ALAMOSA – Alamosa’s Riparian Park was recently recognized as one of 11 projects to receive the Colorado Lottery Starburst Award for excellence in the use of Lottery funds for community and conservation projects in 2020. Nearly $5 million in Lottery funds are represented in these 11 projects. Winning projects were chosen from across the state based on the creativity of the project, economic and social impact on the community, and whether the project achieved its goal.

A result of a two-year effort by Western Rivers Conservancy, the City of Alamosa, GOCO and other partners, the 203-acre City of Alamosa Riparian Park was completed late 2019. The project conserves a mile of the Rio Grande River and creates new opportunities for recreation along its banks. The largest funder of the project, GOCO, ranked Alamosa Riparian Park as its numberone Open Space Project in 2018 and provided $695,000 for the city to purchase the land.

In addition, CTF gave $20,000 to the project. Lottery proceeds are distributed statewide through grants via Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO), the Conservation Trust Fund (CTF), Colorado Parks & Wildlife, and Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST).

“With so many projects funded with Lottery dollars, it’s sometimes easy to forget all the different types of outdoor projects that result from Lottery revenue,” said Tom Seaver, director of the Colorado Lottery. “This year’s Starburst Awards showcase the diverse uses of Lottery money -- ballfields, bike parks, playgrounds, riparian zones, and of course, massive land purchases.

These Starburst awards demonstrate just a fraction of the ways Lottery dollars are going to work wherever and however Coloradans like to play.” Submissions include programs and projects such as parks, playgrounds, outdoor recreation facilities, land conservation, trail enhancement, open space acquisition, wildlife natural resource preservation, and public school improvements.

A result of a two-year effort by Western Rivers Conservancy, the City of Alamosa, GOCO and other partners, the 203-acre riverfront park was completed late 2019. The project conserves a mile of the Rio Grande river and creates new opportunities for recreation along its banks. The largest funder of the project, GOCO, ranked Alamosa Riparian Park as its number-one Open Space Project in 2018 and provided $695,000 for the city to purchase the land.

In addition, CTF gave $20,000 to the project. Located just northwest of Alamosa, the park serves as an upstream anchor for the City’s growing network of pedestrian and bike trails, adding more than five miles of new trails on the property itself. “It’s wonderful to see the community unite around the shared desire to connect with the Rio Grande,” said Andy Rice, Parks, Recreation and Library Director for the City of Alamosa.

“Alamosa Riparian Park meets our residents’ needs for our burgeoning outdoor recreation and trail usage that center on the Rio Grande, making our city more healthy and vibrant.” The park is a critical piece of the community’s Revitalize the Rio Initiative, an effort to link trails and improve river health and access along the Rio Grande throughout Alamosa south to 11,000- acre Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge.

“Alamosa Riparian Park is tangible progress toward achieving the community’s vision to connect the rich assemblage of public green spaces and wildlife areas in and around Alamosa,” explained Rice. The park is within walking distance of several neighborhoods and schools, and it will help link the city’s major green spaces, including the Oxbow Recreation Area just across the river.

Creation of Alamosa Riparian Park inspired broad local support from every level of the community, including the City of Alamosa, Alamosa County, San Luis Valley Great Outdoors, Rio Grande Watershed Conservation and Education Initiative, Rio Grande Headwaters Restoration Project, San Luis Valley Development Resources Group, Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and San Luis Valley National Wildlife Refuge Complex.