The citizen-initiated zoning ballot measure to zone Hughes as Public Open Lands is officially endorsed by the Sierra Club. Thank you, Poudre Canyon Group of the Sierra Club!

At last night's Council meeting on March 2, 2021, City Council voted 4 to 3 to NOT appeal the Larimer County Judge's decision that court-ordered the City to try to purchase Hughes from CSU after Hughes is zoned Public Open Lands, should the Hughes Open Space ballot measure pass.

We have been getting this question A LOT from concerned citizens since CSU’s Tony Frank and the Board of Governors (BOG) announced they would move forward with Lennar Homes to construct PRIVATE housing and commercial development at the Hughes stadium parcel by invoking the SPAR review process. Here is what SPAR is, and how CSU and Lennar Homes are attempting to abuse and misuse SPAR to try to build their development at Hughes.

For more info about SPAR, see our FAQs and questions about legality of SPAR at the links below. https://hughesopenspacepetition.com/spar-faqs

“In the end, all political power is vested in and is derived from the people. And all government originates from the people. So, that’s what undergirds everything, from the court’s perspective.

And as the supreme court noted there, this is a right that people have reserved for themselves.

It is a right of first order. And I think it lies at the heart of our representative democracy.”

Please make sure to look for the Hughes Public Open Lands ballot measure at the very END of your ballot!! Ballots will be mailed out to you in about 30 days or so!

excerpt:
”—The former part of the measure was in question because the city attorney's office considered land purchase an "administrative" matter that couldn't legally be included in a ballot measure.

Eighth Judicial District Judge Juan Villaseñor disagreed, so the measure will include the directive to purchase the land. The ballot measure can't force the CSU System to sell its property, but it can make the city attempt to purchase it at "fair market value," according to the ballot language.

PATHS (Planning Action to Transform Hughes Sustainably) collected over 8,300 signatures in support of the ballot measure. PATHS representatives told the Coloradoan earlier this month that they felt vindicated by the court order that preserved the measure as they intended it.—”

We have excellent news regarding the City's lawsuit against half of the citizens ballot measure to conserve Hughes as open space!

We received the court ruling yesterday, and the Judge voted in favor of PATHS, ruling that we ARE legally allowed to direct the City to both ZONE AND ACQUIRE the Hughes stadium property if the ballot measure passes!! Recall that the City was attempting to strike from the ballot measure the entire section about the City having to acquire Hughes if the ballot measure passes. The City's claim that acquiring Hughes should NOT be on the ballot because the citizens do NOT have the legislative right to tell the City what to acquire FELL FLAT, and the Judge ruled with the citizens of Fort Collins.

Hello Hughes Open Space Supporters! We want to alert you to some wonderful news.

Longtime resident and well-known open space advocate and community leader Kelly Ohlson is running for City Council in District 5, the same district that Hughes is located in!

Dear Members, Volunteers, Supporters, and Donors:

Planning Action To Transform Hughes Sustainably (PATHS) would like to take this time to wish you a Happy New Year, and sincerely thank you for your contribution to the Hughes open space fundraiser, and for all of your efforts to help us save our Hughes open space.

Hello Friends of Hughes Open Space,

Sadly, as promised in the November 17th City Council meeting, the City Attorney, by vote of City Council, has filed a lawsuit against half of the Hughes open space citizens' ballot measure. Named as defendants in the legal challenge are the PATHS nonprofit organization and the three citizens who volunteered their name as representatives of the citizens' petition.

Hello Friends of Hughes,

We have an update on our attorneys' Request for Interpretation to the City regarding the legality and applicability (or lack thereof) of the SPAR process for CSU's proposed redevelopment of Hughes. Spurred by a letter from PATHS, City Staff sent a letter to CSU on 12/10/2020 seeking clarification and specific details about how CSU's proposal meets the explicit criteria for a SPAR Review.

Hello Friends of Hughes,

PATHS attorneys have submitted a "Request for Interpretation" about the Site Plan Advisory Review (SPAR) land use code section which is intended for PUBLIC entities and new PUBLIC structures.

This means that we have requested that the City provide us with a formal interpretation about how SPAR has been implemented in the past, and how it will be implemented now in the case of CSU's attempt to build PRIVATE housing and commercial development with PRIVATE developer Lennar Homes, to be sold to PRIVATE owners.

You can read the Request for Interpretation of SPAR and the associated documents here.

”…I look forward to seeing the initiative on the ballot in April 2021. But I also know that it is a long road ahead as privileged people and institutions like myself and CSU try to engage with the existing Native Nations on their own terms and right the wrongs of the past. Therefore, I think having CSU discontinue their current SPAR process involving the sale of the Hughes Stadium land to a private developer is a good first step towards CSU’s attempt “in recognizing (their) institutional history, responsibility, and commitment” to Native lands. #LandAcknowledgement #NativeAmericanHeritageDay…“

We have been getting this question A LOT from concerned citizens since CSU’s Tony Frank and the Board of Governors (BOG) announced they would move forward with Lennar Homes to construct PRIVATE housing and commercial development at the Hughes stadium parcel by invoking the SPAR review process. Here is what SPAR is, and how CSU and Lennar Homes are attempting to abuse and misuse SPAR to try to build their development at Hughes.

For more info about SPAR, see our FAQs and questions about legality of SPAR at the links below. https://hughesopenspacepetition.com/spar-faqs

Dear City Council Members,

The members and volunteers of Planning Action to Transform Hughes Sustainably (PATHS) are writing to you today to request that you move to adopt our Citizen-Initiated Ordinance to zone the Hughes stadium parcel Public Open Lands (P-O-L) at tonight’s City Council meeting.

By now it should be clear to you how deeply Fort Collins’ residents care about protecting and preserving Hughes for our community, for future generations, and for our local wildlife that are faced with shrinking habitat in our city. We strongly believe that no other parcel of land in Fort Collins has as much conservation value as the Hughes parcel.

WE HAVE A CHANCE TO ZONE HUGHES OPEN SPACE ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17TH!

Our successful Hughes zoning petition will be presented to Council on November 17th, 2020, at which time Council can vote to adopt the zoning measure within 30 days, rather than waiting to put it on the ballot in April. This is our best chance to give Hughes the proper zoning designation that honors its history and legacy, and love that Fort Collins residents have for the unique land.