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OCN > 2501 > Palmer Lake Board of Trustees, Dec. 12 – Buc-ee’s annexation petition meets requirements

Palmer Lake Board of Trustees, Dec. 12 – Buc-ee’s annexation petition meets requirements

Correction

The Palmer Lake Board of Trustees article in the November issue of OCN incorrectly said the proposed Buc-ee’s travel center would be east of I-25. It is proposed to be west of I-25 and south of County Line Road (see Buc-ee’s location map below – courtesy Buc-ee’s). OCN regrets the error.

By James Howald and Jackie Burhans

In December, the Palmer Lake Board of Trustees held public hearing to determine if a property owned by Maria Larsen and proposed as a site for a large Buc-ee’s travel center is eligible for annexation. Determining eligibility is the first of multiple steps in the annexation process.

Three new board members were sworn in. The 2025 budget, discussed in previous meetings, was adopted. Town Administrator Dawn Collins announced the hiring of a new chief of police.

Eligibility hearing is lengthy and contentious

Trustee Jessica Farr was excused from the meeting, having given birth earlier in the day. Mayor Glant Havenar, who was on vacation, was also excused. Mayor Pro Tem Dennis Stern facilitated the meeting. He said a representative of the applicant for annexation would speak first, then the board members would ask questions. Following the board members, public comments would begin, with Palmer Lake residents and business owners first in line, followed by non-residents. Stern said the Town Hall was full and many were outside listening to the meeting on speakers. He said he would notify speakers in groups of three as it became their turn to speak.

Stern asked speakers to confine their comments to the question of eligibility. He said other concerns would be debated later in the annexation process. He said speakers who addressed issues other than eligibility would be asked to sit down. Stern asked Nina Ruiz, senior executive consultant at Vertex Consulting Services, to speak on behalf of Larsen, the applicant.

Ruiz began by displaying a map of Palmer Lake’s three-mile plan to show that the proposed annexation meets the legal requirement that the property to be annexed be within three miles of the municipal boundary. She said she would only speak to the statutes that cover eligibility for annexation: C.R.S. Sections 31-12-104 and 105. The first statute requires that one-sixth of the perimeter of the area proposed to be annexed is contiguous with the annexing municipality. The second statute has 10 provisions that must be met for the eligibility requirement to be met.

Ruiz showed a series of surveyor’s maps for each of the six annexations that make up the “flagpole” annexation request, which she argued demonstrate that the requirement for contiguity is met.

She addressed the requirements of the second statute one by one:

  • The lands to be annexed are either dedicated rights-of-way or under one ownership.
  • The owner has signed all petitions.
  • There are no other annexation petitions in play.
  • The annexation will not impact school boundaries.
  • The annexation does not extend the municipal boundary more than three miles in any direction.
  • There are no other related annexation requests.
  • Abutting landowners have been notified.
  • Palmer Divide Road (also known as County Line Road) and Beacon Lite Road are not platted streets, so the requirement to annex the entire width of a road does not apply.
  • The annexation will not result in access being denied.
  • No annexation election is required.

Ruiz’s presentation can be found on the town’s website here: www.townofpalmerlake.com/media/16681.

The board had no questions for Ruiz, and Stern began calling residents to the podium to comment.

Note: Some comments not related to eligibility and some arguments made by more than one resident have not been included in this summary.

Roger Moseley argued that the petition should be denied because the entire width of Palmer Divide Road was not annexed. He cited a memo written by Scott Krob, the town’s attorney, to support this position. Moseley said the town’s three-mile plan was out of date and did not meet the requirement for such a plan to be in place. He said he believed two of the annexation petitions included small portions of Douglas County, which had not been formally notified of the annexation.

Martha Brodzik argued that the disconnection of the United Congregational Church’s property from the town meant that the first annexation petition failed the contiguity requirement. She also said Town Administrator Dawn Collins had not properly notified El Paso County and Douglas County of the proposed annexation.

John Sweeney said the town would not be able to provide fire and police service to the property. He said he believed the perimeter of the land to be annexed was 3.6 miles and that would extend the town’s boundary beyond the three-mile limit.

Paul Olivier said he had served on the town’s Board of Trustees and on its Planning Commission and served as mayor for two years. He recalled the town had considered annexing the property in the late 1980s but the annexation did not proceed because of concerns about dividing Palmer Divide Road between Douglas and El Paso Counties and because of anti-growth sentiment.

Jeremy Ferrante said more than the two statutes cited needed to be considered and asked that the board hear everyone who wanted to comment. He argued passing trains could prevent Palmer Lake Police and Fire Departments from responding to emergencies at the property to be annexed.

Developer Matt Dunston spoke in support of the annexation. He said Palmer Divide Road is not a platted right of way, so the requirement to annex the entire width did not apply.

Builder Kurt Ehrhardt said the property would be developed “in a very dense use” whether by Buc-ee’s or by someone else.

Alexandria Olivier said Buc-ee’s signs did not comply with the town’s sign code.

Matt Beverly said the town had not provided an annexation impact report.

Roy Martinez said the project documents prepared by Vertex Consulting misrepresented the water infrastructure that the project would require.

Kim Reer said the town had to consider whether property owners near the property to be annexed would use services provided by the town.

Hank Cotton said an out-of-date three-mile plan that does not include the United Congregational Church disconnect invalidated the annexation petition.

Robin Reich said the annexation would impinge on Palmer Lake’s small-town feel and would open the board to lawsuits.

Bill Normile said the town would not be able to respond to mass casualty events quickly if a train were blocking Palmer Divide Road.

Dustin Bender said we are living in biblical times and objected to the role money is playing in the decision to annex.

Ian Griffith argued the annexation petition was not valid because it was signed by Maria Larsen and not by a limited liability corporation. He denied the legitimacy of flagpole annexations.

Kristy Beverly said the presence of prescriptive easements on Palmer Divide Road and elsewhere in the land to be annexed prevented the contiguity requirement from being met by the first four annexation petitions.

Beth Harris said the annexation contradicted the town’s master plan.

In her responses to residents, Ruiz said she would limit herself to issues directly related to statutes. She said all of Palmer Divide Road did not need to be included in the annexation because it was not a platted right of way. She said Vertex Consulting would like to work with Douglas County to annex the entire width of Palmer Divide Road. She explained that the annexations contiguity was through a right of way that was not affected by the disconnection of the United Congregational Church property from the town. Ruiz said the town had in fact submitted the required annexation impact report.

Krob gave his opinion on points made by residents. He said that although there were more statutes that applied to the entire annexation process, only the two cited by Ruiz applied to the annexation eligibility question. The memo he wrote arguing the entire width of Palmer Divide road had to be included in the annexation was wrong, he said, for the reason given by Ruiz. He cited a court case, Town of Erie v. Town of Frederick, which ruled that a comprehensive plan could meet the requirement for a three-mile plan. He pointed out that the three-mile plan had to be updated before the final decision on annexation, not when eligibility was being decided.

After Krob’s remarks, Stern closed the hearing.

Following the hearing, the board considered Resolution 60-2024, which decides the eligibility of the annexation.

Trustee Shana Ball asked the board to set aside emotions and look at the facts. Trustee Nick Ehrhardt asked the board if its questions had been answered; Trustees Kevin Dreher and Stern said they had been. Regarding the issue of contiguity, Krob said the disconnection of the church property did not include the roadway, and the roadway could be used to establish contiguity. Ruiz confirmed that was her understanding. Ball said she wanted to continue with the annexation process to get a full understanding of all the pertinent information from the studies that have been authorized; doing less than that would create a liability for the town, she said.

After the discussion, the board voted on the resolution. Ball, Dreher, Erhardt, and Stern voted in favor of the resolution; Trustee Samantha Padgett voted no.

Above: At its regular Board of Trustees meeting on Dec. 12, the Town of Palmer Lake held a hearing on the annexation eligibility of the property on the southwest corner of I-25 and County Line which is slated for a Buc-ee’s travel center. To manage the crowd size inside the Town Hall, the board limited seating and had people outside listen on external speakers and sign in to speak. The Palmer Lake Police Department provided staffing. Print and TV press members were allowed inside, and the remaining seats were available to the public until they were filled. Palmer Lake Mayor Pro Tem Dennis Stern chaired the meeting in the absence of Mayor Glant Havenar, who was on vacation. Stern opened the public hearing and allowed Nina Ruiz of Vertex Consulting Services to present how the project met the eligibility requirements. He then invited three speakers at a time, reminding them to stick to the eligibility issues. Ruiz responded, and the board voted 4 to 1 that the project met the annexation eligibility criteria. Photos by Jackie Burhans.
Above: Proposed Buc-ee’s Travel Center location – courtesy Buc-ee’s

New board members sworn in

Collins administered the oath of office to three newly elected board members: Tim Caves, Amy Hutson, and Atis Jurka. The new members replace Ehrhardt, Farr, and Padgett.

Above: Newly elected board members Atis Jurka, Amy Hutson, and Tim Caves are sworn in by town administrator Dawn Collins at the Dec. 12 Palmer Lake Board of Trustees meeting. Each of the new board members will serve a four-year term and began their terms by passing the town’s 2025 budget. From left are Jurka, Hutson, Caves, and Collins. Photo by Jackie Burhans.

Collins presented certificates of appreciation to outgoing board members Erhardt, Farr, and Padgett.

Above: Palmer Lake Town Clerk Dawn Collins recognized outgoing board members Nick Ehrhart, Sam Padgett, and Jessica Farr with certificates at the Dec. 12 board meeting. All three had terms that ended at the meeting, which saw new board members sworn in. Farr was unable to attend, having given birth that morning. From left are Ehrhardt, Padgett, and Mayor Pro-Tem Dennis Stern. Photo by Jackie Burhans.

2025 budget adopted

The first vote taken by the new board was to pass Ordinance 19-2024, which adopts the budget for 2025 and appropriates the necessary funds. Collins noted that the new board members had attended the budget workshop and reviewed the budget before their terms began. The board voted unanimously for the ordinance.

The board also passed Resolution 61-2024, which certifies the town’s mill levies.

New chief of police introduced

Collins announced that Glen Smith (pictured below) had accepted the position of chief of police. Smith has 30 years of police experience, Collins said, adding he had recently moved from Florida to Colorado.

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The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Jan. 9, 2025. Meetings are held at the Town Hall. 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.

Other Palmer Lake Board of Trustees articles