02/03/1997 Park Board Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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City of Lino Lakes January 3, 1997 7204 Lake Drive Lino Lakes, MN 55014 Attn: Marty Asleson Superintendent of Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Re: Snowmobiler violation of city regulations Dear Mr. Asleson: Shortly after the first significant snowfall this season, I called you to get confirmation of trail use regulations. At the time, the trail behind our neighborhood was inundated with snowmobilers ... at all hours of the day. We discussed possible actions, which included installation of signs and barriers at both ends of the trail. Due to the advanced stage of the season, only the signs could be installed. Thank you for taking that action. Unfortunately, the travel on this section of trail continues. At times the drivers have left the trail to use city streets and private yards and property. On several occasions I have called the police on the off chance they might be able to intercept a driver in the process of violating the regulations. As you know, due to speed and mobility of the machines, the probability of success is low. I have also talked to one officer who suggested that I obtain the registration numbers, and the police would follow up with the ^ offending parties. Without standing next to the trail, and probably stopping the drivers, this is tough to accomplish. 1 find it difficult to read 3" high letters from our house 60-80' through the trees when snowmobiles are traveling 20-50 mph! I think most people would. Therefore, it was with some interest that I read the week of December 31, 1996 copy of the Quad Community Press. From this article, it is obvious the violations are not isolated to our area, but wide-spread in the Quad Community. During this week there were about twelve snowmobile related incidents reported by the Lino Lakes and Circle- Lex police departments. From my experience on the short section trail near our home, the number of actual violations must be 30-50 times the number reported. I would like to see the data substantiating the claim that "a few renegades" or "5-10%" of the people are the ones causing the problem. I sincerely doubt if there is any data. Frankly, I found the responses of city officials quoted in the article typical and disappointing. A lot of"people should", "people need to know", "people should understand", etc. Way too much Minnesota-nice to elicit the type of corrective action required to put this problem behind us. Perhaps tough enforcement of the regulations already in place would start to change behavior (i.e. lose the warnings and go to mandatory fines biased toward the maximum dollar amount allowable). It is my experience that individuals will react quickly to any action affecting their pocketbook. Perhaps this could be combined with city licensing of snowmobiles and mandatory '� instruction and testing. If this does not work, ban snowmobiles ... period.