mountains to plains:a city in a park extends throughout the region

A revitalizednatural open-space

system stretchesfrom the mountain

parks west of Denverto the prairies in the

east. This results from extensive

cooperation amonggovernments

throughout theregion. Trails along

waterways andgulches connect the

entire system.Natural and cultural

areas and facilitiesare preserved,restored, and

celebrated.This chapter presents

a discussion andrecommendations

for a regionalapproach thatencompasses

Denver’s mountainparks and prairie

landscapes.�

Chapter 5

r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t :

Denver’s urban natural areas are an importantpart of our parks and recreation system, butthey also form the center of a regional systemthat extends from mountains to plains.Denver’s parks and natural areas embracemany kinds of landscapes and sites, fromSummit Lake near the top of Mount Evans toremnant sand hills at the former StapletonAirport. Prairies and mountain parks are the“bookends” of Denver’s park system,embracing five ecosystems across 100 miles.

These mostly natural landscapes also containrich cultural features, such as the historic

buildings and sites in the mountain parks. Thisdramatic range of resources extends the City ina Park well beyond city limits.

As the Front Range population nears 3 million,Denver’s role as the hub in a regional system oftrails, natural areas, and mountain parksbecomes more complex and important. TheGame Plan poses three broad ideas to linkresources into a regional system: regionalconnections, a regional approach to naturalareas and wildlife, and a contemporary visionfor Denver mountain parks.

Green Streets guide people from their frontdoor to the neighborhood park. Regionaltrails, often paralleling waterways in a way thatprotects wildlife habitat, can connect people tothe rest of the Front Range. The potentialexists for hundreds of miles of regional trails. Ifdeveloped as a regional parkway, even E-470could become part of an open space system.

Regional Connection Recommendations1. Strengthen regional planning and

preservation efforts in the following ways:� Refine criteria for protection and use of

regional open space.� Develop management guidelines to

minimize the impacts of public access.

Looking north over Red Rocks, present �

76

� FRONT RANGE CONNECTIONS

� REGIONAL CONNECTIONS

EXISTING TRAILS

PROPOSED TRAILS

EXISTING CITY PARKS/NATURAL AREAS OR PARKS IN DEVELOPMENT

EXISTING REGIONAL OPEN SPACE

N0

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1m 2m

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BEAR CREEK TRAIL

C-470 TRAIL

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ChatfieldReservoir

Deer CreekCanyon

Meyer RanchPark

Quigg NewtonPark

Ken Caryl

MountLindo

Mt FalconOpen Space

Park

LairO' the Bear

Open SpacePark Little Bear

Park

Red RocksParkCorwina Park

O'Fallon Park

Pence Park

Genesee Park

Bergen Park

Bell ParkCub CreekPark

Dedisse Park

Matthews WintersOpen Space Park

ElkMeadow

Park

Windy Saddle

Park

GreenMountain

Bear CreekLake Park

Cherry CreekReservoir

AuroraReservior

PlainsConservation

Center

Rocky Mountain Arsenal

Buckley Air National Guard Base

MarstonReservoir

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77f r o m m o u n t a i n s t o p l a i n s

�

Existing and Proposed Regional Trail Systems

r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t :

� Identify priority corridors and areasneeding protection or preservation,including:� the Cherry Creek Corridor� First, Second and Third Creeks� Westerly Creek� Eastern drainage ways connecting

Aurora Reservoir with Rocky Mountain Arsenal

� Additional open-space lands thatconnect mountain open spaces,creating a cohesive system andopportunities for regional trails.

2. Develop a comprehensive regional trail system.

� Complete the Clear Creek segmentconnection through Northwest Denver.

� Identify potential regional trail corridorsthat could be developed collaborativelywith Jefferson, Douglas, Adams, Boulder,and Arapaho counties.

� Create a prairie hiking/cycling loop, linkingthe eastern edge of High Line Canal toAurora Reservoir and the PlainsConservation Center, eventuallyconnecting to Sand Creek RegionalGreenway.

� Work with other counties to complete BearCreek Trail, linking Jefferson County OpenSpace parks (Bear Creek, Mt. Falcon, Lair O’the Bear) to Denver Mountain Parks (Little,O’ Fallon) and west to Echo Lake.

Denver residents want more “bits ofwilderness” close to home, expanding thecurrent remnants of the “original” Denver —the existing 2,500 plus acres of high plains,rivers, creeks, willows, sage, and prairiemeadows within the city. Like people in othercities, Denverites are beginning to definepublic “parks” differently, no longer regardingremnant natural areas as left-behind, cast off

lands, but as important enriching places forpeople and wildlife.

As Denver becomes a City in a Park, the lushgreen of formal spaces with street trees andbluegrass lawns should be complemented bythe sage greens of the high plains.

Thriving restored native areas benefit our parksand opens spaces and:

� Wildlife can mean small wildlife,

such as this Monarch butterfly

78

� REGIONAL NATURAL SYSTEMS AND WILDLIFE

� are valued by people of Denver as wildlifehabitat, for wildlife viewing, and as a quietplace for retreat.

� help conserve precious resources,requiring less water, for example.

� support long-term environmental andhuman health (native landscapes requirelittle or no pesticides or herbicides, andhelp clean pollutants from stormwaterrunoff).

� promote a richer variety of urban wildlife,including birds and butterflies.

� give people an opportunity to experiencethe region’s original high plains andfoothills landscapes.

� help support a sustainable park andrecreation system through cost savings.

� increase adjacent land values.

In the 2001 Game Plan Survey, 46 percent ofrespondents rated the city’s provision ofhabitat areas for wildlife as fair or poor. Yetwhen asked how important it was for the cityto acquire land for more conservation areasand wildlife habitat, more respondents (53percent) chose this over 12 other choices.(Improving maintenance of existing parks andfacilities in the city and in the mountainsheaded the list. Nearly 90 percent of allrespondents consider that a major ormoderate priority.)

Almost 80 percent of respondents consideredacquiring natural areas either a major ormoderate priority. And when asked todevelop priorities for DPR’s budget, surveyrespondents said a top priority was acquiringland for conservation areas.

The Front Range’s trails and other naturalresources continue past city limits. Floodcontrol, water-quality protection, and watersupplies are all managed at a watershed level,and Denver communities are connected bydrainage ways and constructed ditches.Noxious weeds, diseases of forest trees, andwildfires recognize no boundaries. Themetropolitan area’s natural resources functionas a nonpolitical regional system. Urbannatural areas, mountain parks, drainagesystems (and the amenities associated withthem, such as trails) consequently are a logicalplace to begin regional planning.

Future growth projections suggest that residentsincreasingly will use and value these connectedurban natural areas. Surveys conducted in2001 in Denver Mountain Parks and JeffersonCounty Open Space Parks indicate that theheavily used mountain parks within JeffersonCounty serve the whole metropolitan area, andmay be as close as many people get to themountains in the future.

Early picnic along Bear Creek �

� Native alpine flower

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79f r o m m o u n t a i n s t o p l a i n s

r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t :

Recommendations for Regional NaturalSystems and Wildlife

1. Support DPR’s Natural Areas Program andmetrowide efforts to develop a regionalmodel for planning, funding, andmanaging the Front Range’s natural areasand trails.

� Strengthen DPR’s organizational capacity,and develop staff and public respect fornatural areas and wildlife through thefollowing actions:

� Elevate the new Natural Resource Unit tosenior staff level.

� Add staff to the Natural Areas Program.� Build partnerships with other city agencies

to leverage resources, create programs,and monitor successes.

� Provide staff training in management andbenefits of natural areas.

� Develop public and city staff understandingand appreciation for open-space naturalareas and wildlife in their natural habitats.

� Promote youth programs and access tonatural areas.

� Create guidelines for citywide and DPRdecisions that reinforce the value of naturalpreserves, wildlife habitat, andenvironmental quality.

� Require the city naturalist to approve plansfor new parks and private developmentsthat include natural areas.

2. Implement the strategic plan for theNatural Areas Program encompassing allnatural open-space lands.

� Complete a master plan for natural areas asan ecological whole, including mountainparks and naturalized areas withintraditional parks.

� Identify potential natural areas and buffers,and initiate a phased program of landacquisition, easements, and partnerships.

� Establish a relationship with a land trust toassist in quickly acquiring critical landthreatened by development.

� Support efforts of DPR and other regionaljurisdictions and agencies to identifypotential buffer and expansion areas in themountains.

� Establish natural areas in newdevelopments, such as Lowry, Stapleton,and Northeast Denver.

� Restore degraded sites and monitorimpacts.

� Bring public parklands in Denver Countyinto compliance with the ColoradoNoxious Weed Act.

� Develop conservation areas in eachquadrant of the city.

� Create management guidelines for eachclassification of natural area to balanceimpacts of recreation and public access.

� Tie stormwater quality and storage goalsinto natural areas.

DBG xeriscaping, featuring yarrow �

� Park lakes attract significant wildlife

80

3. Provide a richer environment for wildlife.� Improve the balance and variety of

ecosystems for healthy wildlifepopulations.

� Inventory and monitor wildlife within thecity and the mountain parks.

� Chart increases in quantity and diversity.� Develop a hierarchy of areas that provides

a range of human access and interactionwith wildlife.

4. Strengthen inter-jurisdictional relationships and joint ventures.

� Develop stronger partnerships andencourage more regional cooperation byworking with the Denver Regional Councilof Governments (DRCOG), Urban Drainageand Flood Control District (UDFCD), CDW,the Colorado Lottery, and Great OutdoorsColorado (GOCO), public land-

management agencies, land trusts, othermunicipalities, and regional agencies.

� Support efforts to develop a regionalmechanism for planning, funding, andmanaging regional natural open space.

� Pursue grants and funding ventures forinter-jurisdictional projects.

� Work toward reducing regional hazardssuch as wildfires, noxious weeds, and othermandated standards.

� Pursue acquisition and easementopportunities for expansions that benefitDenver and other jurisdictions, such asalong the Cherry Creek Corridor.

� Support regional efforts to reduce lightpollution and darken Denver’s skies.

One of the Denver parks system’s uniqueelements is our mountain parks and scenicdrives in Jefferson, Douglas, and Clear Creek,Counties. Denver also owns Winter Park SkiArea in Grand County. In addition tospectacular scenery, the system features manyhistoric sites, such as Red Rocks Amphitheatreand Trading Post, Chief Hosa Lodge and

Campground, Pahaska Teepee, Buffalo BillGrave, and Echo Lake Lodge.

Many striking stone structures, designed bythe National Park Service as well as byprominent Denver architects, are locatedthroughout the parks. In the 1970s, Denver

Before: existing degraded �natural open space in SE Denver

� After: photo illustration showing

possible restoration with native plants

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81f r o m m o u n t a i n s t o p l a i n s

� A NEW VISION FOR MOUNTAIN PARKS

r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t :

built a museum on Lookout Mountain tointerpret the Buffalo Bill legacy.

In the early 1900s, business and civic leadersenvisioned creating the loop of parks andscenic drives in Jefferson County as a mountainretreat for the people of Denver. In 1914, therenowned landscape architecture firm ofFrederick Law Olmsted, Jr., completed a planfor an extensive system of looped roads andparks. Inaccessible parcels were to bepreserved for their views or for watershed orwildlife protection.

Of the original 40,000 acres the Olmsted firmidentified for acquisition, Denver purchased8,100 acres in Jefferson County. [Theremainder of Denver Mountain Park acreage isin parks located in Douglas, Clear Creek, andGrand Counties (Winter Park).] Decades later,Jefferson County purchased another 30,200acres for its open space.

The Mountain Parks system was well designed,constructed, and maintained until the 1950s,when the loss of its dedicated mill levy sent thesystem into a spiral of deferred capitalmaintenance and decline. Funding forMountain Parks remains a critical issue.

Neighboring mountain-open-space systemshave dedicated funding sources that ensure ahigher level of care, as shown in the Open

Space sidebar box on this page. In 2001-2002,the financial future of Winter Park also becamethe topic of scrutiny. Denver assured its futurewith a new public/private partnership.

The small Mountain Park’s staff has workedhard and creatively to maintain a high level ofdaily maintenance for this extensive system,which includes two bison and elk herds.However, long-deferred capital repairs likeupgrades for roads, buildings, and utilitysystems have outpaced the budget, creating acrisis for some of the system’s larger structures.

A 2001 architectural assessment revealed $1.5million needed in immediate repairs toprevent serious code violations or publicdanger, and another $2.5 million to restore thekey structures. This situation hascompromised the ability of concessionaires toprovide high-quality services and realizeprofits. It also suggests the degree ofdegradation to of these historic resources.

The system’s natural resources have beenstressed by eight decades of hard use andinadequate funding. Some recreation areasalong creeks, for example, are so compactedby foot traffic that no understory exists andtrees are threatened. Funding is needed toprotect the health of these natural resources.Without adequate funding, fire danger,

� O’Fallon Park today

JJeeffffeerrssoonn CCoouunnttyy OOppeenn SSppaaccee

Total acreage 30,264

Total budget $ 3,177,720

Per acre $ 105

DDeennvveerr MMoouunnttaaiinn PPaarrkkss

Total acreage 14,000

O&M budget $ 760,000

Per acre $ 54

CCiittyy ooff BBoouullddeerr OOppeenn SSppaaccee

aanndd MMoouunnttaaiinn PPaarrkkss

Total acreage 37,000

O&M Budget $ 3,582,262

Per acre $ 96

Note: Field maintenance only,

not capital or administration.

82

noxious weeds, and diseased timber canthreaten adjacent lands.

The Game Plan process posed hardquestions about the future of MountainParks. Given financial need, degradedconditions, growth, and changing leisurepatterns of Denver residents, what is the roleof our mountain parks today and in thefuture? Are they still vital to the parks andrecreation system and our quality of life? DoDenver residents value and use them? Howcan the city balance the need to restore andprotect natural, cultural, and historicresources with increasing public demand?

To study these issues and providerecommendations, at least for most of thesystem located in Jefferson County, DPR andJefferson County staff recently completed ajoint Mountain Park Recreation ManagementPlan, primarily funded by a ColoradoDepartment of Local Affairs Smart GrowthGrant. (An interpretive plan for the “LariatLoop” was produced collaboratively at thesame time.) Research, coupled with theextensive feedback from the Game Plan publicprocess, strongly reaffirms of the importance ofpreserving natural open space and themountain parks for Denver and themetropolitan area.

The 2001 Game Plan Survey showed 71percent of Denverites visited one of thetraditional mountain parks (excluding RedRocks) at least once during the past year. Onein five residents (20 percent) visited more than10 times. Another 92 percent identifiedmountain parks as contributing to the qualityof Denver’s park and recreation system, with66 percent saying it was a major contribution.

At the June 2001 open houses, citizens rankedDenver’s regional mountain parks, naturalareas, and trails a close second priority togreen neighborhoods. Denverites also saidthey lacked the time or ability to get to theparks, the parks lacked good restrooms anddrinking water, and the parks needed morecapital maintenance.

The summer-intercept surveys of JeffersonCounty and Denver park visitors showed thatpeople were using parks mainly for hiking andpassive enjoyment. Cultural features continueto draw thousands of local and regional visitorsas well as tourists.

The overall objective for the Denver mountainparks is to keep and restore the historic systemof scenic drives and parks. The City needs tokeep working closely and inovatively with theconcessionaires who provide services andmaintain the historic buildings. At the same

Historic Park shelter �

TThhee LLaarriiaatt LLoooopp HHeerriittaaggee

AAlllliiaannccee

The Lariat Loop combines two

historic routes: the Lariat Trail

Scenic Mountain Drive ascending

Lookout Mountain, and the Bear

Creek Canyon Scenic Mountain Drive.

The Lariat Loop Mountain Gateway

was recognized by the Colorado

Heritage Area Partnership and

officially designated as Colorado’ssixth heritage area in 2000. The

Alliance partnership interprets this

unique historic area. For information,

check www.lariatloop.org.

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r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t :

time, DPR needs to support regional effortsand partnerships to provide funding, planning,and the ability to acquire future open space.

Recommendations for Denver Mountain Parks

1. Strengthen DPR’s organizational capacity by:

� increasing skills in dealing with complexregional planning issues.

� incorporating mountain parks into a newNatural Resource Unit (see Chapter 6) tomanage the range of natural areascohesively.

2. Build better relationships with the staff,policy makers, and residents of othercounties and recreation districts impactedby DPR. Develop strategies for long-rangenatural resource protection, recreationplanning, land acquisitions, easements,and other regional issues by:

� developing work teams with eachjurisdiction.

� strengthening working relationships bycompleting management guidelines foreach site, criteria for responding torequests, and a prompt staff responsesystem.

� as a matter of policy, including people whoare not Denver County residents in thepublic processes affecting the Denver parksin their communities.

� implementing cost efficiencies whereverpossible in operations and planning.

� working together to distinguish thedifferent characters of parks and parksystems, to maintain historic integrity andprovide an array of visitor experiences.

3. Protect significant cultural resources andenhance the Olmsted Legacy by:

� continuing to inventory and assess culturalresources.

� rehabilitating, restoring, and protectingsignificant cultural resources through siteguidelines, preventative capital repairprograms and maintenance schedules,

� strengthening concessionaire partnerships� additional historic landmark designations.� protecting scenic mountain drives through

special road classifications, designguidelines, and acquired easements.

� increasing awareness of the metrowidecommunity regarding the distinction,value, and history of Denver’s mountainparks and other mountain parks.

� working closely with historic siteconcessionaires.

4. Improve recreational experiences by:� minimizing use conflicts through

evaluations to determine appropriate uses,provision of additional facilities, morehiking trails, closure of sensitive areas,compliance with State of Coloradostandards, and temporary closures ofparking lots and sites.

� Denver’s bison herds: Genesee Mountain,

Daniels Park and a proposed herd at DIA

Evergreen Lake Marina �

84

� completing master site and managementplans for all major mountain sites.

� creating more hiking-only trails and picnicareas.

� providing clean, high-quality restrooms anddrinking water.

� supplying more information andinterpretation through rangers andmaterials such as brochures and signs.

� providing greater security through rangers,volunteer programs, and increased sitevisibility.

� evaluating gaps in recreation services, suchas the need for more outdoor educationopportunities for youth, stronger trail linksfor road-bike use, and facilities toaccommodate new uses.

� creating a site for dogs off leash.

5. Ensure economic sustainability for thesystem (see Chapter 9 for more details) by:

� improving concessionaire relationshipsand contracts to ensure high-quality visitorexperiences, a mutually beneficial businesspartnership, and protection of significantnatural and cultural features.

� working collaboratively with othergovernment agencies towards more cost-effective operations.

� pursuing regional planning and fundingmodels for the Front Range’s entire naturalopen space system.

For more information on strategies specific toDenver Mountain Parks and Jefferson CountyOpen Space Parks, please checkwww.denvergov.org.

� Historic postcard of the Lariat Loop

Road on Lookout Mountain

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Bil

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From mountains to river valleys to eastern plain prairie