Students may offer voice to Town Board

Sherrie Peif, (Bio) speif@mywindsornow.com
May 7, 2008

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They've been getting their words out to the Windsor-Severance Re-4 School District Board of Education for a year now, and now Windsor High School student council members want a voice in the town, too.

Monday night, they took their first step toward making that a reality when Kevin Copher, dean of students, and counselor Libba James brought two of those students to the Town Board work session to give preliminary ideas on their plan.

"The student council has taken an active role in other community outreach programs such as the homecoming parade and the tailgate party," Copher said. "The representative on this project would attend regular Town Board meetings and become the go-to person when we need to work with the Town on stuff."

Junior Michelle Markham was selected to chair the community outreach program for next year and act as the liaison to the board.

If approved by the board, Markham, 17, will get a chair in the Town Board chambers with the town administrators and be the voice of high school students in Windsor.

"I've lived here all my life, and being a senior next year, I wanted to give back to my community," Michelle said when asked why she volunteered for the heavy commitment that includes most every Monday. "We will finally be able to have a voice in town. I can bring up the issues at the high school, and put the high school in a good light. We have a great student body."

Although all the Town Board members were supportive of the plan, District No. 5 director Robert Bishop-Cotner, a social studies teacher who is the head of student government at Brighton High School, wanted to be sure the student council thought hard about giving such a large responsibility to one person.

"My only concern is what else you do," Bishop-Cotner said. "In my experience (student council members) are the best and the brightest in the school. And the best and the brightest always have a very, very busy schedule. This is every Monday night. I would recommend you share it with somebody."

Markham said she will consider that when the council begins its year next fall.

Kelly Arnold, Windsor town manager, also recommended the board look at how they can include Windsor teenagers who do not attend Windsor High School in the plan.

"About one-third of the high-school-age residents of Windsor attend Fossil Ridge High School," Arnold said.

Arnold, Copher, James and Markham will now sit down and figure out the logistics of the liaison position before returning to the Town Board for approval.

In other Town Board action:

* The Town Board agreed to send an ordinance to vote at its next regular board meeting that will make night fishing and a swim beach legal at Windsor Lake this summer.

The changes to the current ordinance governing the use of Windsor Lake came about after Parks and Recreation Director Melissa Chew learned the town could offer a swim beach without lifeguards and not be held liable for any accidents that may occur. And many requests for night fishing or illegal night fishing that caused the police to get involved convinced the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board to recommend loosening its rules on the activity.

The town will have to post a sign that says: "No lifeguard on duty -- Swim at your own risk." According to Chew, having a lifeguard-free beach will save the town several thousands of dollars, in operational and salary costs.

The swim beach will be confined to designated areas roped off with buoys and open during normal park hours from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Fishing will now be allowed 24 hours a day, but between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. it must be done only from the west edge of the lake adjacent to Colo. 257 between the southernmost pavement edge of the parking lot and the inlet bridge for the Greeley No. 2 ditch.

However, the ordinance only permits those who are actually fishing to be on the property. Bystanders are not allowed with those fishing. Also fishing only includes "efforts to take fish, amphibians or crustaceans by hook and line ..." and the hook must be under immediate physical control of the fisherman. Hand lines, trotlines, jugs, seines, nets, underwater spear fishing, archery, snagging or gigging are not allowed at night. And bow and arrow fishing is never allowed. The use of bows and arrows in Windsor is prohibited anywhere, Windsor Police Chief John Michaels said.

Boats of any kind are also prohibited on the lake outside of normal park hours. A complete list of regulations for lake use are available at Town Hall, 301 Walnut St.

* The Town Board continued discussion with Hall-Irwin Construction concerning the Greenspire Metro District plan. At stake is a change in the service plan of the district that would raise the cap on the mill levy it can charge residents from 20 to 35 mills.

Hall-Irwin paid the lion's share of a multi-million dollar bill in a partnership with the town to dredge the lake so the company could use the silt in its development.

Since that project, Bret Hall said his need to upgrade the subdivision has intensified because the town has pumped millions of dollars into Boardwalk Park.

"Originally, six years ago, the lake hadn't been cleaned up. The park hadn't been enhanced. But since then, a significant amount of money has gone into the area," Hall said. "My plans have had to change because of that."

Hall wants to upgrade the planned dry-land landscaping with sod, shrubs and trees. Sprinkler systems for that will need to be installed. And he has created a large trail system for residents to connect up with Windsor Lake.

"We feel this is a pretty significant enhancement," he said.

Most of the board members present, however -- District No. 1 director Jon Slater was absent -- were having a hard time seeing sod and trees as an enhancement rather viewing it as a developer requirement.

Bishop-Cotner said the one question the board still needs to answer is if it believes the enhancements were above the original plan. He did not believe so.

"I use the scale of warm fuzzies," Bishop-Cotner said. "I don't have warm fuzzies."

The Town Board agreed to put the amendment to a vote at its regular meeting Monday, but it could still be tabled after the first reading to continue addressing the problems the board has with it.