CLEAR CREEK COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — The final decision to change Mount Evans’ name to Mount Blue Sky has been put off, at least for now.
The U.S. Board of Geographic Names was scheduled to have a meeting Thursday to make the final decision on the name change of Mount Evans however, the board received a request that has deferred the vote.
According to the BGN, it received a request from a tribal government for a government-to-government consultation. The board did not release which tribe requested the meeting.
In accordance with the Department of Interior’s “Intergovernmental Relations: Procedures for Consultation with Indian Tribes,” the vote has been deferred until the BGN consults with the governing body.
“A tribe may request that the department initiate consultation when the tribe believes that a bureau/office is considering a departmental action with tribal implications,” the department manual says.
With this impending meeting, the BGN will not vote on the name change and will not discuss the pending proposal.
The decision to rename the 14er was supported by multiple local officials and boards, and it was expected the national board would approve the name change following a national effort to address a history of colonialism and oppression against Native Americans.
The proposed name change to Mount Blue Sky recognizes the Arapaho tribe was known as the Blue Sky People, while the Cheyenne hold an annual renewal-of-life ceremony called Blue Sky.
BGN did not say when the meeting will be rescheduled.