City Council Minutes 2006 01 17 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes January 17, 2006 Page 8 of 11 Ted Kowalski, 945 McKinley Avenue, Louisville, CO, Open Space Advisory Board member, stated the Board recommends adoption of the Open Space Regulations. He agreed with Mr. Hornbostel that open space means different things to different people. He voiced his belief permitting neighborhood gardens would create a slippery slope, and questioned where the line would be drawn. He stated open space is held and owned by all of the people, and taxpayers. David Waldman, 1871 Continental View Drive, Louisville, CO, Open Space Advisory Board member, addressed the encroachments in the open space and disagreed with the statement that all encroachments have a negative impact on open space. He addressed three issues, 1) fairness and equity, 2) protecting native plants, grasses and animals, and 3) Land Management workload. He supported the rules and guidelines of the ordinance, but recommended flexibility. Matt Jones, 265 Dahlia Drive, Louisville, CO, Open Space Advisory Board member, voiced his personal opinion the neighborhood gardens are illegal activities. He stated if these gardens are grandfathered in, enforcement will become more difficult. He stated a clear policy is needed on encroachments. Doug Grinbergs, 530 W. Sycamore Circle, Louisville, CO stated he regularly attends Open Space Advisory Board Meetings, and has mixed feelings about the issue. He inquired what type of compromise the Council would consider. Chenda Dovon, 332 Chestnut Street, Louisville, CO stated she is an owner of an open space garden, and asked the City to work with the residents who have such gardens. She stated if required, she would pay a fee to maintain her garden on open space land. COUNCIL COMMENT Council member Sackett stated he walks on the open space trails throughout the City and noted encroachment in the open space area can be found everywhere. He noted the issue is more complex than what was stated this evening. He explained the City has four categories of open space and perhaps a fifth category should be established. Council member Muckle stated there has been an enormous amount of study and surveys done on open space, and noted the charter mandates the preservation of open space. He stated the Open Space Advisory Board has put a lot of work, and conducted public hearing, with citizen input to finalize the open space regulations. He supported the regulations as submitted. Mayor Sisk stated he would not be attending the February 7,2006 meeting. He felt the open space regulations will be a difficult issue to discuss. He commended the Open Space Advisory Board for their work on the regulations.