Our last blog posting had an incorrect link for you to checkand make comments for the NC Parks and Recreation General Management Plan for Umstead. We will correct this as soon as we get the most direct link.
As an update, we had several concerns and asked Representative Weiss for clarification on Mon., 3/24/08. Specifically, we were concerned about the very limited time for public comment and asked for detailed information on the public comment time frame. We also asked her to help facilitate an extension for the public comment period as we have not yet seen anything posted about it to date. We noted that the response did not include anything that specifically addressed access or parking on Graylyn and let her know we had suggested solutions. We are awaiting her reply.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Read This- Very Important!!
A few weeks ago the Access Umstead Committee contacted Rep Jennifer Weiss about the parking and access issues surrounding Umstead Park. She replied that a meeting had been held with DENR and DOT to discuss our petition and that these State Depts had been actioned to come up with a plan to address the situation. We did not hear anything more until last week when we contacted Rep Weiss via email and requested an update. Below is her reply:
Set forth below are communications I have received from NCDENR and DOT in response to our meeting. I have asked for a progress report from DENR and DOT. I hope this information is helpful.
The Division of Parks and Recreation is developing a strategy for identifying additional access options, increasing opportunities for public use and addressing transportation and park management issues.
Our first step will be to work cooperatively with the city of Raleigh and the Department of Transportation to develop recommendations regarding oversight and responsibility for Graylyn Drive, safety concerns and potential improvements for Ebenezer Church Road, park access at the park entrance on N.C. 70 and public transportation in the area. Additionally we will seek to find a cooperative resolution to access and parking issues related to the Old Reedy Creek Road area with DOT, and the city of Cary.
Once alternatives and proposals have been identified, we will engage the Umstead Coalition and the William B. Umstead State Park Advisory Committee in a thorough evaluation of the options. Upon completion of that review, we will post the alternatives and proposals on the division Web site and request public comments. A copy of the plan will also be made available in the park office. Information about the process and where to send comments will be posted at park access areas. After completion of the public comment period we will update our general management plan for the park and will continue to work with the city and DOT to implement the selected plan as quickly as possible. Our goal is to complete the GMP revision by the beginning of April.
As follow up to our meeting on Umstead Park access, the Dept. of Transportation will take the following actions.
-- Notify the Umstead Park superintendant before doing work on roads that lead up to the park.
-- Conduct a speed study on Ebenezer Church Rd. to see if there is a need to reduce the speed limit.
-- Look at the cost and feasibility of putting a sidewalk along part of Ebenezer Church Rd. on the other side of the ditch away from the road.
-- Coordinate with the Town of Cary on paving Old Reedy Creek Rd., with the intention of delaying that paving until the town establishes a parking lot on that road.
-- Have the bicycle and pedestrian program review the request to include a wide bike/ped lane or a separated bike/ped path when Old Reedy Creek Rd. is paved, including funding options and right of way needs for the extension of the Black Creek Greenway from I-40 to Umstead Park.
In addition, DOT staff contacted the City of Raleigh to inform them of the request to restrict trucks on Ebenezer Church Road.
The city staff person responded that the road is a "no truck"
route and the city will look into the matter.
DOT will continue to work with state parks on these issues, and I will keep you updated on the results of our activities.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Weiss, NC House 35
PLEASE NOTE THAT DOT IS IN THE PROCESS OF EVALUATING ACCESS OPTIONS AND AFTER THIS WILL POST THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON THEIR WEBSITE AND AT THE UMSTEAD PARK OFFICE. IT IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY. MOST LIKELY IT WILL BE YOUR BEST AND POSSIBLY LAST CHANCE TO INFLUENCE DOT AND THE PARK.
IT LOOKS LIKE THE COMMENT PERIOD WILL CLOSED BY THE BEGINNING OF APRIL. THIS IS NOT MUCH TIME. HERE IS THE WEB ADDRESS OF DOT: http://www.ncdot.org/. PLEASE VISIT THIS SITE FREQUENTLY. AS SOON AS WE KNOW THAT THE PLAN HAS BEEN POSTED WE WILL POST THAT INFORMATION HERE.
WE HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT THERE ARE SOME INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS WHO VIEW ALLOWING PARKING ON GRAYLYN AND TO A DEGREE OPENING ACCESS TO UMSTEAD PARK QUITE NEGATIVELY. WE MUST RESPOND TO DOT'S RECOMMENDATIONS IN AN OVERWHELMING FASHION!!
Thank you Rep. Weiss for your help.
Thank you petitioners for your continuing support.
Set forth below are communications I have received from NCDENR and DOT in response to our meeting. I have asked for a progress report from DENR and DOT. I hope this information is helpful.
The Division of Parks and Recreation is developing a strategy for identifying additional access options, increasing opportunities for public use and addressing transportation and park management issues.
Our first step will be to work cooperatively with the city of Raleigh and the Department of Transportation to develop recommendations regarding oversight and responsibility for Graylyn Drive, safety concerns and potential improvements for Ebenezer Church Road, park access at the park entrance on N.C. 70 and public transportation in the area. Additionally we will seek to find a cooperative resolution to access and parking issues related to the Old Reedy Creek Road area with DOT, and the city of Cary.
Once alternatives and proposals have been identified, we will engage the Umstead Coalition and the William B. Umstead State Park Advisory Committee in a thorough evaluation of the options. Upon completion of that review, we will post the alternatives and proposals on the division Web site and request public comments. A copy of the plan will also be made available in the park office. Information about the process and where to send comments will be posted at park access areas. After completion of the public comment period we will update our general management plan for the park and will continue to work with the city and DOT to implement the selected plan as quickly as possible. Our goal is to complete the GMP revision by the beginning of April.
As follow up to our meeting on Umstead Park access, the Dept. of Transportation will take the following actions.
-- Notify the Umstead Park superintendant before doing work on roads that lead up to the park.
-- Conduct a speed study on Ebenezer Church Rd. to see if there is a need to reduce the speed limit.
-- Look at the cost and feasibility of putting a sidewalk along part of Ebenezer Church Rd. on the other side of the ditch away from the road.
-- Coordinate with the Town of Cary on paving Old Reedy Creek Rd., with the intention of delaying that paving until the town establishes a parking lot on that road.
-- Have the bicycle and pedestrian program review the request to include a wide bike/ped lane or a separated bike/ped path when Old Reedy Creek Rd. is paved, including funding options and right of way needs for the extension of the Black Creek Greenway from I-40 to Umstead Park.
In addition, DOT staff contacted the City of Raleigh to inform them of the request to restrict trucks on Ebenezer Church Road.
The city staff person responded that the road is a "no truck"
route and the city will look into the matter.
DOT will continue to work with state parks on these issues, and I will keep you updated on the results of our activities.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Weiss, NC House 35
PLEASE NOTE THAT DOT IS IN THE PROCESS OF EVALUATING ACCESS OPTIONS AND AFTER THIS WILL POST THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON THEIR WEBSITE AND AT THE UMSTEAD PARK OFFICE. IT IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY. MOST LIKELY IT WILL BE YOUR BEST AND POSSIBLY LAST CHANCE TO INFLUENCE DOT AND THE PARK.
IT LOOKS LIKE THE COMMENT PERIOD WILL CLOSED BY THE BEGINNING OF APRIL. THIS IS NOT MUCH TIME. HERE IS THE WEB ADDRESS OF DOT: http://www.ncdot.org/. PLEASE VISIT THIS SITE FREQUENTLY. AS SOON AS WE KNOW THAT THE PLAN HAS BEEN POSTED WE WILL POST THAT INFORMATION HERE.
WE HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT THERE ARE SOME INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS WHO VIEW ALLOWING PARKING ON GRAYLYN AND TO A DEGREE OPENING ACCESS TO UMSTEAD PARK QUITE NEGATIVELY. WE MUST RESPOND TO DOT'S RECOMMENDATIONS IN AN OVERWHELMING FASHION!!
Thank you Rep. Weiss for your help.
Thank you petitioners for your continuing support.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Access Umstead Update 3/2/2008
Hello All,
We've been away for awhile,but, we want you to know that we are working hard on this campaign. Our core group has had several meetings since the beginning of January. We have made contact with some influential people and feel that we are making slow, but, steady progress. We are beginning to understand that this is not something that will be resolved over night. There are a large number of people who have an interest in this effort and we have to deal with each of them individually. Please bear with us. We will keep you informed as much as possible.
We are keeping a list of people who have expressed an interest in helping us. If you want to actively assist us please drop a note to "access_umstead@yahoo.com". Most immediately, if any of you personally know some of our local state reps or Cary officials please contact us.
Thanks for your continuing support.
Your Access Umstead Committee
We've been away for awhile,but, we want you to know that we are working hard on this campaign. Our core group has had several meetings since the beginning of January. We have made contact with some influential people and feel that we are making slow, but, steady progress. We are beginning to understand that this is not something that will be resolved over night. There are a large number of people who have an interest in this effort and we have to deal with each of them individually. Please bear with us. We will keep you informed as much as possible.
We are keeping a list of people who have expressed an interest in helping us. If you want to actively assist us please drop a note to "access_umstead@yahoo.com". Most immediately, if any of you personally know some of our local state reps or Cary officials please contact us.
Thanks for your continuing support.
Your Access Umstead Committee
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Still Waiting On Replies/Use Of Petition Comments
We are sad to report that there are still a number of representatives that have not replied to us regarding the petition. Here are their names and contact information.
Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net
You should also know that we sent the petition to the Wake County Commissions a week ago and have received not one reply from them. It might be that they feel, like the City Councilmen that they cannot influence the State and therefore it is not necessary to acknowledge receipt of the petition. This might be true, but, if I were a politician, I’d take advantage of any opportunity to communicate with my constituents. If you want to discuss Access to Umstead with the Commissioners, here is their contact information. You can reach Commissioners Paul Coble, Harold Webb, Betty Lou Ward, Lindy Brown, Joe Bryan, Tom Gurley and Ken Gardner at:
www.wakegov.com/commissioners/default.htm
This week one of the petition signers used our petition as a means to publicize his/her petition. This was done without contacting us and may or may not have anything to do with the Access Umstead petition. We discussed deleting this comment, but, for the sake of open communication have decided to leave it. In the future, unless we are first contacted, all comments that are placed on the petition with the intention of publicizing another cause will be removed.
A supporter sent us the following link to Joe Miller's News & Observer blog which contains some interesting information about access to Umstead. Here is the link:
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/joemiller/
index.php?title=update_crabtree_creek_greenway_umstead_p&more
=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
We are making progress. Thanks for your support!
Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net
You should also know that we sent the petition to the Wake County Commissions a week ago and have received not one reply from them. It might be that they feel, like the City Councilmen that they cannot influence the State and therefore it is not necessary to acknowledge receipt of the petition. This might be true, but, if I were a politician, I’d take advantage of any opportunity to communicate with my constituents. If you want to discuss Access to Umstead with the Commissioners, here is their contact information. You can reach Commissioners Paul Coble, Harold Webb, Betty Lou Ward, Lindy Brown, Joe Bryan, Tom Gurley and Ken Gardner at:
www.wakegov.com/commissioners/default.htm
This week one of the petition signers used our petition as a means to publicize his/her petition. This was done without contacting us and may or may not have anything to do with the Access Umstead petition. We discussed deleting this comment, but, for the sake of open communication have decided to leave it. In the future, unless we are first contacted, all comments that are placed on the petition with the intention of publicizing another cause will be removed.
A supporter sent us the following link to Joe Miller's News & Observer blog which contains some interesting information about access to Umstead. Here is the link:
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/joemiller/
index.php?title=update_crabtree_creek_greenway_umstead_p&more
=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
We are making progress. Thanks for your support!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The Access Umstead Committee had several communications with Rep. Ty Harrell and his assistant Lara Swanson today. This included phone conversations with both.
They wanted us to know that they were completely surprised when told that Rep. Harrell's name was listed on this blog as having not responded to the petition. They had, in fact, replied to an email sent to them on January 9th by one of our more enthusiastic supporters. Since that time have been researching our issue.
We had a good conversation with Rep. Harrell. He seems down to earth and wants to do what is right for all concerned parties. He suggested that we get together to talk and offered several different alternatives for this conversation. He calls one of these a "Community Conversation". This is an informal meeting that takes place on a Saturday and can last for several hours. We are going to accept his invitation and will let all of you know when it is going to take place.
We thank Rep. Harrell for his response and anticipate his active participation in helping us satisfy the goals stated in our petition.
They wanted us to know that they were completely surprised when told that Rep. Harrell's name was listed on this blog as having not responded to the petition. They had, in fact, replied to an email sent to them on January 9th by one of our more enthusiastic supporters. Since that time have been researching our issue.
We had a good conversation with Rep. Harrell. He seems down to earth and wants to do what is right for all concerned parties. He suggested that we get together to talk and offered several different alternatives for this conversation. He calls one of these a "Community Conversation". This is an informal meeting that takes place on a Saturday and can last for several hours. We are going to accept his invitation and will let all of you know when it is going to take place.
We thank Rep. Harrell for his response and anticipate his active participation in helping us satisfy the goals stated in our petition.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Correction To Yesterday's Post
We made a mistake yesterday when we reported that Rep. Grier Martin had not replied to our original mailing of the petition. In fact he replied last Saturday and informs us that he supports this effort and is a runner who uses the park frequently.
It is our hope that Rep Martin and his colleagues will act soon to address our issues.
It is our hope that Rep Martin and his colleagues will act soon to address our issues.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Waiting For Reps' Replies
It has been ten days since the signed petition was sent to the state Representatives from this area. We have received several replies, most indicating they've made contact with DOT and DENR. We thanked them for their replies and are anxiously waiting for additional feedback. As indicated in a prior blog some positive feedback has been received.
Unfortunately not all representatives have replied/acknowledged receipt of the petition and yesterday we resent the petition to them. Here is a list of those reps that have failed to reply. Their email address is included just in case you want to voice your opinion to them.
Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net
We, also, sent the petition to several Raleigh City Council Members. A couple replied. We weren't sure they could do anything for us, but, decided to copy them anyway. Here is Philip R. Isley's reply:
I’ve been told by the city that we’ve exhausted our remedies for this situation. We have tried to get the state to modify their plans for parking (or lack thereof) to no avail. I’ll try to get up with some of our local delegation in the NC Legislature to discuss this with them. Unfortunately, the city is not able to do anything about this. Like many things in Raleigh, the State just does not care how actions affect this city.
We think Mr. Isley deserves our thanks for his effort.
This coming week the Committee will follow up with the Representatives who have contacted DOT and DENR for a progress report.
There are more than 1300 signatures on the petition. Thanks for your support.
Unfortunately not all representatives have replied/acknowledged receipt of the petition and yesterday we resent the petition to them. Here is a list of those reps that have failed to reply. Their email address is included just in case you want to voice your opinion to them.
Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net
We, also, sent the petition to several Raleigh City Council Members. A couple replied. We weren't sure they could do anything for us, but, decided to copy them anyway. Here is Philip R. Isley's reply:
I’ve been told by the city that we’ve exhausted our remedies for this situation. We have tried to get the state to modify their plans for parking (or lack thereof) to no avail. I’ll try to get up with some of our local delegation in the NC Legislature to discuss this with them. Unfortunately, the city is not able to do anything about this. Like many things in Raleigh, the State just does not care how actions affect this city.
We think Mr. Isley deserves our thanks for his effort.
This coming week the Committee will follow up with the Representatives who have contacted DOT and DENR for a progress report.
There are more than 1300 signatures on the petition. Thanks for your support.
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