Rosalie/BOERA Land Acquisition

A community effort up against some tough odds. Namely, a calculating majority of the BOCC.

The Bailey community desires to acquire a natural jewel in its midst. They have asked the Park County Board of Commissioners to secure that jewel.

When some of us, as children, begged our parents for a pony, the response was a qualified no. As calculating as parents can sometimes be, the answer was, Honey, if you had a pony do you know how much work that would be? You’d have to clean feed, brush, water, exercise, and clean up its poop. Every day. That would take hours. You wouldn’t be able to play with your friends. Besides, they cost a lot. So, yes, we’ll think about it. But, no promises. We’ll talk about it when you get older. Okay?

In most cases, when we got older, most of us forgot about that pony. Except for some of us. Especially the girls, who would never forget about that pony.

During the Park County Board of Commissioners Work Session of February 21, 2023, the last agenda item was a discussion initiated by the community and supported by 1300 or more petition signatures: the purchase of 72 acres of prime park and outdoor recreation property in Bailey from the Platte Canyon School District. Known as the Rosalie/BOERA property, the proposal was for Park County to purchase the land using funds from the Land and Water Trust Fund.

BOERA is the Bailey Outdoor Education and Recreation Area. BOERA’s mission is/was to benefit Platte Canyon School District and its students. To date, BOERA has given well over $80,000 to these beneficiaries. In 2022, BOERA gave more than $32,000 in grants and scholarships. Notably, BOERA was instrumental in establishing the celebrated disc golf course on the property.

When the Platte Canyon School District 2022 bond ballot question failed, the district began looking for other sources of revenue to accomplish its consolidation plan. Selling the 72 acres of parkland was set on the table.

The Bailey community knows the essential worth of the land, not only as a park and recreation area but as a property worthy of conservation. There are no like areas accessible on that side of the county. The prospect of a housing development on the land is abhorrent.

The people approved the Park County Land and Water Trust Fund (LWTF), created in 1997, allowing for a 1% sales tax to fund it. Initially, it was intended only to support “solely” the preservation, protection, acquisition, improvement, and maintenance of Park County’s water resources. The LWTF legislation had a 10-year sunset provision. Again, by a vote of the people, it was renewed in 2006 and 2018. The 2018 LWTF ballot contained two questions. One was the original intended use of the funds for water resources only. The second added additional uses, including preserving, protecting, acquiring, leasing, improving, and maintaining open space, wildlife, and outdoor recreation resources.

Interestingly, the genesis of the second ballot question began with the realization LWTF funds had been expended on past projects that had not adhered to the original legislation’s intent. That some past projects were not “solely” water-related.   

Dave Wissel, now District 3 Commissioner, was on the LWTF Board in 2018. He was also the assessor at that time. When discussions with Commissioners and the LWTF Board centered on adding the new use language to the ballot, Wissel suggested two questions, the second incorporating the other allowed uses. Whether or not Mr. Wissel expected the second question to fail would be speculation. However, he has pledged as a campaign promise to “fix” the LWTF, saying, “In 2018, the fund was amended, which allowed money to go toward ‘recreation’ activities. This is not an appropriate use of funding.”

Both 2018 ballot questions related to the LWTF passed with over 60%. Only 177 people who voted for the sales tax voted against the use expansion. 

Projects funded or partly funded by the LWTF that are not exclusively related to water resources and, in some cases, have nothing to do with water resources (some of which Mr. Wissel, as an LWTF board member, probably approved) are as follows: the Alma Riverwalk Trail and Park, Buttermilk Land Purchase, Wildcat Canyon Metal Removal, Cline Ranch SWA House Stabilization Phase 1, Buckskin Placer and Alma Town Park Expansion, Roadside Exhibits, Hartsel Disable Fishing Area, Buckskin Gateway Park, Guffey Gorge, Harris Park Playground.

About 90% of LWTF projects have been on the Fairplay side of the county, as opposed to the Bailey side, where over 60% of Park County’s population resides. Mr. Wissel, a resident of Fairplay, was on the board for fifteen years and board president for six.

At the February 21 Commissioner’s work session, Commissioner Elsner supported the proposal that the commission should investigate using LWTF funds to purchase the property. He noted other land acquisitions funded by the LWTF.

Commission Chair Amy Mitchell and Commissioner Wissel restricted their comments almost exclusively to the maintenance and upkeep of the property, much like parents when presented with the pony scenario. They did not discuss their views on using LWTF funds for the purchase.

The LWTF started 2023 with a balance of slightly over $6 million. However, it is anticipated to be over $9 million by the end of the year if no new projects are funded.

The 2022 assessed valuation of the 72-acre Rosalie/BOERA site is $483,480. An unconfirmed, relatively recent appraisal of the property is $800,000.

Predictably, the commissioners were kind and courteous to community representatives who pleaded their case at the February 21 meeting. The commissioners and County Manager, Tom Eisenman, promised to begin their “due diligence.” They will contact the Platte Canyon School District, conduct their own appraisal, and further deliberate the merits.

During public comments at the general BOCC meeting following the work session, a community member noted that the county needs to get moving and act promptly on this proposal. Commissioner Wissel’s response was, “We appreciate that. The only unfortunate thing, I guess, is that the school district still owns it. …We’ve committed to do our due diligence for the part we have to do to see what may be…good or bad or nothing at all.”

The Bailey area community is passionate about preserving the natural jewel on that side of the county. They are certainly hoping for something good to come of it. Something “…bad or nothing at all” is not an option for them. They’re not looking for a qualified no.

They are not children praying for a pony. Instead, they are adults interested in preserving the character of their community not only for them but for generations to come.