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Road
Update
April
21, 2006
Greetings
- Your
Road Dues At Work
- 2005-2006
Road Damage
- Farnsworth
Timber Harvest
- Regular
Road use Reminder
Your
Road Dues At Work
We are about
to commence Regular Maintenance work for the 2006 Season. We have been
awaiting the apparent end of this season's rain, which gave us no useful
breaks from December through mid April.
We appreciate
the patience of all Owners in tolerating the conditions of the road for
the last three months. As you are all aware, it is neither practical nor
environmentally healthy to perform work on the roads during the rainy
season. Equipment operations on a road during rains do much more damage
than good.
Thus when
we have road damage such as that occurring last December, followed by
months of rain, there is little we can do but wait for a dry spell to
repair the road.
Again, thanks
to everyone for their patience in traversing the bad spots this winter.
The
Master Plan
All Long
Term Maintenance is occurring according to the Road Master Plan that was
developed in 2002 - 2003. That plan is intended for implementation over
a 5 - 8 year period (3 of which have already passed) depending on available
resources.
The plan
is self funded with our own resources as the organizational requirements
of public funding go beyond the scope of the Association.
The plan
has resulted in substantial improvements to the road when compared to
the condition at the time the current Committee was elected.
The work
generally addresses the most critical areas of the road in any given year.
Thus projects may not get fully completed for any given area of road in
a single season. Instead we must spread resources over several seasons
so that the overall road improves and we stay on top of regular maintenance.
In this manner
we combine regular maintenance tasks with Long Term tasks so that we can
actually improve the road each year while keeping the overall road serviceable.
The alternate
approach, in which we fully improve a given section of road, would deplete
resources and force us into a "Deferred Maintenance" method, in which
other sections of the road were allowed to deteriorate until we could
fund full improvements. This is not only poor practice, but would result
in increased road failures.
The plan initiates
work with the following priorities for improvement of any given section
of road:
Step
1. Make initial grading adjustments to a road section to reduce berms
and facilitate side flow of all waters occurring on the road surface.
This can be done easily and thus a larger section of road can receive
initial incremental improvements over the base condition.
Step
2: Make final adjustments to road surface which include full berm
removal, out slope / crown (depending on incidental conditions). This
will result in a road surface that can withstand up to three years of
normal winter rains without requiring equipment operations.
Step 3: Provide surface armor where appropriate due to gradient,
radius or adjacent soil / drainage circumstances.
Since we have limited funds we have to approach the entire road on a priority
basis. These steps allow us to address more of the road at base level
while still retaining resources for critical needs at incidental locations
(such as culvert repairs/ replacement, specific drainage conditions and
other critical but isolated problems.)
This
process has resulted in substantial improvements and stabilization to
the following areas:
Step
3 Level Improvements:
The Ridge (8.5 - 10)
Lower Snot Hill (7 - 7.75)
Step
2 Level Improvements
The First Mile (0 - .7)
Silva - Tombs Creek (5.5 - 6.5)
Step
1 Level Improvements
Quail Corner - 2-Mile Hill (.9 - 1.8)
Upper
2- Mile Hill - Gap (2.3 - 3.5
Gap - Big Iron Gate (3.5 - 4.5)
Current
Hot Spots:
Silva
Ranch: (4.5 - 5.5)
Tombs Creek - Lower Snot Hill (6.5 - 7.0)
Emerging
Hot Spots:
Upper Snot Hills (Armor failures)
Snot Hill: Mudslide impacts
Current
Work
The following tasks are currently planned for this season as part of the
Long Term Improvements consistent with the work of the last three years.
From
the gap (mile 3.5) to the Big Iron Gate.
We will be making Step 2 adjustments to the cross slope to generate either
full out slope or crown as appropriate to the location. This will include
the removal of berms for full side drainage capabilities as well as ditch
cleaning where ditches are practical.
Work
will be limited to surface adjustments for drainage. Armor at critical
curves will occur in the 2007 season as part of a larger armor project.
This section has been one of the poor performers in regular winter; it
performed better this year to the first phase of adjustments made last
year. This work will stabilize it to the point that almost no maintenance
other than a grading pass will e be required for at least five years.
From
Tombs Creek Bridge to Lower Snot Hill
This section will get Step 1 grading adjustments. We will be reshaping
the road surface to generate out slopes and crowns, pushing the road to
the outside of the current course to minimize engagement with the unstable
grey material in the bank and removing berms. We will also be improving
the ditch to keep water from the seep from crossing the road surface and
better directing it to the established culvert.
This
will be designed to prevent upslope drainage from crossing the road where
the bases consists of the grey material (that material being expansive
and susceptible to failure when over-saturated.)
Quail
Corner to the Gap (.75 - 3.5 mile)
We will make a light-grading pass to repair surface problems that occurred
this winter, including ditch adjustments where the flow breached the road
during the December storms.
Lower
Snot Hill (6.5 - 7.5)
Lower Snot Hill was stabilized two years ago and has performed very well.
This section will receive a light pass to adjust tire ruts and refresh
the rock surface. This is the kind of pass anticipated for completed sections
of road on a regular basis (every two years.)
Incidental
Tasks
There are numerous locations where incidental tasks will occur on an as
needed basis. These will include catch basin repairs and removal of debris
from ditches. This will constitute Step 1 level work, though the actual
Step 1 exercise occurred two years ago.
Silva
Ranch (4.5 - 5.5)
Additionally, some minor adjustments will be made to the road surface
on the Silva Ranch to correct some of the ponding problems occurring there.
This will not be at the level of Step 1, but will only address certain
critical concerns. Since there is a Timber Harvest currently underway
on Silva, we are not inclined to make major road improvements there until
we see the impact of hauling and operations from that Plan. We will be
contacting that operator to coordinate any work that may be planned by
them with our goals for the road.
When
Improvement operations may commence within two weeks pending final pricing
and scope negotiations.
Please
be advised that there will be equipment operating on the road. None of
the work will result in road closure. All sections of the road will remain
passable at all times.
2005-2006
Road Damage
As reported
in January, there are several instances of damage that occurred as a result
of the severe rains in December.
These include
three key events:
- Plugged
culverts where they were undersized
- The slip
on Lower Snot Hill
- The mudflow
on upper snot hill.
Current
Repair Plans:
Culverts:
The culvert sizes have been identified as a problem since we began preparing
the Road Master Plan in 2003, however there have been more pressing concerns
for the road and we have not had adequate resources to address culverts.
Now that
the drainages above the small culverts have been flushed, we have about
three years before we should expect additional problems with these culverts.
Thus we should accumulate resources for replacement of these over the
next two years and begin replacement no later than the 2007 season of
at least 10 of the smallest pipes.
(Note that
these are old drill pipes ranging from 8 to 16 inches that were used as
culverts in the original road construction. They will be replaced with
minimum 24" galv. pipe.)
Lower
Snot Hill
Dave and I are assessing the most appropriate fix for the slip based on
ongoing observation of its movement. At this time we are looking at two
alternatives:
1. Reconstruction
of foundation components at the roads current location. This will be based
on whether the slope appears to stabilize and sinking has ceased. The
advantage of this method is low cost and expedience.
2. Relocation
of the road surface further up the bank. This will require excavation
of the current bank to align the road with the bench above. This is a
more costly method. The advantage of this method is the generation of
useful rock for the surface improvements from Tombs Creek Bridge to Lower
Snot Hill (immediately adjacent to the slip.)
Upper
Snot Hill Mud Flow
The effect of this flow has mostly been corrected as material was removed
from the road surface and stockpiled for future disposition.
The cause
occurs up slope as a result of drainage concentration below another section
of the road. This area will require stabilization and armor.
Resources
It is our intention, as costs become clearer, to incur a Special Assessment
(one-time) to the Owners to cover these repairs.
Since the
ongoing Long Term surface improvements to the overall road are also critical
in nature, we don't want to disrupt or delay that work by using regular
dues for these one-time repairs.
We would
rather keep on track with the Long Term Improvements, and make these repairs
out of a special assessment.
We will advise
the owners soon as to the amount of that assessment. We expect it to be
in the range of $500 - $750 per parcel.
Again we
appreciate your patience as we solve these problems.
In the mean
time the road appears stable and usable for all access purposes. The slip
on Lower Snot Hill poses the most pressing need and we are assessing that
at the present time.
Farnsworth
Timber Harvest
Earl Farnsworth
(Parcel 7) is planning to conduct a Timber Harvest on his property this
season. The Plan has been reviewed by the various state agencies and appears
to be approved. Where appropriate, neighboring properties have been notified.
Mr. Farnsworth
has submitted to the Road Association copies of conditions of approval
from various agencies that make reference to the condition of the Wickersham
Road and suggesting that that road shall be improved prior to the commencement
of Timber Operations.
These comments
fail to recognize either the work that has been done on the road or the
fact that the underlying inspections were conducted during the rainy season
after a very severe winter left numerous impacts on the road; and prior
to any repairs for those impacts that are already scheduled. Thus we suggest
the Owners take these comments with an adequate grain of salt.
To avoid
misinterpretation I would like to make our position regarding road maintenance
clear in order to prevent any misconception on the part of the Owners
or the Timber Operator.
The Road
Association's sole purpose is to provide maintenance on the Wickersham
Road for the following needs:
- Regular
access by Owners for recreation, incidental and residential uses.
- Improvements
to, and stabilization of, the road in order to comply with the requirements
of various agencies with regard to water quality and habitat protection.
It is not
the responsibility of the Road Association to prepare the road for an
industrial operation in order to make that operation more profitable for
the owner.
To be clear,
none of the work we are initiating at this time is intended to benefit
the Timber Harvest. That work is part of our ongoing Long Term improvement
plan for the road as a whole.
We have indications
from Mr. Farnsworth that there is an expectation that the Road Association
should make additional improvements to the Road prior to the Timber Harvest.
There are recommendations included in the documentation issued to Mr.
Farnsworth that he should work with his neighbors to secure public funding
for road improvements.
Mr. Farnsworth
is welcome to pursue that, however, those recommendations were based on
the misinformation that there are no improvements already underway.
It remains
the Associations position that we continue with the current Master Plan
to substantially improve the road over the next several years, as we have
been doing for the last three years.
If the Farnsworth
Timber Plan requires immediate improvements, those improvements should
be undertaken by the Timber Operator at the expense of that Owner.
The Road
Association will be happy to entertain a collaborative effort in which
Mr. Farnsworth combines resources with ours to perform more extensive
work this year. Those resources would be used to increase the scope of
work of our current Vendor to cover more of the road area. The selected
tasks would then be coordinated between the Road Associations goals and
any requirements the Mr. Farnsworth must satisfy.
However we
would not allow that collaboration to decrease the work we are planning
to perform in favor of Mr. Farnsworth's requirements. We do not believe
that the Association should accelerate our current plan for the benefit
of an individual Timber Harvest.
Regular
Road Use Reminder
The following
is the regular reminder about use of the Road. Please share this with
all guests and vendors.
- Always
lock the gate; regardless of whether it was unlocked when you got there.
- Make sure
the combo is NOT left on the lock or the lock will not lock. Spin the
numbers before locking and test the lock to make sure it is locked.
- If you
wish to leave the gate open for a car that may be following, please
wait at the gate while it is open.
- Please
pick up litter and debris that does not belong on the road.
- Please
remove rocks or trees that have fallen onto the road. (If you remove
a large tree or perform other substantial work in keeping the road open,
please advise the Committee so we can say thanks.)
- Please
get permission from the owners of the front ranch to park cars inside
the front gate. Contact: Dean and Kelly Falkenberg (707) 431-1517 dktfalken@aol.com
- Please
park between the front gate and the second green-post and chain fence.
This way the Owner can tell that you are a guest and not a trespasser.
- Poachers
and trespassers; there were four instances of poaching in 2005. They
were each guests of Wickersham owners. Please be reminded that you are
responsible for notifying your guests that the first 4.8 miles on the
road are private property. The Owners do intend to prosecute any offenders.
Guests
We seem to
be having increasing problems with guests. This may be the result of so
many new Owners and a lack of familiarity with the methods for inviting
strangers to remote properties. Many guests who are not familiar with
rural lands unconsciously assume that all roads are public. It is important
that all Owners make sure their guests understand that they are traveling
on private property.
For those
who invite guest up to the ranch to hunt, it is very important that those
guests fully understand the extents of your property and is clear that
they may not hunt on other properties (regardless of the fact that the
pigs just keep running out in front of them...).
- Please
advise guests that they are traveling over private property and that
they should respect the privilege to do so. It is not appropriate to
stop for sightseeing or personal relief on other's property.
- Please
advise your guests regarding Road Etiquette including basic driving
methods for rural roads and basic courtesies.
- Please
ask guests to say Hello and readily identify themselves and who they
are visiting when meeting someone on the road. (It's always nice when
I encounter a stranger on the road and they tell me whom they are without
me having to ask.)
- Please
advise all of your guests regarding the importance of locking the gate.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your guests understand how
to operate the gate.
- Please
advise guests not to litter the area around the gates. (I pick up trash
there almost every time I enter. This is not road trash but it came
from people using the gate.)
- Please
advise guests to assist with Road maintenance by removing rocks or trees
that are in the path of travel should they encounter them.
Gate Locking
Rationale:
When we cross the lands of others, those owners have every right to ask
us to keep gates locked. Both the front gate and the second gate are located
on lands that are not part of the Road Association. Each of these owners
has requested that the gates remain locked at all times. This is not a
matter for debate among the Road Association; it is a simple fact of life
out here in the country.
Additionally,
many members of the road association prefer to have both the gates locked
as a means to further ensure that strangers do not inadvertently (or otherwise)
wander back into the ranch.
For those
who do keep the gate locked, the road clean and always have a smile when
passing, thanks from the Committee and from the owners at the front ranches.
Resources
Ranch
Mailbox wranch@cssanf.com
Ranch
Website "http://www.wickershamranch.com"
Thanks to
Tami Bobb for her efforts in sharing space on her personal ranch site
for our benefit.
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