Boulder City Council
Open Space Board of Trustees
OSMP Staff
P.O. Box 791
Boulder, CO 80306
Open Space Board of Trustees
OSMP Staff
P.O. Box 791
Boulder, CO 80306
Re: Shanahan Acquisition
Date: October 13, 2008
The Boulder Area Trails Coalition (BATCO) has evaluated the proposed OSMP Shanahan acquisition and wishes to take this opportunity to offer our observations and recommendations.
1) We appreciate the historic, agricultural, aesthetic, and urban-shaping values that this property provides the City of Boulder, and we agree that it should be preserved from development.
2) Some level of protection from development was provided in 1983 when the City paid the Shanahan family $1.9 million for the “development rights.” It is rather surprising, therefore, that the City now feels the 1983 agreement is “too vague” and actually might not prevent more than the two building units it spells out. Yet the Shanahans have had the exclusive use of that $1.9 million, as well as the property itself, for the intervening 25 years.
3) It is our understanding that the property could not be subdivided into more than two building sites under any circumstances, due to state law and county regulations, without being annexed into the city (an unlikely occurrence).
4) Given these facts, the purchase price is of great concern. The city would be paying another $6.6 million to purchase the fee interest, bringing the current total net present value of the 179 acres to $10.72 million, or more than $60,000/acre. We would be interested in obtaining more information about the appraisal that the City may be relying on to justify this value, inasmuch as other very nice agricultural properties in nearby Boulder County are currently valued at approximately $30,000/acre.
It would be very surprising if a buyer other than the City were willing to pay such a high per-acre price for this property given that it already comes with a significant development rights restriction. Moreover, an open market buyer would demand immediate occupation of the property, whereas the City is allowing the Shanahans to remain as long as they wish –potentially another 30 years.
5) The proposed purchase price for this one property alone exceeds the value of all infrastructure improvements for the entire OSMP budget by a factor of 15!
6) We believe that the law of diminishing returns has begun to kick in – specifically, these acquisitions at ever-increasing prices may no longer be appropriate in terms of value delivered to the taxpayers of Boulder, because acquisitions by necessity come at the expense of long-deferred maintenance and new infrastructure such as trails and trailheads.
7) If, notwithstanding our strong concerns with the merit of this acquisition, Council still believes the purchase is warranted, we note that the Shanahan property offers several opportunities for passive recreational values. According to the City Charter, recreation should receive equal consideration with the other values mentioned in the OSMP agenda packet. Specifically, we would like to see a trail around the northwest rim of the property, which would offer spectacular views of the mountains, valley and plains, and would provide a meaningful loop and connection of the existing trails from Greenbriar Blvd at Fairview High School to the South Boulder Creek trailhead on Hwy 93. We would also like to ensure that the Shanahan property will facilitate long-sought trail connections across Hwy 93 to the existing (but currently dead-ended) South Boulder Creek Trail (see map attached).
8) We believe that these trails need not inconvenience the Shanahans and their agricultural operation for the duration of their tenure on the property.
We balk at the extraordinarily high price of this particular acquisition. If it is to be acquired, it should come with a commitment to reasonable public access in the near future.
Please feel free to contact us for more information. Thank you for considering our comments.
The BATCO Board of Directors
Date: October 13, 2008
The Boulder Area Trails Coalition (BATCO) has evaluated the proposed OSMP Shanahan acquisition and wishes to take this opportunity to offer our observations and recommendations.
1) We appreciate the historic, agricultural, aesthetic, and urban-shaping values that this property provides the City of Boulder, and we agree that it should be preserved from development.
2) Some level of protection from development was provided in 1983 when the City paid the Shanahan family $1.9 million for the “development rights.” It is rather surprising, therefore, that the City now feels the 1983 agreement is “too vague” and actually might not prevent more than the two building units it spells out. Yet the Shanahans have had the exclusive use of that $1.9 million, as well as the property itself, for the intervening 25 years.
3) It is our understanding that the property could not be subdivided into more than two building sites under any circumstances, due to state law and county regulations, without being annexed into the city (an unlikely occurrence).
4) Given these facts, the purchase price is of great concern. The city would be paying another $6.6 million to purchase the fee interest, bringing the current total net present value of the 179 acres to $10.72 million, or more than $60,000/acre. We would be interested in obtaining more information about the appraisal that the City may be relying on to justify this value, inasmuch as other very nice agricultural properties in nearby Boulder County are currently valued at approximately $30,000/acre.
It would be very surprising if a buyer other than the City were willing to pay such a high per-acre price for this property given that it already comes with a significant development rights restriction. Moreover, an open market buyer would demand immediate occupation of the property, whereas the City is allowing the Shanahans to remain as long as they wish –potentially another 30 years.
5) The proposed purchase price for this one property alone exceeds the value of all infrastructure improvements for the entire OSMP budget by a factor of 15!
6) We believe that the law of diminishing returns has begun to kick in – specifically, these acquisitions at ever-increasing prices may no longer be appropriate in terms of value delivered to the taxpayers of Boulder, because acquisitions by necessity come at the expense of long-deferred maintenance and new infrastructure such as trails and trailheads.
7) If, notwithstanding our strong concerns with the merit of this acquisition, Council still believes the purchase is warranted, we note that the Shanahan property offers several opportunities for passive recreational values. According to the City Charter, recreation should receive equal consideration with the other values mentioned in the OSMP agenda packet. Specifically, we would like to see a trail around the northwest rim of the property, which would offer spectacular views of the mountains, valley and plains, and would provide a meaningful loop and connection of the existing trails from Greenbriar Blvd at Fairview High School to the South Boulder Creek trailhead on Hwy 93. We would also like to ensure that the Shanahan property will facilitate long-sought trail connections across Hwy 93 to the existing (but currently dead-ended) South Boulder Creek Trail (see map attached).8) We believe that these trails need not inconvenience the Shanahans and their agricultural operation for the duration of their tenure on the property.
We balk at the extraordinarily high price of this particular acquisition. If it is to be acquired, it should come with a commitment to reasonable public access in the near future.
Please feel free to contact us for more information. Thank you for considering our comments.
The BATCO Board of Directors
