City Council Minutes 2015 02 03 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes February 3, 2015 Page 13 of 16 COUNCIL COMMENTS Council member Stolzmann presented slides she prepared to clarify her understanding of the Open Space and Parks funding sources. She explained when a tax is passed the public expects something new or special in return. She wanted to know what people were getting between 2002 and 2003 and what would the City Council put on top of that. The graphs illustrated how the funding mechanism changed over time. In 2008 the City began transferring money from the fund to the General Fund for operating expenses. The graph did not look at any capital expenses for parks or open space because they are in the Lottery Fund and the Capital Project Fund. She wanted to look at the cost centers or subprograms. In 2000 there was just Parks /Park Admin, until the tax evolved and Open Space /Open Space Admin was added. In 2008 a lot of parks operations were shifted into the open space function. This year the City Manager and the Directors tried to pull apart open space and parks from operations to show what is being spent. She wanted the policy to be as transparent as possible. She found all the transfers confusing and hard to follow where the money is being spent. She proposed returning the funding for the Parks pre -2003, to the General Fund and eliminating the need for a transfer into the open space fund. In her opinion the problem lies in the capital projects and suggested pushing some off a few years until the bridges and other projects are completed. Council member Leh asked City Attorney Light if the policy, as outlined by the City Manager, was consistent with the tax measures passed by the voters. City Attorney Light confirmed it was and explained the major shift was in 2002 and the subsequent election in 2012, which changed the language to include maintenance. The original 1993 ballot question was for acquisition only. Council member Leh addressed the policy and the open space candidate properties and asked who decides on these properties. City Manager Fleming explained the Open Space Advisory Board makes a recommendation of a list of properties based on multiple criteria and a point score system. Parks and Recreation Director Stevens explained the Open Space Advisory Board revisits this list annually and develops the tier structure. The City Council approves the list, which is then submitted to Boulder County. He acknowledged open space acquisitions cannot go on indefinitely. From a staff perspective there are only six candidate properties warranting Council consideration for acquisition. The others would be good, but there is also restoration and preservation of open space prairie grass and wayfinding. At some point the City may want to look at transitioning from acquisition to an education program. The staff is working with the Open Space Advisory Board on a balance. He stated Boulder County may be interested in partnering with the City on open space acquisition. He noted it is not time sensitive; it is a matter of buying when the seller is willing to sell.