Mindy Leary, Gilpin County. On August 25, 2020, the Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners met online at 9 a.m. for their regular biweekly meeting. Commissioners Gail Watson and Ron Engels were present as were County Attorney Brad Benning and County Manager Abel Montoya. Linda Isenhart was absent due to a family emergency. Highlights included a Covid-19 update, the Protect Our Neighbor application, a setback variance and a discussion of mill levies to be on the next ballot.

Emergency Manager Nate Whittington said they have moved all their PPE supplies into a warehouse and electronically inventoried everything. Gilpin County OEM and the Sheriffs Office was awarded $36,000 for a hazard mitigation plan.

This was a cooperative effort between Central City, Black Hawk and Timberline. It was a whole community approach, said Whittington. All were in favor to accept this award.

Public Health Coordinator Bonnie Albrecht presented the Protect Our Neighbors application which means the county can increase their capacity to 500 people as long as social distancing can be enforced.

Three metrics are necessary, adequate hospital beds, sufficient PPE and sufficient testing. Gilpin meets all these requirements. Case investigations, contact tracing and containment plans are in place. All were in favor of submitting the Protect Our Neighbors application.

Senior Planner Stephen Strohminger and Francoise of DTJ Designs presented an update on the Comprehensive Plan for Gilpin County. The final draft will be delivered on October 27.

The board recessed as Board of Commissioners and reconvened as the Board of Adjustments for a public hearing about a setback variance request for 147 Athena Road presented by Planner Tami Archer. Staff recommended the variance because of a utility relocation hardship. Neighbors had no objection and board approved variance request for BOA-20-01.

The board then reconvened as Board of Commissioners.

Montoya led the Parks and Recreation Operating and Capital Expenditures discussion which took a closer look at the Community Center budget in relation to mill levies. It would be a 3-mill ongoing expense. Montoya said, The question is what do sustainable mill levies look like for Gilpin County.

Sheriff Kevin Armstrong discussed the Sheriffs Office Operating and Capital Expenditures and how imperative it is to meet state mandates to retain post-certification for officers. Body cameras and the release of body cam footage would require $610,000 over a ten-year period. Fully funding the Sheriffs Office is one of the countys statutory requirements.

The Sheriffs Office requested 4.07 mills but Watson believed it could be pared down to under 4 mills. Engels said, A mill levy request was in the works pre-Covid. We need to be thinking about all of the need in the county for the long term. Ongoing operating expenses are 2.27 mills with the remaining 1.8 being repairs, improvements and non-funded mandates.

County Attorney Brad Benning talked about potential ballot questions. The commissioners would like to have the mill levy question for the Sheriffs Office be something slightly under 4 mills.

September 3 is the deadline for official decisions regarding ballot questions with a final discussion on September 1. The school system and the library may also be asking for a mill levy on the next ballot.

Based on my assessed valuation, it increases my taxes by $19/month for the Sheriffs Office, the Community Center and the Library. So, Im in. said Watson.

Property taxes have been historically declining accorded to Gallagher laws and This ballot issue is meant to address that, said Benning.

Presently the state legislature may change this law and that may or may not mean an improvement. This mill levy gives the county the ability to manage its own destiny, said Benning.

Resolution 20-17 to refer ballot issues to the registered electors of the Gilpin County Library District was passed unanimously.

Clerk and Recorder Sahari McCormick presented four IGAs (Intergovernmental Agreements) about elections in the cities of Black Hawk, Central City, the Gilpin School District and the Library. Engels said they are pretty much boiler plate agreements and the four resolutions passed.

Jennifer Cook presented on Covid guidelines and contact tracing for the community garden. She shared pictures for the Western Fair grant, a sustainable agriculture grant in the amount of five to six thousand dollars. The motion to accept the grant application passed unanimously.

Abel Montoya and Jaime Tirado said there would be no increase in fees over the next five years with the Opengov contract renewal for permitting software. As a reminder, Gilpins county and office reports are updated at least monthly online via the county website.

Timberline Chief Paul Ondr will be nominated for the George Masati Fire Chief of the Year Award. It will honor an individuals positive contributions to leadership, innovation, professional development, integrity, service to the public and contributions to the Colorado Fire Service as a whole. Watson said, He certainly fits that bill.

The public had questions and comments at the end of the meeting ranging from tax questions to mill levy concerns. Forty-six people were still present at the end of the near five hour meeting.

The meeting adjourned but the board reconvened for a work session about the Capital Improvement Plan. Montoya talked about surveys given during recent meetings that resulted in this final draft. Capital improvement plans typically span 20 years and are effective in understanding how short-term plans should or should not supplant long-term goals.

The next regular meeting for the Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners will be held on Tuesday, September 8, 2020, at 9 a.m. virtually and can be accessed by following the instructions on the current agenda on the Gilpin County Commissioners website at http://www.gilpincounty.org/cms/One.aspx?portalId=9285259&pageId=11072364

(Originally published in the August 27, 2020, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)

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