Lyons to Boulder Regional Trail
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The Lyons to Boulder Regional Trail is a proposed
13-mile soft surface, multi-use trail that will connect the City of
Boulder trail system with the Town of Lyons. It is included in the
Boulder County Comprehensive Plan, Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan,
and the Boulder County Regional Trails Priorities Plan. |
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Project Update
A message from the Board of County
Commissioners
on the proposed Lyons to Boulder
Regional Trail
Since the early 1970s, the concept of constructing
a multi-use recreational and commuter trail from Lyons to Boulder along the
Boulder Feeder Canal has been a key component of the Boulder County
Comprehensive Plan. The trail concept, which has received the strong
support of bicyclists, equestrians, runners, hikers and businesses would provide
a continuous link between Lyons to Boulder and offer a highly picturesque
recreational amenity in north Boulder County.
Early this year, we asked county staff to begin exploring ways that the county
might construct a trail in this vicinity using a route that would appropriately
balance the aesthetics and safety concerns of constructing the trail while
taking into account the potential trail impacts on property owners and residents
in the region.
For over 10 months now, county transportation and open space planners have
worked diligently to identify a trail alignment, or set of alignments, that
would provide for the best recreational and scenic experience for trail users,
taking into account the breadth of neighborhood, environmental, cost,
management, and agricultural concerns and challenges of constructing a trail
through this area. County staff has spent numerous hours meeting with
residents, talking with property owners, poring over public easement records and
evaluating a wide range of options for co0nstructing a trail in the Lyons to
Boulder (LyBo) corridor.
From these efforts, our planning staff identified three potential trail
alignment scenarios that were presented to the community earlier this summer for
feedback. Staff has since been collecting public input and preparing a
recommendation for us, the Board of County Commissioners, to consider at a
public hear later this fall.
All of the proposed alignment options include the use of substantial ports of
the rights of way along the Boulder Feeder Canal, a residential and irrigation
water ditch owned and managed by the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy
District. Each of the route alternatives recognizes that building a trail
that is responsible to the environment, trail users, and adjacent residents
requires the combined use of existing roadways, the feeder canal corridor, and
public open space.
Early on the planning process, we acknowledged that in order to provide a high
quality, safe multi-user regional recreational trail, we would need to partner
and work closely with Northern Water which had established trail development
guidelines in June 1000 for any agency of organization seeking to construct a
trail along its canals. Applying Northern's guidelines, our staff was able
to identify trail alignments along the feeder canal that would be managed
effectively and ensure the safe, secure and efficient operations of the canal.
Up until the past month, discussions with Northern Water had been both
encouraging and constructive. However, recent communications with
individual board members and actions from their board of directors, including
their decision in August to rescind their trail development guidelines have made
it clear that permission from them to use the feeder canal for any part of the
LyBo trail is unlikely to be forthcoming.
While existing roads and adjacent county open space properties located within
the proposed trial corridor provide a physical means of traveling between the
Town of Lyons and the Boulder Reservoir, such a trail would be far less
appearing, more costly, and more environmentally destructive than using portions
of the feeder canal which offer existing cleared stretches of land, sweeping
views of the plains and mountains, and a continuous path from north to south.
Under this new set of circumstances, we believe the construction of the Lyons to
Boulder trail is not feasible at this time. As a result, we have decided
to suspend our efforts on this project and direct our trail planning focus and
funding to other portions of the county's regional trail system.
We would like to thank county staff for their hard work on this project, and
commend members of the public for their spirited discussion on the upsides and
downsides of the various trail possibilities along this corridor. We
believe that we, and future boards of commissioners, should be open to resuming
the public process where we left off should opportunities arise in the future
for further consideration of a Lyons to Boulder trail.
Sincerely,
Boulder County
Board of County Commissioners
Ben Pearlman, Chair
Cindy Domenico, Vice-Chair
Will Toor, Commissioner
September 18, 2009
Information Gathering
The third phase of the Lyons to Boulder Regional
Trail Master Plan continues after a summer of information gathering. As
was the case last winter, the planning team (including survey crews) was out in
the Lyons to Boulder corridor during the summer. The information gathered
will be used to determine right-of-way needs, further inventory and evaluate
environmental resources, and identify the specific location of the trail within
each general alignment (for example, east or west side of a road).
The Boulder County
Board of Commissioners (BOCC) will ultimately decide whether and how the
planning team should move forward with its recommendation. Before the BOCC
makes its decision, there will be numerous opportunities for the public to be
involved in reviewing the preferred trail alignment recommendation and
commenting on it.
Please continue to be involved in the study. If you
would like to subscribe to the project mailing list, or if your group or
organization would like to meet to discuss the trail alignment alternatives,
please send an email to
LyonstoBoulder@bouldercounty.org, or
click here for ways to stay involved.
Purpose Statement
The
purpose of this Master Plan is to identify the most viable alignment for a
multi-use regional trail connecting Lyons to Boulder. During the study, we
will work collaboratively to identify a location for the trail that best takes
into account public and private property interests, sensitive environmental
resources, concerns about impacts, and the desire to preserve the rural
character of the area. Our goal is to create a soft surface trail that
provides recreational and commuting opportunities, scenic experiences, and safe
off-road travel options for pedestrians, bicyclists, and equestrians.
Master Plan Process
In
November 2008, Boulder County began the master planning process for the Lyons to
Boulder Regional Trail, which we anticipate to conclude in the fall of 2009.
The
development of the Lyons-Boulder regional trail master plan continues work that
has taken place over the past several years. The plan will focus on areas
to the west and east of the Boulder Feeder Canal, an agricultural and municipal
supply canal that flows through northern Boulder County. The Northern
Colorado Water Conservancy District (NCWCD) owns the canal.
During the
development of the master plan, we will examine several alternative trail
alignments and identify a preferred alignment through an evaluation of
environmental impacts, public and private interests, and preservation of the
area's aesthetic and community character.
Master Plan Milestones
Throughout the master planning
process we intend to work closely with the public to identify a preferred trail
alignment that takes into account the needs and concerns of property owners,
neighborhood residents, user groups, and other public entities. Our
ultimate goal is to design a trail that provides recreational and commuting
opportunities, community connections, and a safe off-road travel option while
being sensitive to the surrounding environment.
The master plan will include
four key phases:
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Project Initiation
(November 2008 - January 2009): during this phase, we will conduct
stakeholder outreach meetings, hold a public workshop, and gather thoughts
about the trail. We will also gather information about the
Lyons-Boulder corridor so that we understand the opportunities and
constraints that exist in the study area.
COMPLETE
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Identification and Analysis of Alternative
Alignments (Winter and Spring 2009): During this phase, we will
use feedback from stakeholders and the public to identify several options
for the trail alignment. We will then undertake an analysis of these
options and present them at an open house meeting next summer.
COMPLETE
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Identification and Evaluation of Preferred
Alignment (Summer and Fall 2009): During this phase, we will again use
feedback on the options to identify a preferred trail alignment. We
will then conduct a detailed evaluation of the preferred alignment. We will hold a final
open house meeting to review the evaluation and design of the preferred
alignment. IN PROGRESS
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Project Conclusion (Fall 2009):
The project will conclude with a master plan, including a 30% design of the
trail.
As we progress through the four
phases of the master plan, we encourage the public to participate in each step
along the way. Thoughts, questions, and feedback from the residents of
Boulder County are critical to the decision-making process.
Public Involvement
There are several ways to be
involved in the development of the Master Plan:
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Fill out a
comment form online.
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Send comments directly to us via
email.
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Send comments
directly to us via standard mail at Boulder County Transportation, Lyons to Boulder Regional
Trail, PO Box 471, Boulder, CO 80306.
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Join our project mailing list by
emailing LyonstoBoulder@bouldercounty.org or by calling us at (303) 441-3900.
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Call Julie McKay or Kristine
Nelson at 303-441-3900 or
email LyonstoBoulder@bouldercounty.org if your organization or neighborhood
would like to meet to discuss the Lyons-to-Boulder Regional Trail.
In addition to the above, please continue to check this
website to find current information about the study and its activities.
Thank you! We look forward to everyone's interest and
participation!
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