Thursday, Mar 30, 2006
The National Park Service at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area invites the public to comment on several projects to rehabilitate the historic Camden House and to construct a staging area off Trinity Mountain Road for equestrians, mountain bikers, and hikers to access trails within the recreation area.
The National Park Service is proposing to rehabilitate three outbuildings associated with the Camden House in order to provide restrooms, storage, and a catering kitchen to enable use of the site for special events such as weddings, meetings, and other private functions. In addition, a staging area for non-motorized use of the Shasta-Trinity Trail and other trails within the recreation area would be developed along Clear Creek just north of the Tower House Historic District. A trail from the staging area to the Mill Creek Trail would be constructed along Clear Creek and under Highway 299 to connect to existing paths in the Historic District and the Mill Creek Trail.
Other alternatives being considered include: enhanced interpretation of the historic and prehistoric significance of the Tower House Historic and Archaeological Districts by upgrading exhibits and developing self-guided tours of the districts including the historic buildings, orchards, gravesites, water ditches, and El Dorado mine and stamp mill; and construction of a non-motorized use staging area near the waste rock quarry on Crystal Creek Road with a trail to connect users to the Mill Creek Trail.
The public is invited to comment on these and other options for improvements to the Camden House and Tower House Historic and Archaeological Districts. The recreation area will hold a meeting on April 20 at 6 p.m. at the Camden House for the public to learn more about the proposed projects and to offer comments and suggestions. In addition, the public may also learn more about the projects and submit comments online by visiting the recreation area?s website at http://www.nps.gov/whis. After the public meeting, a draft environmental assessment with various alternatives will be prepared. It will be available for public review this summer.
?The public has always shown great support for the historic Camden House,? Superintendent Jim Milestone said ?and these projects will help preserve this important icon of local history.? He also noted that there was considerable interest in the non-motorized staging area last summer when the recreation area was planning its portion of the Shasta-Trinity Trail, which will eventually connect Redding with the Trinity Alps.
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