HomeMy WebLinkAbout950590.tiff SIERRA CLUB
INDIAN PEAKS GROUP
10077 E. County Line Rd., Longmont, CO 80501 •
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February 26, 1995
Board of County Commissioners
Weld County
P. O. Box 758
Greeley, CO 80632
Dear Commissioners;
I am writing this letter on the request of the Conservation Committee of the Indian
Peaks Group of the Sierra Club. The Indian Peaks Group is composed of 3,700
members. Our members reside in Boulder County and western Weld County.
The Conservation Committee has followed with interest your efforts to update the Weld
County Comprehensive Land Use Plan. As a part of that effort we understand you will
in the near future take action to approve or disapprove numerous proposals from
private property owners which could significantly expand the Weld County Mixed Use
Development Area. We hope that environmental and other impacts of any large scale
revision to the Weld County Comprehensive Land Use Plan will be carefully
considered.
The group of eight proposals recently received by your planning staff could add
approximately 7,000 acres to the existing 5,000 acres planned for urban development.
The environmental impact of the population increase which could ultimately follow
such an addition could be enormous.
We urge Weld County to reject this unwise land use change.
The proposals would, if approved:
1. Radically alter the growth patterns of Southwestern Weld County from one
which presently encourages growth to occur in cities and along the interstate and state
highway corridors to one which encourages urban sprawl onto productive farmland
and adjacent river, flood plain and wetland areas;
2. Threaten wildlife and increase air, stream and ground water pollution along
the Boulder and St. Vrain Creeks;
3. Infringe upon the open space envisioned in the Longmont Comprehensive
1nt\ plan and thereby act at counter purpose to the strategy of separation of cities by
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private and publicly owned open space areas set aside for environmental
preservation, wildlife and recreation;
4. Unwisely create a "development entitlement" on land not presently in the
path of development nor contiguous with other developed land thus exposing Weld
County to a damage suit should the County at a future date for any reason wish to
down zone the subject land;
5. Severely strain the limited and already strained infrastructures such as roads,
sewer, water, fire protection, police, schools and health services.
6. Unfairly place the burden of paying for the costs of a major new population
center upon the existing residents of adjoining cities and rural areas. A major decline
in quality of life and service levels presently experienced by Weld county residents
would be accompanied by a major increase in their cost of living.
We hope you will work with our group as you proceed with your Comprehensive Plan
update. Perhaps we can make some suggestions to better balance the envisioned
residential, commercial, industrial, recreational and transportation functions of the
present Mixed Use Development Area with the needs of conservation and the
environment
Sincerely,
Sierra Club,(/IJndilan Peakroup
Jim Wiegand, Co-Chair, Longmont Committee
cc Ron Stewart, Boulder County Commissioner
City of Longmont
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