[Cmdr. Kim Nida, Placerville Police Department]
If you are a frequent user of the trail running through Placerville, you may notice some changes recently. The City of Placerville in conjunction with the Police Department and the Community Services Department have been working with Cal Trans to increase public safety on the trail. Several areas along the trail have been overgrown with brush, which increases the fire danger as we enter into fire season. In addition, illegal camping and other illegal activity has caused increased concern amongst the City and trail users.
Cal Trans coordinates with the California Conservation Corps (CCC) to hire crews to clear brush on state property. A crew from the CCC has been clearing the underbrush and raising the canopy level of the trees along the trail on state property lines bordering the trail through Placerville. Before the crews started clearing, Placerville Police Officers checked the trail and located 3 transient camps and several subjects in the area. Two subjects were arrested for various narcotic related charges. There was a large amount of debris in the brush left from the camps which the crew cleaned up as well.
“Keeping the trail safe is really a collective effort from all of us,” stated Chief of Police Jim Ortega. “We encourage the public to utilize our smart phone app to report any camps or graffiti in Placerville to the Police Department. This increases the Police Department’s eyes and ears and it’s a force multiplier. We can be more effective when we pull our resources together.”
Additional measures to enhance safety and other aspects of the trail are being considered by the City Council.
