Ute Valley Park

Ute Valley Park Open Space is another RMFI TOPS Stewardship Program project location. RMFI has contributed to the maintenance and improvement of the open space since 2016. All work is guided by the park's management plan that was developed by the City in cooperation with local citizens. The original portion of Ute Valley Park was donated to the City in 1969. Over the decades, additional parcels have been dedicated and acquired through the City's Parkland Dedication Ordinance, expanding it to 338 acres. In 2013, 200 acres of the abutting Hewlett-Packard property was purchased with a combination of private funding, a Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) grant and Colorado Springs Trails Open Space and Parks sales tax (TOPS) funding. Ute Valley Park is home to diverse wildlife and vegetation and is rich in archeological features.

Ute Valley Park is very popular with hikers and mountain bikers. Climbers frequent areas of the open space as well, to test their skills on boulders. In 2018, RMFI completed improvements to the Eastern Loop Trail, which the organization helped to construct in 2017. Additional emphasis was placed on tread armoring and stabilization of decommissioned trails. The acquisition of a new land parcel adjacent to the Pope’s Valley residential area led to the construction of a trail reroute for neighborhood access on Golden Hills Drive.