Public Input Sought to Address Challenges at Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area

Popular dog park closing in Evergreen; List of locations to take your dog
By Mark Belcher
Feb 23, 2017
EVERGREEN, Colo. — The popularity of a Jefferson County dog park may be its undoing — Evergreen's Elk Meadow Dog Park is closing down.

The closure comes after Jefferson County officials say the land has been worn down over years of use.

The park had been open for 15 years, and is enjoyed by dog owners who can let their pups roam leash-free through the 107-acre park.

Now dog owners are left wondering where they can allow their pups to run.

Here's a list of dog parks for off-leash enjoyment in Jefferson County:

Per Jeffco Open Space:
***NOTICE: due to adverse weather conditions and I70 and highway closures the Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area meeting will be moved to Thursday, March 2 at 6:00 p.m. ***

Great news posted by Betsy Rich on Friends of Elk Meadow Dog Off Leash Area:

Hello-
We have news!

Judi Quackenboss, Doug Turner and I met with Tom Hobe, Director of JeffCo Open Space and two of his people, late yesterday. They heard the public outcry against their apparent decision to close our dog park. They read our emails and our social media posts. And it worked.Instead of closing the entire dog park, JCOS will leave the two fenced areas OPEN- including Judi’s original Bark Park. Our work- YOUR work paid off. Congratulations.

Evergreen WILL have an off leash area for our dogs. It is not the wonderful 107 acres we are used to, but it is something and more than we expected. JCOS will also consider reopening the upper loop in the next couple of years, if we are able to manage the smaller area and solve problems going forward.

We are in the process of forming a non profit corporation that will work with JCOS to manage the dog park. The details of our agreement are being worked out but this is what we know now:

• The Elk Meadow Off Leash Dog Park will probably close on April 4, 2017 for restoration, leaving the two fenced areas OPEN to off leash dogs
• The off leash area will probably be managed by a new non profit corporaton, Friends of Evergreen Dog Park (FEDP) under an agreement with Open Space. FEDP will consider a number of dog park best practices including membership, education and adherrence to rules.
• JCOS will work with other agencies to strictly enforce parking regulations in the lots and along Stagecoach. Some changes will be made.
• Eventually, JCOS would like to move the off leash park to another location. They are looking for options.

One of the things we learned yesterday is that neighbors, people downstream and others have been campaigning for the park’s closure for a long time. Before we even started organizing, they had lined up significant support from JeffCo Commissioners and Open Space. We surprised them with our large base and strong, committed opposition. Our demand that our voices be heard resulted in their agreement to keep part of the park open.

JCOS told us they are tired of dealing with this park. They feel the constant complaints and challenges are occupying a disproportionate amount of their resources. It is clearly in their best interest to work with us and reduce their involvement in the dog park.

There’s a lot of work ahead for all of us. Friends of Evergreen Dog Park will be headed by Judi, Doug and me; Lynda Hanshaw and Michael Cavanaugh. We thank you all for everything you’ve done so far and ask that you continue working with us going forward.

We will share more information with you as it develops via email, Facebook and through our new website ( www.friendsofevergreendogpark.org ) which will hopefully be live in the next day or so.

Because of these developments and in the spirit of collaboration, we are cancelling the Protest/Rally scheduled for 5pm this Thursday. We demanded that they listen to us and work with us…and they have done that. Yes, they are closing most of the park but a week ago we were looking at a full, permanent closure and that is now NOT going to happen thanks to all of you. Let’s tone down our rhetoric and give this new relationship a chance to work.

Thanks,
Betsy, Judi and Doug

This is the new Facebook Group, if you would like to join and volunteer: Friends of Evergreen Dog Park

And here is the GoFundMe if you would like to support this newly formed nonprofit: www.gofundme.com/friendsofevergreendogpark

This fund will support the creation and activities of Friends of Evergreen Dog Park. We will work with Jefferson County Open Space to manage and maintain the off leash dog park.

Press release from Jeffco Open Space:
Most of Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area to Close; Search for New Suitable, Sustainable Site Begins

The Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area (DOLA) in Evergreen has become so popular with dog owners that the land has suffered from overuse near the point of no return. The high level of use, coupled with challenging site constraints, has resulted in unsafe conditions for visitors and dogs, trampled natural vegetation, poor water quality, eroding soils and streambanks and lack of compliance from park visitors. Due to these conditions, the majority of the Elk Meadow Park DOLA will be closed on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 for major restoration work. The fenced area of the park will remain open and will undergo changes in management. The remainder of the park will be closed indefinitely in order to allow the area to recover using tailored management strategies.

“The tough decision to close the majority of the park became the most responsible choice to address the safety and environmental challenges at this site,” said Tom Hoby, Director of Jeffco Open Space. “We are currently working with a local group in order to keep a portion of the park open under strict conditions. These conditions include immediate and ongoing acceptable water quality levels, and compliance with all park regulations, parking and crosswalk requirements. If visitors to this area fail to comply with these requirements the remaining fenced area will be closed as well.”

A local group, called the Friends of Evergreen Dog Park (FEDP), is currently forming a non-profit organization that will help to manage the portion of the Elk Meadow Park DOLA that will remain open. To address the current challenges, the FEDP will work to create a culture of voluntary compliance and stewardship through education and peer monitoring.

Jeffco Open Space hopes to offer uninterrupted access to this off-leash area while a search is conducted for a new off-leash area. Once a new site has been opened, the remaining fenced area of the Elk Meadow Park DOLA will be evaluated for future uses.

To address public safety concerns on Stagecoach Boulevard adjacent to the DOLA, Jeffco Open Space is working with Jefferson County Transportation and Engineering to address unsafe parking along the road and possibly implement tow away zones. The south parking lot will be designated for disabled, emergency and staff parking.

The safety and environmental challenges at the DOLA were highlighted at two community meetings in January and February of 2017. The public safety concerns include: unsafe parking along Stagecoach Boulevard, visitor ingress and egress, as well as exposing dogs and humans to high E. coli levels in the stream that runs through the park. The amount of dog waste left on the ground has caused high levels of harmful bacteria in the stream, coupled with the high impact of visitation, has created significant loss of vegetation, which acts as a critical barrier to prevent erosion and cleanse water.

The Jeffco Open Space Natural Resources Team is developing an ecological restoration plan that will guide staff, volunteer and contracted efforts to restore the main DOLA area during its closure. Closing the area is required for the land to recover, vegetation to re-establish, the streambank to stabilize and bacteria levels to drop. Restoring the natural vegetation will likely take at least three years, which is highly dependent upon the moisture received over this period of time.

The closure area will be strictly enforced in accordance with the Jefferson County Open Space regulation C.5. Natural Resources Protection that carries a $100 fine for the first offense. “It is extremely important that the public stays out of this area so the restoration work and vegetation recovery is not adversely impacted,” said Mary Ann Bonnell, Jeffco Open Space Visitor Services Manager.

Community Meeting: Thursday March 2, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Buchanan Park Recreation Center, 32003 Ellingwood Trail, Evergreen, CO 80439.

To sign-up to volunteer at the DOLA please contact Matt Martinez, Volunteer Services Specialist, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Documents and More Information
Jeffco Open Space was founded as a land conservation organization in 1972. Our mission is to preserve open space and parkland, protect park and natural resources, and provide healthy, nature-based experiences. Funded with a one-half of one percent sales tax, our organization contributes to city and park district projects, has preserved more than 54,000 acres, and manages 29 open space parks and more than 230 miles of trails in Jefferson County, Colorado.

Matt Robbins
Community Connections Manager
303-271-5902
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Additional documents posted here: jeffco.us/open-space/meetings-agendas/projects-proposals/

Most of Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area to Close On April 4
March 16, 2017

Newly fenced eight-acre area to remain open until new site can be found

The Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area (DOLA) in Evergreen has many safety and environmental challenges that have resulted in plans to close 99 of the 107 acres of the site on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 for major restoration work. A newly fenced area of approximately eight acres just under one mile of trail will remain open until a new site can be secured for this purpose. Keeping this eight-acre area open is conditional upon dog owner compliance with parking and safety laws, waste pick up regulations, acceptable water quality and lack of further degradation of the site.

Jefferson County Open Space (JCOS) held a series of three community meetings between January and March of this year and gathered comments and suggestions. One of these suggestions was to move the fenced area to the east side of the park where the accessible Waggin’ Trail is located. “We thought this was a very good idea and as a result we are relocating the fenced area of the DOLA,” said Tom Hoby, Director of Jeffco Open Space. “It is our intent to offer uninterrupted service, protect water quality, improve visitor experience and have an accessible trail, while the search for a new suitable and sustainable site continues.”

The current fenced area of the park is located on a hillside that includes many drainages into the stream. By relocating this area further away from the stream and to more level ground, some of the challenges can be addressed temporarily. Additionally, the new area offers visitors access to an eight-acre off-leash area, while the majority of the park is closed for restoration. Meanwhile JCOS and local community partners will search for a new location that is better suited for this use and is more sustainable. Once a new site opens, the remaining fenced area of the Elk Meadow Park DOLA will be closed indefinitely to allow the entire area to be restored.


Map of Closure Area and Flow Line Analysis

The Friends of Evergreen Dog Park (FEDP), a recently formed 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will help educate visitors, foster better stewardship by dog owners and assist with maintenance of the remaining eight-acre fenced portion of the Elk Meadow Park DOLA that will remain open under strict conditions. These conditions include immediate and ongoing acceptable water quality levels, and compliance with all park regulations, parking and crosswalk requirements. Failure to comply with these requirements will result in immediate closure of the remaining fenced area.

To address public safety concerns on Stagecoach Boulevard adjacent to the DOLA, JCOS is working with Jefferson County Transportation and Engineering to discontinue parking along the road and implement tow away zones. The south parking lot will be designated for disabled, emergency and staff parking.

The upcoming closed area of the DOLA will be strictly enforced in accordance with the Jefferson County Open Space regulation C.5. Natural Resources Protection that carries a $100 fine for the first offense.

Documents and More Information

Jeffco Open Space was founded as a land conservation organization in 1972. Our mission is to preserve open space and parkland, protect park and natural resources, and provide healthy, nature-based experiences. Funded with a one-half of one percent sales tax, our organization contributes to city and park district projects, has preserved more than 54,000 acres, and manages 29 open space parks and more than 230 miles of trails in Jefferson County, Colorado.

Matt Robbins
Community Connections Manager
303-271-5902
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

jeffco.us/open-space/news/2017/most-of-e...to-close-on-april-4/

Entire Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area to Close on April 4

The Elk Meadow Park Dog Off-leash Area (DOLA) in Evergreen has multiple safety and environmental challenges that need to be addressed immediately. Earlier this month Jefferson County Open Space (JCOS) evaluated keeping an eight acre area of the DOLA open for park visitor enjoyment. It has become apparent that this would help address some concerns, but not address all of them. In addition, this scenario was not embraced by many DOLA stakeholders. After careful consideration of all the facts, issues, perspectives and risks, JCOS has decided to close all 107 acres of the DOLA on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 for major restoration and to address safety concerns.

When faced with public health and safety issues at the DOLA, including widespread loss of native vegetation, soil erosion, degradation of the stream channel, poor water quality, and lack of compliance from park visitors, JCOS conducted three community meetings between January and March of 2017 to search for solutions. These meetings yielded many comments, suggestions and perspectives from stakeholders, including community members, frequent visitors and neighbors. The suggestion to keep a smaller fenced area open while a new off-leash dog park location could be identified in the local community was explored by staff. However, the assessment of that recommendation found it would further compromise the land, increase the expense of restoration and does not address visitor compliance.

As consistently indicated at all community meetings and through communications, JCOS does not believe the current DOLA site is suitable or sustainable for this use and that the land needs comprehensive ecological restoration. Given the JCOS mission to preserve open space and parkland, protect park and natural resources, and provide healthy, nature-based experiences JCOS believes that a full DOLA closure is the most responsible management approach.

To address public safety concerns on Stagecoach Boulevard adjacent to the DOLA, JCOS is working with Jefferson County Transportation and Engineering to prohibit parking along the road.

The upcoming full closure of the DOLA will be strictly enforced in accordance with the Jefferson County Open Space regulation C.5. Natural Resources Protection that carries a $100 fine for the first offense.

Documents and More Information

Jeffco Open Space was founded as a land conservation organization in 1972. Our mission is to preserve open space and parkland, protect park and natural resources, and provide healthy, nature-based experiences. Funded with a one-half of one percent sales tax, our organization contributes to city and park district projects, has preserved more than 54,000 acres, and manages 30 open space parks and more than 230 miles of trails in Jefferson County, Colorado.

Matt Robbins
Community Connections Manager
303-271-5902
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.