rosewood canyon - setbacks in preserving open space

As many of you know, a few months ago I blogged about Rosewood Canyon, and the efforts of our local folks to preserve the area.

We made great progress, and everything was looking good. Our residents wrote letters, made calls, sent emails, handed out flyers, went before Council, attended neighborhood meetings... in grass roots fashion, they did as much as they could in the ways they could. And we made a difference. We got the measure we wanted into the Open Space and Greenways Plan. The future of the Canyon was looking good.

Until now.

Unfortunately, some folks have decided they don't agree with the idea of a trail. I respect their opinions, but I'd really sad at the result of their advocacy. The Council has now instructed Staff to pull the trail from the Plan after hearing from this handful of residents.

What's important here is this: this decision isn't just about the trail being built or not built -- it has the potential to erode the commitment made previously to preserving the Canyon overall. For me, it represents some of what I've already seen on the trail that does exist: a few private residents being able to influence more broadly than the many. It's frustrating, it's confusing and it's reminding me that I'm so NOT a politician and am out of my element! With my travel schedule, and where I access my news, it's hard to stay on top of what's happening locally, even in areas I want to be informed about. I'm adding the keyword feed to my Netvibes page in hopes this will help me stay more on top of things!

In the meantime, help support Rosewood Canyon! You can read the article about the recent decision (and you'll see a comment from me in response to it as well under the screen name lplato) here: http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008808210362