To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Gini Pingenot, Director, Open Spaces
Prepared By:
prepared
Sandra Bottoms, Grants Administrator, Open Spaces
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Subject:
title
High Line Canal Stewardship Grant Awards
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
The purpose of this report is to request that the BOCC adopt a resolution approving the High Line Canal Stewardship Grant Awards, funding four grants totaling $925,734. The BOCC heard this item in a study session on November 12, 2024, and approved adding it to the consent agenda.
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Background and Discussion: Arapahoe County acquired 45 miles of the High Line Canal in June 2024, including portions in Arapahoe, Adams, and Denver counties. As a result of the acquisition, projects on County-owned portions of the High Line Canal are no longer eligible for the regular open space grant program. However, the County, the High Line Canal Conservancy (Conservancy), and the municipalities and special districts that care for the property recognize the need to improve its condition. To help meet this need, Open Spaces offered a pilot grant program this year to fund High Line Canal stewardship projects in Arapahoe County, including major tree pruning, hazard tree and invasive species removal, tree and shrub planting, seeding for native plants and wildflowers, irrigation, and trail resurfacing and replacement. The projects must be completed by the end of 2026.
In November 2023, the BOCC approved an allocation of $1 million from the grants fund for the pilot program. Applications for the program were due in August 2024.
Four agencies submitted grant proposals requesting a total of $925,734. Matching funds were not required, however, all applicants committed matching funds ranging from 10% to 67% of the total project cost. The total match commitment was $784,500 (46% of the overall total project cost of $1,710,234).
Open Spaces staff recruited a team of peer evaluators consisting of one representative fr...
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