BOARD02497

• Board Meeting Date: 7/14/1971
• Description: Agenda or Table of Contents, Minutes, Memos
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

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MR. STAPLETON:

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seriously propose any alternative. The whole
question of the environment and ecology is a
relatively neW subject as you are well aware.
Five years ago there was not talk about, there
is value in saving the river, there is value in
the fishing capability of the river, there is
value in open space for the sake of open space
itself. At the time the Council was originally
talking about it, these were not factors, we
were concerned only with flood control. I think,
however, the city Council is responding to what
it feels to be very valid concerns of the environ-
ment and ecology groups in the community that
something needs to be done to save the environ-
ment.

We didn't have that kind of action, that kind
of political support, five years ago, even three
years ago. The City is coming into it at a late
date, there is no question about that. We would
point out however, that the Corps of Engineers
has no money to begin moving dirt prior to July
of 1972. Therefore, anything that we can do
between now and July, 1972 seems to us, takes
research.

If the City makes the commitment that it
will 'put up or shut up' - to use the vernacular,
in six months and you could say we are going to
do it the way the Corps wants to do it, the way
the Colorado Water Conservation Board wants to
do it, or, that we have local funding, seriously
consider another alternative to proceed on that.

We are not asking you to delay this project
indefinitely. We can't begin moving dirt until
July of 1972. What we are committing is to say,
'We'll have an answer for you by January 1, 1972
as to what the position of the City is. There
is no irreversible action that has been taken
to this. date. We are not seriously delaying the
project, we feel that there is time to do some-
thing first."

"I don't know anything about politics, but