2020 Annual Report Looking back, the Town of Breckenridge made some major strides in 2019 towards our sustainability goals. It's an imperfect journey, but we are proud of how far we've come. In October, Town Council and staff leadership attended the Mountain Towns 2030 Summit in Park City, renewing our commitments towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions and striving for carbon neutrality in our community. In addition, our new Destination Management Plan commits us to becoming leaders in the environmental space. We have greenhouse gas reduction goals to cut emissions 80 percent by 2050 and have committed resources towards that end. We're beginning to electrify our eet with two all electric buses already online and more coming in 2020/21. And we've provided rebates to homeowners and businesses who go solar through Solarize Summit. This report is a snapshot of how far we've come on our sustainability journey. It reinforces our priorities and identi es gaps where we can further improve. We welcome your feedback and input as we form policies and implement projects to achieve a carbon neutral and healthy future for our community.  You can submit comments on our new website sustainablebreck.com. Eric Mamula, Mayor 67 Contents: Resource Conservation...5 Local Economy...7 Transportation...9 Water...11 Recreation & Open Space...13 Forest Health...15 Housing...17 Land Use...19 Child Care...21 Wildlife...23 68 Acknowledgements The creation of this report, the policy direction, and the implementation of action items identi ed by the SustainableBreck Plan requires the assistance, dedication, and commitment of the Town Council, various Town departments, numerous staff, and neighboring jurisdictions. Thank you for helping keep Breckenridge green and clean. Breckenridge Town Council Community Development Public Works Recreation & Open Space Breckenridge Tourism Of ce Summit County Government US Forest Service CSU Extension Xcel Energy High Country Conservation Center Summit Climate Action Collaborative 3 69 Monitoring Progress The monitoring program is designed to provide decision makers and community members a snapshot of progress made towards broad goals identi ed in each of the 10 sustainability categories. Each sustainability category contains indicators with targets (milestones) for the year 2030 unless otherwise noted. Indicators are the measuring tools used to better understand the current progress toward achieving our goals. 1.  Resource Conservation 2. Local Economy 3. Transportation 4. Water 5.  Recreation & Open Space 6.  Forest Health 7.  Housing 8.  Land Use 9.  Child Care 10. Wildlife MEASURING SUCCESS Colored circles are assigned to each indicator that show the current state of achievement towards the 2030 targets. Numbers within those circles are a snapshot of current conditions. The description sections further highlight details related to the indicators. 4 4 70 Resource Conservation Goals The Town will: 1. Strive to signi cantly decrease overall resource use, speci cally consumption of non-renewable energy, fuels, and non-recyclable materials. 2. Take a leadership role in reducing its own energy consumption. 3.  Be powered by 100% renewable electricity for municipal facilities by 2025. 4. Explore innovative strategies to signi cantly reduce waste. 5 71 +8% 2018: 5,853,273 kWh 2019: 6,318090 kWh 63% Renewable Electricity for Town facilities +6% Solid Waste Generation 2018: 55,804 tons 2019: 59,255 tons +4.5% Disposable Bag Use 2018: 1,028,729 2019: 1,075,945 Energy Use Target: 20% reduction in electricity and natural gas use by 2020 Town facility electricity consumption has increased in part due to new construction, growth, and new programs. This includes but is not limited to the North Bus Barn, two electric bus charging stations, and construction on the new Water Treatment Plan and dumpster enclosure surveillance and networking. Renewable Energy Target: 100% RE for municipal facilities by 2025 Target: 100% RE community wide by 2035 The Town, in partnership with HC3, launched Solarize Summit, a bulk purchase solar PV program designed to allow ease of access for residential rooftop solar. Rebates were offered in addition to the tax credit and bulk purchase discounts. The program saw 31 new solar installations, totaling 177 kW of capacity. Solarize will run again in 2020. Solid Waste Target: 20% reduction in solid waste generation by 2020 Target: 40% recycling diversion rate by 2020 Solid waste generation continues to grow with the number of people in town and a strong economy, particularly construction waste. Recycling diversion was 18.2% compared to our 40% goal. Safe Futures, a Summit County initiative, allocated $1.8M toward new recycling programs including residential composting and additional glass depots, including  at Carter Park. Disposable Bag Use Target: Reduce the number of single-use bags consumed A renewed outreach and education effort resulted in new signage at retail and grocery stores. Over 50,000 Breck reusable bags were distributed to lodging and retail partners. Taxable sales increased 6.5% from 2018 to 2019, while bag use increased 4.5% in the same time period. 72 6 Local Economy Goals The Town will: 1. Focus on efforts to deliver a balanced, year-round economy driven by destination tourism by 2024. 2. Elevate and protect Breckenridge's authentic character and brand. 3. Provide an atmosphere which focuses on economic stability in real estate and commercial trades. 73 7 1.9% Local Unemployment +14.4% Value of Real Estate Sales +1.3% 2019 Average Lodging Occupancy +6.7% Local Unemployment Target:  No signi cant increase over previous year Target: Increase in Area Median Income (AMI) annually Local unemployment was back down to 1.9%, the same as 2017. Unemployment rates are so low that some employers are having a dif cult time nding employees. AMI declined 1.6% over 2018. Real Estate Target: Positive growth in real estate sales Target: Reduction in number of foreclosure properties Total real estate sales were $711,945,217, an increase of 14.4% over 2018. Foreclosures for fee simple properties decreased to 4 compared to 7 in 2018. According to data from Land Title there were 670 residential transactions in Breckenridge in 2018, and 637 in 2019. Lodging Target: Increase in monthly occupancy over previous year Average occupancy increased to 47.03% in 2019 compared to 46.41% in 2018. Average daily rate increased 5.2% with the largest increases in January, November and December. Taxable Sales Target:Positive trend in taxable sales over previous year Taxable sales increased to $658,346,910 in 2019 over $617,307,632 in 2018. Taxable Sales in 2019 74 8 Transportation Goals The Town will: 1. Strive to lessen automobile dependency in favor of alternative modes of travel to reduce consumption of fossil fuels. 2. Increase transit ridership by providing residents and visitors a convenient multi-modal transportation system that provides links to the ski area, base facilities, parking facilities, and throughout the community and region. 75 9 -15.3% 2019 Alternative transportation +16.7% Traf c Count 2018: 7,493,359 2019: 7,618,943 +11.3% Breckenridge Transit Ridership 2018: 1,177,164 2019: 1,310,282 Alternative Modalities Target: Increase percent of trips made by walking, biking, carpooling Target: Obtain Bicycle Friendly Community platinum According to the American Community Survey, nearly 40% of those surveyed commute by walking, carpooling, biking, or teleworking. However, this number decreased from 56% in 2017. Breckenridge is a proud Gold Level Bicycle Friendly Community. Traf c Volumes Target: No net increase of number of vehicles entering town over 10 year average Overall, the total number of vehicles counted at Tiger Rd. was 16.8% higher in 2019 than 2009. Winter volumes were higher than summer volumes. Breckenridge police department deployed manual traf c control measures for egress 92 times in 2019 or 25% of the year. Public Transit Target: Increase transit ridership to 10% of total trips Target: Increase ridership & per capita ridership above 2009 baseline Public transit use held steady in  2018, the latest year for which we have data, accounting for 15.9% of all commuter trips. Breckenridge is second only to Aspen in public transit ridership. Transit ridership is up over half a million riders per year compared to the 2009 baseline. 76 10 Water Goals The Town will: 1. Maintain high standards of water quality. 3. Increase ability to fully store available water rights to ensure an adequate water supply for future generations. 4. Reduce annual demands by 20% by 2030. 5. Reduce peak demands during the summer associated with outdoor water use. 11 77 72% Water Plant II Project Completion +17.5% Annual Demand 2018: 695 MGD 2019: 817 MGD +3.8% Peak Summer Demand 2018: 3.42 MGD 2019: 3.55 MGD +1% Peak Winter Demand 2018: 2.916 MGD 2019: 2.948 MGD Water Plant II The Water Plant II construction is on time and on budget. Contractors have completed 72% of the work at the time of this report. WTPII will provide additional "wet" water to the distribution system and will treat up to 4.5 million gallons of drinking water per day. This plant will allow for periodic shut down of the Gary Roberts Treatment Plant for maintenance and provide backup capability in the event of disaster like wild re. Annual Demand Target: 20% reduction in annual demand over 2007 baseline Demand has increased 17.7% over the 2007 baseline year (2007 and 2018 were virtually the same demand), while the single family equivalents have increased 23% since that time. A new program called Tame the Tap rolled out in 2019 for indoor water audits. The program xes leaky toilets and replaces old xtures for an estimated savings of 220,483 gallons per year. Peak Summer Demand Target: Reduce peak day summer demand Much of the summer demand comes from outdoor irrigation. An outdoor water audit program called Slow the Flow helps homeowners and HOAs analyze irrigation systems, dial in ef cient irrigation schedules, and makes recommendations for improvements.  The Water Department xed two sub-surface breaks and ve surface breaks that were detected during the leak detection survey. Peak Winter Demand Target: Reduce peak day winter demand The water utility joined Water Smart, a user friendly dashboard and analytics program that makes understanding water use easy for customers. There are 863 accounts registered which is 17.4% of accounts eligible. 78 12 Recreation & Open Space Goals The Town will: 1. Maintain existing inventory of open space properties and trails. 2. Acquire additional open space property that complements existing properties. 3. Increase trail connectivity. 4. Provide new recreational opportunities. 5. Renovate existing and develop new parks and facilities. 79 13 +112 Acres of Open Space Acquired in 2019 0 Acres of New Parks in 2019 +.98 Miles of Trail Added in 2019 Acres of Open Space Target: Increase in open space acreage in the Upper Blue Basin 0.5% sales tax dedicated to open space acquisition. Over 20 years, 4,948 acres have been acquired through purchases, trades, land dedications, and joint purchases with Summit County Government. Park Acreage Target: Exceed 10.1 acres of park land per 1,000 residents Over 50 acres are maintained for town parks. The new River Park adjacent to the Blue 52 neighborhood was dedicated in October 2018, with landscaping and parking improvements completed in 2019. Phase 2 of River Park will be completed in 2020. The Town has 11.4 acres of parks per person exceeding the target of 10.1 acres. Trail Miles Target: Positive yearly growth of miles of trails maintained In 2019, the Open Space and Trails program constructed and maintained new trails including the new Red Pig and Trollstigen. A total of 61.73 miles of trails are maintained by the Town. 80 14 Forest Health Goals The Town will: 1. Aggressively undertake forest health initiatives to protect residents and visitors f rom large scale wild re. 2. Protect the Town's watershed and associated water supply inf rastructure. 3. Conduct large scale replanting efforts in areas with extensive tree removal. 15 81 1.5K Total Number of   Homes 6 Acres of Land Treated by the Town 740 Acres of Land Treated by USFS Chipping Program Target: Positive yearly growth in total volume of material collected Target: Positive yearly growth in number of households participating In 2019, the number of Breckenridge homes that participated in the Chipping Program increased by 111. Over 4,577 piles of slash have been collected in Breckenridge since the project's inception in 2014. Town Forest Management Target: Positive yearly growth of total acres treated The Town treated six acres of land in 2019. This program has also slowed due to reaching its goals. USFS Forest Management Target: Positive yearly growth of total acres treated The Forest Service is under contract to treat a total of 3,500 acres of national forest surrounding Breckenridge by 2021. In 2019, projects took place on Ophir Mountain, Peak 7, and Swan Mountain. 16 82 Housing Goals The Town will: 1. Ensure the availability of affordable priced housing for its permanent residents. 2. Protect market-rate units serving as workforce housing. 3. Create deed restricted for sale units priced for workforce families. 4. Create deed restricted rental housing for workforce locals. 83 17 0 Rental Units Added +11 Deed Restrictions in Buy-down Program +44 New Units Occupied Housing Need - Rentals Target: 488 units needed by 2020 to ll housing need based on 2016 housing needs assessment 151 rental units have been built since 2016 and the Town will break ground on 80 rental units on the McCain property in 2020. This project will not only provide rentals for 30-60% AMI, but also be a net zero energy community. A new housing needs assessment will be completed in 2020. Housing Need - For Sale Target: 171 units needed by 2020 to ll housing need based on 2016 housing needs assessment The Housing program has shifted to focus on buy-downs and developing the Housing Helps program which provides nancial assistance to homeowners in exchange for deed restrictions to support the local workforce. There are 19 applications pending in the Upper Blue. Private Sector Development The private sector has also provided additional workforce housing  with 44 units that came online in 2019. The Town is now looking to provide more workforce housing through new policies and programs that require and incentivize the private sector to develop housing for the workforce. 18 84 Land Use Goals The Town will: 1. Protect back-country lands and historic resources. 2. Maintain service commercial uses. 3. Not exceed the Upper Blue Basin's build-out numbers. 85 19 +40 TDR Backcountry Acres Protected in 2019 +2 New Historic Landmarks +484 New Residential Units in Upper Blue +1 New Service Commercial Unit Backcountry Protection Target: Protection f rom development of 90-100% of private property in the backcountry Since 2000, the Upper Blue Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) Program has protected 1,967 acres of sensitive backcountry resources. Eighty-six percent of backcountry lands have been protected. Historic Resources Target: No loss of historic structures, either through demolition or neglect The Town proudly boasts one of Colorado’s largest National Historic Districts, with over 200 contributing structures. Since 2003, 35 historic structures and properties have been locally landmarked (the Town’s highest level of historic protection) in connection with redevelopment and preservation efforts. Town Build Out Target: Not to exceed targets established in Joint Upper Blue Master Plan The combined total of residential units located in the Upper Blue Basin (Breckenridge, unincorporated Summit County, and Blue River) is 12,226, below the target cap of 14,255 units. The latest Upper Blue data is from 2018. Service Commercial Target: No net loss of existing service commercial property Service commercial  in the Upper Blue basin increased by one unit in 2018 for an additional 266 square feet. This survey is conducted every two years. 20 86 Child Care Goals The Town will: 1. Ensure quality care is accessible and affordable for Breckenridge families and workforce.   2. Create quality child care programs that retain quali ed and motivated teachers. 3. Secure long term funding, reduce costs, and achieve sustainable budgets at participating centers. 21 87 250 Children on Center Wait Lists 4.6 Average Years of Teacher Retention $7M Tuition Assistance Since 2008 4 Child Care Centers in Breckenridge Center Occupancy Target: 90-100% of daily slots lled and minimal waitlists The majority of children on the wait list are infants and toddlers. There are currently 200 slots available in the Upper Blue on a daily basis. Schools are currently at capacity. Financial Sustainability Target: Increase staff retention Target: Operational expenses covered by adequate revenue Teacher retention has increased with Invest in Teachers and other efforts to professionalize the workforce. Program guidelines require schools increase tuition to keep up with in ation. The Invest in Teacher Program has seen wage growth of 13.78% from 2016 to 2018 to an average of $18.30/hour for our large centers. Child Care Attainability Target: Ensure suf cient funds are available to fund scholarship for families who are cost burdened During the 2018-2019 tuition cycle, 139 children received assistance. The tuition assistance program consistently helps about 50% of the children enrolled. The Summit Pre-K program has caused numbers to shift because more children are supported through the program. Quality Programming Target: Centers meet quality standards by the State of Colorado Our four partner schools have Colorado Shines Ratings and all schools have quality improvement plans in place.   88 22 Wildlife Goals The Town will: 1. Will preserve large, bio-diverse open spaces that serve as vital wildlife habitat through land purchases. 2. Implement the Cucumber Gulch Management Plan. 89 23 Cucumber Preserve Bird Diversity Diversity takes into account the number of species and the relative abundance of each species. There were no signi cant changes to avian diversity in 2019 compared to 2018 across all habitats. However, long term monitoring does show signi cant decline in species diversity when comparing the periods 20132019 to 2006-2012. Cucumber Preserve Beaver Activity Beaver activity decreased in the Preserve in 2019 with only one active lodge and low number of beavers. The Naturalist program continues to engage residents and visitors in the Preserve and redirects them during the annual seasonal closure. Town staff and consultants regularly monitor and survey beaver activity and are investigating ways to increase populations numbers (i.e. reintroduction). Cucumber Preserve Boreal Toads Boreal toads, once abundant in Colorado, have only been sighted in the Preserve every couple of years.  In 2019, there were 2 boreal toad sightings over none the previous year. Moose Activity While the moose activity has been increasing in number and activity, the police department had 170 wildlife related called in 2019. The Breckenridge Tourism Of ce, the Town, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife work to educate residents and visitors about proper behavior near moose and other wildlife. 90 24