The Chaffee BoCC presented an overview of county programs to the Jan. 8 League of Women Voters of Chaffee County meeting. Left to right: P.T. Wood, Keith Baker, and Greg Felt. Photo by Jan Wondra
In its first meeting of 2024 on January 8, the League of Women Voters of Chaffee County (LWVCC) organized a town hall session with the Chaffee Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) at the Poncha Springs Town Hall.
“This is an annual event we try to bring to our communities,” said LWVCC Program Leader Karen Dils. “It’s always informative and a very helpful session.”
The session began with BoCC Chair Keith Baker providing a brief overview and update followed by descriptions from commissioners Greg Felt and P.T. Wood of their specific areas of responsibility.
“I put the year into three broad headings, began Chair Keith Baker. “They are personal wellbeing (for people), sustainability, and organizational effectiveness for county government — our service delivery.”
He ticked off the many changes and projects of the year, noting “We went to a four-day workweek, and that limits opportunities for Fridays, but we’ve delivered via electronics.”
Among the year’s biggest projects: the county appears to be a few months from completion of the land use code and then it will move into the zoning review process. “Our priority will be on keeping things rural,” said Baker.
He listed the county’s work on a Sustainable Development Plan and the county’s strategic plan, and pointed out that the country had transitioned from retiring Director of General Administration Bob Christiansen to Don Reimer, established a robust IT Department, and added a Human Resources Director.
The county has several capital improvement projects in process. They include the construction of the new North End Emergency Management Facility, the Granite Bridge improvements, and the lowhead dam removal on the Arkansas River above Salida.
The county has had what Baker called “A robust grant-seeking program. We have gotten four million dollars for the recycling program, and also received a $1 million grant to upgrade the fuel farm at the Salida Airport.”
Baker concluded, saying tomorrow we’ll be making appointments to advisory boards and committees — there are several focus areas to get involved and I encourage county residents to get involved.”
“Keith and I are starting our eighth year on the Board of County Commissioners tomorrow,” said Commissioner Greg Felt. “I am in the process of tempering my drive to start new things, being mindful about leaving the great things accomplished with a strong foundation and in good shape for a new board. Some things won’t be completed – the Hill Ranch revegetation project, for instance, is a long challenge. Other things I want to solidify.”
He paused and chuckled. “There were a few little things that came along – the Decker fire, the virus — others were more inspiring, like Envision Chaffee County in 2017 and 2018.”
“We had about 1,500 of our county citizens engaged and identified 40 different actions in an action plan. We’ve completed 39 out of the 40 actions.”
He framed the work of Common Ground as three landscape challenges: treating the forests, protecting agriculture-working lands, and mitigating the impacts of outdoor recreation. “It has facilitated our big improvements and we leveraged it with accountability and an annual report.”
Between 2019 and 2023, Felt pointed out these county grants have unlocked outside funding:
Area Investment Matching Grants
Forest health $4.2M $10.89M
Ag/working lands $2.5M $ 8.66M
Recreation impacts $900K $ 1.65M in match
Total Investment: $7.6 M $21.2M in grant funding
P.T. Wood, who has served one year of his commissioner term was modest in his remarks and began with his enthusiasm for the county’s EPA grant.
“I don’t know many people who are fired up about garbage and waste diversion. I guess I’m geeking out on this … the vision is to create a materials recovery facility at the landfill. We need it to be accessible, and easy to get to recycling in this valley to preserve the life of our landfill … our kids may see the end of the landfill. If we don’t do our part, they’ll get a difficult-to-solve problem.”
He explained that within the next month, the county should define the project scope and will work with a group of experts in materials recovery and waste diversion. “My vision is that much like the Common Ground program, we become a state and national leader in how we deal with our garbage – how do we not have things to throw away.”
He added that “One other cool thing that is more Greg’s area of expertise, is our groundwater study. Working with The Upper Arkansas Water Conservancy and the USGS … we’re trying to understand our groundwater situation.” He added the county is working on a grant application to test for “forever chemicals”.
“One of the biggest complaints we get now with new developments is ‘that it is going to dry up my well.’ Well, with this work we should be able to understand the age of the water, and potentially what a drought can do to that supply.”
Perhaps the most interesting question asked during the Q&A section of the meeting was the final question asked by Grace Garret: “My question is that given Greg and Keith are going to roll off, what two qualities would you like to see come on to the BoCC?”
Felt answered first, joking about the qualities of high energy and needing no sleep. then he turned serious, adding “It’s that people underestimate the power to convene that comes with this job. It has been one of the most important things. Of all the roles in this county – when the BoCC say we’re going to work on this — we’re going to do something – people convene the discussion, just like we did with Envision.”
“I also think that county commissioners, outside the county, have a lot more respect than I realized. We are a local control … when a commissioner is present for a statewide meeting, we’re the ones on the ground … that role of advocacy and communications up the food chain in Colorado is really critical … We are a great county – we’re noticed. Now people say – yeah, Chaffee County. But in 1984 – it was where’s Chaffee?”
“What I really think is important, is — one, that you’re doing the job for the right reasons – because you love your community and don’t have an agenda,” said Wood. “The most important skill as a commissioner is to listen and understand what people are saying to you – don’t put your bias on what people tell you. I hope the next two folks who sit at the table with me have those [skills].”
“I put it under two headings; first, staff skills,” said Baker. “We’re elected to be leaders and not do functional staff work, but you don’t get to this level without good staff skills – communications, coordination – being willing to call somebody and collaborate. This group of three, we have reached out at the state level and worked at the state legislature on unfunded mandates. Those are soft skills – you don’t wake up with them, leaders are made, not born. Second, I call it ‘ride for the brand’. Commissioners have to advocate for the small c ‘community,’ and represent our values.”
A recording of the program will be available on the League website at lwvchaffeecounty.org a day or two after the meeting.
When I moved to Buena Vista 50 years ago, our current landfill area was more of a valley than the mountain of trash we now behold. I now joke with friends about how our county landfill will soon rise to the height of Mount Princeton.
But it’s not a laughing matter because, by all due logic, our landfill clearly has a finite capacity to absorb our trash and debris. I therefore agree with Commissioner Wood that we need to take measures that will extend the life of our landfill for future generations.
In recent years, the problem has been exacerbated because our growing population is a throw-away society. Whereas Old-School folks like me try to salvage and repurpose durable materials like wood, I now see piles of usable wood casually tossed into the landfill along with cardboard, aluminum cans, plastic containers, glass jars, and other recyclables.
Since our county-wide recycling efforts failed a few years ago, many of us also find ourselves aiding and abetting this ecological travesty by tossing materials into our landfill that we know will be there a thousand years later.
Our landfill is also becoming an environmental time bomb. As its organic materials begin to decompose, the landfill will, like many others, generate methane gas. Chemically active waste could potentially poison our ground water. It will also be ground that is too unstable to support permanent structures.
For these reasons, I believe that the BOCC should prioritize exploratory research into new methods of waste disposal for Chaffee County. As Benjamin Franklin famously said 250 years ago, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure…”
Gary E. Goms
Buena Vista
Nice that they are concerned for their impact and place in the community. Too bad they do not consider their negative impact in considering only new growth and not old residents in decisions that impact us all and cause physical harm to those of us who do not matter as much as their own thoughts about their own place and impact on the people of this community.