NEDERLAND - The Nederland Board of Trustees (BOT) met on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, to discuss the motivations behind the Town’s recent push toward alignment of all of its advisory boards and commissions. 

Standards framework

Town Manager Jonathan Cain introduced to the BOT draft Ordinance 879, which aims to repeal and replace Article XI of Chapter 2 of Nederland Municipal Code (NMC) with a “single framework” of standards for all boards to follow and be regulated under, to ensure alignment with the Town’s priorities. 

Article XI of Chapter 2 pertains to the creation, purpose, and membership parameters of the Planning Commission. The replacement language provides the specific parameters to be followed by the Planning Commission, Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB), and Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Advisory Board (PROSAB), as well as the all-encompassing framework desired by the Town.   

The draft adds language stating the BOT’s authority to create boards, commissions, and committees for the purpose of focused study and advisement to Trustees and Town staff for further action in their related fields.  

Membership qualifications, expectations, and terms for removal are detailed in the draft and are to be followed by all created and existing boards. 

Section 2-274 of the replacement language maps out the organizational structure that each board is expected to follow, which includes adherence to Colorado Open Meetings Law, stipulates BOT approval for all bylaws and rules of procedure, ensures placement of a Town staff liaison on every board, and requires an annual work plan to be submitted to Trustees for review. 

The terms in the new draft affecting the operational structure of the Planning Commission are nearly verbatim with the original, with the language being made more clear and better organized. In terms of the established SAB and PROSAB, the added language formally codifies how those groups were already operating, while also specifying their deference to the BOT.

Section 2-275 C states that PROSAB’s purpose is “to perform such other functions associated with trails, parks, open spaces, and other recreation areas as BOT may direct,” and that the BOT has the “authority on the priority of and allocation of Town funds to proposed park, open space, trail or recreation projects and plans.” 

Section 2-276 C defines SAB’s purpose as to advise the BOT “on policy matters relating to energy and water conservation, renewable energy, waste reduction, and public education and outreach,” as well as on “improvements to Town codes, operations, and facilities,” and on updates to the Town’s action plans in relation to matters of sustainability.

Additionally, the SAB is expected to encourage public participation, and is given the responsibility to advocate on the behalf of the Town on sustainability matters at a state and federal level.  

Cain detailed to the BOT how the changes to NMC Chapter 2, Article XI, will provide strategic alignment with the recommendations for action laid out in the Town’s many planning documents, including the Comprehensive Plan, Downtown Subarea Plan, and Multimodal Transportation Plan. 

According to the Agenda Information Memorandum (AIM), prepared by Cain, the changes will allow for: “direct connection to the community’s voice; accountability and transparency; informed, timely decisions; better use of expertise; and consistency for all.” 

The Nederland Downtown Development Authority (NDDA) is another Town board, though it operates separately from Nederland’s governmental and advisory boards due to its use of Tax Increment Financing to fund its mission.

Despite its distinction, the NDDA recently underwent a six-month process to update its bylaws and draft a Memorandum of Understanding in order to align with the Town’s priorities, mostly in relation to projects affecting downtown infrastructure. 

Trustee Tierney Maris asked about the differences in the language used to describe the purpose of each board, noting that the language is fundamentally different. Maris questioned whether uniformity in the language would benefit the overall goal of alignment.

Cain answered that the language used represents the nature of each board’s work, but agreed that unification and clarification may be necessary. Tierney also suggested that the BOT hear feedback from SAB, PROSAB, and the Planning Commission regarding Ordinance 879. 

Trustees were generally in favor of the ordinance, though they suggested to Town staff to gather feedback from the affected boards and commissions, particularly regarding matters of defining each board’s purpose and setting term limits and other stipulations. 

Capstone Project

Nederland’s Sustainability Coordinator Cass Grady led the Board in a discussion on the prospect of the Town, in coordination with the SAB, applying for the University of Colorado’s Masters of the Environment (MENV) Capstone Project program for the chance to have graduate students develop a resilience-based project similar to the Resilience Action Plan being developed for the Town of Erie. 

The SAB’s previous reliance on the capstone project program back in 2018 resulted in the creation of an implementation strategy report and a renewable energy progress tracking tool to help with the Town’s established goal of reaching 100% renewable energy by 2025. 

With that goal line having been recently moved up to 2030, and with the SAB working with Xcel Energy’s Partners In Energy program in the creation of an updated Energy Action Plan for 2026, the Town expects that additional assistance from the MENV program will ensure success in reaching 100% renewable energy. 

If the Board were to approve applying to the MENV program, a proposal for a resiliency-based project will be brought to Trustees by September 19, 2025; proposals to the MENV program are due on September 26. A networking event with CU Boulder students would then commence in November, with a final determination to be made by the MENV team in December.

If the Town’s project is selected, the first meeting between the BOT, SAB, and the MENV team will take place in late February, 2026, with the final deliverables to be due by December, 2026. 

The Board was unanimously in favor of the Town applying for the MENV Capstone Project program, though no action was taken as a formal proposal had yet to be drafted. Grady stated that the SAB will meet before the end of the month and will provide a draft proposal to Trustees on September 2, 2025. 

Procurement Policy update

Town Manager Cain led the BOT in a discussion on the proposal to update the Town of Nederland’s Procurement Policy in order to comply with Colorado’s Digital Accessibility Law and federal procurement standards in order to successfully pass audits and remain eligible for federal funding for projects like the Big Springs Egress Project. 

The proposed update would increase the Town Manager’s purchasing authority to $50,000; Cain stated that the adjustment was necessary in order to align with “inflationary trends.”

Record-keeping requirements for the Town’s purchases were made stronger in the updated policy, as were the rules surrounding the use of quotes, bids, and sole-source purchases.

Modern processes were encouraged to be used in procuring bids and vendor registration; and “emergencies” were more clearly defined for the justification of emergency purchasing. 

An “emergency purchase” is defined in the draft policy as a “purchase for which the Town may suffer financial or operational loss, unless the goods and/or services are procured in the shortest amount of time possible. Emergency Purchases are intended to prevent or minimize further losses to the Town, or are intended to prevent or minimize the impacts on public health, safety, or welfare.”

Town Attorney Jennifer Madsen offered her professional opinion, stating that the updated Procurement Policy met municipal standards; Madsen also added that, if approved, the change to the Town Manager’s purchasing authority would require an amendment to NMC.

Trustee Luke Miller inquired about typos within the draft where the purchasing authority was left at $10,000, when they should have been changed to $50,000; all instances of the typos were recognized and will be corrected by Attorney Madsen. 

Affordable housing

The Board was also tasked with voting on Ordinance 878, which involves amending Ordinance 856 to redefine terms in Section 16 of NMC relating to affordable housing development, and to set a 30-year minimum for deed restrictions on affordable properties.

The Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of Ordinance 878 on July 23, 2025.

Definition of the term "housing development" was added to Section 16-322 and language was added to Section 16-323 to clarify that “all dwelling units within the proposed development must be designated as affordable housing and subject to the required deed restrictions in order to qualify for an affordable housing development variance.”

Changing the minimum required years for deed restrictions on affordable properties came as a request from Mayor Billy Giblin and Trustee Tania Corvalan, as they felt that the 20-year minimum originally stated in Ordinance 856 was insufficient.

Giblin questioned why a 40-year minimum, or “in-perpetuity,” were not considered as options, with Cain answering that 30 years was currently all the Town had the capacity to offer to developers. 

The Board voted to approve Ordinance 878, amending Ordinance 856 and Chapter 16 of NMC. 

The Nederland Board of Trustees meets on the first and third Tuesday of every month. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at 7 p.m. and can be attended either online or in person at the Nederland Community Center. 

For more information go to: https://townofnederland.colorado.gov/board-of-trustees.