RE: "Some FCPG members have disappointed me" [Letters, 5/1/08]

This is a response to Jim Russell’s letter. Let’s set the record straight about the Fallbrook Community Trails Plan. Development of the current Trails Plan began in 2001 when the County asked the people of Fallbrook if they wanted one. Many public meetings were held over four years regarding where Fallbrook wanted trails and pathways, and the plan was approved by FCPG and unanimously approved by the BOS on January 12, 2005.

The Trails Plan has always stated and still does state that placing trails/pathways on private land/private roads is strictly voluntary. However, pathways on public roads/rights-of-way, if designated on the trails map, are required. The main reason is that children and other cyclists may not safely and legally ride bicycles on concrete sidewalks which would then force them into the street; a second reason is that the presence of a landscaped pathway is consistent with the rural, unspoiled atmosphere that we in Fallbrook support.

A properly compacted and solidified DG pathway providing connectivity to schools, parks and the town of Fallbrook meets the needs of (dog) walkers, joggers, bicycles, etc. and should be embraced by subdivision developers who care about the neighborhoods they develop. Fallbrook is not in Orange County where concrete is king. A beautiful, rural atmosphere is to be valued and preserved.

Carolyn Major