NCA membership March 2017

As the membership drive for the Niwot Community Association kicks into high gear, the town is sporting banners at some town entrances, posters and brochures in Niwot businesses, and Burma Shave-style signs along Niwot Road -- all urging Niwot area residents to join the NCA.

The NCA membership committee also has sent out emails to current members reminding them to renew and soon will mail renewal brochures to current and potential new members. The committee also plans to post a membership reminder on NextDoor, an online social network for neighborhoods. And soon there will be a lighted display board at the Niwot Market highlighting NCA membership information.

In addition to Niwot, the NCA membership area incorporates areas west of Colorado State Highway 119 including Lake Valley and North Rim, along with Gunbarrel Greens and The Homestead subdivisions in Gunbarrel. Those areas were added because they have issues of mutual concern with Niwot and some of the areas have Niwot Elementary as their home elementary school.

Annual NCA dues are $30 per household. Those interested can pick up a brochure in Niwot businesses, restaurants and shops to mail in their dues and membership form. Membership forms also can be printed out from the NCA’s website at Niwot.org , where residents also have the option to join the NCA using Paypal. Membership lists are private and for NCA use only.

“We strongly encourage people to join because it is a way to foster community in the Niwot area, and also to get our community’s opinions and voice heard by the Boulder County Commissioners,” said Johnny Barrett, NCA membership committee chair. “This is an organization that also plans events to bring neighbors together and encourage and support the small-town feel we enjoy in Niwot.”

That small town feel and the “neighbors meeting and helping neighbors” is an important quality that the NCA helps foster, Barrett said. The group sponsors an annual Clean Up Day in May, works with Boulder County to coordinate work on area trails and open space, coordinates informational meetings on community issues and candidate forums, and brings issues of community concern forward to Boulder County Commissioners and the county Land Use department.

“We solicit feedback from our members and then present that to the county commissioners and land use and any other relevant group,” Barrett said. “The more members we have and represent, the more clout we have with the county.”

The NCA also sponsors small grants for other local groups such as the Niwot Historical Society, the Left Hand Grange #9, Niwot Elementary and Niwot High schools, 4-H, Boy Scout and Girl Scout projects, and the new Children’s Park. In addition, the “road crew” of NCA-coordinated volunteers set up and remove the required “road closed” signs for parades in Niwot and handle required county paperwork. The NCA also has funded and helped paint the underpass mural along Dry Creek.

In addition, the NCA sponsors and coordinates the town’s annual July 4 parade.

“Where else can neighborhood kids bring their bikes downtown, decorate them and then ride them in a July 4 parade? That’s Niwot’s small town charm and sense of community that the NCA promotes,” Barrett said.

The NCA will hold its annual meeting, open to members only, on April 19. A representative from Boulder County Parks and Open Space will be on hand to talk about the timing of proposed improvements to Lefthand Valley Grange Park and trails in the Niwot area.

The popular Clean Up Day will be held May 20 at Niwot High School. The day is a service that the NCA provides to the community. It is free for NCA members; the cost is $40 for non-members.

“We always hope to have most of our memberships in by Clean Up Day, but we know that the day helps remind a few people to join,” Barrett said.