HomeMy WebLinkAbout20110393.tiff RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
MINUTES
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
WELD COUNTY, COLORADO
FEBRUARY 7, 2011
The Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, Colorado, met in regular session in full
conformity with the laws of the State of Colorado at the regular place of meeting in the Weld County
Centennial Center, Greeley, Colorado, February 7, 2011, at the hour of 9:00 a.m.
ROLL CALL: The meeting was called to order by the Chair and on roll call the following members
were present, constituting a quorum of the members thereof:
Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer, Chair
Commissioner Sean P. Conway, Pro-Tem
Commissioner William F. Garcia
Commissioner David E. Long
Commissioner Douglas Rademacher— EXCUSED
Also present:
County Attorney, Bruce T. Barker
Acting Clerk to the Board, Elizabeth Strong
Director of Finance and Administration, Monica Mika
MINUTES: Commissioner Long moved to approve the minutes of the Board of County Commissioners
meeting of February 2, 2011, as printed. Commissioner Conway seconded the motion, and it carried
unanimously.
CERTIFICATION OF HEARINGS: Commissioner Garcia moved to approve the Certification of
Hearings conducted on February 2, 2011, as follows: 1) First Amendment of Service Plan - Saint Vrain
Sanitation District, and 2) USR #1761 - Bruce and Janet Richard. Commissioner Long seconded the
motion, which carried unanimously.
AMENDMENTS TO AGENDA: There were no amendments to the agenda.
PROCLAMATIONS:
PROCLAMATION OF APPRECIATION - BLACK ROCK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Chair Kirkmeyer
read the proclamation into the record, recognizing the kindergarten classes of Black Rock Elementary
School for their effort to care for other children in their community.
Veronica Cavazos, Department of Human Services, stated she received a call from Black Rock
Elementary School last November, indicating the students want to help the foster children in the
community and had collected 700 pairs of pajamas. She stated the Department is grateful for the
school's generosity, and providing the pajamas has helped ease the transition for hundreds of Weld
County's foster children. She stated there was a situation a few weeks ago where three (3) children
were taken into custody late at night, and the children were allowed to select the pajamas they would
like to have. She indicated that one of the children selected a pair of Spider-Man pajamas and she
turned away for a moment to complete some paperwork and when she turned back around, the little
3u4II Minutes, February 7, 2011 2011-0393
Page 1 BC0016
boy was already in his Spider-Man pajamas and he was extremely happy; therefore, the pajamas
significantly eased the transition for that child.
Cathy O'Donnell, Principal of Black Rock Elementary School, stated it was the school's honor to be a
part of this, and the school will likely participate in this program on an annual basis from now on. She
stated Marie Hennacar is the PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) President and she initiated the
school's involvement with the program. She stated the school has enjoyed being a part of the program
and hopes to bring in a great deal of donations next year as well. Commissioner Conway commended
the school's efforts to help the less fortunate; it is another great example of neighbors helping each
other in Weld County. Commissioner Garcia stated the Board is proud of the students of Black Rock
Elementary School and many adults could learn from their example. Chair Kirkmeyer indicated there is
are typographical errors in the proclamation; therefore, those will be corrected before the proclamation
is given to the school, and she will be happy to deliver the proclamation after it has been corrected.
PUBLIC INPUT: Chris Eikenberg, Weld County resident, indicated she has two (2) items to discuss;
one (1) is the request for the County to develop a form for women with child support issues. She stated
she came before the Board a year ago to request a form be created and it still has not been, and she
still does not understand the court fee she has to pay. She stated there needs to be regulation of how
child support is determined because there are too many different ways child support is addressed in the
District Court. Ms. Eikenberg stated that in one hearing rearage and a modification were to be
determined, and the woman went through 18 months of frustration trying to obtain child support from
the child's father. She stated a verification process occurred in May, yet the father's income was not
verified again in September, prior to the hearing, and eight (8) days after the court proceeding, the
child's father obtained new employment with the State of Colorado and he is supposed to notify the
Child Support Enforcement Unit, according to a Court mandate, about the change in his income, in
writing, within 10 days; however, he did not notify the Child Support Enforcement Unit until November,
which is a clear violation. She indicated it was determined the woman was not entitled to rearage, and
she is confused as to why the rearage was applied previously, yet will not be for the upcoming hearing
in February, and it seems there is nothing in writing to refer to how rearage is applied. She indicated
that after researching this subject in various counties, it seems each county attorney chooses how to
apply the rules. Ms. Eikenberg stated there needs to be a document explaining the rules, in addition to
the State's website, because the State's guidelines do not reflect what is occurring in this County. She
requested that the Board get involved with this matter and help establish consistency. She indicated
that another woman she knows had to track down her ex-husband's employer in order to request a
child support modification, and the attitude from the Child Support Enforcement Unit is the people
requesting the modification must obtain the information about where the person paying child support is
located and where they are working, and then the Unit may or may not act on the information. She
indicated this woman had to apply for food stamps, which she would not have had to do if the
modification had taken place in a timely manner; therefore, there was a cost to the County which could
have been avoided.
Ms. Eikenberg stated the other issue she wants to discuss is regarding a mandate on rent. She
indicated Weld County has a high foreclosure rate, and she has researched other areas in the country
and there is a law in some of the counties in the State of California, where it is required that the
apartment complexes set aside 10 percent of the units for low-income tenants, which creates diversity
within those areas. She stated in Encinitas, California, people making less than $3,500.00 per month
are considered low-income, and there was a lawsuit regarding the City failing to follow the 10-percent
low-income housing mandate there, Ms. Eikenberg requested the Board consider the lack of diversified
housing available to low-income people in Weld County, and she stated the implementation of the
10-percent low income housing requirement would promote a better understanding of low-income
people in the community. Ms. Eikenberg indicated California has a program where funds are
Minutes, February 7, 2011 2011-0393
Page 2 BC0016
designated by the cities and counties to help individuals who have had a foreclosure and have a social
security income, since banks would have historically considered those people to be high-risk. She
stated in comparison to being unemployed, social security is a consistent form of income.
Doug Meyer, Weld County resident, read an article into the record, marked Exhibit A and titled
Coordination Stops Transmission Line Deep in the Heart of Texas.
CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Conway moved to approve the Consent Agenda as printed.
Commissioner Garcia seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously.
NEW BUSINESS:
CONSIDER INSTALLATION OF TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES ON CR 96 AT CR 27: Janet Carter,
Department of Public Works, indicated she is requesting to install Stop signs for the east and
westbound traffic on County Road 96, as it intersects County Road 27. She indicated that when driving
east and west, drivers cannot adequately view the southbound traffic, and the installation of the Stop
signs will correct the problem. Commissioner Conway moved to approve the installation of Stop signs
on County Road 96, at County Road 27. Seconded by Commissioner Garcia, the motion carried
unanimously.
CONSIDER INSTALLATION OF TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES ON CR 55 AT CR 60.5: Ms. Carter
stated she is requesting to install a Stop sign on County Road 55, as it intersects County Road 60.5.
She stated there is a curve along this portion of roadway; however, where the Stop sign will be placed
is not along the curved portion of the road. She stated the location of the Stop sign will be where the
remaining portion of County Road 55 stubs into County Road 60.5, since there is confusion at the
location about whether people are going to continue traveling straight or drive into the curve. In
response to Commissioner Conway, Ms. Carter confirmed the average daily traffic count is 3,048
vehicles on County Road 55, and the average daily traffic count for County Road 60.5 is 3,693 vehicles;
however, the traffic count is much lower for this particular segment of the road. Further responding to
Commissioner Conway, Ms. Carter indicated she does know not the average daily traffic count for this
particular segment of County Road 55, and she provided the traffic counts which were available for the
nearest portions of the roads to this location. She indicated that what is important when considering the
traffic counts is whether the road with the lower traffic volume will be stopped, since staff wants to
ensure it is not stopping the road with the higher traffic volumes. In response to Commissioner
Conway, Ms. Carter confirmed there have been a few accidents at this location, as well as numerous
close calls. Commissioner Conway moved to approve the installation of a Stop sign on County
Road 55, at County Road 60.5. Seconded by Commissioner Long, the motion carried unanimously.
CONSIDER GRANT APPLICATION FOR HAZARDOUS MATERIALS EMERGENCY PLANNING AND
AUTHORIZE CHAIR TO SIGN: Roy Rudisill, Director, Office of Emergency Management, stated this is
an application to the State Emergency Planning Commission, which will support the County's projects
in regards to facilities which store or utilize hazardous materials. He stated he is the chairman for the
local Emergency Planning Committee, which receives reports of which facilities contain hazardous
materials which must be reported according to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) standards.
He indicated the Emergency Planning Committee compares the Risk Management Plans of the
companies which have those plans, to ensure the Risk Management Plans match the plans which the
companies have on file with the State. Mr. Rudisill stated another component of the hazardous
materials planning is plotting the facilities on a GIS (Geographic Information System) map. He stated
the total amount being requested from the State is $3,400.00, and $680.00 in matching County funds
will be paid from the Emergency Management budget. He stated the maps will be provided to the local
fire districts and other local community agencies. Commissioner Long moved to approve said grant
Minutes, February 7, 2011 2011-0393
Page 3 BC0016
application and authorize the Chair to sign. Seconded by Commissioner Conway, the motion carried
unanimously.
CONSIDER APPOINTMENTS TO JUVENILE COMMUNITY REVIEW BOARD: Commissioner Long
moved to appoint Liska Fraser-Williams and Jason Nava to the Juvenile Community Review Board,
with terms to expire November 1, 2012. Seconded by Commissioner Conway, the motion carried
unanimously.
FINAL READING OF WELD COUNTY CODE ORDINANCE #2011-1, IN THE MATTER OF
REPEALING AND REENACTING, WITH AMENDMENTS, CHAPTER 5 REVENUE AND FINANCE, OF
THE WELD COUNTY CODE: Commissioner Garcia moved to read Ordinance #2011-1 by title only.
Seconded by Commissioner Conway, the motion carried unanimously.
Bruce Barker, County Attorney, read the Ordinance into the record, and he stated there are no changes
proposed today; however, it is being requested that the final reading be continued for approximately
three (3) weeks. He stated that last week he met with Trevor Jiricek and Troy Swain, employees of the
Department of Public Health and Environment, last week to review some documents, regulations, and
statutes, and the three (3) of them would like to present some information to the Board to better explain
the reasons for writing the Ordinance as it is written, which they do not feel they clearly explained at the
last work session. He recommended another work session take place with the stakeholders prior to the
Ordinance being considered for approval on the final reading. Chair Kirkmeyer gave the opportunity for
public testimony; however, none was provided. She indicated there were discussions about continuing
the final reading of this Ordinance for up to six (6) months, and Monica Mika, Director of Finance and
Administration, concurred and she specified the discussion occurred at the Board's work session.
Mr. Barker stated it is up to the Board as to how long it would like to continue the matter; however, it is
staff's opinion the surcharge should remain. Chair Kirkmeyer indicated she would like to continue the
final reading of the ordinance for more than three (3) weeks, since longer time periods for a potential
continuance were discussed at the work session. Commissioner Conway concurred. Commissioner
Long moved to continue the final reading of Code Ordinance #2011-1 to May 9, 2011, at 9:00 a.m.
Commissioner Conway seconded the motion. Chair Kirkmeyer requested that staff ensure all of the
people who attended the previous work session are notified of the upcoming work session. There
being no further discussion, the motion carried unanimously.
PLANNING:
CONSIDER ROAD MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT ACCORDING TO POLICY REGARDING
COLLATERAL FOR IMPROVEMENTS RELATED TO USR #1582 AND AUTHORIZE CHAIR TO SIGN
- CITY OF AURORA/PRAIRIE WATERS PROJECT, C/O DOUG PIFHER: Clay Kimmi, Department of
Public Works, stated the City of Aurora is trying to complete its Prairie Waters Project and needs to
cross County Road 8 for a period of approximately two (2) weeks. He stated Aurora has agreed to
place magnesium chloride on the portion of the road it will be crossing, in order to control the dust, as
well as to maintain the road. In response to Commissioner Conway, Mr. Kimmi stated the County is not
requesting any collateral for this agreement since it is a short-term project and there are other
upcoming projects the County will be working on with Aurora. Chair Kirkmeyer inquired as to whether
there should be an intergovernmental agreement in place, since the City of Aurora will not be providing
collateral. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Barker confirmed the County would normally require an
intergovernmental agreement; however, the County has entered into agreements similar to this one
with Aurora on a number of other occasions. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Kimmi stated the
Director of the Water Department signed the agreement on behalf of the City of Aurora. Mr. Barker
indicated he will determine whether the Director of the Water Department has the authority to sign the
agreement on behalf of Aurora. In response to Commissioner Conway, Mr. Kimmi stated Aurora wants
to commence construction for the project within the next two (2) weeks and the project will last
approximately four (4) months; however, the County road will just be crossed by Aurora for a two (2)
Minutes, February 7, 2010 2010-0393
Page 4 BC0016
week period. Commissioner Conway stated there seems to be some unanswered questions and he
inquired as to whether those questions can be answered within one (1) week. Mr. Barker indicated
one (1) week should provide adequate time for the questions to be answered. Commissioner Conway
moved to continue the matter to February 14, 2011, at 9:00 a.m. Commissioner Garcia seconded the
motion. Commissioner Conway indicated he thinks the City Manager should sign the agreement and
he does not like the idea of not having collateral. Chair Kirkmeyer stated the County staff is completing
projects on County Roads 6, 21, and 23, the oil and gas industry has numerous accesses on County
Road 6, and now the City of Aurora is completing projects on County Roads 23 and 8, and she is
receiving a lot of complaints from people about dirt clods on the roadways and potholes; therefore, she
wants to ensure the road is properly maintained. There being no further discussion, the motion carried
unanimously.
RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES: The resolutions were presented and signed as listed on the
Consent Agenda. No ordinances were approved.
Let the minutes reflect that the above and foregoing actions were attested to and respectfully submitted
by the Acting Clerk to the Board.
There being no furth ' ess, this meeting was adjourned at 9:55 a.m.
A„`� BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
✓ W LD COUNTY, COLO DO
ATTEST: ��� - •.,,:c' �� .!ti
arbara Kirkmeyer, air
Weld County C --
���� Sea � ( Y, Pro-Tem
BY:
Deputy Clerk to the B.
Willi` �F. Garcia
AP ED FORM: � cv. (r David E. Long ` J
my Attorney EXCUSED
Douglas Rademacher
Minutes, February 7, 2010 2010-0393
Page 5 BC0016
`Coordination Stops Transmission Line Deep in the I leart of Texas -American Stewards Page 1 of
Protecting Pcopie and Property
I1OMli NEWS cooRr)1N:vr[oN TRAINING MEMBERSHIP DONATE ABOUT US STORE
Search. . Register tree to inns and sari i all of our ail ick s. Log In Kct i.ti•r Prot:
Coordination Stops Transmission Line Deep in the Heart of Texas -.:I "Just wanted to let you know
how much we appreciate the
time you devoted to help us
understand the coordination
Navigation to the webpage was canceled proorss.
Coordination Works I February s,2011 I Dan itvtield..
Gary and Candace from Nevada
It took It months,hilt the coordination pna•esc was a key cmnpuneut in stopping a
inajore•lecttit ti ansmission line from being constructed through ai small,rural r xi
county deep in the Heart(A.Texas. y" - e -
�r •
Donate
When we received the call.the Piddle Utility Commission(PUC:I had just postpoiied .7"",. .„.F •
making their decision to nut a 345 kV transmission line through an adjoining
county and created.out of thin air.an alternate rnnte through Mason County,Texas.
Mason Cot my sits in the center of the scenic Texas Hill Country.has a population of 3.700 people on a good day,has 110 major FREE Download
shopping centers like a Wal-Mart or grocer•chain,and is considered by the Texas Parks and Wildlife as one of the last for Subscribing
"unspoiled places"in the state. NEWS
Our chairman Mike Dail.asked its to help Mason County protect the private pnapert)of hundreds of landowners n-ho were
being threatened by an arrogant utility company that had the backing of the state Public Utility Commission. Receive the pdf Download of
"Ctxtperatiou vs.C•oordinatiun"
'Prams has a slate statute that allows cities and counties to form planning eomniisslntts and requires state agencies to
wiam yon Subscribe
coordinate their plans with the local commission.Thestatute is Section 30i of the I.oc al Gm eminent Code and the specific
to our a-New:siotter,.
section that requires coordination is 3ye.oewtc),
,ign Up Today O
When we found that statute in 2006;we used this vehicle to aid in stopping the l-35 Trans-Texas Corridor. People in Mason
heard about our victory and wontlerel if our strate*.could stop the CRI.7 power line threatening their county. We got the call
in September.zi a W.
Our hrst step was to get them educated on coordination,the rtyi planning coniMiSSIOn et nit Litre,and get them organized.
l'ortunacly,the county had dedicated elected officials who represented the will of the people.They quickly learned the benefit i ,t
Of implementing coordination and formed a sub-regional planning comet ission allowed by the local Government Click. --- .... ...:::..,.
January 13
We then helped the citizens form a local support group that became known as the Hill Country Heritage Association. It Cody.WY
quickly grew into a boo plus mcmisit,non-profit organi/atiin that began rollet:ting murky to help their local governments
tight I he transutission battle. Januan-ra
ltacalli County.MT
Our next step was learning who we were lighting. The CRF%iegislaiion de.-igmated the Texas Public Utility Commission as the
lead slate agency in charge of locating the regions where wind farms would he sited. •I•hey also were to award lucrative
FSchedule a Session
contracts to ti utility couprtniestoc'otistnictthnaeandsof miles of345kVelem ri.trammissian lines connecting the wind iutea:a>es.::a:, a.N
farms with major metropolitan cities like Dallas.San Antonio.and Austin.
The lower Colonido River Authority(I.CKA).a state created quasi-govt.•rnnteutal water authority.was given the vontraet as
the utility to build the"McCauley 1)10 Kendall to Gillespie 345-kV CRIV.Tea wmission line"in the dill Country where Mason Read Previous Articles
is located. .
https://www.americanstewards.us/news-publications/coordination-works/coordination-stops-t
Coordination Stops Transmission Line Deep in the I Ieart of Texas- American Stewards Page 2 o
Initially.,Mason wasn't chosen for any of the alternate mutes,but politics being as they are,PUC altered the course throwing -Two Coon Cases IWide('for
Mason County into the mix without;ow wanting. li.ordinuion
-Three Reason,:to like NItP
Ic•eaurse of the PVC trick.Mason County literally had no more than two months to get organized and running. Within that Th.,Nome of the Game:Mitigation
timetramc•,we brought the city council and the count'commissioners and courtly judge up to s peed on the law,helped get Winkdount'Men Invokes the Data
them and the local folks ortauized,and demanded the two state:agencies-LOLl and the PVC-begin coordinating with the Quality Act
City of Mason and Mason Count'. Reluctantly,the two agencies agreed to meet. -One States Solution to Coordination
Arizona Coordination Legislation
Our first meeting was in late November,anno,with I.CRA trill twit employees of the PUC. One wits a vet).arrogant attorney
Becomes'Model"Bill
for the PUC who no more wanted to be in the meeting than going to the dentist to have a tooth pulled. nut.in that meeting.we
Gxrrdinating Menunieat Management
used coordination to pines both agencies on notice that what they were doing in Mason violated numerous federal statutes.
flans
namely the Endangered Species Act(ESA)and the National Environmental Polk Act(NEPA)because the proposed line
crossed two endangered songbird's habitat amid none of the propel'studies were being performed.
The protect iianagertor I,CRA responded by saving there was"no federal action'that caused NEPA to apply,amid the FCC
AMI.RICAN
attorney claimed they had exchisive.itir sdietion because:the transmission line was purely a state adniiiiist rat iv a process and ST[W'ARDse
all actions fell tinder their:administrative pureiety.
American Stewards tiI Liberty is the
That was the wroeig position to take. We knew Ur had them on the law and told I horn s it'h in the meeting and the Itif low-up
only non profit organization that
letter signed by Jetty Inc arlen,Mason County Judge. Both state agencies now hod the legal notice from a local guvern:nent
trains loyal leaders how to use the
that they were in violation of two federal env imnnurntal statutes.
coordination process to protect
Cruellest move was then to bring U.S.Fish and WildlifeService(FWS)to the coordination table to discuss the Service's rolein their land,ccunontt and was of life.
This unique sera t pay is just one of
ensuring proper env imnnie•atal approval.'their local biologist came to Mason and in the government-ter-government meeting
the things we do hi help Americans
stated the FWS was going to require a"full and rigorous Environmental Impact Study'as required by NEPA for the CREZ line
genie through Mason Count'.
protect their private prop et ty
rights.
In tact.he informed us that the Notice:was drafted and currently Irving reviewed by his Washington office,that LC'ILA would be .loin ur donate today.
conducting the study and that I.CRA hall known of their duty for at least a year. I'hta put the LIRA and Pt IC in quite a box
since just a few months prior they had taken the position.ore the record,that an KIS was not required because there was in
-federal trig;eers." Educating .
The executive director of 1..CRA followed up the PUS meeting promptly with a letter explaining why his protect manager nettle
the statements he did to the Camnmissimr,and continued to take the position that their atilt itiec were sanctioned by the state We'eelci t-Americans on i,sjt llr�
and they were complying with all laws regtiired. affect ing properly cactus and
individual Meat lie:through lair
Utilizing the home towtt expertise of two of Mason's landowuers.Dean Kothmann and Gerry Bohnifalk,we prepared an KIS ;midteat tens,Standing(await,/and
work plan for the FWS and LCRA outlining the issues that mast he rigorously analyzed in the NEPA study such as the C'oordiratt,rr Works.
economic impact,social cohesiveness of the community,destruction of collieral:nal his'tolical resources,as well as.the
pristine ecological resources that had been so well protected by Mason laudnwners since it was settled iu the early Moo's.
To drive our point home,we drafted a letter to LCRA in April,auto,the laid out all the violations according to federal NEPA Training .
and ESA statutes. We showed how even though I LItA had complied with all the state regulations for obtaining their proper
state pcnuit.s to build the trausmissi,m line,they could not begin that construction prior to a complete NEPA process and tt'c•train;neat
b.suartee of an incidental take permit for endangered species. governments hew to
assert t wir
.lndee Bearden signed the letter and mailed it to 1.('RA,the PUC,Uw U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service.and several ether federal coordinateales in
agencies just for good treasure. the federal and slate
planning process.
'That letter was the last correspondence we sent to all the urgencies and parties involved. On July 28,20111.the LCRA filed their
through our CALL,
final route selection with the state PUC and Mason was not selected as the-preferred"route,hut was left in their application as
(true rle0 e'uuittt'remce
an alternate route, Landowners couldn't relax.but they had won the font round.
pn r',rau
So.within the first seven months of ASi.helping Mason County,we had placed an major roadblock fora potential CREZ line
Ihlwigh Mason County. Completing a rigurrnrs I'.LS would add at least another tut months ter the planning schedule,a delay
t hat would very likely cause I('RA to mass l ice•.state-mandated online date in 201:;.
Winning .
I-rui n.tuts a8,2010,the Pl1C had tS0 days to decide whether to accept LCKA•s recommendation or choose Masora County.
wshith meant the fight wasn't over until the very end of the IHu days. we are winning
battles in
hops://www.americanstewards.us/news-publications/coordination-works/coordination-stops-transmission-1... 2/3/21
• Coordination Stops Transmission Line Deep in the Heart of Texas -American Stewards Page 3 o
•
From that point forward.the landowners along the route handed together to fight the administrative process at the state PVC
level. They raised$25o,Ooo,hiredlawyers.and appeared before the three-member PVC(ward one time where thaw had 1 /*Google Analtics Ctctde'j
minutes to plead their case.
However,it was what happened on.hiniiaty 12,2011,(and within that 1$el du>w indow),the day before the landowners
appeared in Austin that tells the story.
In a rarely performed move,the chairman of the PUC,Mr.Baca}Smitheni au.filed a memorandum in opposition to the
alternate route being proposed by I.CKA through Mason County. Specifically,he stated"I agree with the ALI(Administrative
Law Judge)that none of the'P-lines(the one through Mason Counts')should he selected,as these routes are longer and more
ex1x sRe...[PIIU.i,evidence pnserted...erdiblytle lions'nit es that these lines rank poi irly foam an environmental
perspective.'
Donna Nelson.the second of three PUC trnnmissioners also filed it similar end unprecedented memorandum specifying ifying that
the route through Mason would have an impact on migratory birds and threatened and endangered species and that LCRA
would have to c omph with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and obtain all necessary permits as required for endangered species.
MI those arguments were spelled out in our meetings,work plan and letters sent by the Commission to the LCRA.PVC,and
the V.S.Fish and Wildlife Service six months before.'1'1w Attorneys and lobbyist hired by Mason reinforced these arguments
in the administrative Live process as well showing how one community can come together and with great facts and a well planned
strategy,take un federal and state agencies.
Often,it is hard to know if you are making progress when you implement coordination with the agencies. In this case.every
response from the three agencies indicated they would not be working with the Commis:amt as requested,that they disagreed
with our interpretation of the law,and that everything they were doing was well within the state sanctioned PVC process.
But,the proof is in the results. To date.the Mason route is the only CRFJ..transmission line in the State of'texas where an EIS
has been required.something achieved solely through the coordination process. Prior to this.everyone believed that when the
PVC changed direction and added Mason as a route selection that the political deal had been cut and Mason was it.
And,even though every other competing route alterative was as well represented with lawyers and lobbyist its Was Mason ill
the administrative process,11w"environmental concerns"missed through the coordination strategy developed early on made
fhedifference.
Gerry ltohnttidk,a local landowner and world-renowned entomologist who helped draft the work plan as a local consultant for
the act commission said: "...this story turned out about as good as it could and you folks(ASI.)played a major ode in making
it happen. Upon reflection,Mason county was in effect,blind-sided. We did not see this coining. But,with your help and
advice,along with committed local leadership and sound science.we were able to build a foundation upon which to mount a
defense. Your understanding of the law and the various&agencies clarified our rights as citizens. Your experience suggested
tactics and stvate_ias that fit our abilities. Your warn and carting attitude also helps more than you probably realize. Yon
stood by us as one of our most tvaluable resources.
Dean Kothmitnu.a Landow nor burn and raised in the Comity and a tonsniNng professional engineer on transmission lints
from Leawood.KS,said: "[num'Big Government threatened private property in the City and the County of Mason Texas,
the American Stewards of liberty assisted County and City governments with organization of ti lot Coordination Commission
composed of local politicians and citizens."
"ASt.helped develop a strategy,engage lural experts,create a state wide communication strategy and began government-to-
government coordination meetings. The speed and depth of the response demonstrated to outside organizations that Mason
ploys by the rules and is prepanxt to respond to those that are larger and stronger politically and financially.In my opinion,
the 31)1 Coordination process was an important component in identitying and implementing the best public policy solution for
all parties involved,"Kothinann added.
The final decision has now been made and the Mason route is off the table. Mason dodged a big bullet thanks to a committed
and organized local community of caring individuals. We were proud to be a pan of such a great group of folks who stood and
fought for what was right.
hops://www.americanstewards.us/news-publications/coordination-works/coordination-stops-transmission-1... 2/3/2(
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