Draft Chaffee Rec Plan Available for Feedback Until June 20

Posted By: Dan R June 11, 2021

The draft Chaffee Recreation Plan will be available for public feedback until June 20. The Chaffee Recreation Council offers opportunity for the public to review elements of the plan and provide comments on the Envision Chaffee County website.

The plan’s goals are to protect natural resources, maintain exceptional outdoor experiences and sustain the economic benefits of recreation tourism. Initiatives potentially include: 

  • Changes to camping opportunities such as designating some dispersed camping areas 
  • Getting the right infrastructure such as more restrooms 
  • Focusing new recreation development near towns
  • Protecting wildlife with habitat improvements and enforcement of legal seasonal closures
  • Encouraging improved user behaviors and enforcing the rules
  • Supporting rural landscapes as ranchers struggle with the costly impacts of recreation growth on their operations.

Recreation was estimated to be growing at an average of 13% a year before the pandemic, according to visitor spending data from the Colorado Tourism Office. That has increased in the past year and is expected to continue this summer. The five-year Chaffee Rec Plan was developed by the Rec Council and a taskforce of outdoor user group representatives and citizens to manage the impacts of growing outdoor use, such as trashed campsites. 

Go to envisionchaffeecounty.org and click on the orange banner at the top of the homepage to learn about the plan and provide feedback.

The opportunity opened on May 21 and remains open until June 20 to ensure that everyone has opportunity to participate, Envision Outreach Coordinator Kim Marquis said. The extension to a total of 30 days for feedback is in response to requests for more time.

The Chaffee Rec Plan is a result of the 2017 Envision Chaffee County planning initiative that outlined four community visions to achieve in the future, including to have healthy forests, waters and wildlife in balance with outdoor recreation.

Dan R
Latest posts by Dan R (see all)