Montrose, CO — City Councilors met for their regular meeting Tuesday evening, May 3, to appoint a new member to the Planning Commission, approve a new hotel and restaurant liquor license for a local restaurant, and consider a number of resolutions and ordinances.
Councilors Barbara Bynum, Dave Frank, Doug Glaspell, David Reed, and Ed Ulibarri met in City Council Chambers along with city staff.
The following is a summary of the primary topics discussed during the meeting.
Watch the meeting here.
Note: Before Tuesday’s meeting began, Chief of Police Blaine Hall welcomed two new officers to the department’s ranks. Officers Bridgette Clarkson and David Copeland were officially sworn in as Montrose Police Officers before family, friends, City Council members, and city staff.
FIRST RESPONDERS MONTH PROCLAMATION
Mayor Dave Frank, along with Mayor Pro Tem Barbara Bynum, read a proclamation declaring that May 2022 is First Responders Month in the City of Montrose.
PUBLIC COMMENT
No members of the public offered comments.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the April 18 special City Council meeting and the April 19 regular meeting.
The city’s archive of past meeting minutes can be found on the new Public Meetings Portal and at CityofMontrose.org/ArchiveCenter.
PLANNING COMMISSION APPOINTMENT
City Councilors voted unanimously to appoint Planning Commission Alternate Steven Ball as a regular member of the City of Montrose Planning Commission.
NEW HOTEL AND REStAURANT LIQUOR LICENSE APPLICATION
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve a new hotel and restaurant liquor license at 1343 Mayfly Drive for Trattoria Di Sofia, LLC, for consumption on the licensed premises.
The council held a public hearing before voting to approve the license application.
RESOLUTION 2022-09
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Resolution 2022-09 authorizing the assignment of a private activity bond allocation of the City of Montrose to the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority, pursuant to the Colorado Private Activity Bond Ceiling Allocation Act
Ross Valdez, the community engagement specialist for the City of Montrose, said the City of Montrose has assigned our allocation of Private Activity Bonds (PAB) to the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) for the past four years and CHFA, in turn, puts the PAB to use in our community.
The IRS allocates an annual per-capita bonding authority for housing to each state, also known as PAB Volume Capacity or “Cap”. Colorado, in turn, allocates this authority to statewide authorities and local governments. In 2021 the allocation for the City of Montrose was $1,091,612. In 2022, the allocation for the City of Montrose is $1,125,667.
The City of Montrose has not desired to issue bonds directly, as there is risk and administrative burden in doing so. Allocating the PAB directly to CHFA allows the community to benefit from the PAB allocation without the city directly issuing bonds. In 2020, CHFA worked with the city to use its
PAB allocation to support Steele Properties, LLC’s rehabilitation of San Juan Apartments, which serves senior (62+ years old) Section 8 and residents with disabilities. In 2021, CHFA funded 20 loans in their single-family, tax-exempt program, First Step, for a total of $5.3 million in the City of Montrose. The median loan amount was $270,755 and the median gross annual income was $73,770.
City staff recommended that the council vote to assign the city's PAB allocation to CHFA again this year and requested that CHFA use the PAB if there is the opportunity to support first-time homeownership investment, a multifamily affordable housing project, and/or CHFA’s homeownership program known as FirstStep.
RESOLUTION 2022-10
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Resolution 2022-10 setting June 7, 2022, as the hearing date for the 6700 DeJulio Addition annexation.
Ann Morgenthaler, deputy city manager, said the proposed 6700 Road DeJulio Addition is approximately 9.54 acres in size. The property is comprised of one parcel located north of Sunnyside Road, south of Miami Road, west of 6720 Road, and east of Laurel Lane and the Columbine East subdivision. It is within the city’s Urban Growth Boundary, the City of Montrose Water Service Area, and the City of Montrose Sewer Service Area. Annexation of this property will allow for future residential development and the dedication of the 6700 Road Extension right-of-way. City Council reviewed and approved an annexation agreement associated with this application at April 19, 2022, City Council meeting. The annexation agreement set the framework for the details of the annexation but did not approve the annexation application.
- Proposed Zoning: R-1A, Large Estate District
- Applicant: Paul and Ben DeJulio, Owners
ORDINANCE 2589 - FIRST READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2589 on first reading, amending Title 4, Chapter 4, Section 24, of the City of Montrose Municipal Code regarding Planned Development (PD) regulations to clarify the process, consent, and public notice requirements for applications to amend an existing planned development.
Deputy City Manager Ann Morgenthaler said the City of Montrose Municipal Code and past practice have allowed amendments to previously approved PD plans in a manner that is consistent with Colorado State Statutes, requiring the consent of all property owners within the prior-established PD area. In many cases, PD plan areas have not been fully developed since the time of approval, and developer, market, and community needs and desires have changed. Obtaining the consent of all property owners within an established PD plan area for a proposed amendment is infeasible and is a barrier to implementing development that will better suit developer, market, and community needs.
The proposed amendment specifies:
- If only a portion of a PD plan area is amended, then only the consent of the property owners within such portion of the PD plan area will be required.
- When public notice of an amendment to a PD plan area is required, it will be sent to all owners within the prior-approved PD plan area in addition to being provided to property owners within 100 feet of the proposed amended PD plan area.
- The current city requirement that the creation of a new PD plan area requires the consent of all property owners within the proposed PD plan area.
The code amendment will provide more flexibility regarding required consent than what is provided by state statute for PDs, which is within the city’s rights as a Home Rule Municipality. Other municipalities have adopted similar regulations with respect to amendments of PD plans. City staff worked with outside land use legal counsel on this amendment.
BEAR CREEK SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 7 FINAL PLAT
City Councilors voted to approve the Bear Creek Subdivision Filing No. 7 Final Plat.
The Bear Creek Subdivision Filing No. 7 Final Plat creates 32 new single-family residential lots. The property is approximately 61.13 acres in size, with 4.34 acres dedicated to residential lots, 2.27 acres to right-of-way, 1.16 acres of open space, and an outlot consisting of the remaining 53.36 acres. The final plat is bordered on the east by Five Mile Creek Ave and serves as an extension of Excelsior Creek Ave within the Bear Creek Subdivision. The property is zoned “R-5” Low Density/Manufactured Housing District. The intent is to construct residential, single-family housing on these lots, which is a use-by-right in this zoning district. The preliminary plat was approved in September 2021. Newly created lots will be as follows:
- Block 14, Lots 1 to 13, Excelsior Creek Ave (13 lots)
- Block 15, Lots 14 to 26, Excelsior Creek Ave and Five Mile Creek Ave (13 lots)
- Block 16, Lots 1 to 2, Excelsior Creek Ave (1 lots total)
- Block 17, Lots 1, 2, 15, and 16, Excelsior Creek Ave and Five Mile Creek Ave (4 lots)
- Total Size of Property: 61.13 acres
- Applicant: Matt Miles, Bear Creek Land & Development, LLC
STAFF REPORTS
Montrose Police Chief Blaine Hall said the Police Department recently completed its Latin X citizens police academy. Hall said the academy had 21 participants who learned about Police Department policy and topics ranging from mental health to bullying in school.
Hall said the new Public Safety Complex construction is nearing completion and plans are being made to conduct community tours of the new building.
YOUTH CITY COUNCIL REPORT
Youth City Councilor Grace Hotsenpiller said the Youth Council recently picked up trash along Miami Road and is working with the Star Drive-In to host a youth night.
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All City Council meetings are recorded and made available online via the city’s website and cable channels 191 for Charter subscribers and 970 for Elevate subscribers. Replays of council meetings are also broadcast at 6 p.m. on the same channels on days that the council is not in session.
In addition, each regular meeting is archived on the City of Montrose’s YouTube channel.
Residents can watch all regular City Council meetings and work sessions live or on-demand through the city’s Public Meetings Portal.
For more city news visit CityOfMontrose.org.