City orders contractor working on major intersection project to pay for prairie dog damage

A private company has been fined by the city of Fort Collins for failing to obtain the proper permit before work that disturbed a prairie colony in preparation of a city road construction project.

Zak Dirt, based in Longmont, was ordered by the city to pay $11,760 for 4 acres of prairie dog habitat disturbed on private land on the northwest corner of College Avenue and Trilby Road, according to the city.

City staff said unbeknownst to the city, Zak Dirt — a contractor working on the city’s College Avenue and Trilby Road intersection project — had entered into a private arrangement with the site's landowner as an off-site staging area for sod, soil and other materials.

The city said the company was unaware of the city’s requirements for an off-site construction staging permit and started grading the area without knowing an active prairie dog colony was present and protected by the city's development standards.

Prior to the issuance of an off-site construction permit, a city environmental planning team must approve a prairie dog mitigation plan in addition to a mitigation plan for any further habitat loss, said Kirk Longstein, a senior environmental planner with the city.

On April 9, the city was made aware of the company grading a portion of the prairie dog colony by a citizen who lives near the site. The city said it stopped the work "almost immediately after it was understood what was happening.''

"Once we verified on the ground that they had crept over into the prairie dog colony, that's when we flagged the violation," Longstein told the Coloradoan.

Grace Hanley Wright is the citizen who reported the activity on the prairie dog colony. She said she was impressed with how quickly the city stepped in to stop the work on the property and evaluate the situation.

"I was glad the city took quick action,'' she said. "It's unfortunate the contractor engaged in this behavior. I don’t know in what world this would make their actions ethical.''

Longstein said city staff looked at the site and determined there was no evidence of prairie dog deaths due to the construction and that the prairie dogs had dug open hole entrances covered during the grading.

The entire parcel contains more than 2,000 prairie dog burrows, according to city staff. The disturbed land is a small piece of the entire property, which is nearly 40 acres.

Raptors in the area also appeared not to be disturbed.

Dana Hornkohl, project manager for the city, said staff is meeting with Zak Dirt this week to obtain the off-site construction staging permit. Hornkohl said the work stoppage at the prairie dog site will not delay the $12 million College Avenue and Trilby Road intersection project.

Completion of that project is expected in 2025.

Zak Dirt's $11,760 fee will be paid to the city’s Natural Areas Department to help manage existing prairie dog colonies on city-owned property.

Hanley Wright said despite the temporary work stoppage on the property, the large prairie dog colony as well as hawks and owls that live on the property are all in jeopardy. That's because a housing development is proposed for the site. That plan is working its way through the city's planning process.

She said she is working with The Humane Society in an effort to relocate the prairie dogs before the development removes them.

The city said humane prairie dog management through the development review process includes trapping and donating prairie dogs to the Rocky Mountain Raptor Center or fumigation through city approved methods.

"This is happening all over the state with wildlife and development,'' Hanley Wright said. "As the city develops we need to figure out a way to live in concert and manage wildlife and development. This is an unfortunate reflection of how the environment and wildlife is often overlooked in the development process.''

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins road project contractor to pay for prairie dog damage