I remember my father trading in the family station wagon every two to three years. Even back then it was an extravagant habit on an elementary school teacher’s salary. A neighbor would bring home a new car and my dad would start car shopping.

I feel that way about parks, open space and trails. When a neighboring city or county plans a park or buys property, I can’t wait to lace up my hiking boots and go exploring. Denver announced plans to build several new parks in underserved neighborhoods this year and next with more planned after 2025 — a total of six new parks.

As you may recall, in 2018 Denver residents overwhelmingly voted to increase their sales tax by .25% and create a Parks Legacy Fund. With 712,000 residents, that generates roughly $45 million a year to support parks projects and allow some dollars to be set aside for leaner times.

I do have park envy. I’m sad city voters weren’t willing to increase our TOPS tax in 2022. As a result, we have 10 promised parks waiting to be planned and constructed including Coleman Park on the city’s east side. We’re about to complete a new master and management plan for Blodgett Open Space with limited dollars to do any of the work. That will be a blow to the hundreds of participants who invested time in the planning process and are now eager to see the “fruits of their labor.”

It’s a common complaint we hear – “Why do things take so long to complete?” It’s a combination of limited staff plus limited dollars. The other consideration is maintenance. It would be irresponsible to build new parks without adequate staff to take care of them.

Fortunately, open space requires far fewer maintenance dollars than parks and soft-surface trails are cheaper to build than playgrounds. Also, we have amazing Friends Groups willing to shoulder some of the maintenance load.

Friends of Peregrine helps maintain Blodgett Open Space. Despite reports of nationwide volunteerism on the decline, locally we have a number of high-functioning Friends Groups that continue to help keep popular public spaces in good shape.

A former TOSC board member told me that she moved to Fort Collins, in part, because she didn’t want to live in a city that didn’t support its parks. I would argue that we are a city that appreciates and uses its parks, but such affection doesn’t always translate into financial support.

We finally cured my dad of his “new car fetish” when he reached his 60s. I, on the other hand, have no intention of curbing my craving for new open space.

Our city is projected to surpass Denver’s population by 2050. Here’s hoping that between now and then we refuse to fall behind and instead step up our investment in those natural jewels that define our community.

Davies is the executive director of the Trails and Open Space Coalition.

View of Blodgett Peak from the open space on Colorado Springs’ northwest side. A master plan envisions new recreation and conservation efforts across the city’s expanded land. Photo courtesy City of Colorado Springs