COEUR d'ALENE - While the language is in there, the city's Natural Open Space Management Plan doesn't call for building a north side trail on Tubbs Hill.

It only mentions it as a possibility to one day consider.

Nevertheless, the Tubbs Hill Foundation is opposing the city's proposed management plan as long as it includes proposed changes to the hill - such as a north side trail - that had been considered with the McEuen Field conceptual plan last year before being dropped.

Those proposals - at least conceptually - are included in the city's inaugural open space management plan, and their mere mention is making the THF balk.

"THF wants to be very clear that our position in separating Tubbs from McEuen is 'leave Tubbs Hill alone,'" Jennifer Johnson, THF board president, wrote in an open letter. "Now is not the time to be considering any proposed construction of a major new trail across the north face of Tubbs."

But the management plan is more of a comprehensive look at how the city will manage all of its open space for 10, 20, 30 years out, and subject to change if city, state or federal policies do, city officials said.

And as with the county's comprehensive plan, just including possible projects in the 134-page draft doesn't mean the project is necessarily going to happen.

"Everything will have to go through the proper channels to be approved," said Monte McCully, city trails coordinator, on proposed alterations to Tubbs Hill having to go through the city's sub-committee and City Council process.

It's the first time the city is crafting the management plan, largely because it has acquired more open space in recent years, including 50 acres or so on Fernan Hill which was mostly donated to the city.

Crafted by a citizen-comprised Open Space Committee over more than a year, the draft calls for developing hiking trails at Fernan and the mostly vacant Veterans Centennial Park off Fernan Hill Road while addressing Canfield and Winton parks, too.

It outlines fire protection plans as well, and pitches to connect the fire access road on Tubbs Hill to the water tank access road.

But the attention grabber in the plan is its reference to a north side trail with possible access near City Hall on Tubbs Hill, which the THF opposes. Those proposed changes were part of the original McEuen Field conceptual plan before the city decided to drop them off the plan and form a committee to look at accessible trails separately.

That's not good enough for THF.

"We need to be very clear our position has not changed," wrote Johnson.

Johnson could not be reached for comment Monday. The THF unanimously approved the resolution May 10.

Because of the accessible trails committee's work, the city is making around 1,400 feet of trail on Tubbs Hill more accessible for people with wheelchairs. That project, which was approved by the THF, will maintain the natural look of the path currently there, and is a pilot project. A pilot project means if it's deemed successful - it could be finished late this year or next spring - then the city could look at doing the same to other trails.

That's why the language was included in the draft, said John Bruning, open space committeeman.

"We want to look at the pilot project on the east side first," he said. "If it's too much, we'll look at it again and maybe back off it."

That could be all down the line.

Currently, the Open Space Committee is looking through comments on the natural space management plan it received during several open houses. It will meet again to determine if the draft needs to be changed. When the draft is ready to move forward, it will go before the city's parks and recreation committee, which would then forward it to the city's General Services Committee and then the City Council, where the public would be allowed to comment, Parks Director Doug Eastwood said.

Meanwhile, if a specific change, such as trail work, is proposed for Tubbs Hill in the future, it too would go through the subcommittees and City Council process separately, Eastwood said. The city wouldn't skip those steps and green light projects on Tubbs Hill just because the language is included in the management plan, Eastwood added.