Trailhead planning to begin
On Nov. 20, Healdsburg history was made when the Healdsburg City Council voted to approve the Fitch Mountain Park and Open Space Preserve Management Plan and to then accept ownership of the 173-acre preserve.
Mark Themig, City of Healdsburg Community Services Director and staff liaison to the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission said, “The city is really excited to be bringing forward Fitch Mountain for the public’s enjoyment forever, so we’re grateful for all of the support that we received. It really was a milestone in the project, transferring it to the city where it will be held in perpetuity.”
“The transfer was the pinnacle of decades of work by community members and elected officials to ensure that Fitch Mountain would be protected forever for the public,” said Themig. “We’re grateful for those elected officials, like Senator Mike McGuire who had the vision to champion the effort.”
“We had great assistance from our partners, which included the Open Space District, which funded the ($1.5 million) acquisition, LandPaths (Land Partners Through Stewardship) which held the property in the (three-year) interim as the city completed the management plan and geared up for the ultimate ownership of it,” said Themig. “The transfer was really something that will be forever remembered by the community and the public for protecting Fitch Mountain.”
“LandPaths has been an important partner in this,” said Themig. “They really bring stewardship skills to the table.”
Craig Anderson of LandPaths stated at the city council meeting, “Landpaths has been honored to be foster parents of the mountain.”
“It was a long process,” said Themig. “We had a lot of public input, which was really wonderful, because it really demonstrated how much the community cares about Fitch Mountain. I think the final product of the management plan demonstrates the community’s interest in the property. It acknowledges the importance of natural resources and it really establishes our direction on how we take care of it into the future.”
The goals of the management plan are “to protect the mountain’s biodiversity, soil and aquatic resources and ecological functions, and to protect the mountain’s scenic values … Provide public recreational and educational opportunities that are compatible with the protection of natural resources.” The city has also added the goal of “managing the preserve to reduce fire hazard.”
“The management plan really establishes the long term vision for the property,” said Themig. “The property has been used by the public for generations essentially, by both pre-settlement Europeans and current generations. So what the management plan tries to do is it tries to assess the current condition of the property and then put forward a plan not only for how we provide public access, but also how we take care of this important resource, forever essentially.”
On Dec. 18, the city council approved a contract with Prunuske Chatham, Inc. (PCI) which was also the environmental consultant on the Fitch Mountain project, for regulatory compliance, design and construction drawings for public access improvements, for a cost of $149,830. There was one nay vote. Councilmember Leah Gold supports the project, but had concerns about the cost.
“I think the contract is reflective of the work that needs to happen,” said Themig. “If you look at the plan for creating public access, then it doesn’t on the surface appear like a lot of work. But there’s a lot of water issues that have to be addressed, there’s a ravine that has to be crossed, so we’re talking about a bridge. There’s significant erosion issues occurring in the area, on the trails that were more informal that people made over time and we’ll be correcting all of that as well as creating some accessible pathways for people who might have disabilities.”
“We’ll be looking at longer term plans to make improvements around the trailhead area with restrooms and things like that,” explained Themig. “We’re going to design it all in one stage, but it will be designed so that it can be built in multiple stages.”
“I think one of the important things is the timing,” said Themig. “The property essentially has been open to the public informally, unofficially under LandPath’s ownership and that will continue. We’re actually going to do some interim signage installation to give people more information about the project and about the overall development. Depending on how long it takes for us to move through the design plans will dictate when we can actually build those improvements.”
“I am hopeful that we can move through that design process in the next six months, but there’s permitting required and things like that,” Themig explained. “If we can move through quicker, then there’s a chance we can get out and do the construction during the dry season. If it takes longer, due to technical issues or whatever the case might be, then we’re probably pushing into early 2019 for construction of the improvements.”
“There’s a lot of work to be done,” said Themig. “We’re going to call on the community. There will be some work that will be contracted out, because it will be technical in nature and relates to water management, erosion control and things like that, but then there’ll be a lot of work that can be completed by the public.”
“One of the key things in the management plan is the stewardship program,” said Themig. “Landpaths has done a great job of starting that and getting the community involved in taking care of the property.”
Ray Holley, Managing Editor at Sonoma West Publishers and a founding member of the Fitch Mountain Fund described French Broom, an invasive and highly-flammable species that chokes out native plants, and LandPath’s efforts to eradicate it from the mountain.
Holley and other community members led by Senator Mike McGuire, formed the Fitch Mountain Fund, “as part of an effort to create a long-term, sustainable funding source to help steward Fitch Mountain into the future.”
The Fitch Mountain Fund will host its 2018 Fitch Mountain Forever fundraiser on Earth Day, April 22, at the Villa Chanticleer.
Josie Gay, of the Fitch Mountain Fund said, “we just couldn’t think of a better day to celebrate the mountain, of course. It’s a really important opportunity for us to raise awareness and to raise money for the fund.”
Gay said the celebration fundraiser was rescheduled from last November because, “we thought it was really important for people to focus their efforts on fire relief.”
Gay said, “One of the greatest benefits of the mountain is that it’s a place we can all enjoy.” She said the Earth Day event, “will be a really great opportunity for the community to come together and celebrate our largest open space and park here in town.”
“It’s a really remarkable event.” said Gay. “This has been a long time in the making and there’s been a lot of work put into it. This really is the culmination of our community’s effort to protect and preserve this beautiful mountain and playground in our backyard.”
Gay said, “We’re going to have a barbecue, live music and local wineries and breweries involved and of course, a small live auction which State Senator Mike McGuire will lead, and it’s just really a fun time to bring a very diverse variety of community members together.”
“I really love this event, because events like this that support parks and open space bring together people of all walks of life, of all ages, of all interests,” said Gay.
Gay recounted a moment from the Fitch Mountain Forever fundraising event in 2016, “when people from all sides of all issues sat together at tables celebrating the mountain together. I’ll never forget that moment,” said Gay. “This mountain brings our community together.”
