[0:00] Councilman um meeting for Tuesday, August 18th, 2026. My name is Mark

[0:03] Clark, I'm the mayor. I'm going to call the meeting to order. Please stand and

[0:06] join me in the pledge. >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the

[0:10] United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation

[0:16] under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

[0:23] » Roll call, please. >> Mayor Clark.

[0:26] » Here. >> Mayor pro tem Plecka.

[0:27] » Here. >> Council member Johnson.

[0:29] » Present. >> Council member Neal.

[0:31] » Present. >> Council member Crabtree.

[0:33] » Here. >> Council member Delaney.

[0:35] » Here. >> Council member Lopez.

[0:36] » Here. >> All right, next item on our agenda is

[0:39] the awards and recognition for the August 2026 yard of the month. And this

[0:43] month's winner is Thomas McGugan and Patty Peterson. If you're in the

[0:48] audience, please step forward. I'll present you a certificate and a gift

[0:52] gift card to the Human Bean.

[0:59] And we also got a cool yard sign >> [laughter]

[1:23] [applause]

[1:30] » All right, next on our agenda is audience participation. Is there anybody

[1:33] that wishes to address the city council on any item that's not on the agenda and

[1:36] or of a public hearing? If so, please step up to the podium, state your name

[1:40] and address for the record, and please keep your comments to under 2 minutes.

[1:51] » Hello, Leslie. >> Good evening, council. How are you?

[1:54] » How are you? >> Um Leslie Turner, she's actually a

[1:57] director of the Evans Area Chamber of Commerce and I am here because I have

[2:02] secured an opportunity with House District 50 candidate debate to bring it

[2:08] here to Evans. Both candidates have already agreed to do the event and what

[2:12] I am here to ask Council for tonight is the space to do that, to donate the

[2:16] space over at the library. It will be a public event.

[2:20] It will be advertised. It will be about 4 to 6 hours long considering clean up

[2:25] and set up is what I'm thinking. >> Okay.

[2:29] Okay. Anybody have any

[2:33] » Sounds good. >> Sounds good.

[2:35] » Yeah, I don't have any problem with it. We can set up a time and coordinate it

[2:38] with the staff and yeah, we'll work that out for you.

[2:41] » Absolutely wonderful. >> You have a date yet?

[2:44] » October 1st. >> Yep.

[2:47] » I'm thinking about doors opening at 5:30, commencing at 6:00 p.m. and I'm

[2:51] working out the details with both candidates now. They're both either have

[2:55] toured or will be touring Evans. >> Yep.

[2:59] » I I I would just Ed Bull, the city attorney, I would just advise Council

[3:04] and Mayor Mayor Pro Tem that in in giving a waiver out, the

[3:09] main thing would be to remain neutral in any other party after this that seeks

[3:15] the same or similar circumstance. >> Awesome. Thank you. Appreciate it.

[3:20] » All right, great. Thank you, Leslie.

[3:24] All right, anyone else?

[3:32] » My name is David Goodman. I live over by the Sams area in the

[3:36] neighborhood there. I've lived here for 26 years, paid my

[3:40] taxes for 26 years. I've had some major concerns with what's

[3:45] going on in this city here in the 26 years I've been

[3:49] here. Uh, there was one blizzard the last

[3:52] blizzard we had when I was snowed in, I come home and spent my whole time off

[3:56] cleaning my neighbors and my yards and my gr-

[4:00] putting the snow in their yard. I left the and didn't even get out of

[4:04] the state when I got a call from my wife that the city [clears throat] of Evans

[4:07] had put a fine on my door for the snow being on my sidewalk.

[4:11] And I couldn't understand how that could happen cuz I cleaned the sidewalk for

[4:15] the whole neighborhood. And they said they come in afterwards and plowed.

[4:20] I'd like to know what the easement and what the rules are about that

[4:24] because I was told the easements is our sidewalks and we have to keep them

[4:27] clean. But when I clean them and I have to come

[4:30] back and get a ticket on my door, I just got a ticket on my door the other day on

[4:34] the hottest day of the year telling me I had a few weeds my and I had a a

[4:39] dishwasher sitting out on my sidewalk that I hadn't got time to put into the

[4:43] trailer that I had my yard to get. And I'm getting a little concerned about

[4:49] when they do this, they don't come up and knock on the door or ring the

[4:52] doorbell or anything else. They just come up and tape it to my door.

[4:55] And I think that's very unprofessional. Uh,

[5:00] I'd like to know what the the the city does when they they

[5:04] decide to put projects in and who has and what they do to talk to the people

[5:10] in the city of Evans about the projects that they're getting done.

[5:15] For example, the sidewalks were being fixed on Anchor

[5:20] and 23rd and they fixed the sidewalks and less

[5:24] than a month later they tore the sidewalks out to put in stop lights.

[5:29] To me that is poor poor management and a waste of money.

[5:34] I've asked for the 26 years I've been here for a light to get here and it took

[5:38] 26 years to get there cuz we have two schools on that street less than 100

[5:43] yards from that light. There's been three times I've almost got hit. They

[5:48] got the light there 26 years later. And I'm just kind of concerned about the

[5:52] way things are going in this They build parks

[5:56] and they put and then and but we don't have water to water our yards.

[6:02] I've tore my yard completely down to dirt and saving money to put in

[6:06] artificial turf because it's the only way I can keep it up.

[6:09] I'm 30 I'm 69 years old and got pushed into retirement early because I wanted

[6:13] to get my knees replaced. And then the results is the blood so I can't work

[6:17] anymore. I'm a disabled and I'm just don't know what the heck

[6:21] I'm at [clears throat] my wit's end. When they could I down on the corner of

[6:25] my neighborhood I think it was last Thanksgiving or

[6:29] Thanksgiving before they had a police out there shooting

[6:33] into the neighbor's house and and I don't know what I never heard anything

[6:37] about that. They were there for my friend. I had to go down and ask him

[6:41] what had happened. They had something that they shot.

[6:44] But flash bangs and aren't in towards house up he's out of his house for a

[6:47] month. I think people should be acknowledged of what's going on. Just

[6:52] last week my car because I've been parked by my door to make it easier for

[6:57] me. I ain't got no grass so I ain't cutting anything. But then I told I

[7:01] can't do that. I got to put it on the side on the driveway. So I went out that

[7:05] night and put my car on the driveway and I come back in the next morning and I

[7:09] went out there and my car had been broken into.

[7:12] Half of my stuff been stolen out of it. So I'd like to know what the heck I'm

[7:15] supposed to do. You know, I got all these concerns and

[7:20] nothing that the first time I I had it happen 2 years

[7:23] in a row when I first moved here and I put in and told the police they come out

[7:28] and I never heard another thing about it.

[7:30] So what am I supposed to do? I don't see police officers coming through our

[7:34] neighborhood. The one time they ever come over in our neighborhood is when

[7:39] there's a somebody getting arrested or they don't drive through just a patrol.

[7:43] There's house two two doors down from mine. They have six vehicles and three

[7:48] or four of them are parked on their lawn all the time.

[7:52] I park my name cuz I'm handicapped now and I'm trying to get my yard fixed, but

[7:56] I ain't got $24,000 to put in this stuff and do all this stuff. I got to earn it.

[8:02] And when I get a a note on my door they're going to give me a $150 fine cuz

[8:07] I ain't went out there and pulled weeds. Where were they were out there when I

[8:10] was in my walker and bending over my walker and pull my weeds, where were

[8:13] they then? Cuz nobody go by there then. Right after I got a house bill for 2

[8:18] months. I went out there and was a walker and

[8:21] pulled every weed in my house. Again, I didn't know where I was going to do with

[8:25] the weed because you guys taken away our fall clean up and our spring clean up or

[8:29] we got to pay more money for it. What are we supposed to do as a

[8:34] neighborhood? You want us to clean weeds and come out and threaten us to give us

[8:37] deals. So I have to spend $150, $200 on kids to come around and pull the weeds

[8:42] that I can't do no more. And these are some major concerns that

[8:45] I'm seeing going on in this I've seen parks get put up and

[8:50] how they watering that if we can't water our

[8:53] our neighborhood. [clears throat] It's starting to concern me very much.

[8:56] But I've lived here 26 years and it just seems like it's going downhill instead

[9:00] of up. I got a ticket just before I reach just

[9:03] before I got off the truck, I got a ticket for driving through Evans with a

[9:06] mud flap off my truck. It fell off when I come back. I told the officer,

[9:13] "Hey, I'm headed to the yard now. I know it's off, but I got to get to the yard."

[9:17] He gave me a $50 fine for that. But I see pickups and cars all over the place

[9:22] with the tires sticking this far out from underneath the cars. I've lost two

[9:25] windshields over the 26 years from cars like that. And there is a law and an

[9:29] ordinance in this city and this county for they they're to be underneath the

[9:33] vehicle. If not, they are to be ticketed for

[9:36] Why are drivers are only ones to get them tickets?

[9:41] I like to understand all these concerns. I expect to get answers tonight, but I'd

[9:46] like to bring them up so you guys can think about them.

[9:51] » All right. Well, thank you. Appreciate it.

[9:52] » Thank you.

[9:56] » All right. Anybody else? All right. Seeing none. All right. We

[10:01] will move on. Approval of agenda. Madam Clerk, any changes to the agenda?

[10:07] » No, Mayor. >> All right. I would entertain a motion.

[10:17] All right. I have a motion and a second to approve the agenda.

[10:23] » I didn't get a vote.

[10:26] » You did not get >> No.

[10:28] » Okay. Are you in favor?

[10:29] » I. >> I.

[10:30] » I. The motion carries 7-0. All right. Next item on the consent

[10:35] agenda. Any discussion on the consent agenda? If

[10:38] not, I'd entertain a motion.

[10:49] Motion and second to approve the consent agenda.

[10:54] » I. >> Okay. All right. That motion carries

[10:57] 7-0. All right. Next item, new business. Item 8A, public hearing consideration of

[11:02] a retail liquor store license for Evans Liquor LLC at

[11:08] Unit B. I'll open up with the public hearing. We'll [snorts] hear from staff.

[11:29] » Thank you, Mayor and City Council. The city received an Julie Barnett, City

[11:33] Clerk. Uh the city received an application for a new um retail liquor

[11:37] store liquor license from Mr. Francis, registered agent for Evans Liquor LLC.

[11:43] The application is con- for consideration of a retail liquor store

[11:46] to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption off the premises located at

[11:51] 3313 35th Avenue Unit B. The City Council will be acting in a

[11:58] quasi-judicial role as the local licensing authority to consider the

[12:01] approval of this retail liquor store license. If the license is approved by

[12:06] Council, the license will be processed and finalized with the State Enforcement

[12:10] Division. In Council's role as the liquor

[12:13] licensing authority, the approval of a new liquor license must be based on the

[12:17] findings regarding the reasonable requirements of the neighborhood, the

[12:21] desires of the adult inhabitants of the neighborhood, and the moral character of

[12:25] the applicant. The license application was submitted

[12:28] for concurrent review with the city, which allows the state to process the

[12:32] application while the city [snorts] is also considering the application.

[12:36] For the record, the following findings from the report submitted by staff have

[12:39] been determined. Notice of public hearing.

[12:42] The city received the application on June 29th, 2026 from Evans Liquor LLC

[12:48] for retail liquor store off premises at 3313 35th Avenue Unit B.

[12:54] The notice of public hearing on this matter was posted on the property and

[12:57] published in the Greeley Tribune on or before August 7th, 2026.

[13:03] The applicant is entitled to possession of the premises.

[13:07] The applicant has applied for a state sales tax license and city business and

[13:11] sales tax license. The selling of liquor in the manner

[13:15] proposed in the application is subject to zoning, fire, building, and other

[13:19] applicable laws of the City of Evans and/or State of Colorado.

[13:23] This property is zoned C2 general commercial. Liquor stores are considered

[13:27] a retail use indoor, which is a permitted land use in the C2 zone

[13:32] district. The premises where the selling or

[13:35] serving of alcohol will be conducted does not appear to be within 500 ft of

[13:38] any public school or principal campus of any college.

[13:43] There has not been within the last 2 years preceding the date of the

[13:46] application a denial of an application by either the state or local licensing

[13:51] authority for a retail liquor store at this location for the reason that the

[13:55] unreasonable requirements of the neighborhood and the desire of the

[13:58] inhabitants were satisfactory by the existing outlets.

[14:04] So, the applicant conducted a survey within a 1-mile boundary of the premises

[14:08] to convey the needs and desires of the neighborhood. The petition returned 20

[14:12] businesses in favor with three businesses opposed, and the petition

[14:17] returned 83 residences in favor with four residences opposed.

[14:23] Uh there is one other retail liquor store within the 1-mile boundary of 3313

[14:28] 35th Avenue Unit B, as well as these other liquor licenses within a 1-mile.

[14:36] There are three hotel restaurant, one retail liquor store, and three FMB wine,

[14:42] which is are your gas stations. Um

[14:47] attached to the packet was a memorandum from the Evans Police Department, which

[14:50] shows that no information was found when they conducted their background check on

[14:54] the moral character of the applicant. The applicant is here this evening and

[14:58] available for any questions you may have, as well as a representative from

[15:04] the company Liquor Pros that did the needs and desires survey.

[15:09] So, the public hearing is tonight. Um so,

[15:13] I'm available for any questions that you have, and the applicant is also here.

[15:17] » Okay. Thank you. Any questions

[15:21] of of staff and/or the applicant? So, please use the request to speak button.

[15:29] All right, seeing none. Um I will ask because this is a public

[15:33] hearing if there's anybody in the audience that wishes to speak for or

[15:36] against this item, please step up to the podium, state state your name and

[15:39] address for the record.

[15:49] » Mr. Mayor >> Mr. Mayor, Councilman

[15:52] My name is Tony Belfiore and I reside at 4615 West 21st Street Circle in Greeley.

[15:59] The reason why I'm here is because I own three commercial buildings in this town.

[16:04] I've owned one for 22 years and that's where

[16:08] I started Naughty Pine Liquor. I'm the former owner of Naughty Pine Liquor. So,

[16:12] when I went to get my liquor license 21 years ago,

[16:16] I had at least 300 signatures. At that time, most of the council said

[16:22] they'd never seen anything like that. So, and that was with a population of

[16:27] 15,000. Today,

[16:30] there's about a population of let's say 23,000. So, you have 83 signatures.

[16:36] That's less than 0.4%

[16:41] of the population. So, I guess to me, what that

[16:46] demonstrates is there's not a need and I know when they're talking about I've

[16:50] been in many, many of these liquor these liquor licensing

[16:55] either for or against. And I know the biggest thing is the need

[16:59] and that's why I'm here tonight because I don't believe

[17:03] that there's a need for another liquor store

[17:06] when we have one within the prox close to me that that

[17:10] Coral Bay is. Yeah, in my opinion, maybe biased, but

[17:13] it's truthful. Yeah, I own the building where Coral Bay

[17:17] is. My sons own Coral Bay Liquor. But again,

[17:22] I don't think that that even from the sketch that he showed, it shows that

[17:26] it's not his building is not prepared for a

[17:30] liquor store. Yeah, they can do it, but it doesn't look to me like he has a lot

[17:35] of experience in the liquor business. So again,

[17:40] I'm just trying to tell the truth and I'm trying to save him some money

[17:43] because Coral Bay is very well established, very clean established.

[17:48] Like I say, we've been collecting paying property tax and collecting sales tax

[17:52] for the city of Evans for 22 years. So, we have some we have some roots

[17:57] here. And I I guess the basis of what I wanted

[18:01] to say is the need. I think you need to look at the need. And I don't think that

[18:06] 83 signatures point to the need of another liquor

[18:10] store. So.

[18:15] » All right, thank you. Thank you very much.

[18:18] Anyone else?

[18:21] All right, seeing none, I will close the public hearing and entertain any comment

[18:26] from council and or a motion.

[18:30] All right, seeing no uh comments, I would entertain a motion.

[18:35] What's that? >> Fred.

[18:37] » I'm just having a login issue. >> All right, go ahead, Council member

[18:40] Neil. >> I just needed to login again.

[18:43] » Okay, no problem. Just go ahead. >> Picking me out.

[18:46] No one mind. I'm fine. >> Okay.

[18:49] All right. >> Um members of the authority, this is Eva

[18:54] Garrettson with Liquor Licensing Professionals.

[18:57] Um if you'd like, I can go through the process and procedure with the petition

[19:01] in order to address any concerns. Um but I am here if you have any questions. Or

[19:06] I can just give uh what our process and procedure is uh that we conduct

[19:11] throughout the entire state of Colorado. >> All right, I appreciate it, but we've

[19:15] already concluded the public hearings and

[19:17] » Yes, sir. >> So, we're we're going to go ahead and to

[19:20] to a vote here. So, thank you. Appreciate it.

[19:24] Councilman Neil, did you have any comment?

[19:27] » No. >> All right, I would entertain a motion

[19:28] then.

[19:43] All right, I I have a motion, but no seconds.

[19:47] So, being that we have no second, that motion is

[19:51] considered dead. And uh no further action taken. Or did

[19:57] you I see that you voted.

[19:59] » Yeah. >> Okay.

[20:02] No second? All right, we don't have a second on

[20:05] this, so we cannot process the motion. Therefore, that motion

[20:08] does not pass.

[20:12] All right.

[20:16] So, I guess that's a denial for the since we have no no second.

[20:20] Oscar, city attorney. >> Right.

[20:23] » It's denied. >> Okay. That [clears throat] motion, guys.

[20:25] All right. Thank you. Moving on to next item,

[20:28] consideration of a development agreement with Mountain Cement Company. We'll hear

[20:32] from staff.

[20:39] » Hey. Thank you, Mayor Ed Bowles, city attorney. If if I may

[20:43] brief the council from this position. I'll also rely on the the

[20:47] director of engineering if if for any details in regards the roadway. But

[20:52] essentially, we're calling this a development agreement, but it's really a

[20:55] participation agreement for proportional cost to improve County Road 33 from the

[21:01] Mountain Cement Company property to County Road 46.

[21:07] Um it does not obligate the city to perform this improvement only in the

[21:14] event that the city were to appropriate and then budget money within a

[21:21] approximately a five-year period. It does allow for an extension which is

[21:25] called in a tail period of six months to keep the agreement going to allow for

[21:31] design and the build-out subsequent build-out

[21:34] if if the city were to obtain funding from an alternate source which we

[21:40] believe to be Mountain Tracks in the future and then

[21:43] » [clears throat]

[21:45] » to fully fund the project. But at this point again the recommendation is to

[21:50] Council to approve this. It is their proportional share of that

[21:55] improvement of the paving of that road. Thank you.

[21:58] » Thank you. Any questions or comments of staff?

[22:02] » Yes and can you

[22:05] remind me what the length of this

[22:08] segment is? >> It's approximately 6,900 ft.

[22:12] » Thank you.

[22:17] » Since my request to speak is not up and I don't see anyone on the board so it

[22:20] seems that there's no other questions or comments I'd entertain

[22:22] » We're having some little technical difficulties here at the moment.

[22:26] » No no no problem. Anybody else any questions or comments while we're

[22:28] waiting? No? All right. I'd entertain a motion.

[22:37] » It's not giving me the option. >> All right, we'll go ahead and do a vote

[22:40] by vote. Okay, I have a All right, I've entertained a motion.

[22:43] » I move to approve the development agreement between the city of Evans and

[22:46] Mountain Cement Company. >> Second.

[22:49] » I have a motion and a second to approve the development agreement between the

[22:51] city of Evans and Mountain Cement Company. All those in favor signify by

[22:54] saying aye. >> Aye.

[22:56] » All opposed nay. Motion carries. All right, next item.

[23:00] Public hearing consideration of ordinance number 869-26, accepting the

[23:04] public road right-of-way for MCC first replat. We'll hear from uh us I'll open

[23:10] the public hearing. Hear from staff. >> Great. Good evening, Mayor and Council.

[23:13] Micah Hallsey, planner with the City of Evans.

[23:15] For your consideration this evening is ordinance number 869-26 for acceptance

[23:19] of public right-of-way, uh which supports the proposed Mountain Cement

[23:22] Company minor subdivision first replat application. The second reading of this

[23:26] is scheduled for September 1st. This is a public hearing.

[23:30] The property owner of the subject land is Mountain Cement Company LLC as

[23:33] represented by the EPS Group in attendance tonight. The subject

[23:36] right-of-way is depicted in the stamp survey exhibits A and B attached this

[23:39] ordinance. For background, the City of Evans

[23:43] Community Development Department is processing the Mountain Cement Company

[23:46] first um replat to their minor subdivision, which

[23:49] seeks to consolidate Lot A of RE3237 and Lot 1 of the MCC minor subdivision

[23:55] into a single lot. So, this is a lot consolidation replat. Uh both lots are

[23:59] annexed into the City of Evans. The proposal proposed resultant lot will

[24:03] contain the pending MCC transloading terminal, which is under construction

[24:07] and permitted by separate site plan. This replat and subject dedication of

[24:10] additional right-of-way is related to, but is distinct and separate uh

[24:13] procedurally from this uh MCC facility. In brief, the property owner requested

[24:18] dedicating additional strip of right-of-way being 10 ft in width along

[24:21] the full frontage of the property lying west of and adjacent to the existing

[24:25] 60-ft of right-of-way 447th Avenue, also known as uh County Road 33. This area

[24:30] has been previously identified as future right-of-way to be dedicated by this to

[24:34] the City of Evans per the Weld County record exemption plat uh RE615-01-63

[24:40] as um recorded in 2015. This 10-ft wide strip to be dedicated is

[24:45] approximately 0.32 acres. The overall half right-of-way section being 30 ft

[24:49] lying west of the section line and that additional 10 ft is a total width of 40

[24:54] ft um is approximately 1.29 acres, while the existing half right-of-way of 30 ft

[25:00] is already public right-of-way, this ordinance formally accepts that entire

[25:04] 40 ft strip as uh dedicated in fee to the city of Evans.

[25:09] The re-plat application has been initially approved and included this as

[25:12] a condition of approval uh for city council accept the additional road wide

[25:16] right-of-way prior to recording the plat.

[25:18] Uh, per section 18.03.100 of the Evans municipal code, city

[25:22] council is responsible for acceptance of additional city right-of-way.

[25:26] The subject acceptance of right-of-way supports this condition. The re-plat

[25:30] includes a statement of dedication for the right-of-way um with information on

[25:33] the city council ordinance. So, just so you know the mechanism, city council is

[25:37] accepting the right-of-way. You're accepting it as part of the public road

[25:42] network. The plat is the vehicle where that right-of-way is officially

[25:46] dedicated. And so, this ordinance would be referenced on the plat. Um, there are

[25:51] no direct financial impacts related to the city as a result of this

[25:54] right-of-way. It's not a necessary roadway. This is just the land where a

[25:57] road could be built. And for recommendation, staff has reviewed the

[26:00] applicable Evans municipal code sections, found that the applicant's

[26:04] request is consistent with the staff report with the 2015 recorded exemption

[26:08] plat. And staff recommends

[26:11] approval of this ordinance on first reading. Should this ordinance be

[26:14] approved on second reading, this is the final condition of approval for this

[26:17] re-plat and the approved plat would move to recordation. Um, applicant's present,

[26:22] happy to answer any questions. Thank you.

[26:24] » Great. Thank you, Michael. >> Appreciate it. All right. Uh, any

[26:26] questions of staff?

[26:32] All right. Seeing none. Um, cuz this is a public hearing, I'll ask

[26:36] anybody in the audience that wishes to speak for or against the site to please

[26:39] step up to the podium, state your name and address for the record.

[26:45] Seeing none, I'll go ahead and close the public hearing and entertain any council

[26:49] discussion and/or a motion. Staff

[26:53] » [clears throat] >> I'm glad to see this replat is clearing

[26:57] this up and consolidating this piece of land.

[27:05] » Seeing no other comments, I would entertain a motion.

[27:08] » I move to approve ordinance number 869-26

[27:12] as proposed on first reading. >> Second.

[27:14] » I have a motion and a second to approve ordinance number 869-26 as proposed on

[27:19] first reading. All those might signify by saying I.

[27:21] » I. >> All opposed, nay.

[27:24] Motion carries. All right, next item 8D, consideration of resolution number

[27:27] 24-2026, designation of four automated vehicle

[27:32] identification systems, AVIS, and we'll hear from staff.

[27:45] » Good evening, council, mayor and council. Uh Randy Darlin, chief of

[27:48] police. The Evans Police Department is

[27:51] requesting City Council approve resolution number 24-2026

[27:56] designating four roadways as automated vehicle identification system traffic

[28:01] safety corridors. This is pursuant to CRS 42-4110.5

[28:07] and the Evans Municipal Code 10-04-119. The proposed corridors are 37th Street,

[28:14] 42nd Street, Prairieview Drive, 11th Avenue, and 35th Avenue. The Police

[28:19] Department completed a separate traffic safety assessment for each corridor

[28:23] using recent quantitative data, including traffic volume and speed

[28:27] studies, crash history, enforcement activity, hazardous driving incidents,

[28:31] and traffic-related complaints. Based on these assessments, staff has

[28:35] determined that each proposed designation is reasonably related to

[28:39] improving traffic safety. Approval of the resolution establishes the

[28:43] geographic areas in which AVIS technology can be deployed. It does not

[28:48] require automated enforcement throughout the corridors or authorized enforcement

[28:53] until all applicable statutory and municipal requirements for notice,

[28:57] warning period signage, equipment placement, privacy data use, and program

[29:03] operations have been satisfied. Over the last

[29:07] few months, we've been working through this process.

[29:10] Uh last our last meeting, we passed the ordinance for this process. These are

[29:16] the first four corridors that I will bring you that will provide uh uh

[29:21] different roadways throughout the city that provide the opportunity to utilize

[29:25] Avis technology. And that that technology is both a uh

[29:29] a fixed location that will be out off of 37th and and Palermo Drive and the

[29:35] mobile uh unit that would be mobile throughout the community within these

[29:40] specific corridors. Um

[29:43] identifying corridors is a requirement under the state statute for Avis

[29:46] technology. Um this is step one. We'll have

[29:49] additional corridors. We'll bring them to you in in pieces as you could see,

[29:54] the process for this was uh pretty substantial. We did a quite a bit of

[29:59] data collection, quite a bit of uh radar use to bring as much data and and

[30:04] quantitative information uh under the state statute as we could to this

[30:08] process um and to try to be as transparent and open to the public about

[30:12] what our, you know, traffic related safety protocols are in the city. Um

[30:18] each one of the corridors uh was was evaluated on the same, similar, or

[30:22] identical standards. We used a methodology across all of the the

[30:26] locations. Um each one of those uh documents was uh provided to you uh for

[30:32] this this hearing for this uh request under the resolution and uh was provided

[30:39] uh each of the required uh data metrics under the state statute.

[30:45] So, you can I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have on those.

[30:48] » Okay. Thank you, Chief. Appreciate it. Any questions or comments to the first

[30:51] half?

[30:54] Council Member Delaney. >> I didn't do that.

[30:57] I don't know how my name is on there. >> Okay.

[31:00] Thank you, Chief. >> [laughter]

[31:05] » All right. Seeing no questions or comments, I'd entertain a motion. Oh,

[31:08] Council Member Johnson. >> Um

[31:12] one of the things I would like um if you can also just um elaborate on the type

[31:18] of system it is cuz I know many are concerned as I have concerns

[31:24] address concerns for other types of the ALPRs, but this is not. So, if you can

[31:29] just distinguish the difference between this system and the other system.

[31:34] » So, we have [clears throat] two systems that'll be going into place within the

[31:37] city. One is a fixed location. Um and one is a uh mobile trailer. Both

[31:43] use ALPR technology, but it is not used in the same ALPR technology ALPR

[31:49] technology uh system that most concerned uh some of the public is the Flock

[31:54] system, right? The technology is very very similar.

[31:58] Um the difference is live notification to law enforcement uh through um through

[32:03] the cameras, right? So, when with the cameras we're putting into the public in

[32:07] this endeavor, Avis, right? They go into uh into the streets. There is signage

[32:13] letting you know that the the the the equipment is within 300 ft of the

[32:18] signage that's on the public way. We we sign the roadways as well.

[32:22] And then if a vehicle is captured speeding within an area, there is a

[32:26] license plate read. And that license plate read is then

[32:30] eventually sent to the police department for confirmation of the violation of

[32:35] speeding. There isn't an immediate read of a

[32:37] license plate to tell us, "Hey, the occupant in this vehicle or the

[32:41] registered owner of this vehicle has a warrant for their arrest." There isn't

[32:45] data that's being provided to the police department that the vehicle may be

[32:48] stolen or um there isn't an Amber Alert or a Senior Alert associated with any of

[32:54] the plate reads. This information is read specifically to

[32:59] the radar detection device and and whether or not someone is speeding

[33:02] within that area, and then the data is uh

[33:05] » [clears throat] >> collected, correlated, and then anybody

[33:09] that was identified as traveling at 11 mph or more over the speed limit is then

[33:14] identified through uh license plate technology. We then verify that license

[33:19] plate against the registered owner of the vehicle, the make, the model of the

[33:22] vehicle, the color of the vehicle, whether or not we got a clear read of

[33:26] that license plate, and then that is brought to the police department for us

[33:30] to do a secondary check and determine whether or not that is an actual

[33:34] speeding violation, at which time we then identify that as a notice of

[33:38] violation and have the company send that out to the public. So, there's no live

[33:42] read notifying the police department of any individual operating that motor

[33:47] vehicle of any warrants, of any um whether or not that's a licensed

[33:50] driver, any of those factors. It's just simply

[33:54] looking at speed of the vehicles traveling through the corridors

[33:58] uh and being um monitored by our equipment that's in the

[34:02] field. So, very different than ALPR. However, it's similar technology. It's

[34:07] still a license plate read from a camera, right? And that's the similarity

[34:11] between the two. Um and that data is stored, so if there

[34:15] were a later investigation that were necessary, it would be a uh uh for a law

[34:20] enforcement purpose, there would be an ability for us to go back and look at

[34:22] that data, but it's not being done the way the

[34:25] Flock system is, where it's live notification

[34:29] um tracking of a vehicle or, you know, a

[34:32] notification to the police that the vehicle stolen or any of those factors.

[34:35] If a vehicle went through one of these cameras that was stolen, we would get no

[34:38] notification. If a vehicle went through that was the registered owner had a

[34:42] warrant for their arrest, we would get no notification. Those type of

[34:45] notifications are not part of this system.

[34:48] » And I I appreciate that explanation. I think in part the reason why

[34:53] this is happening is because our community um

[34:57] has requested some type of measure to help with safety, especially with a lot

[35:02] of vehicles speeding, um crashing into properties, um putting the community in

[35:07] danger due to that. And so, this is one of the things that we're going to

[35:11] attempt to try to mitigate that for the community. So, thank you

[35:16] for that explanation.

[35:20] » All right, I'd entertain a motion.

[35:31] All right, I have a motion and a second to approve adopt resolution number

[35:35] 24-2026 designating the four traffic safety

[35:39] corridors identified in the resolution as automated vehicle identification

[35:43] system corridors pursuant to CRS 24-4 um

[35:48] 110.5 and sections 10.04.119 of the Evans Municipal Code.

[35:55] So, if you're votes.

[35:58] And that motion carries 7-0. Thank you, Chief. Appreciate it.

[36:02] All right, next item consideration of resolution number 25-2026

[36:05] proposed November 2026 ballot question for amendment to food sales tax. You

[36:10] will hear from staff.

[36:49] » Well, the information that I was going to put up is in your packet this

[36:52] evening. So, it's just about the language that I was going to add um

[36:55] to it. So, uh good evening Mayor Clark and members

[36:58] of council. Brian Stone, economic development um director for the It's

[37:02] okay. Um city of Evans. Um I'm here this

[37:06] evening for the consideration of a resolution which would amend the

[37:09] permitted uses of the current city of Evans food tax.

[37:13] Uh I I want to start off by saying this is not a new tax. Um it does not

[37:17] increase the tax rate and it doesn't does not change what is taxed um within

[37:22] the food um realm. Most of you are aware of what the food

[37:26] tax does, um but it really generally applies to food purchased for home

[37:31] consumption. So, that's your meat, that's your fruits and vegetables,

[37:33] bread, cereals, uh frozen foods, dairy products,

[37:37] and other um grocery items. It does not include your hot um prepared meals,

[37:43] tobacco, um alcohol. Thank you. Um or non-household food items. None of

[37:48] that would change within this ballot amendment.

[37:51] Um just to give you a little history of of

[37:54] where we're at and what we've done. Uh back in 2002, um the Evans voters

[37:58] approved a ballot language for the the use of

[38:02] food tax. And it was very specific of what it was was used for. It's so parks

[38:06] and recreation, um trails and walkways, um streets and roadways, as well as

[38:11] traffic control measures. In the 2002 ordinance, so with the

[38:15] ordinance um following that, there was language to include um um tax revenue

[38:21] for economic development incentives. Somehow it didn't get in the ballot

[38:24] language, so it's not an authorized use currently for that.

[38:28] Then in 2021, uh we went back to the voters and asked them to amend this food

[38:34] tax um for the use of the construction, design, operations of the Evans Police

[38:40] Station. Those Those um will not change with this

[38:45] proposal. Those uses will still remain in in place. What What we're trying to

[38:49] clean up and and add to that is really the operations that supports those 2002

[38:54] improvements. Um so we have some operational needs that can go into that,

[38:58] as well as including that '02 um ordinance where we have performance

[39:02] space economic development incentives that can be used from this food tax

[39:06] to increase commercial development. Um Other places for the others to shop, as

[39:12] well as just provide other opportunities for our our community.

[39:17] Again, remaining with our our '02 and our '21,

[39:21] um they'll still still remain a priority um as we move forward. So I did include

[39:27] um I want to make sure that everybody's um okay with the language on it. We have

[39:31] met with um Butler Snow, as well as um internal

[39:37] legal counsel has reviewed this and helped us with the language, as well as

[39:41] the resolution. So I'll give you a quick second to to take a peek. I apologize,

[39:45] it's it's not very big, but it was included in your packet in your packet,

[39:48] as well. Um

[39:51] But it is it is lengthy, but we really want to provide the transparency of what

[39:55] this is, what it's going to provide, and really what we're asking our Evans

[39:58] voters to to decide on. And really understand um that I look at this as a

[40:03] community benefit of of adding these uses for you guys to make decisions on.

[40:10] So if the voters say yes, um City Council would [snorts] have the

[40:14] additional authority to utilize those purposes listed within that ballot

[40:19] question. That being said, everything still has to

[40:22] come to city council for approval. So, appropriations and approval will remain

[40:26] the same. It'll just be an opportunity for you guys to have a little bit more

[40:29] flexibility. The existing voter approved uses in 2022

[40:33] and 20 2002 and 21 remain in place.

[40:39] The tax rate remains the same as the well as the products that are being

[40:42] taxed. If the there is a a no votes in November, then everything remains the

[40:47] same. The '02 and '21 remain in place as is today.

[40:52] So, we're looking for direction tonight to add this ballot question to the

[40:56] coordinated election with Weld County on November 3rd.

[40:59] Um as I mentioned, we have had legal assistance review this.

[41:03] Um and just to kind of reiterate, it's it's no new taxes and it really provides

[41:07] you guys a city council flexibility to look at other opportunities that we can

[41:13] bring in and incentivize and or use for operations for some of those

[41:17] improvements that we've done uh in the past. So, with that, staff would

[41:21] recommend uh approval of the resol- resolution and I'd be happy to answer

[41:24] any questions you have. >> Okay, thank you, Brian. Appreciate it.

[41:27] Any questions or comments of staff? Actually, I do have a quick question.

[41:32] So, this was originally proposed in 2002.

[41:36] » Yep. >> It was supposed to be on the ballot,

[41:38] never got on there as it was intended to be.

[41:41] Went out and got it in 2021, nobody caught it then.

[41:45] So, the question is, as you said, they vote no, where do we come up with any

[41:50] way that we can work any economic incentives for any

[41:55] major or future developments? Where does that

[41:59] come from? >> Well,

[42:00] um well, we would have to use, you know, for the non-food related items. So, we

[42:05] would have to look at other opportunities that that go um we would

[42:09] have and really how this all got brought up is as

[42:12] I'm working on an incentive policy for the city of Evanston we can attract new

[42:17] commercial development within our community. And this was identified as I

[42:20] as I dug down further and stumbled upon a document I noticed that

[42:25] this was not an available use. So that's why we're bringing it to you guys this

[42:28] evening to expand your opportunities to create that flexibility to utilize these

[42:34] funds for one operations but more importantly incentives that we can bring

[42:38] additional commercial development to Evanston.

[42:41] » Mr. Mayor, I'd also throw out there if I may

[42:44] that there's there there are other tools for economic

[42:48] development but they're a bit more cumbersome. So there's TIFs, tax tax

[42:52] increment financing that requires a URA. Brian and I have looked at that as to

[42:56] what what that means for other areas of the community as we as we work on the

[43:00] build out of of additional commercial economic development opportunities. And

[43:04] then there are other opportunities like um

[43:07] um PIDs

[43:11] » Public improvement districts. >> Public improvement districts. Thank you

[43:13] very much. Public improvement districts but again those things have to be

[43:18] the city council has to be petitioned for those and so the they are a little

[43:23] bit more cumbersome. Um but but those are just an example of

[43:26] a couple different alternatives that uh that exist out there but

[43:32] they do come with some nuances. >> Absolutely. No, I I mean I I agree with

[43:37] with with that completely. I mean I just wanted to put it out there because what

[43:41] I wanted to reiterate is you know, in order for us to continue to grow and

[43:44] progress forward we need these additional tools in in in order to help

[43:49] us draw more businesses in and be more competitive with our you know,

[43:53] neighboring communities. I mean for a city like us to continue to grow just

[43:56] like all other communities out there they use economic incentives and all

[44:01] these incentives for these large businesses to come into their

[44:03] communities. So I I to you know, throw that out there because I know a lot of

[44:07] people like to see a lot more retail in here, larger developments and everything

[44:11] like that. This is one of those tools that we would be able to utilize to lure

[44:15] them into our community and, you know, and and help them, you know, be a part,

[44:19] you know, part of our community. So, I think this is a really good idea. I

[44:23] think this makes us really competitive, you know, with other communities to draw

[44:27] in more businesses and everything. And, you know, that that money can go a long

[44:30] way to hire more police officers, put more staffing out in the street, you

[44:34] know, for code enforcement, you know, you know,

[44:38] everything that we we could utilize, you know, infrastructure [clears throat]

[44:41] improvements, etc. So, I really appreciate it. Thank you.

[44:45] » And one of the things that, you know, pursuant to Brian's present Brian's

[44:48] presentation tonight is this is an existing tax. This is not a

[44:53] tax increase. And this is the only tool we have that is not a tax increase

[45:00] uh from where we're currently at. So, that is, I think, the

[45:03] one of the real one of the real valuable pieces of this is our tax rate is not

[45:07] increasing with the expansion of this

[45:11] of this opportunity. >> No, absolutely. And if we're going to be

[45:14] a community that's going to be reliantly heavy on sales tax and have a very, you

[45:20] know, small mill levy, this is a big, you know, advantage for us to use this

[45:25] and a tool to go forward. So, thank you. Appreciate it.

[45:28] What's number uh Councilmember Johnson.

[45:31] » Um I am for this proposed ballot question. I have a question, though. Um

[45:37] granted Now, if

[45:39] if it passes tonight, do we have um a marketing plan, like PR or what are we

[45:46] doing? Is there a plan in place, I should say, to ensure that this

[45:52] passes?

[45:56] » After tonight, staff's hands will be tied just a little bit. Um I have

[45:59] created a fact sheet if it does pass that I will distribute to Cody for um

[46:03] distribution so that way everybody at the front desk, customer service,

[46:07] everybody throughout our side that we can we can get the factual information

[46:10] that's as much as we can provide. Um if that it's if

[46:15] from that point on it's going to have to be um residents and and other people

[46:20] that are are are showing the support for this um ballot issue. We will provide

[46:24] the facts and that's what we can do. I apologize that we didn't get this in

[46:27] front. This all kind of stumbled across as I was I was hoping tonight I would be

[46:32] presenting incentive policies um but I think this is an important step to make

[46:36] sure our incentive policies align with what your guys' goals are as well as the

[46:41] city's for growth and how we can move forward.

[46:43] » I agree. I I agree this is extremely important for our community especially

[46:47] as, you know, we methodically bring in new businesses.

[46:50] Um have we What what's the deadline for like the city to speak on this? Um and

[46:55] the reason why I say this because currently we have in our audience

[46:59] our um the executive director for the chamber so if we can recruit, you know,

[47:02] um partners and stakeholders to help us and I'm glad you're here today

[47:07] um so they can assist with this endeavor.

[47:11] » Can you speak to that Ed of of when we I know we have to have the the ballot

[47:16] question to the county by the first part of September um but can you kind of

[47:20] guide us on on that process? >> Cuz there's typically like a deadline

[47:23] when it's like the city can't speak on it. Um

[47:27] in the past that has happened so I'm just curious to when that is.

[47:30] » I don't have I don't have the the exact timeline in front of us. We do know that

[47:33] the the window is very tight.

[47:37] » It felt like September. >> Yeah.

[47:38] » So we're good right now? >> Once it's pretty much

[47:40] » It needed It needed to go on and be approved tonight in order

[47:44] to make sure that we hit the ballot because of the fact that we're

[47:49] uh the IGA that we have with the with Weld County. So

[47:52] um >> The ballot needs to be certified with

[47:55] the county by September 4th. And then we still need time before that to actually

[48:00] do the Spanish interpretation and get that certification before we certify the

[48:05] ballot. So, um tonight was basically the last night.

[48:08] » Okay. So, speak Just kidding. No, thank you.

[48:11] Thank you, Brian. I appreciate you. Thank you.

[48:13] » Councilmember Neil. >> Along the line,

[48:17] are we planning on mailing out the fact sheet

[48:23] before they it hits the ballot?

[48:27] » I I think we can look at avenues following tonight's approval and your

[48:30] guys' consideration for this. Once we have that, then we can look at avenues

[48:34] of of promoting it to um the factual information that we can

[48:38] provide. >> Well, it definitely needs to be promoted

[48:41] and we got a short period of time to try to

[48:45] convince the voters that this is needed to be changed.

[48:49] Originally, back in 2002, when this was passed

[48:54] or promoted, um the mantra from the city council

[48:59] and the mayors back then was always that development will pay for itself.

[49:05] And that climate has changed over the years to

[49:10] where you have to promote your city

[49:15] and its amenities to attract businesses. And

[49:19] I'm not entirely in favor of that aspect myself, but

[49:26] I I realize that this is what what people are doing in other communities.

[49:32] So, I am in favor of of

[49:35] uh trying to get this changed over.

[49:38] Um it's my understanding that by ordinance,

[49:43] they uh

[49:46] uh previous city councils had kind of

[49:49] added this to that without and that's why we are now

[49:54] because it was never put on the ballot, that's why we're putting it on the

[49:58] ballot, but I'm very concerned about the timeline, the narrow timeline to get

[50:02] this done.

[50:04] And get the information out to the voters.

[50:06] » Yeah, like I said, I have the fact sheet already done, so we can start working.

[50:10] Um I apologize, it just it snuck up on us, and and we think this is the best

[50:13] opportunity to move forward and and the best time to do it.

[50:16] It really is, and with and you know, kind of going back to the the incentive,

[50:20] if it really is performance-based. So, none of that is additional cost to the

[50:24] city. Um it'll be a a shareback agreement more so than

[50:28] than us paying. >> It's just really unfortunate that we've

[50:33] we've discovered another thing that's uh

[50:37] should have been done 20 years ago and have to correct try to correct it

[50:42] and and submit it to the voters in a short

[50:45] period of time.

[50:49] » It is. >> Thank you.

[50:50] » Thank you, Councilmember Neil. All right, any Not seeing any other

[50:53] additional questions or comments for staff, I would entertain a motion.

[51:04] All right, I have a motion and a second to approve resolution number

[51:08] 2025 or 2025-2026

[51:13] referring to the proposed food sales tax ballot question to eligible electors of

[51:18] the city of Evanston at the November 3rd, 2026 coordinated election subject

[51:22] to final legal review and any necessary non-substantiated

[51:26] revisions.

[51:30] And that motion carries. All right, next report, city manager.

[51:34] Thanks, Brian.

[51:37] » Yes, Mayor and Council, just a couple things for you here tonight. In your

[51:40] packet, uh I have included a pretty lengthy

[51:45] uh city manager's update on various uh capital projects that we have. I just

[51:49] want to go over a couple of those with city council tonight. Uh, first off,

[51:52] concerning the police station construction, the city has taken

[51:55] possession of the new Evans Police Department building. Uh, they began

[51:58] moving in on August 10th. Got in pretty quick. Uh, we're in our second week of

[52:02] operations of of full police operations out of the new facility. Uh, with

[52:07] construction of the new facility sub uh, substantially completed, the project has

[52:10] transitioned uh, to renovation of the former space here at city hall. Uh, that

[52:15] will be the expansion of the administrative offices uh, with that

[52:18] completion scheduled for December of 2026.

[52:23] Uh, jumping down to uh, County Road 394 culvert repair. Uh, that project has

[52:29] been awarded to Coyote Ridge Construction in the amount of

[52:33] $108,852.35.

[52:36] Uh, construction is anticipated to begin on or about August 24th. Uh, and is

[52:41] expected to take 2 weeks to complete weather permitting. So, uh, should have

[52:46] that uh, that road opened up here in the in the near future.

[52:51] 49th Street engineering studies. Uh, that project has been awarded to JR

[52:56] Engineering in the amount of $109,420. Uh, with work expected to begin after

[53:03] August 24th. So, uh, $109,420. I know at first we were we were really

[53:09] unsure what that was going to cost and then it was pulled down under 200 uh,

[53:13] 200,000. So, $109,490 is uh, substantial decrease from where

[53:18] where we initially expected these pre-design studies to come in at.

[53:24] Ridge Pond pump station. The engineering team is currently working on the

[53:29] internal review for all aspects of the project uh, to make sure that we have

[53:33] have it properly scoped. Uh, after which time we get a RFP issued by on Bidnet

[53:39] uh, by the end of August uh, 2026. So, that's coming up here

[53:45] just in a couple of weeks. I hope to have that out on Bidnet [snorts] for

[53:49] consultant selection. Updates on a couple of upcoming

[53:53] community events. We have Heritage Days scheduled for

[53:57] Saturday, September 19th, 2026. And then we have the fall 2026 community

[54:03] cleanup event scheduled for Saturday, October 3rd,

[54:06] 2026. That'll take place from 8:00 a.m. to

[54:09] 4:00 p.m. at the First Avenue site. And Mr. Mayor, that's all I have tonight.

[54:17] » Great, thank you, Cody. Appreciate it. All right, city attorney.

[54:21] » Just briefly, Mayor. Um I continue to work with the city manager

[54:26] to one by one address

[54:28] issues that have come up and we are very successful, I believe,

[54:32] thus far. Come October, just to put it

[54:37] let you hear that in municipal court they're going to be adding an afternoon

[54:40] session for criminal matters and they'll be writing traffic tickets in the

[54:44] morning. >> Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it.

[54:48] All right, moving on.

[54:53] Let's see. Council discussion.

[54:57] All right, so I just want to let you know be on the

[55:00] lookout for council in the next couple weeks. I'm going to be working with

[55:04] Julie Tempwich in HR to get the annual uh

[55:10] city manager evaluation out to you. And then later on after that will I know,

[55:15] you know, our city attorney's only been with us a short period of time, but

[55:18] we'll just give him a preliminary preliminary evaluation, you know, maybe

[55:22] about a week or two after that. So, be on the lookout for those coming through

[55:26] to you on your email. Other than that, that's all I have.

[55:30] Council member Johnson. >> Um, I just wanted to speak on the

[55:33] manager's report. I know we're in the midst of the 37th Street light um

[55:38] project. I just wanted to um

[55:42] this is touching on that subject but not just

[55:45] the street light component. I know we had discussed previously and this is

[55:48] some time ago there was an analysis made for um 29th and there um

[55:53] although we couldn't place like a speed bump or a stop sign, we considered a

[56:00] street light there because it is really dark on Anchor and 29th.

[56:04] And so I just wanted to see if there's a possibility to add that to that specific

[56:10] project just because I know it does take a year for us to order street lights.

[56:16] And I don't know if we can just add it to that.

[56:20] Granted this is something I'm bringing up from previous um council discussions

[56:24] that we had. Just bringing it back to the forefront.

[56:28] » Yeah, I appreciate you bringing that back up. I'll I'll coordinate with

[56:31] engineering and then I'll get information out to the council on that.

[56:35] » Perfect. Thank you. >> All right, Councilman O'Neal.

[56:40] » Well, first uh Cody and Ed are are we

[56:47] having any luck looking at uh re- being reimbursed uh

[56:52] for the the culvert repair?

[56:59] » So the culvert repair is is a interesting situation. Um

[57:03] I actually went out with the director of engineering to to look at it.

[57:07] And that made every bit of difference in the world. Uh essentially what you have

[57:12] is a situation where the culvert failed. Uh you have an individual that uh

[57:17] essentially did dig into that. However, um by law

[57:23] the city is responsible for uh the maintenance of that culvert and the

[57:28] subsequent replacement once it fails. Maintenance there is case law on it. So,

[57:33] in this instance, uh there will not be any ability to recover any um

[57:39] repair cost. Um so much time has passed to even

[57:44] determine what the amount of damage would have been done to the roadway

[57:50] um to accurately go after it. Plus the fact that uh it was already it

[57:55] had already failed. So, it it's a unfortunate situation that

[58:01] should have been addressed

[58:04] a long time ago. >> And I thought that uh

[58:09] the the was um

[58:12] technically the property of uh Dixie

[58:17] um water company or something.

[58:20] » So, Dixie it was responsible for putting it in. The the the provider/owner is

[58:26] responsible for for it and when it goes in, but once it goes under that roadway,

[58:30] it becomes the responsibility whoever owns that roadway. In this case, it's

[58:34] the city and it's maintenance that is required and and maintenance includes

[58:39] end-of-life replacement. >> All right, thank you for that.

[58:44] Um the other thing I need to bring up is uh we

[58:49] uh received a a substantial amount of information

[58:52] about the uh

[58:55] someone wanting the client's zone in the railroad

[58:59] again and um

[59:02] just wanted to reiterate that there were four members here on this

[59:06] council that were uh engaged in that discussion about 5

[59:12] years ago and

[59:15] um at that time it was just uh pretty cost prohibitive

[59:21] um at uh

[59:25] 1 to 2 million dollars per intersection. And

[59:29] the most effective thing that we could do

[59:33] would be to close 39th Street off completely. I note that CDOT has already

[59:39] recognized um

[59:42] a problem area there and uh done something to mitigate it by

[59:47] uh closing off access to going and turn making turns southbound

[59:54] on Highway 85 at that intersection. Um

[59:59] I don't know whether the council would want to pursue maybe doing a quiet zone

[1:00:04] there. I know the railroads are very acceptable to closing off

[1:00:10] uh little used intersections

[1:00:14] or crossings, uh but it's still

[1:00:18] would probably cost us a quarter of a million dollars to do that.

[1:00:23] Uh so I don't know whether there's any interest in that or

[1:00:26] or checking into seeing what that would do what the cost would be to do that at

[1:00:31] this time, but uh since it's been brought up by a resident

[1:00:36] on the east side again uh I thought I'd bring it up and

[1:00:42] » I am not in favor of that. It's cost-prohibitive, one. Two, the

[1:00:46] railroads do not have to abide by any quiet zone regardless of a municipality

[1:00:51] enforces one or not. They're federal railroads trump any state

[1:00:57] and municipal um

[1:01:00] um noise ordinance. Um if they feel that they need to go through and blow their

[1:01:06] horn, they they absolutely have the right to do it. The railroads already

[1:01:09] made some progress in trying to mitigate train traffic stopping in larger

[1:01:15] communities such as Evans and Eaton and LaSalle and not have their trains parked

[1:01:21] in you know, in those intersections for a long period of times by already

[1:01:25] closing some of the county roads, especially up uh

[1:01:29] past uh um Alton Pierce to reduce that, but they

[1:01:33] still can do that if they need to because of their work and rest cycles. I

[1:01:38] don't think it's we don't have the budget for it. The

[1:01:41] railroads don't have to abide by it. And and and it's it's cost prohibitive.

[1:01:46] I mean, my my thing is too you you live in a community that's near

[1:01:50] a railroad, you own a house that you purchased

[1:01:54] that's by a railroad. And that's the unfortunate consequence

[1:01:58] of living near a railroad. You you will have train traffic going through and

[1:02:02] they will blow their horn. >> Well, I'm

[1:02:05] » [clears throat] >> I'm not looking at it so much as a

[1:02:07] uh noise issue, it's a safety issue because

[1:02:10] there's no lights there or a signal there at that

[1:02:15] intersection. And it's uh

[1:02:18] very little used. Um because now now you can only go north

[1:02:23] on um Highway 85. But

[1:02:27] uh it it's still a safety concern

[1:02:30] um to me because there are there are no

[1:02:35] no uh signals there or or gates to indicate that uh a train's coming

[1:02:41] through there. Uh

[1:02:43] » From what I recall, um there weren't any um

[1:02:49] significant accidents or injuries to pedestrians or anything.

[1:02:54] So, for me we have other issues we need to worry

[1:02:58] about and I would rather put our money towards

[1:03:01] you know, the bigger issues that need to be addressed, especially on the east

[1:03:04] side, than shut down a street that might that some residents might get upset

[1:03:10] about. So, for me, I can't get behind that, uh

[1:03:15] shutting down a street. >> One one resident, but it's not multiple,

[1:03:20] so. >> Well, I'm just saying.

[1:03:23] You know, from what I understand, there were no big wrecks to bring it

[1:03:27] you know, make it worry. >> I think the police chief or the fire

[1:03:31] chief said there were were one pedestrian and one car

[1:03:36] over 26 years that he can remember, but so

[1:03:40] » Anybody Anyone else? >> No.

[1:03:45] » All right. Well, it doesn't seem like there's any

[1:03:47] interest from the council line. >> Well, thanks for Thanks for bringing it

[1:03:49] up though, Council member Niel. I appreciate it though.

[1:03:52] » I'm just following it up with what the resident said, so.

[1:03:56] » Absolutely. I appreciate that. Absolutely, 100%.

[1:04:00] » So. >> All right, I'm not seeing anybody any

[1:04:03] other things for council discussion, so with that being said, I'm going to go

[1:04:06] ahead and adjourn the meeting. Thank you, everybody.

City Council Regular Meeting

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