Jessica Cejnar Andrews / Wednesday, Sept. 4 @ 3:11 p.m. / Community, Infrastructure
Pump Track Ribbon Cutting Delayed As City Council Approves $23,628 Change Order, Rules For Its Use
Video by GasquetMike
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Crescent City’s new pump track is racing toward completion, but a new twist in the project may delay the ribbon cutting, City Manager Eric Wier told the City Council on Tuesday.
This news came after councilors approved an ordinance setting rules for using Beachfront Park’s new amenity.
Councilors also approved a change order with contractor American Ramp Company to use artificial turf instead of soil and sod to landscape the pump track.
The design will incorporate more drainage rock surrounded by areas of artificial turf, about three to four feet, separating that drainage rock from the pump track itself, Wier said. Another mow strip of artificial turf will encircle the entire pump track and connect it with natural grass, he said.
The city manager showed an image that he had found online of a pump track that incorporated natural landscaping into its design as an example of what was initially planned for Crescent City.
“We would have to have our crews come in there and try to maintain this,” he said. “The only way you’re doing that is with a weed eater and it’s going to be tough and it’s not going to look very good. It’s going to be hard trying to get the guys in there to do it.”
According to Wier, the change order will cost $23,628.50 for the additional rock and extra artificial turf. However, those dollars are coming out of the $5 million Proposition 68 grant Crescent City received for this and other new Beachfront Park features back in 2021.
The artificial turf will also save the city from having to irrigate the grass and other landscaping initially planned for the pump track, Wier said.
Crescent City broke ground on the new pump track on July 30. It’s designed for non-motorized bicycles, scooters, skateboards and other wheeled vehicles. Just before he turned the first shovelful of dirt at the groundbreaking, Mayor Pro Tem Ray Altman said, “it’s your own momentum that keeps you going around the track.”
On Tuesday, Wier said the city had scheduled the ribbon cutting for Sept. 21. Staff had been working with the Del Norte Trail Alliance, which is speaking with bike shops and hoping to do giveaways when the ribbon cutting happens, according to the city manager. However, that Sept. 21 date for the ribbon cutting is doubtful, Wier said.
“We don’t have an exact date as of yet,” he said.
Once the pump track is open, there will be several rules its users will be expected to follow. These include being required to wear a helmet, elbow pads and knee pads and requiring that kids under age 12 being supervised by an adult, City Attorney Martha Rice said.
She noted that while the track’s use isn’t limited to bicycles, motorized devices and bicycles with stunt pegs will be strictly prohibited. The latter rule is to prevent any damage to the pump track’s asphalt. Individuals are also not allowed to place obstacles on the track or modify it, Rice said.
“Riders must be aware of other riders, maintain a safe distance and follow the established flow of traffic,” Rice said, listing another rule. “It’s important that once the flow of traffic gets started that everyone keeps going in the same direction. In addition, there’s an expectation that riders know their ability and do not exceed them.”
According to Rice, those who violate the rules can be suspended from using the track. The city also has the authority to issue administrative citations and fines and to issue a citation for an infraction.
“The plan is to have very clear signage that you can’t miss that has all the rules,” she said.
Crescent City Mayor Blake Inscore told his colleagues that while the city doesn’t have the capacity to monitor whether or not the pump track’s users are following the rules, it might be a good idea to volunteer to let people know what they are.
“I think if you establish some of that standard early on the word will get out that, hey, you got to [wear] a helmet and knee pads and elbow pads,” he said. “I think it’s really going to be important that we take that community engagement opportunity to be there.”
Inscore said he hoped the city would be able to recoup the $23,628.50 from the new change order since it won’t have to incorporate irrigation into the project.
Along with the pump track, a one-mile pedestrian trail — also paid for with Proposition 68 dollars — will be finished by the end of the year. Wier said the city will start seeking bids for that project on Sept. 12.
In 2021 and 2022, Crescent City received a total of $8 million in Proposition 68 grant dollars. In addition to the Statewide Park Program grant, Crescent City received $3 million in Rural Recreation and Tourism grant dollars.
The $5 million grant will go toward an expanded KidTown playground and an interpretive walk focusing on Tolowa culture in addition to the pedestrian loop and pump track.
The $3 million grant will pay for an amphitheater, waterfront plaza and a kiosk celebrating the community’s Sister City relationship with Rikuzentakata, Japan.
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