What If We Lose This?
March 19, 2026 I By Katie Cox, Executive Director
Dear Trail Lovers,
This letter is a difficult one to write and I imagine for you it will be hard to read.
If you know me personally, and I hope you do (if not let’s meet!) you would know that my cup runneth over with positivity. I more often than not have a smile on my face and a bounce in my step. This was not the case last night.
I recognize participating in city processes is the last place most of you want to be, and I definitely understand how busy all our lives have become. Sitting in Dover City Hall in the dark, long into the evening would not fall anywhere on your top 100 things to do. But, when you make the choice to not show up in support, not write a letter, or not send in a quick email (I am not looking at the handful who did submit public comment), then instead, the people who don’t like aspects of what we do get to stand at the podium and tell the community who you are.
Last night you, our lovers of the Syringa Trail Community were labeled as a group that drives recklessly, throws trash out your window, creates nuisance issues because of the loud laughter and screams that come off the sled hill and the trails, you disobey rules and bike, hike or ski trails with headlamps on after hours, you camp in the parking lot, you don’t respect wildlife and you create havoc by coming in droves to spend time in the woods.
And then, in moments the spiral downward of who you are and what this place could become continued to grow as some councilors went into their deepest and darkest fears talking about drugs and alcohol overtaking the trails and parking lots. Fortunately, a sane voice interrupted that spiral.
We didn’t get here because we are any of these things. In the six years since Pine Street Woods opened it has been a place full of community. I can’t count the number of people I have met on the trails excited to make conversation, nor can I count on one hand the trash I have had to pick up – because YOU don’t let even a wayward tissue linger there for more than a few hours. The sounds of the children may be the number one thing the neighbor dislikes but those noises make me (and I suspect you) know that we are doing something right. I have found all of you protective, respectful and grateful for what we have created as a community. And not once have we had a complaint about Pine Street Woods come from the City of Dover or a neighbor. I know all this in my heart and it is what I tried to represent in my presentation, but a whole lot of words fall flat when there is no one standing up behind me to put a face to our trail community.
I assume most of you thought, ah, KLT will just be fine – everyone loves them – they don’t need me. Please know that nothing you value or believe in is safe when it comes to a city, county, state or national public process. If you don’t show up and stand up, you could lose what you love tomorrow. The vote was 3-2 last night, we just barely were given our SUP to operate the Sled Hill. Dreams we had for what we could do there were stripped out of the permit and stipulations were added.
I only tell you this story so that if ever there is anything on a city, county, state or national agenda that you believe in and it would change your life to lose, think about this night in Dover and make the decision to put words to what is important to you.
We are really fighting hard to continue to create special places in nature that welcome everyone. The next time we need to stand up and speak to what we value as a community, we hope you will show up and stand up next to us.
In service,
Katie
P.S. In a truly timely moment, this historical news was published in the Bonner County Daily Bee on March 19, 2026 - the day of the meeting noted above:
