Citizens For Carbon Valley
STAY CONNECTED
CAMPAIGN BUZZ
The $40,000,000 cost. The District has not completed a feasibility study or given the voters a clear picture of what they will be receiving. For price comparison, Frederick High School with 2 ball fields, football stadium, tennis courts, 2 basketball courts, auditorium, multiple computer labs, plus a projector in every classroom was budgeted for $37.9 million. The new 75 bed UC Hospital in Longmont completely outfitted is only budgeted for $75 mil. The City of Longmont commissioned a feasibility study for their new indoor ice rink, lap pool, and zero entry pool with a slide. Their proposed budget is only $28 million. As well, the numbers that have been provided calculate to a 130% increase of the 2014 mill levy, just to repay the loan. This increase will affect residential, commercial, and rental properties.
The location. The district has chosen a location that is 5 miles from the nearest location recommended in the master plan the CVPRD Board commissioned. The master plan identifies 3 areas for possible expansion using criteria of a 3 mile radius for indoor activities to allow adults and children to ride their bikes or walk. As per a conversation we had with Ross Blackmer on September 2, the proposed location is not part of the district. Furthermore, the site is adjacent to the town of Mead, limiting growth in that area. We also had a conversation with Bess Loveless from the district. She informed us that the committee that selected the location only considered property that was proposed by the towns, leading us to believe that they did not approach any other property owners with land that would fit the needs of the community better.
The communication. Unfortunately, We have had to quote conversations we had with district officials because the CVPRD has not communicated their plans with the public. We have spoken to over 200 residents of the district and only one had any idea that they were planning an expansion. We have attempted to gather as much information on the process and nothing is available on the district’s website. The information we expected to find was the CVPRD Board and Master Plan Committee minutes, survey results, concept drawings (other than a generic site plan that had been published by a citizens group), and cost breakdown. Apparently, the CVPRD Board had a meeting on September 3 (that we would have attended had we known about it) without notices posted on the district’s website or Facebook page. Based on a comment on the citizens group’s page, the CVPRD changed the plan to include an outdoor pool.
