo/bikies
