HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Town Board 2007-02-13Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, February 13, 2007
Minutes of a Regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Town of
Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held in the Town Hall in
said Town of Estes Park on the 13th day of February, 2007. Meeting
called to order by Mayor Baudek.
Present:
Also Present:
John Baudek, Mayor
Bill Pinkham, Mayor ProTem
Trustees Eric Blackhurst
Dorla Eisenlauer
Richard Homeier
Chuck Levine
Wayne Newsom
Randy Repola, Town Administrator
Town Attorney White
Cynthia Deats, Deputy Town Clerk
Absent: Wayne Newsom, Bill Pinkham
Mayor Baudek called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and all desiring to do so, recited
the Pledge of Allegiance.
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
TOWN BOARD COMMENTS
Trustee Levine welcomed members of the Citizen's Information Academy (CIA) who
were in attendance at the meeting and thanked them for the time they were investing in
taking the class to learn about Estes Park town government.
1. CONSENT AGENDA (Approval of):
1. Town Board Minutes dated January 23, 2007.
2. Bills.
3. Committee Minutes:
A. Public Safety, January 25, 2007.
1. Colorado State Firefighter Conf. Road Closure - Manford Avenue,
between EP Rent -All and Community Drive, on June 22, 2007.
2. Estes Valley Victim Advocates Contract - $7,500 Budgeted.
B. Public Works, February 8, 2007.
1. Parks Dept. — Purchase Irrigation Truck - $26,575 Budgeted
4. Swanhorst & Company LLC — Approval of 2007 Engagement Letter for audit
services.
5. MBIA Municipal Investors Service Corp. — Approval of 2007 Engagement
Letter for investment services.
Trustee Levine declared a conflict of interest with the Estes Valley Victim Advocates
contract and requested Item 3.A.2 be voted upon separately, thus it was moved and
Board of Trustees — February 13, 2007 — Page 2
seconded (Levine/Blackhurst) all Consent Items excluding Item 3.A.2 be approved,
and it passed unanimously.
It was moved and seconded (Homeier/Eisenlauer) Item 3.A.2 be approved and it
passed with Trustee Levine abstaining.
2. ACTION ITEMS:
1. OVERVIEW OF THE ESTES VALLEY TRAIL SYSTEM.
Facilities Manager Sievers presented a comprehensive report including
historical data related to the Colorado Big Thompson project, Lake Estes, and
the trail system project. Identified as a tourist commodity, the trail system
master plan was supported by the Town Board. Construction began in 1995
and the system currently consists of the Lake Estes Trail, the Fish Creek Trail,
and the Fall River Corridor Trail. To date, the 7.34 miles of ten -foot wide
concrete trail have been constructed at a cost of $5,717,730_ In addition to the
Town of Estes Park, the Estes Valley Recreation and Parks District, the
Colorado Department of Transportation, Larimer County, the Bureau of
Reclamation, and GOCO have participated in the funding of trail construction.
Ongoing and future plans include extending the Fall River Trail to Rocky
Mountain National Park, possible perimeter trails along Devils Gulch Road and
Dry Gulch Road, the installation of pedestrian counters to calculate trail usage,
and trail maintenance.
The Board thanked Mgr. Sievers for his report and commended the Public
Works department on the existing trail system and encouraged future trail
development. A discussion regarding the operation of Segway motorized
vehicles on the trail resulted in a request for the Town to develop a consistent
policy for Segway usage on the trails.
2. FINANCIAL BENCHMARKING REPORT.
The Colorado Association of Ski Towns (CAST) initiated the Resort Community
Benchmarking Group (RCBG) in 2006. The goal of RCBG is to improve
existing services, processes, and procedures by compiling information from
member municipalities. Finance Officer McFarland reviewed the first -phase of
the two-phase report containing information regarding demographic data,
comparisons, and the financial health of participating towns. Estes Park
compared favorably with the other 15 participating towns in the study in the
areas of bond rating, liquidity, long-term debt, full time equivalents (FTE) per
capita, general fund balance, and affordability. This information will be used
for financial analysis and to identify trends from year to year.
3. NORTHERN COLORADO WATER CONSERVANCY DISTRICT ORDINANCE
#4-07 — CONVERSION OF TEMPORARY USE PERMIT FOR SIX UNITS OF
CBT WATER TO AN ANNUAL WATER CONTRACT.
In 2006, the town acquired six units of Colorado Big Thompson Water (CBT)
pursuant to the Water Lease Agreement with Continental Water Bank.
Pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Northern Colorado Water
Conservancy District (NCWCD), the Town is required to transfer the six units of
CBT water to a Permanent Section 131 Contract by March 1, 2007. Attorney
White read portions of Ordinance 4-07 the purpose of which is to authorize
application to the NCWCD for conversion of six acre-feet of CBT water from a
Temporary Use Permit to a Permanent Allotment Contract. The ordinance
contains an emergency clause allowing it to take effect and be in force
immediately after its adoption and the signature by the Mayor, since in the
opinion of the Board of Trustees the acquisition of water is essential for the
well-being of the community. It was moved and seconded (Levine/Homeier)
that Ordinance #4-07 be approved, and it passed unanimously with Mayor
Baudek voting in order to achieve a super majority.
Board of Trustees — February 13, 2007 — Page 3
4. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT.
• Administrator Repola informed the Board that the Utilities Committee
Meeting has been rescheduled for Friday, February 16, 2007 at 8:00
a.m. due to a CML meeting in Denver that he and several members of
the board will be attending on Thursday, February 15, 2007.
• Larimer County had been designated as a disaster area due to the
December snow storm and initial paperwork is being submitted to
ensure Estes Park can be considered for the recovery of up to 75% of
the costs related to the snow storm which were approximately $61,000.
• The newly hired Deputy Town Administrator, Jacqueline Halburnt is
scheduled to begin work on Monday, February 26, 2007.
• The Town is currently accepting applications for the position of Public
Works Director. Announcements have been placed on the Town
website, in the local newspaper, the Denver Post, the CML job finder,
and at University of Colorado and Colorado State University graduate
schools. The application deadline is Friday, February 23, 2007 with the
hiring process to take place in late March.
Whereupon Mayor Baudek adjourned the meeting at 8:11 p.m.
n Baudek, Mayor
Cynthia Deats, Deputy Town Clerk