Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Conservation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Jefferson County to sponsor GOCO Pathways grant for Colorado Open Space Alliance
Summary
County staff asked commissioners for permission to pursue a GOCO Pathways grant up to $450,000 to help formalize the Colorado Open Space Alliance as a sustainable membership organization; commissioners signaled support and staff said matching funds will come from COSA, not county funds.
Jefferson County staff told commissioners Aug. 5 they plan to sponsor a Greater Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) Pathways grant application of up to $450,000 to help formalize the Colorado Open Space Alliance (COSA) as a sustainable membership organization.
Matt Robbins, Community Connections Director for Parks and Open Space, described COSA as an ad-hoc coalition of more than 35 open-space organizations that the county and others would like to formalize into a membership-based organization with governance structure and sustainable funding. Robbins said the county would be the eligible applicant for GOCO because COSA itself is not an eligible grantee; matching funds would come from COSA, not from county dollars.
Robbins said the grant would strengthen statewide open-space organizations and that Jefferson County has led COSA efforts in recent years. "The intent . . . is to help formalize what we refer to as COSA," Robbins said. He told commissioners the Pathways grant would support governance and organizational development across the state's open-space community.
Commissioners asked about the proposal and expressed support. Robbins said he had been working on the effort for several years in a volunteer role and that the county's sponsorship is a way to meet GOCO eligibility requirements.
No final grant award was made Aug. 5; commissioners signaled support for the county to pursue the GOCO Pathways grant application and for staff to proceed with the application process.
