DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — A herd of cows graze away in the sunshine as Chatfield Reservoir glimmers in the background: just one of the picture-perfect views you’ll see as you drive through the Sterling Ranch master-planned community.
“Sterling Ranch is founded on Western traditions,” said Sterling Ranch general manager Gary Debus.
Half of the cattle in this pasture are just days old, as warmer weather means lots of new calves.
The cattle are also here to serve a bigger purpose. They're part of several wildfire prevention strategies built into the master-planned community.
Those strategies also include two water storage facilities on the property.
"We have fire hydrants throughout the community and into areas that we haven't even developed yet," said Jessica Gottschalk, Sterling Ranch director of community engagement.
Those areas include the community's winding roads and trails.
"Not only does that help slow down the traffic and keep our kids safe, but it also creates natural firebreaks and evacuation routes throughout the community," Gottschalk explained.
Heavy equipment operators near the development are also on standby.
"Operators can bring that equipment out and cut firebreaks," said Debus.
And as for the cattle?
"These cows will eat about 25 to 30 pounds of dry matter a day. So when you think about that in these pastures this time of year, they'll eat 4,500 pounds of this fuel load per day," Debus continued.
These strategies are so robust that the community was taken off a map of high-risk areas, otherwise known as the Wildland-Urban Interface.
"It is excluded from that Wildland-Urban Interface area because of the protocols and what we have in place for our community," said Gottschalk.
It’s also earned the community an ISO Class 1 rating from the Insurance Services Office, which indicates the highest level of fire protection in a community and lower insurance premiums.
“It saves them a lot of money, and they can get insurance where all up and down along the Front Range, you know, you've seen insurance premiums skyrocket in the last few years after some of the devastating wildfires we've had not just in Colorado but across the West,” said Debus.
Sterling Ranch is only 20 percent built out, and as it continues to grow, developers hope it becomes an example for future developments along the Front Range.
"Fire season is year-round, and we are grateful to be leading the charge in designing a community that really has all of these precautions built in," said Gottschalk.
All while embracing the true Colorado spirit, of course.
"It's incredible. I mean, it's nature. It's the West. It's why we live in Sterling Ranch and why we love it here," said Debus.
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