Maror Wendell Koontz and Town Clerk Marlene Searle
Hotchkiss Public Works Building Will Not be Sold for Now
Sign Code Passes First Reading
By Thomas Wills (Member of the Hotchkiss Town Council and planning commission)
Hotchkiss Town Council
October 9, 2014
Present: Mayor Wendell Koontz, Mayor pro-tem – Carrie Wingfield, Dustyn Foster, Lindee Cantrell, Jim Roberts, Tom Wills and Larry Jakubiak. Staff: Town Clerk – Marlene Searle, PW Director – Mike Owens, Town Engineer – Joanne Fagan and Town Attorney – Bo Nerlin.
State House District 61 candidate, Debra Irvine, and husband Robert, attended the October Hotchkiss Council meeting at the invitation of Mayor Koontz. Mrs. Irvine noted the friendly, light tone of the board.
“You all seem to get along,” she said.
The Irvines stayed for the whole meeting and seemed to enjoy it.
Public Works Building Sale Deferred for Now
The Town will not be building a new shop for now. Tim Gonzales of Back Country Goods had approached the Town about the possibility, seeing the property as a possible new location for his business. The Town’s long term plan includes eventually building a new shop and selling the Bridge Street site to allow for more tax paying business frontage.
Public Works Director, Mike Owens, reported that after some preliminary research, building a new 7,500 square foot shop at the old Town sewer pond property would run in the neighborhood of $550,000. Mayor, Wendell Koontz, and the trustees agreed that the cost would make it impractical for now. The current shop would probably bring less than $200,000 in the current market. Trustee, Tom Wills, said that perhaps the Town should wait until the real estate market recovers more before considering selling the Oak and Bridge Street location and building a new, larger shop. Even would-be buyer Gonzales agreed that the difference between the current shop property value and that of constructing a new shop was too large.
New and Transferred Liquor Licenses Approved – Restaurant Reopens
The Council held a public hearing on, and approved, a new hotel and restaurant liquor license for Tucker’s Pizza Pub and Arcade at 221 East Bridge Street, AKA the old West Elk Inn. The owner is Tucker Ray LLC, consisting of three member/owners Jennifer Bennett of Hotchkiss, and Mark Bennett and Christina Fitzpatrick of Crawford. According to the application, Jennifer Bennett is the majority owner/operator and Fitzpatrick will be the manager. Fitzpatrick and Mark Bennett operated the location previously as the West Elk Inn before an unsuccessful attempt to lease the business resulted in its closing.
Fitzpatrick said that the resuscitated business will be aiming at being family friendly, with a separate kid’s area, arcade games and perhaps a dance once a month. (The business opened on Saturday October 11.)
The Council held a public hearing on, and approved the transfer of the liquor license from, the North Fork Valley Restaurant at 140 West Bridge Street, to the new ownership of Juan Mendoza of Hotchkiss. The new business name is Pat’s Bar and Grill. Patricia Medina is the business’s manager.
Medina announced that most things in the operation of the business would remain the same, but the restaurant would begin opening for breakfast as of Monday, October 13.
Neighborhood Watch Formally Approved – Board Members Appointed
The Board of Trustees unanimously approved a resolution officially establishing the Hotchkiss Neighborhood Watch as an official Town ad-hoc board. HNW will work under the supervision of the Hotchkiss Marshal’s department to educate and build community awareness in an effort to reduce and discourage petty crime in the town, while building stronger community cohesiveness.
HNW’s initial board of directors include: Chair- McKenzie Cowan, Secretary/Treasurer – Tom Wills, Wes Jacobs, Lindee Cantrell (ex-officio Trustee member), Sean Cantrell, Kim Shay, and Amy Foster. According to the resolution the board may have up to 11 members
The HNW board will meet on the second Monday of each month at 6 p.m., at the Hotchkiss Town Hall. The meetings are public and the agenda will be posted at Town Hall as well as online on Facebook at “Hotchkiss Neighborhood Watch.”
Hotchkiss Sign Code First Reading
After many years of discussion, being suggested as an action by the Hotchkiss Community Master Plan, and some two years of work by the Hotchkiss Planning Commission, a first reading of the final draft of the Hotchkiss Sign Code was presented. Trustee and planning commission secretary, Tom Wills, said that the current ordinance was the ninth draft and had previously been redlined and corrected by the Town attorney. One final change from the previous meeting was to allow flashing and moving signs if they do not pose a significant distraction to drivers. All current signs are grandfathered in as they exist.
The main purpose of the code is to preclude oversized billboard signs within the town, preclude too-bright signs that are a hazard to traffic, as well as irritating to nearby residences, protect existing business signs from being blocked by new signs, and to limit signage in residential neighborhoods.
Trustee, Larry Jakubiak, noted that he had talked to people who thought that the Town was getting too “big city” with their regulations. Over the past decade the Town has adopted (and revised) a Master Plan and then has been steadily implementing it with: zoning, building codes, basic land development regulations, a sidewalks and trails plan, and sidewalks ordinance, and is now on the verge of adopting sign codes. The Planning Commission is currently working on updating the subdivision regulations, which were adopted in the mid-1990s.
Other actions and discussion:
Liquor license renewals were approved for the Creamery Arts Center and for the Hotchkiss City Market.
The second, and possibly final, reading of the ordinance that would regulate the private growing of marijuana within the town was delayed until the November 13 meeting.
New Delta County Economic Development director, Trish Thibodo, introduced herself. She reported that one of the central issues being pursued by DCED was the bringing of higher speed broadband internet service to Delta County. The council agreed that this was needed. Mayor Koontz mentioned the need for senior housing. Thibodo said that such projects usually began with a donation of land.
A work session for discussion of the 2015 Town budget was set for November 19 at 6 p.m.
Town engineer, Joanne Fagan, reported that the camera survey of the Town’s older sewer lines was continuing and the financing was coming together in a combination of grants and low interest loans.
The Trustees approve the Town sending a letter to the BLM in support of the local coal mines and the Arch Coal expansion.
Tags: Colorado, Hotchkiss, Hotchkiss Town Council, Tom Wills, Wendell Koontz
