Belmar Park in Lakewood, Colorado is an unprotected bird sanctuary.
More info at: www.SaveBelmarPark.com
The future of the park's bird and wildlife habitat is now uncertain due to a proposed 800,000+ square foot apartment building adjacent to the park's eastern boundary and riparian habitat. This is more than 13 football fields.
Over 230 bird species have been observed at Belmar Park according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Ebird.com.
48 bird species of conservation concern (BCC) in or near Belmar Park are listed by the Avian Knowledge Network RAIL database.
Belmar Park is listed as an Ebird Hotspot.
Belmar Park is within the Central Flyway migration corridor of North America.
Birds are disappearing:
2.9 billion adult breeding birds lost in North America since 1970. Half of Colorado's birds are in decline.Habitat loss including due to development is the #1 driver of bird population declines.2 out of 3 North American bird species face extinction.Healthy bird populations help keep away invasive insects like emerald ash borer which is closing in on Lakewood, CO.
Benefits of acquiring this parking area via Eminent Domain:
Preserving the parking lot is the only way to preserve the important existing buffer zone separating Belmar Park that may help mitigate wildlife impacts.Preserves many of the 66 large trees used by bird species that would otherwise be cut down.Preserving as many of these trees as possible is the only way to preserve their canopy habitat because Lakewood does not require science-based basal area tree replacements as recommended to City Council by the Audubon Society.Preserves optimal public parking spaces for Belmar Park visitors that would otherwise be lost.Obviates the plan by the City of Lakewood to pave undeveloped public land in or near Belmar Park for parking.
The existing paved parking area has been used by Belmar Park visitors for decades and provides the closest access to the park. The previous owner of 777 S Yarrow allowed the public to use the parking lot to access Belmar Park.
The new owner, Kairoi Residential, intends to construct an apartment building including the area previously available for public parking. The proposed apartment building includes no affordable housing units or mixed use retail or commercial space.
What Can I Do?
1) Please sign the petition.
2) Attend Lakewood City Council meetings and express your opinion(s) regarding Belmar Park during the public comment segment.
You can attend and comment either in-person at city hall or remotely. See link below for next meeting date and remote access instructions.
List of upcoming meetings including City Council meetings
3) Contact your Lakewood City Council representative and ask him/her to support the Eminent Domain action.
Contact Info Page for Lakewood City Council
Look up your Ward number
4) If you have contacts with any environmental or wildlife organizations, encourage their attorneys to get involved and ask if they will inform their members about this petition.
Questions? Email me at: join@savebelmarpark.com
I'll try to answer your email but can't always get it done.
For further information or to receive email updates, visitwww.SaveBelmarPark.com.
Why Eminent Domain?
Lakewood City Council previously voted down a thoughtful package of mitigations at their October 23, 2023 meeting. The package they rejected was even vetted by a supportive city council member who is also a practicing attorney in Colorado. City council members did not offer to adopt any counter proposal or to amend the mitigation package.
The position of Lakewood City Council is that there is nothing they can do. Therefore, using Eminent Domain is a reasonable option because they are vested with that power and because they insist they cannot do anything else.
Even after an Eminent Domain action to preserve the parking lot, approximately 2/3 of the property at 777 S Yarrow St would still be owned by Kairoi Residential or subsequent owners or partners.
It has also been reported that Kairoi is under contract to purchase the property across the street at 777 S Wadsworth. They could build another project up to 12-stories there under the current zoning.
How to Avoid Habitat Impacts:
The US Fish and Wildlife Service advises: “The best way to avoid habitat impacts is to avoid placing development in or near important bird habitat.”https://www.fws.gov/story/threats-birds-habitat-impacts
A key purpose of the Lakewood Zoning Ordinance as stated at 17.1.2(C) is to 'protect and enhance the natural environment'.
Constructing an apartment building over 13 football fields in size within 100 feet of riparian bird habitat ignores both the US Fish and Wildlife recommendation and this primary purpose of the Lakewood Zoning Ordinance 'to protect and enhance the natural environment'.
Clearly, preserving this historic parking area via Eminent Domain for use by park visitors serves multiple beneficial public interests.
Therefore, we request that Lakewood City Council acquire the existing parking lot on the north, west and south sides of the Irongate property at 777 S Yarrow Street in Lakewood, Colorado 80226 for an estimated area of at least 78,000 square feet via Eminent Domain instead of paving a proposed new parking lot on undeveloped, unpaved city land in or near the park itself.
Funding Options:
Both 777 S Yarrow and Belmar Park are in the West Alameda Corridor Reinvestment Area (WACRA).
According to the Executive Director of the Lakewood Reinvestment Authority (LRA), the reason Belmar Park is in the WACRA is so that WACRA funds may be spent to improve the park. However, no such funds have ever been spent by the WACRA on Belmar Park in over 25 years that the WACRA has been in existence.
Preserving the existing parking area would directly benefit Belmar Park and would be an appropriate use of these funds that have not yet been used for the benefit of the park in over 25 years.
Funds from the developer might also be redirected to this improvement instead of paving a new lot on undeveloped public land on the north side of 777 S Yarrow.
