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Safety debate continues over Gibbs Loop access through Mount Ogden Golf Course; city to meet stakeholders on reroute options
Summary
A safety dispute over Gibbs Loop trail access through Mount Ogden Golf Course dominated public comment May 13, with residents and golf course staff urging the city to reroute or close crossings where trail users traverse active fairways.
Public comment during the May 13 meeting focused heavily on the safety of the Gibbs Loop trail crossing the Mount Ogden Golf Course. Multiple speakers urged the city to close or reroute the access where trail users traverse active fairways.
David Lewis, an Ogden resident and frequent Mount Ogden user, told the council he regularly encounters walkers, families and children on the course and said many tee shots are blind; he and others described situations in which pedestrians and golfers occupy the same ground. Caden Sparks, representing Mount Ogden Golf Course, and other speakers cited the 6‑year‑old child killed at Sleepy Ridge Golf Course (Orem) as a cautionary example and urged the council to act before a fatality occurs. Steve Hall and other residents likewise asked the council to prioritize removing the hazard by rerouting trails to perimeter alignments or other safer routes.
Wesley Calgren, a local runner, said his group was not seeking unrestricted access across fairways and has suggested alternate routes that avoid crossing active play. The mayor and council members acknowledged the competing uses: golf course operations and the city's trail system. The mayor said staff have been asked to identify short‑term and long‑term options and that a meeting with stakeholders (including Weber State cross‑country coaches and trail users) was scheduled to discuss possible reroutes. The mayor said the trail remains closed while options are evaluated and flagged vandalism and theft incidents at the course as additional management concerns.
Why it matters: The issue pits recreation uses against each other: a popular multi‑use trail that has historically crossed golf course property versus the risk of errant golf shots on crossings that are, in places, blind. Residents and golf course operators both described heavy and sometimes unpredictable use patterns.
What's next: City staff will meet with stakeholders to map alternatives; short‑term mitigation measures (signage, temporary closures, reroutes) are under consideration while the city evaluates capital‑level solutions for a longer term realignment or infrastructure that separates users.
No formal council vote was recorded on the trail routing at the May 13 meeting.
