Maryland Horse Council

Trails & Greenways Committee

Minutes of 6-25-03 Meeting

Royce Herman conducted the meeting.
Peggy Bree recorded the minutes.
Members in attendance are noted on the 6-25-03 T&G Contact List.

1) Intro to structure of the Maryland Horse Council - Crystal Kimball  

The MHC is a 501C(6) corporation. This allows the MHC to lobby on the behalf of equestrians and to serve as an umbrella for equestrian organizations that are not permitted to lobby because of their non-profit corporate status. Contributions to the MHC are not deductible, but contributions to member organizations might be deductible.

Crystal will provide information at our next T&G meeting on how liability protection can be provided to landowners who allow trails users to cross their property.

The next meeting of the MHC is the MHC’s annual meeting. August 10th at the Potomac Hunt Club.  

2) Review of the Draft 2003 Business Plan - Peggy Bree

Minor changes were discussed. Peggy will update it so that it can be distributed at the MHC’s annual meeting.

The need to separate the “fund raiser” and the “public relations” activities was clarified by Crystal. If we charge the public fees to an event then we must charge government officials the same fees. Otherwise, the fee is considered to be a gift, creating a potential conflict of interest if they support our interests. We can combine both activities if we don’t charge any fees, but that defeats the objective of a “fund raiser.”

We still need individual project leaders to add their basic milestones to the 2003 Calendar. This will help us plan a manageable level of activity and enable us to channel support the projects that have approaching deadlines.

3) Update on Meeting with MD Secretary of DNR - Royce Herman  

Royce’s meeting was re-scheduled. He plans to discuss the potential for equestrian trails in an old rail bed greenway on the eastern shore. This greenway is shown in the Maryland Greenways Atlas, and runs north from Maryland into Delaware  

4) Review Progress and Add Milestones to Calendar for Individual Projects  

Trail Database - Barb Thelen

Barb has designed a sample data sheet for each trail and has started to collect information for the trails she frequently rides. She will need everyone’s help in collecting the information for other trails. Milestone - completion of the database by Jan 2004.

Web Pages & E-mail Lists - Peggy Bree

Peggy has assembled the mailing list for the T&G members. She published a draft set of web pages for the group to review in 2002. Comments on the look, layout, and graphics were positive, so Peg will update the draft pages with current information. Milestones – publish the first version of web pages Aug 2003, revise and update the web pages Jan 2004.

Sunday Hunting Subcommittee Meeting - Crystal Brumme

Crystal has set a date of July 23 for people interested in helping fight Sunday Hunting this year. Now that hunters are allowed to hunt on some Sundays in some counties, we expect them to ask for additional Sundays and counties. Hunting interests are well organized. Equestrians must develop a strategy now to protect Sundays during the 2004 Legislative Session. T&G members are invited to attend.  Milestone – subcommittee meeting Jul 2003.

Trail Etiquette Brochure - Crystal Brumme

Crystal obtained a grant and is now soliciting photos. If you wish to submit digital photos, technical specs are available.

Collection of Historical Trail Maps - Jane Toal

Jane asked for clarification. We need to document places where trails existed, in areas where the trails can be restored or re-established. Jane will look through her collection of maps for us. Jane served on the Howard County Equestrian Trail Advisory Board for Jane Bobo (Howard County Executive). T&G would like to make copies of these maps.

Current Trail Maps - Diana Saunders

Diana did not attend or give an update. This project will be dropped unless someone wants to pursue it.

Outreach to Trail Groups - Jacquie Cowan

Jacquie said she has contacted many organizations to encourage participation in the T&G process. Many are waiting “to see what develops” or to see “what we’re all about.”

Mitigation Funding for Trails - Mary Snyder

Mary told us that state and federal laws require mitigation when wetlands or forests are destroyed. The damage to the ecosystem must be repaired or another site must be chosen where the mitigation will take place. This means that new wetland may be created or new areas planted with trees or other vegetation lost in the developed areas. In most cases creation of a trail would not be a part of the mitigation. However, if a trail is designed as part of an enhancement to a wetland or a forest mitigation project, funding for a new trail or fixing up an old trail could be available.

Funding Sources; Legislative Liaisons - Doreen Hill

Doreen suggested that we publish legislative voting records for equestrian issues on the web. T&G members gave a strong “thumbs up” to this idea. Mary and Doreen are both actively working with the Patuxent River Civic Association to establish equestrian trails in the Lower Patuxent Greenway.

Trail Marking Project at the LOMH - Carmen Day

Carmen did not attend or provide any information. Most local land managers already have a trail marking system in place. We will postpone this project until T&G has a future need to implement a standard trail marking system

Hoofprints Park – Christina Aist

Chris gave an exciting presentation on the historical equestrian trails in the South River Greenway. She is working with the City of Annapolis, the company that manages the Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds, and the Anne Arundel County Dept of Recreation to re-establish access to our horse trails

She is submitting a TEA-21  for funding to create a trailer parking area, mark property boundaries and trails, and plan a trail circuit that will connect the South River Greenway with the WB&A South Shore Trail. T&G members asked her to write up a “case study” on how this project evolved from a tiny area to encompass 1500 acres and the South Shore Trail. Milestone – TEA-21 grant due Jul 1, 2003  

5) Other Projects Discussed

Savage - Gorman Trail – The Warfield Range II development has 3 lots that obliterate the trail connecting the Savage Mills trails to the Gorman Natural Area trails. This 6 mile trail on the south side of the Middle Patuxent River is mentioned in the Maryland State Greenways Atlas. It’s one of the best places to ride in the summer: it has plenty of accessible river crossings and watering holes, a place to tie up and enjoy a sandwich by the river, a scenic overlook with a breeze, it’s shady, and flies are scarce.

Counties participating in the greenways process should check proposed developments against the greenways maps. When a sub-division request includes a greenway, the county should negotiate for an “open space parcel” of land to protect the greenway. In this case, Howard County did obtain a parcel of open space, but it did not include the trail. The open space parcel is on slopes too steep to support foot traffic.

This illustrates a major breakdown in communications between the equestrian community (who knew about the trail, saw the sediment fences go up, and did nothing), Howard County Planning and Zoning (who negotiated the open space parcel without input from trail users), and Howard County Recreation and Parks (who also knew about the trail but didn’t ensure its inclusion in the open space parcel.).

Gale Monahan of TROT reports that Howard County Executives, including Marsha McLaughlin of Planning and Zoning, don’t return her phone calls or they don’t follow up on trail issues. Sounds like Howard County Planning and Zoning staff don’t have to communicate with Howard County Recreation and Parks staff either.

T&G members asked Peggy to invite the State Greenways Program Manager, Teresa Moore to our next meeting, so we can raise the visibility of the Greenways program with our local county planners. Peggy would like some volunteers to help investigate the potential of re-routing the trail on the other side of the river.

WB&A South Shore Trail – Peggy reviewed Anne Arundel County’s plans. Equestrians can expect another B&A type trail. Looks like a paved trail that will accommodate high speed bikers and roller bladders that will make the trail unsafe for equestrians. Don’t expect to have a place to park your trailer, or to be able to safely cross I-97 on the Waterbury Road bridge with the other trail users.

T&G needs an equestrian group to get involved before it’s too late to make changes.

Chapman Forest – T&G needs volunteers to form a subcommittee to work on preserving access to these trails.  

6) Projects Needing T&G Sponsors

We did not have time to discuss these projects. Expect to see them reappear on next months agenda.

Expo: What can we do? What do we want to do? - Jacquie Cowan Fundraiser: Should we build a "T&G War Chest?" - Crystal Kimball Legislative Relations Event: What's being done in VA? -Crystal Kimball

7) Leadership – Royce Herman and Crystal Brumme

The T&G Committee needs to have 2 or 3 co-chairs to take responsibility for leading the group and conducting meetings. Crystal suggested that co-chairs be appointed for a 3 year term. If you are willing to serve in this capacity, contact Royce or Crystal and let them know.

8) Next T&G Meeting is Wednesday, August 13th at 6:30 p.m.

Jacquie confirmed the location will be the Department of Agriculture building on Truman Parkway in Annapolis. Bev Raymond is our Dept of Agriculture contact. We will meet downstairs in Room 112.

Important Dates for Your Calendar

E-mail Trails and Greenways at green@riva.net