The Black Hawk City Council approved a lease for the convenience store on Black Hawk Blvd. during a regular meeting on August 25, 2021, at 211 Church Street. The Council started the meeting with an executive session to instruct negotiators regarding City-owned land on Artisans Point and Gregory Street Plaza and leases of other Cityowned property,

After the executive session and later in the meeting, Finance Director Lance Hillis introduced a resolution approving the commercial lease with Feeney Farms, Inc., for the property at 7320 Black Hawk Blvd., Suite 1A, located near the Post Office on Highway 119.

In 2016, the Gilpin County Education Foundation entered into a lease with the city for the Convenience Store. The Foundation’s intentions included fundraising and providing Gilpin School District students a hands-on business management experience.

According to background, after five years, the Foundation decided the store had not met these goals. Feeney Farms, Inc., is under contract to purchase the business from the Foundation. This commercial lease will allow Feeney Farms to operate the Convenience Store at its current location for an initial five-year term, with two one-year options. “Most of the other details are similar to the current lease.”

City Attorney Corey Hoffmann said the new owners contemplate dividing the property into two stores, with one half a convenience store and the other half a liquor store. The Council approved the resolution.

The Council discussed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Boulder Mountainbike Alliance and Black Hawk. The Mountainbike Alliance requested an MOU to govern how BMA and the City will work together to design, construct, and maintain multi-use non-motorized trails managed by the City.

The MOU lays the groundwork for a successful relationship between BMA and the City. City Manager Stephen Cole said that at a previous meeting the Board approved an MOU with Mountainbike Alliance in Gilpin County to work with trail building on Maryland Mountain. This would be the same agreement with Boulder.

Mayor David Spellman said the primary concern is the mountain bike trails, and Cole said they will have control over that. Spellman said they are primarily looking at downhill mountain bike trails, and they would like to see three or four trails.

Alderman Hal Midcap asked if they would be exclusively for mountain bikes, and Hoffmann said, only if the City approves. The Council approved the resolution.

For the first and only public hearing, the Council approved an intergovernmental agreement and an easement agreement for sanitary sewer facilities with the Black Hawk-Central City Sanitation District regarding the Gregory Street Sub-Main Segments. Hoffmann said the Sanitation District proposed this. After improvements to the Gregory Street Plaza, this agreement defines how the two parties will share the maintenance of the lines.

Christmas will come to Black Hawk again in 2021. Public Works Director Tom Isbester introduced a professional services agreement for holiday decorations with Alpine Artisan Studios for an amount not to exceed $166,527. The work will include installing the same program as last year as well as specifically providing for the acquisition of a new carousel animal to replace the broken reindeer at the gazebo, a new sleigh for Mountain Life Park, and completion of the garland on the St. Charles Parking Garage.

Additional new products for the season include providing garlands and bows on the new lamp posts on Gregory Plaza consistent with those in the rest of the City. “The agreement will include the annual cleaning and refurbishment of the existing décor upon tear down so it will be stored in a cleaned condition,” according to staff. The Council approved the agreement.

Hillis introduced financing options to fund capital improvements and land acquisitions. If approved, D.A. Davidson will be assisting the City with negotiating the terms and structure of tax-exempt financing. They will also act as the underwriter and will coordinate the steps necessary to close the transaction.

Hillis said the City has worked with D.A. Davidson before, who had the most competitive bid. Hoffmann said this starts the process. They will send out a request for bids with a September deadline in order to have the process wrapped up by October.

The next Black Hawk Council meeting will be at 211 Church Street in Black Hawk, on Wednesday, September 8, 2021, at 3 p.m. For more information go to https://site. cityofblackhawk.org/.