Boulder County Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann attends LID meeting

The Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) February meeting opened with a presentation from 18-year veteran Sgt. Michael Hill of the Colorado State Patrol.

LID members also welcomed another guest, who offered her perspective on planned traffic improvements on Highway 119.

Boulder County Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann, who was elected to replace Matt Jones last fall, attended the February LID meeting at the Niwot Inn Feb. 7, and gave her perspective on the traffic issues concerning Highway 119 and the Niwot Road intersection.

Stolzmann said that when it comes to improving the flow of traffic on the Diagonal Highway, the intersection with Highway 52 is the bottleneck. When asked about an underpass to Niwot from the planned bikeway down the median of the Diagonal, she responded, "We want to separate pedestrians from traffic," but she noted that an underpass could cost as much as $20 million and could be cost prohibitive.

Sgt. Hill, who is an accident reconstructionist, noted that the Niwot Road and Highway 119 intersection was the second deadliest intersection in Boulder County, exceeded only by fatal crashes at the Highway 287 and Highway 52 intersection just east of Niwot. "We have a severe crash problem at Highway 119 and Niwot Road," he said. "I can pick up triple digits almost any day on 119 at Niwot Road."

LID member Cornelia Sawle invited Sgt. Hill to the meeting, who described his history having grown up in Boulder and worked in Boulder County for 10 years. Hill said that speed was responsible for most of the fatalities, and also cited the fact that the lights on Niwot Road are not synchronized, leading Niwot Road motorists crossing the Longmont-bound lanes to think they have a green light when in fact they are looking at the lights on the Boulder-bound lanes.

"The divided highway is a blessing," Hill said. "The origin of most accidents is the northbound lanes. People on Niwot Road see the lighting on the southbound lanes and proceed into the intersection. There are also numerous rear-end collisions, mostly in the northbound lanes, but they are not as deadly."

When asked about the speed limit difference of 55 mph from Niwot to Boulder compared to 65 mph from Niwot to Longmont, Hill responded, "It absolutely does contribute to accidents. "There's no reason to have a 65 mile per hour speed limit. Speeds approaching the intersection should be reduced at Niwot Road and every intersection along [Highway] 119."

Hill noted that the green arrow only light on Highway 287 and Highway 52 was "tweaked" and it resulted in a reduction of serious accidents.

LID member Heidi Storz asked if the planned bus lanes on 119 at Niwot Road would complicate things with bicycle traffic, and Hill responded that the bus lanes at 63rd Street and 119 work pretty well.

Bruce Rabeler, LID treasurer, submitted his last report as his 5-year term ends at the end of the month. LID funds paid out in 2022 totaled $205,520, which was more than the amount budgeted, but well under the actual amount of sales taxes collected in 2022. Tax collections through November were $262,948 in 2022, which was an increase of 8.9% over the same period in 2021. The budget for 2023 is $215,430, which represents 80% of the actual revenues from 2021.

The reserve funds were estimated at $307,356 at the end of 2021, and once December numbers are reported, the reserve fund is expected to exceed $390,000. LID policy calls for a reserve of not less than $60,000 as a buffer for possible reductions in revenue collection in any given year.

The only funding request presented to the LID was from the Niwot Business Association, which requested $7,500 to fund the position of Economic Development Director (EDD) for the first quarter of 2023. Catherine McHale, who has served as the EDD for the past several years, presented the request, and noted that the position was changing as the NBA is seeking more administrative support for events and projects, in addition to marketing the town. The funding request was approved unanimously.

The "Small Town, Big Heart" marketing campaign will continue, but marketing Niwot as a "great day out" will be part of the 2023 approach. "This campaign would focus on tying together multiple ideas to make Niwot an appealing destination for a day out," according to the NBA's 2023 marketing plan. "By associating a few different reasons to visit, we try to get people to say yes to a day (or morning/afternoon) in Niwot."

The Niwot Future League (NFL), a committee appointed by the NBA to supervise the EDD, meets monthly to review the work of the EDD and to set goals for future activities. When it was first formed in 2013, the committee was known as the Revitalization Committee, with the stated goal of filling the many vacant commercial spaces in town.

NFL members include NBA president Eric Bergeson, NBA past presidents Tony Santelli and Biff Warren, commercial property and business owners Alex Chlebek, Anne Postle, and Carrie Wise, former NBA streetscapes coordinator Chuck Klueber, and Left Hand Grange No. 9 president Jim Dorvee. Property owner Cotton Burden recently retired from the committee, and property and business owner Mary Coonce has joined the NFL.

Bergeson presented the NBA's 2023 budget to the LID members for informational purposes. Compared to the 2022 budget, the NBA has increased the amount of planned funding requests from $170,666 to $215,430. The biggest changes were a reduction in the EDD compensation from $28,000 to $7,500, but with additions of $10,000 for each of three newly created paid positions, titled Infrastructure Coordinator, Marketing Coordinator, and Event Coordination and Administration.

Bergeson explained that volunteers who coordinate events were in need of more administrative assistance to avoid burnout.

Other increases in the NBA's budget included $10,700 for tree carving restoration, and $7,000 for a portable stage for events at Cottonwood Square and elsewhere. Some events which were funded in 2022 are not in the budget for 2023, including an Apres Ski day, Online Scavenger Hunt, and Lobsterfest. Bergeson noted that funding requests for specific events and projects would be presented throughout the year.