P.O. Box 822 Golden, Colorado, 80402
2024 accomplishments
2024 Accomplishments:
*Three members of Stewards' Steering Committee are presently on the Open Space Master Plan working group. This working group is comprised of several other stakeholders working along with the consultant, Berry Dunn. Stewards is advocating for an OSMP that meets the needs of Golden residents while preserving our limited but valuable open space resources. Watch our newsletters for updates to the master planning process.
*Stewards committee members researched each parcel of Golden's Open Spaces to provide an updated map to city planners working on the Open Space Master Plan. This comprehensive map and its associated index provide data on acreage, flora and fauna, history and other details.
*Stewards again created educational opportunities for lovers of birds, geology, history and wildlife to join us for tours of the Kinney Run Open Space. We continue to see a lot of interest by the local community! We are always looking for new ways to educate Golden's residents on the valuable resources our open spaces provide.
*And yet again, Stewards participated in the Colorado Environmental Film Festival Eco-Expo this year. The Eco-Expo showcases environmentally-minded organizations as they share their ideas and wares. We also celebrated Earth Day at DeLong Park in Golden, our city's fist organic park which does not use synthetic pesticides, fertilizers or herbicides.
2023 accomplishments
2023 Accomplishments:
In an ongoing effort to pursue an Open Space Master Plan for Golden, Stewards proactively provided comments and process recommendations in writing to the Parks, Recreation and Museum Board (PRAMB). Stewards' representatives met with City of Golden Parks and Rec staff to more fully discuss the submitted materials.
Stewards contracted with artist Suzanne Stutzman to create a brochure of native plants common to the Golden area. This beautiful pamphlet of hand drawn native plants is available for download for free! See the Downloads section at the bottom of the page. (Copyright Suzanne Stutzman - 2023)
*Stewards invited bird enthusiasts, geology and history enthusiasts and wildlife lovers to join us for tours of the Kinney Run Open Space. There was a lot of interest for each event and everyone learned a lot!
*Stewards participated in the Colorado Environmental Film Festival Eco-Expo again this year. The Eco-Expo provides a platform for environmentally-friendly organizations to promote their ideas. We also celebrated Earth Day at DeLong Park in Golden where we distributed educational handouts regarding native plants, habitat gardening and avoiding pesticides. We really enjoyed meeting those of you who attended these events!
2022 accomplishments
2022 Accomplishments:
*Stewards continues its work to advocate for a City of Golden Open Space Master Plan. Members of our Steering Committee participated in the working group that advised the consultant hired by the city for the initial phase of the planning process, and provided extensive input to the development of vision, mission and definition statements. Stewards' members along with many local residents attended the July 11th, 2022 meeting at the Golden Community Center where the consultant provided an update on the process.
*Stewards' bird experts, Laurel Starr and Donna Myers, led 4 enthusiastic groups of bird watchers for tours in the Kinney Run Open Space during the month of May.
*Stewards hosted a Geology/History Tour of Kinney Run and the Golden area in May. Golden Rocks authors, Donna Anderson and Paul Haseman, gave attendees a fascinating look back into Golden's history.
Their eBook is titled Golden Rocks: The Geology & Mining History of Golden, Colorado. Download a copy of the free eBook in the Downloads section at the bottom of the page.
2021 Accomplishments
2021 Accomplishments:
*Due in large part to our advocacy, the City of Golden has contracted with a consultant, Great Ecology, to develop an Open Space Master Plan.
*Staff from the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (https://cnhp.colostate.edu/) completed their field work in the fall of 2020 and recently published their report titled Biological Survey of Golden Open Space Property, Jefferson County.
Stewards has provided the City of Golden and Stonebridge HOA, who contributed to the cost of the survey, with copies of the complete report and have recommended that the findings be included in the development of the City's Open Space Master Plan. These findings were presented to the Parks Recreation and Museum Advisory (PRAM) Board.
Download or view the complete report including significant findings and recommendations in the Downloads section below.
*As an organization Stewards provided public comments to the PRAM Board for use in their development of an RFP for the long awaited Open Space Master Plan.
*Stewards received the completed product from the Colorado School of Mines Senior Student Capstone project. One of our committee members worked with a third-party provider to convert the project data files to 3D models of two of the Golden Open Space parcels. Because of the impact of COVID on CSM resource access, the student team was unable to complete the 3D model development on their own.
*Stewards again participated in the Colorado Environmental Film Festival (CEFF) Eco-Expo. We couldn’t greet you in person this year, due to COVID, but we enjoyed meeting you virtually!
2020 accomplishments
Our 2020 Accomplishments!
*Stewards crafted a proposal that was selected for participation in the Colorado School of Mines Senior Student Capstone project resulting in our current work with a great team of 5 CSM senior environmental and civil engineering students. The students are designing a comprehensive physical record and inventory template, including 3D maps, hydrological and geological features and potential climate change impacts on our open spaces.
*Stewards began negotiations with the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) at CSU for a biological assessment (wildlife, birds and vegetation) of our open spaces to better understand the other species that share our important natural areas.
*In February we participated as an exhibitor in the Colorado Environmental Film Festival's Eco-Expo. The festival is held annually at the Colorado Mountaineering Center in Golden. We met a lot of folks who appreciate our open space and are as passionate about protecting and preserving it as we are. Thank you to everyone who stopped by!
2019 accomplishments
Our 2019 Accomplishments!
*Attained non-profit status, formed a Steering Committee and created our website.
*Conducted two landmark geology/history tours of Kinney Run Open Space led by Mines Professor Donna Anderson and Councilor Paul Haseman that highlighted the unique and special aspects of this open space.
*Conducted a landmark botanical field trip of the North Washington Open Space for the Golden Parks, Recreation and Museum Advisory (PRAM) Board to explain the significance and importance of the native prairie located there. This tour was led by a member of our steering committee, Tom Schweich.
*Met with Jeffco Open Space staff to learn about best practices for cultural, wildlife, botanic, geologic and hydrologic assessment processes for open space assets and set the ground work for an ongoing working relationship.
*Supported the development of a City of Golden Open Space Master Plan that will provide clear and thoughtful guidance for the preservation, protection, management, use and future of our open space. As a result of our advocacy, funding for such a plan is in the current draft of the 2020 Capital Improvements Budget.
*Prepared educational materials about our open space elements and assets and submitted articles to local publications to introduce ourselves and our mission and gather community support.
*We participating in local community events, like the Golden Gallop, Golden Nonprofit Expo and the Colorado Environmental Film Festival Eco-Expo, and sponsored community events like the Coyote 5K fundraiser to publicize our mission and gather community support.