By Derek Kutzer and Clayton Chaney, Staff Writers
On Feb. 4, the Pagosa Springs Town Council authorized town staff to execute an agreement to collaborate with nonprofit organization Four Corners Office for Resource Efficiency (4CORE) on developing a zero-emissions mobility plan for the Pagosa Springs area.
“This initiative aims to deliver an actionable clean transportation and mobility plan for the community, serving as a valuable resource for pursuing future funding opportunities related to sustainable transportation in the Archuleta County region,” an agenda document states.
Development Director James Dickhoff asked the council to consider if it wanted the town “to enter into the agreement,” explaining that the town’s main obligation would be to help provide and gather information, which would ultimately lead to a plan to improve “nonmotorized transportation options” for the community.
Dickhoff explained that participating in the agreement would not come with any financial burden; instead, the town stands to gain $16,700 in compensation for its participation.
He added that town staff’s primary obligation would be to collect data to help identify where “gaps” exist for nonmotorized transportation in the community, and to review both draft and final plan documents on a future zero-emissions mobility plan.
4CORE was a subrecipient of a $135,000 grant provided by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to create a zero-emissions mobility plan, and the organization is now seeking community-based organizations (CBOs) to “assist with current condition inventories and community outreach efforts,” the agenda document states.
4CORE has identified the town, Archuleta County and the Pagosa Springs Community Development Corporation (PSCDC) as potential partners.
Each of the three local CBOs identified would stand to receive approximately $16,667 in compensation for participating, with no financial match required.
Dickhoff noted that the Archuleta County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) also considered entering into the partnership at its meeting the same day, but took no action on the matter.
In an email to The SUN, PSCDC Executive Director Emily Lashbrooke indicates that the PSCDC is “planning to assist,” adding, “Our role will be holding public engagement events and sharing communications with the community we also will be collecting many other tedious data items.”
However, Lashbrooke also states, “We were notified this project is on hold until the federal government grant hold was sorted out.”
When opened to questions, council member Leonard Martinez remarked that he did not understand why the BoCC didn’t take any action on the matter because he couldn’t see any “downsides” to the partnership.
Dickhoff explained that the BoCC “decided to wait” to see what happens at the federal level, with uncertainty swirling around federal programs.
“They didn’t oppose this, by any means, but it may be on hold until further notice,” Dickhoff said.
Council member Matt DeGuise asked if the money received in compensation for participation could be used for “tangible things,” such as improving crosswalks.
Dickhoff replied that the money the town would receive would go into the town’s General Fund, and “from there it’s just in the General Fund and if the town council wanted to allocate the money for a certain project, you could certainly consider that.”
Council member Madeline Bergon asked if “taking on this project” would cause any extra burden or stress on town staff.
Dickhoff replied, “We have talked about not wanting to over-obligate ourselves, but, on the other hand, if 4CORE called us for this information, we would be gathering it for them, because they’re really doing the plan for our community.”
He added, “This agreement is just that we are party to this planning process, and we are providing the data that we have” to help aid the plan.
Council member Brooks Lindner asked, “So, that’s all that’s being required of us is to provide data?”
Dickhoff said, yes, “gathering data and then, of course, reviewing those drafts” and then the final document.
He explained that staff would be collecting data on “the number of sidewalk miles that we have, where those sidewalk gaps are and how many miles of trails we have, and where those gaps are.”
He added they would also be working with the county and local businesses to identify any gaps in transportation offerings.
Mayor Shari Pierce asked if being a participant in the program would help the town be “more poised” to receive grant funding down the road.
“Once all that information is gathered in one place, and we have a plan to start addressing those gaps … it would be really beneficial in grant applications,” Dickhoff replied. “They really like to see those public engagement planning processes, and a plan that’s been adopted as reference and for a purpose as to why you are applying for those grant funds.”
When a motion was made to approve the agreement to enter into a partnership for the Colorado Clean Mobility Strategic Planning Program, authorizing the town manager to execute the agreement, it was seconded and approved unanimously by the council.
Lack of motion at BoCC
During the BoCC meeting held earlier that day, the board considered the matter of joining the town in the Colorado Clean Mobility Strategic Plan.
The matter ultimately died for the lack of a motion.
During a work session held that morning, the BoCC was briefed on the matter by Public Works Director Mike Torres, who explained the county had been approached by the town to join and help with the plan.
According to the BoCC meeting agenda, the objective of the plan is to “engage communities across Colorado that face higher obstacles to zero-emission mobility to develop community driven plans for multimodal, zero-emission mobility and pathway toward their implementation for underserved and disadvantaged communities.”
The agenda also notes that the total “cost” of the plan is $50,000 with the county’s portion being $16,666.67.
During the work session, Torres explained that, by joining the plan, the county could have the option to go after “green energy” grants.
“There’s a number of grants this may help us out with,” he said.
Commissioner Warren Brown asked what the money would be “put toward,” with Torres explaining that trainings and “a lot of public outreach” would be performed.
“Just a wide variety of things that that money’s gonna go towards,” he added.
Brown commented that the proposal contains a lot of information that was “just essentially provided” to the BoCC, adding that he was unsure he could make a decision on it at the Feb. 4 meeting.
“There’s potential benefit to this,” he said, indicating he’d like to know what else the county would be bonded to, other than the $16,000.
Commissioner Veronica Medina also commented on the update on the freezing of federal funds, adding that the president is looking to “dismantle these type of initiatives, so we don’t know if this is actually gonna be something available” for the county to participate in.
Commissioner John Ranson commented that he would “lean for this,” adding that it will likely be in more jeopardy with the current state of federal funding programs.
“It’s anybody’s guess right now,” he added.
County Attorney Todd Weaver noted the “green programs” have been specifically identified to stop receiving federal funding.
During the meeting, Ranson mentioned that he was not “real comfortable” with joining the town in the strategic plan, citing concerns of the federal funding freeze.
“These could be the areas we’re gonna get hit,” he said.
Brown added that the 2025 budget has already been set and the county would have to find where to come up with the $16,666 request.
He noted that he likes the idea of working on a plan with the town, but was unsure about entering a “wrap-around agreement” at this time.
Archuleta County is listed as a “Sub-Subrecipient” in the agreement.
“The Subrecipient shall pay the Sub-Subrecipient for the Services the amount of $16,666.67 on the basis set forth in the Statement of Work and otherwise on the terms and conditions set forth in the Subrecipient Agreement,” the agreement states.
During a later interview, Torres explained that the county can potentially be reimbursed for those costs, indicating the BOCC may reconsider the matter at a later meeting.
derek@pagosasun.com
