Council summer recess is scheduled from June 29 through July 21. The next meeting will be July 25.
During the week of July 1, commissioners will:
• Hold a public hearing and make a decision July 2 at 1 p.m. on a special use review submitted by the City of Boulder for subsurface coal fire mitigation at the Marshall Number 3 coal mine and for redevelopment of the Marshall Mesa trailhead (1842 S. Foothills Highway). According to the state, five acres will be excavated in the area, down 30 feet to the coal seam, as crews remove smoldering coal and blend it with soil. State mitigation work is expected to take four months to complete, starting this fall. The trailhead will be closed for a year due to mitigation work and trailhead renovations, according to the city. The last state assessment in 2018 found 38 coal mine fires in Colorado, including “low activity” at the Marshall coal mine.
Boulder County offices will be closed July 4 and 5.
Lafayette City Council
On June 24, council:
• Received an update on Phase II of exploring a Downtown Development Authority (DDA) to oversee the development of Lafayette as the town’s Urban Renewal Authority expires. This phase includes finalizing the boundaries and financial projections for the sales and property tax that will fund the DDA.
Staff will recommend whether or not to move forward with the initiative at a July 22 city council workshop. Council will take a preliminary vote Aug. 6 on whether to put the measure on the November ballot.
• Learned about the city’s financial performance for 2023. Overall, staff reported slower growth in sales and use tax compared to the previous year. Sales tax, which makes up 55% of the city’s budget, grew less than half a percent, down from a 9.1% growth in 2022. Use tax decreased by 17%, to $4.3 million, mostly due to taxes from construction activity continuing a multi-year decline.
The city’s total expenditures in 2023 were $61.4 million. Revenue is projected to stay flat into 2024 and 2025 amid high interest rates and inflation.
All agendas are subject to change. Karen Norback contributed to this reporting.
