Published by the Boulder County Commissioners

October/November 2001

In a public hearing September 12^th, the Board of County Commissioners approved sending a 0.10% countywide transportation sales and use tax proposal to County voters in the November 6^th election. If approved, this seven-year tax would raise approximately $5 million a year to be spent on transportation improvements throughout the County that are needed to help reduce congestion, improve safety, and improve the efficiency of alternative modes and traffic flows. The $5 million would be combined with the approximately $3 million the County now spends each year on road projects.

If approved, the new transportation tax would help fund improvements on 66 miles of roadways in the County. In addition to County projects, the tax would also help fund some municipal road projects where shoulders and other improvements are needed. Examples include Baseline Road within Lafayette and Dillon Road in Louisville. Some examples of the County roadway projects that would be funded with the new tax money include:

· 4-laning of Airport Road from Colorado 119 to Pike Road (one mile) and 4-laning Valmont Road from 57^th to 61^st (.5 mile).

· Shoulders on 73^rd/75^th Street from Niwot Road to Colorado 66; north 63^rd Street from Monarch to Nelson Roads; and the 61^st Street connection from Andrus Road to Valmont Road.

· Add bicycle climbing lane shoulders for Olde Stage Road and for Lefthand Canyon Drive from U.S. 36 to Jamestown.

· Overlay with new shoulders on Neva/Niwot Road from U.S. 36 to Colorado 119 (7 miles); Nelson Road from U.S. 36 to 75^th Street (6 miles); East County Line Road from Erie to Colorado 119 (plus the Colorado 52 intersection) (6.5 miles); Valmont Road from 75^th to 95^th Streets (3 miles); Baseline Road on the west side of Lafayette.

· Regional transit facility improvements such as bus stops and park and rides.

· Regional trail improvements not included in the County’s Open Space system such as the Coal Creek/Rock Creek Trail.

For more details concerning the proposed Boulder County transportation sales and use tax, call Transportation Director Larry Matel at 303-441-3900 or Transportation Planning Manager Clark Misner, also at 303-441-3900.

For the first time in Boulder County history, voters will vote by mail for the November 6^th election. County Elections officials expect that the mail-in balloting, instituted for odd-year elections only, will increase voter participation. The ballots will be mailed to registered County voters between October 12^th and October 22^nd. Voters must have registered to vote by October

October 9^th in order to receive a ballot. Registered voters who do not receive a ballot may pick one up at the Boulder office of the Clerk and Recorder at 1750 33^rd Street (across the street (east) of the City of Boulder Public Safety Building).

Boulder County voters may call the Elections Division at 303-413-7740 with any questions or send an inquiry via e-mail to vote@co.boulder.co.us. Additional information regarding the mail-in ballot is also available on the County’s website at www.co.boulder.co.us by clicking on the "Mail-In Ballot" link. For more information, call Boulder County Clerk and Recorder Charlotte Houston at 303-413-7700 or Elections Manager Nancy Jo Wurl at 303-414-7747.

The Commissioners approved acquiring a number of new open space parcels since the last issue of Boulder County News, including some the following more significant properties:

IBM Property – This 185.73-acre property is a joint acquisition with the City of Boulder and is vacant irrigated agricultural land north of the IBM plant and west of North 71^st Street between Monarch Road and Niwot Road. The property’s eastern boundary is adjacent to the Dodd Farm Open Space. The property is designated as agricultural land of statewide importance and preserving it will also help protect the view corridor along the Diagonal Highway in the Niwot area. The City and County are each paying 50% of the $3,150,000 purchase price, with the County’s share totaling $1,575,000. The purchase price includes 185 shares of the Left Hand Ditch Company and 200 shares of the New Hinman Ditch Company.

Mayhoffer Property - This 154-acre parcel consists of agricultural land in the southeast corner of the intersection of South 104^th Street and State Highway 42. It is designated as agricultural land of both national and statewide importance and is also designated for rural preservation under and intergovernmental agreement between Lafayette, Louisville and Boulder County. The area will serve as an important buffer between the annexed areas of Lafayette and Louisville as well as linking open space parcels in the area. The total purchase price is $3,006,368.

Suitts Property – This 142-acre parcel of irrigated farmland at the southwest corner of 75^th Street and Nelson Road is a joint acquisition with the City of Boulder. The land is designated as agricultural land of statewide importance and includes rolling grassland and irrigated farmland. It also includes two ponds and a significant wetlands area. The City and the County are each

Paying 50% of the $3.3 million purchase price with the County’s share totaling $1,726,200. The purchase price includes 50 units of Big T water, 30 shares of Swede Ditch, and a Left Hand Water Tap.

Gail Property - This 55-acre property is on the north side of Lefthand Canyon Drive and is designated on the County Open Map as open corridor as well as roadside and streamside. Preserving this property protects a significant piece of undeveloped mountain land at a reasonable cost. This property has been designated by the U. S. Forest Service as an important parcel that the agency would like to acquire in its exchange with the BLM and the County. The total purchase price is $137,500.

Twin Lakes Property - This 42-acre parcel is located adjacent to Twin Lakes near Gunbarrel. The County will purchase the parcel and a recreational easement on the lakes as part of the transaction. The County’s existing open space trail along the southern edge of the lakes receives heavy use and the 42-acre parcel contains social, non-formalized trails. The recreational easement will allow public use of the reservoirs while the ditch company will continue to own the water rights and operate the reservoir. The total purchase price is $130,000.

For more information about these and other open space acquisitions, call County Commissioner/Open Space Director Ron Stewart at 303-4441-3500.

The new Boulder County Recycling Center celebrated its grand opening September 9^th at 1901 63^rd Street in Boulder. The long-awaited 50,589-square-foot center features a landscaped public recycling drop-off center; an enclosed building where recyclables are received, processed and stored prior to shipment to end markets; and an administration building.

The new center prepares materials collected through curbside collection, recycling drop-off centers, and business recycling programs for shipment to recycling mills. An important component of the new recycling and processing center is public education designed to enhance environmental education opportunities locally. The facility includes an outdoor amphitheatre; a viewing walkway and observation tower in the processing building that allows visitors to see all aspects of the recycling process; an education center, and more.

The $13.6 million recycling and processing center was funded by a 1994 voter approved Boulder County sales tax of .10%, 1 cent per $10 purchase. The tax expires on December 31^st this year. The current owner of the new facility is the Boulder County Recycling and Composting Authority, comprised of ten municipalities in the County and Boulder County. EcoCycle is contracted to operate the facility. The BCRCA’s goal is to divert 50 percent of solid waste from local landfills by 2005. When the sales tax expires at the end of December, Boulder County will become the owner of the center and EcoCycle will continue as the operator. For more information, call BCRCA Executive Director Jeff Callahan at 720-564-2221 or Stacy Swank Lambright, BCRCA Education & Outreach Coordinator, at 720-564-2223. More details can also be found on the Authority’s website at www.co.boulder.co.us/bcrca.

The National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National Association of County Information Officers (NACIO) awarded Boulder County a total of seven achievement and excellence awards respectively in these organizations’ nationwide competitions. These awards are the highest honors County government can achieve and are given for innovative and cost effective programs and projects that improve the services, communication, organization and management of County government.

This year’s National Association of Counties Award winners include:

Worthy Cause Sales Tax Initiative – Initiated by the County Commissioners and supported by the local non-profit human service community, this successful sales tax proposal was approved by County voters in November 2000. The sales tax proceeds are expected to generate approximately $6 million over the three-year life of the sales tax and will be used to help fund capital construction projects for non-profit human services agencies in Boulder County, including transitional housing. (Barbara Gigone, Community Services Director, 303-441-3560.)

Road Sign Management Program – The Road Maintenance Division of Transportation used cutting edge global positioning technology to develop and implement an efficient road sign management program that results in extremely accurate sign placement. Staff carry inexpensive pocket PCs to track and update digital maps of the 7,000 road signs on County maintained roads. The new program is faster and less labor intensive than the old system of manually updating paper maps. It also helps make County roads safer for the public because road signs can be placed in the exact location called for in the road engineering. (Dan Hershman, Road Maintenance Manager, 303-441- 3962.)

North Boulder County Environmental Health Task Force. The Health Department developed and staffed this successful community-based partnership in 1999 as a result of community interest in quality of life and health issues in the St. Vrain Valley. Area resident were concerned about dust storms from the Southdown Cement Plant and nearby mining operations. The task force brought community, environmental interest groups and local industry together resulting in Southdown making voluntary plant improvements that resulted in nearby residents estimating that dust storms at the plant decreased by 80 percent. (Jeff Zayach, Acting Environmental Health Manager, 303-441- 1182.)

This year’s National Association of County Information Officers award winners include:

A video titled, Boulder County Parks and Open Space 25^th Anniversary: Celebrating Our Natural and Cultural Heritage. This video showcases different County open spaces and offers beautiful glimpses of this outstanding natural resource. It’s broad goal was to honor the department’s 25^th year anniversary and inspire appreciation of Boulder County’s natural and cultural history. The video plays on several public access television stations and is also used for informational programs. The video was coordinated by Parks and Open Space staff and produced by the City of Boulder’s Municipal Channel 8. (Tina Nielsen, Open Space Space Assistant, 303-441-3950).

Two NACIO awards went to the newspaper insert titled "Boulder County Parks and Open Space 25^th Anniversary." The purpose of this informative insert was to celebrate the quarter-century-old Parks and Open Space Department through highlighting preservation successes, especially the prominent properties. The insert promotes public participation and visits to open space and uses maps and timelines to show the progression of the open space program over the years. The newspaper insert project was coordinated in the County’s Public Information Office and reached more than 100,000 County residents. One award was for the quality of the publication as a whole and one award was for the excellence of the photography, which was vital to the publication’s success. (Jim Burrus, Media Information Officer, 303-441-1622; Rich Koopmann, Parks and Open Space Resource Planning Manager, 303-441-3950.)

A second video that received a NACIO award was titled "Discover Boulder County." The primary goal of this video was to provide new County employees and prospective employees with an overview of the functions, services and values of Boulder County government. The video shows dozens of County employees on the job and also illustrates the physical beauty of Boulder County, stressing the positive quality of life. The video stresses excellence in customer service, innovation and employee pride and dedication. This project was coordinated in the County’s Public Information Office and produced by the City of Boulder’s Municipal Channel 8. (Margaret McKinney, Public Information Officer, 303-441-3399).

Budget Work Session The Commissioners will finalize the 2002 Boulder County budget at a work session that begins at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 8^th, in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room on the third floor of the Boulder County Courthouse. For more information, call Budget Officer Margaret Parish at 303-441-3499.

Consortium of Cities The next meeting is Wednesday, December 5^th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room on the third floor of the Boulder County Courthouse. For more information about the December 5^th meeting or the October meeting, call Intergovernmental Relations Director Dickey Lee Hullinghorst at 303-441-3500.

Boulder County Days Are scheduled for Wednesday, October 10^th, in Superior and Tuesday, November 20^th, in Louisville. For more information, call the Commissioners’ Office at 303-441-3500.

Planning Commission Meets Wednesday, October 17th, and Wednesday, November 21st, at 1:30 p.m., takes a dinner break and then reconvenes at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is in the

Commissioners’ Hearing Room. For more information, contact the Land Use Department at 303-441-3930.

Parks and Open Space Advisory Committee Meets Thursday, October 11th, at 7:00 p.m. and Thursday, November 9^th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room. For more information, contact the Parks and Open Space Department at 303-441-3950.

Boulder County Recycling & Composting Authority Meets Wednesday, October 24th, and Wednesday, November 28^th, at 6:00 p.m. at its new facility at 1901 63^rd Street, Boulder. For more information, call Authority Director Jeff Callahan at 720-564-2220.

Boulder County Clean Air Consortium Meets Tuesday, November 13^th, at 7:30 a.m. in the Commissioners’ Conference Room on the third floor of the Boulder County Courthouse. For more information, call Acting Environmental Health Manager Jeff Zayach at 303-441-1182.

County Closures County Offices will be closed Monday, November 12^th, in observance of Veteran’s Day and Thursday, November 22^nd , in observance of Thanksgiving

Economic Development Contract with the Town of Lyons ($11,400)

For the Purchase of 522 Terry Street in Longmont ($220,000)

With AMI Mechanical for Courthouse East Wing Variable Air Volume Replacement ($51,437)

With Jani King commercial Services for Martin Park and Woodlands Cleaning (estimated $15,000)

With Zucker Systems for Evaluation of Department’s Customer Service ($68,500)

With Brannan Sand & Gravel for Niwot Road Reconstruction Project ($513,070)

With Western Mobile Denver/LaFarge for Acorn Lane New Paving Project ($18,244)

With Western Mobile Denver/LaFarge for North 95^th Street Overlay & Shoulder Widening Project ($549,555)

With Western Mobile Denver/LaFarge for County Road 130 Reconstruction & Widening Project ($298,395)

With Western Mobile Denver/LaFarge for Independence Road & North 57^th Street Overlay Project ($167,638)

To AMI Mechanical for Courthouse East Wing Variable Air Volume Replacement ($51,437)

To Contech Construction Projects for Annular Steel Culvert ($20,784)

Boulder County News is published by the Board of County Commissioners every other month. The purpose of the newsletter is to provide information concerning Boulder County Government to Boulder County municipalities and others interested in County information. Whenever possible, contact names and phone numbers are included. Please direct comments and suggestions to the editor, Margaret McKinney, Public Information Officer, at 303-441-3399, or E-mail: mmckinney@co.boulder.co.us.

Board of County Commissioners