Agenda Memo · Boulder Politics

Regular Meeting, April 16, 2026 · item 3F: Consideration of a motion to approve conveyance of approximately 0.42 acres of City of Boulder property managed as open space located along … · 8 pages

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City of Boulder City Council Agenda Item Meeting Date: April 16, 2026

Agenda Title Consideration of a motion to approve conveyance of approximately 0.42 acres of City of Boulder property managed as open space located along CO State Highway 7, together with two temporary construction easements to the Colorado Department of Transportation, for highway improvements to CO State Highway 7 pursuant to the disposal procedures of Article XII, Sections 175 and 177 of the City of Boulder Charter

Staff Contact • • •

Dan Burke, Director, OSMP Bethany Collins, Real Estate Services Sr. Manager, OSMP Marc Pedrucci, Senior Property Agent, OSMP

Draft Motion Language Staff requests council consideration of this matter and action in the form of the following motion: Motion to approve conveyance of approximately 0.42 acres of City property managed as open space located along CO State Highway 7, together with two temporary construction easements to the Colorado Department of Transportation, for highway improvements to CO State Highway 7 pursuant to the disposal procedures of Article XII, Sections 175 and 177 of the City of Boulder Charter.

Executive Summary This agenda item is the consideration of a request from the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) for the disposal of three parcels of land and two temporary construction easements to allow for highway improvements of Colorado State Highway 7/Arapahoe Road east of 75th Street near Willow Creek Drive as shown on Attachment A. The parcels are portions of the city-owned properties known as the Aweida I, Woodley, and Kolb Brothers Open Space as shown on Attachment B (OSMP Property). CDOT is designing a project to widen and repave CO 7 at the 95th Street, Willow Creek Drive and Park Lake intersections (see CDOT’s project website at: https:// www.codot.gov/projects/co7intersectionlafayette). The CO 7 Intersection Improvements project goals are to reduce congestion and improve travel time reliability and safety. The OSMP Property is necessary to accommodate widening for a left turn lane and drainage improvements. Construction is planned for the summer of 2026 after design and right-of-way acquisitions have been completed. The total area of the OSMP Property proposed for fee acquisition is 0.42 acres; the total area of the proposed temporary easements is 0.09 acres. CDOT will pay appraised value of $15,200 to the City for the fee and easement interests in the OSMPmanaged Property which is currently vacant agricultural land. Authorizing uses or conveyance of open space land must be consistent with Article XII, Sections 175(a) and 177 which require Open Space Board of Trustees (OSBT) approval and recommendation to City Council and City Council approval.

Council Action Options Option

Outcome

Approve motion language as drafted

If the motion is approved OSMP will work with CAO to draft the applicable agreements.

Define and adopt a modified motion

Council would need to define any modifications or motion amendments to the draft motion language for staff to consider implementing pursuant to the delegation in charter section 171. This could also require reconsideration by the Open Space Board of Trustees.

Deny the motion or take no action

Refer back to staff

If this motion is denied, the CO Highway 7 Intersections Improvements project of CDOT will need to be redesigned or CDOT could also pursue any eminent domain authority it may have. If council refers this item back to staff, staff will consider council’s input and determine whether to bring the request back or pursue other alternatives.

Alignment with City Plans and City Council History Sustainability, Equity and Resilience (SER) Framework and Citywide Strategic Plan Alignment SER Framework Goal Area Safe and Accessible and Connected include supporting a safe, reliable, accessible, and sustainable multimodal transportation system that connects people with each other and where they want to go.

Citywide Strategic Plan N/A

Staff Notes N/A

Alignment with Additional City Plans N/A

City Council History N/A

Analysis Improving safe access to the City of Boulder along CO 7/Arapahoe Road has been a high priority of the city and agency partners for many years and this project will provide improvements to address safety and congestion at specific intersections along the corridor. The OSMP Property parcels requested by CDOT are vacant agricultural land

along fences adjacent to CO 7 and Willow Creek Drive and OSMP program staff have not expressed concern with the request and have not identified any sensitive or rare resources within the OSMP Property nor are staff anticipating impacts to OSMP agricultural operations. CDOT will be responsible for all project permitting and environmental compliance and the temporary easement areas, including the portion along the Dry Creek Davidson Ditch, will be fully restored by CDOT to OSMP specifications.

Equity Analysis Staff has not identified equity impacts of concern associated with this disposal recommendation and it will contribute to improving travel time reliability and safety improvements to State Highway 7 for residents, commuters and visitors to the city.

Fiscal Note CDOT will bear all costs related to the new land rights being acquired, and no economic impacts to the city or open space program are anticipated. Fund(s): Open Space Department(s): Open Space & Mountain Parks Program(s): N/A

FY 2026 Budget

FY 2026 Estimated Impact

FY 2026 Net Change

Beginning Fund Balance

$17.25M

Total Forecasted Revenue

$39.74M

Total Estimated Expenses

$42.61M

Ending Fund Balance(s) After Reserves

$8.36M

FTE

142.6 FTE

Item

142.6 FTE

Three-Year Estimated Fiscal Impact

Item

FY 2026

FY 2027

FY 2028

Total Forecasted Revenue

Total Estimated Expenses

Net Estimated Impact

Climate, Resilience, and Sustainability Considerations This project does not have significant climate or sustainability impacts.

Community Engagement CDOT has conducted public outreach for the CO Highway 7 Intersections Improvements Project, including a project website with a video and preliminary meetings with affected property owners along the corridor.

This item was presented to the Open Space Board of Trustees at their January 14, 2026 meeting. Jon Carroll moved the Open Space Board of Trustees to make a motion to approve and recommend that OSMP and City Council approve conveyance of three fee parcels, totaling approximately 0.42 acres and two temporary easements totaling approximately 0.09 acres from the City of Boulder's Aweida I, Woodley, and Kolb Brothers Open Space properties to the Colorado Department of Transportation for the CO 7 Intersection Improvements project pursuant to the disposal procedures of Article XII, Sections 175 and 177 of the City of Boulder Charter. Sarah Glynn seconded. This motion passed four to zero. In addition, the board recommended that CDOT work with Xcel to underground the existing electric line that runs along the property, if feasible. OSMP staff have reached out to CDOT on that issue to incorporate into the project.

Workplan Considerations This project is not anticipated to materially impact city staff’s existing workplan.

Next Steps for City Council None anticipated.

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Attachments Attachment A: Vicinity Map Attachment B: Location Map