Pam North, Nederland

The Nederland Board of Trustees (BOT) met Tuesday evening, December 17. Members present were Mayor Joe Gierlach; Trustees Chris Perret, Ledge Long, Randy Lee, Annette Croughwell, and Peter Fiori; Mayor pro tem Kevin Mueller was absent. Also in attendance were Town Administrator Alisha Reis, Town Treasurer Eva Forberger, Town Clerk Michele Martin, and Public Works Director Jason Morrison.

The December 17 Accounts Payable, Schedules A and B; and the Dec. 3 Regular Meeting Minutes were approved as part of the Consent Agenda. The Board also approved the renewal of the Community Center and Police Department leases; Resolution 2013-20, Approving the 2014 Holiday Schedule; Resolution 2013-21, Approving the 3014 Town Noticing Posting Locations; and Resolution 2013-22, Repealing Resolution 2013-06 to provide loan funding to the Backdoor Theater for digital equipment. Additionally, Resolution 2013-23 for the 2013 Supplemental Budget was approved.

A presentation on the Mayor’s Task Force on Housing and Human Services, Housing Element, was given by Atashnaa Medicine Shield Werner, who reported that public housing has not been built in Nederland in more than 25 years. The Nederland Mayor's Housing Task Force has partnered with Boulder County Department of Housing & Human Services to design and build mountain-appropriate public housing for Peak-to-Peak low-income elders, families with children, and individuals, in order to bring the number of county housing units in Nederland to an appropriate level for the region's current and future needs. Support from the Town of Nederland is needed to address these housing needs.

Earlier this year, Boulder County Department of Housing (BCH), along with the Nederland Mayors housing Task Force, toured the existing public housing sites in Nederland. It was evident to BCH that the existing public housing available in Nederland is inadequate, and does not address the needs and standards of today. BCH is committed to ensuring a successful partnership with the Town of Nederland to improve the quantity, and quality of public housing in Nederland now and for generations to come.

The application for funding will be due in June; however, BCH will need to move forward in the next couple of months. The continued support of the Board of Trustees is being sought for this vital effort to provide public housing for the Town's elders and families, to prevent disenfranchisement because of changing economic circumstances.

Xcel Energy presentation

A short presentation was given by Xcel Energy representatives Craig Eicher, Dave Clark, and Rodney Hunter, focusing on recent power outage issues and followed by a question & answer opportunity, which brought heavy censure by local residents concerned about the quality of service provided by the company, particularly in recent months.

Numerous power outages, many of which have occurred during exceptionally low temperatures, have caused problems for residents and business owners. Eicher, area manager for Xcel, said “Nederland matters,” and apologized for the frequent outages. He explained that Xcel is not satisfied with their performance, is working to improve reliability, and that senior management is aware of the problems.

He pointed out several attributing causes to power outages: nature (wind, lightning, fire, floods, animals, trees); accidents; mechanical failures; incidents during construction and operations. He said there were two primary circuits serving Ned, one of which is used by Eldora Ski Resort in the winter for its snowmaking, and that the challenging environment often makes locating problems more difficult. Hunter cited the 21 outages so far this year as “insane” and “unacceptable.”

There was a long lineup of local people who were frustrated by the uneven quality of Xcel's service and who were ready to say so in detail. Their complaints encompassed a wide scope: health threats for elderly and disabled people sensitive to cold and/or whose lives depend upon upon electrically-powered medical equipment; interruptions to business functionality, resulting in lost revenue; extreme inconvenience; failure of Xcel to provide, maintain, and invest in adequate infrastructure to ensure dependable service; no rebates on service cost; rude customer service from company representatives when handling complaints; damaged appliances and equipment caused by power outages; no water availability without power; and demands that the Town should drop the contract with Xcel and switch to United Power or other utility company.

Suggestions were voiced of eventually switching to solar and alternative forms of energy and working toward Envision 2020 goals. The representatives handling the complaints apologized for the outages, promised better service in the future, and that they would convey the complaints to higher-level executives in the company for action. Contact telephone numbers were made available for members of the public to call: Customer Care (600) 895-4999; Craig Eicher (303) 245-2254; Dave Clark (303) 245-2305.

BOT members and attending public generally were dissatisfied that nothing could be solved at the meeting, but the Xcel representatives expressed a desire to return at a future date (possibly as soon as January 7) to continue trying to solve the problems, and BOT members also have vowed to look into finding a solution.

BOT goals

Town Administrator Alisha Reis gave a BOT Goals Update, commenting that very good progress had been made this year in meeting an ambitious list of goals that had been undertaken. The scope of goals includes: streets and trails; water, wastewater, and storm water issues; resident safety and well-being; sustainability; recreation and culture.

Reis also gave an update on the progress of the police chief search, saying that several finalists had been chosen from about 40 candidates. The position is appointed by the Board of Trustees, and supervised by the Town Administrator.

The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m.

The next regular meeting of the Nederland Board of Trustees will be on Tuesday, January 7, 2014, at 7:00 pm at the Community Center.