City of Durango and La Plata County officials are trying to raise $3.4 million to develop a recreation area on 128 acres on the north shore of Lake Nighthorse, the reservoir that will be created in Ridges Basin upon completion of the Animas-La Plata Project. The pumping station on the Animas River is expected to be completed next year and the 120,000-acre-foot reservoir is slated to be filled in 2009. By comparison, Vallecito Reservoir is 67,355 acre-feet and Navajo Reservoir is 1.5 million acre-feet. The Colorado Board of Parks and Outdoor Recreation will meet Nov. 8 to consider its 2008 budget. On Tuesday, Durango Parks and Recreation Director Cathy Metz asked the City Council to support a letter requesting that the state board apply for a Wallop Breau grant to develop recreational facilities at Lake Nighthorse. La Plata County commissioners are considering the same proposal. The Wallop Breau grant provides as much as $3 million in federal funding for motorboat recreation and requires 25 percent in matching funds.

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