Open Space Advisory Board Agenda and Packet 2015 09 09

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Open Space Advisory Board Minutes August 12th 2015 Page 2 of 5 G. A weed pull is scheduled for Sunday August 23rd from 9 -11 at Warembourg. Free antive plants will be provided to volunteers/ H. Staff is scheduled to move into the new maintenance facility in mid - September. I. The Open Space Seasonal will be returning to school so his schedule will be shifted to part time hours. J. Colorado Big Thompson water is being conveyed to Harney Lastoka. So far 4,561,920 gallons wave been conveyed. k. Evaluating treatment options for water milfoil at Warembourg fishing pons. VI. Board Updates — A. none VII. Public Comments on Items Not on the Agenda — A. Steve Rasor (409 Majestic View Drive) Mr. Rasor gave a plea for better dog - owner behavior at the Davidson Mesa Off -Leash Area. He notes that people using the Off -Leash Area allow their dogs to run free, but then don't follow the dogs to pick up their waste, leading to a build -up of dog waste. He and many of his neighbors are on well - water, and they are concerned about well contamination. He suggests stronger language on signs that specifically mention fines for non - compliance. He also asks for the city to enforce the rules. He reported that the neighbors also get annoyed by excessive yelling and whistling for loose dogs. Jeff asked if there were specific days or times of day that are particularly bad, so that any city enforcement could be effectively targeted. Mr. Rasor suggested early mornings and weekends are very busy times. Mike asked about how much overflow of off -leash dogs there are onto the rest of Davidson Mesa (where dogs are required to be leashed). He said that he doesn't observe it often, but does see a lot of leash -less dogs at the trailhead, running from cars to the gate. He occasionally sees vicious - seeming dogs at the Off -Leash Area, too. Mike commented that he agrees that dog rules needs more enforcement on Open Space. VIII. Discussion Item: Thoughts from the Study Session with City Council — Mike, Laura, Missy, and Helen all attended the study session with City Council on August 11th. At the session, Helen presented OSAB's slides and memo to the Council (see Council Study Session Minutes). The Horticultural & Forestry Advisory Board (HFAB) went first and their presentation emphasized the need to create a city -wide landscaping inventory and the imperativeness of anticipating maintenance costs when installing landscaping. Helen noted these two issues bore a certain thematic similarity to some of the points OSAB made in her presentation. Missy said she thought Helen did very well. Laura agreed and noted that Helen did a good job of synthesizing everything together into the documents without much time given to prepare. Mike related to the board how there was some discussion at the study session about pushing -back on the idea of requiring the Open Space /Parks Fund to maintain a minimum balance. Several Council members noted that keeping a large balance in that fund essentially represents an opportunity cost, and that the City is likely to fund the purchase of target properties even at such times when the Open Space /Parks Fund balance is low. Missy was concerned that there was no discussion at the study session about alternative avenues for conservation aside from straight purchases (e.g. conservation easements). Chris 3