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At its annual organizational meeting this morning, the St. Louis County Board chose to let stand their recent approval of ATV use on the North Shore State Trail (NSST). Despite the now recognized fact that the board acted outside of its usual public process in many ways to pass controversial Resolution #785 on December 23, the board has decided to hear no further public comment on the issue of ATV use on the NSST.

Commissioner Peg Sweeney, the now regretful author of Resolution 785, (What was she thinking?!) stated she has received more phone calls and e-mails on this issue than any other in the past year. She acknowledged that "only one side has had an opportunity to speak and they were represented by Rep. David Dill and the DNR". Despite Commissioner Sweeney’s eloquent but much belated motion for the board to "reconsider" the resolution in order to allow concerned citizens at least another hour’s opportunity at the next board meeting to voice concerns, commissioners have chosen not to consider any further public input.

Agenda

• Hear position statements made by county commissioners, learn more about the NSST, and get updates on other problematic motorized trail projects in the area
• Learn what the DNR Trails and Waterways Division has to say about ATVs on the NSST
• Help contact other citizens and encourage them to communicate with elected officials (BRING YOUR LISTS OF FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES TO BE CONTACTED!!!!)
• Help plan a Duluth meeting with DNR Commissioner Gene Merriam and supportive legislators such as Representative Alice Hausman (who yesterday went to the DNR on behalf of concerned citizens in St. Louis County)
• Be part of an action plan to protect Duluth and the North Shore from the unwanted impacts of ATVs

The surreptitious rush by this board to convert the North Shore State Trail to ATV use has left many believing that ATV proponents have undermined and corrupted representative democracy in St. Louis County.

This one hour of discussion today should not be equated with the 3 ½ months commissioners have just spent listening to proponents of Resolution 785. Today without notice or preparation, we are forced into a position of asking you to change your mind on an issue already decided.

The citizens of St. Louis County deserve the answers to the following questions:

• Why have members of the county board been engaged in exclusive, private discussions with the North Shore ATV club for the past 3 ½ months to allow ATV use on the NSST without inviting open public discussion of this controversial issue of nationwide proportions?
• Why did the commissioners, who voted unanimously to pass Resolution 785, ignore the advise of the county land department which advised the board wait until the DNR completes its statewide trail inventory in October, 2004?
• While excluding the public from this high-impact decision, why did the board include DNR Statewide Off-Highway Vehicle Coordinator and ATV proponent Representative David Dill to be present for the pre-arranged decision with a predetermined outcome?
• Specifically to Commissioner Sweeney, with all do respect, why, when you received a letter from the North Shore ATV club, dated September 15, 2003 requesting the resolution you eventually authored, did you not consult your other constituents?
• Respectfully to Commissioner Fay we ask, why in the week prior to the board’s decision when you sought a "board letter " of support from the county land department did you choose to ignore the lack of department recommendation and to push for a vote December 23?
• Why does Resolution 785 state that converting the NSST to ATV use would "concentrate use" on a single trail when it has been the stated intent of the DNR for years that this conversion would provide the "backbone for the off-highway vehicle trail system in Northeast Minnesota" (Tom Peterson, Supervisor, DNR Trails and Waterways Division, Two Harbors). The ATV club is clear about its intentions to develop access trails along the shore. Conversion of the NSST to ATV use will not concentrate but is sure to disperse ATV and other off-highway vehicle use throughout the region.
• Finally, given recent findings by a state audit of the DNR’s motorized trail program that the DNR has provided inadequate public involvement, planning, engineering, and enforcement to protect the environment and rights of others from ATVs, has the county board embarked on such an ambitious plan?

Minnesotans for Responsible Recreation, the citizens of Duluth and the North Shore request that you rescind Resolution 785. If the question of ATV use on the North Shore State Trail persists, let there be balance and open public involvement to decide the question.

jb1/6/04