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Woodland Park council approves $5,923 net compensation for 1,263 sq ft Bergstrom Park encroachment
Summary
After presentations from staff and the Tava Group, the council approved option 3 — a market-based valuation minus in‑kind improvements — to compensate the city $5,923 for 1,263 square feet of Bergstrom Park land taken for a CDOT‑required turn lane; the vote was 5–1.
Woodland Park’s City Council voted 5–1 to approve a net compensation figure of $5,923 for the 1,263‑square‑foot strip of Bergstrom Park taken to accommodate an eastbound turn lane required by the Colorado Department of Transportation.
City manager Aaron Vasilotti told the council the land encroachment stems from CDOT’s direction that the eastbound turn lane off U.S. Highway 24 onto South Center Street required moving the sidewalk into parkland. Staff outlined three valuation approaches using recent adjacent sales and the city’s October 2025 purchase as comparables and recommended a mid‑range figure after crediting roughly $14,077 in in‑kind improvements that the developer completed.
Mark of the Tava Group, the developer of the nearby Woodland Station project, told the council the turn lane and sidewalk relocation were mandated by CDOT and that the company’s in‑kind work improved access and safety; he said the improvements ‘‘vastly improved’’ walkability and that ‘‘no additional compensation should be required.’’
An online commenter, Arnie Sarnans, asked whether the city charter requires voter approval for disposals of parkland. Council attorney and staff said attorneys had advised that the impacted strip—being an adjacent sidewalk and parking‑lot area rather than improved parkland—did not trigger the charter requirement for an elector vote under Charter 15.2(b).
Council discussion centered on whether to accept the developer’s in‑kind credit and how to value highway‑frontage land that had been landscaped and used as a sidewalk. Several council members said they were reluctant to ‘‘give away’’ public property but also acknowledged the city asked the developer to perform the improvements and that mobilizing contractors could have cost the city more. Council members coalesced around the middle valuation option (a weighted mix of recent comps) and deducted the in‑kind work, arriving at the $5,923 net figure.
The motion to approve ‘‘option 3 as compensation for the value of 1,263 square feet of Bergstrom Park parcel land encroachment as set forth in the city manager’s presentation’’ was adopted. The roll call recorded five yes votes and one no: Mary Case voted no; the other five council members voted yes.
Next steps: staff will finalize the compensation paperwork with the Tava Group and record the settlement as required by the SDA (section 3.c) language cited in the presentation.
