GOLD HILL TOWN MEETING NEWSLETTER

Minutes of the August 10, 2015, Town Meeting

 Next Town Meeting is Monday, October 12, 2015, 7:30 p.m. at the Community Center.

In the absence of Chair Peter Swift and Vice-Chair Bear Carlson, Secretary Gretchen Diefenderfer called the meeting to order. Present were Valerie Conway, from Fourmile, Pam Sherman, Cherry and John Sand. Michael Albes, Treasurer Martha Knapp, Member-at-Large Tony Vrba, Gretchen, Donal Maloney, Bobby Vrba, Heidi Kessler, Richard Roth, Nancy Mason, Chrissy McCaul, and Mark Brown.

Minutes – Minutes were approved as published.

Treasurer’s Report – Martha reported that at the previous Town Meeting in June our bank balance was $12,802.85. The current bank balance is $12608.19. Funds held for us in trust at the Ward Church are $85.00 bringing our total cash assets (bank account and funds held in trust in Ward) to $12,693.19.

Activity since June includes expenses of $2018.31 from the General Fund for town cleanup dumpsters, pint glass and t-shirt printing. Revenue of $1823.65 included $200 for the Cemetery Fund and $1623.65 for the General Fund from town clean up donations and pint glass sales.

Current individual fund totals are as follows:

General Fund is $1,664.66; Cemetery Fund $3810.21; Community Relief $3,576.95 including monies held for us at the Ward Church; Forest Management $94.12; and Safe Link $3,547.25.

Fourmile Canyon – Valerie Conway was visiting from Fourmile to make a presentation for Save4MileCanyon.org on the proposed development by the County in Fourmile Canyon. She presented maps and the reasons many people are opposed to the plan and encouraged people to go to the website (Save4MileCanyon.org) for more information. She expressed that many residents as well as a number of bicyclists feel that the development will result in needless destruction, as the locations chosen were not even places that the flood impacted, and this development is ostensibly to make the road more resilient in flood conditions.  Furthermore, the proposals will result in these two areas to be treated becoming wider than most of the road (narrower to wider to narrower), which seems to many to be more dangerous. And, the entire damaged sections of the road could be repaved for the development of these 1.5 miles. She encouraged people to comment to the County.

For the County plans and information, go to http://www.bouldercounty.org/roads/plans/pages/fourmileproject.aspx

Elections – Next order of business was our annual election of Town Council Members, held at the August Town Meeting every year.

Gretchen reported that the present council members are more or less willing to serve another term, but she, in particular, would like to encourage any one to willing to be Secretary to step up – it’s fun and a great contribution. However, pleas for nominations brought only nominations for the present council members.

John nominated Peter Swift for Chair, seconded and elected unanimously.

Heidi nominated Bear Carlson for Vice-Chair, seconded by Michael, and elected unanimously

John nominated Gretchen for Secretary, seconded by Tony, and elected unanimously, except for Michael who voted nay.

Gretchen nominated Martha, seconded by Cherry and elected unanimously.

Tony was nominated for Member-at-Large, seconded, and elected unanimously, except for Bobby.

Committee Reports

      Community Planning/Trails – no report

Historical Zoning – Cherry reported that there is nothing new that they know of.

Forest Management – no report

Fire Department – Gretchen read an email from Bear reporting that the new PortaPotty has been delivered and now resides just east of the Fire Barn/Community Center. The Town Meeting is responsible for the PortaPotty and has signed a license from the Fire Board to that effect. Also, the SafeSite shed, thanks to Max and quite a few hunks borrowed from the bocce tournament, has been moved enough to provide the necessary access around the Fire Barn. Many thanks to everyone who has worked for all these years to make this happen!

Donal Maloney, Assistant Fire Chief gave an excellent report on the Fire Department – particularly our medical capabilities. He stressed that the fire department is not law enforcement and cannot make you, but it you think you have a potentially serious medical condition, we ask you to call 9-1-1. Serious means you might need advanced medical care or an ambulance. When someone calls 9-1-1, tones, followed by messages, come over our pagers. AMR (American Medical Response – the ambulance company) is toned simultaneously and they respond as well as our EMTs, First Responders, and firefighters. The Sheriff is notified and comes if needed – their job is to keep us safe (i.e., fights, etc.) – and we’ll call them off if they are not needed.

Our range of capabilities includes assessing and stabilizing the patient, providing oxygen, airway support, monitoring of vital signs, communicating with the incoming Ambulance, etc., and calling in mutual aid or a helicopter if needed. We also have an AED (Automatic External Defibrillator). Then we assist the ambulance personnel as needed, including sending a rider down with them if they need another helper. They can provide advanced care – I.Vs, medications, intubation, pain management. On a few occasions, we have arranged intercepts with the Ambulance when the situation called for it. They can load and go if it is truly an emergency and can run with lights and siren.

Next, he spoke of the risks of self-transport. In a stressful situation, it is inherently risky to have someone drive who is stressed, for 10 miles through a communication blackout area, and then across town. If the patient deteriorates, there are few good options. We do have an AED, we can provide airway support, oxygen, and can assist breathing. We did have one save – someone who would have died if we hadn’t arrived quickly and assisted his breathing. We can also control bleeding and can provide stabilization of broken limbs. EMTs and First Responders have their personal medical gear and can go directly to the scene in a private vehicle, with the fire department medical truck and AMR arriving asap.

An additional risk of self-transport is that, while you know what your emergency is, no one else does. Boulder Police don’t like it if you haul ass across town. You may get stopped, plus, if you cause an accident, it will be on you. Gretchen added that it is much better for AMR to run hot than for a private vehicle – it’s dangerous, they are trained for it, and they do have lights and sirens, as well as direct communications with the hospital.  There is usually an ambulance staged near Broadway and Mapleton and they can get to us faster than a private vehicle can get from Gold Hill out to Foothills Hospital.

You always have the right to refuse care (we will ask you to sign a release form), unless you are impaired by alcohol, drugs, or a head injury or are unconscious.

DON’T be afraid to call 9-1-1. We don’t mind being called even if we end up not being needed and neither does AMR. You will not be charged by AMR, if you are not transported.

ALSO, Fire Season is here. The grass is high and dry – it’s highly recommended that you cut your grasses out 30 feet or more. And, again, don’t hesitate to call 9-1-1 if you think you see smoke or flames – the sooner we know the better!

Campfires – The Forest Service is thin on coverage – many crews are out of town fighting the fires in the West, so now we have to respond more and are also patrolling. We have 5 gal. containers of water and will leave them for people who do not have enough water, and ask them to drop them off back to the Fire Barn. We’re not law enforcement, and there’s no burn ban. We can only advise people with campfires and offer water.

Plus, we’re always recruiting – there are lots of jobs besides firefighting and we can always use help. We do have a food committee who provides food for trainings. Donal wanted to publicly acknowledge them and thank them. Everyone loves the food. Cherry added that Joan Few is the leader and can always use more help.

Weed Management and IMA (Inter Mountain Alliance) – Pam did not have a weed report but wanted to report on the Inter Mountain Alliance (IMA). This group (originally called the Mountain Mayors Association) was formed about 6 months after the fire by Rebecca Lawrence of Ward to talk about emergency preparedness and how we mountain folks can help each other out. It now deals with whatever affects us all and meets once a month at the various communities. The last meeting was up here at our Community Center. They recently also had a special meeting regarding the recreational shooting issue. Amy Hardy (now the head of the IMA) and Karelle Scharf gathered the USFS, Garry Sanfacon from the County, Michelle Krysec from the County Commissioners office, and Deb Gardner, County Commissioner. People across the mountains are concerned because, although shooting is a use by right in the national forests, random shooting near homes, trails, and roads seems to be becoming more and more frequent and frightening. The Forest Service wants to create designated shooting areas in the mountains and, we have heard, then plans to close public lands east of the Peak to Peak for recreational shooting. The Forest Service wants to partner with the Counties to find the best places for designated shooting areas. Everyone wants to keep people safe. Public comments will be accepted until September 9 (Joshua Milligan: jmilligan@nullfs.fed.us). You are encouraged to be as detailed as possible – later on you will only be able to comment of topics you have already commented on. Other communities have sent in comments, which Pam suggested we might want to do, too. Boulder County is begging for suggestions for good sites – any ideas, please contact them – Garry Sanfacon at (gsanfacon@nullbouldercounty.org) or the County Commissioners.

Nancy reported that she commented early on and went to the Ranger Station today and got a map showing the various suggested sites – some more and some less suitable. The closest one to us looks like Ruby Gulch, close to the junction of the Gold Hill road and the Peak to Peak. The Ranger she spoke to was unsure if lands outside of the designated shooting areas would be prohibited, but Pam had heard that Boulder County is hoping that once designated shooting areas are developed, that random shooting will be prohibited outside of those areas..

There is a public meeting on Monday, August 31, from 5-7 at the Nederland Community Center and the Forest Service will be there.

Pam will contact Silvia Clark, USFS, for clarification about the closure or not of public lands east of the Peak to Peak for random shooting outside designated areas.

The GH Town Meeting did not seem to be up for having a Special Town Meeting to discuss this issue.

Historic Gold Hill – John reminded people that the Museum will close after Labor Day. Until then, they are open from 11-4 on weekends. They now have a lot of new information on the Quartz Lode, discovered by J.D. Scott, because his grandson turned up at the Museum and sent lots of information. John also reported that the Boulder Historical Museum has a wonderful old cash register (see the introduction page of the 2016 calendar) that was made to order for the Boyd Store, formerly on the southeast corner of the crossroads. Rick Sinner is trying to get it for our Museum and we will have it on loan next summer.

Mining – Gretchen reported that all seems to be quiet up at the Mill presently. She has heard that the latest investors are now out of the picture and Mark Steen will possibly be finishing up the fixing up and permitting processes.

Gold Hill School – Mishie emailed the following report: We are starting our first day of school of the 142nd year of operation on this August 20th, 2015. This school year is starting off with a bang, we already have a class of 17 in the 3-4-5 classroom and 12 students enrolled in the K-1-2 room, bringing us to a estimated total of 29 students! Yay! This year we will be continuing our ongoing experiential project based learning via the honeybee project, and ecology though fly fishing. These programs have been a fun and enriching experience for the children and families of the Gold Hill School. We just love how supportive and helpful our community has been. Big thanks to all of you! This spring we are planning to study life cycles by hatching chickens and ducks in the classroom too! This should be a very special experience and we can’t wait to share all our learning with our amazing community! If anyone you know has experience raising chicks and ducks and would like to share their expertise please feel free to contact the teachers.

Coming up soon, Living History Day, tentatively scheduled for Sept 11th, 2015. We will be on the look out for volunteers to share their knowledge of the history of Gold Hill with students from Gold Hill and Mesa Elementary in Boulder. Please keep an eye out for Gretchen’s news blasts for the upcoming information.

That’s about it for now… except… Thank you all for helping to keep off the grass… this wet Summer has been very helpful for growing some grass on our dirt field. Yay!

Thanks again to all!

Sincerely,

Mishie & Chrissy

Natalie Littlefield aka Mishie, Gold Hill School K-2 Teacher School- 720-561-5940

Chrissy added that they will only know how many students they have when the sit down at morning circle on August 20.

SafeLink – Pam reported that AirLink is now a formal club with officers, and the next meeting will be held at the Gold Hill Community Center.

Addendum: Dina sent an email reporting that the AirLink Amateur Radio Club is meeting in the Gold Hill fire barn this Wednesday, August 26 at 6pm.

OLD BUSINESS

Dog Issue – Peter is out of town, so he will report any follow up at the October Meeting. John reported that they have been hearing an incessant big dog barking after 11 at night. He was encouraged to go for a walk, find out whose dog it is, and talk to the people.

Potential Sale of South Meadow Update – Bear reported by email that David Brigham had reported that he has not heard anything from Frank Schmidt, but according to Boulder County Open Space, the family has not yet had an appraisal done. Someone in OS, is reported to have requested the staff to make it (i.e. OS purchase the land) happen, if at all possible. It would appear that our letter has had some effect.

501(c)4 to 501(c)3 Update – Gretchen reports that, after much research, she has completed the shorter IRS form (thank you John for turning her on to this 2 ½ page 1026 EZ form versus the 26 page 1026 form) and sent it off to Rich Lopez, our consulting attorney, for his opinion.

Conflict of Interest Policy – Gretchen requested that we authorize her to put together a policy and get it approved by Rich. We need one for the IRS 501(c)3 designation. Martha so moved, Chrissy seconded it, and it was approved.

NEW BUSINESS

Gold Hill Gold Rush – Our annual bake/rummage/craft sale will be held on Sunday, September 27, from 9-3. Tony handed out a draft flyer for suggestions. She has been working on advertising and will have a planning meeting at her house Monday evening, August 24 from 6 to 7. Please confirm if you are willing to help (Tony Vrba, 303-449-1154, tonyvrba@nullgmail.com).

She added that we only have 25 glasses left and thought we should order more. Cherry so moved, Michael seconded and it passed unanimously.

Respectfully Submitted, Gretchen Diefenderfer, Secretary