Parks & Recreation News
Nov. 12, 2009 - Tree work underway at Valmont City Park
The Parks and Recreation Department recently began tree pruning and removal work at Valmont City Park (located north and east of Valmont and Airport roads) to improve public safety in preparation for development of a bike park, disc golf course and dog park. [More]
Boulder Parks and Recreation holiday schedule
Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 26)
- Closures: Administrative offices, Iris Studio, Recreation centers, Pottery Lab, Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Flatirons Golf Course open until 2 p.m.
Thanksgiving Friday (Friday, Nov. 27)
- Closure: Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Recreation Centers open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Open regular hours: Administrative offices, Iris Studio, Pottery Lab, Flatirons Golf Course
Christmas Eve (Thursday, Dec. 24)
- Closures: Iris Studio, Pottery Lab, Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Recreation centers open until 1:30 p.m., Administrative offices open from 8 a.m. to noon
- Open regular hours: Flatirons Golf Course
Christmas Day (Friday, Dec. 25)
- Closures: Administrative offices, Iris Studio, Recreation centers, Pottery Lab, Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Flatirons Golf Course open until 2 p.m.
New Year's Eve (Thursday, Dec. 31)
- Closures: Iris Studio, Pottery Lab, Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Recreation centers open until 1:30 p.m., Administrative offices open from 8 a.m. to noon
- Open regular hours: Flatirons Golf Course
New Year's Day (Friday, Jan. 1)
- Closures: Administrative offices, Iris Studio, Recreation centers, Pottery Lab, Reservoir
- Open with revised hours: Reservoir will be open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the plunge event only.
- Open regular hours: Flatirons Golf Course
2009_Holiday Facility_Schedule
Boulder Parks and Recreation employee, Jennifer Heilveil, recognized as Colorado Therapeutic Recreation Specialist of the Year
Boulder Parks and Recreation Therapeutic Recreation Coordinator, Jennifer Heilveil, was recognized as Colorado Therapeutic Recreation Specialist of the Year on Sept. 29, 2009 by the Colorado Parks and Recreation Association (CPRA).
Each year, members of the Colorado Therapeutic Recreation Section (CTRS) of CPRA, nominate colleagues for their outstanding work and effort in the field of therapeutic recreation. Therapeutic recreation serves individuals with short- and long-term disabilities. Of those nominated, a committee ultimately selects the final winner.
"This is an outstanding acknowledgement of Jen's tireless contribution to our community," said City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Director Kirk Kincannon. "Colorado has a number of fine therapeutic recreation programs and staff members, so it is quite an honor for her to receive this prestigious award."
Some of Heilveil's recent projects and accomplishments with the EXPAND program include:
- Working on groundbreaking opportunities to provide recreation services to injured military service personnel in the Boulder community and organizing a major kick-off event for the program, which included many Paralympic team members and medalists;
- Establishing the City of Boulder's Parks and Recreation Department as the first site for a Paralympic Sport Club in Colorado;
- Coordinating a new track and field program for people with physical disabilities, which resulted in the first ever non-elite wave of wheelchair athletes entering the Bolder Boulder;
- Launching the first power soccer program in Boulder. Power soccer allows individuals using power wheelchairs to participate in a competitive sport.
- Helping the first-ever group of athletes with physical disabilities compete in a triathlon in Parker, Colorado.
Heilveil has raised more than $35,000 in grants in support of these programs.
For more information, call Colleen Fitzgerald, Parks and Recreation, at 303-413-7216.
Prairie dog mitigation at Foothills Community Park
Parks and Recreation staff observations indicate that prairie dog colonies to the north and west of Foothills Community Park, 800 Cherry Ave., are expanding. Prairie dogs have encroached into the nearby detention pond and are close to entering the multi-use fields of the park. Staff has observed new burrow expansion at an average rate of 12 feet per day over the past two weeks. [More]
18 holes of golf including cart $29 - $34
Take advantage of Flatirons Golf Course specials. Book your tee time online and pay $29 per golfer Monday through Thursday and $34 Friday through Sunday. [More]
Boulder Parks and Recreation youth tennis players win at USTA State Championships
Members of the City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department's Boulder youth tennis team recently competed at the 2009 United States Tennis Association (USTA) State Championships, taking home four state championships and three state finalist awards. [More]
Tennis court resurfacing
The City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department is resurfacing its tennis courts this summer and next spring. The work will cause temporary access restrictions. [More]
Flatirons Golf Course joins Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program
The city's Flatirons Golf Course recently received certification in Environmental Planning from the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses (ACSP). This international program administered by Audubon International helps existing golf courses preserve and enhance the environmental quality of their property.
By participating in the ACSP, Flatirons Golf Course will be involved in projects that enhance wildlife habitat and preserve natural resources for the benefit of the local community. These projects may include placing nesting boxes for birds, utilizing advanced integrated pest management techniques, conserving water and maintaining natural sources of food and cover for wildlife.
Now that Flatirons' Environmental Plan has been accepted, the facility will apply for certifications in Wildlife and Habitat Management; Chemical Use Reduction and Safety; Water Conservation; Water Quality Management; Outreach and Education - once we have the data to demonstrate we've met the minimum requirements for each category. Once all certifications are obtained, the golf facility will be recognized as a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary. We anticipate this designation to be obtained by the fall of 2010.
The course will also be promoting the Green Golfer Challenge beginning in July. For more information on this, please visit: www.audubongreengolfer.com.
Information: Doug Cook, Flatirons Golf Course facilities manager, 303-442-7851.
Valmont City Park receives GoCo grant
The Parks and Recreation Department has received a grant of $200,000 from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) for Valmont City Park. The department will apply the grant towards Phase I construction of the park's natural-surface bike park on the north side of Valmont Road.
The Parks and Recreation Department applied for the grant in February 2009, in partnership with the Boulder Mountainbike Alliance (BMA) and Bikes Belong. The Parks and Recreation Department was selected to receive the grant on June 18, 2009, along with 25 other recipients, from 45 applications to the State Board of the Great Outdoors Colorado Trust Fund. The grant funds will be used to supplement existing capital funding allocated for this park development.
Information: Perry Brooks, parks planner with the Parks and Recreation Department, 303-413-7226.
Bike rack dedication ceremony at North Boulder Recreation Center in honor of Matthew Sawyer
A bike rack dedication ceremony was held on Tuesday, June 23 at the North Boulder Recreation Center. The rack was dedicated in honor Matthew Sawyer, a Parks and Recreation employee who passed away in March, who was passionate about alternate modes of transportation and encouraged co-workers and patrons to walk, bike and bus to work. The ceremony was part of Bike to Work Month.
[About Matt Sawyer]
Boulder Parks and Recreation is now on Twitter
The Boulder Parks and Recreation Department has opened a Twitter account to send updates about Boulder Parks and Recreation news and events.
New mural at the Boulder Reservoir clubhouse
Casey Middle School students, along with artist-in-residence Maria Neary, designed and created a 5 ft. x 8.5 ft. tile mural for the Boulder Reservoir. Ninety students, along with art teacher Molly Hoverstock, participated in the project that took place at Casey in December 2008.
This is the fourth mural project and the largest undertaking that Casey students have created for various locations around Boulder. The theme of the Boulder Reservoir mural incorporates issues around water protection, recreation opportunities and wildlife that make their habitat at the reservoir. Students learned valuable lessons working together and saw what it takes to create art for a public space. Jen Haley of Haley Arts installed the mural. The project was funded by an Arts in Education grant from the City of Boulder Arts Commission, with additional funding support from Roche Colorado and the Colorado Business Bank.
Boulder Parks and Recreation boys gymnastics team members receive academic awards; qualify for regional championships
Six members of the City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department's Boulder Flyers boys gymnastics team have received first team USA Gymnastics Academic All-American awards for 2009. [More]
Sakura Project cherry trees planted at Scott Carpenter Park
Volunteers from the Sakura Project and City of Boulder Parks and Recreation staff planted 30 Yoshino cherry trees at Scott Carpenter Park on May 2, 2009. Boulder City Council Members Angelique Espinoza, Lisa Morzel and Ken Wilson attended.
The trees were planted in locations along the Boulder Creek Path and along Arapahoe Avenue.
The Boulder Sakura Project began in 2006 with a group of volunteers who share the dream of admiring Sakura cherry blossoms every spring in Boulder. Since 2006, 110 cherry trees have been planted in Boulder as part of the Sakura project.
In April 2008, Sakura Project volunteers and Parks and Recreation staff added 35 new Somei Yoshino cherry trees in and around Central Park and the Municipal building, and replaced several trees that were damaged during the winter. Sakura Project volunteers also introduced an Adopt-A-Tree program to help Boulder residents adopt cherry trees in their own yards.
Boulder named Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation for 25 years
The City of Boulder has been named a Tree City USA community by the Arbor Day Foundation to honor its commitment to community forestry. It is the 25th year Boulder has received this national recognition.
Boulder met four standards to be recognized as a Tree City USA: having a tree board or department, a tree care ordinance, a comprehensive community forestry program and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.
The Tree City USA program is sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation in cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters and the USDA Forest Service.
Urban Forestry
Parks and construction plans and updates
We have a new Web page devoted specifically to Boulder Parks & Recreation planning and construction news: http://www.boulderparknews.org/ Bookmark it!
Last Updated on Monday, 16 November 2009 08:33
