Here is the official web page for the project:The Project Partners will be conducting an open house for the Project to provide additional information on the project's purpose and need, alternatives, and resource issues of concern. The open house will be held on October 29, 2015, 6-8 pm at the Zigzag District Office, 70220 E Highway 26, Zigzag, OR 97049. Following that meeting, displays and other materials will be posted on the project webpage.
http://www.flh.fhwa.dot.gov/projects/or/mirror-lake/
There's not much info there, now, but you can subscribe for updates on the project.
Background
The Forest Service received a grant in 2014 that is funding their analysis of different trailhead options. The most promising option from a logistics standpoint is simply using the Ski Bowl parking area, but the resort has concerns about that, as you might guess.
You have probably seen other changes in the area. ODOT is midway through a major widening of the Mount Hood Highway that will bring a freeway-style concrete barrier to the entire Laurel Hill grade, from Government Camp all the way down to the Kiwanis Camp Road (the old highway section that leads to Little Zigzag Falls). This means that the historic trailheads at Laurel Hill and Mirror Lake will only be accessible from the eastbound highway, and that Portland area hikers leaving Mirror Lake would need to drive east to Government Camp and turn around to head west. Likewise, hikers coming from the east would need to drive to the bottom of the hill, and turn around at Kiwanis Camp Road to reach the Laurel Hill and Mirror Lake trailheads.
For now, the project proposes fifty parking spaces in a new lot constructed somewhere else in the vicinity. That sounds small (and it is), considering the size of crowds on a typical weekend at Mirror Lake, but that's intentional. The Forest Service is looking to reduce the human impact on Mirror Lake, with a parking area sized to what they would see as the optimal maximum for the area. If the new parking area and trail is located at Ski Bowl, there is obviously a large existing parking area that will allow a lot more than 50 parties to visit the trail in the off-season for the resort. The Ski Bowl concerns come from winter use, when snowshoers and backcountry skiers might use the parking area to visit Mirror Lake, and displace resort visitors.
If you find yourself grieving the loss of the historic trailhead, here's something else to consider: the project proposes to restore the existing shoulder parking area to some sort of natural condition. So, if you comment on the proposal, consider commenting on how this restoration might work to benefit Camp Creek, which is now heavily affected by highway runoff and the impacts of parking here. While it might not be a welcome change for hikers used to this trailhead, it could benefit Camp Creek -- something to consider, assuming this change is inevitable.
Feel free to post questions or comments about the proposal on this thread, and I will post updates as I learn about them.
Tom