[BoulderCouncilHotline] Sam absent for June 11 SS

[Weaver, Sam]

Folks,

I am not going to be able to attend the study session tonight, as I have a serious cold.  I do have a bit of input to contribute for tonight's discussion.

I think the Open Space Master Plan is looking very good.  I think that some of the feedback that we have heard regarding needing more specificity and detail in the planning process is important, but I also think that level of detail belongs in subsidiary documents (e.g., the Visitor Master Plan, various area plans, and typology plans such as grassland and agricultural plans).  I also think that we might have a further discussion on what criteria should come into play for any consideration of OS asset disposal.  There are general guidelines in the Charter, but would we like more guidance in this Master Plan, even if that meant a referred measure to voters?

I have one question about our agricultural water rights: what is the value of those water rights as an asset, and how do we assess the use of those rights by those who benefit from them?

Regarding the larger subject matter, I believe that preserving our open space system in a healthy manner provides our community with benefits that are not quantifiable in terms of dollars or economic gains.  The easy access to nature from the streets and homes of Boulder provides a connection to the spaces, flora, and fauna that renew our souls.  Our open space, fought for dearly and preserved with care, keeps Boulder from sprawling into the hills and plains, maintains space for wildlife to surround our developed city, and keeps present natural settings for us to enjoy and from which we receive spiritual nourishment.

These environmental values that we have chosen to preserve as a community are not without cost, but have extremely important benefits.  Other Front Range communities have not seen the value in this type of preservation, but Boulder has, and has long fought for preservation of our local ecosystem heritage. I encourage our current Council to refer a question to Boulder voters regarding whether or not to tax themselves (and our visitors) to continue to adequately fund the maintenance of our open space system.  In the presence of radically increased visitation, increasing climate change impacts in the form of floods and fire, and additional requests of the OS department around soil health and sustainable agriculture, it seems to me that we should ask the voters whether they want to see the OS department budget substantially decreased.

All the best,

Sam Weaver
Mayor Pro Tem
Boulder City Council
weavers at bouldercolorado.gov<mailto:weavers at bouldercolorado.gov>
Phone: 303-416-6130

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