HomeMy WebLinkAboutEmail - Mail Packet - 2/2/2021 - Email From Bruce Hendee Re: Hughes Stadium Site1
Sarah Kane
Subject:FW: [EXTERNAL] Hughes Stadium site
From: Bruce Hendee <b.hendee@comcast.net>
Sent: Thursday, January 28, 2021 11:03 AM
To: Sarah Kane <SKane@fcgov.com>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Hughes Stadium site
Hi Sarah,
Hope you are doing well. You seem to thrive in the hot seat! Would you mind passing this email on to council.
Thanks,
Bruce
~~
Hello City Council,
Every once in a while something deserves to happen not because it meets all of the criteria or because it fits policy, or it
happens to be available and can fill pressing needs. Hughes Stadium I believe is one of those places. It is simply just a
magnificent piece of land joining Foothills to the High Plains, one that conveys a powerful sense of nature, and imparts
the thoughtful participant with a powerful sense of place. In German terms the Ortgeist or spirit of the place speaks to
the power of a special location and to the feelings it evokes. The Arapaho Nation would call it the beteenbiito “owu” or
sacred land. As a landscape architect I have always looked for this quality in sites. I believe this unique site expresses
such potential that it deserves preservation!
It’s hard to believe a former stadium site would be as special as these terms imply, and before the stadium was
relocated the site would not evoke these terms. But today it feels as though a burden has been lifted and the ground has
been returned to its rightful state. To understand this nature requires immersion and spending a little time walking and
experiencing it’s quiet significance.
I have walked and run the property for the last 30 years. It has always been nice but since the stadium was removed it
has gained a remarkable quality that escapes even finely crafted words. A walk in the morning at sunrise or in late
afternoon almost always yields a memorable experience. I recommend a visit here as you consider its future.
From a natural areas perspective the Hughes site represents a giant gap between Maxwell open space and Pineridge on
the south, extending to Reservoir Ridge on the north. In the 2019 Foothills Management Plan Update, a quick glance
illustrates the importance of potential connection of a contiguous natural area that would assist in stitching together an
open space at the base of the foothills, providing a safe and mostly continuous corridor for wildlife extending from
Wyoming southward most of the way to Boulder.
Not just another greenfield, in technical terms it is part of an ecotone, a special area recognized by wildlife biologists as
having special significance for wildlife. Located at the transition between the forest and plains, it provides a valuable
migration corridor for wildlife, as well as for forage and cover from predators. I suspect it may also provide a measure of
protection for the built community from wildfires.
I don’t want to make little of the cost of purchasing this land at market value. $10 Million is substantial and yet, in the
long term in a City’s life cycle, it is a small price. Perhaps breaking it down creatively between Natural Areas,
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Stormwater, and Parks and Recreation may help to minimize the impact. Preserving a unique land and protecting a
special parcel for now and the future is a small price that will be forgotten within a short few years but the legacy of this
land will live on.
A community will always have needs and open land will always represent an opportunity to solve them. But now and
then, a special parcel comes along. The Hughes stadium land is one of those rare opportunities to mark a place in time
and demonstrate a vision for current and future generations. I believe the time is now. I hope you will choose to protect
it.
Thanks for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Bruce A. Hendee