Advisory board flags campground host, fire risk and unguided tours among priorities for 2025 season

Daee Community Advisory Board members used the March 12 meeting to flag operational issues they want monitored for the 2025 season, including the status of a campground host position, wildfire risk after a dry winter and growth of unguided or e‑bike tours.

Board members said the campground host position has been intermittently advertised and administered in past seasons, with inconsistent duties, stipend and housing arrangements. Board members urged municipal staff to confirm whether the position will be advertised this year and suggested adding a requirement in the job description that a host periodically brief the advisory board to provide “eyes and ears” on the flats.

On fire risk, members described the winter as unusually dry and said a high spring and summer fire danger would increase the importance of a staffed presence on the flats and clearly communicated mitigation steps. One member asked staff to check on any existing fire mitigation plans and to coordinate with the visitor department on outreach.

Members also raised concerns about the rising presence of unguided tours, e‑bike tours and scooters, and said tourism volume and certain operator behaviors can displace winter residents’ quality‑of‑life resources. The board emphasized that best management practices should address those uses and that the board can recommend code changes to the assembly where appropriate.

The board noted that a revised municipal code draft under consideration would expand the board’s vendor review authority from the Daee Flats to the broader Daee Area once the code is adopted; members asked staff to confirm the final code language and vote schedule.

Next steps: board members agreed to follow up with municipal staff and the visitor department about the campground host advertising status and fire mitigation updates, and to incorporate operational concerns into the tourism best management practices work session.