The Army will “go back to the drawing board on its land acquisition approach” at the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site in southern Colorado.
Pete Geren, acting secretary of the Army, sent a letter Thursday to Sens. Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar, saying the Army plans to listen to the local community, look for ways to improve the acquisition process and find a way to economically stimulate the area through expansion.
Geren said the Army would not move forward until it could discuss ideas for a win-win solution with the senators and the community.
The Army stopped short of saying whether going “back to the drawing board” would delay the environmental-impact study, and the Army would not say whether it would would take eminent domain off the table.
“Discussions of the use of eminent domain are premature, especially because many property owners who voluntarily sell property to the federal government want to have their property condemned for tax purposes,” an Army spokesman said.
The Army wants to acquire 400,000 acres in southern Colorado to train troops from Fort Carson. The Army said it needs the land to accommodate a high-tech Army that has weapons that fly farther and faster than ever.
Cody Wertz, spokesman for Salazar, said: “They’re publicly acknowledging that their previous approach was not acceptable, and they have to come up with a new plan on land acquisition. They’ve committed there has to be economic win-win. They have not said that before.”
Allard, in a news release, said: “Today’s letter demonstrates that the Army clearly agrees with me that a win-win solution is necessary to make the proposed expansion possible.”
“We need to be thinking about this thoughtfully and trying to find solutions for both sides,” said Virginia Morrison Love, spokeswoman for Colorado Competitive Council, a 2-year-old nonprofit that serves as an umbrella organization for 42 chambers of commerce in Colorado.
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave said, “I am pleased to see the Army become more inclusive because thus far they’ve been unresponsive to the community and elected officials.”
Lon Robertson, spokesman for the Piñon Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition, said: “We don’t see anything different than we’ve been seeing. It’s the same thing, just different rhetoric on a different day.”
Staff writer Anne Mulkern contributed to this report.
Erin Emery can be reached at 719-522-1360 or eemery@denverpost.com.
