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El Paso Board of County Commissioners, Jan. 30 and Feb. 22 – Palmer Lake annexation impact report received

By Helen Walklett

During February, the El Paso Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) considered an annexation impact report for land west of the Town of Palmer Lake. The commissioners also heard concerns about safety on Vollmer Road near the School in the Woods site at the end of January.

Palmer Lake annexation

The proposed Ben Lomand Mountain Village annexation into the Town of Palmer Lake was back on the agenda at the Feb. 22 BOCC land use meeting ahead of it being discussed that evening at the Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting. See the Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting article on page < 7 >.

Kylie Bagley, planner III, Planning and Community Development Department, said the annexation impact report contained more information on the annexation’s potential impacts than was available when the BOCC first discussed it at its Jan. 23 meeting.

The annexation request is being made by landowner United Congregational Church and concerns 181.5 acres of RR-5-zoned land south of County Line Road, west of Indi Drive, north of the Lakeview Heights subdivision, and east of Oakdale Drive.

The applicant intends to develop the site, along with an additional 163 acres already within Palmer Lake, and rezone the land to the RE Estate Zone, which allows single-family dwellings on a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres. The total development on the combined property is not expected to exceed 80 lots. The steep topography of parts of the property being considered for annexation as well as the necessary land dedications and rights-of-way for roads and utilities mean that a large portion of the property is anticipated to remain undeveloped. It is estimated that 104 of the 181.5 acres is buildable and, given the minimum lot size of 2.5 acres, this would result in about 41 lots on that portion.

All existing structures, including the existing church and youth center, would remain. The applicant intends to use the buildable remainder of the combined property for churches and other religious facilities. Public trail easements and recreational access may also be considered as part of any future development.

The report states that the town’s police and fire services and the school district are believed to be more than adequate to provide services to the proposed development. The applicant will need to submit a drainage report and a traffic impact study as the project progresses.

Commissioner Carrie Geitner asked if there were any remaining concerns that might be potential problems for county and should be relayed to the Town of Palmer Lake. Bagley answered that there were none at this time.

Commissioner Holly Williams asked if Palmer Lake would be taking over responsibility for County Line Road. Meggan Herington, executive director, Planning and Community Development, said it would be standard for the town to take on the portion adjacent to the development and that discussions about other segments would need to be ongoing as the development progressed. She also clarified that the county and the Colorado Department of Transportation would receive detailed documentation for review and comment as any development moved forward.

The BOCC cannot approve or deny an annexation impact report; the report serves to notify it of the annexation request and sets out potential impacts in general terms, allowing the BOCC to give direction to staff. Therefore, the commissioners accepted the report, but no vote was taken.

Vollmer Road safety concerns

During the public comments part of the Jan. 30 BOCC meeting, two residents raised concerns about safety and speeding on Vollmer Road, adjacent to the School in the Woods site. Dick Hegeman, a resident of Hardin Road opposite the school site, said traffic had increased exponentially over the years. He spoke of speeding and cars parked on both sides of Vollmer and along Hardin during busy times such as school choice night when prospective parents and pupils visit. He said, “Something’s got to be done because somebody is going to get hurt. Why can’t we be proactive instead of reactive.”

Vollmer Road resident Maggie Mae Stone stated, “I’ve been trying on the same subject for nearly 2 1/2 years to find out when somebody is going to give a damn about the kids at the School in the Woods and put up speed limit signs.”

Although it is a designated school zone, limited to 25 mph, this cannot be enforced because there are no signs. Stone told the commissioners that she and her husband had offered to pay for two signs, but no one had acted interested in any way. She said she had been told by three Sheriff’s Deputies on three separate occasions that nothing would change until someone died.

Chair Cami Bremer asked Josh Palmer, county engineer, to follow up directly with the two citizens to explain the measures taken and those planned, which include the installation of dual turn lanes over the summer when the school is closed.

Helen Walklett can be reached at helenwalklett@ocn.me.

Other El Paso Board of County Commissioners articles

El Paso County Planning Commission, Feb. 1 – Positive feedback from county commissioners

By Helen Walklett

At the Feb. 1 El Paso County Planning Commission meeting, Chair Tom Bailey reported that he and Commissioner Jay Carlson had met with County Commissioners Stan VanderWerf and Cammie Bremer to work toward a meeting between the full Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) and the Planning Commission.

Bailey said, “They’re very happy with what we’re giving them, so thank you all for that. Your participation in these discussions, in these deliberations, the questions that you ask, the points that we get onto the record gives the [county] commissioners a very solid foundation to make their final decision.”

Carlson said the commissioners had commented, “We want you guys to function independently. We’re not looking for you to think ‘What would the Board of County Commissioners do or think.’ He added, “The other thing that both commissioners mentioned in our conversations with them is that they do read all our minutes and that they really pay attention to the dissenting votes, if there are any, and see if there’s something they might have missed in their look at things. So, it’s important to get our thoughts on the record.”

It is hoped that the meeting between the BOCC and the Planning Commission will take place in the next several weeks. Members of the public can comment on any application on the agenda at a Planning Commission hearing and can also raise a matter not on the agenda at the start of a meeting.

Helen Walklett can be reached at helenwalklett@ocn.me

Other El Paso County Planning Commission articles

El Paso County Board of County Commissioners, Jan. 9, 23, 25 – Palmer Lake annexation discussed

By Helen Walklett

During January, the El Paso Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) considered an annexation notification from the Town of Palmer Lake. The commissioners also adopted the 2024 budget and reappointed their chair and vice chair for a second year.

Ben Lomand Mountain Village annexation

Notification of an annexation request from the Town of Palmer Lake was received by the commissioners at their Jan. 23 meeting. The BOCC cannot approve or deny an annexation report; it serves to notify it of the annexation request and sets out potential impacts in general terms.

The Ben Lomand Mountain Village annexation concerns 181.5 acres of RR-5-zoned land south of County Line Road, west of Indi Drive, north of the Lakeview Heights subdivision, and east of Oakdale Drive. The request to annex the land into the town is being made by the United Congregational Church and was scheduled to be heard at the Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting on Jan. 25. Meggan Herington, executive director, Planning and Community Development, told the commissioners that she expected the request to be continued to a later date after an hour of testimony as required by statute. See the Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting article at left.

The applicants intend to develop the proposed 181.5 acres along with an additional 163 acres within Palmer Lake and rezone the land to the RE Estate Zone, which allows single-family dwellings on a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres. All existing structures, including the church and youth center, would remain. The county thought the development might number 80 or so houses.

The commissioners heard that the town had not yet provided a full Annexation Impact Report and had initially requested a waiver for this from the BOCC but had later said the information would be provided. The commissioners voted unanimously to decline the waiver, meaning the matter will return to the BOCC at a later date in the interest of full transparency. The commissioners noted that the application was a major matter for Palmer Lake and directed county staff to continue to work with the town on it. Commissioner Longinos Gonzalez said his first feedback would be that he would like to see the town accept the maintenance of certain county roads and maintain access to Ben Lomand Mountain.

The matter is ongoing.

2024 budget adopted

At the Jan. 9 meeting, the commissioners voted unanimously to adopt and appropriate the $491.6 million 2024 budget. Its adoption normally takes place in December, but it was postponed due to the special legislative session that took place at the state assembly.

Commissioner Gonzalez said, “I think this budget really addresses the needs of the community and [is] a great prioritization of public safety, roads.” Commissioner Stan VanderWerf said, “I appreciate calling it the recession-proof budget because we’re not 100% sure where 2024 is going to go and we have held reserve dollars in this budget in case we have an economic downturn.”

The commissioners went on to certify the 2023 mill levy for property taxes payable in 2024. Nikki Simmons, chief financial officer, said the mill levy of 7.192 mills was significantly lower than the overall authorized mill levy of 8.46 mills due to the TABOR cap. It represents an almost 17% reduction in the county’s portion of property tax bills.

Commissioner Carrie Geitner commented, “TABOR is the hero here. I’m happy for us to pass this but I would never want to lose sight of the fact that when the entire state was scrambling and trying to figure out what to do about these increases, regardless there was always a plan in El Paso County for the El Paso-specific taxes and that’s because TABOR always does its job of limiting government growth in this situation.”

Chair and vice chair reappointed

Also at the Jan. 9 BOCC meeting, the commissioners voted 4-1 to reappoint Commissioner Cami Bremer as chair and Commissioner Carrie Geitner as vice chair. Commissioner Gonzalez, who had put himself forward as a candidate for the position of chair, was the nay vote.

Hill subdivision approved

At the Jan. 25 BOCC land use meeting, the commissioners approved an application to subdivide a Black Forest property into three residential lots. The application came to the BOCC with a recommendation for approval from the Planning Commission. See the El Paso County Planning Commission article below.

Other decisions

Jan. 9—the commissioners approved the issuance of an ambulance permit to Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Protection District dba Monument Fire District. The six-month permit runs until June 1, 2024.

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The BOCC meets weekly, and the next meeting will be at 9 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 6. The commissioners will also meet on Feb. 8 and 22 at 9 a.m. to consider land use items.

Helen Walklett can be reached at helenwalklett@ocn.me.

Other El Paso Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) articles

El Paso County Planning Commission, Jan. 4 and 18 – Black Forest subdivision recommended for approval

By Helen Walklett

The El Paso County Planning Commission (EPCPC) met twice during January and considered a minor subdivision application for a Black Forest property.

Hill minor subdivision

At the first EPCPC meeting of the year, the commissioners voted unanimously to recommend for approval a subdivision request for a Black Forest property.

The application by Douglas and Katherine Hill would see the 14.69-acre property, east of Black Forest Road and south of Hodgen Road, subdivided into three residential lots. All three lots would have access to Black Forest Road via the existing driveway which would be re-dedicated as a private road named Alpaca Heights. Because Black Forest Road is classified as a section line road, properties with frontage onto it are permitted to have a minimum lot size of 4.75 acres. The property currently has a residential home, garage, and horse stable on it, and these would remain on the proposed lot 1.

The request was heard as a consent item, meaning there was no discussion, and was then heard at the El Paso Board of County Commissioners land use meeting on Jan. 25. See BOCC article on page < 1 >.

Highway 83 access plan

The commissioners were scheduled to adopt the Highway 83 Access Control Plan at the Jan. 18 meeting. However, this was moved to the March 7 meeting at the request of staff. Details of the plan were presented to staff at the Dec. 7 meeting. See www.ocn.me/v24n1.htm?zoom_highlight=acp)

Helen Walklett can be reached at helenwalklett@ocn.me.

Other El Paso County Planning Commission (EPCPC) articles

El Paso County Regional Loop Water Authority, Jan. 18 – Consultants address financing, CSU facilities, easements

By James Howald

At its January meeting, the El Paso County Regional Loop Water Authority (EPCRLWA, or the Loop) board heard progress reports from two consultants. The board also held an executive session.

Consultants address financing, easements

John Kuosman updated the board on his discussions with engineering companies and Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU).

Kuosman, a water practice leader with Merrick and Co. who also serves as the Loop Water Authority’s project planning and workflow manager, said he had received feedback from several engineering companies on projects they had worked on that were relevant to the Loop’s water reuse design. He used that feedback to determine the cost drivers that the Loop should build into its financial analysis. These cost drivers were used by Piper Sandler, the Loop’s underwriter, to develop financing scenarios that will be voted on by the authority’s participating water districts.

Kuosman said the Town of Monument is driving the Loop’s work to develop a financial model for the project, because the town needs to make a final decision whether it will remain a participant in the Loop or become a participant in the Northern Delivery System, a water reuse project that is managed by the Triview Metropolitan District. Kuosman said he had scheduled a presentation to the town at its executive session on Jan. 30.

Kuosman also reported to the board on his discussions with CSU. The Loop initially assumed that it would be responsible for construction of all infrastructure required to process and convey water to its customers, but as the project moved forward CSU became open to the possibility of the Loop using CSU’s Edward Bailey Water Treatment Plant (EBWTP), which has unused capacity. Using EBWTP would save the Loop the cost of building its own treatment facility. The potential use of EBWTP by the Loop to process water from the Chilcott Ditch raises the issue of treatment upgrades that might be required at EBWTP, Kuosman said, adding that CSU is funding a study to make this determination. Kuosman said he would review the water quality data the authority has collected and facilitate a meeting with CSU.

Rebecca Hutchinson, also with Merrick and Co., told the board she was investigating the easements that would be required to convey the water treated at the EBWTP, which is located at 977 Marksheffel Rd., to the east of Colorado Springs, to the Loop’s customers in northern El Paso County. Hutchinson said she is working with two companies that specialize in easement investigations: Kimley Horn and Western States Land Services LLC.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to receive information from consultants regarding water sources. The executive session was attended by board members from the participating water districts.

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The next regular meeting is scheduled for Feb. 15 at 9 a.m. Regular meetings are usually held on the third Thursday of each month at 9 a.m. at the Monument Town Hall at 645 Beacon Lite Road. Workshop meetings are held the first Thursday of each month at 9 a.m. at the Cherokee Metropolitan District offices at 6250 Palmer Park Blvd., Colorado Springs. Please see loopwater.org or call 719-488-3603 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other El Paso County Regional Loop Water Authority (EPCRLWA, or the Loop) articles