Free Access to Lake Meredith Defended: Pueblo Chieftain

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The Pueblo Chieftain Online I Friday wysiwyg: / /12 /http: / /www.chieftain.com /friday /news /display.php3 ?article =E 0!4L1VG 1 GCAIJ Winterfest UU VVGI GVVVJJ VII LGl \V IYIVI VIA IIII GIYV GyJ IIGJ VVV11 IIVV, through the wildlife area's boat ramp. Skotek and his angler Guidebook friends say charging admission to Meredith will keep away Sprina Runoff retirees and others who are - as Skotek termed it - A Pueblo Zoo "monetarily disadvantaged," and come here almost daily in the warm seasons to match wits against the wiper, crappie FOCUS ON YOUTH: and bass. ° 'Y Headbone Zone Images Except for the small shoreline wildlife area, the rest of Classroom Chieftain Meredith is bounded by private land. School District 60 School District 70 "There are a lot of people that use this area to picnic, watch Pueblo Library District wildlife and fish from the shore," Skotek said of the wildlife area. Skotek and his friends say it's not fair that the wildlife agency would collect money through fishing licenses to raise fish for stocking lakes such as Meredith, then allow another government entity to charge admission to the lake. "They're stocking our fish in their lakes and charging us to catch them," he said. "We don't like paying twice for the same thing." Angler Mark Frazier agreed with Skotek and signed the petition Thursday in between pulling in a few crappie. "It doesn't seem right to lose access to one of the best fishing lakes in the valley," he said. Skotek said he's also unhappy that talks of the trade have taken place without public comment. "We just want our side heard," he said. Meredith's recreation rights long have been leased to the Division of Wildlife by the irrigation company that owns it and stores water there. That company, which is owned mostly by Colorado Springs and Aurora, decided last year to see if sportsmen's groups or anyone else would pay more for the rights. Alarmed that the lake might be closed to the public for good, county commissioners decided to lease the rights and turn the lakes into a more visitor - friendly summer play spot. But for their development plan to work, they need the lake's free access cut off. The land Aurora is considering trading is re- vegetated farmland that it bought the water rights for in the early 1980s near the river. That land offers better overall wildlife habitat and hunting space than the small Meredith wildlife area. The trade isn't a done deal yet because the county and Aurora haven't given a formal proposal to the Division of Wildlife, according to Mel DePra, the agency's southeast Colorado administrator. The wildlife agency is interested in the trade because the Aurora land better fits the agency's goals of creating hunting, fishing and wildlife- watching opportunities, DePra said. of 3 5/5/00 4:04 PM