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--> --> Ashland Mayor Alan DeBoer this morning dedicated a new pathway leading to the gazebo in the center of Triangle Park. The pathway has been refurbished and redesigned by students from the Catalyst Alternative Education Program at Ashland High School. Sean McDowell, 17, (above) looks at the work he contributed prior to the ceremony this morning. Supported by grant money from the National Endowment for the Arts and the local Carpenter Foundation, the students worked with art classes at Ashland Middle School to glaze tiles and river rocks into mortar on boards. The boards were incorporated into the new concrete pathway by Ashland Parks Department staff. Ashland artists and residents also volunteered their time to the project. The park was created in 1903 at the triangle formed by the intersection of Siskiyou Boulevard, Liberty and Iowa streets. It was restored with the help of Ashland resident David Mason in 1998. The dedication ceremony is one of a series of events this week celebrating Ashland's history and efforts to preserve its historic nature. Ashland Daily Tidings/AMY ALONZO Residents offer forest road upkeep By Vickie Aldous Ashland Daily Tidings Some area residents say they are willing to pitch in labor, equipment and money to ensure access on U.S. Forest Service roads while also safeguarding the environment. Their comments came at a Wednesday night meeting called to discuss the deteriorating state of Ashland Ranger District roads. The event was part of a nationwide series of meetings to gather public input as the Forest Service grapples with an $8.4 billion maintenance backlog on its 386,000-mile road system. "Instead of closing roads, we should work on the issues. We should involve groups and individuals to help," said Jerry Lehman of the Jackson County Chapter of Frontiers of Freedom - People for the USA. Lane Brown, southwest director of the Oregon Hunters Association, said his organization has money, people and equipment available to help maintain roads. He said he already has been involved in road work, including constructing water bars to channel water and help prevent erosion. Ashland District Ranger Linda Duffy and Dave Green, forest transportation manager for the Rogue River and Siskiyou national forests, welcomed the offers of help. "I think we can begin to form partnerships and collaborations," Duffy said. "My bias is to keep as much land open as we can if the roads are not doing environmental harm." Green said he has done what he can to stretch federal dollars for road work - including hiring Jackson County Community Corrections work crews at below-market prices and deferring maintenance on lower priority roads - but receives only one-third of the funds he needs. "I look forward to the partnerships," Green said. "Just come forward ... I have a road crew with a limited budget. Give me a call and I'll be there. I'll work with you." However, some residents said they would like to see some roads closed to vehicles and transformed into trails, with users adopting segments to provide upkeep. Ashland environmental activist Eric Navickas said the ranger district should stop any projects that could disturb soil, including the proposed expansion of the Mt. Ashland Ski Area, until roads that were damaged heavily during the 1997 New Year's Day Flood are repaired. Comments made at the meeting will be used, along with scientific analysis, to create an informational report to be used by Duffy when making future project decisions. The report likely will be complete in September, said Chuck Anderson, forest planner for the Rogue River and Siskiyou national forests. As part of the report, Forest Service staff are analyzing road segments and rating them for whether they are harming, or have a high potential to harm, the environment. Roads also are being rated for levels of use, including whether they are needed for fire patrol and suppression activities. The Forest Service could consider closing roads that are environmentally harmful and have a low level of use, while shifting maintenance dollars to less harmful roads that have high use levels, according to Green. Written input on roads should be provided by June 7. Comments can be mailed to Attn.: Roads Analysis, U.S. Forest Service, P.O. Box 520, Medford, Ore., 97501; faxed to (541) 858-2220 or e-mailed to [email protected] . For more information, contact Anderson at (541) 858-2323. Information also is available on the Internet at www.fs.fed.us/r6/rogue and www.fs.fed.us/news/roads Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing