John Scarffe, Nederland. The late Mountain-Ear reporter and photographer, Barbara Lawlor, will be recognized for her contributions to the community after the Nederland Board of Trustees declared June 7, 2019, as Barbara Lawlor Day in Nederland during a regular meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, 2019, in the Nederland Community Center. The board also decommissioned the town’s sludge pond, approved a Special Review Use (SRU) Application related to a tent for Outdoor Sales at 45 and 55 E 1st Street and approved rezoning property for Wild Bear Nature Center. 

Four Trustees were present for the meeting with Mayor Pro-Tem Julie Gustafson serving as mayor in the absence of Kristopher Larsen. The board agreed to move the action item regarding decommissioning the town’s sludge pond to the Consent Agenda and then approved it, including canceling the July 2 board meeting.

Public Works asked to increase the Biosolids project costs by an additional $121,000 to fully decommission the remaining sludge holding pond and certify that all Biosolids materials have been removed, according to the agenda information memorandum. The existing sludge pond has been in operation for more than 50 years. 

Mitigating sludge production and eliminating the need for the sludge pond were two of the main drivers for commencing the Biosolids Project. A portion of the pond was removed as part of the Biosolids Project budget, and the remaining sludge was consolidated to begin construction, according to the memo. 

“This is one of the last pieces of the puzzle to bring the Biosolids Project to completion and clean the entire site,” according to the memo. Using SRF funding acquired from the State with zero percent interest will be the most cost-effective way of bringing this method of storing sludge to a close. CDPHE requires that the pond be lined, which precipitated this project, therefore the pond must be removed.  

Town Clerk Hope Jordan then introduced a request to declare June 7, 2019, as Barbara Lawlor Day. Lawlor was a wonderful woman and reporter spreading news about events and the community. 

“Barbara Lawlor was a pillar of goodwill, human service and news reporting in our Nederland Community,” according to the request. “The Town of Nederland would like to recognize Ms. Lawlor’s contributions to her community by proclaiming June 7th as Barbara Lawlor Day.”

Trustee Jonathon Baumhover said: “I feel it’s very important to honor people in the community. She was at every school and sporting event throughout the Peak to Peak area and had a love of the community. We are fortunate to honor this.”

According to the Proclamation, “Barbara Lawlor provided an exceptional service reporting area news and events in Nederland’s beloved Mountain Ear newspaper. Barbara Lawlor served her Nederland Community with distinction, treating residents and all whom they encountered in the community with integrity and respect; and Barbara Lawlor routinely placed the needs of Nederland community above her own.”

Cynthia Bakke, with Administration and Zoning, introduced an SRU Application related to a tent for Outdoor Sales at 45 and 55 E 1st Street. The applicant, Nederland Central Business District Redevelopment LLC by Ronald A. Mitchell, managing member, owns property at 45 and 55 E 1st Street.  

Mitchell proposed erecting an outdoor tent, which would contain merchant booths, according to the memo. “The zoning for this property is the Central Business District (CBD).” 

Following a Public Hearing and review before the Planning Commission on March 27, 2019, the Commission recommended approval of the SRU request, with many conditions. Mitchell has addressed these conditions within an addendum to the narrative, according to the memo. 

The Planning Commission will review the tent at the close of the first operating season, and the Fire Department will review the different craft uses of the vendors before approval to ensure life safety. No food trucks will be allowed as part of this project, and the seasonal tent use would be allowed for a maximum of three years. 

Mitchell proposed that parking for vendors within the tent would be located on vacant lots of the Lakeview Heights Replat A. which is approximately 1,000 feet to the north of the use area, across the highway, according to the memo “This doesn’t conform to NMC Sec. 16 - 206 ‘Location of Spaces’ which requires parking spaces to be located not farther than 300 feet from the building or use they are required to serve.” 

For customers, the parking at 100 E. 1st Street would be utilized, which would also serve to provide for the existing parking where the tent is to be located, according to the memo. Mitchell has an obligation as the property owner to continue to provide parking for businesses.

For the existing businesses in this area, that obligation equates to one space per two employees on duty plus one space per 300 square feet for commercial retail and one space per four seats for eating and drinking establishments.

Mitchell told the board that he did approach the Nederland Downtown Development Authority (NDDA) and they said it is worth a try as a development idea, and he didn’t get any negative feedback from them. The Fire Department brought up that the tent itself doesn’t meet fire retardant regulations.

Mitchell said he will have a fire extinguisher on wheels to put a fire out before the Fire Department gets there, and staff will be trained how to use it, along with fire extinguishers on the poles that hold up the tent and can be removed easily. 

As vendors approach him, he will tell the Fire Department, and they will sign off on the vendors and various uses. Vendors don’t want to commit until the project is approved. The tent will be in operation from May 15 to September 15, Mitchell said. 

Gustafson said she is concerned about the looseness of this plan, not meeting some of the parking requirements and not having to survive during the slower time of the year. “For me to feel comfortable with this, I’d like to hear from a broader cross section of the community and have a better understanding of what the vendors will be.” 

The board approved the SRU with all the Planning Commission conditions and the addition of detailed plans for bathrooms and recycling. 

The board approved the rezoning application at Tract 6A for Wild Bear Nature Center, which was seeking to rezone the recently subdivided parcel Tract 6A from the currently designated Public (P) zone to General Commercial (GC) zone. The property was acquired through a land swap with Boulder County, as the former parcel planned for development was unable to be built upon due to a large sinkhole because of mining subsidence, according to the memo.

Town staff supported the rezone to provide land for a community-related use which was not anticipated at the time of the adoption of the Comprehensive Plan, and such rezoning will be consistent with the policy and goals of the Comprehensive Plan.

The next meeting of the Nederland Board of Trustees will be at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 18, 2019, in the Multi-Purpose Room at the Nederland Community Center.

(Originally published in the May 30, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)