NOTICE OF 30-DAY OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT March 20, 2013 COMMENTS WELCOME The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Sawtooth National Forest - Ketchum Ranger District is seeking public comments specific on proposal to authorize Sun Valley Company s construction of new mountain biking trails within the Bald Mountain Ski Area. Sun Valley Company, holder of a ski area term permit, is requesting authorization to construct or reconstruct 11 miles of summer, nonmotorized trail to increase lift-assisted mountain biking recreational opportunities on Bald Mountain. The purpose of this comment period is to provide an opportunity for the public to comment on a proposed action prior to decisions being made by the Responsible Official. All comments received in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposed action and will be available for public inspection. In addition, submission of comments during this period is required to establish appeal eligibility. Written, facsimile, hand delivered, oral, and electronic comments concerning this action will be accepted for 30 calendar days following the publication of the Notice of Proposed Action in the Idaho Mountain Express newspaper based in Ketchum, Idaho. For detailed information on how to provide comments, please refer to the "Comment Process" section of this document, below. BACKGROUND & LOCATION The USDA Forest Service (FS) Sawtooth National Forest and the USDI Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Twin Falls District have authority over the 3,332 acre Bald Mountain ski area, which is also known as the Sun Valley ski resort. Opening to the public in 1936, Sun Valley is the site of America s first destination ski resort. Public involvement in the Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails proposal was initiated with a letter sent to agencies, organizations and interested individuals on October 17, 2012. The proposal was first listed in the Sawtooth Forest Schedule of Proposed Actions (SOPA) October December, 2012 report. It has been in all successive SOPAs since that time. The Forest Service proposal was originally sent to the public in conjunction with a similar proposal from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The majority of the comments received on the initial proposal were on the BLM proposed trails specifically those trails below the Roundhouse Restaurant. The BLM has recently placed their proposal on hold and will seek comments on their proposal in the future. For more information on the BLM trail segments, contact John Kurtz BLM Recreation Manager at (208) 732-7200. THE PROPOSED ACTION Four complete trails (#4, 6, 7, & 9) and segments of two other bike trails (#3 & 5) are proposed for construction on National Forest System lands. These trails total approximately 11 miles. Trails #4, 6, 7, & 9 are not dependent upon construction of any trails proposed on BLM public lands or Sun Valley Company private lands. The segments of trails #3 & 5 on FS lands will be constructed only if the BLM authorizes construction of the portion of these trails on BLM lands. The intent of new mountain bike trails is to: 1) divide trails into distinct ability level zones novice, intermediate and advanced; 2) develop more novice and intermediate trails; 3) provide mountain bike trail connectivity to the Roundhouse Restaurant and top of the Roundhouse Gondola; and 4) improve trail safety by minimizing hiker/bike conflict areas. Proposed mountain bike trails would be constructed using a combination of hand tools and trail construction machinery, and would require grading and tree removal for the length of the trails. Construction would occur over 3 6 years. 1
Table 1. Forest Service Mountain Bike Trail Proposal Trail # Trail Type 3 Bike, Flow, Intermediate Downhill 4 Bike, Flow, Novice Downhill 5 Bike, Flow, Advanced Downhill Trail Length (Miles) (* denotes National Forest Lands portion of this proposed trail) Average Grade (%) Max. Tread Width Maximum Disturbance Width Maximum Disturbance Area (acres) Construction Type 0.25* 7 72 108 0.30* New 6 3.8 6 72 108 4.14 New 1 0.35* 18 72 108 0.39* New 7 Construction Priority for N.F. Lands 6 (upper) Bike, Flow, Intermediate Downhill 1.5 6 72 108 1.64 Redesigned to downhill flow trail 3 6 (lower) Bike, Flow, Intermediate Downhill 1.8 5 72 108 1.97 New 2 7 Bike, Flow, Novice Downhill 9 Hike (up/down) Bike (up) 2.1 5 72 108 2.29 New 4 1.2 8 48 72 0.87 New 5 Totals 11.00 11.60 2
COMMENT PROCESS Written, facsimile, hand-delivered, oral, and electronic comments will be accepted for 30 calendar days following publication of this notice in the Idaho Mountain Express newspaper, Ketchum, ID. The publication date in the newspaper of record is the exclusive means for calculating the comment period for this proposal. You should not rely upon dates or timeframe information provided by any other source. It is the responsibility of persons providing comments to submit them by the close of the comment period in accordance with 36 CFR 215. Those who provide comments during this comment period are eligible to appeal the decision under the regulations. Individuals and organizations wishing to be eligible to appeal must provide the following information: 1. Name and Address; 2. Title of the proposed action; 3. Specific comments on the proposed action, along with supporting reasons that the Responsible Official should consider in reaching a decision; 4. Signature or other verification of identity upon request; identification of the individual or organization who authored the comments(s) is necessary for appeal eligibility; 5. For multiple names or multiple organizations, a signature must be provided for the individual authorized to represent each organization, or for each individual that wishes to have appeal eligibility, and 6. Individual members of organizations must submit their own comments to meet the requirements of appeal eligibility as an individual, comments received on behalf of an organization are considered as those of the organization only. Written comments must be submitted to: Ketchum Ranger District Attn: Bald Mountain Bike Trails PO Box 2356 206 Sun Valley Rd Ketchum, ID 83340 The office business hours for those submitting hand-delivered comments are: 8:30am 5pm Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Oral comments must be provided at the Responsible Official s office during normal business hours via telephone at (208) 622-5371, in person, or by Fax at (208) 622-3923. Electronic comments must be submitted in rich text format (.rtf), or Word (.doc) to: comments-intermtn-sawtooth-ketchum@fs.fed.us APPEAL ELIGIBILITY It is the responsibility of persons providing comments to submit them by the close of the comment period. Those who provide comments during this comment period are eligible to appeal the decision under the Federal Code of Regulations (36 CFR 215). Further information about this proposal can be obtained from Joe Miczulski, Recreation Program Manager, (208) 622-0087, during normal office hours at the Ketchum Ranger District office. 3
New Bald Mountain Summer Trail Proposal 4
Federal Land Management Agency Ski Area Permit Boundaries 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 5 of 17
The following photos are for trails or trail segments proposed on National Forest System lands. Trail #4, Isometric View, Looking from the Northeast 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 6 of 17
Trail #4, Lookout Restaurant (left) to Roundhouse Restaurant (right) 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 7 of 17
Trail #6, Isometric View of the trail across the Bowls 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 8 of 17
Trail #6, Lookout Restaurant to Roundhouse Restaurant via Broadway Bike Trail and the Bowls 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 9 of 17
Trail #7, Upper Warm Springs Area 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 10 of 17
Trail #7, through International and Upper Warm Springs to Trail #4 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 11 of 17
Trail #9, Multi-use, Uphill bike use only, Broadway Saddle to Lookout Restaurant 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 12 of 17
Trail #9, Lookout Restaurant (top) to Broadway Saddle (bottom) 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 13 of 17
Trail #3, National Forest portion from Roundhouse Restaurant 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 14 of 17
Trail #3, Roundhouse Slope towards Olympic Lane on BLM lands 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 15 of 17
Trail #5, Bottom of Roundhouse Slope back to Trail #3 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 16 of 17
Trail #5, Canyon and Holiday portions on National Forest lands 30 Day Opportunity to Comment Bald Mountain Summer Bike Trails Proposal p. 17 of 17