Fort Ord Regional Trail and Greenway (FORTAG)
Contents
Summary
The Fort Ord Rec Trail and Greenway (FORTAG) is a proposed 30-mile network of paved trails and greenways aimed at connecting communities to open space[2].The proposed route connects the existing Coastal Rec Trail to the communities of Marina, Seaside and [City of Monterey|]]Monterey, creating a streamlined, accessible trail network connecting existing public lands and parks, residential communities, California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB), Fort Ord National Monument and existing transportation corridors. FORTAG was grassroots, community conception spearheaded by CSUMB faculty Scott Waltz and Fred Watson. The total cost of the project is estimated at $40 million. In November 2016, Monterey County voters approved $20 million in funding for FORTAG are a part of the transportation bill Measure X.
Route and details
FORTAG is composed of two main loops:
- Northern loop: The northern loop of FORTAG follows a 13-mile route around the City of Marina and includes 3 miles of the existing Coastal Rec Trail.
- Southern loop: The southern loop of FORTAG following a 15-mile route around Seaside and through Del Ray Oaks, and includes 4 miles of the existing trail system[3]
As proposed, FORTAG will be a continuous 12-ft wide paved trail with an open-space buffer on both sides extending to 150-ft on each side of the trail for most of its length. The trail will connect with existing bike/pedestrian infrastructure and plans. Several sections of the paved trail will loosely parallel to existing unpaved trails. As part of FORTAG's vision, the incorporating habitat, parks, playing fields, developed outdoor recreation sites, associated amenities, unpaved trails, and agriculture. In its current proposed form, FORTAG involves about three road underpasses and one overpass.
Vision
FORTAG proponents primarily see the trail network as a facilitator of active transportation; expanding opportunities for utilizing biking, walking, running or wheelchairs to commute among home, work, public lands and commercial areas. Unpaved portions of the trail may be suitable for hikers, mountain bikers and equestrian travel.
The trail is intended to be "a pleasant and visually obvious route that invites safe use by families with young children on bikes, and that can be jointly used by walkers, joggers, children in strollers, wheelchairs (in key segments), commuter cyclists, and recreational cyclists (including those with narrow tires)[4]."
FORTAG's website lists the following values:
- Connect people to open space
- Be a pleasant experience
- Be useable by anyone
- Have room for everyone
- Be complementary to the built environment
- Have loops, of different sizes
- Be 100% connected all the way around each loop
- Have no 'red flags' from land owners and/or jurisdictions
- Function as a habitat corridor for dispersal of native plants and movement of wildlife (with the exception of certain constrained segments where this is impractical)
History
According to one of the project's founding volunteers, Scott Waltz, the concept for the project came from the Fort Ord Reuse Authority (FORA)' call for access to public trails and wildlife corridors as a part of the area's new uses. Along with trail access advocates Fred Watson, Marina City Councilwoman Gail Morton and Marina Planning Commissioner Margaret Davis, FORTAG was conceived of in 2013[5]. The proposed FORTAG route incorporates segments of the existing Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation TrailUNIQd470aa57cd0883ea-nowiki-00000010-QINU6UNIQd470aa57cd0883ea-nowiki-00000011-QINU
Timeline
- 1994 Fort Ord military base closure
- 1997 Fort Ord Base Reuse Plan adopted
- April 20, 2012 Fort Ord National Monument designated under the Antiquities Act.
- Early 2013 Davis, Morton, Watson and Waltz conceive FORTAG precursor ideas
- Jan 29, 2014 Marina City Council adopts a motion to examine feasibility of a trails/greenways project from 8th Street to Inter-Garrison.
- 2014 Comprehensive mapping of FORTAG trail concepts
- 2014 Proponents meet and conduct tours with key stakeholders, present FORTAG to community groups including the Monterey Peninsula Regional Parks District, FORT Friends, Sierra Club
- November 20, 2014 Morton and Watson present to Marina City Council and Planning Commission. Council adopts a motion to support the concept of FORTAG.
Measure X funding
On November 8, 2016, voters passed Measure X, also know as the Transportation Safety and Investment Plan, with 67.7 percent of the vote. FORTAG is receiving an estimated $20 million in funding from Measure X, which is a 0.3275 sales tax levied over 30 years. The funding is designated for a variety of transportation infrastructure projects that will:
- Repair potholes and maintain our roads
- Improve safety on our local roads, highways, and intersections
- Reduce traffic and reduce commute times
- Make walking and biking safer and more accessible
- Protect and enhance public transportation, especially for those who need it most: youth, seniors, and people with disabilities
- Support alternatives to driving and protect our environment
- Improve safety and traffic flow on Highways 68, 101, and 1
- Support safe routes to school and crosswalks[7]
Ballot language
"Shall the Transportation Agency for Monterey County fund a transportation safety and investment plan to: improve safety on local roads and highways; repair potholes; maintain streets and roads; reduce traffic congestion; improve transportation for seniors, young people, and people with disabilities; and make walking and biking safer, by enacting a three-eighths percent sales tax, raising approximately twenty million dollars annually over 30 years, plus state and federal matching funds, with citizen oversight and annual independent audits?"
Measure X received endorsements from three major media outlets in Monterey County: the Monterey Herald[8], the Salinas Californian[9] and the Monterey County Weekly[10].
Key stakeholders
Maps
Current progress
Since the passage of Measure X, FORTAG construction is pending incorporation of FORTAG into various jurisdictional planning documents, prioritization of Measure X projects and grant funding[11]. Within the nest two years, proponents of the FORTAG project aim to:
- Obtain easements for trail segments as necessary
- Memoranda of Agreement between agencies in relation to specific FORTAG segments
- Environmental Impact Report[12]
The project aims for completion within 10 years[13].
Links
References
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/vision.htm
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/vision.htm
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/vision.htm
- ↑ http://www.montereyherald.com/article/NF/20160813/NEWS/160819910
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/gallery.htm
- ↑ Transportation Agency for Monterey County, California, Sales Tax, Measure X, Ballotpedia https://ballotpedia.org/Transportation_Agency_for_Monterey_County,_California,_Sales_Tax,_Measure_X_(November_2016)#cite_note-analysis-3
- ↑ http://www.montereyherald.com/article/NF/20161024/LOCAL1/161029854
- ↑ http://www.thecalifornian.com/story/news/2016/10/06/transit-measures-yes/91706662/
- ↑ http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/opinion/forum/weekly-endorsement-measure-x-is-a-vote-for-a-thriving/article_a927a978-f139-11e5-a3e0-b3d4a3c06ff0.html
- ↑ "Measure X paves way for new trail network from Monterey to Marina", Monterey County Weekly http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/news/local_news/measure-x-paves-way-for-new-trail-network-from-monterey/article_ff0d851e-cd35-11e6-bd01-b78888f8ec80.html
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/timeline.htm
- ↑ http://www.fortag.org/timeline.htm
Disclaimer
This page may contain student work completed as part of assigned coursework. It may not be accurate. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion or policy of CSUMB, its staff, or students.
