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County staff outline plan to fold Gunnison sage‑grass work into PEZ program; contracting and funding details remain unresolved
Summary
Staff presented a draft to use the county PEZ model to support Gunnison sage‑grass habitat work on private lands; the coordinator and fiscal sponsor arrangements with Renzo and Rocky Mountain Wild created liability and payment concerns that must be resolved before the county executes landowner agreements.
At the March 23 Open Space Commission meeting, staff member Star briefed commissioners on efforts to integrate Gunnison sage‑grass restoration into the county’s PEZ (private‑land conservation) program. The plan would use the PEZ landowner agreement model to enable installation of zetic structures and other on‑the‑ground habitat improvements on private lands.
Star said the effort began after conversations with the Gunnison sage‑grass working group and with Colorado Parks and Wildlife; the working group received an Ecosystems Restoration & Resilience grant under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Rocky Mountain Wild is the federal grant fiscal agent. Star described a drafted county agreement to secure access for monitoring and habitat work and outlined a proposed incentive in earlier drafts: a one‑time $5,000 payment to landowners to install up to 10 zetic structures.
Star told commissioners a key complication is contractor capacity and liability. The coordinator Renzo Delp Piccolo has been working with the group but declined to accept county payments or a county landowner agreement and did not have general liability insurance in place, she said. That raised concerns about creating multiple subcontracts and exposing landowners to perceived liability — issues that stalled finalizing the proposed county agreements.
Commissioners and staff debated a related budgeting question: the county annually budgets a $145 line for Gunnison sage‑grass coordinator support. Star and other staff explained the federal grant provided most operating funds for the coordinator in recent years, which is why the county $145 allotment has not been requested or used. Commissioners agreed they support the concept of integrating zetic structures into PEZ but asked to be kept involved in next steps and to see a revised draft that addresses contractor insurance, landowner protections and monitoring timelines.
Star also noted the conservation value of zetic structures beyond habitat enhancement: they can increase vegetation growth and have carbon‑sequestration benefits relevant to PEZ scoring tools. She urged the commission to treat the draft as a working document and to expect follow‑up when the federal grant period ends or if the working group requests county funds.
