Hello,

I want to be able to make an intelligent and informed contribution to the discussion about the future of the first 2 miles of the Barr Trail.

Mr. Bremner is of the opinion that it is better to build a new trail than to repair the existing trail.

I want to form my own opinion.

Rocky Mountain Field Institute has done hundreds of thousands of dollars of work on that trail over the last 8 years.

Surely they know every detail about the repairs it needs and the potential costs.

In the email the city sent to me on June 13th 2019 Britt Haley said this:

“Rocky Mountain Field Institute (RMFI) estimates annual maintenance to the section of Barr Trail impacted by Incline return traffic to be approximately $40,000.”

What else has RMFI told the city?

We have owned that land for nearly 5 years, we have a legal obligation as its stewards to learn every detail about its condition and its needs.

That land has visible erosion damage.

This is a result of the trails drainage problems, or rather we can say that when the trail was built it changed the drainage on the hillside and caused the drainage problems.

Water now runs in places that are harmful to the hillside.

In order to fix this we must first hire a firm to do a drainage study, then use that information to do the actual drainage improvements.

After that, when we see that water no longer runs in the erosion ravines we can fix the erosion damage.

How much does RMFI say that a drainage study on that land might cost?

How much do they tell the city that the actual drainage work might cost?

What do they estimate the cost to be for all needed repairs?

If it is better to build a new trail than repair the existing one, that would mean that we traded Strawberry Fields for a lemon.

If this section of the Barr Trail is beyond repair, or if it is too expensive to fix, that fact would have had to be disclosed during the public comment process for the land swap.

That fact would also have to be disclosed today.

We spent four or five million dollars repairing the Manitou Incline, the Barr Trail is just as important as the Incline, if not more so.

The Incline cannot operate without this section of the Barr Trail.

Has the NEPA process for the alternate route down from the Incline begun?

If not, why not?

If it is in progress I want to comment.

Did I mess the public notice that it has begun?

Mr. Bremner wants to close this section of the Barr Trail, and build a new trail to replace it.

This public discussion forces the city to disclose everything that you know about the section of the Barr Trail that we own, and the repairs that it needs.

This information can no longer be kept from the public, regardless of its impact on the land swap.

Thank you, Carl Strow