Funding: Don't Believe the Hype, Fort Collins. The pro-2H Proponents and Bike Park Lobby are Desperately Spreading Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) yet again.
Don't believe the hype, Fort Collins. The pro 2H proponents and “recreation-tourism” bike park lobby are desperately spreading Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) yet again.
PUBLIC records show that the Natural Areas Department (NAD) is more than solvent, with substantial funds in the coffers. While the Parks department for years faced a concerning funding shortfalls for maintenance, operations and repairs at existing parks facilities, the Natural Areas program was solvent to the tune of $23 million as of December 2023, thanks to unexpended annual revenue that the program is able to roll over to itself every year. To be honest, it would be ideal if the NAD spent MORE of its annual revenue on acquiring and conserving disappearing lands, especially right here in Fort Collins, but that isn't the case. That's one way the NAD can make the claim that Hughes will take a significant part of their acquisition budget. The NAD doesn’t spend all that much to begin with on acquisitions.
In contrast, a massive dirt-laden bike park and Spring-Canyon like park at Hughes will add even more burden to the Parks department which is just barely breaking even thanks to, you guessed it, taxpayers taxing themselves in 2023 to bail out the Parks funding so the department could finally maintain and repair existing parks facilities that were long-overdue for such attention.
The NAD can well-afford the purchase of Hughes, especially as the acquisition of Hughes is made possible by a very low-cost mortgage-type loan over 10 years. The ability for NAD to absorb the acquisition of Hughes is easily possible, and that is exactly what was made clear by top-level staff prior to the current Natural Areas Director's tenure, perhaps to the chagrin of one current councilmember.
For years, residents have been begging for more protected Natural Areas where we live, work and play, rather than Fort Collins taxpayers funding tens of thousands of acres of protected land chiefly near Estes Park and the Wyoming border. Shouldn't the NAD be prioritizing disappearing lands in the City of Fort Collins before it's too late?
https://www.coloradoan.com/story/opinion/2020/11/07/opinion-fort-collins-should-buy-open-space-city/6167958002/
Land within the city will never be as affordable or available as it is today. Hughes is already funded. Simply designating Hughes a Natural Area requires no new taxes. And if we are going to acquire land for conservation, we should prioritize the acquisition of lands right here in the City before they are developed or become prohibitively expensive.
If Hughes is developed with land-consuming buildings, parking lots, and high-impact bike park under Council's 2H measure, rather than PROTECTED for future generations and our wildlife under Citizen Measure 303, there’s no getting it back ever. It’s gone forever. Perhaps that's more good luck for Wyoming and Estes Park residents. Not so much for Fort Collins residents and taxpayers.
Learn More:
https://yes4hughesnaturalarea.com/news/setting-the-record-straight-on-natural-areas-funding
** Always remember...
The 3 Steps to Save Hughes as a 100% Natural Area:
1. ZONE (2021) ✅
2. ACQUIRE (2023)✅
3. PROTECT (2025)‼️
VOTE YES ON 303 ! **AND** VOTE NO on 2H! (We must vote on both!)
VOTE YES on 303 ✅️ Protection for Hughes
VOTE NO on 2H ❌ Development of Hughes
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