[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 145 (Thursday, July 29, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44820-44821]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-18568]
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THE PRESIDIO TRUST
Proposed Use Limit of Battery Caulfield Road and Request for
Comments
AGENCY: The Presidio Trust.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Presidio Trust (Trust) is considering two approaches to
limit vehicular use of a portion of Battery Caulfield Road in the
Presidio of San Francisco (Presidio): (1) Limitation of vehicular use
during weekday peak AM and PM hours, 7 to 9 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m., as
well as on weekends (Alternative 1); or (2) limitation of vehicular use
at all times (Alternative 2). The proposed limitation on vehicular use
is intended to reduce the amount of cut-through traffic to maintain
public health and safety, to protect environmental values, to protect
natural resources, and to avoid conflict among visitor uses. By
restricting the use of Battery Caulfield Road, the Trust also intends
to reduce the amount of traffic through the 14th and 15th Avenue gates.
Under both Alternative 1 and Alternative 2, designated vehicles (e.g.,
emergency vehicles, PresidiGo shuttles and designated Presidio
residents and tenants) will continue to have unrestricted access to
Battery Caulfield Road, and access by pedestrians and bicyclists will
remain unrestricted. The Trust invites comments on both of these
proposed limits of public use.
Located in the Public Health Service Hospital (PHSH) District at
the southern end of the Presidio, Battery Caulfield Road is not a major
thoroughfare within the Presidio, but rather it is a narrow roadway
connecting the upper and lower plateaus of the PHSH District
(District). Battery Caulfield Road was built by the Army in 1984 to
facilitate internal circulation, not to accommodate through-traffic.
The road passes through sensitive wildlife areas and native plant
communities, and recreational use of the area has increased with the
expansion of the Presidio's trails and bikeways. Of the total daily
traffic through the 15th Avenue gate, an estimated 350-550 cars use
Battery Caulfield Road as a cut-through route, i.e., travel from an
origin outside the Presidio to a destination outside the Presidio.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under 36 CFR 1001.5, the Board of Directors
of the Trust (Board) may impose public use limits or close all or a
portion of the area administered by the Trust to all public use or to a
specific use or activity, given a determination that such action is
necessary to maintain public health and safety, to protect
environmental or scenic values, to protect natural or cultural
resources, or to avoid conflict among visitor use activities. In its
April 2007 Record of Decision for the development of the District, the
Board identified its intent to restrict use of Battery Caulfield
[[Page 44821]]
Road--``The Trust will undertake measures to discourage traffic not
destined for the [District] from passing through the area, including
considering restrictions on Battery Caulfield road to allow passage by
[District] traffic only and will institute traffic-calming techniques
to slow traffic through the district.'' (p. 11, PHSH Record of
Decision.)
By Resolution 08-5 adopted on November 13, 2007, the Board
determined that limiting vehicular use of Battery Caulfield Road is
necessary to maintain public health and safety, to protect
environmental values, to protect natural resources, and to avoid
conflict among visitor uses, and authorized the Trust Executive
Director to implement Alternative 2. As 36 CFR 1001.5(c) encourages the
achievement of public use limits by less restrictive measures where
possible, subsequent to the adoption of Resolution 08-5 Trust staff
revisited the approach to achieve the desired traffic limitation on
Battery Caulfield Road, and have determined that it may possibly be met
by Alternative 1, a closure that is limited to weekday peak hours and
to weekends.
Under Alternative 1, northbound motor vehicle access on Battery
Caulfield Road will be restricted beginning approximately at the
northern edge of the parking lot at the District lower plateau. Advance
warning signage within the District, within the park as a whole, and
within the immediate areas of the City (subject to consent by the City
of San Francisco) will notify drivers of the restrictions. Southbound
traffic will be restricted at the intersection of Battery Caulfield
Road and Washington Boulevard. Access by pedestrians and bicyclists
will not be restricted, and the anticipated reduction in traffic is
expected to improve conditions for these park users. If the Trust
determines that Alternative 1 is insufficient to reduce the cut-through
traffic adequately, then the Trust will implement Alternative 2.
Reference: 16 U.S.C. 460bb appendix; 36 CFR 1001.5.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Fa (415.561.5065), The Presidio
Trust, 34 Graham Street, P.O. Box 29052, San Francisco, CA 94129-0052.
Comments: Address all written comments about Alternative 1,
Alternative 2, or both to: The Planning Department, The Presidio Trust,
34 Graham Street, P.O. Box 29052, San Francisco, CA 94129-0052.
Comments must be received by the Trust no later than September 1, 2010.
All written comments submitted to the Trust will be considered, and
this proposed use limit may be modified accordingly. The final decision
of the Trust will be published in the Federal Register.
If individuals submitting comments request that their address or
other contact information be withheld from public disclosure, it will
be honored to the extent allowable by law. Such requests must be stated
prominently at the beginning of the comments. The Trust will make
available for public inspection all submissions from organizations or
businesses and from persons identifying themselves as representatives
or officials of organizations and businesses. Anonymous comments may
not be considered.
Dated: July 22, 2010.
Karen A. Cook,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2010-18568 Filed 7-28-10; 8:45 am]
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