City of Longmont wins Starburst Award

By Kelly Tabor

The Colorado Lottery

The Colorado Lottery was presented the 2014 Starburst Community Award to the City of Longmont for using Lottery funds to design and construct the Dry Creek Community Park — Phase I Construction. Plans began in 2008 and came to fruition with the help of a $700,000 Lottery-funded Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) grant.

The award was presented Saturday, Oct. 11, at 10 a.m. at Dry Creek Park’s grand opening. The mayor and city council will cut the ribbon, officially opening the park.

In this fast-growing community of 90,000 residents, the need for more parkland was apparent for several years. Dry Creek is the seventh park in this area, and boasts more than 80 acres including multi-use sports fields and courts, ADA-accessible playgrounds, ball fields, an 18-hole disc golf course, trails, restrooms and shelters. The park will provide soccer, lacrosse, rugby, football and cricket players additional space, alleviating safety and scheduling issues. The property will have unobstructed views of the mountains including Mount Meeker and Longs Peak, with water from the Clover Basin Ditch running through the north end of the park. Walking and biking trails loop through the park connecting Dry Creek Greenway, Grandview Meadows Drive, and Blue Skies Park.

The Colorado Lottery Starburst Community Awards recognize excellence in the use of Lottery proceeds in community projects implemented to enhance a community’s environment.

In Fiscal Year 2014 alone, the Lottery distributed $130.1 million in proceeds. Since its creation 31 years ago, the Lottery has returned more than $2.7 billion back into the state of Colorado.

Lottery proceeds are distributed to three primary beneficiaries: GOCO, Conservation Trust Fund and Colorado Parks and Wildlife. These organizations then provide grants and direct funding for parks, recreation, open space acquisition, trails, and wildlife and conservation education.