A brand new $1,200 administrative payment that El Paso Water is charging for outside racing occasions on the Lost Dog Trail Head is deterring some teams from wanting to make use of the open house.
At least two teams, one aiming to arrange an outside path working occasion and one other attempting to arrange a mountain biking occasion on the land situated in Northwest El Paso had been instructed by an El Paso Water worker that they must pay a $1,200 administrative payment to get a allow to make use of the Lost Dog path for his or her occasions.
Concerns over the brand new payment have been raised throughout the metropolis’s Open Space Advisory Board’s final three conferences in November, December and January. During the December assembly, board members requested that EP Water officers attend the following assembly to debate the payment.
El Paso Water owns the Lost Dog path and surrounding space.
“EP Water encourages the community to enjoy open space, but the utility does not have the same liability protection as other state and local entities for public or for-profit events,” stated El Paso Water spokesperson Denise Parra, who solely gave responses to El Paso Matters by way of e-mail.
Even although race organizers stated they typically have their very own insurance coverage to cowl legal responsibility when they’re internet hosting occasions on public or personal lands, EP Water has to assessment the applicant’s insurance coverage coverage and protection to make sure the utility is indemnified, Parra stated within the e-mail response.
She additionally stated the payment was put in place after the utility was made conscious of a violation of the conservation easement for unauthorized use of the land.
“The utility implemented the process, along with the associated administrative cost in late 2022,” Parra stated, including they’ve additionally been made conscious of different violations.
Parra stated that “there is a cost associated with a large-scale event that covers staff time to review a request and ensure requirements are met, along with maintenance post-event. EPWater’s fee is $1,200 for the use of the land, and only if the request is approved.”
The $1,200 payment would go into the utility’s basic stormwater fund, she stated.
“From the borderland mountain biking perspective, we do not believe there should be any fee associated with using the Lost Dog conservation easement,” stated Joe Garibay, president of the Borderland Mountain Bike Association and chair of the open house board.
Garibay stated members of the Open Space Advisory Board (OSAB) and the biking affiliation have issues that the $1,200 payment is extreme and could also be prohibitive to these wanting to make use of the realm for occasions. He stated any payment for for-profit occasions like races ought to have charges just like these charged by state parks the place there’s a sure proportion or cost per person.
During the Jan. 10 OSAB assembly, metropolis employees stated nobody was available from the utility to attend, leaving the board with no choice to additional talk about the difficulty because it was not on the assembly agenda. Board members once more requested that an merchandise be placed on the following assembly agenda to get extra details about the payment. The board meets month-to-month.
“If we need to pay that, we are thinking about just not doing it anymore because for us it’s not a business – it’s just the love of showing off the sport,” stated Pablo Muñoz, race director and proprietor of EP Enduro, which has hosted mountain biking occasions within the space since 2021.
Muñoz stated the brand new $1,200 payment was a shock after they had been organizing their mountain biking occasion final yr. He stated that they had gotten the correct permits within the prior years with none points or exorbitant charges. He stated they typically host an occasion in September, however that’s now in limbo.
Muñoz modified the start line of his 2023 mountain biking occasion to keep away from the payment and use of the Lost Dog Trail Head.
Parra stated any exercise on conservation easement lands needs to be compliant with the authorized phrases that intention to protect the land in a pure state.
The land, situated close to the Franklin Mountains State Park, has a wide range of standard mountain climbing and biking trails and was on the heart of a community-wide effort to have the land preserved as pure open house slightly than be used for future growth.
In May 2019, 89% of El Paso voters overwhelmingly handed a petition initiative to protect about 1,100 acres of the undeveloped land in Northwest El Paso together with the Lost Dog space.
The City Council in February 2020 voted to reimburse the Public Service Board, which manages the utility, about $11 million to impose a conservation easement on the land after the election.
Conservation easements serve to guard and protect designated lands by limiting or limiting allowed makes use of reminiscent of growth, or actions that will harm the pure state. Nonprofit conservation organizations also referred to as land trusts sometimes handle the lands, whereas the possession stays with the unique social gathering.
In 2021, the nonprofit Frontera Land Alliance took over stewardship of the Lost Dog conservation easement. Frontera is tasked with upkeep of the land because the land belief.
“We’re working really hard to help people become educated on what a conservation easement is because it’s a new term for most people, as well as trail etiquette and ‘leave no trace,” stated Frontera Land Alliance Executive Director Janae’ Reneaud Field.
Field stated some unauthorized occasions have taken place.
“One race went forward and they left waste on the land,” Field stated. “Taping, cutting of bushes, any heavy use on trails where it degrades the trails – all of that is something that we as the Frontera conservation easement have to address.”
The land alliance would have been tasked with approving the occasion permits for the mountain biking and working occasions, however doesn’t set the payment for permits to be used of the land.
Field stated Frontera would consider the quantity of individuals for an occasion, which trails could be used and for the way lengthy in addition to be tasked with going to the positioning the day earlier than, the day of the occasion, and the day after the occasion to make sure no harm or trash was left within the space.
She stated Frontera hasn’t rejected any functions, however they’re evaluated on a case-by-case foundation and no set coverage has been established on how typically occasions ought to be allowed on the conservation easement.
“In the future there needs to be a management plan with (EP Water and) Frontera – whose job it is to maintain (the land),” stated Rick Bonart, who spearheaded the trouble to protect the Lost Dog.
Bonart stated racing occasions organized by for-profit teams ought to must pay some stage of payment and have legal responsibility insurance coverage amongst different guidelines, however the utility and non-profit also needs to develop a coverage on how typically and what kind of occasions might be allowed all year long.
“It has to be fair, in that there needs to be a public policy written up. Whether or not the $1,200 is legit – they need to justify why they’re charging that much,” Bonart stated. “But at the end of the day, there also needs to be some sort of a fee, and some sort of a written policy.”
Neither racing group moved ahead with the allowing course of due to the EP Water administrative payment.
Muñoz stated whereas his group fees registration charges for the occasion that attracts round 40 individuals, they don’t generate plenty of earnings.
“This year, all of a sudden, they said there were new requirements,” Muñoz stated. “When I contacted El Paso Water they came up with that $1,200 fee.”
The organizer of a mountain path working occasion was additionally hit with the payment.
“That’s the most asinine amount of money I’ve ever heard for a permit ever,” stated John Lacroix, proprietor and race director for Human Potential Running Series and organizer for the Franklin Mountain Trail Runs.
Lacroix stated the path runs occasion had been partially held in a portion of the Lost Dog space in years prior with out a payment having to be paid.
Lacroix, whose occasion has about 50 individuals and might be held Jan. 20, stated there had been some back-and-forth with a potential compromise to the $1,200 payment, however he didn’t hear again from EP Water till two weeks earlier than the occasion.
By that point he stated he rerouted the race to keep away from the Lost Dog space to stay within the state park the place he stated he paid a $1,000 allow to be used of the park and campsites for 5 days. He stated he additionally paid the town a $65 payment for using McKelligon Canyon.
“With El Paso Water I was looking at using two-and-a-half miles of trail for five hours,” he stated. “You can see the disparity there.”
Parra stated the utility is reviewing the payment to doubtlessly transfer to a refundable deposit.
