Perimeter trail NEPA complete; commission reports letters from homeowners' counsel and will coordinate response
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Summary
Commission staff said the South Side perimeter-trail NEPA process is complete and that county attorneys have begun responding to fact-finding inquiries from homeowners' counsel; the commission will have a Mountain Club representative speak at the next meeting and said it will track any legal developments.
San Miguel County Open Space Commission members discussed the South Side perimeter trail and related legal inquiries on Sept. 22.
Commission staff reported that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process for the perimeter trail is complete and that U.S. Forest Service approvals were obtained as part of the process. The meeting also noted that some neighbors remain concerned about wildlife and migration impacts; a county staff member said two separate letters from attorneys representing local homeowner groups had arrived requesting information and raising questions.
County staff said the letters were framed as fact-finding inquiries rather than formal litigation at this stage and that the county attorney's office would respond. The commission's staff said they would meet with the county attorney to coordinate responses and that Mountain Club representative Sophie (who helped prepare the NEPA documentation) will be the commission's guest speaker at the Oct. 27 meeting.
Commissioners said they will monitor any legal developments and will make the NEPA findings available as appropriate to clarify environmental conclusions in response to inquiries. No official change to the project was announced at the Sept. 22 meeting.