Rangers hosting workshops on forest roads

By Helen Davis
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — The Mount Taylor Ranger District will host public workshops next week to assess travel management needs within the district.

Mount Taylor Travel Management Interdisciplinary Team Leader Arnold Wilson said the workshops will allow the public and others with interests in the district’s forest lands to discuss concerns, how they use forest roads and what needs they believe should be addressed in planning travel management in the forest district road systems.

Interested people and agencies can attend the discussion workshop at the Gallup Community Service Center, 410 Bataan Veterans St., Gallup, on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. or the Cibola County workshop at the Cibola County Convention Center, 525 West High Street, Grants, on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The workshops should end by 7:30 p.m.

Wilson said he has received a number of calls from citizens who have heard that roads will be closed; he said he want to make clear that that is not the case. The service will be studying road use in the area.

In a news released Friday afternoon, Wilson said the workshops are a collaborative process. He asks that people with concerns define areas of interest and why specific roads are of interest before they attend one of the workshops. Interested people can download a map of the area at http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/cibola/travel-management/tm_mt_taylor/ and become familiar with areas they wish to discuss.

Those who cannot download the map can visit the Mount Taylor Ranger District office at 1800 Lobo Canyon Road in Grants. Wilson said in his press release that people who cannot make it to either workshop can visit the office to discuss interests and roads in person.

Information: Arnold Wilson, Mount Taylor Ranger District, (505) 278-8833 or awilson@fs.fed.us.