The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Three primary areas of allocation
[ By Mark Reaman ]
The Gunnison County Metropolitan Recreation (Met Rec) district is proposing a property tax increase for the North Valley that will help fund recreational and cultural amenities in the area. If approved by voters this November, two mills of additional property tax will be applied just to the Met Rec’s North Subdistrict that mirrors the Crested Butte Fire Protection District boundary. That area covers the area from Round Mountain north through Mt. Crested Butte encompassing Crested Butte South and the towns of Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte.
As proposed, the money would be split into three sections. Between 30% and 60% of the funds could be allocated to “support capital construction of recreation amenities accessible to the public that support cultural or active recreation and/or the acquisition of property or easements that permanently provide support or access to such recreation.” In other words, that money could go to things like fields, hockey rinks, trails, cultural centers and recreation centers.
The second area where funds could be used is to support local non-profits. Between 30% and 60% of funds “shall be allocated to support local non-profits that support recreation.” That money could be used for operations, trail maintenance, access to recreation, education, safety and equipment. Think the local Crested Butte Conservation Corps, the CB Avalanche Center or the continued grooming of free Nordic Trails, like the Poop Loop.
The third area of funding is focused on maintaining the amenities. Between 10% and 40% of the funds “shall be allocated to support maintenance of publicly accessible land for the purpose of maintaining the quality of recreation experiences.” Funding from this section could go toward parking areas, trailhead bathrooms, signage, operations, trail construction and maintenance, education and enforcement.
6B advisory committee chair Hedda Peterson said the funding is meant to support municipalities, local non-profit organizations, special districts and government agencies.
“The Met Rec’s publicly elected board will seek recommendations from an advisory committee as they currently do to award their annual recreation funding,” she explained. “The 6B funds would be managed separately from Met Rec’s general fund to specifically support the areas outlined in the ballot language.”
As for what it will bring in in terms of dollars, that depends on property valuations and of course those valuations change over time. If approved this fall, it is expected to generate $882,500 in 2023. That is based on a mill levy that will cost residential homeowners just over $139 per every $1 million in actual valuation. For commercial property, a $1 million valuation will result in a tax increase of about $576 annually.
