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Community Development Agency, Transportation Division, recommending the Board approve and authorize the Chair to sign Resolution 093-2014 issuing a parade permit for portions of the Rubicon Trail from the Wentworth Springs Campground and Loon Lake Dam eastward to the Placer County Line, for the 62nd Annual "Jeepers Jamboree" only, from 6:00 a.m. to midnight daily, starting on Wednesday, July 23, 2014, through Monday, July 28, 2014; and for the 36th Annual "Jeep Jamboree," during the same times on July 31, 2014 through Monday, August 4, 2014, subject to the conditions set forth in Resolution No. 110-79 and in the "Application for Road Closure" submitted by the applicant.
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Fiscal Impact/Change to Net County Cost:
No fiscal impact or net county cost.
Background:
The "Jeepers Jamboree" and "Jeep Jamboree" are traditional four-wheel drive vehicle events involving a parade of vehicles along the Rubicon Trail and various activities on private property at Rubicon Springs. This year marks the 62nd "Jeepers Jamboree" and the 36th "Jeep Jamboree" four-wheel drive events. The sponsors seek a parade permit to allow their events to take place on the Rubicon Trail in the same manner as in the past decades.
Reason for Recommendation:
The Transportation Division recommends that a parade permit be issued containing the standard conditions mandated by board resolution and prior practice for the two four-wheel vehicle events described in the Title. Vehicle Code §21102(e) permits the County to adopt a resolution "temporarily closing a portion of any street for celebrations, parades, local special events, and other purposes when, in the opinion of local authorities having jurisdiction
. the closing is necessary for the safety and protection of persons who are to use that portion of the street during the temporary closing." A parade is defined in County Ordinance Code §12.37.010 as any parade of more than ten (10) vehicles or twenty (20) persons proceeding on foot or otherwise upon any street, highway, road, thoroughfare or alley of the County. The two four-wheel drive vehicle events fall within this definition.
The unique circumstances of the Rubicon Trail require that the use of the Trail be restricted for virtually a full day to allow event participants to travel as a group from the beginning of the Rubicon Trail at the trail access points at either Wentworth Springs Campground or the Loon Lake Dam, through to the boundary with Placer County.
The "Jeepers Jamboree" anticipates approximately 400 vehicles with 800 participants; the "Jeep Jamboree" anticipates approximately 200 vehicles with 400 participants. The parade of Jamboree vehicles can only move very slowly because of the difficulty of passage over the Rubicon Trail at over 6,000 feet elevation in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, it is difficult for one vehicle to pass another on the Rubicon Trail, and equipment breakdowns are common. The Jamboree sponsors stage personnel and vehicles along the Trail in advance of the Jamborees so that there will be assistance available for any breakdowns or other problems experienced by Jamboree participants.
These circumstances make it reasonable to restrict access by other vehicles during the Jamboree so as to allow the participants in the Jamboree to travel in an organized, continuous and uninterrupted group. This has been done every year for the past decade with no significant disruption to the use of the Trail by others. The above circumstances support a finding that a restriction prohibiting use by non-participants during the Jamborees is necessary for the protection of those persons using the Rubicon Trail as participants in the Jamborees, and also to protect other unaffiliated users who might attempt to use the Trail during the Jamborees but find their passage obstructed by Jamboree activities.
The sponsors will provide signage at the trailheads notifying other users that the Jamboree would be passing through from 6:00 a.m. to midnight, and that use of the Trail by non-participants during that time is restricted (except for emergencies). Enforcement will be provided by the Sheriff's Department at the sponsor's expense.
The route of the Jamborees on the first day will be from the two trailheads easterly to the private property at Rubicon Springs. On the last day of the event, Monday, the Jamboree participants will proceed from Rubicon Springs easterly to border with Placer County and thence to Lake Tahoe. The sponsors advise that they do not feel it will be necessary to formally restrict usage on the way out.
Action to be taken following Board approval:
1. The Clerk will obtain the Chairman's signature on the Resolution.
2. The Clerk to send one (1) fully executed copy of the Resolution to the Transportation Division.
Contact:
Bard R. Lower, Director
Transportation Division
Community Development Agency
Concurrences:
Risk Management