Grand County’s people, and its public lands, are two of its most important resources.

To protect these assets, stakeholders from Winter Park Resort to the U.S. Forest Service convened as Grand PLACES 2050 in 2019. Now, in 2025, with federal staffing cuts looming over public lands, their work may be more important than ever.

The 13 members of this coalition include local governments, nonprofits, businesses and federal managers whose mission is to ensure quality and equitable recreation opportunities while also prioritizing natural resources, from water to wildlife.

What is GRAND PLACES 2050?

Founded six years ago, Grand PLACES took its inspiration from NoCo PLACES 2050, an organization made up of counties and entities in Northern Colorado. Grand County residents knew they needed an similar initiative, since the area is home to ever-popular Rocky Mountain National Park and vast public lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and others. In fact, around 75% of the land in the county is owned or managed by public entities.

PLACES stands for People, Land, Access, Conservation, Ecosystem and Sustainability, and 2050 indicates a need to look forward to plan for the future.

Each of the 13 members chose a representative to be on its steering committee. These representatives attend Grand PLACE’s meetings and promote its mission — to balance recreation with environmental sustainability.

For example, Grand PLACES has spearheaded the Stand Grand campaign which teaches recreators how to be good stewards of the environment and care for public lands.

Grand County government is another key member of this coalition. At the April 22 board of county commissioners’ meeting, county manager Ed Moyer stated that he has been chosen to be on the Grand PLACES steering committee to replace former member Sky Foulkes.

Moyer and commissioners then discussed the future of Grand PLACES, especially in the wake of federal cuts to land management agencies.

Federal staffing cuts create uncertainty

In February, the Trump Administration fired about 3,400 U.S. Forest Service employees, including around 90 in Colorado. These cuts were part of the Department of Government Efficiency’s goal to limit the size of the federal workforce. The Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Land Management, had cut 1,880 employees (about 3% of its workforce) to comply with DOGE’s orders in February.

DOGE’s orders sparked an unstable period of firings, rehirings and perhaps more firings. Some probationary forest service and BLM employees were reinstated in March after federal judges ruled the cuts were unlawful. The future is uncertain, especially after the Supreme Court recently sided with Trump administration in the ongoing lawsuit.

In addition to accommodating recreationalists and visitors to their lands, the employees with the Forest Service and BLM have important priorities, which include wildfire mitigation, timber harvesting, mineral production, wildlife protection and public safety.

Update on local federal workforce numbers

Commissioner Randy George asked Moyer about the status of hiring new federal lands workers in Grand County.

“Is it fair to say that perhaps the initial angst over federal employees taking care of federal lands this summer is reduced, at this point?” George asked. “Because we are getting some seasonal staff hired.” 

Moyer responded that the U.S. Forest Service will not receive seasonal staff. That is due in part to a Biden-era hiring freeze announced in September 2024.

In Grand County, a leanly-staffed Sulphur Ranger District manages local forest service lands. This district has applied to be part of the Student Conservation Association internship program, which could cover the gaps left behind by seasonal workers.

The forest service is currently waiting to see if it will be able to hire summer interns.

If not, “then they will have capacity issues,” Moyer predicted.

The forest service previously had a fire prevention staffer in Grand County who made sure campfires were out. With the loss of this person, Grand PLACES plans to coordinate efforts with the sheriff’s office, police departments and Grand County Wildfire Council to keep forests safe from fires.

Moyer added that Headwaters Trails Alliance continues to step in with forest and trails maintenance, as they have each year since their founding in 1996.

Moyer and George also discussed staffing shortages in the Bureau of Land Management’s Kremmling Field Office. This department was already short-staffed prior to the 2025 cuts.

In Grand County, Moyer said that BLM river rangers and recreation planners are at the same number they were in 2024, although the BLM has also recently lost an OHV recreation planner.

“They’re struggling with how they’re going to deal with North Sandhills, Jackson and some different OHV areas here in the county,” said Moyer.

The National Parks Service, which operates Rocky Mountain National Park, is in a slightly better position than its federal counterparts. The Parks Service has reinstated all 1,000 employees who were previously terminated by DOGE. Rocky has been able to bring on seasonal staff for this year as well. They are actively hiring for a number of positions, from retail clerks to interns, to park rangers.

Learn more about Grand Places 2050’s mission at Co.Grand.Co.Us/1546/Grand-PLACES-2050.