By Derek Kutzer
Staff Writer
On Feb. 18, the Pagosa Springs Town Council decided to wait until its next meeting to make a final decision on what kind of Fourth of July celebration it wants to put on this year.
At the meeting, Parks and Recreation Director Darren Lewis and Recreation Supervisor Amanda Gadomski brought three options for the council to consider:
• To have a parade following the same route as last year’s parade, along Hot Springs Boulevard and ending at Yamaguchi Park.
• To have a celebratory party at Yamaguchi Park, instead of a parade, that would lead into the town’s fireworks display. (A fireworks show depends on the fire danger around that time.)
• To have a “stationary parade” on 6th Street, where the floats can line up along the street for spectator viewing.
Lewis explained that staff sought direction from the council, as well as ideas about “other things we might want to consider for the Fourth of July.”
He noted that last year’s parade down Hot Springs Boulevard was a test run at moving the parade off of U.S. 160 through downtown, necessitated by Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT’s) looming main street reconstruction project.
Development Director James Dickhoff said that, this year, he was “sure” CDOT’s construction project would be happening in early July, with Lewis adding, “they will be closing everything from 1st to 8th Street.”
Last year’s parade met mixed reviews from spectators, Lewis explained, with the main complaint coming from people not being able to enter or exit The Springs Resort, as well as impacted access to the Chamber of Commerce-sponsored arts and crafts event.
A parade along this route would face even steeper challenges this year, with CDOT’s construction beginning in mid-March and running through the summer season, Lewis suggested.
The main problem, compared to last year’s event, would be that no parking will be available to spectators on main street within CDOT’s construction zone, he explained.
In addition, town staff would need to shut down Hot Springs Boulevard, in the hours before the parade, causing access problems to the Town Park event and The Springs Resort, he added.
“Main street was available for parking” last year, but this year main street parking will not be available, “none,” he said.
Council member Mat deGraaf asked about positive and negative “feedback” from last year’s parade, with Gadomski replying, “A lot of people complained that it was too short and the pace of the parade was too staggered.”
She added that there wasn’t too much negative feedback about the parade itself. Most of the complaints came from a desire for “better parking arrangements” and access to the businesses along the parade route, she said.
“It sounds like it was a win in that we landed right in the middle. We got some great comments on one side and negative comments on the other … which isn’t a bad place to be,” deGraaf commented.
But Lewis chimed in to explain that “the big difference this year will be main street and people getting there [to the parade] and finding parking.”
Gadomski added that town staff already had a problem last year with getting “the floats there on time” to stage for the parade.
She expressed worry that, with main street being under construction this year and causing a more limited traffic flow, the problem would be exacerbated.
She added that Hermosa Street would also be shut down due to the arts and crafts event at Town Park, and “all of the vendors” for this event would be parking at “the Mary Fisher lot.”
Lewis explained how a stationary celebration could work, saying that the event could start in the afternoon, adding “that would bring the crowd down, and now they are here for the celebration and they are not trying to go back home and come back for the fireworks,” with the reduced traffic flow from the main street construction being a concern.
During public comment, Shawna Snarr suggested that, if the parade does not happen this year, “the American Legion, Daughters of the American Revolution and Vets for Vets would all be willing to work with the town to try to create a party in the park, or something along those lines.”
She added, “We’re trying to figure out if we can get a good amount of community support down to Yamaguchi Park and if the town and the nonprofits within our community can come together to create this,” mentioning the possibility of food and beer vendors at the event.
Council member Brooks Lindner said, “I think you guys came up with some really good options.”
He added that if the town decides to go with either a “stationary” parade or celebration, he does not want this to become a “normal” thing.
He suggested it is important to go back to the “regular parade” once the CDOT construction project is completed.
Council member Leonard Martinez noted he wanted to make sure that whatever the council decided, the event would be accessible to the elderly and to “people who are not as mobile.”
Mayor Shari Pierce expressed worry about the future of the event, saying the parade “is something our community has done for decades” and that “if it goes away, it might not return.”
Martinez agreed, saying that he does not “want to give up the parade. We need to fight to have a parade.”
Lewis emphasized that town staff is in favor of putting on a parade in the future, once CDOT completes its project.
“In two or three years from now, when main street’s done and we have new light poles with flowers hanging from them and it’s all irrigated with beautiful new trees,” new concrete and wider sidewalks, “having that parade? Oh my goodness, it’s going to be great,” he said. “In the meantime, though, we are showing you the difficulty of putting on a parade” while CDOT’s project is ongoing.
He stated he anticipates “pushback” from The Springs Resort if the town chooses to have a parade this year and shuts down Hot Springs Boulevard for several hours, restricting access to the resort.
Pierce stated she understood that last year’s parade created “a not so good situation down there,” but she still wanted to “explore what we can do” to have a parade.
She then suggested that if a celebration is held at Yamaguchi Park, instead of a parade, she wants to make sure “there was enough room there” if a big crowd showed up.
Martinez suggested that staff should explore other parade route options for this year, but Lewis was adamant that it would have to be along the same route as last year.
“There’s really no other good route,” Lewis said. “I appreciate the input and the perspective about the 8th Street” idea, presented earlier by Martinez, but “it’s hard to visualize that going through the high school parking lot.”
Pierce asked to see a show of hands among the council that indicated who was ready to make a decision “tonight.”
The council had no appetite to make a final decision at the meeting and decided, instead, to ask staff to go back and explore the event options further.
The issue will be considered again at the council’s March 4 regular meeting.
“I think this parade is very important to the community, and we’ll see what we can come up with,” Pierce said.
derek@pagosasun.com
