Oliver Reservoir Recreation Area, Fiscal Year 2025 budget and 2024 ACE camper Gabe Deines were the focus of the South Platte NRD Board meeting

Submitted to the Sun-Telegraph by Yolanda Hruska, SPNRD

Charging fees for camping at Oliver Reservoir, a preliminary review of the budget, and camp scholarship recipient, Gabe Deines, were the focus of the South Platte Natural Resources District Board of Directors (Board) meeting on August 13, 2024.

Following public input from the September 2023 SPNRD Board Meeting and the February 2024 Oliver Reservoir Public Meeting, the Board authorized staff to proceed moving forward with plans to initiate camping fees at Oliver Reservoir Recreation Area.  "Day use will remain free, fees will be for overnight camping only," said Chris Kaiser, SPNRD Natural Resources Conservationist.  "The price point and revisions to the SPNRD Recreation Rules and Regulations will be in place before next year's camping season.  The fees will be effective in 2025", he said. 

Galen Wittrock, SPNRD General Manager, reviewed the preliminary Fiscal Year 2025 budget.  Wittrock noted one capital improvement project, "replacing the stilling basin at Oliver Reservoir is planned for the upcoming fiscal year".  The Directors supported the current preliminary budget numbers, and the final budget will be presented in September for approval.

Gabe Deines, who lives in Cheyenne County, attended the 2024 Adventure Camp about the Environment (ACE), June 23 -26. He thanked the board for the scholarship. "I can't pick just one thing because I had fun doing it all."  At Kamp Kaleo in Burwell, Nebraska, campers enjoyed archery, canoeing, fishing, pedal boats, swimming, and building and testing water rockets.

The four-day adventure camp also provided students with an opportunity to dive into different hands-on activities with a focus on natural resources. Sessions educated youth on Nebraska's water resources, wildlife, soil, trees, range and grasslands, technology and more. ACE Camp gets students outdoors to explore the world around them.  Camp is held annually, and scholarships are available through SPNRD.

SPNRD Board of Directors meetings are held the second Tuesday of each month at the District office located at 551 Parkland Drive in Sidney.  The Board Meeting Agenda and Minutes are available at the office or visit http://www.spnrd.org.