Comments on: No Bikes Past River McMansions

By: Jacki Liddell

Jacki Liddell — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 16:43:42 +0000

COG - Citizens for an Open Greenbelt Website is up and running with tons of info and copies of key historical documents http://idahocog.org Visit there and sign the guestbook if you would like updates on this issue. Also, if you would like to leave comments, there is a new Yahoo Group "IdahoCOG" where there are copies of many messages to and from the Garden City Council. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IdahoCOG/ Finally, if you are interested... a little birdie told me that you might want to tune in to the Channel Six News tonight (2/17/2008)

By: LJ

LJ — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 23:59:10 +0000

It gets more interesting. I suggest anyone who is interested in this, or Garden City in general attend a few city council meetings. You may be suprised about how the elected officials view the changes in the city, specifically a few of the older city council members (Jeff Souza, Pam Beaumont, and Elfreda Higgins).

By: Rod in SE Boise

Rod in SE Boise — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 01:32:25 +0000

The asphalted bike path part of the greenbelt from River Run to Barber Park is not difficlult to follow, unless you are geographically challenged.

I have even seen a guy on a motorcycle on the walking-only gravel part of the path. Our society, and to some degree, our freedom, are defined by the level of chaos.

By: Gary Segers

Gary Segers — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 01:31:51 +0000

My thanks to those who have posted some earlier messages on the Garden
City bike ban in Riverside Village. Allow me to introduce our group.

We are called Citizens for an Open Greenbelt (COG). COG is a grassroots
advocacy group dedicated to supporting the stated goal of the Treasure
Valley Greenbelts… to provide continuous open space along the river
for non-motorized, mixed use for the citizens of Idaho. COG’s current
initiative is to open the Garden City Riverside Village Greenbelt to
bicycles, as well as pedestrians, as these public trust lands were
mandated to be by the State of Idahoover 30 years ago. We will post more
information at our website that will soon be available.

Garden City officials have told the public, residents of Riverside
Village, and the media that the Riverside Village Greenbelt has
historically been a “Pedestrian Only” Path? Over 250 pages of public
documents in our possession and interviews with many key public
officials say otherwise. The facts are this:

Riverside Village Greenbelt was mandated by the State of Idaho to be a
bicycle path as a condition for approval of the Riverside Village
development in1980. Most startling is the fact that in 1994 the State of
Idaho sued the developer, Intermountain Forest Industries (John Evans,
Manager) and Evans Brothers Construction Company for failure to abide by
the provisions of the “1980 Agreement” mandating the RV pathway be a
bike path! This is the same John Evans who is now Mayor of Garden City.

Until our website is up we have posted several documents and pictures at
the following links:

The Riverside Village Greenbelt History details at –
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dsrczvh_108gzxvttfn

Greenbelt photos”Unsafe and Too Narrow?” at –
http://picasaweb.google.com/greasyregs

RV Greenbelt “Unsafe and Too Narrow?” slides –
http://docs.google.com/Presentation?id=dsrczvh_9945gghfc8

COG has informally presented this information and supporting documents
to two Garden City council members – Jeff Souza and Elfreda Higgins.
Both claim they’ve relied on information about the Riverside Greenbelt
from Mayor John Evans and residents of Riverside Village. Even after
providing them with documents they insist they 1980 Agreement is not
valid!

At this time we ask that you do three things:

1 – Convey this information to others who believe that the Greenbelt
should be open for ALL non-motorized users without restriction all the
way from Lucky Peak to Eagle Island State Park. Ask them to send us an
e-mail so that we can keep them posted on developments –
greenbeltbikeban@clearwire.net

2 – Contact Garden City Council Members and Mayor John Evans and demand
that the RV Greenbelt be opened for mixed, non motorized use. We will
compile a record of actions and messages, so if you would be so kind as
to share a copy of your correspondence with us, we would very much
appreciate it.

3 – Write letters to the Statesman and Boise Weekly and demand that the
RV Greenbelt be opened for mixed, non motorized use.

Ride on!

Gary Segers
Citizens for an Open Greenbelt

Here are e-mail addresses for your reference

Mayor John Evans jevans@gardencityidaho.org

Pam Beaumont pbeaumont@gardencityidaho.org

Elfreda Higgins ehiggins@gardencityidaho.org

Jeff Souza jsouza@gardencityidaho.org

Mike Moser mmoser@gardencityidaho.org

By: boisecynic

boisecynic — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:19:00 +0000

Don is correct. The so-called bike route on the south side in southeast Boise is a labyrinth from Hades, to say the least. Meanwhile, over here by the Clocktower Pond, it's anarchy. The gangs that hang out on summer afternoons monopolize the dock, break glass bottles, leave tons of litter and have repeatedly vandalized the docks. Oh, did I mention the speeding on Pleasanton and the burnouts in the lovely gravel parking lot? And the city of Boise enforces a no bike rule on the Greenbelt. Give me a break! I can't tell you how much litter I've picked up around the Clocktower Pond and also on the river with the Boise River Volunteers Group. I should be given a special license to ride on those no-bike sections. Maybe the guardian would be kind enough to do a whole bit about the problems over on the west end, the poor part of the greenbelt, the Rodney Dangerfield part of the greenbelt. At least publish this photo of the vandalized dock. http://i28.tinypic.com/14ul0cw.jpg

By: LJ

LJ — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 21:38:33 +0000

Gordon said: “Would the GC police really have the guts to try to arrest that many people?”

Gordon-
I think you missed my point. The GC Police may not have a choice on whether or not they enforce the stupid ordinance on that bike path. It isn’t a matter of them having time (they don’t) it is a matter of WHAT the City Council and the mayor mandate the Chief to do. Trust me, NONE of the GC Cops think it would be exciting or fun to mess with bikers along a path who aren’t actually hurting anyone.

Garden City has the highest crime rate in Ada County (based on population of course) and the cops definately would spend their time in other spots when given the choice. The problem is the leadership of the city who have their own agendas to pursue.

By the way…anyone know who the developer of Riverside Sub was?

By: Porcupine

Porcupine — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 11:10:20 +0000

Now I brave the dirty looks from walkers and just buzz down the gravel path.

well Don I guess your the kind of a guy that if he doesn’t like a rule or a law you just break it.

But keep this in mind, I have seen the police give tickets on the walking/running path to bikes. I’ll make sure the mayors hot line gets a call about the bikes on walking only paths this Spring just for you 😉

And Mr. Guardian your a big travel kind of guy, I’m sure you have seen the bike only… and the walker only lanes in Amsterdam. It not that big of a deal or a equal rights issue to them. It has to do with safety.

By: Gordon

Gordon — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 06:54:46 +0000

Sounds like it’s time for a “critical mass” ride.
Get a hundred or so (or, better yet, a thousand) bikes rolling back and forth on that stretch, and see what happens.
Would the GC police really have the guts to try to arrest that many people? And, if they did, what would they do with them? Send them to Guantanamo? Sure no room for them in the local lockups — especially if they all refused to pay the fine and demanded jail time instead.
Yeah, yeah, I know; it ain’t gonna happen. Not that many gutsy people around.
If I still lived in that area, though, I’d sure be willing to ride in such an event; sometimes such extremes are the only way to get the matter straightened out.
And, as one who both rode and walked the Greenbelt when I lived in the area, I understand the frustration of trying to walk among idiotic and impolite bikers. So, if the G.C. cops have time to go hassle and cite or arrest people for riding there, better they should use that time to stop and hassle and cite or arrest riders who don’t pay attention to where they’re going, don’t obey the rules (speed limits, yielding to pedestrians, warning when you’re going to pass walkers, etc.).
I got hit only twice while walking the path; one was total accident with no real fault (or both of us at fault, depending on how you look at it) — both riding near the center around a curve, and, obviously, not being as careful as we should have. The other one was an idiot rider — he sent me spinning a bit, but he crashed big-time. Dunno whether he or his bike got hurt, and don’t care — didn’t care then, either, so didn’t stop to see how he was, just regained my balance and went on strolling along.

If a biker traveling real fast hits you, I hope you can react quickly enough to grab a handlebar and hold on– it’ll help you keep upright, and it’s fun to watch the rider go flying through the air and maybe do a face plant. 🙂

By: Don

Don — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 23:55:30 +0000

The messy path laid out for bikers that detours around the River Run stretch has poor signage – mingles with cars, takes you out on to ParkCenter. I remember the first time I tried it, I got completely lost. Now I brave the dirty looks from walkers and just buzz down the gravel path.

By: CYCLOPS

CYCLOPS — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 19:47:03 +0000

I was always told that the high water mark is established as the criteria for a “navigable waterway” If a 14″ log can be floated down a waterway at normal flow, it is then designated a navigable waterway and falls under the jurisdiction of the Army Corps of Engineers. It is protected from closure inside 50’of the high water mark. I would hesitate setting up decoys and totin’ a shotgun, as it would probably draw an interest from the Garden City police and/or the Ada Countuy Sheriff, thus hurting an arguement for allowed access. So, even though they can’t prevent a presence on the river, they can, and do, make it difficult to access. I agree with Don, just go ahead and ride through and dare them to make an issue of it.