HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 3/13/2018 - Memorandum From The Land Conservation And Stewardship Board Re: Stewardship Of Meadow Springs RanchM E M O R A N D U M
Date: March 6, 2018
To: Mayor and City Council
From: The Land Conservation and Stewardship Board (LCSB)
Subject: Stewardship of Meadow Springs Ranch
CC: Darin Atteberry, City Manager-
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Summary
The Land Conservation and Stewardship Board asks the City of Fort Collins to protect present
and future conservation values of Meadow Springs Ranch by aligning any potential utility rights
of way along I-25 in order to minimize environmental impact.
Discussion
The citizens of Larimer County, including those of Fort Collins, give great importance to open
space and natural areas. This importance was reflected in the 2014 approval of a sales tax in
support of open space, passed by a margin of 82% in favor.
The City of Fort Collins owns a property of immense potential conservation value, which is not
protected as part of its Natural Areas Program: the 41 square mile Meadow Springs Ranch. If
Meadow Springs were an isolated conservation area, it would be a gem. But any conservation
area’s value is amplified if it is connected to other protected space. The great swath of Red
Mountain Open Space (Larimer County), Belvoir Ranch / Big Hole (City of Cheyenne),
Soapstone Prairie, and Meadow Springs is a continuous, protected habitat and migration
corridor—a conservation legacy for future generations, which also provides current and future
non-motorized recreation opportunities to the region.
Meadow Springs has substantial natural resource value but limited resource protection owing to
the land’s use for disposal of biosolid waste from Fort Collins wastewater treatment. This use,
which the LCSB anticipates will become obsolete in the foreseeable future, is likely to have
minor long-term adverse impacts on the condition of the land—or to have impacts that can be
mitigated sufficiently for Meadow Springs to return to nearly natural habitat condition.
LCSB is aware of a proposal to run high-tension electric transmission lines across Meadow
Springs. These lines have greater ecological impact than one might imagine, as their construction
breaks up natural soils, introduces exotic species, and disrupts drainage; these are usually long-
term disturbances. In addition, lights on transmission towers disrupt nocturnal animals; and
towers provide unnatural perches for predatory birds.
The best alignment for utilities, above or below ground, is next to Interstate 25, collocating them
with existing environmental degradation. LCSB urges City Council and all city Departments to
minimize invasion of permanent infrastructure into Meadow Springs, even if alignments for
environmental protection add short term costs. The long-term conservation benefits are
significant.
Looking to the future, LCSB feels it is essential to maintain the conservation value of Meadow
Springs, with the strategic goal of adding Meadow Springs to the stewardship portfolio of Fort
Collins and Larimer County.