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Cosmic Ray tunnel naming

Do you support naming the Sheep Crossing FUTS tunnel at I-17 for Cosmic Ray?

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Do you support naming the Sheep Crossing FUTS tunnel at I-17 for Cosmic Ray?

Response Percent Response Count
Yes, name the Sheep Crossing tunnel for Cosmic Ray 92.3% 144
No, a different FUTS facility should be named for Cosmic Ray 3.8% 6
No, do not name the Sheep Crossing tunnel for Cosmic Ray 3.8% 6

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Cosmic Ray

Raymond J. Brutti was born in 1946 and moved to Flagstaff in 1979 at the age of 33. He worked as a mechanic at the original Cosmic Cycles on South San Francisco Street, and during this time adopted the "Cosmic Ray" moniker. In 1988, he published "Fat Tire Tales and Trails," one of the first guides for mountain biking in Arizona. He followed with two hiking guides, one for Flagstaff and Sedona and another for the Phoenix area. He died on October 2, 2020, at the age of 74.

Justification

According to City policy, facilities can be named for individuals who have contributed in a definitive way to the betterment of the Flagstaff community and its citizens, are accepted by the general public or professional field as a local, state, or national hero/contributor, or have historical significance.

  • Ray's book "Fat Tire Tales and Trails" was published in 1988, at a time when mountain biking was an entirely new activity. The book, and the subsequent hiking guide, helped put Flagstaff on the map as a destination for mountain biking, hiking, and outdoor activity. The books are known for their unique and humorous writing style and iconic maps and illustrations.
  • The guidebooks remain popular and are considered an essential source of information for hiking and biking in Flagstaff for both residents and visitors. The popularity of the books made Ray a recognizable and visible local figure.
  • Ray also promoted bicycling in Flagstaff in other ways: he conducted periodic free bicycle repair and maintenance clinics, taught weeks-long repair and maintenance classes, and helped individuals find and outfit old bikes for transportation. He also often stopped to pick up trash along streets and FUTS trails.

Sheep Crossing FUTS Trail

The Sheep Crossing Trail is an aggregate surfaced FUTS trail, approximately 0.8 miles in length, that was completed in late 2020. The trail provides a connection between the Ponderosa Trails neighborhood and Fort Tuthill County Park. The Sheep Crossing Trail includes an improved tunnel under I-17 that is dedicated for pedestrian and bicycle use. The tunnel was originally built in 1960 as part of a "sheep driveway" to facilitate moving herds of sheep across the new interstate safely.

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Process

Requests to name or rename a City facility are reviewed first by the appropriate City commission, then forwarded to the City Council for a final decision. In this case, the request will be reviewed by the following City commissions on the listed dates:

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