Tommy Klinefelter
said:
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Subscribe to this comment's feed| But Russ, the canyon is still accessible, just not with motorized vehicles. Also, the Use Right law you referenced refers specifically to public rights that are acquired over private lands, which isn't the case here. The law is described in this PDF document. |
Russ Monroe
said:
| Just motorised vehicals?!?.. so, like ALL of the 'wilderness' areas around us, my daughter who was born and raised here, and anyone else, can NO longer go there because she, or they, must use an electrified wheel chair or a car to get there, even though she was able to go there before an intoxicated driver cut her in half and crushed her. She can no longer access this incredible pritsine space because the fedral goverment seems to be the ONLY entity that can IGNORE the 1988 ADA Act. I think the FACT that Surprise Canyon was EVER allowed to be a road is WRONG! However, the fact that it was designated as a road for a hundred years and is now being designated as a non-road is wrong. The arbritrary application of law is VERY, VERY dangerous! The current administration is absolute in saying "IT" is "THE" decider. Wrong! The SAME federal goverment used the same law to force access to Fossil Falls at Little Lake, over private land, like the mining claims at Panamint City, which were also private. The constitution started with the words: "WE THE PEOPLE" for some very good reasons. If "The people have NO ability to question legality... "WE" are ALL doomed, in perpetuity. |
Steve Kuehl
said:
| The shame of this whole matter is that the County of Inyo refused to make the RS 2477 assertion after many requests by residents and non-residents alike to do so. If I recall correctly, this route is/was on the official County list of roads. And, it sure seems odd to me that the County has made such an assertion and now has filed litigation (RS 2477) inside Death Valley National Park, but now refuses to make such an assertion for land owners and property tax payers in the County. How does the County decision makers resolve this issue before its citizens? |
dan
said:
| What is so often ignored is that the environmentalists fought hard to get several canyons in this area included in the Death Valley NP. They succeeded in getting several canyons included. BUT the environmentalist did not convince Congress that this canyon and road require the same NP status. The only reason why this is so great an interest to the environmentalists is because it was an off road mecca, not because its environmental value. So the CBD and thier ethically challenged former federal BLM employee brokered a deal to "negotiate a closure" " to settle the lawsuit" and when the same federal employee retired he joined the CBD the CBD bragged about what he had done as a federal employee. In military and other government circles this would be felonious conflict of interest as seen last month in San Diego, and so damaged Boeing's tanker contract a couple of years ago. |
Steve Kuehl
said:
| For Immediate Release: August 6, 2007 Property Owners Ask Court to Uphold Access to Panamint City San Francisco - In court documents filed today, a group of property owners are asking a U.S. District Court Judge to hold the Bureau of Land Management in contempt of a 2001 order that closed Surprise Canyon Road to vehicle use by the public, but did provide owners of private property vehicular access to their property near Panamint City, California. "The BLM has continually disregarded Federal District Judge Alsup's order by refusing to provide land owners a key to the gate across Surprise Canyon Road" said Kris Tholke, a property owner. "We are asking the court to ensure the BLM and other parties involved abide by the original court order". According to a 2001 settlement agreement in the suit brought by a number of environmental organizations, the BLM agreed to close Surprise Canyon Road to the public, but the agreement also exempted owners of private property in the vicinity of Panamint City from the closure. The 2001 settlement agreement also required the BLM to finish a National Environmental Policy Act, or "NEPA" document by July 2001. The document's purpose was to determine the public's access to Panamint City. "Here we are six years later and there is no end in sight," says Bryan Lollich, a property owner. "The public has been told for four years that it's almost done, but they still haven't seen anything from the agency". Property owners said in court papers filed today that the BLM has refused to allow property owners vehicular access to their property. The property owners have made numerous requests and filed applications for access which had been met with a series of delay tactics, and ultimately a decision by the Department of Interior to not even process requests for access by the owners. Surprise Canyon Road is located on the western slope of the Panamint Mountains and is the only access route to the historic site of Panamint City, and the surrounding private property. Surprise Canyon Road and Panamint City are in a non-wilderness "cherry stem" created by an act of Congress, surrounded by Surprise Canyon Wilderness and Death Valley National Park. A "cherry stem" means that these areas were specifically excluded from wilderness because they did not meet the wilderness criteria. The cherry stem of Surprise Canyon Road and Panamint City was created by Congress to insure future public access to this historic town, and private property in the area. Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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