Gov. Jared Polis continued his show of support new management of recreation over Pikes Peak.

Polis met with local and federal officials Monday in Colorado Springs to discuss the progression of a potential partnership by several entities with Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The goal: expand recreational activities on America’s Mountain.

Movement toward a partnership agreement comes after years of work by the Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance, which has brought together federal, state and municipal partners. Those stakeholders, including the U.S. Forest Service, the cities of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs, El Paso and Teller counties and Colorado Springs Utilities, signed a Letter of Intent in January addressed to CPW director Jeff Davis showing their commitment to move forward to improve recreation options on 14,115-foot Pikes Peak.

“This partnership will lay the groundwork for a Pikes Peak Recreation Area that Colorado Parks and Wildlife helps manage to provide more dynamic and responsive management on the ground,” Polis said Monday during a news conference. “Rather than having to go to Washington for every little improvement, we ourselves can control our own destiny and make sure that we offer residents, as well as visitors, the world-class experience that people deserve from America’s Mountain.”

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Officials are especially focused on completing the Ring the Peak Trail under Parks and Wildlife’s management. This unfinished trail, designed to be a long loop around the mountain, has been decades in the making. About 80% of the nearly 63-mile trail is complete.

“I’m hopeful and confident we can reach an agreement that benefits all the partners and that we move forward together,” Davis said Monday. “Regional draws like the Ring the Peak Trail offer the kind of world-class outdoor recreation that leads Coloradans to invest in the outdoors.”

Currently, the Forest Service owns the bulk of the mountain. Smaller entities also operate on the mountain, including the city of Colorado Springs, which collects fees from drivers to maintain the highway up the summit. The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway transports visitors to the Summit Visitor Center, where another private operator sells doughnuts and souvenirs. Colorado Springs Utilities oversees several reservoirs on the mountain for drinking water.

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Parks and Wildlife compared its potential role on Pikes Peak to its management of the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, where the state agency partners with federal agencies and private operations to run campgrounds and manage hiking, rafting and other activities.

Ultimately, officials hope the partnership can expand camping, fishing, hiking and other recreational activities while embracing conservation on the iconic mountain.

“Land managers agree that exploring a multi-jurisdictional model led by Colorado Parks and Wildlife in recreation would be the best path forward, and today is a celebration of this commitment,” said Becky Leinweber, PPORA executive director. “This model allows each land manager to stay focused on their core mission while ensuring sustainable recreation management.”

While Polis and other officials offered no timeline for the continued discussions, he knows what’s next.

“Now the partners need to get to work drafting a long-term agreement with CPW,” Polis said later in a news release, adding that he would like to see a multi-year plan to enhance camping, fishing, hiking and other recreational amenities on the mountain.