TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES PUBLIC MEETINGPUBLIC HEARING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 The regular meeting ofthe Board of Trustees was held on September 24, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. in the Community Center, 381 Minter Avenue, De Beque, Colorado. Present were the following: Mayor: Shanelle Hansen Trustees: Cindy Farris, Sarah Hambrick, Lisa Lippoldt, and John Giffin Absent: Walter Wood and Vern Bruse Staff Present: Town Manager Care' McInnis and Town Clerk Lisa Rogers Also Present: Paula Stepp and Doug Winter (Middle Colorado Watershed Council), Dawn Palmer, Dan Savoca, Diane Sandelin, Kathy Latham, Judy Lake, Evelyn Giertz, Josh Miller, and Russ Hamilton CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 6:09 p.m. by Mayor Shanelle Hansen. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. ROLL CALL: Roll call was taken, and a quorum was present. ADDITIONS, DELETIONS, OR CORRECTIONS TO THE AGENDA: Ms. McInnis asked if the Sheley matter (4490 Roan Creek Road) could be taken out of order when Mr. Sheley arrives. She also asked if we could do round 1 oft the art contest after the presentation and round 2 after the Town Manager report. She also stated that the food truck owner was not here, but there was information in the back of the packets regarding previous meeting minutes addressing the issue. PRESENTION - MIDDLE COLORADO WATERSHED COUNCIL: Paula Stepp presented the Middle Colorado Watershed Council (MCWC)annual update. She spoke regarding the various projects that the council had undertaken. She also spoke regarding the Wildfire Collaborative and the Wildfire Ready Action Plan (WRAP). Doug Winter thanked the Town for their support. He stated that the support helps enable the MCWC to be able to do projects and collect data that helps communities across different jurisdictions. ROUND 1 - ART CONTEST: Contestants were narrowed down to drawings with at least one vote. ITEMS FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATING IN CONFERENCE: Russ Hamilton and Josh Miller spoke regarding how they had helped develop disc golf courses throughout the Valley. Josh Miller talked regarding how disc golf was a huge part of his family's lives. TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 PAGE2 He stated that his family travels to tournaments and locations where they know disc golf will be available. Russ Hamilton stated that by the boat ramps at RiverFront Park would make a good course as would the site ofthe proposed bike trails on Town property. Mayor Hansen stated that she likes ideas that provide entertainment for kids. The Board agreed that they would like the Town Administrator to work with Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Miller to bring back some plans in October. BOARD COMMENTS: Mayor Hansen stated that she remembered that UC Denver had stated that perhaps the Town could get sponsorships for disc golf. Ms. McInnis stated that the Town must coordinate with CPW and the Army Corp of Engineers. She stated that everything must get the green light before we can move forward. GOCO will want community buy-in. At this point, we do not have the money for the engineering: yet. Trustee Giffin stated that we need to make sure that bike trails, disc golf, and other uses are well coordinated. Ms. McInnis stated that we should plan a workshop. TOWN MANAGER REPORT: Ms. McInnis stated that she wanted to briefly touch on the Consent Agenda SO that time could be spent focusing on the regular agenda items. The personnel manual just reflects what thel Board has already decided. There is one exception and that is on page 48 where it was discovered that the Supervisor of Public Works had been left out. That position is exempt and has been for years. The use tax ordinance just codifies the Board' s past decisions on use tax. The budget on the consent agenda just makes a record that we have presented the proposed budget as required by law. There is also a resolution acknowledging the final payment for the sewer/fiber bore. The 2023 Audit is in the back of the Board packet. October 9th from 5:00-7:00 p.m., there will be a Regional Leaders/Bullding Relationshps/Shared Concerns meeting in Silt. Please RSVP by October 4h. The Fruita Town Manager, Michael Bennett, has accepted the City of Grand Junction Manager position. We have a good relationship. The Fruita Town Manager position is now open. December 6th is the Town of De Beque Christmas party. It is employee +1. Nol kids allowed. The proposed budget for 2025 is in the Board packet. Ms. McInnis stated that she had met with most Trustees. There was a lot of hard work that went into it. Hopefully, there are no significant changes at this point. However, it is not final until it is adopted in November. Open enrollment is always a challenging time for Lisa and Katherine. They have put a lot of time into comparing rates on all fronts. There may be a possible changeover in January for better plans and rates with regards to health insurance, dental, vision, and life. One ofthe retail marijuana shops submitted notice to the Town that they intend to become seasonal. This means that they will be open from May 15th until Labor Day. This is not allowed under our code. Our code is largely based upon an attempt to deter license holders from just sitting on a license without use to prevent prospecting and promote growth. You will see an item on the agenda in October regarding this. Ofr note, Ms. McInnis wanted to let the Board know that attorney Richard Dalley has reached out to her TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 PAGE3 several times. She wanted to be proactive in case there are rumors regarding this. The Town did not initiate this contact nor is the Town a party to any disputes that may be going on elsewhere. Last week, Mr. Dalley indicated that he represents "the shareholders" ofthe Blue Stone Ditch. This is not accurate as he does not represent the Town and other shareholders that she is aware of. When asked specifically who he represents, there is no response. Mr. Dalley indicated that he would like the Town and/or "officials ofGrand Junction" to explore the Town acquiring the entire Blue Stone Ditch. He indicated that he thinks that the Town would be most interested in having control ofthe Blue Stone Ditch. Ms. McInnis stated to Mr. Dalley that she had not advised the Board, nor did she anticipate Board direction to purchase or control the Blue Stone Ditch. Ms. McInnis stressed that this is not coming from the Town and that the Town is not a part of any dispute that Mr. Dalley may have elsewhere. Ms. McInnis stated that she is pleased to announce that the Marshal's Department is now fully staffed- one deputy is out on leave currently though. Deputy Shawnie Higgins comes from the Palisade Police Department. She was also a school resource officer. The Marshal's Department has obtained two motorcycles, and the deputies will be going through motorcycle training. Marshal Dalley has outlined the benefits and cost savings in the monthly newsletter. Ms. McInnis reminded the Board that the Town of De Beque has a seat on the Opioid Governance Board and is a voting member. This is an opportunity to make an impact because there are very few voting positions and De Beque has a say in the award of these funds. Ms. McInnis stated that she will be spending significant time over the next month as the Board is once again awarding $800K-$1M. One example is only awarding funds for a diversion program ift they come to the De Beque School and our Municipal Court to serve the outlying areas of Mesa County. Broadband is a big focus this month-very exciting! There have been several meetings with the County Attorney and County Administrator regarding the County's commitment to pay for the conduit across their property and placement of the actual CNL structure. Apparently, Mesa County's contractor did not place their own conduit linking to our CNL, according to the approved plans. Luckily, this is not the Town's issue. There are lots of details regarding easements, engineering and the like. We are very grateful to the County. Ms. McInnis continued with an update on the actual progress of the project. The generator has been ordered. Hopefully, we will receive that in early 2025. The shelter has been ordered. This will be the longest wait as they are custom fabricated and must go through the State Division ofHousing for approval. The railroad permit requests are in. One issue in negotiations is that they only allow a bore within a certain proximity to an overpass bridge, and they only allow a bore within another set of guidelines by a switch. Of course, ours is between the two and the math doesn't work out. We are continuing to work with the railroad. There will be another site visit with the NeuComm crew to hammer out specifics like irrigation lines, the Collbran vault, and security measures. Ms. McInnis stated that she has also been in contact with Corey Bryndal of Region 10. There will be a site visit soon. Region 10 will be ordering our equipment at a group rate and managing the CNL. ROUND 2 = ART CONTEST: Board members and audience voted on the remaining art contest entrants. CONSENT AGENDA: a. Approval of Minutes: August 27, 2024 b. Bills and Expenditures: August 2024. TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR. MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 PAGE 4 Discussion and action regarding Resolution 2024-28: A resolution regarding modifications to the Town's Personnel and Policies and Procedures Manual as identified in the attached document. Presentation of Preliminary 2025 Budget for the Town of De Beque. Discussion and action regarding Resolution 2024-29: A resolution to accept final completion of the Town of De Beque's I-70 Gravity Flow Sewer Line Bore Project, and to release all final payments to the contractor for said project. Discussion and action regarding Ordinance 545 (Series 2024): An ordinance amending the Town of De Beque Municipal Code, Section 4.10.030 pertaining to use tax. Discussion Before Motioning on the Consent Agenda: Mayor Hansen asked if anyone had any questions or comments on the Consent Agenda items. There were none. Motion: Trustee Hambrick motioned to approve all items on the consent agenda. Trustee Lippoldt seconded the motion. Motion carried 5-0. REGULAR AGENDA: NEW BUSINESS: Remaining bills and expenditures: Expenditures related to the Country Store Motion: Trustee Hambrick motioned to approve expenditures related to the Country Store. Trustee Lippoldt seconded the motion. Mayor Hansen abstained. Motion carried 4-0 with 1 abstaining. Discussion regarding tree canopy grant: Ms. McInnis stated that she hates to walk away from free money for the Town. She is looking for direction from the Board as to whether she should proceed in pursuing this grant. Iti is a 75K-200K grant with no match to aid disadvantaged communities to plan and carry out forestry projects that build the communities abilities and resilience. We would need to partner with a 501(c)(3) perhaps MCWC. The grant would provide seedings/saplings over a 2 to3-year time span. Trustee Hambrick asked if staff has the bandwidth to administrate another grant. Ms. McInnis stated that she had spoken with Katherine and Katherine was on board. Trustee Farris asked ifwe had the personnel to water and trim the trees and such. Mayor Hansen stated the more trees the better. Trustee Farris said why not go for it. The Board directed Ms. McInnis to move forward with Rooting for Resiliency. PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING ORDINANCE 543: AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE TOWN OF DE BEQUE ZONING MAP FOR THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 4490 ROAN CREEK ROAD, AND CHANGING THE ZONING FROM SERVICE COMMERCIAL TO AGRICULTURALOPEN SPACE (AG). Mayor Hansen opened the public hearing at 7:24 p.m. The applicant Brian Sheley was not present. Ms. TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 PAGE5 McInnis requested that the hearing be continued to a date certain of October 22, 2024. She stated that the reason for the continuation was that there had not been a quorum at the Planning Commission meeting SO there is no recommendation from them. Continuation was requested SO that Mr. Sheley would not have the expense for republishing the public notice. Mayor Hansen stated that the Public Hearing for 4490 Roan Creek Road rezoning will be continued to October 22nd at 6:00 p.m. The public hearing was closed at 7:26 p.m. RESUME REGULAR AGENDA: OLD BUSINESS: Discussion and action regarding Resolution 2024-30: A resolution awarding the construction contract for the 2024 sidewalk improvements: Ms. McInnis stated that the Town had done the bid opening last Wednesday. There was only one bid, and it was for $821,719 which was above what the Town had budgeted. Staff determined that it was not ai feasible project at this time due to budget constraints. Concrete was bid at 3x what we would normally pay due to the timing constraints on the project. The Town decided that it would put it out for bid again next month and request a CDOT extension. MA Concrete comes back with a bid of $599,526 which is down $137K. Mayor Hansen asked if there were any questions. There were none. Motion: Trustee Hambrick motioned to approve Resolution 2024-30. Trustee Lippoldt seconded the motion. Motion carried 5-0. Discussion and action regarding Resolution 2024-31: A resolution authorizing and confirming the appointment of alternate members to the De Beque Planning Commission: Ms. McInnis stated that she meant to ask to pull this item from the agenda. Ms. McInnis that our Municipal Code would allow for alternates to serve on the Planning Commission when needed. Itis legally sound; however, SO far there have been no applicants. Mayor Hansen confirmed that this would be on next month's agenda. Ms. McInnis stated that it would be on the agenda every month until it ratifies. Diane Sandelin asked if anyone could apply. Mayor Hansen stated that unfortunately it is limited to in-town residents only. Ms. McInnis asked if anyone knew of someone who might be interested. There was no vote on this item. Discussion and action regarding Resolution 2024-27: A resolution modifying business hours of Town Hall to Monday through Thursday, from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.: Ms. McInnis stated that business hours of Town Hall are at the discretion of the Board. Town Hall staff are the only ones without a modified schedule. Public Works work four ten-hours shifts and the Marshal's Department works 48-hour shifts. When discussing with Town Hall staff, there were four employees in favor of working four 10-hour shifts and one that was not sure if they could handle it. Staff never do shutoffs for nonpayment on Fridays and that could be incorporated to include Thursdays as well. For the entire month, there were six customers who would have been impacted by closure on Fridays. Payments can still be made via the drop box or online when Town Hall is closed. Staff were not able to determine how many customers would be helped by extended hours. Mayor Hansen stated that she had talked to many people and that only four were against changing the hours. Most did not have a problem with it and thought extended hours was a good idea. Trustee Lippoldt asked what staff did when it was slow on Fridays. Evelyn Giertz stated that she worked on updating the cemetery TOWN OF DE BEQUE BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 PAGE 6 information and property files, clearing outdated files per the retention schedule, and cleaning. Trustee Giffin stated that customer service is most important. Mayor Hansen stated that it is a big decision for the community and was glad that the community was given a chance for feedback. Motion: Trustee Farris motioned to approve Resolution 2024-27. Trustee Giffen seconded the motion. Trustee Lippoldt voted nay. Motion carried 4-1. ART CONTEST WINNER: Ms. McInnis announced that Catherine is the winner of the art contest and will be presented her prize at the October Board meeting. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Hansen asked ift there was a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion: Trustee Lippoldt motioned to adjourn the meeting. Trustee Farris seconded the motion. Meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Approved by the Board of Trustees Sinamfogen A A Lisa M. Rogers, Town Clerk Shanelle Hansen, Mayor OF SEAL A - CDLORADO