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Show SatSunMonTue, May 4-7, 2002 The Park Record A-5 COUNTY SEA mmmmsm T COUNTY EDITOR: Patrick Parkinson 649-9014 ext 1 12 countynewsparkrecord.com angers desire feedback Management plan will help sculpt Mirror Lake Scenic Byway s future By PATRICK PARKINSON Of the Record staff The future of the Mirror Lake Scenic Byway and the possibility of the road being declared a National Scenic Byway may depend upon a corridor management plan currently being developed by concerned residents resi-dents and officials. In 1990, Mirror Lake Highway 150 was designated by the state of Utah as a Scenic Byway. With outstanding out-standing scenic, natural, historical, cultural and recreational significance, signifi-cance, the Federal Highway Administration granted the forest service $3(X).(XX) to improve parking lots and pullouts along the byway. Interpretive signs highlighting the roadways features and a guidebook for the corridor were also produced with the money. Last November, the Kamas and Evanston Ranger districts, the two forest service districts through which the byway winds, began meeting with a steering committee to determine deter-mine the future of the corridor. "We're just trying to get the community com-munity together. We're deciding how we'd like to see the corridor in. the future." said Jane Cottrcll. district dis-trict ranger at the Kamas Ranger District. "We're hoping the community commu-nity will say this is what we want to see happen."' Made up of residents from Oakley and ' Kamas, Utah Department of Transportation representatives, rep-resentatives, officials from the Utah Department of Natural Resources, the Summit County Board of Supervisors, the Eastern Summit County Planning Commission, the Evanston Planning Commission, the Mountainlands Association of Governments and the Kamas and Evanston Ranger Districts, the committee com-mittee will meet several times over the next six months to receive and discuss public input With grant money available from the Federal Highways Administration, Cottrell said a written writ-ten corridor management plan is necessary for the road to be eligible for those funds. If the community requests it the corridor . could become a, National Scenic Byway, of which there are currently only six in the United States. "It may or may not go for national nation-al roads designation, the community may say we Aon want to do it Ibecause it would attract more people." peo-ple." Cottrell said. So far the steering committee has imet four times regarding a plan for the corridor. Cottrell said the committee com-mittee has established several goals, and has started to identify obstacles and opportunities relevant to attaining attain-ing the goals. "We started by identifying some important values," she said. Natural goals include clean water, clean air and a naturally progressive pro-gressive ecosystem. Of course the byway's scenery and cultural history are crucial. The committee also does not want to jeopardize the area's open space and solitude. "The scenic qualities arent going to change," Cottrell said. Barb Walker, partnership coordinator coordi-nator for the Kamas Ranger District, said the public has been adamant about preserving cultural aspects inherent to the area. Activities like fishing, hunting and cattle driving along the rpad are key concerns of residents, she said. "We've made a list of what each person valued along the area," Walker said. "A lot of people wearing wear-ing a lot of different hats have come together in a common vision." The committee has speculated upon many future problems that will have to be dealt with in the area. Lack of infrastructure, user conflicts, and lack of management are all part of that list, but two others really stand out. Walker said. "It's very busy," she said. "Overcrowding and increased visitation visita-tion are big concerns." But Walker said developing more facilities to accommodate more users is not always the best solution. "You build more facilities, more parting areas, and the more you build, the more people will come," she said. Interestingly, Walker said, some of the people that benefit most from the tourism, like business owners along the corridor, are most concerned con-cerned about increased use. "The money's not number one," she said. Over-regulation is also a perceived per-ceived problem. Walker said. "The document itself has no legal muscle," she said. "That's an important impor-tant point." . Walker said often the public perceives per-ceives documents like a corridor management plan as more regulations regula-tions on their forest. "The Federal Highway Administration has given us some funding to write it. They want to 9 W L. J A 4 -ssfl STEPHEN ZUSYPARK RECORD Interpretive signs like this one explain the area's historical, cultural cul-tural and natural significance. know that these areas are being thought about." Walker said. The future development of communities com-munities along the byway will also be a major consideration of the steering committee. "We steering committee will look at anything from trails planning to zoning regulation," Cottrell said. One option the committee is considering con-sidering is to ensure that communities communi-ties develop along certain themes, she said. "The city has to set the theme. We will be asking how much is enough development on public lands?" she said. "Private lands would be controlled by the county." But Cottrell said a well-done corridor cor-ridor management plan would be a powerful voice when addressing county planning commissions. Community input will speak volumes vol-umes to the planning commissions about the way property along the corridor is zoned, she said. "We want to maintain the area's rural quality," Walker said. The types of architecture and overall style developers use will likely like-ly come under great scrutiny, she said. "We're not alone in doing this corridor management plan." Walker said. A plan was just finished for Logan Canyon, and one is in the works for a roadway near Mt. Nebo, she said. Anyone interested in learning more about the Mirror Lake Scenic JBywaycana.ttead a -public meeting on June T at the iKamasRanger District Representatives from the forest service and the National Scenic Byways office will be discussing dis-cussing the project. 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