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La Plata County, Durango city officials make pitch for water treatment, mill levy

Conference focuses on upcoming ballot items

At a Tuesday conference hosted by the Chamber of Commerce, La Plata County and Durango city representatives pushed the positives of the property tax mill levy and wastewater-treatment plant funding that will appear on their respective ballots this year.

Also on Tuesday, La Plata County Clerk Tiffany Parker began the process of mailing 32,900 ballots to registered voters in La Plata County for the Nov. 3 election.

The proposed county property tax increase, which would not exceed 2.4 mills and would expire after 10 years, has been a controversial topic. The figure is supported by the commission, and it was based on a recommendation from the county’s Long-Term Finance Committee, which examined the matter over the course of several months.

County Fiscal Sustainability Committee member Steve Parker said a mill levy increase is the committee’s best recommendation, as opposed to a sales tax increase, road-impact fees or use tax. That said, the county commission intends to continue exploring sources of alternative revenue for roads and bridges, which would benefit most should voters approve the tax hike.

“We are at the end of the road,” Parker said at Tuesday’s forum at the DoubleTree Hotel. “When you ride a thin-tired bike on the county roads, you can see they’re starting to get weak.” If residents vote down the increase, Parker said, the cost down the road will only grow.

If the ballot measure passes, up to 83 percent of road and bridge needs will be funded. Using a resident who owns a $350,000 home as an example, the property owner would contribute $78 more in property taxes annually that would be dedicated strictly to road and bridge infrastructure and maintenance. That translates to 3.1 mills for that funding pool if the increase passes, compared with the 0.7 mills the road and bridge fund currently receives from that same taxpayer.

Commissioners Brad Blake and Julie Westendorff pointed to the nearly $15 million shortfall in revenue from 2010 to 2014 as a result of a tanking natural gas industry. The increase, they said, could be adjusted to a figure lower than 2.4 mills over the next 10 years, depending on the health of the economy.

Wastewater-treatment plant

When city voters hit the polls this fall to consider funding sewage-treatment renovations, Durango officials said they should know they’ve been given the most cost-effective option.

The ballot measure asks voters to approve up to $68 million in debt for improvements to the existing wastewater-treatment plant in Santa Rita Park. This proposal is much cheaper than building a brand new plant, which would cost around $78 million on the lower end, and in the $90 million range for one of the more expensive proposed sites, City Manager Ron LeBlanc said.

Renovations would include construction that matches surrounding landscape and odor mitigation.

The ballot item is not asking for a tax increase or rate increase. Officials said the remodel is necessary, regardless of the vote’s outcome. If the ballot question is voted down, and the city has to ante up cash, the average monthly sewer rate in 2018 is projected at about $158, as opposed to $56 if voters opt for a bond.

Transport costs are what renders a new plant unfeasible, Mayor Dean Brookie said.

“One hundred years of infrastructure all goes to Santa Rita,” he said. Transporting existing waste would take $20 million not built into the budget. When growth calls for it, Brookie said, the city can talk about a new facility. In the meantime, “this is the rational discussion.”

jpace@durangoherald.com

Mail-in ballots

La Plata County Clerk Tiffany Parker accepted delivery of 32,900 ballots at the Durango Post Office on Tuesday afternoon. Ballots will go out Tuesday through Oct. 26, which is the deadline for online or mail-in registration. However, there is no cutoff to register. After Oct. 26, residents planning to cast their votes can still register at the clerk’s office or one of the voter service centers. One is stationed at Bayfield Town Hall. Starting Oct. 30, another voter center will be established at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Avenue.

Jul 4, 2016
La Plata County Commissioners to vote on mill levy ballot item


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