Monday, September 15, 2008
Editorial: Mountain biking during squirrel season
Radford wanted to welcome bikers onto land popular with hunters. Now the council must make a tough decision.
From the RoundTable blog
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It's probably a good thing no Radford City Council members are up for re-election in November. They've painted themselves into a corner, and getting out will require angering a bunch of constituents.
A while back, Pathways of Radford, a group that advocates for biking and hiking trails, sought permission to build trails on about 250 city-owned acres in Montgomery County.
It wasn't going to cost the city anything and would be a nice recreational amenity for citizens, so Radford signed off on the proposal. The mayor even turned out for the grand opening of the first six miles in July.
There was just one condition. The land is popular with deer hunters, so bikers had to agree to keep out during the general firearm deer season, which lasts about two weeks every year.
Everything seemed settled. Then more hunters showed up. Everyone had assumed only deer hunters used the land, but the hunting permit for the land does not specify deer. It allows "hunting, fishing or boating." Fans of other game animals head into the woods, too.
No one wants to see a biker shot or a hunter clipped by a fast-moving cycle, but preventing conflicts will require one or both sides to give up something to which it has a strong claim.
Bikers will get less time than promised; hunters will lose certain seasons they have enjoyed for years -- or both.
There's no bad guy here, which will make the council's decision all the harder.
The city had the best intentions. Bikers and hikers invested in trails and want to use them as much as possible. And hunters want to keep things the way they have always been. No one asked them to give up their access.
The council plans to listen to both sides at its Oct. 13 meeting.
Perhaps some sort of compromise will emerge, but we cannot imagine what it might be.
Council members should mentally prepare themselves to face angry constituents.
In the meantime, they should reflect on what the highest best use of the land is.
What will benefit citizens more, hunting or trails? Which better reflects the sort of city Radford aspires to be? Which group has access to alternative resources?
No one said being an elected official would be easy.
