Posts tagged open
Boulder sheriff wants a fireworks ban in county
0Commissioners to review burn permit policies and open fire restrictions for unincorporated Boulder County
Public invited to comment at hearing scheduled for May 22 at 9:30 a.m.
Boulder County, Colo. – The Boulder County Commissioners will review recommended modifications to the county’s existing ordinance restricting open fires on “red flag” days at a public hearing on Tuesday.
The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office is recommending that the current ordinance be repealed and replaced with an updated policy that requires permitting for non-agricultural burns and further restricts open burning where the danger of forest or grass fires is found to be high. The new ordinance will address identification of red flag warning days, notification regarding open burning, and penalties for violating statute, ordinance, and requirements of the open burn permit system or the notification system.
“A relatively new state law requires counties to develop a permit system this year, for property owners wanting to burn slash and conduct open burning,” Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said. “The Sheriff’s Office has been working closely with the Department of Public Health to develop a ‘one stop’ permit process which incorporates both the requirements of the state regarding air quality, and our needs regarding safety.”
Part of the plan includes educational and training materials for the individuals seeking permits. It is being developed to be administered online. These proposed new permit requirements do not apply to agricultural burning. They would primarily affect people in unincorporated Boulder County wanting to burn slash piles.
Also to be considered is the recommendation that fire restrictions go into effect under an expanded list of circumstances that contribute to high fire danger, such as during High Wind Advisories. Currently the ordinance only specifies that all open burning, including agricultural burning, be prohibited when the National Weather Service issues a “Red Flag Warning” for fire danger.
“We have found that fires continue to grow out of control on days when the county is under a High Wind Watch or Advisory, and that common sense sometimes does not prevail when deciding whether or not to burn on windy days,” added Pelle. “We wish to include those windy weather conditions under the proposed new ordinance, as times when open burning would be illegal.”
Members of the public are invited to review the draft ordinance online and provide comments in writing or in person at the hearing.
The first reading for the ordinance will be held:
When: 9:30 a.m., Tuesday, May 22
What: Public hearing on an ordinance establishing an open burn permit system, notification process of open burns, and restrictions during red flag days, high wind watch days and high wind warning days
Where: Boulder County Courthouse, 3rd Floor, Commissioners’ Hearing Room, 1325 Pearl Street, Boulder
The hearing can be viewed online at: www.bouldercounty.org/stream.
A copy of the draft ordinance is available at: www.bouldercounty.org (search by keyword “ordinances.”)
On a related note, the Sheriff’s Office will be presenting an amendment to the fire ban currently in effect for the mountain areas of Boulder County at the Commissioners’ next business meeting. The proposed amendment will include a provision to extend the ban on the sale and use of fireworks to all of unincorporated Boulder County. The public is invited to attend and comment on the proposed changes at 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, May 22 in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room.
Boulder Creek duck race loaded with prizes
025th annual EXPAND Duck Race to be held May 28; online duck sponsorship now available
The 25th annual EXPAND Duck Race will be held at 4 p.m. on Monday, May 28, at the Boulder Creek Festival®. The EXPAND Duck Race is a benefit for the Parks and Recreation Department’s EXPAND (EXciting Programs Adventures and New Dimensions) program, which provides recreational opportunities for children, youth and adults with disabilities.
Participants may sponsor ducks for $5 each and watch them race from the 9th Street Bridge to the finish near Boulder Creek next to the Main Library lawn. Online registration is now available, and is open through Sunday, May 27. Participants may also sponsor ducks at the Boulder Creek Festival®.
Dozens of prizes will be given away to the top duck finishers, including an all-inclusive, three-night stay in Cancun with airfare from Denver, courtesy of Doris Mundy Travel, Apple Vacations and Dreams Resort and Spa; $1,000 in cash from Fisher Kia & Honda of Boulder; a nine-month self defense package from Boulder Quest Center; gift certificates; and much more!
Participants do not need to be present to win. Prizes will be mailed and winners will be notified within 14 days. All proceeds benefit the EXPAND program.
For more information, a full list of prizes and to sponsor a duck, visit www.EXPANDDuckRace.org. For more information about EXPAND and the programs offered, please go to www.BoulderParks-Rec.org.
Niwot gets open space trail loop
0Dry Creek Trail grand opening set for Thursday
Boulder County, Colo. – The Boulder County Commissioners and Boulder County Parks and Open Space staff will host a grand opening and ribbon-cutting for the Dry Creek Trail this Thursday, May 10 from 3-4 p.m. at the Lefthand Valley Grange Trailhead.
The Dry Creek Trail is a new 2.5-mile soft surface multiuse trail from Lefthand Valley Grange Park, along Dry Creek, to Niwot Road. The trail completes the loop in the Niwot Trails system and allows community residents to recreate and commute off-street throughout town.
Project partners include the Niwot Community Association, Niwot High School, Niwot Sanitation District and the St. Vrain Valley School District. The trail is part of the Niwot Trails Master Plan that was approved by the Board of County Commissioners in July 2006.
Visit the Niwot Trails website for more information about the trail system, including maps, recreation opportunities and the Niwot Trails Master Plan.
Boulder Art and Jazz Fest May 5-6
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The 7th annual Boulder Arts, Craft and Jazz Festival kicked off today Saturday May 5th and runs through Sunday May 7. It features music all day from a main stage on the Pearl Street Mall at the court house. Other musicians are spread up and down the mall. There are literally hundreds of arts and crafts tents from one end of the mall to the other. Interspersed are food tents with everything from Mexican, Oriental to American.
It was a beautiful day on Saturday at the festival with a friendly relaxed atmosphere reminiscent of a Boulder old school event. A lot of Boulderites were present with a fine mixture of tourists. This is the big event of the year that kicks off summer in Downtown Boulder.
The event is promoted by the folks from the Dickens Store who started the original Bands on the Bricks many years ago They really know how to put on a family event. You don’t want to miss this one because it was not a crush of people who have been drinking all day. Of course the bars and restaurants are all open on Pearl Street and they were packed with festival goers as well.
The theme is early 1969 Woodstock and for those of you who were there, it is all love, peace and music at the The 7th annual Boulder Art and Jazz Festival. The music is excellent too. Bands played all day today and will start on the stage at 11:00 am til 6:30 pm: see the line up below. This appears to be the largest authentic music festival in Boulder. There are some others but they take place in theaters and bars and not on one stage. The Boulder Creek Festival is of course the very largest muical event just 3 weeks away on Memorial Day weekend with 5 music and dance stages. But Sunday afternoon will be the highlight of the festival.
The event is a charity event for Olive Branch a non-pro t organization which brings resources and opportunities to widows and orphans in Rwanda and Uganda. They are active in building Orphanages, Medical Clinics and Schools in this country!
Bear facts: Feed them and they will come
0Pilot program increasing education and enforcement on bear attractants begins this week
The City of Boulder and the Colorado Parks and Wildlife are partnering on an Urban Black Bear Education and Enforcement pilot program that begins on Saturday, April 28. The purpose of the program is to explore the effectiveness of education and enforcement on improving the ways residential trash is secured and other bear attractants are minimized in western Boulder. The pilot neighborhood includes approximately 600 residences west of Ninth Street, north of Baseline Road and south of Arapahoe Avenue.
On Saturday, April 28, staff and volunteers will begin going door-to-door in the pilot neighborhood and provide residents with information on removing bear attractants from their property. They will also discuss the existing state and city laws requiring trash to be secured from bears. Increased enforcement of the trash regulations will begin in June.
A public open house to provide information and answer questions about the pilot program will be held on Monday, April 30, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at Flatirons Elementary School, 1150 Seventh St.
Residents are encouraged to participate in an online survey to help determine effective strategies to keep bears out of trash at www.boulderwildlifeplan.net.
Some tips for preventing human-bear conflicts include the following:
- Store trash indoors or in a way that does not allow bears to scatter it. (This is required by city ordinance.)
- Store birdfeeders indoors at night from April to November.
- Store pet food inside.
- Keep BBQ grills clean.
- Keep garage and home doors closed.
For more information about the pilot program, contact Val Matheson, City of Boulder Urban Wildlife, 303-441-3004.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife offers information on how to safely coexist with bears. For more information, visit http://www.wildlife.state.co.us/bears.
If you experience problems with bears or other wildlife, call Boulder Police Department 303-441-3333 or Colorado Parks and Wildlife 303-291-7227.
Boulder pooch poo-poo park closing for upgrade
0Valmont Dog Park closing May 7 for three-month renovation
The dog park at Valmont City Park, located at 5275 Valmont Road, will close May 7 for major renovations and improvements. The dog park is scheduled to re-open in August (contingent upon weather-related construction progress).
Improvements at the dog park will include widening parking lot access, a new entry plaza, fencing, surfacing, landscaping and water hydrants. A portion of the new park will also include an enclosed, irrigated turf area, low berms, a new 16-foot square shade shelter, and two smaller shelters. The shelters are funded by the Capital Improvement Bond passed in November 2011.
To view the construction plans for Valmont Dog Park, please visit: www.BoulderParks-Rec.org and click on the “Parks” link on the left side, and scroll down to “Dog Parks.”
While under construction, dog guardians are encouraged to use the city’s other dog parks at:
- Foothills Community Dog Park, 7th Street and Silver Lake (between Locust and Lee Hill);
- East Boulder Community Park, 55th Street and Sioux Drive (south of the Community Center);
- Howard Heuston Dog Park, 34th Street, south of Iris Avenue (un-fenced dog park – voice and sight control required).
For more information, call Jennifer Bray, Parks and Recreation, at 303-441-4160.
University of Colorado Boulder shuts down annual 420 Pot Bash
0University of Colorado closed to unauthorized visitors, non-affiliates on April 20
The University of Colorado Boulder announced today it will be open to students, faculty and staff on April 20, but closed to unauthorized non-affiliates due to the disruption caused by the 4/20 gathering.
“The gathering disrupts teaching and research right in the heart of the campus,” said CU-Boulder Chancellor Philip P. DiStefano. “The size of the crowd has become unmanageable, and limits our faculty, staff and students from getting to class, entering buildings and doing their basic work. It needs to end.”
Further the event is attended mostly by CU freshman from campus. The outsiders come from all over the state. It has been their premier rally for legalizing marijuana in the USA. Pot lobbyists and activists use the event to promote drug use. With nice weather crowds could exceed 50,000. The university does not want to be know as the hippie pot smoking capital of the universe. With larger crowds expected, rampant illegal drug dealing, the university has finally had enough.
The ACLU has taken up the pot smokers cause, but legal experts say it is a lost cause: The university has a right to shut down in the face of massive criminal activity .
Law enforcement officials say they are prepared for 1000′s of arrests if need be. Over 1000 police are expected. 300 swat officers will be held in reserve and over 5000 National Guard will be held in ready reserve able to deploy in 1 hours notice. One legal official told us the fines are so steep for everything that it won’t be worth it to even attempt to come to Boulder. DUIs cost an estimated $20,000. State patrol will be targeting hippies driving in from Denver.
Boulder County will have out door jail space for 10,000 ready to go. One university official said: We aren’t fooling around.
On Friday, April 20, CU-Boulder’s normal academic activity will continue as scheduled, but the following measures will be in place:
- Students, faculty, staff and all CU-Boulder affiliates will need their Buff OneCard IDs to get on, and around, the campus. Those not affiliated with CU-Boulder will not be permitted on campus and face tickets for trespassing. Those cited for trespassing face punishment of up to six months in jail and a $750 fine. District Attorney Stan Garnett has discussed April 20 enforcement operations with CU Police officials. His office will handle the prosecution of those who receive tickets. “As always, the District Attorney’s Office will work to support the efforts of the CU Police Department,” Garnett said.
- For those visitors who have tickets for CU events on April 20 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., or who are participants in academic meetings, symposia, conferences or other officially sanctioned activities, limited access to campus will be provided via a special registration program. Visitors will check in at the CU-Boulder East Campus Administrative and Research Center at 3100 Marine St. Please register for this service by going online to http://www.colorado.edu/april20 beginning Monday, April 16 at 8 a.m. or call the CU information line at 303-492-4636. After 6 p.m., no special access to the campus is required, though visitors should be advised that traffic getting into and out of the campus is likely to be heavy.
- Police will be checking for Buff OneCard IDs, and have checkpoints set up at all major campus entrances.
- Norlin Quad lawn areas will be closed to all people. Anyone, regardless of campus affiliation, who enters these areas may face a ticket for trespassing. Closure signage will be clearly displayed in this area. All areas of the campus – including other fields – will be closed to non-affiliates.
- Visitors will not be allowed to park on campus. Attendants will check those traveling to campus for BuffOne IDs and parking permits.
- CU Police issued tickets for marijuana possession last year. Officers will do the same this year. However, this year people will see a larger presence of officers.
- Those who smoke marijuana can face a ticket, which can result in a $100 fine, revocation of a person’s medical marijuana registry card upon conviction, and sanctions against students who receive tickets by CU’s Office of Student Conduct.
- A large presence of police officers from CU-Boulder and regional agencies will be present. The Colorado State Patrol will conduct enhanced patrols on U.S. 36, Colo. 93, the Diagonal Highway and other highways throughout the day, looking for drivers under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.
- The Colorado Department of Revenue’s Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division will have a team of officers deployed on campus and throughout Boulder to monitor medical marijuana centers and ensure compliance with licensing regulations.
- CU organizations and academic units have been advised to move non-essential meetings and gatherings that require visitors, partners and stakeholders to more convenient times later in the spring semester.
- Regent Drive will be closed to through traffic from approximately 1:30 to 6 p.m. Buses will be allowed to use Regent Drive, but drivers should plan alternate routes.
- The Buff Bus and RTD Stampede, 209, and J routes will be impacted between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Please seehttp://www.colorado.edu/pts/news/index.html for details on how these routes will be altered and/or delayed.
The university announced on April 3 that a concert with the performer Wyclef Jean, sponsored by the CU Student Government in partnership with CU-Boulder’s Program Council, will be hosted at the Coors Events Center. Doors open at 2 p.m. and all CU students with BuffOne cards are invited to attend. The show is expected to end at 7 p.m. No non-CU students will be admitted.
The city of Boulder shut down the Halloween Mall Crawl in 1990 after crowds of over 50,000 became wild, a media circus and put huge financial strains on the city. It is hoped with this new shut down that CU students who want to celebrate 420 will do it quietly and not turn it into a national sensation embarrassing the entire University of Colorado. Parents who see this will be less likely to send their kids to CU and this event sends the wrong message. Which is if you are a doper CU is the place to come.
Drug addiction has been a problem on the CU campus since the late 1960s. Shutting down 420 will help to solve this health issue too.
by BC1 staff
CU News services contributed to this story
Watch Out For Boulder Boomerang Effect With City Park Ban On Homeless by Rob Smoke
0Someone needs to ask Boulder fire chief — county sheriff — city manager …
Rob Smoke, columnist
….DOES the possibility of increased wilderness usage by homeless people –
people who may have been affected or influenced by Boulder’s new rules
banning people from parks at night — indicate a higher risk of fire?
In fact, there’s no other conclusion that can be reached.
It should be pointed out that stating an increased risk is not bashing the homeless.
If someone is outdoors and physically exposed, and there are limited options,
a fire is something very useful, even if it is in violation of an ordinance.
Also, the circumstances that can lead to a campfire turning into a wildfire
can be as simple as leaving the fire unattended when it appears to be out –
and it’s a phenomena that need occur only in an extremely small fraction of all
instances of people using an outdoor fire to create a disaster, which is not to call homeless people
as a group “firebugs.”
If I’m not mistaken, the Fourmile and/or Dome fires were considered likely to have
been caused by outdoor campfires, according to sheriff Pelle.
The city of Boulder, and soon to be city of Denver, it appears, are enacting
ordinances which essentially ask homeless people to disappear.
One has to consider the availability of “disappearable” locations –
our wilderness areas comprise, geographically, the largest subset of
disappearable locations. It should also be noted, the new rules and
regulations — and the anti-camping ordinances — are essentially a violation
of civil rights, putting people in harm’s way without recourse.
Whilst officials tell their constituents they are “cleaning up” the homeless problem;
facts are, a wildfire caused by a homeless person who might have otherwise
stayed in a city park, without a fire, but closer to basic services –
would be a horrible boomerang effect — not a small price to pay for
relying on law enforcement to solve a social crisis.
People need to open their eyes — not because the homeless
somehow threaten to burn down Colorado, but because
the risk of fire is substantial enough that the only prudent thing
to do under these circumstances is everything in our power
to lessen risk. It would be one thing if every homeless
person represented a lost tree. The mathematics of the risk, in this case,
indicate that it could be one non-malicious homeless person out of thousands causing
the loss of a forest or homes or lives. That increased risk, in light of the new
laws, is a serious issue. The risk situation is analogous
to nuclear power safety. It’s perfectly safe, except when it isn’t.
Put another way, although many thousands of matches
may be lit that do not lead to a forest fire, it still takes only one lit match.
Another aspect, of equal concern I’m certain,
is that putting people into the wilderness — which is simply an obvious possible
result of the anti-homeless ordinances — exposes them to a spectrum of dangers.
People die out in the wilderness all the time for lack of food, water, warmth
or emergency medical services.
The immediate solution is to suspend enactment of ordinances
banning people from public places. If Boulder or Denver residents find the presence of homeless
people inconvenient or unpleasant, then solutions that don’t involve making them “disappear”
must be sought.
Rob Smoke is a political columnist for Boulder Channel 1 often writing about city politics. Rob is a critic and one man watch dog of the council and has been for over 20 years. He has been a writer and journalist for many local papers. Tuesdays nights he can be found at Boulder city council meetings.
#Boulder County fire danger high
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Lefthand Canyon OHV area closed
Boulder County, Colo. – With dry and windy weather conditions expected through the weekend, Sheriff Joe Pelle and the Boulder County Commissioners are reminding residents and visitors to take caution and be aware that fire danger is extremely high.
The fire ban imposed Tuesday remains in effect. Open burning is restricted and Sheriff Pelle has asked people to refrain from shooting or any other activities that could provide a source of possible ignition
Additionally, the U.S. Forest Service has temporarily closed the Lefthand Canyon Off-Highway Vehicle area northwest of Boulder to all entry and uses until further notice.
“Two of three recent fires on the Boulder Ranger District were located in the Lefthand Canyon OHV area,” Acting District Ranger Dave Park said in a USFS news release. “Quick response and early detection helped us keep the fires small. But heavy use combined with dry, lower elevation conditions and expected windy weather continues to be a concern. This area will remain closed until conditions improve.”
USFS officials have asked visitors to use extra caution with all activities. At this time of year fire danger can vary by location and increase rapidly on windy days. “The county appreciates the Forest Service’s proactive stance during this time of very high fire danger and resource issues,” Pelle said.
#Boulder wants an ear full on pesticide usage
0City hosts open house, invites feedback on proposed changes to pesticide use
The City of Boulder is evaluating a variety of options for improving its Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program and its use of pesticides on public lands, including city parks, open space and other municipal properties.
The public is invited to attend a presentation and open house on Thursday, March 22, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Panorama Room of the East Senior Center, 5660 Sioux Drive, to review and provide feedback on a variety of options that are currently being considered.
The project to update the Integrated Pest Management Program has the following goals:
Comments may be submitted at the meeting or through the comment form on the city’s website at www.bouldercolorado.gov/ipm.Materials for the meeting will be posted to the website on the day of the meeting for those unable to attend.