GOLD BAR — State officials have bumped back their plans to work on new trails at Reiter Foothills so they can first respond to an outpouring of public complaints.
More than 400 responses were received during an environmental review of the state’s plans, said Candace Johnson, an assistant regional manager with the Department of Natural Resources.
Officials wanted to respond to the comments by last December, but now believe their timetable will be moved back by at least a month.
“We’re really sorry for any inconvenience that this causes folks, but we need them to be patient,” Johnson said.
The news of the delay riled off-road users like Mike Leibold, 68, who owns Everett Powersports. He is pursuing legal action against the state to reopen the site.
“There will be every kind of delay that they can conjure up,” Leibold said.
The 10,000-acre forest was shut down in early November, angering off-road enthusiasts who have frequented it for decades.
About 250 people attended a public meeting in October, expressing doubt and dismay with the state’s plans to redraw the riding trails on a smaller parcel of land.
Mark Mauren, an assistant division manager with the Department of Natural Resources, attended that meeting.
“They feel that this is a ploy on the DNR’s part to close the ORV (off-road vehicle) users out across the state, which isn’t true,” he said.
State officials say the work is necessary to keep trails from running across streams and causing erosion on the public land.
Many people who ride off-road vehicles disagree with that plan, Leibold included. He said the closure at Reiter Foothills is among the reasons business dropped at Everett Powersports.
“One is the economic climate, the other is the closure,” Leibold said. “There’s no place to ride.”
Andy Rathbun: 425-339-3455, arathbun@heraldnet.com.
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