Hello friends and fellow ATV'ers,

As some of you already know the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) has decided to renege on our agreement concerning the Umpqua Lighthouse Master Plan (ULMP). They refuse to lease the OPRD land on the dunes to Douglas County as stated in the plan, citing ATV activity as their concern, we all know what this means.

The Chairman of the board John Blackwell was quoted last year referring to ATV people as GENETICALLY DEFECTIVE.!!

I have also heard from a reliable source that there is an environmental group involved.

This State "owned" strip of land starts just south of the lighthouse and ends just north of banshee hill, and goes out to the ocean. If this area is closed to ORV's we would lose another 117 or so acres of prime riding area.

We here at Discovery Point are in favor of Douglas County acquiring the land because they are in favor of ATV activity and have proven so by building new the facilities in the area, and have been activaly involved in the planning for Dune Fest.

Where OPRD has done nothing but try to close down our beaches to kite flying and dog walking.

We need to let them know that we want them to abide by the contract that we agreed on in the ULMP and give Douglas County full control of the property.

For them to arbitrarily change anything in the ULMP without a notice to the public and allow time for public comment is unacceptable, and in my opinion ANY changes to the ULMP at all should start the whole process over again with a clean slate.

So when you get a minute send a letter to:

Tim Wood
OPRD
725 Summer Street NE, Suite C
Salem, OR 97301
Email: tim.wood@state.or.us
(503) 986-0718
Fax: (503 986-0796

Be sure to include your full name and address.

Also, the OPRD is trying to gain full control of our ATV funds. The ATV allocation committee has always decided how to best spend our money and have always done a first-rate job

Lets stand up for what is ours. Tell your friends
Let them know how you feel

Greg Hoover
Discovery Point ResortWe need to pass this along,

 

freekin' hippies.....

maybe he was referring to himself as genetically defective

 

Before you send any emails to Tim Wood make sure you have all your facts about this situation. The OPRD has not reneged on anything. This post is a copy from another site and some of the statements are not true.

 

This was pulled from the News Review. The local paper for Roseburg and the majority of Douglas county.

Update:

Douglas County and state officials say they have ironed out their differences over a 200-acre parcel of state-owned land at Winchester Bay.

County Commissioner Dan Van Slyke and John Blackwell, chairman of the state Parks & Recreation Commission, say they believe they can come up with a suitable agreement that would provide for the transfer of the dunes tract near the Umpqua Lighthouse to the county. Last week, Van Slyke met with Blackwell and Tim Wood, director of the state Parks & Recreation Department, in Roseburg.

"We had a very productive meeting and I think we've worked things out," Van Slyke said.

The meeting came on the heels of a Jan. 27 decision in which the parks commission voted against the land transfer. County officials were shocked and dismayed by the decision, which they said reversed earlier assurances they had from state officials that the transfer would go through. They also noted the land deal was part of the Umpqua Lighthouse Master Plan, approved last year by both the county and the state.

At the parks commission meeting last month, several members said they were uncomfortable turning over title of the property near the Umpqua Lighthouse to the county. They said they'd rather see a long-term lease arranged so the state could still have control over management of the parcel.

During his meeting with Blackwell and Wood, Van Slyke said he focused on the improvements made by the county in the past year, after a temporary lease was arranged. The county cleared a portion of the property and constructed an ATV staging area for riders going to the nearby Dunes National Recreation Area.

The staging area, which is set to be paved this summer through a grant awarded by the state, gives riders a place to mount their vehicles and reach the dunes without the need to ride along Salmon Harbor Drive from Salmon Harbor. Neighbors had complained about the dangers of having ATVs share the paved road with cars and trucks. They also criticized the constant loud drone of ATVs riding back and forth that filtered into their homes.

Van Slyke asked the state officials to draw up a list of items they would like to see addressed before the land transfer is approved. He said they came up with the idea of approving a one-year lease extension, with title to go to the county when the extension expires.

"I'm comfortable, based on our conversations, that we have a plan that I can advocate with the full parks commission when it meets early next month," Blackwell said.

The three of them cleared the air, Blackwell said, and came up with ideas that were agreeable to both sides. They directed planners with the state and the county to work together to come up with a proposed lease agreement and title transfer.

"We generally agreed to agree and we're just working on the details," Blackwell said.Text