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HomeMy WebLinkAbout6.2 Bay Trail PlanCITY OF DUBLIN PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION AGENDA STATEMENT MEETING DATE: April 11, 1989 SUBJECT Bay Trail Plan EXHIBITS ATTACHED A. Executive Summary - Draft Bay Trail Plan B. Draft Resolution Supporting Bay Trail Plan RECOMMENDATION Direct Staff to Submit Resolution of Support to City Council FINANCIAL STATEMENT : None DESCRIPTION Staff has received correspondence from Susan P. Phillips, Project Manager of the proposed Bay Trail Plan soliciting a resolution of support from the City for the Bay Trail Plan. The Bay Trail Plan proposes development of a regional hiking and bicycling trail around the perimeter of San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. The plan was prepared by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) pursuant to Senate Bill 100, which mandated that the Bay Trail: Provide connections to existing park and recreation facilities Create links to existing and proposed transportation facilities, and Be planned in such a way as to avoid adverse effects on environmentally sensitive areas The plan proposes an alignment of what will become a 400-mile recreational "ring around the Bay". The Executive Summary of the Draft Bay Trail Plan has been attached for review by the Commission. Also attached is a draft resolution in support of the Bay Trail for consideration by the Commission. It is staffs recommendation that the Commission review the Executive Summary of the Bay Trail Plan and direct staff to submit the resolution of support for the plan to the City Council for adoption. Complete copies of the Draft Bay Trail Plan are available from staff should the Commission so desire. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ITEM NO.Z.Z Copies to: RESOLUTION NO. -89 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF THE BAY TRAIL WHEREAS, the Association of Bay Area Governments, in cooperation with local, regional, State and Federal agencies, and environmental and recreational organizations throughout the nine Bay Area counties, has developed a plan for the Bay Trail; and WHEREAS, the Bay Trail will link recreation and open space areas throughout the San Francisco Bay region with 400 miles of hiking and bicycling facilities; and WHEREAS, the Bay Trail will enhance opportunities for recreational walking and recreational and commute bicycling for Bay Area residents; and WHEREAS, the Bay Trail will secure access to the Bay without conflicting with efforts to preserve the Bay and its natural environment. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT THE City Council of the City of Dublin does hereby endorse the Bay Trail Plan. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this th day of , 198_ AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ATTEST: City Clerk Mayor Executive Summary The Bay Trail Plan The Bay Trail Plan proposes development of a regional hiking and bicycling trail around the perimteter of San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. The Plan was prepared by the Association of Bay Area Governments pursuant to Senate Bill 100, which mandated that the Bay Trail: • provide connections to existing park and recreation facilities, • create links to existing and proposed transportation facilities, and • be planned in such a way as to avoid adverse effects on environmentally sensitive areas. Bay Trail Alignment This plan proposes an alignment for what will become a 400-mile recreational "ring around the Bay." When developed, the Bay Trail will be a trail system comprised of three components: • spine trails, encircling the Bay and creating a continuous recreational corridor which links all nine Bay Area counties; • spur trails, providing access from the spine trail to points of natural, historic and cultural interest along the Bay shoreline; and • connector trails, providing restricted access to interpretive trails in environmentally -sensitive areas along the shoreline and connections to recreational opportunities as well as residential and employment centers inland from the Bay. Approximately one-third of the trail already exists, either as hildng-only paths, hiking and bicyding paths or as on -street bicycle lanes. Bay Trail Policies The Bay Trail Plan also contains policies to guide selection of the trail route and implementation of the trail system. Policies fall into five categories: 1) Trail alignment policies reflect the goals of the Bay Trail program -to develop a continuous trail which highlights the wide variety of recreational and interpretive experiences offered by the diverse bay environment and is situated as close as feasible to the shoreline, within the constraints defined by other policies of the plan. 2) Trail design policies underscore the importance of creating a trail which is accessible to the widest possible range of trail users and which is designed to respect the natural or built environments through which it passes. Minimum design guidelines for trail development are recommended for application by implementing agencies. 3) Environmental protection policies underscore the importance of the San Francesco Bay's natural environment and define the relationship of the proposed trail to sensitive natural environments such as wetlands. 4) Transportation access policies reflect the need for bicycle and pedestrian access on Bay Area toll bridges, in order to create a continuous trail and to permit cross -bay connections as alternative trail routes. 5) Implementation policies state that successful implementation of the Bay Trail Plan will require continuing trail advocacy, oversight, and a structure for trail management. Draft Bay Trail Plan Page iii Executive Summory Overview of Issues 1 When completed, the Bay Trail will create connections between more than 90 parks and publicly -accessible open space areas around San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. By providing access to a wide array of commercial ferries and public boat launches, the trail will establish connections to "water trails" which will enable outdoor enthusiasts to appreciate the Bay not only from the shoreline, but from the water as well. Trail access across all seven of the Bay Area's toll bridges is proposed, defining a series of trail 'loops" which will provide a variety of excursions for hikers and bicyclists of varying abilities. To increase options for trail access from homes and worksites, the proposed alignment provides connections to local and regional transit— BART, Santa Clara County's light rail trolley system, and Caltrain—which can themselves become extensions of the Bay Area's recreational network. Trail connections to existing and planned local bikeway systems will encourage recreational as well as commute bicycling, as safer bicycle networks are established and expanded. While the trail will provide access to wetlands and other sensitive natural features along the Bay's shoreline, Bay Trail policies were designed specifically to protect these areas. Existing bay fill (primarily in the form of levees) provides shoreline trail access in many locations, and trail design policies require that trail design, construction and use be appropriate to the surroundings. Relationship to Other Plans and Policies Bay Trail policies and design guidelines are intended to complement, rather than supplant the adopted regulations and guidelines of local managing agencies. Implementation of the Bay Trail will rely on the continued cooperation among shoreline property owners, the hundreds of local, regional, state and federal agencies with jurisdiction over the trail alignment, the numerous trusts and foundations which operate in the region, and the countless environmental and recreational interests whose members care deeply about the future of the Bay Area. This extraordinary regional cooperation has already begun with the work of the Bay Trail Advisory Committee, which drafted the recommendations presented here, and the ABAG Regional Planning Committee and Executive Board, which will adopt the final plan. Specific recommendations for structuring a framework for Bay Trail implemention which can build on these initial efforts are currently being developed by the Bay Trail Advisory Committee, and will be incorporated into the final Bay Trail Plan. F1111 H'. Draft Bay Trail Plan Page iv Marin County to Ken tfieldQ 0O io RUJ* Toot 0- 460* San Francisco to San Bruno Mountain 0 0 0 0 San Mateo ©°o: � County �� 4 (t) The Bay Trail 000 0 • Spine and Spur Trails 00000 Connector Trails T N OABAG Alameda County ' • •• off$ • •go:0 00�����i o �' ° 0 o ° •t•o 0 o ° Santa Clara © 0 0 t County o o °ao o ° c° °o to Stevens Creek to to Los Gatos Morg3n Fill Reservoir Creek Trail Fage v