Truckee River Corridor

Truckee River Corridor Draft Access Plan

The proposed Truckee River Access Plan will provide a continuous and coordinated system of preserved lands and habitat, with a connecting corridor of walking, in-line skating, equestrian, bicycle trails, and angling and boating access from Lake Tahoe to the Martis Valley. The project area, consisting of the Truckee River and its major tributaries, including Martis Creek, is located within the Truckee River watershed in eastern Placer and Nevada counties.

The Access Plan will respect the natural waterways and protect the wide variety of ecological and cultural resources found throughout the Truckee River floodplain, provide compatible recreational opportunities that do not damage sensitive areas, and provide a continuous and coordinated system of preserved lands and enhanced access with a connecting corridor of trails. Working cooperatively with all stakeholder groups, in particular private landowners, has been a critical component of this planning process.

The completed master plan lays the groundwork for a future Environmental Impact Report.

The plan includes a coordinated multi-jurisdiction management strategy to address trails and public access, habitat preservation, flood control and water quality.

Particular emphasis has been placed on identifying and suggesting solutions to the missing trail connections and guiding recreation access in order to protect water quality and riparian and aquatic habitat.

The essence of this plan is connections and directing recreation access in order to protect water quality and riparian and aquatic habitat. A key task is building a regional web of routes through Placer County and connecting to neighboring counties. Linkages with the American River, the Tahoe National Forest and Lake Tahoe Basin trail systems, and the Donner Lake trail system will be explored.

An overall potential trail alignment stretching from Squaw Valley Road to the Truckee town limits has been generally identified in the master plan. This preferred alignment seeks to avoid private parcels or identifies realistic easements through parcels with cooperative property owners.

Primary Goals of the Project

Provide connections between nearby communities and the entire region including Donner Lake Rim Trails and Lake Tahoe. Bicycles, pedestrians, anglers, boaters, and possibly equestrians are to be accommodated;

• Preserve natural heritage and wildlife corridors;
• Maintain or improve water quality;
• Spur economic development by attracting visitors and new businesses;
• Increase the value of adjacent properties and local tax revenues;
• Highlight historic and cultural sites, ecological, and scenic qualities;
• Promote cost-effective land use patterns for developers, residents, the state and federal agencies, and local governments while respecting private property rights;
• Provide places for people of all ages and disabilities to experience the outdoors;
• Identify opportunities for environmental interpretation and education;
• Coordinate with the Placer Legacy Open Space Conservation Program, watershed planning, and other planning and development initiatives, and,
• Protect private property rights.

Next Steps

The next step in the trail development process will involve more detailed work, including additional fieldwork and precise property boundary surveys, to determine alignment feasibility and identify a single preferred alignment.

Specific locations for bridge crossings, engineering needs, and potential environmental issues will also need to be identified. Once a preferred alignment has been identified, a phasing plan will be developed for the trail, identifying logical incremental trail segments for development.

An Environmental Impact Report (EIR) must be prepared prior to adoption of the plan by the Placer County Board of Supervisors. The schedule for EIR preparation has not been determined.

Below is the Truckee River Access Plan. Many of these files are very large and may take a long time to download. Where the file size exceeds 100KB, the size will be noted in parentheses.

Table of Contents   (118 kb)

1.0   Introduction   (361 kb)

      Introduction
      Purpose of the Truckee River Corridor Access Plan
      Vision Statement
      Project Background
      Goals, Desired Outcomes, and Desired Secondary Benefits

2.0   Description of Existing and Historical Conditions   (1.2 MB)

      2.1   Physical Conditions
      2.2   Biological Conditions
      2.3   Socioeconomic Conditions
      2.4   Cultural and Historic Resources
      2.5   Relevant Plans and Policies
      2.6   Agencies With Jurisdictional Responsibilities

3.0   Opportunities and Constraints Analysis   (7 MB)

4.0   Conceptual Restoration and Access Projects (Parts 1a, 1b, 2, 3, and 4)
      4.1   Meeting Watershed Goals and Community Objectives
      4.2   Restoration Projects
      4.3   Trailhead Projects
      4.4   Existing Bike Path Enhancement Project
      4.5   Roadway Shoulder Improvement Projects
      4.5   Informational and Educational Signs and Materials
      4.6   Multiuse Trail

5.0   Recommendations and Funding Sources   (171 kb)

References (93 kb)