The ravine that divides downtown Castle Rock from Interstate 25 is getting a monumental makeover fit for a mouse.
The $461,000 project to rehabilitate Sellers Gulch will provide a permanent home for the endangered Preble’s meadow jumping mouse. The rare rodent is usually a problem for developers and public officials who grapple with the cost and limits of federal protections.
But while the price tag is hefty, so are the benefits, say town officials and environmentalists.
Protecting the mouse in the shadow of downtown makes a statement about how Castle Rock values the environment, said Jane Cyphers, a member of Castle Rock’s Parks and Recreation Commission.
“If we cut corners on the mouse, what are we going to cut corners on next? Wetlands? Then what?” she said. “When you start cutting corners, the corners just get bigger.”
The board’s goal is to develop areas that fit with the natural appearance of the area, where the foothills meet the plains.
“I think one of the main reasons people come to Castle Rock is because of the way it looks,” she said. “It’s our job to maintain that curb appeal.”
Work on the project begins this week. By the end of spring, contractors will have removed tons of trash and debris and stabilized the banks and channels.
Workers also will replant native vegetation after removing noxious weeds that impede the mouse and other native wildlife.
Sellers Gulch is the site of the original home of one of the town’s founders, but the land has become an eyesore in recent decades.
“Just for the beautification aspect of it, it’s worthwhile,” said Mayor Randy Reed. “Rather than having an ugly area that’s of no benefit, we’ll have a nice area for people to enjoy.”
The money the town spends now will pay off in property values and public opinion, said Jacob Smith, executive director of the Denver-based Center for Native Ecosystems.
“You get a huge return on your investment,” he said. “Sure, it’s money out of pocket upfront, but every study shows that protected open space improves the value of the land around it.
“You end up increasing your property tax base far more than your initial investment.”
A 1999 Ciruli Associates survey found that 76 percent of those asked rated wildlife’s importance to Colorado’s quality of life as 6 or above on a scale of 1 to 10, including 48 percent who rated it as 8 or higher.
Laws protecting the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse are in flux, as developers in its habitat from southeastern Wyoming to Colorado Springs seek to remove it from the federal Endangered Species Act.
While communities such as Castle Rock could bank on the Bush administration rolling back protections, they could easily lose that wager, Smith said.
“Doing a good job in the first place is your best bet, so you don’t have to come back later and do it right,” he said. “And by doing a good job in these open spaces along streams, you’re doing a good job for water quality in your community.
“Nobody loses in that situation.”
Staff writer Joey Bunch can be reached at 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com.
