Steamboat Pilot & Today

Hayden — The meeting room was packed Thursday night with motocross riders in full muddy gear, holding helmets in their laps and hoping the Town Board would approve the resurrection of the Stoke's Gulch Moto-Cross Track.

"(Kids) want something to do, a place to ride, and they don't want to go to Craig to do it," said Jill Altman, a member of the Stoke's Gulch motocross club.

The board was positive but made no decisions. The motocross club asked for the renewal of a lease agreement for town-owned property that had formally been used as a track. In 1999, the track was leased by a group of teen-agers, but the property eventually went back to weeds.

This time around, the club includes parents as well as young riders.

"When this idea came up the first time, we were really excited but the teen-agers graduated," Trustee Ken Gibbons said. "We are really happy to see adults involved this time."

If the board approves the lease, the club would pay $1 for rent. Altman requested a two-year lease. According to the document she presented, there would never be more than 10 bikes on the track at a time. Adult supervision would be mandatory for children younger than the age of 11. The club asked that the track be open from dawn to dusk.

The only concern raised by the board was the question of how bikes would be transported to the track. The board suggested adding penalties in the club bylaws if riders were taking bikes illegally through town.

The board agreed to make a copy of the lease agreement with the newly agreed-upon stipulations and present it to the town attorney. If the lease is approved, it will be addressed at the next board meeting.

Before the riders presented their case, they had to patiently sit through the discussion of the water-treatment facility improvement plan. For the past several weeks, the town of Hayden has been struggling to fit needed improvements to the plant within a budget of $1.5 million.

Public Works Director Frank Fox and Town Manager Rob Straebel have been working with CDC and TCD to make the needed deletions. So far, they have saved almost $285,000. Unfortunately, it was still not enough.

On Thursday night, the board finally agreed to take out a $200,000 loan for the needed improvements from the Department of Local Affairs. Only Gibbons raised concerns about going into debt for the project.

To pay back the loan, the town will be raising water bills by $1.80 per month, Town Clerk Lisa Johnston said.

"Our water rates are already lower than both Craig and Steamboat," Mayor Chuck Grobe said.

In other business:

n County Commissioner Nancy Stahoviak requested $150 from the town of Hayden for a Consumer Preference Survey being put out jointly by Routt County and the Steamboat Springs Economic Development Council.

The end product of the survey would tell communities which goods and services were needed in their area. The board approved the amount.

n The board accepted a bid from Straightline Fence Co. for $1,515.

n Donna Hellyer was approved for another term on the Hayden Planning Commission.

n Darin Falk of the Hayden Police Department asked that residents take down their yard sale signs as soon as their sale is over. The board agreed it was not yet a problem but could become one. It will be addressed if residents do not comply in the future.

n The town of Hayden will be spraying for mosquitoes this weekend. The exact time has not yet been set. The spraying will be effective for three to four weeks and will be in time for the Routt County Fair and Rodeo.