Deer Lakes Tops County Board’s March Discussion

_{by Jodi Linsey}

Hinsdale County Commissioners met for their regular monthly meetings on March 4 and 18, discussing the Affordable Housing Plan, the proposed Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the Town of Lake City and the Sheriff’s Department, and management of the Deer Lakes Recreational Area.
Among updates on the Early Childhood Coalition, funds for the new downtown playground, and the new Operations Building, there were in-depth discussions about the Affordable Housing Plan and the ongoing IGA negotiations with the Town and Sheriff’s Department at the March 4 meeting.
On March 4, Commissioners Greg Levine, Robert Hurd, and Kristie Borchers talked about County priorities for scheduled March 11 Joint Workshop with the Town of Lake City Trustees to work out preliminary steps in implementing the recently adopted Affordable Housing Plan. (WORLD March 20). Commissioners concluded that their priority was to have a contracted Housing Coordinator hired using Fast Track Funding grant money for which both entities are eligible to apply.
Commissioners instructed Administrator Sandy Hines to work with Town Manager Lex Mulhall to identify highest priorities of a potential Housing Coordinator for discussion at the March 11 workshop. They ended the conversation with the conclusion that an IGA between the Town and County can be drafted once initial priorities are worked out together with their counterparts on the Town Board.
Another IGA up for discussion was the agreement between the Town and Hinsdale County Sheriff’s Department. Negotiations about this subject have been underway since approximately November of last year when the Town indicated that they wanted an updated IGA. These negotiations have stalled on different points since that time, although the Commissioners expressed cautious optimism about an imminent conclusion.
Deer Lakes Campground was of particular interest as summer approaches and the Commissioners continue to piece together their plan to apply for a permit with the US Forest Service to maintain the site. The four lakes, maintained by three dams, were constructed in 1954 in a cooperative effort between the county and Hinsdale Chamber of Commerce, after which Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) informally agreed to maintain the lakes. Hurd states that other than beaver mitigation, CPW has not upgraded the site since 1957.
Following a failure of the uppermost dam in June 2021, CPW worked with the Forest Service to exact repairs while indicating they no longer wanted to be responsible for maintenance. In order to protect this popular fishing and picnic area, Hinsdale County has agreed to take over maintenance of the dams, with Hurd adding “I feel like it’s pretty trouble-free now.” Borchers responded “I think it’s a good plan, twenty years is a reasonable permit.”
The Forest Service also reconstructed the Campground and Recreation areas, with the entire complex reopening for the summer season in 2025. The Forest Service has contracted with a concessionaire to operate the campground, imposing mandatory day-use fee which prompted vocal complaints to the Commissioners during the 2025 season.

According to County Administrator Sandy Hines, there will now be no fee for short-term picnic parking or wildlife viewing this summer. Unanimous approval to submit a permit application to the Forest Service to provide maintenance of the dams at Deer Lakes was passed at the March 4 regular meeting.
In the March 4 meeting, Sheriff Denim Starnes gave………