STOP DEVELOPMENT OF OUR OPEN SPACE! - Right idea, wrong location.

The Douglas County Commissioners have proposed to develop part of the HRCA BackCountry Wilderness Area into a “Regional Park”! Recently, an application was put in to fund a $250,000 ($1,250 per acre) feasibility study for this location with little information to support it. We find that the short and long term implications to both the community and to the wildlife are completely unacceptable! Therefore, we are charging an effort and demanding the commissioners vote NO to funding this study and wasting taxpayer dollars. Alternatively, we would like to see the County use that money to find another, more suitable location for a development of this scale and consider the HRCA proposal. 

Help us put a ask the Douglas County Commissioners not to develop the Wildcat Regional Park in the Back Country Wilderness Area immediately south of the Hearth neighborhood, between Grigs Road and Monarch Boulevard. Wildcat Regional Park (a sports complex) is to include multiple lit baseball fields, soccer fields, an Olympic sized pool, batting cages, indoor facilities and "state of the art training facilities". This would also add roads and multiple parking lots creating massive air, noise and light pollution, as well as driving multiple cars and people into an area that has no major roads and is already plagued with traffic issues.

There are other parcels of land available for development within Douglas County. This parcel has the largest environmental impact to both our wildlife and our community. In addition, "private partners" are investing in this project. Once built, they will then be allowed to manage the park giving little consideration this impact will have on the surrounding communities and wildlife. We absolutely CANNOT allow this to happen!

Wildcat Mountain on Monarch Blvd is home to nesting Golden Eagles which are protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act as well as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. We firmly believe that developing a Regional Park in this area will disrupt the Eagles in their natural habitat. In addition this space is immediately adjacent to the remaining HRCA Backcountry Wilderness Area and is home to a herd of approximately 150 elk, cattle, white tail deer, foxes, coyotes, prairie dogs and other birds of prey including falcons and the red tail hawk. The HRCA Community survey clearly indicates that the majority of Highlands Ranch residents want the Backcountry to remain undeveloped and, if anything, add more passive recreational opportunities, such as trails and an outdoor education for our children! HRCA has a proposal in front of the commissioners to do just that.

The community at large has never supported large development in open space such as the Back Country Wilderness Area. Please take the time to sign our petition and let your voice be heard. Taking away spaces such as these shields our children and residents from the opportunity of learning about and witnessing wildlife right here in the Denver area. What a unique experience we enjoy every time we use our trail systems and open space.

It would be a travesty to take all of this away from our community. SAY IT LOUD! WE DO NOT SUPPORT ANY DEVELOPMENT IN THE OPEN SPACE CONSERVATION AREA AND BACKCOUNTRY WILDERNESS. Build Wildcat Regional Park in another parcel that would better serve our county.

Thank you for your help!!

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