Lewis County ATV meeting, 6/6, 5:00 PM Lowville Court House

[chris]

All,

I heard tonight, that there is a big meeting on 6/6 at the Lewis Cuonty courthouse that will have a big influence on the opening of county roads and the apointment of a ATV trail coordinator.  I will be there and if anyone else is going let me know.

Thanks
Chris

[krabidKVF650]

Did anything good come from the meeting?

[chris]

It appears that Lewis County has opened 4 roads.  One is 7x9 and the others I am not sure of.  I am going to do search here in a minute in the Watertown daily to see what I can find.  On June 20 it appears they are having another meeting to discuss the areas between tug hill and Brantingham.

In the decision last night it was a unanimous vote to start opening roads.  We will see what happens from here.

Chris

[RAGE]

Legislators approve opening land to ATVs

LEWIS COUNTY: Laws will establish regulations for access; trail development
coordinator is selected

By STEVE VIRKLER
TIMES STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, June 07, 2006

LOWVILLE - Lewis County legislators on Tuesday approved opening selected
county reforestation lands and four county road portions to all-terrain
vehicles.

They also learned that Robert C. Diehl, a resident of the Jefferson County
town of Lorraine, will be the county's first trail development coordinator.
County legislators voted 9-0 on a pair of laws that would establish
regulations for ATV access on county reforestation land and open four county
road portions totaling 11.5 miles to ATVs. Legislator Richard C. Lucas,
R-Barnes Corners, abstained on both votes since he owns the Montague Inn,
which caters to recreational vehicle traffic.

The proposed law would allow the county forester, in consultation with the
Planning Department, to designate trails on reforestation land for ATV use.
County officials have identified 33 parcels that could be opened.
The road portions that were opened are as follows: 1.5 miles of Hermitage
Road in the town of Diana, 5.5 miles of Sears Pond and Liberty roads in the
town of Montague, 2.5 miles of Number Four Road in the town of New Bremen
and 2 miles of Seven By Nine Road in the town of Pinckney.

At their final meeting of 2005, county legislators voted to rescind the 2001
law opening portions of 39 county roads to ATV traffic. They cited an
opinion from the state attorney general's office that roads should be opened
only to access actual trails or other riding areas, not other roads or
commercial parking lots.

"I'm passionate about getting ATVs off the roads," Janette M. Peek of Watson
told legislators.

Mrs. Peek said that the road openings increase the liability of motorists
and that legislators could be held personally liable for an accident if they
are declared negligent in passing the law. She also showed legislators large
maps of each of the roads in question and suggested that there are no open
trails along those roads. That sentiment was echoed in several letters to
the county that were read by Legislative Clerk Teresa K. Clark.

Former State Supreme Court Justice John S. Parker also suggested that
legislators may be "premature" in their road openings, particularly Number
Four Road.

The county law justifies the road openings by stating that they provide
access to existing private trails or state truck trails.
"You're talking people's jobs; people's livelihoods," said Richard G.
Seller, president of the Lewis County ATV Association, referring to the
economic impact of the ATV industry.

"ATVs are a fact of life," said County Republican Chairman Samuel F.
Villanti of Brantingham.

While he's not an ATV enthusiast, Mr. Villanti said he wishes that opponents
would provide suggestions for how to make the situation better.
Mr. Lucas, chairman of the legislative Planning Committee, hopes the hiring
of a trail development coordinator, effective June 19, will do just that.
Mr. Diehl was hired for the $40,000-per-year position mainly because of his
extensive environmental knowledge and strong interview skills, Mr. Lucas
said after the meeting.

"This person is obviously going to have to interview every day of the job,"
he said, noting Mr. Diehl is also a "down-to-earth guy."
Mr. Diehl for the past two years has worked as a surveyor and environmental
tester for Syracuse environmental engineering firm Blasland, Bouck and Lee.
He was also a surveyor for three firms from 1998 to 2004.

"I'm excited to be back in the north country," said Mr. Diehl from Chicago,
Ill., noting his current job requires extensive travel.

Mr. Diehl earned a bachelor's degree in English from SUNY New Paltz in 1992,
and in 1997 earned an associate's degree in forest technology from SUNY
College of Environmental Science and Forestry Ranger School at Wanakena.
Legislators on Tuesday also set a public hearing for 5 p.m. June 20 on a
proposed law opening 3 miles of Whitesville Road in Pinckney and 1.5 miles
of Brantingham Road in Greig to ATVs.

[chris]

Thanks Rage for the post.  Mrs Peek was a pain and took alot of our time.  She is one of those unflexible by the book types that emphasized one example.  She pretty much had a one track mind that could not be changed.  Fortunately the board had a lot more sense than she had.

Chris

[krabidKVF650]

Thanks for all the GREAT, Positive info.

Ken

[Scooter86]

Cool, now we all have to reward these people by getting a ride set up and show our appreciation.