Record of Proceedings
Foothills Park & Recreation District Special Board of Directors meeting
May 26, 2026
A virtual attendance option was made available through Microsoft Teams.
Call to Order
Director Trimble called the regular meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
Pledge of Allegiance
Director Trimble led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.
Roll Call
Director Hanson, Present; Director Lodice, arrived 6:04 p.m.; Director Brainard, Present; Director Writz, Present; Director Trimble, Present.
Also in Attendance: Paul Rufien, District Counsel; Ronald Hopp, Executive Director; Dennis Weiner, Director of Finance and Administrative Services; Becky Richmond, Director of Recreation; Colin Insley, Director of Parks, Planning and Construction; Randy Meyers, Director of Golf; Richelle Riley, Recording Secretary; other Foothills staff and members of the public.
Potential conflicts of interest were disclosed pursuant to Colorado Revised Statutes 18-8-308(2), 24-18-109(3)(a), 24-18-110, and 32-1-902(3).
Approval of Agenda
Motion: Director Hanson moved that the Foothills Board of Directors approve the May 26, 2026 agenda as submitted. Director Brainard seconded the motion. Poll of the Board: Director Hanson, yes; Director Brainard, yes; Director Writz, yes; Director Trimble, yes. The motion was approved.
Approval of Previous Meeting Minutes
Motion: Director Hanson moved that the Foothills Board of Directors approve the minutes of the April 28, 2026 board meeting as submitted. Director Writz seconded the motion. Poll of the Board: Director Hanson, yes; Director Brainard, yes; Director Writz, yes; Director Trimble, yes. The motion was approved.
Community Comments
Steve Johnson addressed the Board on behalf of the Stingrays Swim Team. He said the team has been swimming at Sixth Avenue West pool for over 20 years and this year when they went to negotiate their annual contract, the District tried to give them a hundred percent increase. He said they want to get something set up so they can ensure over the next several years that they won’t have a hundred percent increase. Becky Richmond discussed that she had met with Steve Johnson and Kate Maw; the increase was at thirty some percent and it got down to thirteen percent. She pointed out that the Stingrays have added a lot of pool time to increase that as well. Staff examine fees and charges every single year and will keep doing that every year. Ronald Hopp reiterated the District has rising costs and recognized that staff have done an admiral job of looking at what the District’s costs are and trying to catch up for years of probably not raising fees like we
should have. The District can’t subsidize the Stingrays program on a continual basis. If we can find some compromised opportunity to make it more reasonable, that is the way to continue to progress. Mr. Hopp agreed that thirteen percent for this year makes a lot of sense, and staff can continue to have dialogue. He suggested that maybe the Stingrays can operate differently to reduce costs, look at their overall operations; they are a business. Ms. Richmond expressed commitment to continuing these conversations with the Stingrays this summer and looking forward to figuring out how to help each other to be successful.
Decision Items
Item 1: Board Election of Officers
Director Trimble asked if any of the Board members wish to have a different board office than the one they have right now and entertained a motion.
Motion: Director Hanson moved that the Foothills Board of Directors re-elect the current slate of director offices for the upcoming year: Phil Trimble, Chair; Michael Hanson, First Vice Chair; Ali Lodice, Second Vice Chair; Jeff Brainard, Treasurer; Gina Writz, Secretary. Director Writz seconded the motion. Poll of the Board: Director Hanson, yes; Director Lodice, yes; Director Brainard, yes; Director Writz, yes; Director Trimble, yes. The motion was approved.
Item 2: Memorial Bench Application
Referring to information in the packet, Colin Insley said there is an application that is more of a tribute bench application. Columbine Hills Civic Association (CHCA) saved funds to plant additional trees, years ago they built a xeriscape garden, and it is kept up very well. Jane Savage and Janet Hopkins were a part of that process. CHCA wanted to thank them with a tribute bench, there isn’t a bench there at all. It was confirmed there is no policy against a bench named after people who are living, this is a dedication to their commitment.
Motion: Director Hanson moved that the Foothills Board of Directors approve the application request submitted by Galen Wiese for the purpose of placing a memorial park bench with plaque for CHCA at Columbine Hill Sports Park. Director Writz seconded the motion. Poll of the Board: Director Hanson, yes; Director Lodice, yes; Director Brainard, yes; Director Writz, yes; Director Trimble, yes. The motion was approved.
Executive Director’s Report
Highlighting the report provided, Mr. Hopp said there was an open house meeting at the Peak related to the Sledding Hill Park Trail. There is an on-site event at Weaver Hollow Park this coming Saturday, May 30 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
The pools all opened this past weekend, Mr. Hopp discussed. Day camps start on June 1. Mr. Hopp thanked Director Trimble for coming to our first Special District Golf Outing and Director Lodice stopped by for lunch. He reminded that there is a calendar and schedule for golf outings with other special districts. Mr. Hopp recognized it was a good kick-off for that event after not having done it for several years.
Discussion Items
Item 1: Finance Update
Dennis Weiner presented the District’s financial update for the end of April this year. Highlighting the report provided, he went over total District year-to-date operating revenues, total year-to-date operating expenditures, net operating loss, non-operating revenues and expenditures.
Looking at the bottom line through the end of April, Mr. Weiner concluded net revenue was better than the budget.
Item 2: Master Plan Staff Survey Results
Providing background, Mr. Hopp said a survey was sent out to staff and it was an official kick-off for the master planning process. Rich Newman, with BerryDunn, came this morning and presented to an All-Staff meeting. He is here tonight to talk to the Board about that information.
Using PowerPoint, Mr. Newman shared the master planning presentation with the Board. He explained what a master plan is and talked about next steps. He said the goal is to have it wrapped up and in a professional presentation within 12 months. Mr. Newman shared the staff survey results; there were 154 respondents. Next steps and processes were discussed including social media campaign, community survey, stakeholder conversations, public meetings, pop-up engagements.
In answer to Director Trimble, Mr. Hopp talked about the quarter one report from SSA.
Adjournment
The regular meeting adjourned at 7:04 p.m.
Submitted by: Richelle Riley, Recording Secretary