PID Board Applications are Open

 PID Board Applications Open - Deadline Oct 15th

The PID board has openings, if you are interested please take a look at the County Website.

Requirements and application can be found there. https://www.larimer.gov/boards#/board/storm-mountain/

The County Commissioner's run this process and select the applicants to represent the community.

Seasonal Road Maintenance - Final stages for 2024

Peers, the contractor is back on the mountain and working to complete the seasonal work.    Please use extra caution on the roads, and plan a few extra minutes into your trips.  

Planned work.  

• Touch-up grading on the major roads including Storm Mtn Drive up to the Hi/Low 

• Mag-chloride application on the trouble areas and high-volume roads 

• Placement of additional recycled asphalt base on the Access Road 

• Final Grade and Mag-chloride application on the access road.  

 

The schedule is weather and resource dependent, we will attempt to let folks know as best possible the days where mag-chloride will be applied. 

 

Thanks,  

 

Storm Mountain PID
stormmountainpid@gmail.com

Hazard Tree Removal due to Alexander Mountain Fire

 Peers, 

 

The Larimer Country Office of Emergency Management will start marking hazardous trees within the PID managed road easements  / right of way in the upcoming week.  

 

After the preliminary assessment this weekend they believe there may be between 100-200 hazardous trees that fall under FEMA recommendations.  These trees, commonly called snags, will be assessed two more times before any cutting will commence.  Assessment will be done by the arborist and the recovery contractor following FEMA guidelines.  The contractor MUST document each tree to be cut meets the guidelines. 

  Trees marked with both green and orange paint are targets to be removed. 

If a property owner desires a marked tree within the easement  NOT to be cut, please Flag or Paint the near the other tags with BLUE.  This will tell the arborist not to cut.   The property owner may be required to sign a waiver and liability release, the contractor hired to do the work is checking with the county on process. 

 

​What are candidate trees for cutting:

• Trees over 6 inches in diameter 
• ​Sustained significant fire damage
• Within 25 feet of the road center-line

 

What will happen to the cut trees:

• The arborist will cut, section and chip the cut trees,  leaving behind the chippings.
• ​We have requested a pause between cutting and chipping for community members who may want to harvest the wood for other uses. 

 

How to identify the Arborists:

• They will be wearing hardhats and have high visibility vests on at all times. 

 

What will not be cut:

• Trees outside the easement / right of way
• Trees under power lines unless an agreement with PVREA can be reached
• Trees under 6 inches in diameter
• Healthy, undamaged trees 

Tree Assessment by Office of Emergency Management

 Peers, 

 

The PID in cooperation with the Larimer Country Office of Emergency Management (LCOoEM) and their subject-matter experts, will be working in the areas impacted by the Alexander Mountain Fire.  Work may start as soon as tomorrow depending on confirmation by the LCOoEM. 

 

The first item on the work list is completion of an assessment of trees that may be considered a hazard within the road easements / right of way.   At this time, you may find trees marked for potential remediation.   If you see us out and about over the next few days, feel free to say hi. 

 

We will follow up with the community if it is determined that hazardous trees exist and should be removed.   
Thank you, 

James Toland
Storm Mountain PID 
stormmountainpid@gmail.com 

Vandalsm to Road Crew Equipment

Community, 

Our road contractor was a victim of vandalism over the last few days.    They maintain equipment near the lake most week days.  This equipment is vital to their work efforts and improves the quality of services to our community. 

The act of vandalism impacts our community as we pay more for lesser services,  it also puts our environment at risk with the pollution as waste generated. 

If anyone happens to have seen anything, please let myself or any of the PID board members know.  We will do our best to ensure anonymity where possible. 

Thank you, 

James 

PID Treasurer 

PID Annual Owners Meeting 2024-06-08

PID Annual Owners Meeting 
Date & Time: June 8th 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM 
Location: Fire Station #9, 100 Palisade Mountain Dr 
Audio Recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jLxEw0drwXfyvr708Vkwimbanyu1EaMF/view?usp=sharing

Board Members
Andy Hitch, Chairperson
James Toland, Treasurer
Connie Garrett, Secretary

The meeting commenced with foregoing Robert’s Rules and board members introductions.

2023 Final Budget

James reviewed the final budget for 2023. $226k was spent, and there was a $69 carry over. Part of the carry over was $12k in additional taxes received which was more than forecasted.  There was not a lot of snow last season, so there were funds left over from the snow plowing budget.  We went over on chipseal by $5k, and there was a $10k retainage for work that needs to be done to county standard.  The contractor, A1, will be returning this month to complete that work.  The $10k that was already deducted from the 2023 budget and will not come out of the 2024 budget.  Those funds are held by the county until the contractor completes the work.

 

 

2024 Proposed Budget

The 2024 budget increased by $55k due to property tax increases.  Most of the additional funds will be added to summer road maintenance, while the snow plowing budget will only be slightly increased. See below for break down of proposed budget. All budget materials and reports are available on the county website: https://www.larimer.gov/engineering/improvement-districts/more-info#storm-mountain

 

PID Scope

Andy reviewed the scope of the PID. The PID mindset is that we are one community, not separated into upper and lower filings, and the budget reflects the one-community mindset.  Repairs and maintenance should lower future costs, and we aim to accomplish as much as possible with the limited budget.  There are three priorities in summer road maintenance which follow the established snow plow priorities: 

1. Access Road
2. Main thoroughfares\high traffic roads
3. Side Roads

Completed and Upcoming Work

The Access Road was graded and mag chloride was applied. The contractor, Foster Dirt, advises doing multiple gradings and mag chloride applications as the road holds up longer when it is consistently maintained, and saves the community money in the long run as it quicker to repair when we consistently grade and apply mag chloride. A natural spring continues to cause an issue in the Access Road: this area continues to be filled in with materials as available. Last year, recycled asphalt was added to the Access Road, which has held up well, and because of that less money is spent on repairs, and more can be spent to extend the recycled asphalt up the Access Road. The contractor graded Storm Mountain Drive up to the hi-lo.  Exhausted road base will be scraped and redistributed around the mountain where roads are still native dirt. This saves on the cost of disposing of the exhausted material while simultaneously improving the lower priority roads. The board will work with the contractor to be less aggressive in grading areas that result in cobble and try to rake cobble off the road, and also not grade roads that do not require grading. 

Culverts that cross the road are within the scope of the PID and will be cleaned out as needed.  Culverts that cross a private driveway are the responsibility of the property owner, however, the PID may consider cleaning these culverts when they cause deterioration on the public road.  In previous years, the board has focused on improving ditches and culvert to prevent water damage to the road.  

The contractor, A-1, will be back up to chipseal this month (tentatively June 25th) to re-fog, re-chip, and re-seal the switchbacks down.  The plan is to bring in more recycled asphalt to connect last year’s recycled asphalt from center turn around (Pee Rock) up towards Berg’s Hill.  There was discussion about the pros and cons of recycled asphalt vs roadbase: the county recommends recycled asphalt as it binds better. There was discussion around the use of mag chloride.  The county has approved the use of mag chloride for use on the road. There was discussion on a busting up bedrock to improve areas of the road where it is exposed bedrock.  The contractor has done this in the past, and the board welcomes feedback on problem areas that could be improved. For high traffic areas: recycled asphalt holds up well, there is some breakdown which can be fixed with cold patch.  Recycled asphalt extends the life of the road by 5-6 years, which then frees up money to work up the mountain to bring in new material.  Palisade and Lakeview are future projects that community members expressed desire for the use of recycled asphalt.  

The board welcomes community input on areas in need of improvement of the 25 miles of road and 50-70 miles of ditches in the PID district. The board works with 2-3 county engineers to consult and guide the board on road work.  The county also comes up to inspect work completed.

Snow Plowing

Community members stepped up to open roads in March blizzard.  The current contractor, Over the Rainbow Ranch, is shutting down.  The county will open up the snow plowing bid.  There are a few community members that have expressed interest in plowing upper filings, however, the contract is open to anyone interested in bidding on it.  There is a significant desire to have a contractor based on the mountain.  The county can put specifications on performance and equipment but cannot require that the contractor be based on the mountain.  County cannot use county equipment to plow mountain roads. There was a suggestion to search for a grant to help with the equipment cost, however this is a difficult process.  Those interested in snow plowing are encouraged to apply, and the board welcomes community members to spread the word to anyone who might have an interest in snow plowing.

PID Openings

There are currently 3 open positions on the PID board. Community members are encouraged to apply on the county website: https://www.larimer.gov/boards#/board/storm-mountain/?tab=overview .  Applicants must own property within the PID district.

Additional Comments

There was some discussion about the use of the lake water.  The previous HOA board charged $10 per truck load of water, which was cheaper than hauling water from town (estimated to be $300 per truck load from town).  The current HOA board has stopped charging for lake water and donates the water to use on road maintenance.  A suggestion to water the main thoroughfares that access the lake to keep down dust from heavy trucks on those routes.

The meeting was adjourned.

PID Annual Owners Meeting - June 8, 2024

Hello Storm Mountain,

The annual owners meeting is scheduled.  See below for details:

Date & Time: June 8th 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Location: Fire Station #9, 100 Palisade Mountain Dr

Agenda

• Forgo Robert's Rules
• Introductions
• Budget Review
• PID Scope
• Completed Work
• Upcoming projects planned for the remainder of 2024
• Snow Plowing Update
• PID Openings
• Open the floor for comments
• Adjourn 

Donuts and water will be provided.  Please bring a chair.

--

Storm Mountain PID #55

Email: stormmountainpid@gmail.com

Website: https://stormmountainpid.blogspot.com/

Voicemail: 970-429-5350

Monday Road Conditions - March 18, 2024

 Community,   

A big thank you to all the volunteers who worked throughout this storm event to improve the road conditions for everyone. 

Access Road:  Narrow lanes, snow snow pack, icy in places,  most folks can travel without issue, but extra care is required. 

Lower Filings:  Travel lanes are narrow and snow packed / Icy / Slushy.   If you go out, please be prepared with chains and a shovel. 

Upper fillings: Most roads are open, but narrow and very high snow berms on each side.   PLEASE only attempt with a high clearance vehicle and chains.

If you have propery on one of smaller side roads, it may not be clear for a few more days

Over the Rainbow Ranch will continue to work to improve road conditions. 

Please avoid parking on roads while we continue to clear snow, this is a safey issue and grealty slows progress in clearing the roads.

Thanks,

James

Winter Storm Watch 2024-03-13 thru 2024-03-15

Hello Storm Mountain, a snow event is forecasted starting this Wednesday morning lasting through Friday morning.  Check the local forecast and be prepared with adequate traction for your vehicle (including chains).

Thank you,
Storm Mountain PID #55
Email: stormmountainpid@gmail.com
Website: https://stormmountainpid.blogspot.com/
Voicemail: 970-429-5350

Hazardous Weather Outlook 2024-02-21

Hello Storm Mountain, the National Weather Service issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook. Please review the upcoming forecast and make plans to travel safely.

Storm Mountain PID #55
Email: stormmountainpid@gmail.com
Website: https://stormmountainpid.blogspot.com/
Voicemail: 970-429-5350