With a history of multiple-use in the Anacortes Community Forest Lands combined with complaints about motorcycles, city staff and Forest Board members have attempted to strike a balance in the update of the Forest Lands Comprehensive Plan.

“With all user groups in the Forest Lands, we’re trying to balance the needs of one with another,” said Forest Lands manager Jonn Lunsford. “That’s what the Forest Board considers when it’s deciding these policies.”

The only specific limitation on motorcycles currently in the Forest Lands regards speed — the maximum is 15 mph. Drivers in the current plan are also asked to be courteous to other user groups and observe trail uses.

All other factors concerning motor bikes are introduced in the updated plan. They include no motorcycles larger than 250cc and no two-stroke engines. Off-Road Vehicle permits through the state are also required.

Though motorcycles are prohibited from some of the 50 miles of trails in the Forest Lands today, more are off limits in the updated plan. And all trails are closed to motorized vehicles from Nov. 1 through March 31. City park staff can work with the Forest Board to extend that period if they find it necessary to protect trails, Lunsford said.

The Forest Lands plan, along with the Parks and Recreation comprehensive plan, was OK’d by the Planning Commission June 10 and goes before the City Council at 7:30 p.m. Monday at City Hall. The two plans define public uses, conservation and maintenance in city parks and the Forest Lands.

“Our focus was to try to eliminate the complaints — racing, smell and noise,” said Marty Laumbattus. “Rather than eliminate the group completely, we tried to address the issues.”

Laumbattus serves on the Forest Board, Planning Commission and ACFL Trail Committee, and has ridden his 250-cc, 4-stroke dual sport motorcycle in the Forest Lands for years.

Through the department’s policy for motorcycles is 15 mph, the current management plan lists it as 25, Lunsford said. The new plan makes the rule match the policy.

“When they made it 25, the use was so different,” he said.

But Lunsford also said the trails are for all users groups to recreate and riding motorcycles is how some recreate.

“We realize people have very passionate views,” he said. “We try to strike a balance.”

The new limitation on bike size to motorcycles under 250 cc includes an exception for street-legal dual-sport motorcycles. Such bikes are based on dirt bikes but do not have the aggressive tires and are not racers, Laumbattus said.

The goal of the 250-cc restriction was to eliminate racing bikes, he said.

The prohibition of two-stroke as opposed to four-cylinder engines stems from the smoke that can linger on the trails after such a motorcycle has passed. When a two-stroke engine burns, it burns its lubricant oil and leaves smoke in the air, Laumbattus said. Four-cylinder engines simply burn cleaner.

“Some people go into the Forest Lands to get away from those things and so when they come upon them, they’re offended,” Lunsford said.

Manufacturers are also moving away from two-stroke engines because they don’t meet emission standards, Laumbattus said.

The department has tried to address noise complaints with the requirement of United States Department of Agriculture approved spark arresters on bikes and the limitation of decibels to 105, which is based on the state’s off-road vehicle program, Laumbattus said.

Though the industry standard is 96 decibels, the city will probably not reduce its standard until the state takes that lead, Lunsford said.

The closure of some trails year around to motorcycles stems from the increased degradation of trails from motorized use, Lunsford said. The maintenance on such trails is more difficult partly due to the steepness of slopes. Also because of geographical limitations, the trails can not be adjusted to accommodate them.

“If you can’t improve the trail, we have to change the use and that’s what we did,” Lunsford said.

“It’s not a perfect plan, but it is a compromise,” Laumbattus said. “There are some people who will never accept motorcycles in the Forest Lands but it is multi-use. We’re just trying to protect a part of it.”