The last time we checked, there were no prairie dogs in the downtown Loveland location being redeveloped as The Foundry.

That’s notable, because had the city of Loveland and Larimer County agreed to a deal for the relocation of the county offices into downtown Loveland – now boasting plans for an expansive parking garage – county officials would not have had to deal with an issue that’s bringing more heat than light to the cause of habitat preservation and conservation in general.

As part of the construction of a new county building at First Street and Denver Avenue in Loveland, the developer will need to remove a colony of prairie dogs living at the site. The area has been zoned for development for more than a decade as the city began to stretch to the south and east, but it’s only been with the imminent plans for construction that most have started to take notice of the fauna at the site.

Read more at The Loveland Reporter Herald.