September 14 2007 update from The Flume---> Click
here.
Dear IM Property Owners.
Thank you for your concern regarding the BLM's consideration
to dispose of 72,000 acres of federal public land in Park County. I
have some good news. With political pressure from
IMPOA, the BLM has extended its public comment period 45 days till
March 1st. We also asked the
BLM in December to post the maps which would show the parcels in
question. That
has not been done as of this posting on January 23rd.
The December 29th Flume article follows below this text for your
consideration. I
have also posted the written comments presented
to the Park County Commissioners and BLM at their January 10th
hearing in Fairplay.
At this point, IM property owners can retrieve a CD copy of the
South Park Tenure Adjustment Plan from the BLM at rgfo_comments@blm.gov. Owners
may also simply submit their comments to rgfo_comments@blm.gov indicating
whether they support or oppose the sale or exchange of federal
public lands in the vicinity of the Indian Mountain subdivision. IMPOA
has obtained a rough map illustrating the lands in question,
although the aforementioned CD is the official BLM Tenure Adjustment
Plan.
I consider this a very serious issue to the values and integrity
of our community, and as such I am willing to receive any telephone
or email contacts in order to provide additional information. Please
contact me at glennehaas@comcast.net or
970-498-9350). When and if electronic maps or linkages become
available from the BLM, we will post them. And, of course,
as new information becomes available we will post on this site.
Sincerely,
Glenn E. Haas
2006 IMPOA President
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Click here for Glenn's letter to BLM on
February 24, 2007
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December 29th Flume editorial
I started my career with the Bureau of Land Management over
30 years ago. I respect the agency but they are dreadfully
underfunded. Yet inadequate congressional appropriations
must not be a reason to dispose of our public land.
While there are several small BLM parcels
that may serve a greater public good in other ownership, I
generally oppose the BLM’s South Park Land Tenure Adjustment Plan. First,
if we dispose of BLM land, we are one step closer to “disposing” of
our rural landscapes and lifestyles, our working ranches, our
wildlife, and the outdoor recreation we value. Second,
the BLM has an outdated view of Park County. There have been
significant changes since the BLM completed its’ 1996
Resource Management Plan (e.g., population growth, development,
county strategic plan, national heritage tourism area designation). Third,
the alternatives do not offer a reasonable range of choices. Fourth,
the public involvement process is not legally sufficient. One
public meeting held in Fairplay on a Wednesday night in December
with comments due in 30 days is not sufficient when dealing
with 72,000 acres. The time period is too short during
a holiday season, the number of locations for public input
are too few, and the effort to solicit input from all Coloradoans
is too little.
Our public lands are an insurance policy,
a buffer, a safety net, and a gift to our children. What the
BLM considers an isolated parcel today may be a valued central
park in a sea of development in 25 years.
Tell
the BLM that none of their alternatives are acceptable. We
want our public lands public! Send an email to the BLM at rgfo_comments@blm.gov by
January 15th, with a copy to the Park County Commissioners
at pcadmin@parkco.us and
Senator Salazar via his Colorado Springs office at richard_skorman@salazar.senate.gov.
Glenn Haas
PO Box 105
Como,
CO 80432
305 Travois Court
Indian Mountain
Park County
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January 9, 2007
To: Park County Commissioners
Through: Gary Nichols, Director
Park
County Tourism and Community Development Office
From: Dr.
Glenn Haas
President, Indian
Mountain Property Owner's Association
305 Travois Court
P.O. Box 105
Como, CO 80432
Subject:BLM's South Park Land Tenure Adjustment
Plan
This opinion is submitted on behalf of the Board of
Directors of the Indian Mountain Property Owner's Association
andits 500 members who are taxpayers in Park County.I
would like to supplement my comments that appeared as
a Letter to the Editor in the Flume on December 29th with
three brief points.
1. From a public planning process standpoint,
this plan is not legally sufficient. The BLM has been
informed that only 5% of the 2000 property owners in Indian
Mountain are full-time residents. The vast majority of
these taxpayers are seasonal and live along the Front Range.I
believe this to be the case with all the rural subivisions
in Park County. Furthermore, we are dealing land owned
by all Coloradoans and citizens of this nation. Thus,
one public meeting in Fairplay on a Wednesday in December
is not sufficient. I recommend a 90-day extension
of the public involvement period with meetings held
in several Colorado locations.
2. From a land disposal standpoint, I believe that the
three alternatives in the South Park Land Tenure Adjustment
Plan should be rejected. Furthermore, the BLM's
1996 Resource Management Plan should be amended to say
that all BLM land in Park County shall be retained unless
there is a specific compelling reason, with supporting environmental
analysis and public input, that there would be a greater public
benefit if a specific parcel were to be exchanged
or sold. These decisions need to be made on a parcel
by parcel basis in a open, transparent, and deliberate fashion.
3. In the last few years, the American public spoke
very loudly that they did not support the Administration's
sale of Forest Service lands nor did they want change
to the existing Roadless Areas in the western United States.
The BLM has been flying below the public's "radar screen" of
awareness on this issue of selling federal land. When
the citizens of Colorado and the nation hear that there
is a plan to dispose of 72,000 federal acres in Park County,
Colorado, they again will speak very loudly in opposition.
I hope the Park County Commissioners will do likewise.
Respectfully yours.
thanks
glenn
Dr. Glenn E. Haas, NARRP, NSPR
Colorado State Universiity/
Aukerman, Haas and Associates
3403 Green Wing Court
Fort Collins, Colorado 80524
ph 970-498-9350
fax 970-498-0053
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