Castle Rock Town Talk — Coloring community green

Ibegan last month’s column by writing about signs of spring.

Continuing on a similar theme, I’d like you to focus for a few minutes on the color green.

Not the green in the grass that’s coming back to life or the buds beginning to form on plants, but rather the green in the Town’s many environmental initiatives. With the celebration of Earth Day upcoming, now’s a good time to review Castle Rock’s e orts in this area.

An obvious topic to touch on is the Town’s preservation of open space. Roughly 30% of the Town’s land area is dedicated open space that the community can enjoy in perpetuity. at’s a fact of which I, and your Town Council, are incredibly proud. And, we’re continually exploring opportunities to add to that inventory.

ere are several other ways the Town lets its green shine through, as are reviewed in our spring edition of Outlook magazine, recently delivered to your mailbox and available online at CRgov.com/Outlook. A quick rundown:

• Castle Rock Fire and Rescue has conserved over 5.5 million gallons of water since purchasing a piece of water pump-testing equipment in 2019. It helps other area re agencies save water, too.

• Speaking of saving water, lowmaintenance ColoradoScapes do that – and save money – while beautifying the areas outside local homes and businesses. Locate plants to brighten your landscape at CRconserve.com/PlantFinder

• On the topic of buildings, you should know that Town employs sustainable planning, building and zoning practices, from requiring energy e ciency standards to preserving beloved local landmarks. Learn about the latter at CRgov.com/