John Scarffe, Nederland. The Nederland Board of Trustees approved a grant application for Barker Meadows Park during a regular on-line meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 6, 2020, following an executive session at 6 p.m. The Board also discussed the 2021 budget, approved a partnership with the Mountain Resiliency Coalition, a Sustainability Advisory Board Boulder County Sustainability Grant and discussed survey funding for the Big Springs Parking Project.

GOCO Grant

The Nederland Parks, Recreation, Open Space Advisory Board (PROSAB) plans on applying for funding through the Resilient Communities Program (RCP) from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO). GOCO is offering grants for needs that have emerged in response to the pandemic within the context of their five program values: resource conservation, outdoor stewardship, community vitality, equitable access and youth connections, according to background. 

“Nederland parks have seen a dramatic increase in visitors and the resulting impacts this year. The PROSAB goal is to reduce damaging impacts by providing more options for park visitors to spread out and to restore the natural area along Barker Reservoir shoreline into a usable recreation space.” 

Funding will also be sought to refit the bathrooms at Chipeta Park to meet Covid-19 requirements and reopen. PROSAB and Teens, Inc., are working together to involve and hire youth throughout the process from input to construction, according to background. 

An emphasis on multi-use, shared community space and equitable access means that PROSAB focuses on the priority improvements from the 2013 Gateway Park Master Plan: ADA accessible trails, native trees, drought tolerant grasses, natural play spaces and other low-maintenance features such as doggie waste stations, benches and picnic tables. The Town has a dedicated webpage for the GOCO grant where the community can access more information about this grant opportunity at https://nederlandco.org/gocoresilient-communities-grant/. 

PROSAB Chair Jesse Ansari said PROSAB is asking for approval to apply for the grant, which is very specific and is a one-time opportunity for outdoor recreation in director response to Covid. The strategic plan is just an acceleration of the longstanding plan.

PROSAB found out the grant details in June, and since then they have had meetings and open forums along with a letter and a feature in The Mountain-Ear and have been in communication with the festival organizations that use the area. PROSAB has several letters of support and has received about 100 positive responses.

A long-term goal is for the town to pay for a dedicated park staff member, and the grant includes funds for that. PROSAB is requesting $358,000 for the grant, Ansari said. The Board thanked Ansari for the incredible reach out she has done but wished the plan had more going on such as an amphitheater and climbing wall. 

Ansari said GOCO has requested that the Town keep the budget around $350,000 and the project is a phased approach. It is boring but essential and nothing that would preclude an amphitheatre and climbing wall later on. PROSAB is working with a person on equipment, and PROSAB will discuss other fun stuff that could be added to the park at their next meeting.

It will be a no-cost entry to recreation for the community. She guessed the plan would add about 20 extra parking spaces near the current parking lot.

The Board directed PROSAB to apply for the grant.

Budget 2021

Staff presented the Draft 2021 Budget including summary budgets for the government and enterprise funds. Staff looked for direction from the Board regarding posting the budget on the website by October 15 and seeking feedback from the public. 

Highlights of the Draft 2021 Budget follow. Based on year-to-date 2020 actuals, staff is conservatively projecting that 2021 tax revenue will surpass 2019 actuals by 5 percent. If tax revenue surpasses expectations, the staff recommends establishing a designated CIP fund. 

General Fund 2021 operating expenses are projected to increase by .9 percent, when compared to the 2020 budget. The Community Center Fund Balance is projected to increase by $8,900 in 2021. 

The Water Fund Balance is projected to increase by $40,230. The Sewer Fund operating expenses are projected to increase by 3 percent. 

The Nederland Downtown Development Authority is planning to utilize TIF funds for some large-scale improvement projects in 2021. Department heads are prepared to switch to contingency budgets if the economic landscape shifts dramatically due to the pandemic. 

Town Administrator Karen Gerrity said staff will post the budget on the website and invite public comment until October 29 and encourage people to give feedback. At the November 10 Board meeting, they will present the budget, and during a hearing, the public can provide comments. The draft budget and feedback form can be accessed on the Town website at https://nederlandco.org/government/town-departments/finance.

Mayor Kristopher Larsen thanked staff for bringing this to a net zero budget. The Town is in an incredible financial position. The Board agreed to posting the budget and set a Public Hearing for the budget on November 10, 2020. 

Mountain Resilience Coalition Partnership

The Town of Nederland requested Board approval of a resolution authorizing the Town and the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) to collaborate with the Mountain Resilience Coalition to develop mountain sustainability indicators for the Town, according to the agenda information memorandum. Sustainability indicators measure how a mountain community performs on progressing towards sustainability. 

The Mountain Resilience Coalition (MRC) has developed a tool to manage sustainability performance measures. MRC has offered to collect sustainability data and provide recommended actions, according to the memo. The project is expected to take three months, and no fee is associated with this project. 

Sustainability Coordinator Garret McDaniel said the Coalition will develop an Xcel document that will benefit SAB. They will look at what data we have and what is missing, and develop a map for sustainability actions. 

It will take a few months to complete. The Board approved the resolution for the partnership.

Boulder County Sustainability Grant

The Nederland Sustainability Advisory Board would like to apply for a Boulder County Environmental Sustainability Grant funding of $15,000 to continue funding the part-time Sustainability Coordinator in 2021. The Sustainability Action Plan from 2013 recognizes the need for adding this position to Town Staff, according to the memo. 

“In 2020, the Town contracted with Garrett McDaniel as the Sustainability Coordinator position for Nederland. Garrett’s contract will end in February 2021,” according to the memo.

Each year, $15,000 in funding is available up to three years, and we are currently in year one.

The Public Works department has budgeted $3,750 for this position as a Town match for 2021. SAB members said the main goal is to look back over his achievements for him to continue until 2021. 

McDaniel has done amazing things int the past year including securing a $50,000 grant and a second grant. He got a resolution approved for waste haulers and submitted a zero-waste action plan. 

SAB asked the Board to approve 10 hours per week for 2021 and hopefully will add five hours per week They are looking for a $3,750 for a match. Mayor Larsen said McDaniel has an incredible list of accomplishments.

The Board approved applying for the grant.

Big Springs Parking Project

The Board of the Nederland Downtown Development Authority (NDDA) requested a loan from the Town of Nederland’s Water Fund to survey land on Big Springs near Highway 119 as a step in the development of the NDDA Big Springs Parking Project. In an effort to support circulation and parking improvements needed to be made to existing infrastructure, the NDDA Board agreed to fund a survey to support the development of parking spaces and drainage on Big Springs, according to the memo.

During the NDDA’s August meeting, the NDDA Board approved requesting a loan for $10,050 in survey costs as part of the steps necessary in developing a comprehensive parking plan for Big Springs near Highway 119 between the Black Forest and the Caribou Shopping Center. The NDDA board agreed to the survey as a step in creating a parking plan to support area businesses, locals and tourism in Nederland. 

A loan from the Town Water Fund could be accomplished at less administrative and financing cost to the NDDA than a publicly financed debt. The NDDA accountant will repay the loan in full from the NDDA Tax Increment Financing receipts to the Water Fund within 30-days of approval and the subsequent payment of loan funds to the NDDA within 14-days of the loan approval. 

Through extensive research and conversations with Town Staff, the NDDA Parking Committee determined that a survey will roughly cost $7,000.00. This amount does not include NDDA administrative fees, Town fees and contingencies. Any unused funds will be returned to NDDA TIF funds upon completion of the project.

NDDA Treasurer Ron Mitchell said it will create 16 new parking spaces, put in storm drainage and a sidewalk. The current request is for the survey, and then they will come back for the engineering. He wants the process to move forward as soon as possible.

By using the spaces in terms of capturing traffic for increased sales, this would help tremendously. It’s a matter of observation over a period of years, Mitchell said. 

Mayor Pro-Tem Jonathon Baumhover said the NDDA is asking to get this survey before going into engineering. All parking studies agree, including those in 2012 and 2017. 

Trustee Tania Corvalan said the town has a parking problem but the drainage they will fix will be great. It seems like a great project 

Trustee Eric Coombs-Esmail said it is not usual to have a contingency fund twice the amount of the bid. Drainage and a pathway are important and worthwhile to pursue. “I would like to pursue it and would like it to come back to the Board,” Coombs-Esmail said.

Mayor Larsen suggested tabling this until the next meeting and received a nod of four to bring it back as a consent agenda item.

(Originally published in the October 15, 2020, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)