Thursday, June 28, 2007 – 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Bison Visitor Center Blue Mountain Room
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Present:
Open Lands Board Members:
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Sue Sparling |
Bob Streeter |
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Jean Carpenter |
Peter Kast |
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Brian Hayes |
Bill Pinkham |
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Duane Pond |
Mark DeGregorio |
Staff
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Gary Buffington |
Glenn Gibson |
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Meegan Flenniken |
Windy Kelley |
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K-Lynn Cameron |
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Absent:
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Bill Newman |
Ted Swanson |
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Ben Manvel |
Jim White |
Chair, Peter Kast called the meeting to order at 5:40 p.m.
Bob motioned to approve the May minutes. Sue seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT
No public comment
INFORMATION ITEMS
· Rob Novak, Education Intern has been hired through October to implement our Education Program after the loss of Ann. He’s stepped right up to keep things going in this difficult situation.
· The Larimer County Commissioners met on June 4, 2007 to hear public comment and then made recommendation to the Planning Commission to adopt the proposed Parks Master Plan.
· On June 12, the Town of Berthoud Board of Trustees unanimously voted to provide $25,000 for Hermit Park. Thank you, Berthoud! Berthoud’s contribution will be matched with a $25,000 anonymous challenge grant to municipalities. K-Lynn explained that initially the board was only comfortable committing $5,000 to Hermit Park. After the Board of Trustees learned about a $25,000 challenge grant for municipalities they committed to claiming the full grant.
· Jean Carpenter and Peter Kast attended the “Wind Power and Ferrets Trip” that focused on wind power production and re-establishment of the black footed ferret. Jean said the field trip was very informative and all of the dedication to the black footed ferrets is time well spent. Peter added the wind power portion of the field trip was very interesting. He noted without government assistance wind power is not currently economically feasible. Jean added she expected the wind turbines to be louder. People who lease their property to host wind turbines no longer have to run cattle, because they are generating more money through leasing their property to energy companies. Peter explained the landowners can be paid one of three ways: 1) a flat rate, 2) per the amount of power generated on the land owner’s land, or 3) a combination of a flat rate and the amount of power generated. Jean continued by explaining 8 miles per hour (mph) or more of wind to produce power and the net positive time of year for energy production is between October and February. Peter added the wind turbines must be shutdown when wind velocity reaches 50 mph or more. Lastly, Bob talked about the wind energy industry and what research has/is being conducted to make the wind production more environmentally friendly.
· On June 2, the annual CAST (Catch a Special Thrill) Event was held at Horsetooth Reservoir. This annual event sponsored by the Bureau of Reclamation and Northern Water pairs disabled kids with fishermen for a day of fishing on a boat. It was a great success!!
· The Open Lands Board Picnic at Hermit Park on Saturday, June 9 was attended by 50 people. Lots of folks climbed Kruger Rock – Charlie’s photo proves who all made it to the top! Everyone had a great time and thanks to Windy for doing a great job with all the logistics!
· Jeffrey Boring accepted the Open Lands Specialist I position and will be starting July 9, 2007. Jeffrey comes from the Big Thompson Water Forum where he was the Monitoring Program Manager. He has a Masters of Science in Conservation and Sustainable Development and has worked for the Athens Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy in Georgia.
· LTA Rally update: free landowner seminar from Steve Small entitled “Preserving Family Lands: Protecting Your Land for Future Generations” on 10/3 from 8:00 am – 12:00, see Kerri to register. Also, the Sylvan Dale field trip has the most registrants (11 total so far) of all 12 trips offered!
· Update on proposal to securitize the Colorado Lottery. K-Lynn talked about an informational session she attended on June 18th regarding the privatization of lotteries. The session was hosted by GOCO and the Colorado Municipal League. A private company who is working with the state of Illinois to privatize their lottery presented the benefits for privatizing state lotteries. To date no state has privatized their lottery, however globally it is happening. K-Lynn expressed concerns for securitizing the dollars conservation programs currently receive in Colorado from the lottery. She noted the additional revenue generated will go to veterans and higher education. Meetings regarding privatizing the Colorado lottery are expected to continue throughout the summer. She did note privatization can occur in one of two ways: 1) a private company comes and takes over all aspects of the lottery or 2) a lease is created between the government and the private industry.
· Peter gave a round of applause to Mark and Duane for their time of service to the Open Lands Advisory Board. Both Mark & Duane gave a brief word. Gary encouraged both Mark and Duane to apply for the Parks Advisory Board.
· K-Lynn noted the closing date for the Red Canyon property is September 21st.
BOARD COMMENT:
· Bob asked about the sales tax report in the packet. K-Lynn indicated the form needs to be updated. This form was created prior to Johnstown and Windsor receiving a portion of the sales tax.
· Bob raised the question whether or not the Open Lands Advisory Board needs to meet every month during the summer as it is a busy time of year for everyone. He added if there are urgent matters, then the board should meet. K-Lynn said Bob’s point was well taken and everyone’s time is valuable. She added in the past the Open Lands Advisory Board has skipped months. Bob suggested if the board is going to skip a meeting, extra material is distributed to keep everyone informed.
PRESENTATION
· Grieving a Loss; Celebrating a Life – Ann Dewey 1953 – 2007
DISCUSSION:
· Open Lands Advisory Board and Parks Advisory Board (PAB) Coordination. Reference enclosed OLAB bylaws. Peter recommended discussing how the OLAB will interface with the new Parks Advisory Board. Gary noted 9 of Parks Task Force members will be on the Parks Advisory Board, leaving the board two members short. Linda Knowlton will act as the Chair and Barry Lewis will be the Vice Chair for the PAB. The parks board discussed raising the 2008 annual camping and park fees for resident passes. Gary also added the parks board reviewed the Open Land’s bylaws and they believe the two boards will have some separation as well as some overlap. Gary recommended a subcommittee from the two advisory boards form and meet quarterly to ensure both board’s goals and objectives coincide. He recommended he and K-Lynn along with either the Chair or Vice Chair of the two boards is a part of these meetings. K-Lynn said it will be important to make it clear from the beginning what the responsibilities are of everyone involved. She recommended the OLAB wait until July to form a bylaws subcommittee. Gary noted Tom Miller and Rob Harris will sit on the bylaws committee for the Parks Advisory Board. Peter agreed with Gary’s recommendation for the two subcommittees to meet quarterly.
· Hermit Park Open Space Funding Update – K-Lynn talked about the media tour to Hermit Park on June 22nd. Shari Vines and Jack Troutman with the Friends of Larimer County Parks & Open Lands Hermit Park subcommittee shared with the media the importance of preserving Hermit Park. On June 26th the Friends Group presented the Open Lands Department with an $80,000 check and County officials announced the money to pay back the loan has been raised. K-Lynn also reviewed several of the donors: GOCO, City of Loveland with $420,000, Town of Berthoud with $25,000 who also claimed an anonymous $25,000 matching grant. Additionally, Hewlett Packard donated $10,000 while Verigy gave $10,010, the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado gave $11,000 including several donations from foundation families. The City of Fort Collins Manager wrote a letter stating they will give money to support Hermit Park. The City Council will review the proposed donation amount during their next council meeting in July. Bob asked what will happen with the extra money raised to pay back the Hermit Park loan. K-Lynn stated the money will go to Hermit Park for capital improvements etc. K-Lynn mentioned taking the fundraising volunteers to Hermit Park on July 23rd to celebrate their accomplishment.
· Hermit Park Management Plan Update – Meegan reported the County has hired EDAW as the consultant for the management plan. During the first meeting they discussed the “has builds,” additional amenities for the future, and what to submit for the special review process. There have been discussions of a 3,000 square foot visitor center which would include an office, visitor check-in, and a two car garage. The goal of the visitor center would be to make the entrance area more aesthetically pleasing. The next meeting with EDAW will specifically look at the trails and trailheads at Hermit Park. Another issue they will address is equestrian use, specifically what the county is able to provide at Hermit Park. A conceptual trail has been laid out which includes approximately 6 miles of internal trails. On July 11th we will meet with the Forest Service to discuss the NEPA process for the proposed trail to Kruger Rock. The Colorado Natural Heritage Program will conduct a plant survey in July and an archeology inventory will also take place. The well and septic permitting are in process. We have been working with CDOT regarding turn lanes from US highway 36 to Hermit Park. Discussions and plans will continue throughout the summer. Bob expressed concerns about putting too much money into new projects up front (i.e. the visitor center). Meegan replied all projects we are considering for the future at Hermit Park must be evaluated during the special review process.
· Red Mountain Open Space Management Plan Update – Meegan discussed the second Technical Advisory Team meeting on June 26th. Management targets, the proposed hiking routes, and management zones along with the corresponding definitions of each zone and the identified indicators were discussed at the meeting. A concern that was raised is the potential concentration of mountain bikers on Red Mountain. The City will discuss rezoning sections of their trails to allow more mountain biking, thereby more evenly dispersing the use between the two properties. Meegan ended by noting the next public meeting will be the middle to the end of August.
ACTION none
DIRECTORS REPORT
· Gary talked about the acceptance of the Parks Master Plan by the County Commissioners. He noted there were 15 – 20 citizens present during the approval.
EXECUTIVE SESSION: (24-6-402(4) (a) C.R.S. Purchase, acquisition, lease, transfer or sale of any real or personal property interest. No executive session.
The meeting was adjourned by a motion from Duane. The motion was seconded by Sue and carried unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 6:49 p.m.
