2016-Prologis SWAT at Chatfield State Park

Start Date-End Date: 05/20/2016-05/20/2016 Land Manager Office: CPW - Chatfield State Park Land Manager Contact: Funding Partner: Prologis Programmatic Partner: Summary: Volunteers will build a Crusher Fine Trail at Chatfield State Park. Description: Volunteers will build a Crusher Fine Trail at Chatfield State Park. Latitude/Longitude: Additional Information: Camping Available: No Physical Difficulty: Easy, Moderate High Altitude Project: No Desired Number of Volunteers: 50 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 43 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0 Total Volunteer Days: 43 Total Unique Volunteers: 43 Total Volunteer Hours: 301 Staff Hours: 36 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: Volunteers arrived early and eager to work. After a slight hiccup with the bagels, we were able to get started resurfacing the trails surrounding the Audobon Center parking lot. Hot weather, direct sun, and wheelbarrows full of crusher fine pushed volunteers throughout the project, but they were happy to do the work and there were no issues. We were able to completely finish the work lined out for us by the park, and tackle a couple of other areas that needed obvious improvement well before the scheduled end time. This was a benefit to everyone as the afternoon was very hot and volunteers would have likely been completely exhausted by the physical nature of the work by the scheduled end time. Successes and Challenges: Successes: All of the work lined out was accomplished. Jen Anderson visited at lunch to give a small presentation on the park and answer questions for volunteers. Challenges: Bagel donation was not usable, which pushed back our start time. Luckily another staff person was able to bring bagels for the project as this was an expectation of the group. Coffee donation wasn't ready in the morning, which severely limited the available time to organize and prep at the project site in the morning. No park staff were present throughout the day, which put a lot of pressure on the PM to adequately keep groups working and satisfied in the amount of direction available. Lessons Learned: Bagels - Always double check the quality of food products before bringing them out to the project site. Do not assume based on past projects that everything will be the same. Coffee - A courtesey call the day before the project may help remind donors of their commitment. Supervision - Clearly define the expectation for the land manager on the project day regarding the number of staff available for supervison. While we were able to get a lot done, there was potential for unhappy volunteers due to lack of guidance. Because the project was a corporate SWAT with Crew Leader for a Day trainees from the organization, there was a bottleneck in efficiency regarding knowledge of trail construction details. Crew Leaders didn't have the confidence necessary to make decisions about quality and consistency of work, and therefore had a lot of questions for the PM throughout the day. This led to a limited availability on the part of the PM to adequately manage other logistics or spend dedicated time interacting with individual volunteers. Special Notes: None Stewardship Education: Jen Anderson talked about the various recreational opportunities, history, and future of the park during lunch. Volunteers asked a lot of questions about the park, and more broadly about beer laws in public places. Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: None Description of Accidents/Incidents: None Description of Work Completed: