WATER
“We’ve got demands that are unsustainable to the east of us on the Front Range; we’ve got demands that are unsustainable to the west of us,” said Zane Kessler, Director of Government Relations at the Colorado River District (CRD) to RBC Commissioners this week. Kessler attended a work session Tuesday with Rio Blanco Conservancy District Director Alden Vanden Brink to broadly discuss the future of the Colorado River, the Wolf Creek Reservoir, compact negotiations and more.
Kessler emphasized the impact of Colorado voters passing a recent ballot initiative (7A) which doubled CRD’s mill levy from one quarter to one half mills. The increased money helped fund at least $3 million of water projects in the 15 counties CRD represents, including $330K to the Rio Blanco Conservancy District.
Vanden Brink said the funds will go directly towards the permitting process for the proposed Wolf Creek Reservoir on top of at least $4 million from the county’s Civic Improvement Trust Fund (CCITF), and additional contributions from the Town of Rangely and the Conservancy District. The district currently estimates it will spend about $1.8 million per year on the process.
Vanden Brink also updated the board on a feasibility analysis to expand domestic water infrastructure in the Rangely area. The district received a $50K grant from Colorado’s Finance and Housing Authority which will pay for an environmental assessment and final drawings/engineering work. “We’re tired of seeing people do without,” he said, adding, “it’s time for us to get these basic amenities to people here.” Expansions would require new water lines that would tap into the Town of Rangely’s supply, which according to Vanden Brink “has the capacity and the system to do it.”
SURVEY/PLANNING
RBC Surveyor/Planner Leif Joy gave an update on a year’s worth of completed and currently active or upcoming projects that fall under surveying, planning, GIS and floodplains. Active projects include a land use regulation amendment, the sheriff’s office RMS/CAD software upgrade, gravel pit survey flights to calculate volume, and various others, including a “County Road Maps” project. Road and Bridge Director Scott Marsh chimed in the project, stating, “I think as a county we’ve got to establish what is a county road, why it’s a county road.”
He noted that the process is necessary for future planning purposes. RBC Commissioner Jeff Rector added “We need to figure out which roads are beneficial.”
Joy’s department, of which he is the sole employee, is also working on “updating land use plan maps” with White River Conservancy District Director Callie Hendrickson and Natural Resources/Emergency Manager Eddie Smercina.
He noted that he does a lot for one person, but it’s all made possible thanks to a collaborative effort with the assessor’s office, road and bridge, IT and other department employees. The board gave special Kudos to Joy for his hard work, dedication and technical abilities, especially drone piloting.
PUBLIC INFO
Public Information and Program Manager Carly Thomson got confirmation about where future board meeting notices should be posted. To date notices have been hung at the post office, but Thompson said someone has been taking them down. In the future the county plans to create a special sign to hold meeting notices outside the county courthouse. In the meantime notices could be posted on the courthouse doors, or you can find them at:
• https://rbc.us/AgendaCenter/Work-Sessions-5 (work sessions)
• https://rbc.us/129/Agendas-Minutes (regular meetings)
In Rangely, hard copy notices will continue to be posted on the windows at the annex building.
Regular meeting agendas are also published in the HT at no charge to the county.
regular meeting
The board approved several items under regular business:
• Federal reimbursement requests for pavement maintenance projects on the Meeker Airport ($39,955.96) and Rangely Airport ($36,945.81),
• Liquor license for Meeker Skijor on February 19 from 4 p.m. to 12:00 a.m.
• Settlement agreement with Utah Gas Corp regarding 2020, 2021, 2022 personal property valuations
Referring to the Settlement, Rector said “Neither one of us thought it was exactly right, so I guess that makes it a good settlement.”
Commissioners also approved an agreement amendment with Colorado DHS for the use and benefit of substance abuse and mental health treatment in the Rio Blanco County Jail. Paralegal Vicky Edwards noted the agreement is to close out a prior grant, which will not continue in the future as inmates are no longer being housed in Rio Blanco County.
They also approved 25 year lease agreements for hangar owners in both Meeker and Rangely. Since the county does not own the hangars, it charges for the land hangars sit on at 17 cents per square foot.
A new agreement with county attorney Don Steerman also lays out specifics for attorney costs moving forward. Steerman said it “should allow the county to have a specific budget and reduce the county attorney’s fees overall.”
The agreement includes “general work” plus 10 hours of litigation per month. Additional work will be charged at a discounted rate of $200 per hour.
Commissioners will not meet again until January 11, 2022.
By LUCAS TURNER | [email protected]om
