BLM AZ Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail Management Partnership
Project Background Information: The Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (Anza Trail) is a 1,200 mile trail authorized by Congress in 1990 as a component of the National Trails System and is administered by the National Park Service (NPS). NPS Anza Trail Superintendent office is located in San Francisco, California. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages approximately 120 miles of the Anza Trail in Arizona and California. Five BLM Field Offices manage portions of the Trail. BLM and NPS work jointly with Anza Trail enthusiasts and partners to manage the resources, qualities, values and associated settings of this historic trail. Anza Trail holds national significance due to its historic use and has considerable potential for interest-based historic interpretation and appreciation. BLM desires to build upon the good record of partnership with partner organizations that furthers an understanding and stewardship of the Anza Trail and its legacy. BLM will cooperate with NPS and trail partners for their mutual benefit and for the benefit of the people of the United States and future generations to enjoy and appreciate their National Historic Trail. Project Objective: The Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (Anza Trail) is a 1,200-mile trail authorized by Congress in 1990 as a component of the National Trails System and is administered by the National Park Service (NPS). NPS Anza Trail Superintendent office is located in San Francisco, California. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages approximately 120 miles of the Anza Trail in Arizona and California. Five BLM Field Offices manage portions of the Trail. BLM and NPS work jointly with Anza Trail enthusiasts and partners to manage the resources, qualities, values and associated settings of this historic trail. Anza Trail holds national significance due to its historic use and has considerable potential for interest-based historic interpretation and appreciation. BLM desires to build upon the good record of partnership with partner organizations that furthers an understanding and stewardship of the Anza Trail and its legacy. BLM will cooperate with NPS and trail partners for their mutual benefit and for the benefit of the people of the United States and future generations to enjoy and appreciate their National Historic Trail. This will not be an agreement with NPS; BLM routinely coordinates with NPS on various projects. The purpose of developing an assistance agreement with an Anza Trail partner is to foster and develop public land and trail stewardship among trail users, local communities and youth by encouraging and assisting volunteer citizen involvement and participation in the planning, development, maintenance, corridor protection and management of the Anza Trail on public lands administered by the BLM. While also providing outdoor educational programs and activities targeting youth in schools in communities in and around the affected Field Offices in Arizona and California. BLM and its partners will use the Anza Trail segments on public lands administered by the BLM for fieldtrips that reinforce and expand upon the class room curriculum and connects the participants with the public lands and the resources and resource values on those lands. Support for educational opportunities will include ¿Anza expedition re-enactments¿. These re-enactments, conducted by Anza Trail partners, have been an important part of the Anza Trail historical experience in both states for many years. BLM supports upgrade of the online database referred to as ¿Web de Anza.¿ The Web de Anza was designed and developed by the Center for Advanced Technology in Education (CATE) at the University of Oregon between the years of 1997 and 2005. The original goal was to create a "web-based study environment" about Juan Bautista de Anza and his mid-18th century expeditions to ¿Alta California.¿ The website contains Spanish and English versions of eight expedition journals, as well as related letters, images, and maps. The text for Anza¿s 1775-76 Journal is richly supported with links to definitions, annotations, drawings, maps, calendars, and other documents, making the website appropriate for teaching historical inquiry in elementary/high schools. BLM and its partners recognize the need to bring the system into currency will require several phases of inter-related effort, resulting in changes to Web de Anza¿s information architecture, database structure, web interface, content, server hardware and software. This project will serve the public by improving the reliability and usability of Web de Anza. The redesigned Web de Anza will better meet the diverse needs of its users with an enhanced navigation interface (i.e. more user-friendly). The Web de Anza content will also be enriched with the addition of resources curated by members of the Anza community. BLM will be substantially involved in the planning and development of the project and will provide images and materials that may be added to Web de Anza. NPS and BLM will obtain feedback from Anza community partners to assist with the design of an effective online database and will also provide guidance and support in all stages of the project. This agreement will provide opportunities for non-government organizations to assist with management of existing and planned trails, and implementing trail plans by other agencies, organizations and volunteers. The program is aimed at providing venues for youth organizations to develop and practice leadership, supervision, project management, team work, and National Trail Inventory (according to BLM Manuals 6250, 6280) trail/trailhead design, planning, construction and maintenance skills, while working on projects on public lands. Opportunities for youth engagement (Department of Interior Secretarial Order 3332 or ¿Order 3332¿) will include activities such as conducting trail surveys (including data collection and database development) and grade line design, completing necessary studies and evaluations, preparing project plans (including environmental documentation), completing condition inspections of existing trails, and completing maintenance on existing trails (including signage), acquisition of easements or rights of ways where needed, and administering and coordinating program activities
Office: Bureau of Land Management
ebell@blm.gov
