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HomeMy WebLinkAboutpitco.ost.min.reg.09222004 . . . Minutes OPEN SPACE AND TRAILS BOARD MEETING OF SEPTEMBER 22,2004 Plaza One Conference Room Board Members Present: Bill Fales, Rick Neiley, Anne Rickenbaugh, Jesse Boyce Others Present: Dale Will, Barb D' Autrechy, Gary Tennenbaum, Hilary Smith, John Ely Anne Rickenbaugh called the meeting to order at approximately 10:04 a.m. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES The minutes of the September 2,2004 Regular and Executive Session meetings were approved, and Bill liked them! STAFF COMMENTS RFTA Ballot Issue Dale referred to the letter from RFT A Director Dan Blankenship that was in the packet, which explained why RFT A did not choose to dedicate a specific percentage of the proposed tax to trails in the ballot question for the upcoming election. Dale recapped the letter for the OSTB. Bill commented that the tax advocacy group is referring to them selves as ".. . for trails and transit", and the Board briefly discussed how trails were used to promote the tax in 2000, and that trails did not receive the fully promised funding from that tax. Hilary recommended a joint meeting of the OSTB and RFT A Board. Bill felt that discussion of the ballot issue was better suited for a consortium of trail agencies. Dale informed the OSTB that Dorothea asked for this issue to be on the joint meeting agenda, and asked the Board ifthey wanted him to present a position for that meeting. The Board discussed the specific issue and the philosophical issue of whether or not the OSTB should take positions on political issues. The Board agreed that it did not formally endorse or oppose the RFT A ballot question. Airport Ranch Survey Dale informed the Board that Bud will present a final Airport Ranch survey to the BOCC for adoption under a resolution, which would designate portions of the property as OST, and be subject to the Home Rule Charter, as discussed at the last meeting. There was a brief discussion on the possible future use of the "airport" portion of the Ranch. Hilary clarified that if any portion of the airport property was used for general fund facilities, the County would have to purchase the property from the Airport and the FAA would have to be appropriately reimbursed for that portion of the property. East of Aspen Trail Update Dale informed the Board that the East of Aspen Trail is coming in significantly under budget. However, an issue has come up regarding the location of the trail through the USFS "Wildwood" parcel. Cindy Dean of the USFS and Temple conducted a site visit together to discuss the trail alignment through the property, and the USFS subsequently issued a permit for the trail construction. However, with the project underway, Cindy saw the flagged alignment for the trail and realized that it is partly on an old stage road. Cindy informed Temple that the trail cannot constructed on the stage road until an archeological assessment by the USFS has been conducted. The archeological assessment I . . would take an unknown amount of time and would not permit completion of that section of trail this construction season. Dale spoke with Cindy and they determined that the trail could be moved over, off of the stage road, and partly onto CDOT's Highway 82 ROW. The UFSF and CDOT have an MOU which would permit recreational use of the ROW by the USFS, so long as it does not impact the use and maintenance of the highway. A CDOT representative will be up the first week in October to look at the proposed alignment and determine if there are any issues. In the meantime, Dale has instructed Temple to work on getting the deck portion of the trail completed this season. The Board expressed concern that relocating the trail closer to the highway would impact the quality of the trail. The possibility of waiting for the Ryan land exchange, which would put the Wildwood parcel in private hands, subject to a trail easement, was also discussed. Dale explained that the land swap would require congressional approval, an appraisal process, and a vote in Pitkin County, which is likely to take 1-2 years at least. Gary felt that if CDOT approved of the realignment the problem would be solved. He will prepare a map and photos depicting the alignments. Rick felt that, since the permit was already issued, that they could move forward. Staff will visit the property with CDOT and continue to work to resolve the problem. Highland Trail Ribbon Cutting Dale informed the Board that there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Highlands Trail at noon on September 30th BOARD COMMENTS Redstone Park Annie referred to the Land Steward Update Memo (aka La Lista) and asked if Gary was proposing to landscape Redstone Park. Gary explained that a large cottonwood fell right on a park bench in Redstone Park. The remaining trees were tested and most of the cottonwoods were determined to be unsafe and were removed. Gary said that he does not intend to replace the trees, but may plant a couple to provide some shade. Additionally, he will address other public safety issues for the park, such as replacing the gravel in the playground with a safer softer surface. The total cost is expected to be around $3,000. Gary added that he informed Redstone businesses why the trees were being removed, and that there have been no complaints. RMI Master Plan Rick noted that RMI is seeking approvals for development. He requested staffto check to make sure that the approvals that are seeking are consistent with the master plan that was approved by the OSTB. EXECUTIVE SESSION The Board voted unanimously to move into Executive Session at 11 :05 a.m., in accordance with CRS 24-6-402(4)(a) and (b), for the purpose of discussing acquisitions and conferring with counsel. The Board adjourned Executive Session at 11 :58 a.m. . JOINT BOCC/OSTB MEETING 2 . . . County Commissioners Present: Jack Hatfield, Shellie Roy, Dorothea Farris, Patti Clapper, Mick Ireland Others Present: Dale Will, Barb D'Autrechy, Gary Tennenbaum, John Ely, Hilary Smith, Bud Eylar, Cindy Houben, Shannon Meyer, Kit Strang, members of the public Dorothea called the meeting to order at 12:04 pm with Patti, Jack and Shellie present. STAFF COMMENTS Crystal Trail IGA Dale gave the boards some background on the development of a proposal for a trail up the Crystal valley. OST is proposing construction of what is referred to as Phase I of the Crystal Valley Trail. Phase I would extend from the existing trail at Snowmass Drive and Highway 133 in Carbondale along the east side of Highway 133 to Thompson Creek. The entire trail is located within the CDOT ROW. Approximately one mile of the proposed trail is located within the Carbondale's jurisdiction, one mile in unincorporated Garfield County, and two miles in Pitkin County. The proposed IGA would apportion the cost of hiring a consultant to develop a construction plan and obtain CDOT permits, in proportion to the amount oftrail in each agency's jurisdiction. The cost is estimated at $20,000. Carbondale has already approved the IGA and Garfield County is prepared to. The consultant will determine ifthere will be one IGA with CDOT or three (one for each agency). Dale hopes that construction will take place in 2005. Carbondale has tentatively committed $125,000 towards the construction within the town. The IGA parties intend to apply for a State Trails grant for the Garfield portion of the trail, with Garfield County as the applicant. In response to a question from Jack, Dale said that he would recommend not constructing in Pitkin County until the trail has been built up to the county line. Bill noted that he has a ditch along the proposed alignment and disclosed that he will be working to protect that interest. The commissioners indicated that they would be sensitive to private interests adjacent to the project. The BOCC had no further questions on the subject, which is set for first reading at the regular meeting this afternoon. Mick entered the meeting during this discussion. LUNCH BREAK - 10 minutes Airport Ranch Dale gave a background on the County's acquisition of the Airport Ranch property. Which included a $300,000 investment of OST funds. Bud Eylar completed a survey of the property which identifies 184+ acres to be designated as open space. The open space portion depicted on the survey is in keeping with what was discussed at the previous joint meeting. The BOCC will vote on a resolution at the regular meeting this afternoon which would approve the survey and designate those lands as open space and subject to the conversion restrictions of the home rule charter. The BOCC had no further questions on the subject. RFT A Ballot Initiative Dale informed the BOCC that the OSTB discussed this issue at its meeting this morning and that the OSTB will be neutral on the issue. Dorothea referred to Dan Blankenship's letter in the meeting 3 . . . packet. The letter outlines RFT A's reasons for not including dedication of a specific portion of funds to trails in the ballot questions. Dorothea handed out budget spreadsheets from RFT A reflecting expenditures on trails over the past three years. Dorothea noted that, at times that expenditure exceeds the 6.6% that was originally discussed. Jack said that this issue raised the question of Dale's role as a representative ofthe OSTB and the BOCC. Jack questioned whether or not Dale's role included making political comments, noting that Dale made a comment at a RFT A meeting regarding the ballot language for a RFT A tax. OSTB members stated that Dale was speaking as instructed by the OSTB. Discussion ensued. The boards agreed in the end that it is appropriate for Dale to take positions on political issues, but that he must be clear whom he is representing. BOARD COMMENTS Patti told Gary that she was very impressed with the improved Redstone bathrooms. EXECUTIVE SESSION Jack motioned to go into Executive Session, in accordance with CRS 24-6-402(4)(a) and (b), for the purpose of discussing acquisitions and litigation. Shellie seconded. Motion passed unanimously. The OSTB voted unanimously to move into Executive Session at 12:56 p.m. The Board adjourned Executive Session at I :58 p.m. ADJOURN The OSTB meeting was adjourned at approximately 1 :58 pm. Approved ,~ Attest I I ~' t';) L 2'h-.1::f (t~ !?arb D'Autrechy ( 4