Palmer Lake Board of Trustees, Sept. 25 – New board members seated; annexation ordinance becomes law

Harris and Moseley sworn in
Annexation ordinance adopted
Planning Commission vacancy filled
Pending litigation
Staff reports
Public Comments
Creek Week cleanup
Executive session

By James Howald and Jackie Burhans

The Palmer Lake Board of Trustees (PLBOT) canceled its first regular board meeting of the month, scheduled for Sept. 11. At its Sept. 25 meeting, Beth Harris and Roger Mosley took seats on the board. Mayor Pro Tem Amy Hutson ran the meeting in place of Mayor Dennis Stern, who did not attend. The newly constituted board adopted an ordinance that requires annexations to be approved by a vote of the people and filled a vacancy on the Planning Commission. The board heard an update from Town Attorney Scott Krob regarding pending litigation against the town and staff reports from Town Clerk Erica Romero and Interim Town Administrator Glen Smith.

During the public comment period, resident Gary Atkins and County Commissioner Bill Wysong, among others, commented on the contentious special election held Sept. 9. The board heard a presentation on the Fountain Creek Watershed District’s (FCWD) Creek Week Cleanup. The meeting ended with an executive session.

Harris and Moseley sworn in

The Sept. 25 meeting opened with Town Clerk Erica Romero administering the oath of office to Beth Harris and Roger Moseley. Harris and Moseley were elected to replace Trustees Shana Ball and Kevin Dreher who were recalled on Sept. 9. As Harris and Moseley took their seats on the board, the audience gave them a prolonged round of applause.

**Above and below**: At the regular Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting Sept. 25, Town Clerk Erica Romero administered oaths of office to new board members Beth Harris (above) and Roger Moseley (below). Harris and Moseley were elected to replace Trustees Shana Ball and Kevin Dreher, who were recalled in the Sept. 9 municipal election.. Photos by Jackie Burhans.

Annexation ordinance adopted

In the special election that replaced Ball and Dreher with Harris and Moseley, the voters also approved a ballot initiative requiring all future annexations to be approved by the voters. At the Sept. 25 meeting, the newly constituted board adopted Ordinance 05-2025, the final step in making it law.

Krob told the board that Exhibit A, which accompanies the ordinance in the board packet, shows the complete text of the town’s code governing the annexation of land. The language added by the initiative is underlined. He directed the board’s attention to Section 8 of the exhibit: Requirement for Voter Approval. That section requires a special election to approve any annexation but does not specify when that election should take place, Krob said. That election could be held at the beginning of the annexation process, but Krob recommended it occur after eligibility had been determined, because only then would the electorate know exactly what it was voting on.

Hutson suggested the question of timing be decided at the next board meeting, since it was not on the agenda for the Sept. 25 meeting.

Harris asked Krob if he had made any changes to the language from the initiative when he incorporated it into the town’s code. Krob said he had made one change: the date of Oct. 30, 2025 was used instead of the phrase “one year before” to make it clearer exactly what period the ordinance would cover. Krob said the date of Oct. 30 was chosen to allow 30 days of notice.

The board voted unanimously in favor of the ordinance.

Planning Commission vacancy filled

Hutson told the board that the Planning Commission had recommended Rich Kuehster for its vacant seat at its Sept. 17 meeting

Kuehster said he had lived in Palmer Lake for 49 years, came from a family that values public service, had served as the town’s fire chief and had also served two terms on the board, leaving it in 2017. Harris asked why he was interested in serving on the Planning Commission, and Kuehster said he was prepared to interpret the town’s master plan and municipal codes and make good decisions about land use. The board voted unanimously to appoint Kuehster to the open Planning Commission seat.

Pending litigation

Krob told the board there were two pending lawsuits against the town: one filed by Integrity Matters, a watchdog group in Colorado Springs, and the other by Moseley and Martha Brodzik.

In the Integrity Matters lawsuit, a motion to dismiss has been filed by the Colorado Intergovernmental Risk Sharing Agency (CIRSA), the organization that insures the town. That suit is waiting on a decision from the judge, Krob said.

A motion to dismiss has also been filed in the lawsuit brought by Moseley and Brodzik, Krob said. That suit has been fully briefed and is waiting for a decision from the judge.

Krob told the board that Buc-ee’s is still moving forward with its annexation request, which will be voted on by the board at its meeting on Oct. 2. The Chinn annexation request has been placed on hold by Todd Messenger, the United Congregational Church’s lawyer.

Staff reports

Romero said the special recall election had been successfully conducted following hard work by the town staff. It was a smooth and transparent process. Romero thanked county Clerk and Recorder Steve Schleiker and his Election Manager, Angie Leath, for their partnership and guidance.

Smith thanked the staff for a transparent, fair election and noted the great turnout. He said he was disappointed that County Commissioner Bill Wysong posted negatively about the election.

Moseley asked Smith about the status of an audit of the town’s finances, which is overdue. Smith said an extension had been requested, but the audit would not be complete by Sept. 30. Smith said he expected the audit to be complete by mid-October, adding that when the outstanding audit was complete, he would publish a Request for Proposal seeking a new auditor.

Public Comments

Atkins told the board he was a 50-year-resident of the town and had served on the Planning Commission and on the Sanitation District board. He asked the board to cut the town’s financial losses regarding the annexation request from Buc-ee’s. He pointed out that Mayor Glant Havenar had been forced to resign, two board members had been recalled and replaced, and another board member had avoided recall by being appointed as mayor. These things proved the town did not want the proposed Buc-ee’s travel center, Atkins argued, and he asked trustees and the mayor to resign if they could not support the town’s decision. His comments were met with applause.

Wysong congratulated the two new board members and said that before the election, he said elected officials are required to vote and work for their constituents. He noted that Smith objected to those remarks but said an overwhelming number of people asked for his support. He said he had asked the office of the county Clerk and Recorder to help the town with the election and was pleased with the accountability and transparency.

Creek Week cleanup

Mary Wilson, FCWD’s outreach coordinator, gave the board an overview of the organization and the watershed. FCWD’s mission is to be good stewards of the watershed and to protect, restore, and sustain it. FCWD was established by the state in 2009, she said, and had completed 22 restoration projects with more on the way. Its funding comes from Colorado Springs Utilities.

The watershed is 92 square miles, Wilson said, crossing two counties and containing eight municipalities, with Palmer Lake at its northern boundary, Pueblo at its southern boundary and including Green Mountain Falls and Pikes Peak. It is the second most studied watershed in America, and one of the most erratic, she said. Fountain Creek was once ephemeral, that is, flowing intermittently, but now flows continuously due to the amount of building that has happened. Erosion is an ongoing problem, as the elevation changes from 14,115 feet to 4,695 feet over 71 miles.

Following Wilson’s remarks, Hutson read a proclamation recognizing Creek Week 2025, which declared Sept. 27 through Oct. 5 as “Creek Week.”

On Sept. 27, a group of volunteers met at Glen Park to remove brush from the banks of Monument Creek. See the snapshot section on page < 21 >.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to receive legal advice on a possible amendment of a sale agreement between the town and Twenty 1 Five LLC.

Following the executive session, the board took two actions: It approved an amendment to extend the sale agreement and voted to approve Ordinance 06-2025 to vacate portions of the Estabrook Street right of way.

**********

A special board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 2. See the town’s website at www.townofpalmerlake.com to confirm times and dates of board meetings and workshops. Meetings are typically held on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month at the Town Hall. Information: 719-481-2953.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me. Jackie Burhans can be reached at jackieburhans@ocn.me.