FAIR OAKS — People are speaking out about plans to let vehicles drive through parts of the American River Parkway.
We first brought you the story last February when the county parks department said it wanted to reopen a road in the Sailor Bar nature area that had been closed for more than a decade. On Thursday night, protesters made one last effort to keep cars out.
Protesters are concerned about reopening a road at the Sailor Bar nature area that’s been off-limits to cars for 16 years.
“It’s been allowed to restore and wildlife populate, and it’s a disaster waiting to happen with cars coming in,” said Bruce Forman with Friends of Sailor Bar.
Dozens of people took their complaints to the Sacramento County Parks Commission meeting, which was moved to bigger chambers due to the overflow crowd.
“My concern is that the county is moving forward with a plan without doing the proper planning,” said Paul Miller with the Sacramento Audobon Society.
Many people are concerned that allowing vehicles to drive down the dirt and gravel roads will lead to more vandalism, illegal dumping, and other public safety risks.
“Fire is the number one concern because Sailor Bar is rated the number one fire risk along the whole American River Parkway,” Forman said.
Others are concerned about the impact on animals.
“Vehicles will disturb the birds,” Miller said. “There is a rookery for herons right on the river.”
The road is about a third of a mile long and has been a part of Sailor Bar Park since the 1970s. People can still walk down it, but the county parks department closed it to cars in 2009 due to budget cuts.
“We’re fully staffed now. We have the maintenance staff to properly and adequately maintain that area,” said Ken Casparis, a county spokesperson. “We have the ranger staff to make sure that everybody’s safe.”
The county said that allowing cars to drive right up to the river makes it easier for people with disabilities.
“Gravel roads are kind of tricky to traverse sometimes, especially for people with mobility needs,” Casparis said.
The parks department is also installing a new interpretive audio system along the paths for people who are blind.
“It will basically just provide an audio description of the trail, the different facilities out there,” Casparis said.
Sailor Bar is already one of the county’s most popular parks, but opponents fear allowing more vehicles will be just too disruptive to the natural environment.
“Where else are people going to be able to get away at a place like this from the urban environment besides Sailor Bar?” Fair Oaks resident Jodi King said. “Once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
The county parks department says it’s making some final improvements to the road and that it should be reopened sometime next week.
