New SLC Foothill Trails Draw Mixed Feedback Before Official Pause

by MADISAN HINKHOUSE

The Salt Lake City Foothill Trails update plan is a massive undertaking with the addition of miles and miles of new trails. In early summer of 2021 some of the trails from that plan were finished but work has been paused at this point.

Phase one of the project began during the summer of 2020. Phase one included trails in all of the different parts of what would be considered Salt Lake City’s foothill trail area.
The foothill trail area includes: 

• Popperton Park 

• Upper Avenues 

• City Creek

• Twin Peaks

• North Foothills

These trail systems are used and beloved by hikers, mountain bikers, runners, and dog owners (dogs must be kept on a leash in most areas). The news of even more trails being added was welcome news to Salt Lake City’s outdoor recreation community. 

The new trails in Popperton Park (West Popperton Hiking Loops, East Popperton Bike Trails, South Popperton Bike Loop, South Popperton Walking Path) were completed in November of 2020. Trails in the Upper Avenues area (Avenues Ridgeline Trail, 19th Ave, BST Hills Realignment) were completed in April of 2021. The City Creek has two new trails (East City Creek, Lower City Creek Loop) that are finished as of November 2021. The trails planned for Twin Peaks and North Foothills are not marked complete on the planning website. 

In a unique, and welcomed approach, many of the new trails are either bike-only, hike-only or directional biking only. This plan helps everyone enjoy the trails safely, especially because sometimes dogs and bikes don’t mix or when trails are thin, having hikers and bikers on a single trail can be dangerous. 

But there is some criticism of this method, some complaints are aimed at the fact that some users feel bikers were prioritized over hikers/walkers in the new plan.

Why the pause in construction? Firstly, the pause will last until at least next Spring, but came from some negative feedback on the trails and process. Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall is working with consultants to review and establish a new path forward for the rest of the plan. 

The issues with the plan were raised by residents of the area and local non-profits. Some issues included lack of consideration to native/indigenous land, prioritization of cyclists, and the overall poor quality of the new trails. 

“Ultimately, the city’s role has been to listen,” Mayor Mendenhall stated at a news conference. “The outcomes of these cooperative efforts are really encouraging, and they’ve been very productive.”

The new trails are very prone to erosion. Upon a visit to some of the trails it is easy to see that there is already a lot of wear and tear (potholes, washboarding, slide-offs) after only one full season of use. It raises the question of how the trails will last into the future. Venture into any local Facebook group about hiking, biking, recreating in Salt Lake City and there will be plenty of opinions from locals on the new trails. 

Another common criticism from trail-users is that officials are not sticking with the original plan for the Foothill trails additions. 

Save Our Canyons and Save Our Foothills, two local non-profits, are among the critics of the trails system with petitions and donation pages in hopes of persuading others to join their cause and fix the issues they see. 

“A new group of concerned citizens who envision planned Foothill Trails that do not destroy the irreplaceable natural land that we all value and share,” is how Save Our Foothills describes its mission. 

In response to the criticism, along with the pause on construction, trail officials have enlisted the help of multiple researchers and consultants to help establish a better plan moving forward. 

One contractor will review the impacts on wildlife, vegetation and cultural resources, while another group will take on the challenge of evaluating the design plan and trails that have already been built. They will also establish guidelines for future trails to help the city stay on top of recreation trends and evolution of the local environment. 

“A pathway forward that is more collaborative and communicative is possible for us,” Mendenhall said.