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PALISADE — Palisade officials will consider Tuesday the town’s direction on a whitewater park after receiving additional correspondence from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
The federal agency again seeks additional information, said Palisade Town Administrator Tim Sarmo.
“They’re still not satisfied with the design.
“I’m starting to become concerned that this is an unending request for additional information,” Sarmo said. “No matter how much you give them, there’s always a request for more.
“Maybe at the federal government ... money is no object.”
So far, the town of Palisade has spent more than $125,000 on plans for the whitewater park without any in-river improvements. It still needs permission from the Fish & Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
“We have to take a practical look at this and determine if we can afford to move forward,” Sarmo said. “I really don’t know what the town’s reaction will be to that.
“We’ll be evaluating the potential cost for that action.”
The stretch of the Colorado River that Palisade wants to use is part of a sensitive area for four species of endangered fish — pikeminnow, razorback sucker, humpback chub and bonytail chub.
Last week’s correspondence from the federal agency requested additional modeling based on a new design the town gave the Fish & Wildlife Service a month ago.
No one from that federal agency was available for comment Friday.
The town received a $700,000 bid to build the project last year, and that includes just in-river improvements. The town may want to build a parking lot, changing rooms and possibly bathrooms.
“I have not spent a great deal of time planning the out-of-river improvements until we build the park itself,” Sarmo said.
Reach Marija B. Vader at mvader@gjfreepress.com.
The federal agency again seeks additional information, said Palisade Town Administrator Tim Sarmo.
“They’re still not satisfied with the design.
“I’m starting to become concerned that this is an unending request for additional information,” Sarmo said. “No matter how much you give them, there’s always a request for more.
“Maybe at the federal government ... money is no object.”
So far, the town of Palisade has spent more than $125,000 on plans for the whitewater park without any in-river improvements. It still needs permission from the Fish & Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
“We have to take a practical look at this and determine if we can afford to move forward,” Sarmo said. “I really don’t know what the town’s reaction will be to that.
“We’ll be evaluating the potential cost for that action.”
The stretch of the Colorado River that Palisade wants to use is part of a sensitive area for four species of endangered fish — pikeminnow, razorback sucker, humpback chub and bonytail chub.
Last week’s correspondence from the federal agency requested additional modeling based on a new design the town gave the Fish & Wildlife Service a month ago.
No one from that federal agency was available for comment Friday.
The town received a $700,000 bid to build the project last year, and that includes just in-river improvements. The town may want to build a parking lot, changing rooms and possibly bathrooms.
“I have not spent a great deal of time planning the out-of-river improvements until we build the park itself,” Sarmo said.
Reach Marija B. Vader at mvader@gjfreepress.com.
