OTR Team Updates
Over The River update
February 21st, 2012 — OTR Project Team UpdateIn the months since BLM issued its Record of Decision (ROD), Christo and the Over The River team have been focused on the next phases of the project. This includes development of the Event Management Plans (EMP’s) for the initial phases of the project (staging, anchor and Anchor Transition Frame installation), applying for the county permits and finalizing the installation schedule. As we have been working on these tasks, a couple of things have become increasingly apparent.
First, the public continues to express a strong desire to see the specifics of the EMP’s that are being developed. These plans will include operational details that address the many traffic, safety and other issues that have been raised. Typically, this level of detail is not included in an EIS but is usually in an EMP that is developed after a ROD has been issued. That is the process we are following, but the EMP’s for the initial installation phases won’t be fully developed for some months. This leaves little time between completion of each phase of the EMP and the onset of each phase of installation. Christo believes that the public may not have sufficient time to understand this detailed information before installation begins.
Second, the thoroughness of the BLM’s environmental review process resulted in the ROD being issued several months later than originally planned. As a result, the BLM’s Final EIS authorized 28 months for installation, but only 24 months remained. This timeframe also included many months where work was prohibited in certain areas or otherwise restricted because of mitigation measures designed to avoid sensitive wildlife and recreation seasons. The planning activities since the issuance of the ROD made it increasingly apparent that the remaining installation schedule of 24 months did not allow room for unpredictable events such as severe weather.
For these reasons, Christo has decided to shift the Over The River exhibition date from early August 2014 to early August 2015. This adjustment will allow the EMP’s for the initial project phases to be developed before installation begins so that the public will have time to better understand how traffic, safety and other issues will be addressed. It will also reinstate the full 28 month installation schedule, as included in the Final EIS.
All other aspects of Over The River remain unchanged. The number of installation days remains the same and the comprehensive set of more than 100 mitigation measures will remain in place. The Fremont County, Chaffee County, Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado State Patrol permitting processes will continue as planned.
Christo understands that this news may be disappointing to thousands of local residents and many thousands of art enthusiasts around the world who are looking forward to experiencing Over The River. Nonetheless, this change will result in a better informed public and an improved installation schedule.
An overview of the permitting, installation, exhibition and removal schedule is available on the Over The River website.
Thank you from Christo
February 7th, 2012 — OTR Project Team Update
Following last week’s public hearings, Christo and the OTR team want to thank our many supporters for encouraging Fremont County to approve the Over The River Temporary Use Permit.
Hundreds of you took the time to write supportive letters and participate in the public process. It was an absolute pleasure to hear so many of you articulate the cultural and community benefits associated with Over The River. Christo and the team greatly enjoyed listening to you share your personal experiences and connections to this temporary work of art and the beautiful Arkansas River Valley landscape.
At the hearing on Feb. 2, Fremont County extended the public comment period until this Thursday, Feb. 9. This means you still have time to express your support and urge Fremont County to approve the Over The River permit via email (planning@fremontco.com) or U.S. mail (Fremont County Planning and Zoning Department, 615 Macon Avenue, Room 210, Cañon City, CO 81212). If you need ideas about what to include in your comment, click here.
Your support is deeply appreciated by Christo and the entire OTR team. We will continue to keep you informed as the Over The River permitting process moves forward. Thank you!
Update on OTR Legal Proceedings
February 7th, 2012 — OTR Project Team UpdateMany of you heard about the lawsuit filed last week against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) by a group opposed to Over The River. The suit challenges the findings of the BLM’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) analysis of Over The River and adherence to National Environmental Policy Act guidelines during the EIS process.
The analysis conducted by the BLM over the past three years has been exhaustive and comprehensive. The EIS considered extensive expert analysis on dozens of issues and thousands of public comments before federal approval was issued. The Record of Decision includes a comprehensive mitigation plan with more than 100 measures to avoid or minimize impacts on traffic, safety and wildlife as a result of the project.
For all these reasons, Christo and the OTR team are confident that the BLM’s thorough EIS analysis will withstand legal scrutiny. It is important to note that these legal proceedings allow work on the project to move forward and the team continues work to obtain the remaining permits so that installation can begin this summer. For a summary of the administrative appeal and two lawsuits, click here.
We thought you might also be interested in the following editorial from The Colorado Springs Gazette:
February 01, 2012
TOWN HALL: DU students try to stop Christo
The Gazette
WAYNE LAUGESEN
FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD
A group of student lawyers at the University of Denver’s Sturm College of Law are suing on behalf of a group called “Rags Over the Arkansas River,” in an effort to stop world-renowned artist Christo from stretching fabric over parts of the Arkansas to create a fabulous, temporary art display that will go down in history. Plaintiffs claim the U.S. Bureau of Land Management violated federal environmental laws when it issued a decision last year allowing Christo’s “Over the River” project.
The lawsuit, a project of the law school’s Environmental Law Clinic, ought to be withdrawn or laughed out of court. The student lawyers of record are Mason Brown and Justine Shepherd, overseen by professor Michael Harris.
The $50 million project, funded by Christo, will span 5.9 miles of the 42-mile Bighorn Sheep Canyon. Materials used for the project will be recycled. BLM approval came after the drafting and re-drafting of a painstaking and lengthy environmental impact statement. Other hurdles involve pending approvals from two counties, the Colorado State Patrol and the Colorado Department of Transportation. Construction is expected to begin this year, with the final work on display for two weeks in August 2014.
It will bring attention and money to Colorado, as people travel here from around the world to see it. Art is good. It enriches humanity and gives glory to God’s creation. Art celebrates humanity’s role in nature.
The only thing more creative than Christo’s proposed display are the mostly absurd obstacles opponents have contrived to throw in his path. …
Read the complete editorial on The Gazette website.