Patrice LeBlanc, Central City. The Central City council meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m. on August 18, 2020. In attendance were Mayor Jeremy Fey, Mayor Pro-Tem Judy Laratta, Alderman Jeff Aiken, Alderman Jackie Johnson and Alderman Jack Hidahl.

A presentation was given by Jim Hinkle of Hinkle and Company, LLC for an audit they did in April of this year for 2019 financial statements. The audit found no material weaknesses or discrepancies with the City’s accounting. Although the City lost money in the last months due to the economic impact from Covid-19, long-term budgets remain sound with reserves to compensate for any items over budget. Council voted 5-0 to approve the results of the audit.

Community Development Director, Ray Rears, reported on Ordinance No. 20-11 amending the City of Central Land Development Code – Fees-in-Lieu program which establishes a parking bank to facilitate new development with the Land Development Code. Parking is a major hurdle for expansion of new business or events in Central City. The code currently requires parking to be provided by on-site or through an off-site lease agreement. An alternative method was modified where a fee would be paid to the City which could fund a parking garage or structure. A study was conducted to determine the parking needs and number of parking spaces available. Based on the study, a fee structure was devised for incoming businesses based on their need for parking if it was more than 25 spaces.  Alderman Aiken inquired if this applied to new businesses setting up at the Scarlett building, which is owned by the City. Alderman Hidahl commented there was no differentiation between residential and business parking. Rears explained the fees would only be implemented if the new business required more than 25 parking spaces and there are currently no residential parking areas around Main Street. Council approved the first reading 5-0. 

Resolution No. 20-28 extends the City’s local emergency declaration through September 2, 2020. City staff recommended to extend the current emergency declaration to continue to respond to ongoing health emergencies. The Resolution was passed 5-0.

City Manager, Daniel Miera reported in staff updates about a letter he received from the Gilpin Sheriff’s Office pertaining to an accident on Central City Parkway on August 12, 2020. The letter praised the response from the Central City Fire Department and described their level of service as professional and exceptional. 

In Council Comments, Alderman Hidahl talked about the US West boxes that were left in town. He would like to see a requirement for businesses to remove the items they were no longer using and not clutter up the streets. He also expressed concern on the new cell phone tower that is planned to go up and reports he read of health risks for 5G functions. 

Mayor Fey thanked everyone for the coming to the Trails Master Plan event and mentioned and encouraged residents to fill out the survey on the City website. Fey congratulated Black Hawk on their trail head opening. He also spoke about a recent tour he had at the Bates Hunter mine and hoped there would be public tours offered in the future. A letter was sent to the County Commissioners about the Variance mandating alcohol sales cease at 10 p.m. due to Covid-19 restrictions. Health official, Dr. Johnson, is trying to set up a meeting with the State to determine if the casinos need to follow the order. 

The meeting was adjourned at 8:55 p.m. The next virtual City Council meeting will be held on September 1, 2020, 7 p.m. A link to the meeting can be found on the City’s web site. 

(Originally published in the August 27, 2020, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)