Lookout Ridge HOA Concerned About Prairie Dogs

BY GENEVIEVE JACOBI
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The recent proposal to relocate prairie dogs on City of Boulder Open Space land has alarmed a number of citizens in the Lookout Ridge subdivision in Gunbarrel. Located on the south side of Lookout Road at approximately 92nd Street, this gated community consists of 10 homes on two- to five-acre parcels.

Terry Schreier, acting president of the Lookout Ridge Homeowner’s Association, wrote a letter to City of Boulder officials addressing several concerns about prairie dog colonies on adjacent land.

Issues include the overpopulation of existing colonies, a lack of barriers to prevent prairie dog migration, and the designation of open space land for prairie dog relocation. Schreier, a long-time Gunbarrel resident, said the City of Boulder has not been responding to requests for information or engaging in dialogue with homeowners. She said, “There is confusion about the process that is taking place. This comes after a pattern of behavior that raises suspicions for those who have lived in [the area] for many years. We are thinking of taking legal action.”

Julie Smith and her husband are also homeowners in Lookout Ridge. The couple purchased Lookout Ridge Farm, a 72-acre spread at the crest of the hill directly west of the subdivision, when the property had gone into foreclosure.
“A prairie dog hole is a perfect size for a horse’s leg,” said Smith, who comes from a farming family and has been around horses since childhood. “The reason we bought the property was that it needed rehabilitation. We have been good stewards of the land, re-establishing the grass cover through proper land use management.”

Smith has read the Grasslands Plan from cover to cover, an expansive document issued in May 2010 detailing the City of Boulder land management plan for open space. “I have really strong concerns about where we are heading. I feel like we are not honoring the land.”

Val Matheson, the City of Boulder’s urban wildlife coordinator, said, “There are definitively no plans to relocate prairie dogs to City of Boulder owned land adjacent to Lookout Ridge.”

The only tract of land that is designated under the aforementioned Grasslands Plan as a potential prairie dog conservation area in Gunbarrel is the Richardson parcel. Relocation efforts there have been halted for now. 

Matheson said, “Open Space had a history of putting up boundaries to be good neighbors, but they were shredded by the wind. They became aesthetically unpleasing and ineffective.”

Heather Swanson has been the City of Boulder’s wildlife ecologist for seven years. Each fall, her department takes accurate measurements of all extant prairie dog colonies on open space land using a hand held GPS device.

Data for 2010 is not yet available, but last year’s analysis showed a very low and stable population density of prairie dog colonies in the vicinity of Lookout Ridge. The closest site to the subdivision are the Knaus and Cosslett properties comprising 323 total acres, which in 2009 jointly shared a prairie dog colony of 1.12 acres.

“The City of Boulder attorney has been communicating regularly with Lookout Ridge. We want to have a meeting with the Division of Wildlife first to clarify any legal issues prior to setting up any public meetings with homeowners,” said Matheson.

For more information, see the Grassland Plan at www.grasslandplan.net. A map of City of Boulder land tracts is at www.bouldercolorado.gov/files/openspace/pdf_gis/PropertyMaps_2010.pdf.

Photo by Genevieve Jacobi
Lookout Ridge residents are concerned about prairie dog encroachment.