Next Town Meeting is Monday, December 10th, 2012, 7:30 p.m. at the Community Center.

The next Fire Board Meeting will be Thursday, November 15, 7:00 p.m. at the Community Center.

Our next MMM get-together is Thursday, November 8th at Bill Patterson’s home at 6:30 pm. Bill’s home is the dome home up the hill above Morning Sun.

For those not familiar with MMM (Miscellaneous Mountain Misfits), we have a monthly get-together (usually the first Thursday but can change by request of the host) at the home of one of the group. The idea is two-fold: (1) is that we do some writing (for 15-20 minutes) in response to a loose stimulus provided by Gold Hill Poet Laureate, John Latham or his stand-in, followed by a non-critical read-around of what has been written. This takes about 45 minutes, followed by short break and then: (2) a read-around, led by Edie Eilender, involving all people who care to read [for about 6 minutes per person maximum] some of their already-written prose or poetry, or writing by someone else. If, instead of reading, someone offers a song or two (Thanks Chance for October’s music), that is welcomed. There is no pressure on people to actively participate. Most attendees do, but some come simply to listen. The host provides some limited drink & snackies, and if attendees care to bring along a modest contribution to the drink or food, that is welcomed, too.

If questions or to let him know you are coming, please call Bill 303-459-0108 or Edie 303-444-0778

Notes on the September 20, 2012 Gold Hill Fire Protection District Board meeting

By Gretchen Diefenderfer.  For the official minutes, contact Dave Sturtz, Secretary,  at dave@nullsturtz.org.

NEXT FIREBOARD MEETING will be Thursday, October 18^th, 2010, 7:00 p.m. at the Community Center.

The meeting was called to order by President Donal Maloney.  Present were Donal, Dave Sturtz, Rick Geesaman, Chief Chris Finn, and Gretchen Diefenderfer.

Minutes of the last meeting were approved.

OLD BUSINESS

Cistern Easement  – is at the attorney’s office per suggestions in the language by Paul Robert’s attorney.

Board Training – They are looking at mid October.  The attorney will look at dates and get back to the board.

Banking – Chris has emailed the info on the account signers and hasn’t heard back from Adriana.  Donal will email her to remind her to get the information to Chris so he can get it to the bank.

Website – Dave has worked some on it (http://www.goldhillfire.org/).  It has the transparency notice on it although not much else.  He’ll keep plugging away on it.  The site that Adriana registered (http://goldhillfire.com/) still has some Word Press stuff on it and he has asked her to take it down.

NEW BUSINESS

Budget Process – It’s up and coming.  The board will be working on it for the next couple of months.  Chris will give the board spread sheets with their basic income – tax money, grant money and donations, as well as expenses for the last couple of years.  They budget high so if they get additional money so they can spend or save it without going through a re-budgeting process with the State.  He has to get ahold of DOLA.  The tax base went down and because of Tabor, etc., and the State 5% rule, our mill levy, which was 7.499 has been adjusted down to 7.47.  The tax base was ratcheted down because of the fire and once it goes down, it can’t go up without a vote.

Chris puts the basic budget together for the board to work on, but he would like more input from the board.  The building needs a fair amount of work.

Grant – Kris Gibson will get the figures on the SCBA Grant and our required match.

Melodrama – He has heard from Maggie that they will getting donations from the Melodrama performance.

Training – There was a good training last week on pumps and some motivated new trainees.  They really need everyone to show up for at least ½ of the trainings.  Calls are a team effort and it helps to have trained together.

Google Calendar – Dave Sturtz will set up a Google Calendar and put a link on the website to it. Trainings are the 4^th Thursday (classroom training in the evening) and the second Saturday  (hands on training in the daytime) of each month.  The email list should also be working now.

Chris added that there will be a change in the training schedule in November – car fire and extrication training will be on Nov. 29^th.

They have a new chief in Sunshine – Steve Waltman – he is actually a rocket. scientist.

7:00 PM, Oct. 8 Gold Hill Historic Zoning Committee meeting just before the Town Meeting for the purpose of filling 2 vacancies on the Committee.

The GHHZ Committee serves in an advisory capacity to home owners who want to make changes to their property before submitting plans to Boulder County for permitting IF permitting is necessary.  Gold Hill, as a whole, has done a good job at self regulating and maintaining our historic appearance and we want to keep it that way.  It is vital that we continue self determination and not let the County do it for us.  SO… Please consider volunteering for one of the vacancies on the GHHZ Committee.  Call me!  Cherry Sand 303-443-2543

Our next MMM get-together is Thursday, October 11th at Brandt & Surya Parker’s home at 6:30 pm.  As you head down Sawmill, you can see their home on the right with parking down along the drive.

For those not familiar with MMM (Miscellaneous Mountain Misfits), we have a monthly get-together (usually the first Thursday but can change by request of the host)at the home of one of the group. The idea is two-fold: (1) is that we do some writing (for 15-20 minutes) in response to a loose stimulus provided by Gold Hill Poet Laureate, John Latham or his stand-in, followed by a non-critical read-around of what has been written. This takes about 45 minutes, followed by short break and then: (2) a read-around, led by Edie Eilender, involving all people who care to read [for about 6 minutes per person maximum] some of their already-written prose or poetry, or writing by someone else. If, instead of reading, someone offers a song or two, that is welcomed. There is no pressure on people to actively participate. Most attendees do, but some come simply to listen. The host provides some limited drink & snackies, and if attendees care to bring along a modest contribution to the drink or food, that is welcomed, too.

If questions or to let him know you are coming, please call Brandt 303-459-0514 or Edie 303-444-0778

Hey Gold Hill Folks,

If you read my Forest Health Outreach email update from yesterday you might have noticed that we are offering two free community chipping events as part of October Wildfire Awareness Month. Both of these events are in really close proximity to residents in the Gold Hill area.

• The first event on Saturday Oct. 6. will be offered at Left Hand Fire’s Station # 4, 7300 Left Hand Canyon Drive.
• The second event on Saturday Oct. 13 will be offered at Fourmile Fire’s “Logan Mill” Fire Station at 9 Logan Mill Road.

Can each of you help spread the word about these FREE chipping events? I attached a flier which includes specific details for each event. Feel free to print, email, put on sandwich boards and wave at passing cars… what ever it takes to spread the word. FYI – Please make sure to take a close look at each flier since we have strict requirements on what we will and won’t accept at these events.

These are “You haul it, we chip it” type events.  They are a great FREE opportunity to get rid of slash from your fire mitigation and bark beetle projects. Hope to see you there!

Cheers,
Ryan

Ryan Ludlow | Forestry Education & Outreach Coordinator 
Boulder County | Land Use Department
P.O. Box 471, Boulder CO 80306
O: 720.564.2641 | F: 303.441.4856
rludlow@nullbouldercounty.org | www.bouldercounty.org/ForestHealth
*Please visit our website to sign-up to for our Forest Health Outreach email communication list. Learn about upcoming forestry community meetings, wildfire mitigation, bark beetle management tips and more!

For even more info go to http://www.bouldercounty.org/property/forest/pages/foresthealthevents.aspx

Next Town Meeting is Monday, October 8, 2012, 7:30 p.m. at the Community Center.

Next Fire Board Meeting will be Thursday, September 20, 2012, 7:00 p.m. at the Community Center

A Call for Volunteers!

Looking for 15-20 hard working individuals willing to work on the steep drainages near the town of Salina to help mitigate future flood/debris flow risks for residents living in the Fourmile Canyon burn area.  Volunteers can expect heavy lifting on uneven ground as we will be constructing check dams in water drainages.  Project is on Sept. 22^nd from 8:30am to 12:30pm.  If interested, please contact Amy Hardy at 303-895-3418 or ahardy@nullunitedwayfoothills.org. This project is sponsored by Four Mile Fire and Foothills United Way.

Amy Hardy
Fourmile Recovery Resource Coordinator
Foothills United Way
1285 Cimarron Drive, Suite 101
Lafayette, CO 80026
United States
Phone: 303-444-4013
Fax:     303-444-2620
303-895-3418
AHardy@nullunitedwayfoothills.org
http://unitedwayfoothills.org

GIVE.ADVOCATE.VOLUNTEER.

LIVE UNITED™

Sheriff Pelle Orders Outdoor Fire Ban
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Tomorrow (August 31, 2012) at 12:00 p.m., Sheriff Joe Pelle will enact a fire ban for the mountain areas of unincorporated Boulder County. Colorado is currently experiencing one of the driest summers in history. The fire danger has been increasing rapidly over the course of the last several weeks, and the moisture content in large fuels, (logs and trees), has fallen to dangerous levels. The forecast continues to call for high temperatures and minimal precipitation.

The Fire Ban allows for:

Fire contained within liquid or gas fuel stoves

Campfires in USFS improved/maintained campgrounds that are currently open to the public

Charcoal grill fires on private lands

http://www.fs.usda.gov/arp

The fire ban will remain in effect until the hazardous fire conditions subside.

Detective Commander Rick Brough
Boulder County Sheriff’s Office
303-441-3631

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From David Brigham <death_party@nullhotmail.com>

To Be Ore Not To Be…A Melodrama in Two Acts

When:  September 9, 2012 at 4 pm, in the Beer Garden of the Gold Hill Inn

              And

              September 16, 2012 at 3 pm, in the Barn of the Colorado Mountain Ranch

JOIN THE CAST AND CREW OF “TO BE ORE NOT TO BE” FOR A COMIC FUN-FILLED AFTERNOON OF VERY MELLOW DRAMA, WHERE THE HERO GETS HIS GIRL, THE VILLIAN CACKLES BEHIND HIS CAPE, AND THE WIND WILL BLOW YOU AWAY. GOOD OL’ FASHIONED FAMILY FUN.

FREE SHOW –

DONATIONS WILL BE TAKEN FOR THE GOLD HILL AND WARD FIRE DEPARTMENTS ON SEPTEMBER 9^TH

AND FOR THE COLORADO MOUNTAIN RANCH SCHOLARSHIP FUND ON SEPTEMBER 16^TH.

 ###

Our next MMM get-together is Thursday, September 6th at Jack & Linda Laughlin’s home at 6:30 pm.  Look for the bright yellow Airstream in the driveway.  It is the private drive at the SE corner at the intersection of 4-mile, Lick Skillet, Horsfal, and Main St.  Call Laughlins if questions at 303-444-2137.

For those not familiar with MMM (Miscellaneous Mountain Misfits), we have a monthly get-together (usually the first Thursday but can change by request of the host)at the home of one of the group. The idea is two-fold: (1) is that we do some writing (for 15-20 minutes) in response to a loose stimulus provided by Gold Hill Poet Laureate, John Latham or his stand-in, followed by a non-critical read-around of what has been written. This takes about 45 minutes, followed by short break and then: (2) a read-around, led by Edie Eilender, involving all people who care to read [for about 6 minutes per person maximum] some of their already-written prose or poetry, or writing by someone else. If, instead of reading, someone offers a song or two, that is welcomed. There is no pressure on people to actively participate. Most attendees do, but some come simply to listen. The host provides some limited drink & snackies, and if attendees care to bring along a modest contribution to the drink or food, that is welcomed, too.

If questions, please call Edie 303-444-0778 or Marie at 303-444-4691.
Hope to see you there.

.

Gold Hill Gold Rush (Our annual Bake Sale/Rummage Sale/Craft Fair)

It’s that time again and this year we are having our fundraising day on Sunday, September 16^th in the Beer Garden of the Inn.  Brian has very kindly given his permission for us to use the space for our event.

We will begin the “Rush” at 8 am for setup and the event will begin at 9 am.  This year we will be ending early to accommodate, “back by popular demand”  the Melodrama that we saw earlier this summer at the Inn’s 50th Reunion Celebration, and which will begin at 3 pm at the ranch.  If you haven’t seen it, make sure you do.  It’s terrific and lots of fun and interactive.  In order to make sure that we can all get there, we’ll be ending the “Rush” at 1:30 pm.  That will allow us to completely clean up the Beer Garden and remove any remaining items and get to the ranch on time.

Additionally, we will not be having a raffle this year but we will be having lots of great crafters, brats and beverages, live music, baked goods and hot coffee, and lots of things for you to purchase.  Remember, this is our only fund raiser for the year for the Gold Hill Town Meeting.

IF YOU HAVE THINGS TO DONATE….please set aside Saturday, September 15^th as the day to do that.  This year we will be screening the items that are brought to us to make sure that they are sellable and of good enough quality to offer up.  In past years we’ve had a tremendous amount of things that you’ve offered; however, much of it didn’t sell and we’ve had to find people who will happily load up their trucks and take it to Boulder thrift shops.  We’re trying to avoid having to do too much of this and therefore are staging your items on Saturday.  Please bring what you have to the home of Debra and Max Yeager, 1225 Pine Street (last house on west Pine) on Saturday, September 15^th between noon and 6 pm.  There will be a group of us culling the donations and loading them on a trailer for delivery on Sunday morning to the Beer Garden.  WE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTING DONATIONS ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 16^th AT THE EVENT (except for baked goods, of course).  If you can’t make it on that Saturday, call Debra and Max at 303 449 0454, and she’ll set up a time to bring over your things for storage in their garage.

Mark your calendars.  This promises to be another great event.  We need volunteers for driving materials to Boulder on Monday, September 17^th, loading vehicles on Sunday, cleaning up, setting up, baking goods, etc.

For information on volunteering, call Debra at 303 449 0454 or on her cell at 303 881 7665.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  August 14, 2012  Contact: Dan Rowland, 303-441-3399

County offering wildfire mitigation trainings

Boulder County, Colo. – As part of its Forest Health Initiative, Boulder County has partnered with the Colorado State Forest service to offer a series of wildfire mitigation workshops for residents interested in learning more about creating defensible space around their homes.

The “Keys to Creating and Maintaining Effective Defensible Space” trainings present lessons learned from the Fourmile Canyon Fire and other recent fires and give participants concrete steps to take to prepare their homes and forests for future fires.

The trainings will be held at three locations throughout the county:

• Fourmile Canyon Area

Where: Atone Atrium at Boulder Mountain Lodge, 91 Fourmile Canyon Drive

Sponsor: Four Mile Fire Protection District

• Lyons Area

When: Tuesday Aug. 28, 6:30-8:30 p.m. (tentative)

Where: Lyons Fire Station # 1, 251 Broadway

Sponsors: Lyons Fire Protection District

• Lefthand Canyon Area

When: Thursday, Sept. 6, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where: Jamestown Town Hall, 118 Main St.

Sponsors: Jamestown and Left Hand fire protection districts, Town of Jamestown

Presentations will be given by Boulder County and Colorado State Forest Service staff and local firefighters will be available to answer questions.

The program focuses on the findings of Dr. Jack Cohen, who for the past two decades has been studying how structures ignite during wildfires. His research shows that landowners who take precautionary action can dramatically increase the likelihood of their homes surviving the next fire.

For more information about upcoming trainings and forest management, please visit www.bouldercounty.org/foresthealth or contact Ryan Ludlow at 720-564-2641 or pinebeetle@nullbouldercounty.org.

-BoulderCounty.org-

Next Fire Board Meeting will be Thursday, August 16, 2012, 7:00 p.m. at the Community Center.

Hi there! Can you help me spread the word to mountain artisans about an event on Sunday Aug 26th? Please forward this to people who may want to have a booth …..
On Sunday, Aug. 26, from noon to 4 PM, Historic Boulder is sponsoring a Walking Tour of Historic Gold Hill. This is a fund raising event for them.
We are planning an art/craft/artisan food sale in either the side yard of the Gold Hill Inn or across the street. If you would like to participate, please let me know. There is NO BOOTH FEE, but you will need to bring your own pop up tent, table & chairs. Participants can keep all the proceeds of their sales or can donate a portion to the Gold Hill Town Meeting.
Historic Boulder is planning for a turnout of 150-200 people.
Setup is from 10-11:30am. Event starts at noon and all are encouraged to wear old timey clothing.
Please let me know at your earliest convenience if you can participate.
Thank you!
Joanne Cole
303-443-7459
jocole420@nullgmail.com

Historic Boulder is sponsoring a Walking Tour of Historic Gold Hill on Sunday, Aug. 26, from noon to 4 PM, . This is a fund raising event for them, and a great opportunity for all bakers, artists and crafts people of Gold Hill and nearby area to display and sell their wares. Historic Boulder is planning for a turnout of 150-200 people. Participants can keep all the proceeds of their sales, or can donate a portion to the Gold Hill Town Meeting to help the community meet its needs.
Participants can set up their sales areas on the front porch of the Bluebird Lodge or in the beer garden area of the Gold Hill Inn. Setup has to be completed by 11:330 AM, and all are encouraged to wear old timey clothing.
Please respond to John Sand (303-443-2543; jocher_sand@nullhotmail.com) as soon as possible to let him know if you wish to participate so appropriate plans can be made.

GOLD HILL TOWN MEETING NEWSLETTER

Minutes of the June 11th, 2012, Town Meeting

Next Town Meeting is Monday, August 13th, 2012, 7:30 p.m. at the Community Center.   ELECTIONS!

Chair Amy Hardy called the meeting to order.  Nineteen people were there: Carlos Boveres and Pamela Maston (summer visitors), Kris Gibson, Pam Sherman, Steffi Wilson, Kelley Kohl, Karen Simmons, Bobby Vrba, Debra Yeager, Adriana Galue, Susan Fernalld, Bear Carlson, Michael Albes, Bret Gibson, Edie Eilender, Amy Hardy, Gretchen Diefenderfer, Mark Jordahl and Kristin Cannon attended.

Minutes– Minutes of the April 19^th meeting were amended.  The Forest Mgmt. discussion was corrected to say that the Fire Ban signage at the Firebarn was not very noticeable (not the Fire Danger Rating sign).  The minutes were than approved.

Treasurer’s Report – Adriana reports that our current balance is $20,085.90.  A full accounting is available in the Town of Gold Hill website (https://goldhilltown.com/)

Fire Fund                        13,331.10                        Cemetery Fund            3,595.20

General Fund                          2,433.30                        Community Planning                 82.00

Forest Mgmt                               75.20                        Weed Mgmt                           526.70

Historic Zoning                   11.20                        Trails                                         31.30

Expenses from the General Fund included $154.40 for Web hosting/domain and $30.00 for the Safety deposit box.  Income into the Cemetery Fund included $33.00 from Luzie Mason.  There were no changes in the other funds since the last report.

Guest Speakers – Our normal agenda was changed to allow 2 guest speakers – Kristin Cannon from the Colorado Division of Wildlife and Bret Gibson, Chief of the Fourmile Department – to make presentations before our regular committee reports commenced.

Kristin Cannon, Colo. Div. of Wildlife, came mainly to talk about dealing with bears and to answer any questions.  It could be a bad year for bear activity.  It’s been dry and their food sources are diminished, so we could see more conflicts.  A shed might not be adequate protection for garbage, for instance.  She recommends we all be extra cautious.

If a bear is coming close repeatedly or has gotten into buildings or a house, we need to take action.  Please contact her: Phone 303-291-7117, cell 303-877-6094, or email kristin.cannon@nullstate.co.us.  They have rubber buckshot as well as an electric mat or a mat with nails (an un-welcome mat).  They can supply a fact sheet on how to build these and have some to lend.  We need to create a negative association for the bear.  In answer to Kris Gibson’s question, she said that,“Yes, if nothing bad happens, bear activity can escalate.”  Bears do tend to be afraid of dogs, but will attack if cornered.  We could consider electric fencing also.  They apparently don’t like the smell of ammonia – soaked rags may work to repel them.  Bears are what Pepper Spray was designed for, but it’s for a very close bear.  Deb Yeager has heard that red pepper flakes can be added to bird food – the birds don’t mind, but bears do.

Kris asked where do they draw the line on putting a bear down.  If a person is injured, probably, or if a bear breaks into a house they will want to trap them.  Relocation in our area is not practical.  If you really don’t want a bear trapped, do all you can to not attract one.  This includes garbage, birdfeeders, hummingbird feeders, or food left out for dogs, etc.

Regarding fox, they do get habituated to people.  They are probably healthy if they are alert and active.  If one has distemper, it will be drunk looking.  Don’t feed them!  It’s not specifically illegal, but it is not legal to put out food and could attract coyotes and bears as well.

Rabies?  Bats transmit rabies from bat to bat, and they have seen skunks in Larimer and Weld Counties with rabies, but not in Boulder County.  She has not heard of any others except bats.

Bret Gibson. Fourmile Fire Chief, came to talk about SafeSite, our community evacuation plan, and to express support from Fourmile.  Gold Hill has been awarded a Tuffshed® to store emergency equipment in.  Mike Chard of OEM wrote a grant for us because we are in a position for possibly cold, wet, muddy, upset people to evacuate to Gold Hill from lower areas, i.e., Fourmile, which could have a lot of people needing a place to go in case of flooding/debris flows, or some other emergency. The barn is now wired with a powerful antenna for our local ham radio organizations (BCARES = Boulder County Amateur Radio Emergency System, as well as MERN = Mountain Emergency Radio Network) to help with communication – a great secondary system.  Bret stressed that the Fourmile Fire Department can handle 99% of incidents and initial attacks.  In an evacuation, however, it takes a day to set up the Red Cross, so the idea was developed to have a place uphill – SafeSite – for people to go, be safe and warm, and to get information. “So, your SafeSite rocks!”

The Incident Action Plan predicts possible flooding for 5 to 10 years in the burn area.  He is making a donation to our SafeSite effort of $200.00.  Our efforts at a community level to preplan for floods after a fire are a novel idea and getting attention at a national level.  There were 3 recipients of the Tuffsheds: Gold Hill, Ward, and Sunshine at Fire Station 2.  He said, however, it’s not the building, but the people who are willing to show up.  They are working on activation protocols – how we’re called and how we’ll need to respond.  Lots of others have volunteered to provide food and houses to stay in also.  People could need a place for more than 6 hours.  Another Safesite meeting will be called when the supplies arrive and the protocols are set up.

Pam Sherman expressed thanks to Amy and Deb for their efforts as well as BCARES and Fourmile.

Bret added that there are 25 people trained as ham radio operators and there will be another training here if more people are interested.  The ham radio network lost Federal support in 1990 because it was thought that cellular communication would take its place.  Than 9/11 happened and all the cell calls collapsed the system.  The ham world has had an amazing rebirth.  Chris Finn donated all the old fire radios to the effort.  And we also have a high-powered generator to power the Firebarn and the ham radio antenna.

Bret then gave us a rundown on the High Park Fire.

SafeSite – Amy reported that the Mountain Mayors Meeting (Gold Hill, Nederland, Ward, Jamestown, etc.) meets monthly to continue emergency preparedness planning and it’s been going well.

She added that she would like to structure SafeSite under the Town Meeting, appoint a committee, and use the Community Center.  We will probably need a bank of lights stored in the shed and there may be a few more costs.  The donation from Fourmile would be kept in a separate fund in the town account.  We will need a toilet we can use.  We are not allowed to use the bathroom in the Firebarn downstairs because of liability issues.  Her goal is to go to a Fire Board meeting and present a number of solutions – perhaps a portable toilet in the interim – an outhouse on top of the cistern has been suggested as well as an entrance to the bathroom from the back of the Firebarn.  Gretchen moved that we put SafeSite under the Gold Hill Town Meeting as a standing committee and keep all funds in a separate fund.  Bear seconded and it passed unanimously.

Community Planning & Trails – no report.

Historical Zoning – Bear reports that there is no activity.  The Brookharts are still in limbo.

Forest Management/CWPP – Kris reports that she is reaching out to Boulder County for map support to update our CWPP and there has been some progress.  The next USFS fuels reduction project is out at the Switzerland trail and County 52 around the Fen.  There will be another date set up to meet with US Forest Service Forester Kevin Zimlinghaus,  and to meet the new District Ranger, Sylvia Clark.

Fire Department – Gretchen will have her notes out soon. Adriana reports that she has created a new website for the FD, because the old one collapsed, as well as Twitter and Facebook accounts and a new mailing list.  She also added links from other FDs that should be helpful.  It’s in a WordPress format under goldhillfire.org. The new board is working to get organized.  They have changed the meeting time to 7:00 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month.  She wants to bring up an initiative to have their minutes posted on their website.  She encouraged people to show up at FB meetings.  She supports the use of this space, the Community Center, as an important asset to this town.

It is still unclear how public input will be handled, but the fireboard is a governmental entity there to serve the people.  Board members can put any item on the agenda.

Bear added that he has been helping Kris with grant writing.  They are re-writing the grant for SCBA.  They got some good help from Ted Young, a representative of FEMA and are pretty optimistic.

Weed Management – Susan reports that the money in the weed fund is from selling wildflower seeds (cheers).  Steffi reports that Dan Gretz has received word from Ryan Ludlow, BoCo Forestry Education and Outreach Coordinator, that we have received a chipping grant of $3000.00 toward 40% of chipping costs.

Deb inquired about weeding the town garden in front of the Firebarn.  Susan answered that 3 of us “old ladies” had been doing it and had turned it over to the FD.  Chris has found someone, John Merims, to do it this year and Chris will wet the area down so it can be weeded.  She added that there are lots of weeds in the fire area, but also lots of native plants have recovered.  For weed questions call Susan: 447-0634.

Historic Gold Hill – Gretchen reports that we’re aiming for 4^th of July for the GH calendar.

Mining – Gretchen reports that she ran into Mark Steen at the Mill and asked him what’s happening up there now, but he’s not talking.

GH School – no report.

OLD BUSINESS

Town Clean-up – Gretchen reports that it’s scheduled for Sunday, June 24^th.  Amy, Steffi and Susan volunteered to help.

Welcome Bucket – Deb reports that she’s put together lots of information, coupons, an ornament from Nancy Mason, a sesquicentennial travel mug, mints from Deb St.Clair, and hot sauce from Leland and Caroline.  The Gold Hill Club has donated $100 toward the effort.  She asked how far back she should go to identify new people for the buckets and it was decided that anyone who came here in 2011 and 2012 should receive one.  Deb thanked Caroline for the artwork, and we all thank Deb for her initiative and hard work.

Cemetery – Karen brought up the need to repair the fence and the sign.  Kris said she will contact Bob Walter, Chair of the Cemetery Committee, and let him know this will come up at the next GHTM.

NEW BUSINESS

SafeSite – Amy is researching the liability limits of our current policy for the Community Center.  She will be bring SafeSite and other uses of the Community Center, as well as options for public facilities, to the Fireboard.  The Town Meeting has expressed willingness to contribute to upkeep and costs for the Community Center, and she will bring this up again, too.  Our information is that the SafeSite project cannot happen in the School because of liability issues.  Her goal is an amiable working relationship between the board and the town.  Another suggested potential town contribution to the FD included a recycling system.  It was suggested that the entrance to the CC is dangerous and slippery in the winter and if the exit were changed to the South vs. the North, it would melt out better.

Chainsaw Class – Kris announced that there would be a chainsaw class here in Gold Hill on Aug. 4.  Contact Kris for information.

Community Center Floor – Michael brought up that last summer he recommended the floor be repainted.  It was decided to do this with volunteers, which has not happened, so he would propose that we hire professionals to get it done.  This is another issue that needs to be brought to the Fireboard.

Respectfully submitted, Gretchen Diefenderfer, Secretary