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February 5, 2015 VOLU M E 1 2 0 | I S S UE 1 | 7 5 ¢
ElbertCountyNews.net E L B E R T C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
A publication of
Town’s trail plan boosted by grant CDOT awards town $700,000 for project By Rick Gustafson Special to Colorado Community Media
Elbert County Commissioners, from left, Kelly Dore, Robert Rowland and Larry Ross listen to public comment during the Jan. 28 meeting. Photos by Rick Gustafson
Board appointments spark discussion Water, planning agencies open door to comments, debate By Rick Gustafson
Special to Colorado Community Media
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ELBERT COUNTY NEWS (USPS 171-100)
OFFICE: 9137 S. Ridgeline Blvd., Suite 210 Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 PHONE: 303-566-4100 A legal newspaper of general circulation in Elizabeth, Colorado, the Elbert County News is published weekly on Thursday by Colorado Community Media. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT ELIZABETH, COLORADO and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address change to: 9137 S. Ridgeline Blvd., Suite 210 Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 DEADLINES: Display: Thurs. 11 a.m. Legal: Thurs. 11 a.m. | Classified: Mon. 10 a.m. G ET SOCIAL WITH US
P L EA SE R ECYC L E T H I S C OPY
The subjects of water and development have traditionally been the lightning rods of politics in Elbert County, and there was no variation to that theme when the Board of County Commissioners met on Jan. 28 to discuss and vote on its annual appointments for 2015. The regularly scheduled meeting in Kiowa drew about 30 citizens from as far away as Simla to watch and express opinions on various county appointments being made. While most were approved unanimously with little to no controversy, the usual suspects of water and planning drew the most public comment as well as prolonged internal debate among the three county commissioners making up the BOCC. The first major debate arose from appointments to water roundtables. Commissioner Robert Rowland, District 1, who was reappointed as Elbert County’s representative to the Metro Roundtable, offered a motion to also represent Elbert County on the South Platte Basin Roundtable, a seat held by Commissioner Larry Ross of District 3. Rowland said he was seeking the seat because he felt that he had the requisite skills to provide the best representation to both bodies and so Elbert County’s representation and messaging would be consistent to both the Metro and South Platte Basin roundtables. Newly sworn-in Commissioner Kelly Dore, District 2, cast the first of several deciding votes of the day in favor of reappointing Ross, explaining that water was a primary issue for everyone in Elbert County, and that all three commissioners needed to work together and be educated together. She also stressed the need for broad BOCC involvement. “We have to work together and make sure that we are sharing this information, and it cannot be based on one person,” she said. “In a year we can re-examine this and figure out what we want to do, but I would like to at least afford Commissioner Ross the opportunity to show me within that year.” The BOCC also unanimously formalized its three appointments to the Water Advisory Committee, but split when it came to the appointment of local developer James Marshal as the committee’s fourth member. Marshal was the key player in the Spring Valley Vistas Development project. In 2008, Elbert County District Court ruled against an increase in density within the project that was authorized
Rick Brown, the vice chair of the Elbert County Planning Commission, addresses the Board of County Commissioners during the Jan. 28 meeting. by the then BOCC to the development company, RCI, after a local activist group, Citizens for Responsible Growth, filed a lawsuit opposing it. An appellate court subsequently overturned the district court’s ruling, but the Colorado Supreme Court reinstated it in 2011. Rowland brought forth the motion of Marshal’s appointment, and Ross was quick to speak of the merits of including developers in the conversation regarding growth and planning, but cautioned that the BOCC needed to be careful not to compromise its position as an authoritative body. “It is very, very important for us (as public officials) to maintain proper distance or relationship to those who will come before our planning department,” Ross said. Ross offered a motion to postpone the appointment until he had an opportunity to further discuss and study the implications of the lastminute addition to the Water Advisory Committee. Dore also spoke to the merits of additional time to study Marshal’s appointment. Dore seconded Ross’ motion and cast the deciding vote to postpone the decision. On the issue of planning commission appointments, it was once again Dore who tipped the BOCC continues on Page 7
The Town of Elizabeth moved a step closer to creating a new network of trails throughout the town linking schools, the library, and recreation areas with the awarding of a new grant. The $700,000 Colorado Department of Transportation grant is part of its Transportation Alternative Program program designed to assist local governments with alternative transportation projects. According Dick Eason, town administrator, the trail project has been in the works for over a year, and website surveys as well as public reaction to the conceptual drawings at public venues have been positive. Even with the CDOT grant secured, the project will remain conceptual for at least another year. The grant comes with the stipulation that the town provide matching funds before receiving any money. Those matching funds are likely to come from a second grant provided by Great Outdoors Colorado. The application deadline for the GOCO grant is in mid-February, but the town has already passed a major hurdle on the way to securing the additional funding. The project’s conceptual plan received a favorable review by GOCO in November, which gives the town the go ahead to continue the application process. The entire trail project is contingent on receiving both the grants, because each grant constitutes the matching funds required by the other. According to Eason, the award of the CDOT grant strengthens the town’s GOCO application. An answer is expected from GOCO sometime in early spring. But even if the application for the GOCO grant is not approved this year, the project is not necessarily dead. According to Eason, the CDOT funds will remain available to the town for an additional year, giving the town another chance to apply for GOCO funding. If all goes according to plan, the town could begin engineering and designs in early 2016 and construction could begin in early 2017. The town has scheduled a town hall meeting for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 11 to discuss right of ways and easements with property owners who might be affected by the plan. Though the meetings are informational and will focus on property owners, the public is invited to attend. According to CDOT, the Transportation Alternative Program was developed to facilitate alternative transportation projects that include recreational trails, safe routes to schools, and support of improvements to existing roadways to provide safe routes for non-drivers. GOCO, created by voters in 1992, allocates up to 50 percent of state’s earnings from the Colorado Lottery ticket sales to provide local governments money for the conservation of open spaces or for the construction of parks and trails.