The Snohomish County executive’s 2024 budget has recommended $2 million to swap parking lots at Lord Hill Regional Park.
The upper parking lot at Lord Hill Regional Park will need extensive regrading to reconfigure it for horse trailers. Even though right next door is the equestrian parking lot that was created for horse trailers in 2009 when they were moved from the upper lot. It has easy access on a level road and adequate space for up to 12 trailers.
Equestrians were promised many times by the former park director that it would “always be an equestrian lot.”
As a taxpayer, I am appalled at this waste of funds that could better be used elsewhere, hire more park personnel or develop other park property or build a more suitable mountain bike park.
As a long time user of the equestrian parking lot and a longer time user of Lord Hill (50-plus years of riding my horses there starting when it was state land), I am angered by the broken promise. Every time I would share with former Park Director Tom Teigen that an equestrian was told by a biker that “they would get our parking lot,” he assured me repeatedly that it would never happen.
I read that the purpose of changing lots is to separate out user groups, horses and mountain bikers. However, the “plan” routes all equestrian use to a multi-use trail (including bikes) that has steep hills (think speeding bikes) and blind corners. Horses are flight animals, and the sudden appearance of a bike can cause them to spook and possibly whirl and run. I know several riders who have had mountain bikes nearly run into their horses.
Fortunately, there are opportunities to voice concerns about the budget in person and on Zoom. There is a hearing set for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8.
The hearing will be held in the Henry H. Jackson Board Room, eighth floor, Administration Building at 3000 Rockefeller Ave, in Everett. Zoom meeting link: https://zoom.us/j/94846850772
We also can voice opinions to the County Council at contact.council@snoco.org but must be done by Nov. 8.
Pat Pehling
Snohomish
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