The spectacular natural resources and endless recreational opportunities enjoyed by those of us who live in and visit the central Sierra region are what brought us here, and keep bringing us back. And yet, there remains a critical disconnect between the forces which continue to attract more and more people to the area and the funding sources needed to maintain, expand and connect the recreational areas to which people are drawn. Our recreational infrastructure continues to be overlooked in favor of other priorities, or simply left out of the equation altogether.
Recognizing these issues was one of the first steps that led to the formal creation of the Sierra Front Recreation Coalition several years ago. The concept originally started to come together in 2000, according to Desna Young, Planning & Environmental Coordinator for the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Carson City Field Office. Young was looking for a new challenge and was lured back to the government post to help spearhead and organize the nascent group through the leadership of Ed Gee, the Deputy Forest Service Ranger from the Tahoe Basin; Carson District Ranger Gary Schiff; John Singlaub, Carson City Field Manager at the time; and Mark Kimbrough, then with Nevada State Parks. They all agreed that recreation was an incredible asset to their communities and contributed to the quality of life residents and visitors not only enjoyed but expected. Young helped to achieve consensus on the group’s moniker, its purpose and mission, and authored its original map product, ‘Lake Tahoe & Beyond the Rim, 101 Recreational Opportunities.’ Young describes the memorandum that was penned between 30 different agencies and allowed the sharing of GIS information to create the map as ‘a significant change in business as usual between local municipalities and government agencies,’ with the entire process taking two and a half years to finalize. Funding from the Carson City Parks & Recreation Department, United States Forest Service, Nevada State Parks, Douglas County, and the National Geographic Society jumpstarted these initial efforts. Interestingly, Mark Kimbrough now serves as the Executive Director of the Tahoe Rim Trail Association and also serves as Sierra Front’s Treasurer, and John Singlaub is now serving as the Executive Director of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.
The Coalition’s founding members, with the help of the Carson and Tahoe areas of the Forest Service, the BLM and Nevada State Parks, began the process of delineating a staggering eight million dollars worth of unfunded and backlogged recreational infrastructure projects. The projects varied across agencies, but many had a common element. The combination of a steady rise in user populations and funding shortfalls were putting an incredible strain on natural and man-made systems. Trail congestion and parking shortages, conflicts between different types of uses and user groups, and neighborhoods being cut off from traditional trail access are just a few of the issues that became immediately apparent.
From essential upgrades to sewer and water facilities at Sand Harbor in the Nevada State Parks System to clean-up, monitoring, trail maintenance and improvements on BLM land, the gaps seemed to be widening. There was an inherent understanding that solving these enormous issues was going to require an exercise in cross-jurisdictional collaboration unlike any other, and Sierra Front began to form active partnerships of federal, state, and local agencies, trails organizations, nonprofits, community groups, recreation providers, businesses, and individuals. The ultimate goal: a coordinated partnership engaged in the planning, management and stewardship of a Sierra Front Recreation and Trails system.
Some notable private entities have recognized this dilemma and come forward to assist monetarily the Coalition in its mission. REI, the Recreational Equipment Company store based in Reno, has awarded grants for the past two years. REI will be presenting a $15,000 check to Sierra Front in the coming weeks to help fund three new initiatives: the ’50 Trails’ Program, the creation of an interactive volunteer database on the Sierrafront.org website, and co-hosting the 2007 Trails and Leadership Training conference in May. Also, in a unique partnership with Mt. Rose-Ski Tahoe, a neighbor in close proximity to the visionary Reno to Rim Trail project, season pass purchasers were asked to make a voluntary donation of five dollars to Sierra Front. More than 1,600 of them did just that. Mt. Rose-Ski Tahoe has also generously agreed to donate $5,000 per year for the next three years to help complete the project, which will eventually link the city of Reno with the Tahoe Basin and the Tahoe Rim Trail.
Paquita Bath, a Truckee-based consultant who has been a driving force behind the Sierra Front, is excited about the Coalition’s progress and direction. ‘I am especially pleased with the Board’s recent decision to bring Beth Ingalls, who just retired from the Truckee Town Council, on board to help move the Sierra Front Recreation Coalition forward from here,’ she said.
Chuck Greene, President of Sierra Front’s Board of Directors, is a passionate man with a fervent belief in its mission. He is eager to engage the public in the Reno to Tahoe Rim Trail project as well as many others being developed and planned for the region. ‘Providing more opportunities to meet the many different recreation interests, coupled with greater resource stewardship, is our goal,’ he said. Certainly the Sierra Front Recreation Coalition’s vision statement is one he also believes will someday be a reality….The Sierra Front Recreation and Trails system will be a world-class, area-wide, seamless network of outdoor recreation opportunities.
For information, visit sierrafront.org.
