May 2024 Larimer County Highlights

The full reports by Citizen Observers for the League of Women Voters of Larimer County are available on this Substack.

Go here to learn more about this project. 

If you’d consider being a volunteer Observer, please message us.

---

Berthoud Town Board | 4/23/24

by Nancy Wendland, LWV Observer

• The Director of Economic Development Walt Elish updated the board on creating a Downtown Development Authority (DDA) for Berthoud. Several businesses in Berthoud started a group with an interest in moving forward with forming a DDA. Whitney Way from City Star Brewery, and Steve Byers, an interested business owner, said there are approximately 200 properties and 90 businesses that would be included in the DDA District. Their goal is to have a plan available to include on the November ballot for community vote. 

Larimer County Board of County Commissioners, Administrative Matters | 5/14/24

by Mary Bohman, LWV Observer

• The Consent Agenda was approved unanimously and  included:  
  • Two agreements on behalf of Larimer Regional Opioid Abatement Council, Region 2
    • $400,000 with Fort Collins Rescue Mission/Harvest Farms to expand housing capacity at Harvest Farms
    • $461,000 with Abundance Foundation to create safe spaces, opportunities to make social connections, and to provide supportive housing.
  • Intergovernmental Agreement for $3,693.50 to provide Larimer County’s local match funding towards a Federal Transit Administration rural funds grant. Funding will be used to manage and deliver coordinated transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities in portions of Larimer County that are outside of the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization.
  • Amendment to grant agreement with Colorado Parks & Wildlife to extend the deadline for one year to complete a segment of the Poudre River Regional Trail from Windsor to Timnath Final Connection.
  • Business Investment Agreement for economic development between the County and Anheuser-Busch to provide a personal property tax incentive of up to $576,557 between May 14, 2024 and December 31, 2028. The company requested the tax reduction to help offset costs related to an investment of approximately $71 million for construction and equipment to implement carbon-neutral and other technologies to increase facility efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The completion of the project is estimated to retain approximately 400 part- and full-time employees.
  • Contract for $380,000 between the Larimer County Department of Human Services and Jacob Family Services (The Jacob Center) to provide child mentoring and family core services.

Wellington Board of Trustees | 5/14/24

by Nancy Wendland, LWV Observer

• Community Impact Deputy Zachery Anderson from the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office spearheaded a pilot program in Berthoud using Flock cameras from the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT). Anderson is now expanding the program to the rest of Larimer County including Wellington. Flock is the vendor for the cameras. Three cameras are in use in Wellington with two to three more to be added in the future. The cameras are placed in the ground and take photos of vehicles and license plates only. There are no drivers seen in the photos. The officers use the photos to initiate an alert in the instances of stolen vehicles, locating felons, or vehicles associated with an Amber Alert.
• The board unanimously approved the endorsement of Trustee Ed Cannon as a nominee for the Colorado Municipal League (CML) Executive Board. 

Larimer County Board of County Commissioners - Administrative Matters 5/21/24

by Lee Thielen, LWV Observer

• Josh Roberts, Mitigation Coordinator for the County, announced an award of $9.7 million from the US Forest Service for community wildfire mitigation activities in the Red Feather Lakes area. The grant will implement current community plans and was supported by the NoCo Watershed Coalition. This five-year grant will focus on:
  • Wildfire mitigation activities
  • Education on defensible space
  • Evacuation route improvements
  • Post-treatment of biomass
  • Effective administration of the project
• Laura Walker, Director of Human and Economic Development, introduced Brian Kinsley, Superintendent of the Poudre School District; Todd Piccone , Chief Operating Officer of the Thompson School District; and Cheryl Zimlich, CEO of Bohemian Foundation. These leaders and their staffs discussed the American Rescue Plan Collaborative Project for Expansion of Career and Technical Education Programming and Facilities for Larimer County’s two school districts. This grant of $1M each to the two districts will support education in such pathways as manufacturing, welding, computer-driven design, medical careers, construction trades, first responders, culinary arts, and others. The grants are matched by the Bohemian Foundation. The districts are working with 15 industry partners to create a pipeline from school to careers. The Commissioners voted to approve the grant. 

Wellington Board of Trustees - 5/28/24

by Nanci Wendland, LWV Observer

• Finance Director Nic Redavid reviewed the 2024 first quarter revenue budget. Director Redavid is only one month in his new position but feels confident the town’s budget is on track, even though operating funds are under budget. However, the 2021 property taxes have been received from the state. Redavid stated the 2022 property taxes will probably be paid in the fall, pending completion of an audit. 
• The board unanimously approved hiring WestWater LLC consultants at a cost of $150,000 to assist with a long-term water resource development plan. WestWater plans to kick-off the project sometime in June. They plan to finish by the end of the year with recommendations to the town board. WestWater has requested that a couple of board members participate in fact-finding discussions. Several trustees expressed interest. 
• Trustee Cannon urged the board members to take further action and vote on his request to move Wellington from a State Statutory town to Home Rule. Cannon said the board needs to move quickly to get the measure on the November 2024 ballot for a resident vote. Trustee Tietz and Trustee Moyer asked Cannon to slow down on this issue. Tietz said there is a lot of information for the board to consider and the public will also need to be educated before voting. Tietz suggested looking at the request in more detail in 2025. Trustees Weigand and Daily agreed. Cannon said he is passionate about Home Rule and its benefits for Wellington but understands it’s a lot of information and agreed to slow down making any final decisions.

---

Citizen Observers further the commitment of the League of Women Voters to its principle of Citizens Right to Know, however, we are not acting as journalists. Omissions and errors are possible. It is assumed that users of this information are responsible for their own fact-checking. This could include contacting a government clerk, conversing with an elected official or staff, and/or asking us to speak to the Observer who attended.