Forest road repair discussed

CALIFORNIA HOT SPRINGS — Major repairs on sections of Deer Creek Mill Road and Last Chance Road in the Sequoia National Forest could begin as soon as 2011 and pave the way for smoother access to the area’s Giant Sequoia groves.

About 25 people attended a public forum Wednesday evening in California Hot Springs to discuss the proposal to reconstruct the unpaved roadways, both of which show visible signs of erosion damage and drainage blockages.

The project, currently under analysis, would require the approval of an application to the federally funded Legacy Road and Trails Remediation Initiative. The program provides money to rectify damaged roads in a bid to improve environmental conditions for drainage basins.

“We’re looking to improve roads that have been badly eroded,” Forest Service District Ranger Priscilla Summers said.

Summers, who presented the project’s aims to the seated attendees, fielded a number of comments and suggestions at the meeting. She said the responses will be compiled, analyzed and taken into account prior to the finalization of the project’s goals.

One of the roads in question, Deer Creek Mill, was unexpectedly closed earlier in the year due to increasingly poor driving conditions.

“It got worse and worse and we didn’t want folks getting stuck up there,” she said.

Homeowner Tom Holland expressed concern that the suggested Deer Creek Mill improvements, which would upgrade the road from a maintenance level two to level three, could limit his ability to ride an off highway vehicle in the area.

“So now every time you gravel a road, it’s going to be OHV excluded?” Holland asked.

The proposed improvements, aimed at making the road an easier trek for passenger vehicles, would cover the road with one-inch aggregate surfacing, widen portions to 14 feet and alter bank slopes, among other alterations. Summers said a mixed use analysis would be one way to determine if the road, once upgraded to Level 3 status, could be safely used for both types of vehicles.

“It’s not our intent to exclude folks,” she added.

A second section of Deer Creek Mill that would be included in the project, referred to as the “A spur,” would remain at a maintenance level two.

Many of the comments came from homeowners who have witnessed the roads change through decades of living in the Hot Springs area.

Dan Bates, who owns 450 acres in the area, conveyed frustration that poor road access has, on occasion, limited access to the popular nature destination.

“We get people coming from all over the world to see the redwoods,” he said.

Homeowner Gay Versteeg has lived in California Hot Springs for 31 years, though her property is not on the roads in questions.

“We go up to the redwoods all the time and we’re really appreciative of them attempting to open up Deer Creek Mill Road,” Versteeg said.

She said visitors to the area find it a “huge disappointment” when they are unable to access the groves due to poor road conditions.

The analysis of the areas to be improved was funded by Legacy Road program money left over from a previous reconstruction project, Summers said.

If all goes as planned, a final plan will be submitted by June 2010. The following year, work could begin, provided the funding request is approved.

Summers told residents they still have time to influence the final proposal.

“The decision to do the project is not made yet,” she said.

-- Contact Sarah de Crescenzo at 784-5000, Ext. 1045, or sdecrescenzo@portervillerecorder.com.