Current Issue: Road Widening For Commerce Vs. Preservation
The first road through Richardson Grove, eventually to become US Route 101, was constructed in approximately 1915 and first surfaced, most likely with gravel and oil, in 1927. A proposed project to adjust the alignment of Route 101 both inside and outside park boundaries to accommodate industry standard-sized trucks in compliance with the Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA) has been in development by Cal Trans (Caltrans). STAA-compliant vehicles are currently prohibited north of Leggett, California on Route 101 through Richardson Grove State Park. The feasibility of constructing a four-lane bypass of Richardson Grove State Park was analyzed in 2001, but deemed infeasible.
Some north coast businesses, whose success is tied to shipping out of the area, favor the project. According to Caltrans, 54 trees under 24 inches in diameter, none of which are old growth redwoods, would be removed for the project (32 trees in the park and 24 trees outside of the park). Trees to be removed would not all be redwood, but would include Douglas Fir, Big Leaf Maple, Live Oak, Tan Oak, and Red Alder. A total of two redwoods would be removed within the park itself.
There are several preservation groups against the currently proposed changes in the road alignment. Groups and community members against the project, whose website is entitled "Save Richardson Grove," posit that the result of widening the highway may cause Humboldt County to become a casualty of unlimited commercial development. Some suggest, by removing redwoods from the grove, there would be adverse effects on the root systems of remaining massive old-growth redwoods, even causing death to unintended trees and habitat.
Read more about this topic: Richardson Grove State Park
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