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Parks board to draft checklist, meet Bureau of Reclamation on potential land transfer and project requirements
Summary
The Broadwater County Parks and Recreation Board will draft a public checklist for small community projects and meet the Bureau of Reclamation to discuss possible transfer or lease of about 140 acres for recreation use.
The Broadwater County Parks and Recreation Board on Sept. 15 said it will develop a project-development checklist for community-led small projects, pursue clarification from county legal and insurance staff, and meet with the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) to discuss options for additional recreation property.
Commissioner Lindsey, the county liaison to the board, said the board has scheduled a meeting with Jeff Bumburger of the BOR to review title-transfer authority, permitting options, timelines, and costs. Lindsey said the parcel under discussion is north of the RY Timber property and "totals about a 140 acres." The board wants to understand whether land could be transferred to the county, leased long-term, or otherwise made available for community groups such as Townsend Baseball to develop fields.
Board members asked staff to identify the county’s baseline requirements for any community-led project. Lindsey said the county’s legal team is preparing a list of required items, including liability coverage and contract conditions (for example, listing the county as an additional insured), and that volunteer insurance coverage exists but that the board should still require a volunteer sign-up/registration form.
The board also discussed other checklist items: certified engineering plans for structures, water-rights status for parcels, operations and maintenance responsibility, and whether an MOU or lease should govern community-built improvements. Lindsey said the county would prefer a transfer of title if feasible but acknowledged long-term leases and MOUs could be used when transfer is not possible.
The board agreed that smaller projects (dog parks, small pavilions, fences) should follow a lighter checklist, while larger projects (fields, restrooms, engineered structures) will require formal engineering, permitting, insurance, and county review. Staff will draft the checklist and return it to the board for review; legal and county insurance staff will provide specific requirements.
The board also discussed website updates and an annual amendment process for the county recreation/master plan so completed projects (for example, a completed skate park) are recorded as amendments rather than redoing the whole document.
