Illegal Forest Closures: Sierra Madre, Ca

The Angeles is a NATIONAL forest. Signatures from all concerned US citizens are welcome. Please e-mail this petition to a friend!

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Summary:

The City of Sierra Madre (The City) shall set reasonable standards for closing the Chantry Road. In the past, the road has been closed only when heavy equipment was needed to clear the road, the road was impassable, there were emergency vehicles on the road, or the US Forest Service requested that the road be closed. After the Southern California fires of November 2007, The City instituted a policy of closing the Chantry Road when the National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warningi. It is not reasonable to close the road only because there is a Red Flag Warning for the general area. Weather conditions in the Los Angeles basin vary. While there may be high winds in the Cajon Pass, there may be no breezes at all in Sierra Madre or at Chantry Flat. Currently, Chantry Flat does not meet the criteria for Red Flag. As of January 1, 2008, there has been over nine inches of rain, high temperatures are in the low to middle 60s, and the US Forest Service has lowered its fire rating for the Angeles National Forest.
 
Reasonable standards for closing the Chantry Road are as follows:

Prior to closing the Chantry Road, The City shall obtain agreement to close the road from Monrovia, Arcadia, Los Angeles County, and the US Forest Service.

The Chantry Road shall be closed only if the winds are actually verified both at the gate AND the Chantry Flat trailhead.

In the event that there is dangerous debris on the Chantry Road, The City shall close the road only long enough for the debris to be removed.

The City shall notify the public of an imminent closure prior to the closure.

The City shall NOT lock the gate between 6:00 AM and 10:00 PM, unless they monitor the gate to let out people. The risk to the public in this situation is too great to justify a closure.

Background:

The City has had a change of policy. Since the Southern California fires of November 2007, The City has chosen to close the road to Chantry Flat and the Old Mt. Wilson Trail each time there is a "Red Flag Warning" or there have been heavy rains. This policy denies access to the Angeles National Forest and does not increase the safety of the citizens of Sierra Madre.

The Chantry Flat recreation area is a vital part of the Angeles National Forest and a vital part of the neighboring communities. The Angeles National Forest is approximately 650,000 acres (the size of Rhode Island). Chantry Flat is a designated "Recreation Area" within the Angeles National Forest. Chantry Flat is about three miles into Big Santa Anita Canyon, and is closely associated with the town of Sierra Madre, California. The flat itself houses a large public picnic area and is the starting point for several historic trails of the San Gabriel Mountains, including the 28.5-mile Gabrielino Trail. The US Forest Service estimates the road to Chantry as the third busiest entry into the Angeles, next to California State Highways 2 and 39. There are close to 2,000 visitors to Chantry Flat during a summer weekend.

The road to Chantry Flat goes through two cities and a county strip. Over 30 years ago, the City of Sierra Madre installed a gate across their portion of the road. The purpose of the gate was to control late night activity and reckless driving. The police department for the City of Sierra Madre opens and closes the gate. The gate is regularly open from 6:00 AM until 10:00 PM, which mirrors Forest Service "quiet time". Until the November 2007 fires, the police department rarely closed the gate outside of normal closure times. During the November fires, the US Forest Service closed all of the Angeles National Forest. When the fire conditions subsided, the US Forest Service reopened the forest.

Problem:

Since that time, the Sierra Madre police department has chosen to close the road to Chantry Flat and the Old Mt. Wilson Trail every time there is a projected Red Flag condition or there have been heavy rains. This has the effect of preventing access to the Angeles National Forest. Sierra Madre is the only city that has taken this position about access roads into the Angeles National Forest. There are several problems with this policy.

Marilyn Diaz, the police chief, sites fire danger as the reason for closure. Since they put this policy in effect, none of the Red Flag Warnings has resulted in wind in the Big Santa Anita Canyon; however, there have been severe winds when there was no Red Flag Warning. For example, the police department closed the road on Christmas Day. There were severe winds on Christmas Evening and the road was open. On Christmas Day, the air was still. The Christmas Day closure was particularly unfortunate. It trapped a dozen people inside. They had come to camp and planned to leave early Christmas Day to be home for Christmas morning festivities. In addition, numerous people had purchased Adventure Passes so they could have their family dinners in the Picnic Grove on Christmas Day.

As untimely as the Christmas closure was, the City closed the road on December 31st, around noon. This left 50 cars locked in. They stationed two officers at the gate for a while; however, when the officers left the majority of cars were still in the lot. Visitors found themselves at the gate with no way to get out. The sign on the gate has incorrect information. It tells visitors to return to the parking lot and use the pay phone to call the Sierra Madre Police. There is no pay phone in the lot and the phone number listed on the sign has an incorrect area code. Not everyone has a cell phone and many phones do not get reception at the gate. Cabin owners coming in to visit their cabins let most of the visitors out. Again, many said they had been waiting over an hour.

In addition to Red Flag closures, the police department has chosen to close the road after heavy rains. The police chief sites public safety as the issue. Again, this arbitrary policy is not effective. The last heavy rain was on a Friday night; they closed the road for the weekend. On Saturday morning, both cities (Sierra Madre and Arcadia) and Los Angeles County cleared the entire length of the road. There was not a rock or stick on the road, but it remained closed for the weekend.

It is important to remember that Chantry Flat Road is a mountain road. At any moment, there can be a rock, a tree limb, or an animal. During most rainstorms, the Chantry Flat Road is in the clouds, which results in very limited visibility.

It should also be noted that in the near future the County of Los Angeles will take over maintenance of the road. It is highly unlikely that the county will grant permission to the City of Sierra Madre to control a county road.

Solution:

We believe that until the transfer of the road to the county, the City of Sierra Madre should set reasonable standards for closing the road. In the past, the road has been closed only when heavy equipment was needed to clear the road, the road was impassable, there were emergency vehicles on the road, or the US Forest Service requested that the road be closed. We believe that it is reasonable to close the road for the following reasons:

Prior to closing the Chantry Road, The City shall obtain agreement to close the road from Monrovia, Arcadia, Los Angeles County, and the US Forest Service.

The Chantry Road shall be closed only if the winds are actually verified both at the gate AND the Chantry Flat trailhead.

In the event that there is dangerous debris on the Chantry Road, The City shall close the road only long enough for the debris to be removed.

The City shall notify the public of an imminent closure prior to the closure.

The City shall NOT lock the gate between 6:00 AM and 10:00 PM, unless they monitor the gate to let out people. The risk to the public in this situation is too great to justify a closure.