By Jackie Burhans and James Howald
At its February meeting, the Monument Sanitation District (MSD) board heard an operational report from District Manager Mark Parker that included details about the upcoming election which will fill two seats on the MSD board. It also heard updates on repairs needed at the district’s headquarters.
Two board seats to be filled in May election
In response to a question from resident Laura Kronick, Parker explained that two board seats would be on the ballot on May 6. The election will be held at the MSD community room at 130 Second St. in Monument between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. The directors elected will serve four-year terms.
Kronick asked why some incumbent directors had been elected to three-year terms. Parker said the state Legislature had decided to move special district elections to odd years, keeping state elections on even years. Three-year terms facilitated this change, he said. He explained board President Dan Hamilton and Directors Tony Archer and Janet Lewandowski were elected in May 2023 for four-year terms. Directors John Howe and Skip Morgan were elected in 2022 to three-year terms. Parker said two self-nomination forms for the two available seats had been requested.
Parker said directors were limited to two consecutive terms unless voters decide to remove that limitation.
Headquarters gets repairs
Parker told the board that the Town of Monument’s smart water meters had indicated the MSD headquarters had a water leak resulting in 12,000 gallons of lost water for which the district had to pay. A plumber rebuilt the toilets and traced the leak to a dish soap dispenser at the Black Forest Foods Café and Deli, one of the tenants in the building. Parker said he would use the EyeOnWater application provided by the Town of Monument to do a weekly check on water usage at the headquarters building.
A cracked heat exchanger in the HVAC unit serving the conference room led to the replacement of the entire furnace, at a cost of $5,354. The furnace was more than 20 years old, Parker said. An expansion tank on the hot water system had also failed, and Parker elected to do the repair himself.
Parker said the recently applied $2 fee for a paper monthly statement had encouraged many of the district’s customers to switch to paying their bill online: 737 of the district’s 1,708 accounts are now being paid online.
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Monument Sanitation District meetings are held at 9 a.m. on the third Wednesday of the month in the district conference room at 130 Second St., Monument. The next regular meeting is scheduled for March 19. See https://MonumentSanitationDistrict.org. For a district service map, see https://MonumentSanitationDistrict.org/district-map. Information: 719-481-4886.
Jackie Burhans can be reached at jackieburhans@ocn.me. James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.
Other Monument Sanitation District articles
- Monument Sanitation District, Oct. 15 – Draft of 2026 budget reviewed (10/30/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, Sept. 17 – Beacon Lite Road due for upgrades (10/2/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, Aug. 20 – Parker explains Buc-ee’s wastewater estimate (9/4/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, July 16 – Buc-ee’s potential impact studied (8/1/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, June 18 Raspberry Point sewage spill resolved (7/3/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, May 21 – Manhole overflow threatens Monument Lake (6/7/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, April 16 – District plans for Buc-ee’s impact (5/3/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, Mar. 19 –Upcoming election canceled (4/5/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, Jan. 15 – Board passes administrative resolution (2/1/2025)
- Monument Sanitation District, Dec. 18 – Four properties added to service area (1/4/2025)