Recent closures of the Dillon Dam Road have focused attention on Summit County’s often stormy relationship with the Denver Water Board.

In an effort to engage members of the local community interested in establishing a more constructive connection with the powerful Front Range utility, Our Future Summit will conduct the first in a series of community roundtable discussions tagged “Denver Water: Building a New Relationship” from 7:00 to 9:00 pm Thursday, August 14^th at Frisco Town Hall.

Howard Hallman, OFS president and co-founder, will moderate a program featuring a panel of individuals sure to enlighten the audience.

The panel features:

Dan Gibbs, who represents the Western Slope's Grand and Summit Counties in the Colorado State Senate. A staffer for U.S. representative Mark Udall before being elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat in 2006, Dan is noted for his focus on transportation and environmental issues in the state legislature. Appointed to a vacancy in the Colorado State Senate in late 2007, his district includes Clear Creek, Gilpin and the western portions of Boulder and Jefferson Counties. Dan played a prominent role in the reopening of the Dillon Dam Road and is engaged in ongoing negotiations with the Denver Water Board.

Dr. Sandra Pritchard Mather, a geographer, geologist and docent with the Summit Historical Society. She is the author of Dillon, Denver and the Dam, a book that chronicles Denver's search for water and responsible for bringing the Denver Water Board to Summit County. She will provide a rich historical context for the discussion.

Brad Piehl, a principal with Breckenridge-based JW Associates. He is engaged in several significant initiatives with Denver Water, including a watershed protection project at Straight Creek, which furnishes the water supply for the Town of Dillon, and the Front Range Fuels Treatment Partnership. A graduate of Oregon State University with a Master of Science  in Forest Engineering, Brad has more than 20 years of environmental consulting experience employing innovative management approaches for landscape, watershed and subwatershed level projects.

Rick Sackbauer, who represents the headwaters counties of Eagle, Grand and Summit on the Denver Water Board’s Citizen’s Advisory Council. A project manager in design and construction for the Vail Resorts Development Company, he has served as chairman of the Eagle River Water and Sanitation District, the second largest water provider on the Western Slope. President of the Eagle Park Reservoir Company, Rick represents Colorado's recreation industry at the Colorado River Basin Roundtable. He is also a member of the Colorado River Headwater Forum--Club 20--the Colorado Water Congress and the Summit County Water Forum. Rick is actively working behind the scenes to promote accommodation among Dillon Dam Road stakeholders to achieve a comprehensive settlement over access issues.

The August 14th forum is free and open to the public. Doors at the Community Center will open at 6:30. Light snacks and soft drinks will be available.

Our Future Summit is a “quality of life” institution dedicated to creating a better Summit County by providing monthly opportunities for informed discussion on topics of community interest.