Light display irks Hartwood neighbors

:By Liz Hayes, VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH, March 30, 2008
County officials were surprised at a Saturday morning town hall meeting in March 2008 by the large turnout of people concerned about the future of Hartwood Acres Park.
About 100 people crowded into the Hartwood Acres historic Tudor mansion to address their dreams for the 630-acre park that straddles Indiana and Hampton townships in northern Allegheny County.
County Chief Executive Dan Onorato is hosting town hall meetings at each of the county's nine public parks to get public input on what would make each park better.
Onorato said the county alone doesn't have the ability to afford all the deferred maintenance and capital projects needed throughout the 12,000-acre park system. That's why he created the nonprofit Allegheny County Parks Foundation last year to take the lead on fund-raising and implementing plans.
"I'm a big believer in this concept of public-private partnerships," Onorato said.
While Hartwood supporters said they were thankful for Onorato's attention, they were quick to hammer him with complaints -- the two largest being their dissatisfaction with an annual Christmas display and the at-times contentious relationship between the many groups that use Hartwood's trails.
The first issue the crowd addressed as soon as Onorato had finished speaking was the Rite Aid Celebration of Lights at Hartwood, an annual holiday display that attracts upward of 50,000 vehicles from November to January. Although sponsored by the drug store chain, the county is responsible for setting up and taking down the decorations.
Complaints included excessive traffic, overwhelmingly loud Christmas music and damage to the environment such as trees strangled by lights and vehicle exhaust.
"It's obscene," said Abby Anderson Westberg, who rides horses to the equestrian-friendly park from her nearby Indiana Township home. "It's very unsightly."
Westberg and others said the lights and cables stretch across trails from September to at least April, causing a nuisance and a safety hazard to horses, walkers and mountain bikers.
Countless trees still wrapped in lights and other display elements were visible throughout the park Saturday morning.
Jonathan Spatz of Indiana Township said he wanted children to be able to enjoy holiday displays, but questioned whether Hartwood is the best place for it.
"It's not appropriate in an environmental setting," Spatz said.
He suggested moving the display to downtown Pittsburgh where people could enjoy the lights and the city could benefit from an influx of visitors.
Westberg, a horticulturist, said she fears the trees will be damaged by repeatedly being wrapped with lights and cables for prolonged periods of time.
When questioned by the audience, Onorato said the park itself does not receive any money from the festival. He said the display raised $480,000 last year for various charities.
Onorato seemed taken aback by the outcry over the festival and promised to consider ways to alleviate people's concerns.
"This is supposed to be a friendly parks meeting," he joked.
Another issue that occupied the majority of the two-hour meeting was how to improve trails and find a balance between the many people who want to use them, including equestrians, mountain bikers, hikers and dog-walkers.
Several people said some bikers were rude, not yielding to horses, littering and tearing up the trails.
Biking advocates in the audience countered that unruly mountain bikers were in the minority and noted the efforts of the mountain biking community to form an alliance of all trail users to maintain and improve the trails.
They and county Parks Director Andy Baechle urged all trail users to join the Pittsburgh Trails Advocacy Group (PTAG), which has been working with Baechle to map trails, identify appropriate trails for specific uses and generally improve the paths.
"I know the trails are a conflict," Baechle said.
Others urged Onorato to improve the equestrian facilities at Hartwood, including the historic stable complex.
Joan Milsom of Fox Chapel and Barbara Halpern of Pittsburgh, who helped organize competitive horse shows at Hartwood until 2000, asked Onorato to ensure the stables receive the same historic designation and preservation priority as the mansion.
The women said they are in contact with a national horse show organizer to return the event to Hartwood.
They said they would like to see state-of-the-art horse facilities added to the grounds to attract horse riders to the park and keep equestrian-oriented activities a priority, as they believe was intended by the Lawrence family when they donated the park land.
Onorato said his administration is interested in improving equestrian facilities and access. He said they are seeking proposals from organizations and companies interested in managing the facilities.
"We're going to be open-minded," Onorato said about possible partnerships.
: Liz Hayes can be reached at lhayes@tribweb.com or 724-226-4680. 
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