The town of Ignacio Board of Trustees, which previously had voted “no” on marijuana sales in town limits, voted Tuesday to put the issue on the municipal election ballot for April 5.
Town officials estimate a $10 tax on each sale transaction could raise $300,000 annually for the town.
If approved by voters, the ballot issue would allow sales of retail and medical marijuana. It is the only item on the April ballot.
The board voted to put the issue on the ballot with a 5-0 vote with no discussion, and no one commented about the issue during the public comment period at the beginning of the meeting.
Town trustees also received a presentation about possible plans to develop 5.7 acres the town owns on the northern edge of Ignacio’s town limits, known as Rock Creek.
SEH, an engineering and planning consulting firm in Durango, presented three options for possible development on the site.
A virtual public meeting Oct. 1 began with a housing study that recommended the town add to and diversify its housing stock. Participants in the meeting preferred a mix of single-family homes, duplexes, townhomes and apartment units, said Nancy Dosdall, a senior planner with the firm.
She presented the trustees with three development options, ranging in price from $20 million to $24 million for development and construction.
The more apartments that are added to the mix reduces the cost, Dosdall said. A single-family home on the site could cost an estimated $257,000, while an apartment could cost $140,000.
Community members attending the meeting said they want park space, walking trails, outdoor gathering areas, solar energy options and other family-friendly amenities in the development.
The town wants to take the presentation to developers in the area to start working on a partnership to develop the site, said Interim Town Manager Mark Garcia.
“We hope to use this plan in the future to move this forward,” he said.
In another effort to increase growth in Ignacio, the town heard a presentation about improving broadband in the community from NEO Connect, a fiber and internet consulting firm in Basalt.
Consultant Diane Kruse recommended the town partner with other entities to try to bring more high-speed fiber internet service to town, including Tri-State Generation and Transmission, La Plata Electric Association, La Plata County, Southwest Colorado Council of Governments, Colorado Department of Transportation, FastTrack Communications and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.
In separate votes at the end of the evening, town board members approved an increase in town sewer rates at a minimum of $6 per month, depending on usage.
Ignacio pays the tribe to treat its sewage, and the town’s sewer fund hasn’t covered that cost for two years, requiring fund transfers from the town’s general fund.
The increase in rates is needed to cover the treatment costs, Garcia said. The increase also passed on a 5-0 vote.
The possibility of marijuana sales in Ignacio came up in a discussion of zoning changes in the town’s Land Use Code update, which includes townwide rezoning of property. One resident, Chris May, spoke in opposition to the change, which he said will decrease the value of his business property on Browning Avenue.
Another resident, Lana Jo Chapin, said the rezoning protects residential neighborhoods and represents years of work by the Ignacio Planning Commission.
Clark Craig, a former member of the planning commission, said he and other commissioners worked on the rezoning issue and land-use code for three years, which involved “a lot of effort,” and he thanked everyone for their work on the code.
Trustees unanimously approved the code and rezoning.
Finally, the board approved a $250 donation to Liam Moore, a fourth grade student at Ignacio Elementary School, to help him attend Space Camp this summer in Huntsville, Alabama. A group of students throughout the Four Corners is raising money for the upcoming trip.
