Published in the Times Call on September 7, 2025
When Longmont voters overwhelmingly approved the perpetual extension of our open space tax last November, they sent a clear message: Open space should mean permanent protection. These lands are not assets set aside for future industrial use — they are a lasting legacy for wildlife, recreation, and community well-being.
That is why the proposed Distel-Tull land exchange is troubling. It undermines voter trust and conflicts with an agreement Longmont made with our neighbor, the town of Frederick. In 2011, Longmont entered into an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with Frederick to guide growth and prevent industrial intrusion into the St. Vrain River and Boulder Creek corridor. Though the IGA does not list Distel by name, the property lies within the corridor and the half-mile coordinated planning buffer, making it subject to the protections the IGA established.
The IGA committed both communities to open space buffers and community separators. It called for preserving riparian areas in their natural state, protecting water quality and safeguarding wildlife habitat — including a major bald eagle roost near the confluence of the St. Vrain and Boulder Creek. It required 150-foot setbacks from riparian areas and a quarter-mile setback from the eagle roost. It directed development away from rivers and open space while envisioning trails and recreation corridors linking the two communities.
This is not a forgotten document. The IGA is publicly available on the city of Longmont’s website at longmontcolorado.gov/planning-and-development-services/plans-and-reports and can also be reviewed at the city clerk’s office. Any resident can read the commitments our city made with the town of Frederick to protect open space, wildlife and community buffers.
The Distel parcel, purchased with open space funds, sits squarely in this sensitive corridor and within the IGA’s planning zone. Converting it into a regional composting facility — or any industrial use — would disregard the IGA’s requirements for coordination with Frederick and protection of open space and habitat. The natural buffer Distel provides between Frederick and Longmont would be lost. A compost facility would bring runoff, leachate, odor and heavy truck traffic, all of which threaten water quality and wildlife. Bald eagles, in particular, would be at risk. The IGA directs development away from rivers and open space, yet this proposal plants industry in the middle of the corridor. The agreement also envisioned regional trails through these lands — trails that an industrial site would block or limit.
Once open space is breached for industry, the precedent is set. Other facilities will follow. Future councils will point to Distel and say, “We did it once, why not again?” The IGA was designed to prevent this erosion. Ignoring it damages trust not only between Longmont and Frederick but also with Longmont voters who approved the open space tax expecting permanent protection.
At its core, this debate is about trust. Voters funded open space so that it would remain open space. Residents expect their tax dollars to protect land in perpetuity, not enable land swaps that weaken protections. Agreements like the IGA exist to ensure that promise endures across councils and election cycles. Rejecting the Distel-Tull exchange is not just about saying no to a compost facility. It is about saying yes to the commitments we made: yes to open space buffers, yes to wildlife habitat, yes to clean rivers, yes to trail corridors, and yes to honoring our word as a community.
Longmont has other options for addressing infrastructure needs. But open space — especially land purchased with voter-approved funds — is not the place to solve them. If a regional compost facility is essential, it should be located on land zoned for industry, not in the heart of our natural corridors.