Boulder approves appropriating added tax revenue to open space

Boulder City Council on Tuesday approved appropriating $5.3 million in anticipated 2020 revenue to Open Space and Mountain Parks priorities.

The appropriations are to include revenue generated from the voter-approved 0.15% sales tax extension that passed in November with 85.9% support.

The open space capital program will increase by nearly $1 million with the added tax revenue, support three years of prairie dog management and soil health positions supported by the general fund to reduce that fund’s expenses by $185,000 next year, and accelerate the implementation of the first-ever Open Space Master Plan adopted last year, among other initiatives.

The first year of revenue, though, is going toward the purchase of a conservation easement of Long’s Gardens, at 3240 Broadway, to prevent the parcel from becoming developed in the future.