Bayfield Mayor Ashleigh Tarkington said it was “always iffy” to ask voters for a tax increase, and proved herself right Tuesday after the town’s voters rejected a bid to increase sales tax by one penny.
La Plata County Clerk and Recorder Tiffany Lee called the results of Ballot Question 2A after the second release of ballots showed the question had been defeated Tuesday evening.
Tarkington said she was “not surprised” at the result, citing poor timing and a short timeline on which the town tried to educate voters about the question.
Of the 851 voters who weighed in on the matter, 59% rejected the question and 41% supported it.
The town has 1,938 active voters, of which 43% weighed in on question 2A. Across La Plata County, nearly 43% of active voters cast a ballot.
Bayfield’s leaders had hoped to use the revenue from the tax – an estimated $600,000 in the first year – to fund and upgrade the town’s parks facilities. The increase would have gone into effect Jan. 1, 2024, and sunset in 2043.
Given the rejection of the question, sales tax in Bayfield will remain at 7.9%, including state and county taxes. By comparison, the city of Durango has a total sales tax rate of 8.4%.
The question was informed by a 2018 planning process that revealed an interest among the town’s residents to invest more heavily in parks and recreation.
“It’s unfortunate we couldn’t spend a little more time with the educational component,” Tarkington said. “… It is what it is, we will move on. It may delay our park progress.”
Although residents had a strong interest in more development of Bayfield’s parks, Tarkington was matter-of-fact about it: “At the end of the day, we have to fund it,” she said.
The proposal was worded such that the town could have kept all revenues generated by the increase, although the money would have had to be spent in strict accordance with this breakdown:
- 40% on expanding Joe Stephenson Park and amenities, developing a park south of Schiller Street and creating recreational access to the Los Pinos.
- 40% on maintaining parks and trails.
- 5% on supporting equestrian and livestock arena improvements.
- 15% on assisting with the cost of cultural and community events, enhancing senior services at the Pine River Senior Center, and supplementing the cost of youth and adult recreation.
Tarkington said Bayfield trustees will nonetheless adopt a budget and work toward building up its public recreation infrastructure, although the short-term outlook could be bleak. To compensate for the lack of additional funding, she said the town could have to cut some sports programs or raise entry fees.
“We have to pay for it somehow,” she said.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
