The Nederland Board of Trustees (BOT) met Tuesday evening at 7:00 p.m., May 6, after a work session on quarterly financials. Members present were Mayor Joe Gierlach, Mayor pro tem Peter Fiori, Trustees Randy Lee, Kevin Mueller, Charles Wood, Kris Larsen, and Topher Donahue. Also in attendance were Town Administrator Alisha Reis, Town Treasurer Eva Forberger, Town Clerk Michele Martin, Town Attorney Carmen Beery, and Public Works Director Jason Morrison.

Consent Agenda

May 6, 2014 Accounts Payable, Schedules A, B, & C and April 18 Regular Meeting Minutes were approved.

Ordinance 730, regarding the Boulder Regional Emergency Telephone Service Authority (BRETSA) 9-1-1 User Surcharge, was approved. Ordinance 730 increases the monthly fee per phone line for 911 emergency services to 75 cents from 50 cents. The funds support enhanced E9-1-1 telephone services, emergency notification systems, computer-aided dispatch (CAD), phone/radio recorders, network infrastructure, and technical training needs.

Ron Mitchell spoke briefly about wishing to talk soon to each of the BOT members regarding another of his parking lots.

RFP Utilities Rate Study

As contained in the 2014 budget, the Town is planning to conduct a formal rate study to review and recommend rates to ensure that water and wastewater rates are equitable, meet water conservation goals, and cover utility plant expenditures, as well as to look at the Plant Investment fees (PIFs) to cover future expansion. Proposals are being solicited, and a committee will meet to evaluate the RFPs and pick the best firm with which to contract.

RFP Housing Needs Assessment

A housing needs assessment for Nederland and its surrounding 10-mile community radius is needed, and five proposals have been received. The project is a partnership with the Boulder County Housing Authority to provide information on both general housing and housing affordability so that the Town might maintain a diverse stock of housing for people of all income levels to adequately support the Nederland community. .

Signs to Promote Motorcycle Parking

Ron Mitchell has requested using sidewalk space to post sandwich board signs to direct motorcyclists to his downtown, privately owned lot at 65 East 1st Street, as he wishes to change the use of his lot to only motorcycle parking during this summer. He is researching and counting the use as part of a study on the effectiveness of such a plan. The lot, which holds about 18-19 cars, will hold about 60 motorcycles.

The Board agreed to his proposal, with the condition that its status be reviewed again in midsummer.

Presentation of Master Infrastructure Plan

Joel Price, project engineer for JVA Inc., presented an overview of the Nederland Master Infrastructure Plan, and answered questions from the Board. The scope of the work includes a comprehensive evaluation of the condition and service level of the Town's infrastructure, including streets, storm drainage, water, and wastewater systems; consideration of regulatory impacts on any and all infrastructure systems; comprehensive recommendations for a program of short-term (5 years) and long-term (10 years-plus) infrastructure improvements; recommended prioritization of infrastructure improvements; and cost estimates for improvement projects.

Annexation of Arapaho Ranch

A public hearing was continued from March 18 regarding Kayla Evans' proposed annexation of 17 acres of Arapaho Ranch, known as Aspen Trails. The BOT had taken extensive public comment during the previous public hearing, and in order to allow time for Boulder County to review the application by its Planning Commission and Board of County Commissioners, and for the BOT to review additional research, the BOT had continued the first public hearing to their May 6 meeting.

The Town and Boulder County also are awaiting the results of a Housing Needs Assessment, partnered between the Town of Nederland and Boulder County, and need at least the preliminary data from this study to be received before further consideration may take place. After some discussion and public input, the public hearing again has been continued to July 15, 2014.

Robert’s PUD

A final Planned Unit Development Review Application known as Robert's PUD was reviewed by the Board. The PUD is located at 180 East 3rd Street, 181 and 187 East 2nd St, and 260 East St. The underlying zoning for the area is Neighborhood Commercial (NC). The applicants, Tom and Sally Grahn, plan to position their several lots for sale as residential units over time, replacing their mobile home park and small homes over a 20-year timeframe. The sales will be phased in in order to preserve their income from existing homes on the lots while encouraging redevelopment of the site.

The PUD application has been through several reviews and public hearings at the Planning Commission over the course of about 15 months. The PUD has been deemed generally compatible with adjacent land uses, and consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. The Town has the capacity to serve the proposed use with water, sewer, fire and police protection. The number of dwellings permitted by the underlying zoning district is not exceeded by the PUD.

The PUD also utilizes the natural character of the land; includes compatible land uses; provides off-street parking as well as vehicular, pedestrian, and bicycle circulation and outdoor recreation; is of overall compatible architectural design; achieves adequate screening, buffering, and aesthetic landscaping; avoids development of areas of potential hazard; and ensures compliance with performance standards.

The Robert's Planned Unit Development (PUD) and final plat were reviewed and approved with a few suggestions for improving Tom and Sally Grahn's plan.

Alpine Festival of the Arts denied

A Special Event Application from Steven Wallis for an Alpine Festival of the Arts, a summer arts and crafts fair proposed for August 2-3, 2014, was considered by the Board. Cathy Stiers had submitted several letters from people who had chronicled unpleasant experiences with the promoter's shows, and some consumer complaints, all of which were considered by the Board. The application was denied 5 to 2 after public input and discussion among the Board members.

NedPeds final design

The NedPeds final design revisions were approved after Conor Merrigan's presentation. The NedPeds project is moving toward going out to bid. Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is completing a final review, and is anticipated to issue an approval for bidding within a couple of weeks, allowing the project to break ground in July.

The redesign to avoid two threatened spruce trees also eliminated the need for relocation of two fences, saving the project some construction costs; and the ecological work provided gives clear direction on work to be done to improve the habitat along the stream. Revisions to the design that had been suggested by the BOT have been completed.

The Board unanimously approved the NedPeds final design, with a contract amendment.

Action plan for SAP

Board members reviewed the action matrix related to the Sustainability Action Plan. Conor Merrigan presented the matrix, the scope of which includes work with the selected engineering firm on the Master Infrastructure Plan (MIP) project to identify sustainable practices related to storm water, water/wastewater, and streets systems; recommendations offered by the MIP engineering team related to infrastructure improvements, phasing, operation, and maintenance, and advice offered to align these with the Town's sustainability goals; assistance to the MIP engineering team in incorporating Town infrastructure systems in the Envision Sustainable Infrastructure Rating System; and coordinate completion of the Sustainability Action Plan.

It also includes a review of the latest draft of the Nederland Comprehensive Plan for opportunities to integrate sustainable practices in land use codes and application review; provision of a final report detailing opportunities for more sustainable operations at the Town, integrating direction from the latest adopted versions of the Comprehensive Plan, Master Infrastructure Plan, and Sustainability Action Plan; and provision of any ideas for funding opportunities to help the Town reach its sustainability goals. Four of these goals already are complete, and three are in process.

The Board was pleased with the plan, commenting that it was a valuable document for future guidance.

The meeting adjourned at 10:58 pm, The next regular meeting of the Nederland Board of Trustees will be on Tuesday, May 20, at 7:00 p.m. at the Nederland Community Center, 750 Highway 72, Nederland, CO.