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<br />~r all the naysayers who believe
<br />. government is wasteful, go...ern.
<br />: ment Is ineffective, governmont;
<br />.' . -"~-ls\Ve;ak, here's)n amazing Cact: .
<br />. Go....ernment IS moving the whole sub-
<br />urb'of Lafayette {rom:the GreafPlains ':
<br />into the' Rocky Mountains - for $50,000.
<br />.:..' How, does a public agency transport '
<br />19,495 people and eight square !'Ililes of
<br />fJatls'nds. I~to)?e .Colora~o higti'c?:un- .... : ~
<br />, ,try? The.blzarre.Olnswer is l!nfoldlllg this.:1
<br />wcek'hi D,S. District Court in J;)enver. '.: .
<br />.w Fouryears' after being ca uglii bulJdoz..'
<br />. in'g'"CederalIy protected wetlands, metro
<br />Denver's Urban Drainage District is try-
<br />ing to beat the rap by arguing the mis-
<br />deed was legal because it took place in ' .
<br />the' alIegedl~ lofty la'ir' of Lafayette, . ' . :;:;'
<br />"'~1Y,c~ ,~he d.i~trtct.nQ~ dai~.(orl;lls ~e "
<br />.. mountain headwaterS of CqaI Creek.' .
<br />'.:.~his ~ettifight ha~ cQ~t taxpayers.' .
<br />$50,000 of legal bills, pIus $80,000 (or
<br />, . other eXpenses.. '.. .... " ",
<br />. .... By the time the' court hearing conven.
<br />edjVednesday, taxpayer.finarice~ ageIl-
<br />c;ies had spent q10re money arguing o...er
<br />;. tqi pi-oblem. than ~olving' it..
<br />. : '.'1 think any amolJnt o{ money is too'
<br />. much to spe'nd on tl$, but that's the way
<br />. it ended up," said Scott Tucker, dIrector
<br />of the six-county drainage district,
<br />. which spends $13 million a year of prop-
<br />ert\l tall "Tt I"..",,,~ :_.~ ^ ,r'_L. _.
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<br />, ~., Few {acts of the casla are in dispute.",,: . I
<br />:; jn ~993, the digh:ic~.S~r.I~ ~iilldozers;~ast ,.
<br />~ Dt aJghway 287, neat "'"alol! Av.en~e, t~....
<br />:: ~ b!ast out part of Coal Creek. Engi~~~ ......
<br />. ,saId the creek threatenled to erode a',',., .
<br />~. fence outside a Lalaye.tte miJnic;lpa! 8~-" I
<br />(;. fage/~f:, :-.:,>-i':. . ;!:;-'. ''',:' '.'; .~;\~~i~:ti?:i-{~\\:
<br />:;!: o'liW9rk..'crews built a di~~,~~..ch~np~l-i;.J
<br />'n~~ 600 feet or ~af~~rtag ~oal..cre~!,:;~ :-
<br />. ..' ~tb'j~r209,s~~aIglJ~ .(~!t..I~.,th~,p'r?I;'~,. 'l'
<br />) ~ tile district ~lso 'des~roYl~ .\:Yetlan~s,.:q ~:<': .
<br />~ -: . When neighbor~ rep~r~ed the'da~age' ..:
<br />: :. to' the EnvironrncIIta) ~ro~e.c~.on ~gen~:~:
<br />. : c5',.district m~nagerj i"e:~Jjzed tliey. ~er; ':
<br />: . in froubw.'Yollcan't be uz the flood-con- .:..
<br />..':' tiai bliliriess' witbout &iiOW,ing all:~~ou~ .\ :
<br />:: \.:etla1d~J.a~~<~esl~~!,ib.e,r~U~pde.~~i :i
<br />: : r~oi~u,st.~d .beeJ!,~~l~'4 ~,a...wIde1r . ", '1
<br />. . publiclZed w~.tlallds,d~!!t.i~..qn case.. ";"1
<br />' : thit...rEis'uIt~ W a $1,.1 J:(l.i\li.Oll fine. ,:, ..'
<br />: :.~ The drainage disb:lct,.qW:ck1y pledged. :,
<br />. to fix. its mess. Aiter spehdmg $37,500 to
<br />~ i1legally,ch~~~li~e Goal Creek, the ~is:
<br />~ tri~t agreed to spend $35,,300 to repair It. .
<br />'. E;veryonc see!Tle? to be gl:tting ~long'-;:-. '.
<br />!mti! EPA prQPosed a ~12i~.O.~O flOe., ."
<br />. "That's when ~e ~ourt fight broke qu~,
<br />; . Angry' 9.v~r.Ot.he 'prosp~c~ 'o~ pe,n~ltjes, ;.
<br />. di.s!ii~t m,a~a~efS, bega~ s,e-arching for, ,..'
<br />legaI'ways. tp Justify theIr bulldozers. .
<br />, ~wyers soon. lear~e~ that federal pro- ....
<br />I lectiolls were le?s strlDgent for Construe-
<br />. tibn'in the ~'headwatet$" oj[ a'strea'm.'::, "
<br />; ,or course, the federal government.r,~I~
<br />ed '11 years earlier that the: headwaters.: :
<br />of CoaL Creek ended'n~ar the foothills; a' >:
<br />fulllO'miles upstream 9C Lafayette. But. -
<br />(or'a OQod'district Iaciriga.'$l25,OOO '.' ' '::
<br />fine' tlia't ruling didn't hord ~ater,": . '. .','
<br />. . Tilftafstrict hIred. its' own private ex-. .
<br />pens wh~ claim~d, 10 and beh~ld, .that '.'
<br />th~ actual headwaters of.~C:lal Creek lay
<br />somewhere inside or downsl~~al;l1 of La-
<br />fayette: That,wo~~ r.n:akc tb~ district's .:
<br />diking of Coal' Creek perfecUy OK:. .
<br />: . So now a district lawyer isarguiiig .;
<br />with sti~(ghtfiice UJa(t~c praiii~;of :i
<br />L3Jayetle':Iik'e"fhe snowy spin~ 0' th.e .'
<br />'G9ntinen~,a[.pivjde, ~~:~ I:~a.:~:h~.~d~r",
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<br />'. . :i~~t~~:,~, {u'gg'e1~i~M~r~e;':i9J9~.'r.~~.
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<br />.:': dents of Lafayette. Next ~I~ you try r;;
<br />;". sell your hQuse, tell y?ur buyers that 1:,;4-
<br />" .fayette is smack-dab z.n the.n:udd~e,~!.,:
<br />. ,,;'pz:ime ~o~nta~ st,~~~ ~~ad~~J~rn.,:' .:
<br />. 'F ~f yo~,get..~li~iiJ<?r,r~~t,~~~~,!:,~~"",:,
<br />(-' Juu, S~~d.Yo'ut~illS.~ .lb~~p'~~fal~<,;:;": '~.:
<br />. makers of the'Urban:Drall1aJ~~ DIstrIct.
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