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Wickersham
Road News
April
10, 2008
Greetings
- Thanks
- Annual
Road Dues
- Gate
Combo Change
- 2008
Watershed Restoration Grant Progres
- 2008
Revised Work Plan
- Road
Use Reminders
Thanks
Thanks to
Joe White, Art Viramontes and their respective assistants and staff for
helping clear culverts during the winter storms. WE had a number of blockages
that could have resulted in severe road damage, but, as always, our vigilante
neighbors were there to deal with the trouble in short order.
Thanks also
to Dave Otero for spending several days with his own equipment working
on incidental slides above the slip.
The slip
remains stable and small amounts of loose material slid into the inboard
ditch on several occasions. Dave spent several afternoons removing this
material in order to keep the inboard ditch free to avoid charging the
road base above the slip.
If any Owners
know of others who did volunteer work on the road this year, please let
us know so that they can be duly acknowledged.
And thanks
to all Owners who regularly pick up garbage, remove rocks, clear downed
trees and assist with numerous other invisible tasks that help keep the
road functional.
Annual
Road Dues
Annual Road
Dues are now due and payable. Please refer to invoices included herein.
Please recall that the Road Association sends ONLY one invoice per parcel
to the Primary Owner listed for a parcel and that collection of dues from
various partners is the responsibility of the Primary Owner. The Road
Association does not invoice partners separately.
Also please
note that we have not had to assess any supplemental dues for various
incidents over the last few years. This year there were several culvert
blockages that required immediate attention. Several of those culverts
need immediate replacement. We still want to advise the Owners that it
may be necessary to assess supplemental dues in order to permanently fix
these problems while still performing regular maintenance.
Since the
rest of the winter was so light, we are planning on approaching the year
with only the regular dues resource. We will notify the Owners at a later
time if a supplemental assessment is necessary.
Thanks to
all the Owners who sent dues in already and apologies for getting the
dues notice out so late.
Gate
Combo Change
The gate
combo will change on: Sunday May 4, 2008 The new combo will be: ************
2008
Watershed Restoration Grant Progress
Due to overall Program funding shortfalls resulting from the Governor's
budget cuts, the 2008 Watershed Restoration Grant for which we applied
last year has not been funded.
Our
application is on a waiting list and, should portions of the Program Budget
be restored, may be funded later this year. At this time, this does not
look promising.
Should
the Grant not be funded this year, we will likely resubmit the Grant for
the 2009 funding cycle. In the mean time, we will shift to Plan "B" for
use of our own 2008 resources for Regular and Long Term Road Maintenance.
This
outcome is unfortunate as the Road Committee invested substantial time
in developing and preparing the application. The effort, however, is not
lost as the ground work will still be valid for the next application cycle.
2008
Revised Work Plan
Since the
Grant work will not be performed this year, there are several areas that
require immediate attention. Fortunately, we appear to have had a mild
winter and little damage has occurred on the road.
This will
allow us to focus current year resources on our current Long Term Maintenance
Strategy.
Strategy
Reminder: The outline below describes the Long Term Maintenance Strategy
we have been pursuing for the last seven years. This strategy has proven
successful in reducing regular maintenance costs while allowing for long
term improvements to both the road and the surrounding watershed components.
Item |
Description
|
Completion |
Priority
1: Basic Road Geometry Corrections at Critical Areas
(Approx.
9 miles out of 14 miles of total toad length)
|
Basic
structural adjustments to the road to increase side drainage and
reduce concentrated runoff on the road surface.
This
has led to longer surface life for each section completed.
This
has occupied the highest priority because it delivers the largest
overall system improvement for the money. Prior to starting the
road surface was badly designed, required annual maintenance and
repair at most locations, using most of the annual maintenance resource
and leaving little for Long Term Improvements.
This
task now utilizes only 15% of the annual resource.
|
80%
Approx 2 miles remaining |
Priority
2 Critical Culvert Replacement
(Approx.
45 of 83 total culverts)
|
Replacement
of undersized or failing culverts.
This
has had a lower priority because it requires a substantial portion
of the annual resource while correcting only small sections of the
road system.
ow
that Priority 1 is largely complete, we can shift annual resources
to focus on this priority.
The
2008 Grant was designed to address this issue by replacing 8 of
the critical culverts.
|
13
replaced 32 remaining |
Priority
3: Critical Road Surface Hardening
(Approx.
5 miles out of 14 miles total road length)
|
Rock
application at critical locations. Some of this work has occurred
in conjunction with the Road Geometry adjustments. Other areas remain
and require rock to stabilize the native surface. Additionally hardening
is required at most corners where dust and snot are recurring problems
due to grinding by vehicle turns.
Again
this has been a lower priority in most locations because more was
accomplished with limited resources by focusing on the basic geometry.
Now
that much of the geometry is corrected, resources can be shifted
to this priority. Some of this work will occur in conjunction with
culvert replacement on corners.
Some
of this work was also embedded in the 2008 Grant. This portion will
be deferred pending successful funding of the grant in 2009.
Critical
areas, such as the approach to Tombs Creek Bridge will be undertaken
immediately.
|
20%
complete Approx 4 miles remaining |
Priority
4 Non Critical Surface Adjustments
(Approx.
3 miles of 14 total road miles.)
|
Remaining
adjustments at road sections where slopes are moderate and annual
damage is minimal. Many of these areas include level sections of
road where puddling occurs without generating surface failure.
Many
of these sections.
|
0% |
Priority
5 Non Critical
Culverts
(Approx 38 )
|
Additional;
culverts will require replacement either because they are failing
from age, poorly aligned or undersized. Non-critical culverts are
those that exhibit these conditions but pose little threat of immediate
failure or damage to either the road or the watershed. |
0% |
Priority
6 Non Critical Road Hardening
(Approx
3 miles of 14 total road miles)
|
Non
critical road hardening includes areas that exhibit little damage
from annual use and weather but might benefit at times from the addition
of rock. Additionally, non-critical hardening includes areas where
rock would reduce regular maintenance on a limited basis. |
0% |
Priority
7 Bridge Replacement |
The
Tombs Creek Bridge requires eventual replacement as it is both too
narrow for some vehicles and poorly aligned with the approaches.
This
occupies a lower priority simply because it represents a substantial
expense. Estimates range from $50k to $150k to replace the bridge.
t is
anticipated that bridge replacement will require a special assessment
which will accelerate implementation.
|
|
Regular
Maintenance |
Regular
Maintenance is an ongoing task and takes priority over most tasks
above. Regular maintenance includes basic grading and surface repairs.
On
portions of the road that have been adjusted, this task has been
reduced from an annual requirement to one occurring every 4-5 years
for a selected section of road. This results from better drainage
to the sides of the road and less rutting and gullying along the
road surface. As an example, the section of Lower Snot Hill that
was adjusted 4 years ago is nearing the point where light grading
is necessary to correct ruts. Previously this section required substantial
grade repair each year and still failed at times during the winter.
This section has been bullet proof during the winter since it was
adjusted.
|
|
Emergency
Maintenance |
Emergency
Maintenance includes response to failures from winter storms such
as culvert blockages and severe road damage.
Some
severe damage will not be addressed immediately as repairs during
winter usually cause more damage than they correct. Immediate response
is usually limited to watercourse failures such as culvert blockages
and overall road collapse.
|
|
For
2008, the following tasks are currently being planned: |
Rock
placement at the Tombs Creek Bridge approach. |
This
section continues to present one of the worst hazards for winter road
use. Rather than wait on the possible 2009 Grant, we want to correct
this situation this year. |
|
Rock
Placement above Tombs Creek bridge and below Lower Snot Hill |
This
is the section of gray material below Peter Beal's vineyard that continues
to hold water during the winter. The basic material is not suitable
for winter road surface and rock is necessary to stabilize it for
the amount of use we now get in the winter time. |
|
Culvert
Replacement on 2 Mile Hill |
Replacement
of one or more of the undersized and failing culverts on 2 mile
hill.
We
have already replaced a number of culverts on 2 Mile Hill, but several
more remain that are undersized and regularly throw water onto the
road.
|
|
Incidental
grading |
Incidental
"Comfort" grading on various portions of the road to correct minor
rutting and potholes. |
|
Sinkhole |
Repair
of the sinkhole near mile 6.2. This will include temporary rock only.
It is assumed that the hole is caused by the undercutting of an old
Humboldt crossing that is buried under the road. |
|
The
Slip |
Removal
of limited material from the cut at The Slip to reduce incidental
slides next year. Some of this material is suitable for road surface
rock above Tombs Creek Bridge. |
|
Additional
strategic notes.
We would
like to initiate more aggressive Culvert Replacement Program. As there
are over 30 culverts that need replacement due to under sizing or actual
failure, we have a substantial task. Culverts can absorb from $3,000 to
$5,000 each in resources. This limits replacement to two per year with
regular road dues (assuming dues are not absorbed by emergency maint.)
Should the
current Grant Application fail to be funded either this year or next year,
the Owners should be prepared to commit to a more substantial Culvert
Replacement Program. Ideally we should assume a ten year window to replace
most of the critical culverts. This represents 3-4 per year. However,
culvert replacement is more efficient when more units are dealt with in
a single job. This spreads mobilization and overhead over a larger number
of culverts and reduces the unit cost per culvert.
Therefore
we should try to reserve resources and initiate a culvert project every
two years at a larger scale. This should be coupled with a Supplemental
Dues Assessment in those years to allow for a more comprehensive project.
Replacing as many as 8-10 culverts in a single project would result in
the most efficient use of our resources.
Regular
Road Use Reminder
The following
is the regular reminder about use of the Road. Please share this with
all guests and vendors.
- Always
lock the gate; regardless of whether it was unlocked when you got there.
- Make
sure the combo is NOT left on the lock or the lock will not lock. Spin
the numbers before locking and test the lock to make sure it is locked.
- If you
wish to leave the gate open for a car that may be following, please
wait at the gate while it is open.
- Please
pick up litter and debris that does not belong on the road. If you are
at the Front Gate and see litter, please assist in picking it up for
removal. This makes the Front Gate more attractive for all users.
- Please
remove rocks or trees that have fallen onto the road. (If you remove
a large tree or perform other substantial work in keeping the road open,
please advise the Committee so we can say thanks.)
- Please
get permission from the owners of the front ranch to park cars inside
the front gate. Contact: Dean and Kelly Falkenberg (707) 431-1517 dktfalken@aol.com
- Please
park between the front gate and the second green-post and chain fence.
This way the Owner can tell that you are a guest and not a trespasser.
- Please
drive slowly and carefully.
- Guests:
- Please
advise guests that they are traveling over private property and that
they should respect the privilege to do so. It is not appropriate to
stop for sightseeing or personal relief on other's property.
- Please
advise your guests regarding Road Etiquette including basic driving
methods for rural roads and basic courtesies.
- Please
ask guests to say Hello and readily identify themselves and who they
are visiting when meeting someone on the road. (It's always nice when
I encounter a stranger on the road and they tell me who they are without
me having to ask.)
- Please
advise all of your guests regarding the importance of locking the gate.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your guests understand how
to operate the gate.
- Please
advise guests not to litter the area around the gates. (I pick up trash
there almost every time I enter. This is not road trash but it came
from people using the gate.)
- Please
advise guests to assist with Road maintenance by removing rocks or trees
that are in the path of travel should they encounter them.
Gate Locking
Rationale:
When we cross
the lands of others, those owners have every right to ask us to keep gates
locked. Both the front gate and the second gate are located on lands that
are not part of the Road Association. Each of these owners has requested
that the gates remain locked at all times. This is not a matter for debate
among the Road Association; it is a simple fact of life out here in the
country.
Additionally,
many members of the road association prefer to have both the gates locked
as a means to further ensure that strangers do not inadvertently (or otherwise)
wander back into the ranch.
For those
who do keep the gate locked, the road clean and always have a smile when
passing, thanks from the Committee and from the owners at the front ranches.
Resources
Ranch
Mailbox wranch@dtbarch.com
Ranch
Website "http://www.wickershamranch.com"
Thanks to
Tami Bobb for her efforts in sharing space on her personal ranch site
for our benefit.
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