Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutNatural Resources Advisory Board - Minutes - 11/20/1997MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD SPECIAL MEETING 281 CONFERENCE ROOM - 281 N. COLLEGE AVE. NOVEMBER 20,1997 For Reference: Phil Murphy, NRAB Chair - 491-6303 Bill Bertschy, Council Liaison - 484-0181 Susie Gordon, Staff Liaison - 221-6265 Board Members Present Phil Murphy, Don Rodriguez, Jan Behunek, Phil Friedman, Bill Miller, Craig McGee, Kelly Ohlson and Ed Secor Board Members Absent Randy Fischer Staff Present Natural Resources Dept: Tom Shoemaker, Sally Maggart, Rob Wilkinson and Susie Gordon Transportation Dent: Tom Frazier, Susanne Edminster, Kathleen Reavis and Ron Phillips The meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m Guests Consultants: Laura Ingelido, Kurt Kolleth, Shawn Hau, and Fred Habrecht CDOT: Dave Martinez Agenda Review No changes. Announcements Tom Shoemaker announced that a decision was recently made to transfer natural areas maintenance function from Parks Department to Natural Resources Department effective January 1. He said that Karen Manci will be the supervisor. Harmony Interchange Transit Facility: Kathleen Reavis, Transportation Planner ISSUE • This is a transportation transfer center planned on a 6-acre parcel adjacent to Harmony Road at Arapaho Bend Natural Area. Council's resolution on the purchase left open the opportunity to sell all or part of the agricultural portion of the land. • The land sale to CDOT would require Council authorization, with a recommendation from the NRAB. This will go to Council in January. • This is viewed as a gateway project into the community. • There is a grove of trees that will be impacted. After mitigation, there will be 50 more trees in the area. Natural Resources Advisory Board Special Meeting November 20, 1997 Page 2 • The interchange will be redesigned to improve traffic movement, safety and increase multi - modal transportation use. Construction will start the first of May and will take approximately one year. • There will be a bike lane starting from County Road 7 across I-25 to the new frontage road. • There will be landscaping around the bridge. • The $15-15.5 million cost will be a split between federal (91%) and state (9%) funds. • A land cost appraisal is being prepared. • CDOT will buy and own the land and develop a maintenance agreement with the City. Streets and Parks will maintain the transit center. • This will serve the purpose of a regional trailhead. • Expansion will not occur at this site. • There is the potential to serve more than 250 people through bikes and bus transportation. DISCUSSION Concerns: • Lighting and the impact on wildlife. • Impact on the natural area and the stormwater runoff. • Losing open space land when there is land available that already has a building on it. • Increasing the amount of impermeable surface water going directly into the groundwater. • Don't have this drive the overall trail design. Would like to see the trail siting and location not taking precedence prior to the larger picture being looked at in terms of other trails. • The alignment looks scary with the river corridor and the floodplain. • Keep in mind the viewsheds. DECISION • There will be a field trip to the site before the December 3 meeting. Kingfisher Point Restoration Plan and Trail Design: Rob Wilkinson, Natural Resources Department and Fred Habrecht, Consultant ISSUE • The consultant, Jim Sell Design, is seeking feedback on the bike trail issue. • The site is a flat plain covered with up to a five feet thickness of lime waste slurry, a by- product of the extraction of sugar from sugar beets. This was formerly a wooded riparian zone. • The river is constricted in the area and there are limitations on the amount of material that can be removed. A FEMA constraint is that the area stay at the present elevation along the river. • Removal of the 400,000 cu. yd. of lime waste from one site to another would cost $6.00 per cu. yd. • Holnam, Inc. may want the lime if the chemical analysis is right for using it in cement manufacturing. 0 The study looks at the range of alternatives. The worst case, keeping it the way it is, is still 0 Natural Resources Advisory Board Special Meeting November 20, 1997 Page 3 better than having Advanced Energy headquarters built there. Western Mobile still has a reclamation obligation on the site. Two thousand feet of trail needs to be replaced in concrete as part of the Timberline Project. Moving the bike path away from the river 1,000 feet would cost an additional $50,000. DISCUSSION • Opposed to developers capitalizing on natural spaces that are purchased with tax dollars. • Spend the additional amount and put the trail back from the river to lessen the impact on wildlife. • Suggest seeking funds from other sources in redirecting the flood flow. • The old development proposal will not fly. DECISION This was a general overview of the restoration efforts. The Board will continue to be updated. 1998 Work Plan: Phil Murphy The following changes were suggested: • Change" unknown" to "as available". • Change "advisory" to "recommend". • Have either a "review" or a "recommendation". • Add "Council" to item 4 and repeat under NRAB specific concern. • Make "reviewing Council's progress in helping establish ties" an action item. • Take off "develop" transportation maintenance fees. • Add "ensuring city rules and regulations are enforced". • Add "review Park's management plans". • Change "conserve" to "preserve" floodplain. Other Ohlson expressed concern about why there has been no response to the trails memo. Murphy said he would follow up on it. Everyone likes the "News Flash" distributed each month. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 10:47 p.m.