HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Town Board Study Session 2025-06-10RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Town ofEstes Park, Larimer County, Colorado June 10, 2025
Minutes of a Study Session meeting of the TOWN BOARD of the Town of
Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held at Town Hall in the
Board Room in said Town of Estes Park on the 10th day of June, 2025.
Board: Mayor Hall, Mayor Pro Tem Cenac, Trustees Brown,
Hazelton, Igel, Lancaster, and Younglund
Attending: All
Also Attending: Town Administrator Machalek, Deputy Town Administrator
Damweber, Attorney Kramer, Town Clerk Williamson,
Manager Lizotte and Deputy Town Clerk Beers
Absent: None
Mayor Hall called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
HUMAN RESOURCES STRATEGIC PLAN. Manager Lizotte outlined services provided
by Human Resources (HR), presented results of the Town's organizational culture
sun/ey and reviewed the HR strategic plan. The organizational culture sun/ey was first
launched in February 2020 and continues to be conducted biennially. The electronic
survey has been sent out to all employees, with information collected and analyzed by a
third party, Graves Consulting, to ensure confidentiality. Summary of results were
reviewed and included: Good overall participation with 73% of staff completing the
survey; no categories scored below 3 out of 5 (average) with most questions improving
from 2022; and in general, employees like working for the Town. Recurring themes
throughout the survey included: high cost of living; competitive wages; a need for
fairness across the organization (no favoritism); listening to employees; and take action
on the survey results. She reviewed highlights from the 2022 organizational culture
action plan including: Implementation of manager/supen/isor training; re-visited flexible
work options beyond telework; reviewed and revised the Performance Appraisal
Process, now the Employee Success & Development (ESD) process; transportation
assistance options were no longer identified as a priority; and continue ongoing
conversations about organization wide guiding principles. The 2024 survey results were
reviewed by the Engagement Committee to generate concepts for an action plan which
were reviewed by managers/supervisors to develop an action plan for presentation to
the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) for consideration, approval and implementation.
The 2025 Organizational Culture Action Plan includes communication focused action
items overseen by the ELT. Revisions to the current survey/questions are anticipated
before re-launching the survey at the end of 2026. Staff stated a limitation of the survey
was the anonymous input which does not allow results to include changes in sentiment
over time from specific individuals or departments. Board comments and questions
have been summarized: Whether the survey was distributed to other entities or Town
staff only; any common themes identified; which questions were open ended; whether
the Town has a specific process for concerns or complaints against a specific employee
or department; the level of response rate since 2020, and whether the Town has a
method for handling anonymous concerns such as a hotline. The Board commended
staff on the deployment of the organizational culture survey and the action plan.
The HR Strategic Plan was developed in 2019 in coordination with the Town
departments and Graves Consulting with focus areas, including training and
development, recruiting, selection and onboarding, retention, engagement and
communication, compensation and benefits, and infrastructure. The three strategic
objectives in 2025 would include the selection and implementation of a new Human
Resources Information System (HRIS); benefits analysis benchmarking; convert current
employee files to electronic, and identify and begin utilizing electronic employee file
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Town Board Study Session - June 10, 2025 - Page 2
structure. The ESD process was implemented in 2024, the 2025 process incorporated
feedback received in 2024 and s jpervisor/manager training was implemented in 2024
and would occur each year. The Town would work with the interdepartmental safety
team to select Reasonable Suspicion training for managers and would develop a
framework for succession plannng. Staff have updated the exit interview process,
clarified how data could be ut lized to affect change, and would provide Town
Administration and ELT turnover rates and high-level exit survey data. In 2025, data
gathered for a comprehensive benchmark study of employee benefits would be
analyzed and used to submit builget recommendations for 2026. Staff stated current
employee files are being digitized and once converted would be stored in an electronic
file structure. Town Clerk William son stated gratitude for the work of Manager Lizotte
and commended her efforts to develop and oversee the newly implemented Manager
and Supervisor training.
PROCESS FOR CLASSIFYING! VACATION HOME AND ACCOMMODATIONS
BUSINESS LICENSES. Town Clerk Williamson reviewed the current definitions for
vacation home, accommodations site, and accommodation unit. She reviewed the
current conditions and the development code which allows single-family homes, two-
family and multi-family dwelling units as a use by right in accommodation zoning
districts. Properties have been condominiumized for individual ownership, change
operation models, and some developments were approved with development conditions
such as limiting full time occupancy. Properties that have changed the model of
operation have moved from a centralized reception and management to independent
management of short-term rentals as determined by the property owner. These
changes have created a need to review the similarities and differences between
operations, to determine how properties should be licensed such as applicability of a life
safety inspection or other potentially applicable accommodations or vacation home
requirements. She reviewed examples of accommodations operation in Town which
varies slightly including: accommodation zoning district (A or A-1); whether the unit was
individually owned; does the concominium have onsite management or allow 3rd party
management; does the development approval allow long-term occupancy; or allows
only long-term occupancy by the owner(s). Staff stated the primary purpose of bringing
this topic forward was to ensure these properties and the short-term rental operation are
conducted in a safe manner and to treat similar situated properties consistently as it
relates to licensing and regulations. Town Attorney Kramer stated hotels are not
required to undergo a life safety irspection. Staff are requesting guidance on properties
which have overtime become les.s like a hotel and more like a vacation home and
whether life safety inspection would be applicable. Previous code amendments
attempted to address these types of properties in the past with the addition of a
separate category for Individual Accommodation Units; however, staff have found it
difficult to define the use and which properties it would apply to. She reviewed
classification factors including: Residential or non-residential zoning; whether the unit
was granted a certificate of occupancy under the International Residential Code (IRC)
or the International Business Code (IBC); whether the unit was used for household
living; whether the unit qualifies as a dwelling unit; unit was part of several units in the
same development under common management with centralized, on-site, in-person
customer service; and whether othier units similarly situated in the same development
are used similarly.
Board comments and questions: Code requirement or definition differences between
accommodations or vacation hones; how Larimer County Assessor classifies the
properties; if on-site management and services offered was a key determining factor;
some Board members were reluctant to base categorization off something outside of
their control like property taxes; tie number of properties identified which need to be
addressed; and what the potential building code implications would be. Concerns were
heard related to the life safety insipection only occurring as part of the initial licensing
process, and questioned whether they should occur more frequently. Staff would draft
an ordinance for additional discusssion at a future study session, with proposed redlines
of the current code.
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Town Board Study Session - June 10, 2025 - Page 3
VACATION HOME TRANSFERABILITY. The Estes Park Municipal Code Section
5.20.110(c)(1)(b) Non-Transferable licenses, prohibits residentially zoned licenses
issued after October 18, 2021 from transferring to any person upon sale or other
transfer of ownership. Town Attorney Kramer stated the code could create issues when
properties transfer to family members, are transferred to limited liability corporations
(LLC), or there are revisions to trusts, especially revocable trusts. He stated the Board
could consider requiring non-transferable licenses to be issued to natural persons,
restrict transfer of ownership of LLCs by equity percentage, allow transfer to specified
relatives, or allow up to two natural persons as licensees from the beginning of
licensure. He stated trusts may be harder to determine when changes are made and
could increase burden on staff to track. Board comments and questions have been
summarized: Whether property owners of licensed vacation homes would be allowed to
transfer a license to descendants; recommended the annual renewal require owners to
confirm changes to ownership; concerned with the impacts to families who have owned
properties for generations; concerns with the transferability of licenses would further
increase the value of properties with vacation home licenses; whether the Board should
consider changes similar to Larimer County regulations; and support was heard to allow
updates to bring any properties into compliance with any changes to the code. The
Board consensus was to support vacation home licenses be held by a natural person(s)
and staff was directed to identify family members for transferable licenses.
TRUSTEE & ADMINISTRATOR COMMENTS & QUESTIONS.
Trustee Igel stated he was approached by the owner of Brownfields to provide a
presentation on the business viewpoint of today's challenges. Trustee Hazelton
questioned whether the presentation may be beneficial at a Visit Estes Park meeting.
The Board was in support of allowing the presentation at a future study session.
FUTURE STUDY SESSION AGENDA ITEMS.
It was requested and determined the Development Code Update would be scheduled
for August 12, 2025.
There being no further business, Mayor Hall adjourned the meeting at 6:42 p.m.
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&ui2fty5?(6toria Beers, Deputy Town Clerk