The Nederland Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Advisory Board (PROSAB) met on Thursday, August 17, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. to hear an update on the Town’s efforts in public outreach and to solidify their priorities for 2024.

Parks Manager Nicki Dunn delivered to board members her staff report for the month of July, which included shoutouts to the success of Nederland’s annual July 4 parade, noting that the biggest complaint concerning the parade was that it did not circle around twice. Dunn added that the Town is working on the possibility of hosting a laser light show for next year.

Dunn’s report provided updates on transitioning NedRINK to open for tennis and pickleball. Surface removal has been completed, funded by $17,500 approved by PROSAB. The entire court will be resurfaced for next year, which will allow for NedRINK to host activities and events all year long. Ideas for summer events at NedRINK include a roller disco night.

There is roughly $8,000 left from the Great Outdoors Colorado Resilient Community Program grant to be used to revitalize Barker Meadows and Guercio Field. Dunn stated that the project is near completion, and explained more about the process of revitalizing Guercio Field.

The deep ruts dug into the field were necessary because the soil on the field was extremely hard and compacted. A heavy amount of fertilizer was sprayed on the field in order for the native grass and flower mix to grow. After the grass is seeded, the field will be raked. Dunn does not expect any of the wildflowers currently growing in the field to survive the raking process, as the area will be mowed throughout the year.

The Town of Nederland has received $21,762.43, resulting from the sale of the Denver Broncos, which has led to a financial benefit for those areas within the State of Colorado’s Stadium District. Town staff is currently evaluating how to distribute the fund. Dunn mentioned that the Parks Department will receive $5,000, with which it will fund a Junior Firefighters program next year.

Nederland’s Public Engagement Manager Peter Cacek led PROSAB in a presentation on the new Engage Nederland community engagement portal available online via the Town of Nederland website. Users can peruse up-to-date information and subscribe to notifications for many capital improvement projects.

Each project, including the Guercio Field Revitalization Project and the Housing Needs Assessment, has a page consisting of a project overview and the most recently updated information on the project, including links to any studies, surveys, or other resources involving the particular project.

Engage Nederland also features a user interface allowing residents to comment on each Town project, as well as facilitating questions and having them answered and posted on the project’s page. It was noted that though the projects listed on Engage Nederland are those which draw the most ire from the community on online forums, the Town wants Engage Nederland to remain an outlet for all voices in the community to be heard.

Cacek also expressed that he will be asking for volunteers from the Board to join a core team for Destination Blueprint, a tourism management initiative which is a continuation of Reimagine Destinations, a program required as part of a grant awarded to Nederland by the Colorado Tourism Office.

The Destination Blueprint team will be expected to meet for three virtual meetings and attend a two-day workshop by the end of October, 2023.

Trustee Nichole Sterling addressed PROSAB about the upcoming update to the Town of Nederland’s Comprehensive Plan. Sterling explained to board members how their feedback concerning the drafting of the update will be useful, considering the document covers matters of environmental recreation and sustainability.

Sterling added that even though the initial focus of the update will be on defining the impacts of development in the Central Business District, the goal will be to make the Comprehensive Plan more of an actionable document than a guiding one.

An update to the Parks, Recreation, Open Space, Trails master plan (PROST) is set to be drafted at the same time as the update to the Town Comprehensive Plan. Town Administrator Miranda Fisher and Dunn will be part of a PROST subcommittee which will assess all 172 pages of the plan and review it chapter by chapter a month at a time to allow for PROSAB to review any revisions.

Fisher stated that the expectation is for the PROST update to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2024. Vice Chair Sam Ovett and Board Member Alex Zabierek expressed interest in joining the PROST subcommittee.

The Board was tasked with finalizing their own priorities leading through 2024. By comparing their previously listed goals to the Town’s recently adapted Strategic Plan for 2023-2024, PROSAB decided to remove any of their own priorities that were already being covered in the Town’s plan, and to add to their list the priority of advocating for and assisting with the goals listed in the Strategic Plan.

PROSAB voted, as their top three priorities, approving the PROST update, creating a volunteer program, and promoting the Chipeta Park Pump Track project, with “supporting Town’s goals” being the fourth and final goal.

The Nederland Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Advisory Board meets on the third Thursday of every month. Their next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 21, 2023, and can be attended online.

For more information go to: https:// townofnederland.colorado.gov/parksrecreation open-space-advisory-board