Cyclists and environmentalists have been at loggerheads over a proposed new bike path through Arana Gulch. While environmentalists warn that a new path would cause irreparable damage to the threatened Santa Cruz Sunflower (tarplant), cyclists argue that a trail through the site would help them avoid congested streets along the city’s greenbelt.
Cyclists and environmentalists have been at loggerheads over a proposed new bike path through Arana Gulch. While environmentalists warn that a new path would cause irreparable damage to the threatened Santa Cruz tarplant, cyclists argue that a trail through the site would help them avoid congested streets along the city’s greenbelt. “Going over the harbor bridge, that’s a scary place,” said one cyclist.
Now the County’s Board of Supervisors has come to the assistance of local cyclists by announcing that it will back the trail as part of its Arana Gulch Master Plan. The final fate of Arana Gulch will be determined at a hearing of the Coastal Commission in the next few weeks. And regardless of the differences between cyclists and environmentalists, most of the area would be undeveloped and the tarplant habitat would be restored. Read More at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
