MEEKER | The Meeker Board of Trustees voted 5-1 on July 21 to direct town staff to draft an encroachment agreement and revocable license that could allow adjoining property owners to use the planned Robert Street-Sanderson Drive emergency connector for private access. Trustee Charles Day opposed the motion.
The decision followed a lengthy public hearing and executive session for legal advice on right-of-way matters. The board returned to open session around 10 p.m.
The requests were submitted by Justin and Rebecca Grant and Kay and Doug Weeldreyer, who own property adjoining the planned route. Some of the land was also included in a 2023 re-subdivision application submitted by Grant and Lee Overton involving undeveloped lots between Sage Hills and Sanderson Hills.
The proposed agreements are expected to include conditions intended to protect the affected properties, the public and safety interests. An encroachment agreement would address the physical connection between the private properties and the town right-of-way, while a revocable license would allow the town to grant access while retaining the ability to withdraw that permission.
The primary purpose of the proposed connector is to provide a second route into and out of Sage Hills, which currently has only one primary access point and has been identified as particularly vulnerable during wildfires and other emergencies.
The town budgeted approximately $215,000 for a 20- to 24-foot-wide gravel emergency route with gates near Robert Street and Sanderson Drive. The route would be built within a public right-of-way shown on the original subdivision plat, although a full street was never constructed.
Town Attorney Melody Massih explained that the original developer dedicated the right-of-way to the town but remained responsible for building the street. The developer’s failure to construct it did not eliminate the town’s ownership of the corridor, she said, but it also did not obligate the town to build a full public road.
Mayor Travis Day said the town can afford the limited emergency connector but not a primary public street, which would require additional traffic studies, engineering, drainage work and construction to town standards. Opening the route to unrestricted daily traffic could also expose the town to additional liability, he said.
Day said a permanent street could remain a future goal if grant funding or a public-private partnership becomes available.
Grant argued that the issue extended beyond his immediate access request, citing the road’s original platting, public safety, the town’s growth goals and potential future subdivision development.
He asked trustees to leave the route ungated and treat it as a public street rather than an emergency-only connector, saying gates could delay residents trying to evacuate.
Grant also questioned whether access granted through an agreement would continue if the property were sold. He said he was not asking the town to fund improvements on his property and would pay the costs associated with establishing his own access.
Several neighboring landowners took the opposite view. Written comments questioned whether allowing routine private access would provide a private benefit from a publicly funded project or shift maintenance, drainage, snow removal and liability costs to the town or nearby residents.
Residents also raised concerns about mud, speeding, off-highway vehicle traffic and whether granting access could create a precedent for other undeveloped properties.
Trustee Charles Day said the town needed to remain consistent with how it had handled the similar property-access disputes. The project’s immediate purpose was public safety and emergency evacuation, he said, and allowing adjoining owners to use the route would turn it from emergency access into restricted private access.
Day supported installing gates and limiting access during the first phase to emergency responders, utility providers and town personnel.
In other business, auditor Marlo Coates presented the town’s 2025 audit, reporting a clean opinion with no major issues. The town’s governmental activities increased net position by just over $417,000 during the year, while the water fund increased by approximately $1.6 million.
Trustees also approved a conditional-use permit for Tevin Pelloni to operate a small metal fabrication business at 440 Garfield St.
Trustees approved the use of town parks as backup locations for Rio Blanco County Fair activities if the fairgrounds became unavailable because of wildfire operations.