Equestrian Trail May Be Extended

Although they will have to wait, local horseback riders may eventually get an equestrian trail to run alongside the Ventura River bicycle trail.

The City Council voted Monday night to start work immediately on the bike trail and also to study the possibility of a horse trail running all the way down Ventura’s west side to West Park Row.

Although the first segment of the 5.8-mile trail, 1.7 miles on the north end, will have an accompanying equestrian path, the rest will not--for now.

Work must begin immediately because some of the grants the city received to build the bike trail must be used by November 1998.

Until Monday night, the possibility of continuing an equestrian trail along the entire bike path, which follows a railroad right of way, had been mostly ruled out.

The original 1993 bike trail master plan showed the equestrian trail galloping along next to the bike trail all the way down to the fairgrounds.

That was before a 1994 report suggested that allowing horses into the sensitive river mouth area could introduce the predatory cowbird into the vicinity, because the aggressive birds follow horses.

At that point, the city decided to modify its plans and leave out the horse path after the first 1.7-mile segment.

But an outcry from horseback riders--mostly from Ojai and Oakview--convinced the City Council to formally reconsider.

More than 23 impassioned horse lovers packed the Council Chambers on Monday to beseech the council to extend the equestrian trail. They marshaled every argument--emotional, economic, aesthetic and historical--to their cause. “Horse trails in Ventura seem to be slowly disappearing,” said 12-year-old Diane Biller, who attends Cabrillo Middle School.

“As the trails disappear, so does old Ventura.”

So convincingly did they argue that the council was swayed--agreeing to reconsider the issue without setting a date or making any promises.

Councilman Steve Bennett observed that equestrian trails would fit the semirural atmosphere that citizens in Ventura have shown they want through passage of a greenbelt preservation initiative. Councilwoman Rosa Lee Measures agreed.

“When you look at this beautiful area, it would be a shame not to go the next step,” she said.