Camping at Shady Island River Park concerns neighbors

Planners say camping will offset overcrowding elsewhere

By Katherine Nettles

Plans for the Shady Island River Park project north of Gunnison on Highway 135 (north of Garlic Mike’s) are coming together, with the Gunnison County staff and the Planning Commission working out some kinks about regulating camping in the area to keep relations neighborly with nearby homeowners.

Gunnison County sustainable operations manager John Cattles presented the river park’s proposal to the county Planning Commission during the commission’s work session in early December. The site will provide river access for recreation, a beach area, picnic tables, restrooms, parking areas and sites for tent camping. The initial idea is to locate approximately 19 campsites on the property. Gunnison County senior planner Rachel Sabbato also said, “The new Shady Island River Park boat ramp will replace the existing North Bridge boat launch which has become a safety hazard.” 

The new uses mean a Land Use change process, based on public comments and Planning Commission recommendations.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, Cattles said concerned neighbors spoke up about people camping on the site adjacent to their property. The commission then asked the county staff to develop a set of maintenance protocols and rules regarding the park, boat ramp and campsites to mitigate impacts to the neighbors. The public meeting was continued to December 20, during which the staff provided a draft set of the policies and rules for the park to provide an outline of how the county intends to operate the park. These rules may change as needed and experience is gained, said Cattles.

The site’s inclusion of campsites into the river park will create a revenue stream for supporting a camp host there during the summer season. The camp host or county personnel will enforce park rules by notifying any offending parties that they are breaking the rules of the site and ask them to stop or leave. If the offending party refuses to stop or leave, the sheriff will be called.

The draft policy document states, “The presence of a host will make rule enforcement much more consistent than an un-attended site would be. Additionally, the camp host will be responsible for performing the operating policies… these draft policies are intended to address daily and weekly maintenance activities and will be expanded as the site is developed and operations understood more fully.”

The proposed policies also state that the rationale for allowing camping at the site is in part to relieve other areas of congestion within the county, particularly in places that are harder to regulate.

“Part of the reason camp sites are included in the proposal is because the Gunnison Valley has more campers and visitors than available campsites. The Gunnison County Sustainable Tourism and Outdoor Recreation (STOR) Committee has been working to address the increased demand for campsites and increasing negative impacts to natural landscapes where dispersed camping occurs. The USFS noted significant impacts to vegetation and water bodies in areas where dispersed camping occurs because there are no controls, little oversight and no facilities to accommodate campers. The creation of campsites at Shady Island will accommodate a portion of the demand for camping in the Gunnison Valley which will help to mitigate the negative impacts to our natural resources,” according to the policy document.

The draft concludes, “Long-term maintenance and management of the site will be incorporated into overall County capital forecasting and maintenance schedules. The County has sufficient resources in staff, equipment and funds to operate and maintain the site just like it does the Whitewater park and its other facilities and infrastructure. If a fee to utilize the park were to be incorporated the revenue from such fee would ensure a source of funding dedicated to maintenance at the site that would not compete with other County capital resource needs.”

Not everyone, however, was convinced the rules and enforcement plan will suffice. The neighbors in the homes to the north of the planned river park attended the continued hearing, as did Mark Schumacher from Three Rivers Resort. Schumacher said he didn’t think the plan has been thought through completely and said he thinks the campsites will be empty a lot, according to Cattles. Michael Busse, owner and operator of Garlic Mike’s restaurant, also attended the meeting but declined to comment on the project.

“I’m sure we have a lot to learn and will experience some surprises, but we have thought it through and I think there is demand for more camping,” wrote Cattles via e-mail after the meetings.

Another public meeting on the subject is set for January 24 at 9 a.m.