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Home My WebLink AboutPROMONTORY - PDP - 32-99 - CORRESPONDENCE - CITY STAFFSTATE OF COLORADO Bill Owens, Govemor DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES DIVISION OF WILDLIFE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER John W. Mumma, Director 6060 Broadway Denver, Colorado 80216 Telephone: (303) 297-1192 Kim Kreimeyer Natural Resources Dept. P.O. Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580 Dear Ms. Kreimeyer: For tlrldlife- For People June 6, 2000 I have visited the red fox den at the northeast comer of Troutman Parkway and JFK Parkway in Fort Collins and do not consider this to be a wildlife movement corridor at this time. Foxes adapt very well to urban environments and make use of small and unusual areas for raising their young. This fox family should disperse as the summer progresses and will be finished using the den site by early fall at the very latest. It would be acceptable to discourage these foxes from using this small, marginal site in the future due to its proximity to traffic and human disturbancelfeeding. There is plenty of good fox habitat elsewhere in Fort Collins. I can be reached at 970-416-6944 if you have any further questions. Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Sincerely, Nancy Howard District Wildlife Manager Colorado Division of Wildlife 317 W. Prospect Fort Collins, CO 80526 DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, Greg Walcher, Executive Director WILDLIFE COMMISSION, Bernard L Black, Jr., Chairman . Rick Enstrom, Vice -Chairman • PhIp James, Secretary Members, Tom Burke . Mark LeValley . Marianna Raftopordos . Robert Shoemaker • Ofnre Valdez Ex-0ffido Members, Greg Walcher and Don Ament The Promontory development plan maintains the existing twenty foot ditch maintenance easement along the north side of the Larimer Canal # 2. Combined with the canal itself and the maintenance easement on the south side, there will be a buffer of approximately 100 feet between Troutman Parkway and the south side of the proposed buildings. Given that this distance is equal to or greater than those found elsewhere along the canal, we are confident that the existing, marginal value of the canal will be maintained if the Promontory project is developed as planned. The Buffer Zone Performance Standards contained in the Land Use Code also speak to the enhancement of wildlife habitats and movement corridors within buffer zones. In some cases, this involves planting of native grasses shrubs or trees, topographic modification, or other steps to increase the value of the wildlife habitat within the buffer zones. In this specific instance, these habitat enhancements are not advisable. Given that the Promontory project is an infill project within high traffic, extensively developed portions of the community, we believe it would be irresponsible to require additional measures that might have the effect of making the area more attractive to foxes, raccoons, skunks or other similar wildlife species. Doing so would only increase the chance of negative encounters between people and wildlife in the area and increase the likelihood of animals being killed by animals. We are confident that the proposed development will not adversely impact the fox family that sed- the cottonwood tree on the adjacent property. Foxes typically maintain alternative dens and�they move frequently, so there is no guarantee that they will use this site in the future. The den itself will not be disturbed and these animals have shown that they can utilize areas along the canal that are smaller than those that will remain after the project is constructed. The potential use of the area in the future by these or other animals will not be diminished. Because the den site on the adjacent property may be occupied again in the future, it will be important to determine if foxes are present at the time of construction. If they are, construction fencing will need to be installed (as occurred this year) to minimize the potential for young foxes to be harmed by construction vehicles. In conclusion, Natural Resources staff have extensively reviewed the issues related to the use of the Larimer Canal # 2 as a wildlife movement corridor relative to the Promontory development proposal. We find that them al in this vicinity has m 'nal value as a movement coKdLor or wildlife habitat area. We find that the project as proposed will adequately protect t ese values and meet the perfo ce standards.contained in Section 3.4.1 (E) (1) of the Land Use Code. We recommend that odi cfi ation be granted10 the natural area buffer standards contained in Section 3.4.1 (E) to reduce the buffer requiremeiit to the 20-foot ditch maintenance easement as proposed, rather than the general standard of 50 feet. i Attachment Z Subsequent to the initial submittals on the property, a family of red foxes established a den in the hollow base of a cottonwood tree next to the irrigation canal on the property immediately west of the Promontory site, on the northeast corner of Troutman Parkway and JFK Parkway. This fox den was very visible to passing motorists and pedestrians and became the subject of great interest this spring and early summer. At the Planning and Zoning Board worksession in early June, the question was raised as to the potential impact of the Promontory development on the red fox family, specifically whether the Larimer Canal # 2 was an "irrigation ditch that serves as a wildlife movement corridor" and whether the proposed project plan met the requirements of the Land Use Code for natural area buffer zones. The Code specifies a general buffer zone standard of 50 feet for irrigation ditches that serve as wildlife movement corridors. Because the issue was not fully resolved, the applicant voluntarily postponed consideration by the Planning and Zoning Board until the July 6, 2000 meeting. In the intervening time, Natural Resources staff have extensively reviewed the issues in order to reach the conclusions stated at the beginning of this memo. Our rationale for these conclusions is summarized below. The Land Use Code does not contain a definition of wildlife movement corridors and these features are not specifically mapped on our inventory of natural habitats and features. When the Land Use Code was drafted, there was never an intent to define all irrigation ditches as wildlife movement corridors. Our practice has been to evaluate the existence of movement corridors on a site by site basis relative to individual development proposals. We have defined wildlife movement corridors where: (1) the irrigation ditch clearly provides a path for connections between two or more natural habitats or features (i.e., rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, wet meadows, native grasslands, and other features listed in the code and included in our inventory), (2) there is sufficient width and natural cover remaining along the ditch to allow the easy passage of wildlife, and (3) we have evidence of a pattern of ongoing wildlife use. In this instance, the Promontory project is an infill site within an intensively developed portion of Fort Collins. The Larimer Canal # 2 goes underground for extensive distances at JFK Parkway only a few hundred feet west of the Promontory development site. The canal does not provide any connection to natural habitats or features west of this point. To the east, the canal does connect to Warren Lake, which is mapped on our inventory of natural habitats and features. With the exception of the Promontory site, lands both east and west of the site have already been developed. Where the canal remains above ground, the land adjacent to it has been developed to within 20 feet of the canal bank (the ditch maintenance easement) or less. Our records and observations in the area do not indicate any extensive, ongoing use of the canal as a wildlife movement corridor. Based on these characteristics, Natural Resources staff view this section of the Larimer Canal as having only marginal value as a corridor for wildlife movement: This does not indicate that no wildlife species use the canal area at all. Clearly, the presence of the fox family indicates that some use occurs and we would expect the occasional use by foxes, raccoons, skunks, mallard ducks, and similar species that are very tolerant of people and well -adapted to life in the urban environment. However, under existing conditions both east and west of the Promontory site, animals using this area are comfortable using the width of the 20-foot maintenance easement and the width of the canal itself, or adjacent developed areas. Commuiaty Planning and Environmental - _rvices ,>wyced page. Natural Resources Department City of Fort Collins DATE: June 30, 2000 MEMORANDUM TO: Planning and Zoning Board FROM: Tom Shoemaker, Natural Resources Director Karen Manci, Senior Environmental Planner Kim Kreimeyer, Environmental Planner RE: Wildlife Movement Corridor Issue for the Promontory P.D.P Summary. This memo provides information on the characteristics of the Larimer Canal #2 irrigation canal on and near the Promontory site and its potential use as a wildlife movement corridor. It is our conclusion that the irrigation canal on the site may technically be considered a wildlife movement corridor under the Land Use Code. However, the value of the ditch is marginal at best. We believe that the twenty -foot (20 foot) ditch maintenance easement along the Larimer Canal # 2 that is retained in the development proposal will adequately provide for any wildlife movement and that to require a wider buffer in this vicinity would be meaningless in terms of wildlife habitat value. Enhancement of the area to increase habitat value would be irresponsible in our judgement because it would further attract animals to an area that is already intensively developed resulting in an increased risk of human/wildlife conflict and direct harm to wildlife. We have reviewed these conclusions with the Colorado Division of Wildlife and they concur with our assessment. We believe the project as proposed meets the performance standards contained in Section 3.4.1 (E) (1) of the Land Use Code. We recommend approval of a modification of the standard to reduce the required fifty -foot (5 -foo 1 buffer to the twenty -foot distance shown on the Promontory Project Development Plan. Background. Natural habitats and features and their associated wildlife habitats are an important value to the Fort Collins community and Section 3.4.1 of the Land Use Code contains extensive provisions related to their treatment in the development process. Among the provisions of this section of the code is the requirement to provide buffer zones around various natural habitats and features which are either mapped on the City's Natural Habitats and Features Inventory Map or defined in the Code. The Code contains a table with -standard distances for buffer zones for various natural features. These standards maybe modified (either increased or decreased�he decision maker to meet performance standards contained m e code ,These considerations are base on the ecological character and function of the site and surrounding area. Buffer zone standards may also be modified where their strict application results in an exceptional and undue hardship upon the property owner or developer. Planning and Zoning Board approval is required in situations where the modified buffer zone is, on average, less than 80 percent of the general standard. When the Promontory development was first submitted, a site visit was conducted by Natural Resources staff. The site was a weedy field, bordered on the south by the Larimer Canal # 2 within an intensively developed area of the community. No Natural Habitats or Features were found on the site or within 500-feet of the site. Therefore, neither an Ecological Characterization Study nor delineation of Natural Area Buffer Zones was required on this project. 281 N. College Ave. • P.O. Box 580 • Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580 • (970) 221-6600 • FAX (970) 224-6177