While people here in Bakersfield may be excited to see some snow this weekend. Residents in Tehachapi may not be looking forward to it as much. With the possibility of the first snowfall tomorrow the city of Tehachapi and its residents are preparing for the influx of people. And what they want you to know before you head out of town.
Residents of Tehachapi are preparing for the snow…and not in the way you may think. “Because Tehachapi is such a beautiful place, then when it snows, it’s even more beautiful, so when the snowflakes fall it’s a really huge event and people wanna come see it,” said Danielle Bryant, a resident of Tehachapi. As people from around Kern County and Los Angeles flock to see the snow they may not know exactly what they are getting themselves in to.
“Families come up, they usually come up from Bakersfield and they are anticipating this great play date in the snow and there’s no snow for them to get to because it’s all on private property,” said Key Budge, Tehachapi community engagement specialist. And when people looking for a fun day aren’t sure where to play…that can cause issues for those that live here.
“Sometimes when the tourists come they don’t respect our little town…and it would be nice if they did, just come and enjoy it and have fun with it…just remember you are in someone else’s backyard,” said Bryant. And cause issues for those who are just visiting.
“They are subject to arrest for trespassing, their cars could be towed and cited it could create a whole bunch of headaches for families coming up just with the intent to enjoy,” said Budge. One big problem, sometimes visitor’s belongings don’t leave when they do. “Please bring trash bags, pick up after yourselves, if you’re gonna have snacks, sodas or lunch, just please take your trash with you,” said Jackie Murphy.
Some residents, however, don’t seem to mind the visitors coming to enjoy. “People will come up and just park on the side of the road where there’s a lot of land kind of and they will just be out there playing, it’s really cute,” said Elizabeth Boyett, a Tehachapi resident.
People looking to visit and enjoy the snow can visit public areas, such as Brite Lake and Tehachapi Mountain Park. They just need to be aware of private property and road closures. “If we do get a ton of snow down here the highway patrol tends to close off highway 58 so you can’t get to us anyway and you can’t get to it at the elevation of mountain park because that road becomes very treacherous in those kinds of conditions,” said Budge.
While the snow in town may not be as much as there is on private properties, visitors are still encouraged to come enjoy and take pictures so they can avoid any mess when traveling on a snow day.
