Priority Projects & Chapter 5: Implementation Plan Priority Projects & Implementation Plan Rio Grande Greenbelt Park Open Space Opportunities & Priorities DEVELOPING OPPORTUNITIES AND IDENTIFYING PROJECTS: COMMUNITY • What specific trail, recreation and open space projects are you most interested in seeing developed? INPUT AND ANALYSIS The answers helped guide the Working Group in focusing on specific areas for conservation . It also shed some light This chapter outlines opportunities and projects that on what the community views as recreational resources Costilla County residents are most interested in seeing and how the community would utilize recreational areas the county implement . This chapter was created through if they were further developed . The Working Group took the efforts of the Working Group reaching out to the the responses generated during the first survey and created community via public surveys and public meetings . Two a second survey that focused on prioritizing projects for the different surveys gave County residents and visitors an county to consider in current and future planning . opportunity to share their vision, ideas, and voice their The following summary from the second survey responses concerns . A survey conducted in April 2011, requested also helped create the content for this chapter: input on the types of recreational areas and activities that community members were interested in seeing conserved, • County residents are interested in projects that improved or further developed . More specifically, the protect water resources, wildlife areas, historic/ Working Group requested input to the following questions: cultural resources, water rights, scenic areas, and • What types of parks and recreation facilities are agricultural lands . you most interested in seeing developed/further • County residents will support projects that increase developed? opportunities for public use and enjoyment of open • What would be your primary activity in a park? (rank lands . your top three choices) • County residents will support projects through • What types of trails are you most interested in seeing volunteering their time to support initial developed? (rank your top three choices) development and management and participate in programs and events . • What would be your primary activity on a trail? (rank your top three choices • Residents would like the county to consider improving existing county parks, develop youth • What destinations are you most interested in seeing service projects, develop safe bicycle routes, and connected by trails? Please specify . organize and maintain a county program . • What types of open space are you most interested in • The two highest priority areas for improvement are seeing protected? (rank your top three choices) the Town of San Luis Park and the Sanchez Reservoir . • Who should manage and operate the parks, open This comprehensive section takes into consideration the space and trail system? areas of the county that communities would like to see • How important is it to you that facilities are protected as public space or as a private conserved land and developed to showcase heritage to visitors (such as a provides recommendations on land protection actions by historical walking trail through San Luis)? 36 As the initial step in the community engagement process, individuals, public entities, and non-profit organizations . County residents and partners were given the opportunity It also assesses the current conditions of existing to identify areas of the County that they would like to recreational areas, including parks and trails, and provides see protected in some way, either as a public space or as recommendations on improvements or development private conserved land . The areas that were pointed of additional recreational areas . Most importantly, out by residents were representative of different types of this chapter provides recommendations for thoughtful conservation values, such as excellent elk habitat or prime financial planning and leverage from financialssources and agricultural land . In a mail survey conducted several partnerships to implement these project ideas . The ideas months later, questions were refined to determine what incorporated in this chapter will help ensure that Costilla types of conservation values residents were most interested County is a place where people can enjoy publicly accessible in protecting . Specifically, residents were asked: places for recreation . Which of the following criteria should the County consider WHAT IS OPEN SPACE? when prioritizing projects? Mark all that apply. Open Space has many definitions and means different 65% felt it would be important to “Protect water things to different people, depending on their own context . resources (rivers, wetlands)” Open Space is generally referred to as an undeveloped or 64% marked “Increase opportunities for public use & minimally developed land and water resources, sometimes enjoyment of open lands (allows access)” it does not include land used for agricultural purposes . In this plan, we take a broad sense of the term, as borrowed 62% marked “Protect wildlife areas” from the New York State Department of Environmental 60% checked “Protect historic/cultural resources” Conservation (and slightly modified) . 58% wanted to “Protect water rights (such as acequias)” Open space may be defined as an area of land or water that either remains in its natural state or is used for agriculture, 54% wanted to “Protect scenic areas” free from intensive development for residential, commercial, 51% marked “Protect agricultural land (farms and industrial or institutional use. Open space can be publicly ranches)” or privately owned. It includes agricultural and forest land, undeveloped scenic lands, public parks and preserves. 32% felt that the project should “Serve as an example It also includes water bodies. Open Space projects may for other projects” also be associated with trails, recreation, or protection of There are many techniques available for both public and archaeological, historical, or culturally significant sites. private entities to protect critical conservation values of The goals of the Open Space section of this Plan are: the County that will contribute to the mission and goals of this Plan; consequently, in this section we discuss • To encourage and guide thoughtful and well-rationed public protection, private conservation, and regulatory land protection actions by public entities, individuals, approaches . and by nonprofit organizations such as Colorado Open Lands and Rio Grande Headwaters Land Trust; and EXISTING OPEN SPACE RESOURCES Approximately 133,000 acres in Costilla County are • To ensure thoughtful expenditure of public moneys, currently open space – some in public ownership, but most and to leverage additional money from other sources in permanently protected private conservation easements . for implementation of the plan . Costilla County has several existing conservation easements The goals of the Open Space section, and the criteria to that have been protected by Colorado Cattlemen’s be applied to potential projects, have been guided by the Agricultural Land Trust, Colorado Open Lands, Rio County’s community engagement process and survey and Grande Headwaters Land Trust, and Colorado Parks and have been carried forward by the Working Group in the Wildlife . In addition, Costilla County has two designated belief that they will serve the needs of Costilla County far greenbelts which serve as important open space and into the future . Nevertheless, the plan should be reviewed recreation areas (these are discussed further in the Trails as progress is made in building a cohesive system of open section of the plan) . spaces, as development and open space needs evolve, and as The Carpenter Ranch, an open space that was purchased new information becomes available . by Costilla County and also has a conservation easement Costilla County Trails, Recreation, & Open Space Plan 37 38 on it, provides a great illustration of all of the things that This type of verlayo district could also be created for an open space can be . In 2004, the County was able to sensitive natural resources, such as river corridors . purchase this 1,227 acre property, located approximately 2 miles east of the town of San Luis . Historically, this was a INCENTIVE PROGRAMS ranch property with senior water rights on the Cerro Ditch (an acequia) . Currently, the County manages the property Using Density Bonuses to Protect Critical Resources for limited livestock grazing, determined on a lottery basis . The availability of this property for grazing for residents Density bonuses use a carrot, rather than stick, approach provides great economic benefit to the community . The to protecting resources by rewarding land developers for property is also available for low impact recreational use, certain actions such as clustering development, or avoiding such as bird watching and provides an accessible space developing in and around sensitive resources (such as for community events, such as the Get Outdoors Costilla riparian areas) . For example, if a developer buys a piece of County! event that was hosted by the Trails, Recreation, property with zoning that allows one home per two acres, and Open Space working advisory group in October 2011 . but half of the landholding is Southwest Willow Flycatcher Furthermore, the protection of this property prevented habitat, the County may offer to allow a higher density