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Water Commission
REGULAR MEETING
May 15, 2025 – 5:30 PM
222 Laporte Ave., 1st Floor, Colorado River Room
1. CALL TO ORDER: 5:32 PM
2. ROLL CALL
a. Board Members Present (in person): Commissioners Paul Herman, Nick
Martin, Nicole Ng and Greg Steed
b. Board Members Present (online): Commissioner Carson Madryga
c. Board Members Absent: Chairperson Jordan Radin; Commissioners James
Bishop, Laura Chartrand and Rick Kahn
d. Staff Members Present: Jill Oropeza, Katherine Martinez, Davina Lau, Julia
Feder, Leslie Hill, Gregg Stonecipher, Nicole Poncelet-Johnson
e. Guests: None
3. AGENDA REVIEW
4. COMMUNITY MEMBER PARTICIPATION
5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: April 17
Commissioner Steed moved to approve the minutes as presented
Commissioner Martin seconded the motion
Vote on the motion: it passed unanimously, 5-0
6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
None
7. NEW BUSINESS
a. Staff Reports
a. Boards and Commissions Update
Public Engagement Specialist and Boards & Commissions
Coordinator Davina Lau summarized the vital role of the Water
Commission, which is the bridge connecting City Council and the
community on water-related issues, and thanked commissioners for
applying for and serving as volunteers on the Water Commission.
Updates included last month’s onboarding for new board members
and commissioners that included the Code of Conduct and Anti-
Harassment and Anti-Discrimination Policy; next month’s training for
staff liaisons and staff support; upcoming Super Issues Meetings,
which were created by Council in 2015 as an opportunity for staff to
present to all boards and commissions at once; an event just for
05/15/2025 MINUTES Page 2 of 4
Boards and Commissions to express appreciation and give members
an opportunity to discuss the work they’re doing; the next Super
Issues Meeting is Aug. 11 and will focus on Ranked Voting due to
Fort Collins’ first ranked voting election this November (with a
mayoral race that features more than two candidates); other Super
Issues meetings are planned for September and November, with info
on topics coming soon.
b. Regular Items
a. Water Commission Recommendation for City Council to Adopt
Natural Areas Strategic Framework
Conservation and Stewardship Planning Manager Julia Feder
followed up her Feb. 20 presentation by providing an overview of
community engagement and feedback received on the draft Natural
Areas Strategic Framework and changes made to the final draft plan.
She requested Water Commission’s support in the form of a
recommendation that Council adopt the plan on July 1.
About 1,2000 people visited the website
(https://ourcity.fcgov.com/natural-areas-strategic-framework); there
were 500 views of the plan as well as 50 detailed comments.
Timeline consists of recommendations from boards and commissions
in May; memo to be included in City Council meeting packet in June;
and Council adoption on July 1.
Discussion Highlights:
Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related
topics including recreation as a concept and tension surrounding it
(Ms. Feder replied that department’s mission is conservation first with
a focus on access); the former Hughes Stadium site and public
discussion about establishing it as a City of Fort Collins natural area
(Ms. Feder indicated that once a final use plan is established by the
City, Natural Areas Department will onboard the portion of the
property that is designated as a natural area and then manage it
through the Foothills Management Zone Updates) metrics for “Goal
1: Conserve and Protect Land & Water” (Ms. Feder replied that
metrics include cumulative acres preserved, per capita acres, water-
based metric based on conserved and protected flows [in-stream
flows] in partnership with Utilities regarding legally-protected flows).
Commissioner Ng moved for the Water Commission to recommend
City Council adopt the 2025 Natural Areas Strategic Framework. The
Water Commission has been engaged multiples times throughout the
Strategic Framework planning process and believes this plan will be
a sound guide to support Natural Areas and citywide planning for the
decade to come.
Commissioner Steed seconded the motion
Vote on the motion: it passed unanimously, 5-0