Open Space Lands

The Parks and Open Space Real Estate Division strives to acquire those lands most threatened by development, in-holdings near or adjacent to already existing open space, prime agricultural lands, wildlife habitat, riparian and scenic corridors and trail connections using a variety of funding sources.

Methods of Open Space Preservation

Subdivision Dedication
A developer dedicates land to the County for parks or open space when the land is subdivided for development.

Transfer of Development Rights (TDRs)
An owner transfers residential development rights from an approved agricultural property to an approved receiving site, and the County receives a conservation easement over the sending property in perpetuity.

Fee Ownership by Direct Purchase
Most of Boulder County's open space lands have been purchased by this method. This common method allows the County to obtain full ownership of land and water rights for open space by direct purchase.

Purchase Without Development Rights
The County purchases the property, but the owner retains the development rights for sale and transfer to another property.

Conservation Easements
The County acquires a deed of conservation in gross that restricts the use and development of the property but does not own the property.

Bargain Sales
The owner sells the property to the County at a purchase price below appraised market value.

Purchase Leaseback Agreements
After purchase, the County agrees to lease agricultural land back to the seller for a specified time to continue farming.

Donations
The owner donates the land or a conservation easement on the land to the County and may use the donated value as a tax deduction.

Intergovernmental Transfers
The County leases and manages other governmental land, such as lands owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or State Land Board.

Joint City and County Purchases
The County works cooperatively with other cities and towns on joint open space preservation along city boundaries.

Boulder County Land Statistics Chart (revised June 2008) (18KB pdf)

Funding Sources for Open Space

Funding for open space acquisition comes from the following sources:

• Property tax revenues, which generate about $3.8 million annually.

• Proceeds from Colorado State Lottery Funds. Since 1992, Boulder County has received about $5 million from the Conservation Trust Fund, and an additional $5.9 million dollars in Great Outdoors Colorado Grants.

• County-wide open space sales tax. The open space sales and use tax is currently 0.45%, resulting from five separate ballot initiatives passed by voters.

• Grants from organizations such as the Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) and the Land and Water Conservation Fund are an occasional funding source. Another important funding source for the County is the Federal Farmland Protection Program, which has awarded over $1,392,435 to the County.

Property Taxes. The property tax funds that support open space acquisition are subject to annual appropriation by the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). Until 1994, this source provided approximately 90% of the total funds available for open space purchases. The open space acquisition budget from property tax revenue is roughly $4 million; additional funds are budgeted for open space operations, maintenance and trail construction.

Lottery Funds. In 1992, Colorado voters passed a constitutional amendment phasing in, by the end of 1998, the distribution of all net lottery proceeds to parks, open space, and wildlife habitat purposes (a large percentage had previously been used for state capital construction projects, such as prisons). The state distributes these funds quarterly to local governments. The amount received varies from year to year, depending on the level of participation in the lottery. A portion of these proceeds is distributed to local governments and recreation districts based on population; Boulder County's share of the lottery in 2003 was $426,275. The remainder is distributed competitively through Great Outdoors Colorado. As of December 2005, Boulder County has been awarded GOCO grants totaling $5.9 million to assist in the purchase of several open space properties.

Open Space Sales and Use Tax

As of January 1, 2008, the open space sales and use tax is 0.45%, resulting from five separate votes.

On November 2, 1993, voters of Boulder County passed a 0.25% sales tax and use tax to expand the county's existing open space program. The tax became effective January 1, 1994 and was originally scheduled to expire on December 31, 2009. In November 1999, Boulder County voters approved a ten-year extension of the 0.25% sales and use tax, which now expires on December 31, 2019.

In 2000, voters approved an eight-year extension (to 2009) of a 0.10% recycling and composting tax to help fund open space purposes. In November 2007, voters approved a twenty-year extension of this tax which is now set to expire at the end of 2029.

In November 2004, voters approved a new open space sales tax of 0.10 % through 2024; after 2024, half of this tax (0.05%) will remain in perpetuity to fund open space maintenance costs.

Annual sales and use tax receipts to-date are as follows:

Read more about funding sources for open space…

This information was updated June 26, 2008.

 

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