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ITEM 1 - CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Burkholder called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Lakewood Civic Center South, 480 South Allison Parkway, Lakewood, Colorado.
ITEM 2 - ROLL CALL
Those present were: Mayor Steve Burkholder, Presiding
Tom Booher
Ray Elliott
Jackie Herbst
Carol Kesselman
Bob Murphy
Jean Saum
Debbie Koop
Mike Stevens
Cheryl Wise
Barb Martin
Others in attendance: Mike Rock, City Manager
Roger Noonan, City Attorney
Full and timely notice of this City Council meeting had been given and a quorum was present.
ITEM 3 - PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
ITEM 4 - PROCLAMATION - Always Remember 9-11 Day
Mayor Burkholder read the Proclamation - Always Remember 9-11 Day, honoring
the victims of September 11th.
ITEM 5 - PRESENTATION - September 11 Activities
West Metro Fire District Chief Bob Brown thanked the Mayor and Council for the
previous Proclamation. Chief Brown reviewed the September 11th memorial activities
West Metro Fire District would be participating in and asked the Mayor, Council,
and Police Department to join them at 8:00 a.m. on September 11th at the Fallen
Firefighters Memorial for a solemn remembrance of the events of September 11th.
ITEM 6 - PROCLAMATION - Accomplishments of Darcie Herbst
Mayor Burkholder presented a Proclamation to Darcie Herbst recognizing her as
one of the 132 students nationwide to participate in the 2002 National Junior
Leaders Conference in Boston, Massachusetts.
ITEM 7 - PROCLAMATION - Accomplishments of Christopher Kotris
Mayor Burkholder presented a Proclamation to Christopher Kotris recognizing
him as one of the 132 students nationwide to participate in the 2002 National
Junior Leaders Conference in Boston, Massachusetts.
ITEM 8 - PROCLAMATION - National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
Mayor Burkholder proclaimed the month of September, 2002 National Prostate Cancer
Awareness Month and encouraged men to get the necessary blood tests and exams
on an annual basis.
ITEM 9 - PUBLIC COMMENT
Dave Wolfe - 18 Balsam Street - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Wolfe stated that the CCU neighborhood dorms is not about religion or about
student behavior. It is about the degradation of a neighborhood and its property
values brought about by the windfall profits to be gained by renting homes to
large numbers of unrelated people vs. renting homes to a single family or a
reasonable number of unrelated people. Mr. Wolfe stated that the present zoning
ordinance prohibits use of homes as dormitories, but the City refuses to enforce
the ordinance. He stated that the options are for the neighborhood to sue the
City to force it to enforce its own ordinances. The second option is to encourage
City Council to change the ordinance so that even the zoning enforcement staff
can understand that this use is illegal. The revised ordinance would have to
eliminate non-conforming uses in the shortest time possible. He stated that
Council is studying such an ordinance and he supports that. The second option
is preferable. Mr. Wolfe stated that if Council does amend the zoning ordinance
in this fashion, the neighborhood will no longer face degradation caused by
windfall real estate profits. However, if Council fails to amend the ordinance
or does so in such a way to continue to allow large numbers of students and
other related people to occupy homes, then a lawsuit will be the only option
available to the neighborhood to get redress of this problem and Council will
have denied that there is a problem.
Clarence Babcock - #5 South Flower - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Babcock stated he has lived at this address for 35 years. He stated that
the Council was elected and should be representatives of the people and if they
are not, then maybe they should get some Council people who are.
Tom Gardner - 9100 W. 4th Avenue - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Gardner stated that he has some concerns about the conflict between CCU
and the folks living in the single family neighborhoods. He stated that he likes
CCU and has contributed to the university, monetarily. He has taken his kids
to their fishing derbies and to their Easter Egg Hunts and they have been a
good neighbor. Mr. Gardner stated that he does not have a big concern about
the kids living in the neighborhood. As a realtor, he has rented to kids and
sold a house to a man who puts his daughters in the house and they go to CCU.
They have been great neighbors. Their intention is nothing but benevolent. This
proposal is not appropriate for single family zoning. Of the seven houses that
have been purchased, according to a letter he saw, six of those are now being
used by students and one of them is going to be used by someone else. Who are
the eight people that are going to live in that house in my neighborhood and
how benevolent they are. He asked If eight unrelated people were living next
to Council's home, if there would be a concern on their behalf, especially if
they live in a single family neighborhood. The question is what does the City
do to protect its citizens. The Council is made up of good people trying to
do the right thing for the City. He stated that he doesn't understand the rationale
for not enforcing the "no dorms" section of the Code. People suggested
to him that this may have been a mistake started by someone on staff and the
City's not found a way to say they screwed up and fix it without losing face
or maybe a lawsuit, by admitting the City is wrong. He stated he doesn't know
if that has anything to do with it. Someone recently told him that when we rationalize
to ourselves, what we're really doing is telling ourselves rational lies. He
strongly encouraged each person on Council to look within themselves and make
sure they are not telling themselves rational lies when they decide on this
issue. Do you civic duty and protect our single family neighborhoods.
Newt Vaughan - 8663 W. Hawaii Drive - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Vaughan stated that most of the neighborhoods that are outside of this Meadowlark
Area probably are not going to stand up and speak up and they didn't speak up
when the City wanted to run over the Villa Professional Plaza and they didn't
speak up when they wanted to run over the businesses at Colfax and Wadsworth.
He stated he thinks it is time that somebody from another neighborhood speaks
up for this neighborhood. First of all, the City would be remiss in letting
a single residential neighborhood become a multi-family or multi- high-density
growth area. He stated that the 13th Avenue corridor that that could happen
to and now the Meadowlark Area and asked what other areas are next. Under the
condemnation proceedings that the City seems to hold the power of, they could
take over any neighborhood they wanted. He stated it is time to come up with
some kind of compassionate reason why people live in an area like Lakewood.
He stated the City has lost a lot of small businesses due to the large box retail
stores that don't care about your service. They put a greeter at the door to
hand you a shopping cart so you'll buy more. That's the only reason, they want
you to fill that cart up and check out at the check out stand. We are losing
our community and we are losing it slowly to high density. He stated he has
mixed emotions about this. He stated he believes that people do with their property
what they do, but he does not think that the City should have the power to make
these things happen. He thinks they ought to rule on this deal for the Meadowlark
Area and the rest of the City so that we all don't face this later down the
line. Mr. Vaughan urged his fellow citizens that live in other neighborhoods,
besides Meadowlark, to step forward and say something because it is time we
do it.
Bob Orton - 8715 W. 2nd Avenue - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Orton stated he and his wife moved to Lakewood 15 years ago and thinks it
is a great place to live. To remain a great city, we must have good, fair, and
unambiguous standards for both residential and business. There should be a place
in Lakewood for single family homes separate from high density residential and
places of business. He stated that 15 years ago there was no doubt in their
minds they were moving into a neighborhood zoned for single family homes. We
could not have imagined that a City, college, or developer could be attempting
to redefine those rules. The good intentions of City staff to solve the problem
for a college should not be at the cost to the neighborhood in terms of parking
problems, noise, safety, or lower home values. We want to be assured Council
will rewrite the ordinances to reflect the true meaning of what our neighborhoods
are meant to be. On June 15, 1953, developers from Meadowlark Hills files covenants
with Jefferson County. The developer set them up so they would be valid for
25 years and to automatically renewed for another 25 years. This means they
are currently still in effect until June of next year and may be renewed by
a vote of the homeowners. Number one is the use of land except, Block 1, said
none of thee said lots may be improved, used, or occupied for other than private
residential purposes. No building of any kind whatsoever shall be erected or
maintained thereon, except private dwelling houses to be designed for occupancy
by a single family only. This is only a partial excerpt of the Declaration Agreement.
Some may argue that it has not been enforced, so therefore they don't apply.
Is that applied to all other rules of law or ordinances that the City does not
enforce. The neighbors should not have to seek enforcement in the courts when
the intent of the covenants are so clear and the intention of what a single
family neighborhood is intended to be. This should be true for every single
family neighborhood in Lakewood, not just Meadowlark Hills.
Will Hardesty - 12420 W. Ellsworth Place- Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Hardesty stated that he is a member of the Lakewood Commission on Cultural
Diversity and Felix Cook is the Chair. He stated he is also a charter member
of the Lakewood Pow Wow Planning Committee. Mr. Hardesty invited the Mayor,
Council, and citizens of Lakewood to attend the 4th Annual Pow Wow on Saturday,
September 14th. The Ground Blessing will occur at 9:00 a.m. Dancing will begin
at 10:00 a.m. The Grand Entry is at 12:00 noon. There will be kids art activities
from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. There will be contest and social dancing all
afternoon. The event is sponsored by the City and in part, by the Commission
on Cultural Diversity. He personally invited the Mayor to dance with them. The
Pow Wow is located at the Lakewood Heritage Center, 797 South Wadsworth.
Felix W. Cook, Sr. - 6090 W. Vassar Way - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Cook invited Girl Scout Troop 1098 to the podium. The Girl Scouts dedicated
their Troop's African Walking Stick to Mayor Steve Burkholder. All of the Girl
Scouts had a had in making it. They also thanked the Mayor for his help in the
City.
Felix Cook presented a plaque to Girl Scout Troop 1098 from the Commission on
Cultural Diversity to show their appreciation for the Girl Scout Troop's assistance
at the Lakewood-on-Parade Arts Experience.
Robert Baker - 50 South Cody Street - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Baker read the following letter into the record:
Dear Mayor Burkholder and Members of City Council: I and many other neighbors
continue to be faced with houses being used improperly in our neighborhood.
You may agree that these houses in question are dorms, in which case, Article
15 site plan approval would have been required and hopefully rejected. At the
very least, one would hope that the city would only approve a plan for dorms
that was no detrimental to the neighborhood, especially with regard to some
insistence on a low number of students per building given the location and type
of structures being considered in this case. This apparently was not done. If
on the other hand, you prefer to stick to the notion that each of these groups
of unrelated students constitute a single household as described in the ordinance,
then there is the problem that these groups do not have a sense of permanence,
but rather the transient nature of a dormitory, and actually consist of more
than one household. Our legal counsel, Brownstein/Hyatt/Farber, has pointed
out that a New Jersey court, interpreting a zoning ordinance with a definition
of household similar to Lakewood's, recognized that it is a matter of common
experience that costs of college and the variables characteristics of college
life and student relationships do not readily lead to the formation of a household
(this is) stable and potentially durable." Borough of Glassboro v. Vallorisi,
568 A.2d 888, 894-95 (N.J. 1990). Students do not typically go to school all
year; they leave in the summer. Their residence in an area is determined by
their attendance in school and when that attendance is over they almost certainly
leave. Students are not treating the household as a functional family unit,
especially if they are being overseen by a representative of the college and
paying their bills directly to the college. If these residences are being used
as dorms, it is not a permitted use of a single family dwelling. Or, they are
housing more than one "household," this is also not permitted. Your
constituents are overwhelming in favor of, in some way, limiting the number
of unrelated people to a reasonable number, like three, and making sure that
the future of the neighborhood is protected by as short an amortization period
as possible. And, now that Council has had time to review more detailed information
about the evolution of this problem, I hope many of you will be willing to speak
out in support of the neighborhood opposing CCU's persistence in implementing
their agenda. CCU's letter of 8-20-2002 to the Lakewood Neighbors states, W…we
did not need beds, but wished to methodically have houses that brought students
together as a group of brothers and sisters intent on one purpose." How
arrogant and uncaring for CCU to think that we should compromise the character
and home values in our neighborhood to accommodate their vision for their school,
especially now knowing the depth of resistance they have encountered from the
surrounding community.
The citizens of Lakewood are counting on the Mayor and City Council to show leadership, both in addressing the long term problem through ordinance change, and in exploring the immediate problem of students being housed by the college in single family homes.
Jeri L. Coffey - 45 South Cody Street - Lakewood, Colorado
Ms. Coffey read the following letter into the record:
Dear Mayor Burkholder and Members of City Council: It appears that Colorado
Christian University has total disregard for the recommendations city's staff
and legal counsel gave CCU at a meeting between the parties on June 13th. Public
notes of this meeting state: CCU confirmed that they are in fact offering rooms
and tuition packages to students. The University screens students and places
the qualifying ones into the various rental houses around the neighborhood.
We discussed that this method of placing students into single-family dwellings
does not fit the definition of "household." Some discussion revolved
around that issue, and the City stood it's ground. The conversation ended with
Frank Gray recommending to the CCU staff that they hold an informational meeting
with the neighborhood to discuss the issues at hand. They agreed that they would
do that. /s LE (Lois Engbretson) In addition, I spoke to the city who confirmed
that the university and investor, Mr. Cal Van Essen, had severed their contract
due to the city's insistence. As stated in code enforcement's records, CCU's
placement of students into single-family homes does not fit the definition of
household and therefore can not legally be done. Yet CCU continues on the same
course. Why does CCU persist against the discontented outcry from the community
and zone enforcement's recommendations? In a letter dated August 20, 2002 to
the homeowners, Mr. McCormick of CCU invites the community to a university-sponsored
open house at 6 of the houses in the neighborhood. These houses are still under
the supervision and authority of CCU. In addition, several students told met
hat their room and tuition is paid in one lump sum to the university per semester.
How can CCU place students into these single-family homes? In the same letter
Mr. McCormick states "the students in our theme houses will lease the home
directly from the owner." As I mentioned earlier the students told me that
they pay board to the university. Who is telling the truth? The students or
the university? It should not be surprising that attendance at the open house
was insignificant. I attended the open house and asked several members of the
CCU staff way back in late May or early June when this issue came under review
did they continue their forward momentum to see these homes as "theme-houses".
It seems to be the general feeling of the university that once we experience
them as neighbors with high values, morals and commitments toward the community's
good then our feelings will change. This issue is not about behavior. It's not
a question of if the students are good then it's OK to use single-family homes
as dorms and if they are bad then it's not OK. This issue is about land use.
For the past five years CCU has been slowly creeping into single-family homes.
This year alone 7 homes were purchased. If the misuse of single-family homes
is allowed to continue it will set a precedent for explosive misuse.
In Malcolm Gladwells book the Tipping Point, Gladwell argues that social movements and trends behave very much like viruses: They may grow gradually for a time, but eventually they read a sort of critical mass, a threshold that drives them into exponential explosion.
Robert Johnson - 115 Estes Street - Lakewood, Colorado
Mr. Johnson stated he is the President of the Mid-Lakewood Civic Association.
He stated he was speaking on the subject of dormitory expansion in R2 zoning.
He thanked City Council for putting the issue on their study session agenda.
He stated that he understands there is an option in front of the City Council
study session that would allow a formula to decide how many unrelated people
could live in a single family home. Mr. Johnson stated that they approve of
that formula approach because it would apply to any house in Lakewood, regardless
of size. The homeowners of the Mid-Lakewood Civic Association find the following
scenario acceptable. Let's assume that the average house is 2000 square feet.
At the neighborhood meeting last July, Councilor Martin asked the question of
how many unrelated people the neighborhood would support in these houses. There
were approximately 300 people at that meeting and approx. 290 said 3 unrelated
people, five or six said 4 unrelated people, and a couple were not voting. The
Mid-Lakewood Civic Association asks Council to take that poll by Councilors
Martin and Wise into consideration at the study session. Any formula that would
become of the zoning law would also have to be very specific and not open to
interpretation to future staff people or others. It should be straight forward.
In addition to the change in number of unrelated people that can rent a house
in the area, they ask that a reasonable time be put as far as an amortization
period. If there is a zoning change, we ask that it not be grand fathered for
these seven houses, but that a reasonable amortization period be put into effect.
He asked that a mechanism for both the City and University regarding notification
of any problems is put into effect. The Mid-Lakewood Civic Association would
support a formula that could be used for any house in the Lakewood area, depending
on size. Using a rough estimate of a 2000 square foot home would allow at least
three and no more than four unrelated people to leave there.
Michael O'Beirne - 25 North Cody Court - Lakewood, Colorado
At the last public meeting, I attacked Frank Gray and I apologize, I should
not have deviated from my written text. It is not my style to attack people,
but instead to deal with the issues. I'll continue. I had a conversation with
various members of the Council and I wanted to publicly clarify some of the
misunderstandings that Council might have. There seems to be an impression that
Meadowlark and Moore Addition are areas in transition. As I said, when we first
started this, in my opening speech before Council, we do have several generations
who still live in our neighborhood and are very tied to the community. Just
to name a few, the Gardners, the Berrys, the Dalton, the Hurans, and Wisecarvers,
among others. I'm not sure what it is that allowed for the opening of the gates
for the large concentration of properties dedicated to the use of CCU. Perhaps,
as we know from a recent report in the Denver Post and from the Colorado Realtors
Association, that the Denver Housing Market is in a slump with the exception
of homes in the $240,000 range. Coincidentally, those are the houses that we
have been discussing. We urge that these ordinances be clarified. There are
too many ambiguities. Habitable rooms must include just bedrooms. Hallways,
kitchens, living rooms, dining rooms, it is absurd to think that they are habitable
rooms. As Mr. Johnson just said, a reasonable ratio, four individuals per square
foot, is an alternative, but one that should refer specifically to bedrooms.
Definitions for family should either be eliminated or unified. Sex offenders
should not decide the definition of families so we do need to clarify that issue.
One thing that I found recently in some research that I did in the Denver Post,
the City of Lakewood commissioned an urban renewal study by Lincoln Consultants,
I believe that we need to revisit that to find out exactly why Lincoln was dismissed
and what they were discussing in their research. In closing, I think we've got
the Council's attention. We're addressing these issues in a rational way. Council
keeps saying that these ordinances have been on the books since 1979. Well,
Council has changed since then and the community has changed since then and
the very people that wrote those ordinances have moved on so we need to revitalize
the community and redefine what community needs. Thank you.
Diane Cauau - 8685 W. Bayaud - Lakewood, Colorado
I want this to be on public record and clear up one rumor that has floated around.
On August 25th, the Mid-Lakewood Civic Association had an annual neighborhood
picnic. The signs posted all over the neighborhood stated that everyone was
welcome and please bring a side dish. We decided that it would be a good way
for the CCU students that have moved into the neighborhood to meet their neighbors.
So all of the students from the rentals in the neighborhood, plus a home that
has been renting here for three years, all met at our house to walk to the park.
They all brought more than one dish per household to share. With it being so
hot and so many dishes, my husband drove the food to the park, which made all
the students walking empty handed. I guess this where the rumor began that 50
students came empty handed and ate up all the food. Well, they did not come
empty handed, plus we ended up getting more burgers. Every dish was homemade,
which impressed me. There was plenty of food for everyone and plenty leftover.
If anyone feels that we were rude in bringing them, we did not want it to turn
out that way, we just wanted them to meet all their neighbors. Also, I'm offended
with the signs, it's against code, and no dorms that have surfaced in our neighborhood.
These signs are defacing the property of our neighborhood and potential buyers
that would be turned off and look elsewhere. This is not the message that I
would like to be sending. The quality of the neighborhood that everyone seems
to be defending, is now eroding away. These students are getting blamed for
everything to an incident that happened just Friday evening. My husband and
I, with our children, went over to visit one of the student's homes. As we walked
around the corner, the street was filled with cars, so we asked about the cars,
and they said, no, the neighbor was having a barbeque. While outside, someone
noticed a woman taking pictures so I walked over and asked if she was taking
pictures of the car. The lady said, yes. They belong to the college students.
This woman lives down the street a couple of houses. She told me that the students
had two houses there. I had corrected her and let her know that the students
only had one house and they only had four cars. The neighbor is having a barbeque.
Here is a double standard. A homeowner is entitled to have gathering of friends
which brings many cars into the neighborhood, but yet a renter is looked upon
differently. You say this is not about CCU students and the students, well,
your actions have fooled me and many others. These students are nice young adults.
They are quiet, respectful and act more mature than some of our neighbors that
live here. Whatever happened to the saying, love thy neighbor and treat thy
neighbor the way you want to be treated. That should be looked at again in our
neighborhood as well as mutual respect and kindness. Council, I know you have
a lot to work on this issue, but please, let's get it finished. Everyone, take
your signs down and take them to City Hall. This is for Mrs. Little, she is
not here this evening, but hopefully she will get this message.
Mayor Burkholder asked her to talk about issues and not mention names.
Bill Little - 65 S. Dudley Street - Lakewood, Colorado
I have lived at 65 S. Dudley Street since 1967 and other neighbors who have
lived there longer and some that have lived there less. I don't know what kind
of a message she had for Mrs. Little, but I live up the street and if she has
..
Mayor Burkholder asked him to talk about issues, not attack people.
Mr. Little said the signs that were put up were professional signs. If you look down the street from where I live, you'll see some homemade signs. She didn't discuss those at all. Now it isn't that we are here against the students, even though she would like to think so. We're here because we don't want our neighborhood eroded. I think that's what's happening to our neighborhood. I appreciate everyone that talked about what is happening to our neighborhood.
Mayor Burkholder closed public comment.
Mayor Burkholder stated that there is one thing important for everyone to remember. The Ward 1 Councilors were made aware of the problem in mid-June and the rest of City Council is deliberately moving on this issue. At the Study Session several weeks ago, Council did decide to change the ordinance. Another Study Session will take place on October 7th at which time a proposed plan will be reviewed. If it moves forward, there will be ample time for public comment. He stated that whatever is approved is something that will be applied to the entire City, not just the one neighborhood.
Councilman Martin stated that she got the feeling from the people that spoke tonight that Council was doing nothing. She stated that the laws are being followed as have been interpreted by our staff. The ordinance will be changed.
Mayor Burkholder stated that he has received concerns from citizens regarding the alleged altercation between Councilors Elliott and Booher. He stated that the entire Council is concerned about this issue. Council is embarrassed by it. It is now in the hands of the District Attorney. Court date is scheduled for October 14th.
CONSENT AGENDA - The following items from the Consent Agenda were read into the record by the City Clerk.
ITEM 10 - RESOLUTION 2002-61 AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD TO ENTER INTO A REVENUE SHARING AGREEMENT WITH THE TOWN OF MORRISON AND DEVELOPERS DIVERSIFIED REALTY RELATING TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF APPROXIMATELY SIXTY-FIVE ACRES IN ROONEY VALLEY
ITEM 11 - ORDINANCE O-2002-62 FOR THE ADOPTION OF A MASTER PLAN FOR GARY R. MCDONNELL PARK
ITEM 12 - RESOLUTION 2002-63 DECLARING THE INTENT OF THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD, COLORADO TO ISSUE HOUSING REVENUE BONDS OR MORTGAGE CREDIT CERTIFICATES TO PROVIDE FINANCING OF RESIDENTIAL FACILITIES FOR LOW AND MIDDLE INCOME PERSONS AND FAMILIES; PRESCRIBING CERTAIN TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SUCH BONDS; AND CONTAINING OTHER PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED ISSUANCE OF SUCH BONDS
ITEM 13 - ORDINANCE O-2002-31 AMENDING MUNICIPAL WARD BOUNDARIES FOR THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD, COLORADO
Councilwoman Wise made a motion and ordered all ordinances introduced on first reading to be published in the Lakewood Sentinel with public hearing set for the date included in the ordinance; and ordered the adoption of resolutions, all of which were included in the Consent Agenda items introduced into the record by the City Clerk. The motion was seconded by Councilman Elliott.
City Manager Mike Rock clarified Item 10 - Resolution 2002-6. He stated that the Rooney Valley is a significant piece of property, very important to the Town of Morrison, the City of Lakewood, and Jefferson County. The property is under the jurisdiction of all three entities. The property is bordered by Alameda Parkway to the North, Bear Creek Blvd. to the East, Morrison Road to the South, and C-470 to the West. There has been some history of conflict between Morrison and Lakewood in the Valley. That is further complicated by a bankruptcy and a series of financial problems by a special district that was formed to serve the Valley. In addition, the Valley is very heavily zoned for primarily commercial activities, office, and residential. In order to bridge that gap, primarily between Morrison and Lakewood, a coordinated effort occurred between the communities and the County and out of that came an intergovernmental agreement that said the Town of Morrison and Lakewood would coordinate planning efforts and Jefferson County would participate as appropriate. We would coordinate in the provision of services and in most cases, any service provided in the Valley would be provided by Lakewood, and finally, we would share revenue. At the same time, a board was created, the Joint Project Review Committee with three representatives from each community and the Lakewood representatives include Council member Bob Murphy, Ken Lloyd and Dick Plastino. The responsibility of that group is to ensure that that coordination occurs and to ensure that the intent of the intergovernmental agreement is carried out. A special district was formed to serve the area with utilities. That district went into bankruptcy. A plan was proposed a couple of years ago that we felt was not in the public interest. The City expended a great deal of time, effort, and money to fight that plan. The Court ultimately rejected that plan and in fact, in rejecting it, said that it was an abuse of the bankruptcy powers and an abuse of the special district powers. Now there are two issues that we're dealing with today. One is another bankruptcy plan that is before the Courts. It is a $72 million plan. We find it equally unacceptable as the previous plan. That plan is scheduled for hearing in mid-October. Absent a mutually negotiated agreement, we'll be in a position that we'll have to have expert testimony and legal intervention on the bankruptcy plan. At the same time there is a development proposal in the Valley. The development is located entirely within the Town of Morrison. It's on roughly 60 acres and that proposal would over time, provide for a retail center. Morrison is very interested in seeing that project move forward. They are very interested in doing it under the terms of the intergovernmental agreement, but absent the agreement, they would be very eager to do it anyway, entirely in their community. Lakewood's interest in the project is two-fold. One, by reaching an agreement on the retail proposal we have in the Valley, there is a side agreement that will provide for a bankruptcy plan that is acceptable to the City of Lakewood and will also provide for the reimbursement of approx. $650,000 in legal costs that we've expended over the years dealing with the district. The retail plan will also provide that the City of Lakewood provide services in the Valley and will be reimbursed 100% for the cost of those services and the revenues will be split 50/50 with the Town of Morrison, even though the project is entirely in Morrison. We will share in half of the revenue. In exchange, the developer gets up to $700,000 or $350,000 per entity, per year for a period of time and that is the amount that is necessary for them to make up the infrastructure cost, the high cost of land, and the cost of the improvements. The benefit to Lakewood is we get a bankruptcy resolved that has been very expensive and difficult for us. We get revenue out of a project that is located entirely in another community. In exchange for providing services to the area, we get reimbursed for 100% of our costs.
Councilwoman Kesselman, in reference to Item 11 - Resolution 2002-62, asked how many neighborhood meetings took place regarding the park master plan. City Manager Mike Rock stated there were three neighborhood meetings. Notices were sent out to approx. 400 households and over the course of the three meetings, approximately 100 people attended. Participation was better than usual.
Councilwoman Kesselman clarified, in regards to Item 10, there is no encumbrances
to the City regarding the private activity bonds.
Councilman Booher asked for clarification on what the transit oriented housing
fund is what would happen if this doesn't come through and where it would be
located.
Mayor Burkholder stated that several years ago, the Metro Mayors Caucus created a pooling of the private activity bonds with the sole purpose to create the ability for people to move into homes. This is a case where no revenues were actually used, but it was part of our allocation that we assigned. This has to do strictly with the fact that by September l5th if we don't assign these dollars they are lost and go back to the State. This way, the money is pooled and will go into transit-oriented development. None of the dollars will be spent here in Lakewood. There are no projects in Lakewood where the dollars can be spent at this time. There is no indebtedness to the City.
Vote: 11 Ayes. 0 Nays. The motion carried.
ITEM 14 - GENERAL BUSINESS
None.
ITEM 25 - REPORTS
Mayor Burkholder stated he attended Don Parson's funeral last week. Don was the Mayor of Northglenn for 16 years. He was superman when it came to promoting regional cooperation, particularly in water, growth, and transit issues. It was a true celebration of a person's life. He will be missed.
He stated he spoke with people who are on the Wind & Fire Motorcycle Ride between here and Ground Zero, and Washington D.C., and Summerset County, Pennsylvania. Last Thursday morning, it was quite a site to see about 80 motorcycles take off and head for Ground Zero, with their chase vehicles. It was something organized by the fire fighters of West Metro and was very exciting. The caravan is now one and one-half miles long. On September 11th, they will do a midnight ride to Ground Zero.
Councilman Elliott stated that he represented the Mayor at the Alameda Gateway Community Association last Wednesday morning. There was a presentation done by City staff on the update of the Comprehensive Plan.
Councilwoman Saum stated that as the City's representative to the Jefferson County Community Corrections Board, she received an invitation to attend the Judicial Award Luncheon last Friday at Fort Logan Mental Health Center. The award recipients were the Honorable H. Jeffrey Bayless of Denver County 2nd Judicial District; Bill Ritter, the Denver District Attorney; and Joe Saumel, Administrator for Alcohol and Drug Services for the Colorado Department of Corrections. She stated it was an impressive event and she was pleased for the opportunity to attend.
Councilman Stevens stated that there will be a musical tribute to America on
Wednesday, September 11th at 7:00 p.m. at Bear Valley Christian Church. The
church is located at 6800 W. Hampden Avenue. Admission is free. The public can
call to reserve seating at 303-985-1516.
Councilwoman Martin invited citizens to a Town Meeting at the Convention Center dealing with the Union Station Advisory Committee Report on the Master Plan for the redevelopment and restoration of the Union Station. It is an exciting project. It is Thursday, September 12th at 5:30 at the Colorado Convention Center
Councilman Murphy stated that the Colfax Community Association Meeting will be Wednesday, September 18th, 7:30 a.m. at the Mark Starr Center, near the Clements Community Center on Yarrow just off of Colfax.
Chicago Restaurant has enlarged and moved. It has moved from Colfax near Dudley to Colfax, near Pierce. The Two Creeks Neighborhood is happy for the expansion of the business.
Councilwoman Kesselman thanked the Planning Staff for the presentation to the Jewell and Wadsworth Business Association meeting last week. They presented the Comprehensive Plan and there was a lot of interest expressed by the neighborhood as well as the businesses in that neighborhood.
Councilwoman Herbst stated that the Jefferson Gardens Neighborhood will be holding a meeting on September 24th at Washington Heights, 1st Avenue near O'Kane Park, from 7-9 p.m.
There will be a flag ceremony on September 11th at Deane Elementary School on the front lawn at 7:45 a.m.
Thanked the Girl Scout Troop for their help at Lakewood-on-Parade.
City Manager Mike Rock reminded City Council that next week's Study Session regarding the budget starts at 1:00 p.m.
ITEM 16 - ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Council, Mayor Burkholder adjourned at the meeting at 8:17 p.m.
Submitted by
Margy Greer, City Clerk
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