The Sopris Sun is happy to introduce the Glenwood Report, covering the regular Glenwood Springs city council meetings which take place every first and third Thursdays.

The theme of the Sept. 7 meeting was emergency preparedness. 

Wildfire collaborative
Paula Stepp with the Middle Colorado Watershed Council appeared in front of the council, asking if members would consider signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to join the Colorado River Wildfire Collaborative (CRWC). The City previously signed an MOU to be a part of the Roaring Fork Valley Wildfire Collaborative (RFWC). The Glenwood Springs Fire District has already signed on with the CRWC. 

Glenwood Springs overlaps CRWC and the RFWC, just like the Middle Colorado Watershed does, Stepp pointed out. “The MOU is intended to say that we’re all working together to be ready for wildfire, and to be ready for the post-wildfire events,” she added. 

She stated that Garfield County has had more wildfires than any other county in the state, and that New Castle is considered one of the highest risk towns. “We know wildfires are going to happen because we’ve already seen them happening this year. It’s part of our environment; it’s part of what we’re experiencing because of drought,” Stepp assured. 

The MOU originates from the Forest Service, therefore it won’t be until sometime after its fiscal year ends (Oct. 1) when the collaborative would become official. She acknowledged that there may be some minor changes, as there was with RFWC’s MOU. 

Council agreed to put a final MOU on the consent agenda in early October, after it undergoes a legal review.

Emergency evacuation
Deputy Fire Chief Doug Gerrald gave an update on the development of the City’s Emergency Operations Plan, which he said has become known as the Emergency Evacuation Plan. “What the plan is ultimately going to give us is a clear playbook on expectations, roles and responsibilities, chain of command, lines of authority,” stated Gerrald, “all things that play into a solid incident command structure and the effective resolution of that incident.” 

The plan will include predetermined evacuation zones, identify vulnerable populations, reinforce evacuation notification procedures and, of course, help establish predetermined evacuation routes.

He shared that some information will ultimately not be disclosed to the public for “sensitive and security type issues.” He continued, “but the intent is to have a public document.” With that, he noted that there will also be a public outreach and education period. 

Mayor Ingrid Wussow asked what type of information might be restricted. Gerrald gave a couple of examples, first that the plan will include personal cell phone numbers of key facilitators, and secondly that the plan points out reunification sites for instances such as a school evacuations and it would be counterproductive to publicize for potential aggressors to see. 

The hope is to have a final plan by early November. 

South Bridge
Ryan Gordon, the city engineer, gave an update on South Bridge — a project that has been in the works since the early 2000s, following the 2002 Coal Seam Fire which forced 3000 residents south and west of Glenwood Springs to evacuate. 

The City resubmitted a grant application through the Department of Transportation for just shy of $50 million. In 2022, the city applied for the same grant for $33 million, but “missed out,” according to Gordon. The recent application was filed on August 21, and Gordon hopes to receive an answer by the end of the year. 

The city engineer noted inflation and other items which have surfaced since a previous project estimate, determined in November 2021 as $57.4 million, bring  the estimated cost to  $76.1 million. 

At least a couple of council members will be traveling to Washington, DC to lobby for the project. 

Secondly, Gordon requested council’s approval for engineer consulting contracts to conduct a peer review of the project and its design. “Staff has engaged SGM Inc., of Glenwood Springs and Flatiron Construction Corporation of Broomfield, Colorado to perform the peer review study which will predominantly focus on the bridge (and bridge elements), tunnel and roads around the airport,” read the memo to council. 

Gordon noted that there is already money set aside for the design of the project that can be used for the peer review. Council approved a motion to spend up to $110,000 on the peer review. 

“I’ve been personally involved with this since 2008 … I don’t think we can understate the importance of this, especially if you look at the map that was put up by emergency services,” said Councilor Shelley Kaup. “I know the money is a huge issue, but we have big partners. We have CDOT as a partner, RFTA as a partner … Garfield County needs to step up and be a partner and protect their citizens in the Four Mile and Three Mile areas.” She concluded, “I hope we have success on the grant. If not, I think we keep trying until we can get this done.” 

City manager update
The council appointed Steve Boyd, currently serving as the City’s chief operations officer, as the interim city manager.

Initially, there will be an internal search and application period through 5pm on Sept. 20. Should a finalist(s) be selected, their name(s) would be published, and no less than two weeks from that announcement the City could undergo negotiations. 

For the full agenda and a recording of the meeting, visit www.cogs.us/212/Council