LARKSPUR, Colo. (KDVR) — The more than 2,000-acre open space in Larkspur has been in the middle of a heated debate for months, ever since Douglas County proposed a pilot camping program that may include five to ten minimalist camping sites at Sandstone Ranch Open Space following the 7 Principles of Leave No Trace.
A minimalist camping site is when people camp with no plumbing or utilities and must pack everything in and out. The county said they made this proposal after some of the community came to them, asking for more access to the open space.
Former county commissioner, Lora Thomas, said that news caught her off guard.
“Abe Laden, one of the three county commissioners, said, ‘I heard from some people over the weekend that we need to have camping on our open space.’ So, after I picked my jaw up off of the conference table and said, ‘Who are these people? This is ridiculous’,” she said. “I just think it’s a ridiculous idea from the very beginning.”
She said they have concerns including fire. Douglas County said no fires will be allowed in the dispersed camping sites, but the fire chief at the Larkspur Fire Protection District said this wouldn’t completely eliminate the issue.
“Safety concerns include that there’s no water supply out here for us to use in the event of a fire, there’s very limited access to the area. There’s more walking trailed than anything else so if something was to happen out here it would be very hard for us to get to patients and to the incident itself,” said Fire Chief Timothy McCawley.
Then, these is a cost involved. Open Space has requested an additional ranger and camp host position to be funded if the proposal goes through. Douglas County provided an initial estimate for the pilot sites at Sandstone as $379,400 for the first year. Thomas said she did not think this was the best use of taxpayer dollars.
“If you think about how popular Chatfield or Cherry Creek are, those operate in the red. So, why would we be spending money for people to camp on our open space when it’s going to cost taxpayers money?” Thomas said.
FOX31 has reached out to Douglas County for comment and they said it is still too early in the proposal, but they appreciate community comments.