A proposal for a ski resort park and ride located in the community of Mount Hood has garnered dozens of public comments from county residents — the vast majority of which say they are opposed to the project.
Hood River County Planning Department accepted comment until Tuesday afternoon last week on the project, which entails constructing a 179-space gravel park and ride off Corner Loop Road near the intersection of Highway 35 and Cooper Spur Road (Highway 281) that is to be used by Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort.
A large portion of the comments came from a petition circulated via Libby Rossknecht, a Mount Hood business owner who is the lead opponent of the park and ride. Rossknecht, who owns a family vacation rental called the Mt. Hood Guest House that is adjacent to the park and ride, has aired numerous concerns regarding Meadows’ proposal, arguing the project would bring too much noise, traffic, and scenic blight to Mount Hood and would be out of character in the small community.
Rossknecht submitted to the county the results from an online petition that had tallied 77 signatures of those who were opposed to the park and ride; additionally, Rossknecht collected numerous signatures via a paper petition. Others opposing the project had not signed Rossknecht’s petition, but still submitted comments to the county.
Of the approximately 20 people who provided comment in the petition in addition to their signatures, many aired similar concerns to Rossknecht’s.
“The proposed parking lot is inconsistent with the scenic and small-town nature of the environment,” wrote one Parkdale signatory, Jennifer Donahue. “The traffic, noise, exhaust pollution, and visual problems will be horrific.”
Others, like Bob Danko, a Mount Hood resident who also sits on the board of the Mount Hood Town Hall, stopped short of opposing the park and ride outright, but was similarly critical of the proposal. Additionally, he pointed to issues the town hall has experienced in the past few years since allowing the lot to be used as parking for Meadows employees — though he noted other lot users could easily be to blame for the problems — and was worried similar issues would occur at the proposed lot.
“The town hall parking lot has seen litter, noise and even minor vandelism [sic] from those using the lot after dark. Some of this is probably tied to Meadows employee parking and some to others using the lot as a gathering place/hangout,” Danko wrote. “Not too long ago, somebody disposed of an old couch in the parking lot. Last year it was a mattress. The town hall had a yard light installed behind the building to better monitor/control what is happening at night and has plans to gate the entire lot at dusk. In short, nothing good will happen in the Meadows parking lot after dark.”
Danko added that if the county did approve the lot, then Meadows should “demonstrate its desire to be a good neighbor” in the community of Mount Hood.
Less than a handful of people who submitted comments were in favor of the park and ride. Rich Truax, who identified himself as a county resident who is a civil/environmental engineer and who skis at Meadows on occasion, was one of the proponents of the project. Truax called the park and ride “a very good thing” that would provide economic benefits to the community, reduce pollution, and increase safety by reducing the number of cars traveling Highway 35 south of Mount Hood.
The county is currently in the process of sifting through the comments and is expected to reach a decision on the project around Sept. 16.
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