RMJfA- Fw: RE: [front-range-issues] Boulder council rejects requests to delay controversial prairie dog relocation

-----Forwarded Message-----
From: Lindsey Sterling-Krank
Sent: May 18, 2011 3:06 PM
To: Lindsey Sterling-Krank , Prairie Dog Coalition Coalition , front-range-issues@prairiedogcoalition.org
Cc: wanek@q.com, Paula Lewis
Subject: RE: [front-range-issues] Boulder council rejects requests to delay controversial prairie dog relocation

Ps- Anyone wanting to comment would be great as there are some pretty nasty ones going on right about now.

 

Lindsey Sterling Krank
Director, the Prairie Dog Coalition- Animal Care Centers
lsterlingkrank@humanesociety.org
t 720.938.0788  c 720.938.7855

 

Prairie Dog Coalition of The Humane Society of the United States
2525 Arapahoe #E4-527  Boulder, CO 80302

Donate today! https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Donation2?df_id=3201&3201.donation=form1

 

 

 

From: Lindsey Sterling-Krank [mailto:lsterlingkrank@humanesociety.org]
Sent: Wednesday, May 18, 2011 3:02 PM
To: Prairie Dog Coalition Coalition; front-range-issues@prairiedogcoalition.org
Cc: wanek@q.com; Paula Lewis
Subject: [front-range-issues] Boulder council rejects requests to delay controversial prairie dog relocation

 

Boulder council rejects requests to delay controversial prairie dog relocation

By Heath Urie Camera Staff Writer

Posted: 05/17/2011 10:56:19 PM MDT

 

After months of planning to move a troublesome colony of prairie dogs, a member of the Boulder City Council early Wednesday morning unsuccessfully lobbied to delay for a second time moving the 500 or so rodents.

Councilwoman KC Becker asked the council at about 1:45 a.m. to approve a motion ordering city wildlife officials to hold off on applying for a permit from the Colorado Division of Wildlife to move up to 500 prairie dogs from Foothills Community Park to city-owned open space in Gunbarrel.

"Your public is really reaching out to be heard," Becker said.

But the rest of the council disagreed with the move, saying there has already been extensive public outreach on the issue of moving prairie dogs.

City Manager Jane Brautigam also warned the group that if the permit to relocate the prairie dogs is delayed by more than a few weeks, the relocation would likely be put off for at least another year.

A suitable site for the rodents finally was identified last year at a city-owned property at the northeast corner of 75th Street and Lookout Road.

Earlier this month, Boulder wildlife officials said they were ready to go ahead with the permit application, which had previously been withdrawn so that concerned residents had more time to weigh in on the proposal.

But Becker said those same residents have since inundated the council with letters and e-mail asking the leaders to stop the move, which some residents say would harm the open space property and dump Boulder's problems in Boulder County.

Dozens of residents from the Gunbarrel relocation area came to the council to ask that the leaders reconsider the relocation plan.

Louise Gorsuch said the city is "pushing the prairie dog problem into the county, where we don't have a vote."

She said that is "grossly unfair" to Gunbarrel residents.

Robert O'Dea said he thinks that Boulder has become a "sanctuary city for prairie dogs."

But Lindsey Sterling Krank, executive director of the Boulder-based Prairie Dog Coalition and a representative of Keep Boulder Wild, told the council that those organizations support relocating the prairie dogs.

"We have to have some places where these native keystone species can survive," she said.

Read more: Boulder council rejects requests to delay controversial prairie dog relocation - Boulder Daily Camera http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_18084332?source=most_emailed#ixzz1MjwhgPr3
DailyCamera.com

 

 

Lindsey Sterling Krank
Director, the Prairie Dog Coalition- Animal Care Centers
lsterlingkrank@humanesociety.org
t 720.938.0788  c 720.938.7855

 

Prairie Dog Coalition of The Humane Society of the United States
2525 Arapahoe #E4-527  Boulder, CO 80302

Donate today! https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Donation2?df_id=3201&3201.donation=form1