Proposed Hughes ballot measure might impact Fort Collins' funding for future Northern Colorado natural area properties

CBS News

14-05-2025

Residents in Fort Collins could soon be voting on the future of the former Hughes Stadium property, the second time such a decision would be made in the last five years. Some residents are actively collecting signatures throughout the Northern Colorado city in hopes of establishing the entire property as a natural area, an action which would prevent any development from happening including a proposed bike park.
CBS
The city purchased the land in 2021 by order of the voters, preventing Colorado State University from developing the property into a housing development. In doing so, the wording of the ballot language in 2021 left the land for uses such as recreation, open space, natural areas, education and more. That language opened the door for the recent "civic assembly," a more than $100,000 community discussion that resulted in the delegates recommending the property be multi-use, including a bike park feature.
However, a recently-submitted ballot proposal could void the assembly's recommendation.
A group of Fort Collins residents, including members of the organization known as "PATHS," are proposing the city change the original wording of the ordinance to rid of any mention of recreation, instead establishing the entire property as natural area.
While the level of support behind such an initiative is still being determined via signature collection, CBS News Colorado has learned such a change to the wording of the law could potentially impact the city's efforts to afford other properties desired for natural area designation.
"We absolutely hear from people moving to the area that the natural areas in this space and that greenery and pockets of quiet, opportunities to connect with nature, is absolutely one of the thing people love about Fort Collins," said Katie Donahue, director of the Natural Areas department in Fort Collins.
Donahue said, naturally, she loves hearing there is support in the city to expand natural area reach. The city has a goal to have natural areas accessible to all people within a 15 minute commute of wherever in Fort Collins they may be.
However, the department operates as opportunistic buyers, meaning they do not seek out properties to purchase. Instead, they wait for property owners to approach them with the opportunity.
Each year the city designates between $5 million and $7 million to the department for purchasing new property. If the Hughes property is successfully designated as entirely natural area, Donahue said that could alter the city's ability to obtain other properties.
"If the (Hughes) property becomes entirely a natural area, we expect the full debt cost of that to the Natural Areas Department would be around $14 million," Donahue said.
Donahue noted that anything around $14 million would likely result in the city not being able to purchase any other desired opportunistic properties for up-to three years.
Staying neutral on any decisions or votes, Donahue said she wants residents to make sure whatever decision they make was informed either way.
"We want to support what the community desires, at the Hughes property and all around town," Donahue said.
While the department does not seek out specific properties to purchase, Donahue said they have established a map with regions of the city in which they would ideally be able to obtain more land.
Donahue said that is because their primary obligation is to facilitate a better habitat and ecosystem of animals and plants, with access and pleasure to humans being their second priority.
"This particular area (around Hughes) was not identified in our foothills plan as being a high priority because we do have two large natural areas nearby, Maxwell and Pineridge," Donahue said.
While not identified in the desired plans for the department, Donahue said her staff would welcome incorporating the Hughes property into their portfolio if voters approved the proposed ballot measures.
However, the Hughes property currently features a disc golf course as well as a sledding hill. CBS News Colorado's Dillon Thomas asked if those activities would still be permitted on the land if it was transferred and redesignated as natural area. Donahue warned that those features could potentially be removed if the property is designated as natural area, noting that nearby Maxwell and Pineridge do not feature such off-trail recreation.
"It would be difficult for us to justify using natural area funds to pay for that type of infrastructure," Donahue said. "But the city is filled with creative problem solvers."
Donahue said any decision to transfer Hughes to natural area would not impact current properties in which the department is already in negotiations to purchase. However, she did say it could potentially prevent the city from obtaining more property along the Poudre River, which might interfere with their desires to connect already-owned natural areas.
In the end, residents will have to decide whether or not to put the future of Hughes on the ballot once again, and voters are also potentially going to vote on whether or not to continue the sales tax that helps fund the department from the start.
Donahue said she looks forward to finding out whether or not the initiatives will make the ballots, and if they do also learning which way voters go.
"I think there is going to be opportunity for people to get out and enjoy Hughes," Donahue said. "We can make any solution work, it is just a matter of the tradeoffs that come along with that."
CBS News Colorado reached out to the main organization behind the proposal to make Hughes a natural area seeking comment on this report.
Those with the PATHS organization said, in part:
"The City's own 'Foothills Management Plan - Update 2019' (updated again in January 2025) describes the importance of reducing wildlife habitat fragmentation to create vital interconnectivity between patches of habitat, for the conservation of our local foothills fauna and flora, which preserving Hughes would do."
PATHS also questioned Donahue's statement that the department's budget for obtaining more natural spaces would be impacted for several years, adding they believe the debt on the property would be significantly less as the city has worked to pay off the property in portion since obtaining it in 2021.
PATHS also said they believe the city has the power to further allocate more money to the Natural Areas Department if necessary, suggesting the department could also enter a payment plan with the city to make sure the funding isn't entirely accounted for just for Hughes.
"The opportunity to acquire and conserve land within Fort Collins is fast diminishing in the face of increasing development pressures within our city," the organization wrote. "We should make wise decisions now about protecting land within city limits while we can, before it's too late. The Fort Collins taxpayers have willingly decided to place a tax upon themselves to conserve lands as Natural Areas within our wonderful city for all to enjoy and experience freely."