Frustration at the End of the Trail : More should be done to secure land to complete horse and bike paths

Last week’s compromise by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on a planned network of horse and bike trails may be the fairest approach to a tough public policy dilemma, but it doesn’t go far enough toward reaching the goal.

In 1976, the county adopted a master plan for an interlocking network of more than 300 miles of off-road trails for horseback riders, bicyclists, hikers and joggers. Employing “mandatory dedications” of land when legally permissible, the county acquired 46 miles of trail by 1982.

After opposition from property owners, the policy was changed to allow only voluntary dedications of rights of way. The result was the addition of just 2.5 miles of trail in the following five years.

The demand for mandatory dedications resurfaced in recent years as trail advocates began pushing for expansion of the network, pitting themselves against residents who claim that the county would be confiscating their land for the trails.

Trail proponents had asked for dedications of land from any property owner seeking a permit of any kind, a demand that is clearly unfair to people like Ramona resident Harold Enloe. Enloe testified that the county forced him to dedicate a trail through his land when he applied to add a bedroom to his rural home.

But the supervisors’ compromise falls short of fostering a connected network of trails. Under the new plan, only subdividers who carve their land into five parcels or more will be required to trade trail land for building rights.

With stretches of land not owned by major builders, it would be impossible to create a full trail network under that policy. That will keep horses and cyclists on busy thoroughfares in some places, perpetuating unsafe conditions.

It seems fair to ask big builders to donate slices of land for trails; they commonly trade roads, open space, parks and fire stations in return for special building rights.

Such a scheme would, however, be unfair to smaller, individual property owners, like Enloe, who deserve the protection the new policy will give them.

If the trail network is going to be built, the county will have to consider buying smaller landowners’ holdings or plotting the routes away from their land.

One source of money for acquisition is a $10-per-horse fee that is not now collected because of the high cost of enforcement.

Bicyclists also may have to pitch in with a license fee if they want to someday roam backwoods trails without crossing an auto’s path.