City Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening. This is the Cortez City Council regular meeting. Today is Tuesday, March 24th, 2026, and the time is 7:30 p.m. I'd like to call this meeting to order and ask you to join us in the pledge of allegiance. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Can we have the roll call? Keith Offer here. Dehaven Spurl Dri here. Randall here. Lewis here. Medina

here. Um, Council Member De Haven and Mayor Prom, uh, Dennis Sproul are not with us tonight, but we still have a quorum. Uh, do we have approval of the agenda as presented or any changes that need to be made? Madame Mayor, I move that that council approve the agenda as presented for March 24th, 2026. Second. Motion made by Lewis and seconded by Dobrey. Keoffer, yes. Randall, yes. Lewis, yes. Door, yes. Medina, yes.

All right, we're moving on to number two on our agenda, the consent agenda. The listing under the consent agenda is a group of items to be acted on with a single motion and vote. This agenda is designed to expedite the handling of limited routine matters by city council. Either the public or council member may request that an item may be removed from the consent agenda at the time prior to council's vote. I'll ask if a citizen or council member wishes to have any specific item removed from the consent agenda for discussion. A. Approval of the minutes for the city council meetings on March 10th, 2026. B. Approval of the expenditure list for March 24th, 2026. C. Approval of a renewal application for a hotel and restaurant liquor license for Shiloh, Inc. DBA Shiloh Steakhouse located at 5 South Beach Street, Cortez. D. Approval of a renewal application for a hotel and restaurant liquor license for the Wigland Pig LLC. DBA, the Wiggling Pig, located at 76 South Beach Street, Cortez. E. Approval of a renewal application for fermented malt beverage and wine liquor license for Esmeralda's Ranchito Mexican store located at 251 East Main Street, Cortez. F. approval of a special event permit to allow the Monizuma Cortez Softball Association to host an event on April 4th, 2026 from 5:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. at 209 West Main Street, Cortez. G. Approval of a special event permit to allow the Cortez Area Chamber of Commerce to host a business after hours event on April 9th, 2026 from 5 to 7:00 p.m. at 209 West Main Street, Cortez. H. approval of a special event permit to allow the Southwest Colorado Cycling Association to host a special event on April 10th, 2026 from 6 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at 10 1:30 West Main Street, Cortez. And I, approval of a special event permit to allow the Cortez Celtic Fair to host a special event in Parka on June 27th,

2026 from 7:00 a.m. to 7 p.m. Would anyone like an item to be removed for discussion or do we have approval as is? Madame Mayor, I move council approve the consent agenda as presented. Second. Motion made by Door and seconded by Lewis. Randall, Lewis, yes. Keith Offer, yes. Door, yes. Medina,

yes. All right, we're moving on to number three on our agenda. Public participation. Individuals may not comment on items that are on the council agenda during public participation time. There's no limit to the number of speakers, although public comment in this section will be held to an overall time limit of 30 minutes. And speakers themselves have a time limit of three minutes per person, may only speak once, and may not see time to another commenter. All right, I'd like to invite James McKinley. Hi friends, the new council coming in and making itself the herculean leader we have been dying for is our last best chance to dig ourselves out of many decades of decaying deep in a bubble. We are dying for healthy, sustainable, desirable business to provide sustainable funding for the city to rebuild itself and to move forward. Maybe like Montro has achieved these last 10 years while we've been withering. It's not going to fall from a tree. Powerful leadership will be required. What leader is accountable to this city that this city is thriving three years from now. It seems that we are intentionally structured so that no one is accountable. The mayor, no, by charter, the mayor is unaccountable for anything significant. Not a city council of seven that works together six hours a month. Not the city manager. The city manager reports to the city council that works together six hours a month. At least the Titanic had one captain. When our revenue flowed out of the ground as fossil fuels, water for agriculture, and flowed in with affluent tourists, big deal. Those days are gone. If the new council comes in and works

business as usual, Cortez is done. If many, many, many serious citizens don't come together alongside them and roll up their sleeves, we're done. New council, step up and lead us. Please reinvent yourselves. Go beyond. James, 111 South Elm Street, Master Jesus Base Camp.

Thank you, James. Uh, do we have anyone else in the audience who'd like to provide public comment? Okay, seeing none, we'll end the public participation section and move on to number four on our agenda, presentations. Uh, we have none tonight, so we'll move on to number five on our agenda, public hearings. 5A is ordinance number 1361 series 2026 where council will consider a second reading on this ordinance adopting the 2025 Colorado wildfire resiliency code presented by Jason Armstrong our interimm director of community and economic development city planning

evening madame mayor councel um yes this evening we uh are bringing forward a second reading ordinance 1361 1 series 2026, an ordinance adopting the 2025 col wildfire resiliency code. I'll be your main presenter this evening. Oh, you can see the notes. That's not what I wanted. Um, sorry about that. Let's just do it this way. There we go. Great. Okay, beautiful. Okay, so um for the benefit of the community and for council, um we put together a brief presentation in hopes that I'll answer some common questions that we receive um from the community. Uh tonight I'll be assisted by our chief building official uh Sean Canada. Um if there's any real specific questions about implementation of the code. So one of the main questions we get is why is there a wildfire resilency code? So according to the legislation uh Colorado wildfire risk has continued to increase over the years and more communities are at risk of wildfires. Uh Colorado wildfires have grown in intensity and frequency and devastation since the year 2000. And a combined approach of structure hardening and reducing fire risk and defensible space uh surrounding structures is necessary to reduce the risk of damage to Colorado communities from the effects of wildfires. This risk includes loss of life, homes, businesses, and other structures and the loss of jobs and

economic vitality. Um, so up here there's a list of the top five uh most destructive fires um in the last 15 years. Um, I'll note that the Marshall fire, which is number one, was a grass fire that was fueled by high winds. Um, went uh went from a grass fire to a dangerous suburban wildfire in just a matter of hours, forcing sudden evacuations. since the Marshall fire killed two people and destroyed more than a thousand homes and businesses in Louisville, Superior and unincorporated Boulder County. So, a little bit of an overview and background on this. Uh during the 2023 legislative session, the Colorado General Assembly adopted Senate Bill 231 166. The bill established the wildfire resiliency code board and required the code board to adopt model codes requiring government bodies with jurisdictions in an area within the wildland urban interface to adopt codes that meet or exceed the standards set forth in model codes. Uh in 2025 uh the wildfire residency code itself version 1.0 was effective July 1st. uh is a new comprehensive set of regulations designed to enhance life safety and property protection in Colorado's wildland urban interface, also known as the WOOI. Its core purpose is to mitigate risks associated with wildfires, specifically by preventing fire from spreading into structures and preventing structure fires from spreading to wildland fuels. The code is designed with a tiered approach meaning requirements will vary based on the level of wildfire hazard present in a specific area and it supplements existing building and fire codes. So once the WOOI code is adopted by the city, the local code official in this case uh the chief building official is

responsible for interpreting and enforcing the code as part of the building permit review and inspection process. So where does this apply? Um so the WOOI areas uh are on the map that you can see here. Um the code applies to areas where human development meets or intermingles with wildland or vi or or vegetative fuels. It introduces two class of structure hardening class one and class two based on fire intensity classifications low, moderate and high outlining specific requirements for building materials, defensible space and site features. The code also establishes an administrative framework for enforcement, permits, inspections, and an appeals process for governing bodies. So, class one applies to areas that are yellow, generally in the southern uh side of the city. Class two applies to everything in orange that surrounds the rest of the city. Um governing bodies can either adopt the state map or develop a local map. Um the state map is uh developed to identify fire hazard throughout Colorado is a formed it was informed by data modeling that identifies slope fuel types and 40 years of critical fire weather. And uh if anybody is interested uh you can scan the uh the QR code here and it'll take you to the state map. So what does this really mean for residents? Um you'll see here is a general list of the types of building materials and landscaping requirements for each class. Uh once adopted by Cortez, the WOI regulations will apply to the construction and alteration of structures and defensible space within designated fire hazard areas.

Uh we'll talk about defensibility for a second here. So um there are three uh defensible zones. Um they are called the structure ignition zones. And the goal of zone one is designed to reduce or eliminate ember ignition and direct flame contact with the structure decks, stairs, and attachments. Examples include using non-combustible landscaping material and fencing. Structure ignition zone 2's goal is designed to is designed to give an approaching fire less fuel, which will help reduce its intensity as it gets nearer to the structures. Examples include mowing grass to 4 in or less, removing enough trees to create at least 10 feet of space between the crowns or pruning tree branches to a height of 6 to 10 feet from the ground. And then the last zone, zone three. This zone focuses on mitigation that keeps fire on the ground. Examples include spacing of tree crowns. So, for those that are interested in more detailed information on these zones, um I'd invite you to visit the home ignition zone guide at the Colorado State Forestry Services website. So, let's talk about the scope of this. Um, so here you can see what the code generally does and does not apply to in terms of new construction and alterations to existing structures. Um, I'll just say that our department understands this new code may be challenging for the community uh to understand and implement. Um, we are working on creating a page on the city's website that will provide updates and technical assistance documents. And then um this is just a little bit of

information. If people wanted to go and review the code in its entirety, you can locate it at the Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code Board website. Um a little bit about the timelines for code enforcement. So as you know, the adoption of this code is the first step. Um, as the planning and building department formalizes a process for permitting and code enforcement actions to commence July 1st, 2026, additional public engagement will be completed with developers, construction professionals, trade organizations, and material suppliers. Staff intens anticipates the need for future public education post enforcement in anticipation that questions will arise throughout the implementation of the code. So with that, um staff recommends that city council adopt on second reading ordinance 1361 series 2026. Um with that uh I'll take questions, comments and uh we'll bring Sean in. Um, I wanted to thank staff for adding in the ordinance the information about how this is an unfunded mandate from the state and that we will be tracking our costs and um, and then we'll be able to decide in the future whether this will continue or not. But um, thank you

Sean. Can you speak to what the impact would be on your team? Is it just a little bit of training? Is it more time at each site? Is it

uh just one Sean, just for the recording, could we get you to use a microphone, please? There you go, buddy.

The state actually designed this on 115 acre hexagons. So, if you look at zoom in on the map where it overlaps boundaries of the city, all of that portion is actually not technically going to be affected. Most of that is already built up. What we're looking at is the periphery of the town. Very few lots actually exist in that. Um I think the main thing is going to be on any new structure. We're going to have to go do a site visit, kind of evaluate it with Cortez Fire Protection District and see if that's going to actually apply to that particular structure that's being built. I don't think that there's going to be a lot extra to it. We are It is going to take a little bit more time. We're trying to work with Cortez Fire Protection District as uh more of our eyes and ears. They would like to get out and actually patrol the city a little bit more. They can make us aware of a property that is in violation or needs some work and then we will take care of the code enforcement and go and speak to the owners.

Can you lean on wildfire adapted partnership at all or are they more for county big subdivision? We can. The state has actually presented several avenues that will be available. Right now they have hired two people to do public outreach for the entire state and they've said you know they will help with the public outreach help with that. That's about as far as it's gone. If we are not able to enforce or uh keep this as prescribed, we can turn to the uh division of fire prevention and control which would kind of be a last resort. Okay.

Mr. Mr. Armstrong, can you tell me once this becomes into effect on April 1st, um is it all home all builders permits that come in after April 1? Is that when or is it how homes that have not that are in the process of being constructed right now and are going to be receive final approvement approvable after that? Are they going to be affected or how does this work?

Yeah. Um once the code is adopted um we have that space of time where we need to uh determine enforcement mechanisms. So we're going to take that time between April 1st and July 1st to put that into place and then we'll start enforcement and that's per legislation. Um your question about building permits, it will impact those uh permits for properties that are in the um in the zones around the city that it applies to, but it doesn't apply to infill development.

I think my question was specifically for bu for homes that are p are being built right now that are in those zones. Uh, do they have to? No, we can't re we don't retroactively apply new codes. Yeah, of course. Okay. Uh, any other questions before I open up for public comment? Okay. Um, since this is a public hearing, we'll open this up for public comment. Anyone from the audience like make a comment on this topic? All right. Seeing none, we'll close the public hearing portion.

Um, I did have one other recommendation. I I do think that it's important because this only applies to part of the city. I think it is important that we continue to have one flat building building code or building permit price rather than rather than an additional fee or permit for those areas. Um, if I may, this doesn't change permit costs whatsoever. It doesn't matter. Permits are only based for new structures on the total square footage. So, if you take a thousand square foot house, you can put gold-plated fixtures inside of it. It doesn't change the permit price. So, this will not affect any of the permit costs.

Yeah. And I I understand that. I just want to make sure that we don't in the future try to look at this as a separate permit that you need a building permit and a WOOI permit if you fall into that. I want to make sure that that we're we already know that we have affordability issues with building in our community. And I I think that we need to be tracking our costs on on administering this and then reporting that to the state to say you guys need to be helping to pay for this. This is this is an unfunded mandate. This is something that the state would have been much better conceived as a program that included grants to local communities and and even to potentially to homeowners to to help support that. So, I I I do think that we need to do what we can to try and hold costs down for for our homeowners in all of the city, not just the areas that this applies to.

We agree. Thank you. I guess if that's all the questions, madame mayor, I move that the city council approve on second reading ordinance number 1361 series 2026 an ordinance adopting the Colorado wildfire resiliency code and amending the city uh the Cortez city code as set forth in the ordinance. Second motion made by Kee offer and seconded by Lewis

Randall. Yes. Do yes. Lewis. Yes. Ke offer. Yes. Medina. Yes. All right. We're moving on on our agenda. Number six on our agenda is unfinished business. We have none. Uh so we'll move on to number seven on our agenda. New business. 7A is a consideration of approval and acceptance of the bid for the 2026 concrete cost share project presented by Casey Simpson, our interimm director of public works.

Good evening, madame mayor and councel. Um, a little bit of background. The city of Cortez provides a yearly sidewalk cost share program to assist residents and business owners in either the installation of new sidewalks or the replacement of deteriorated sidewalks on their properties. This program encourages and promotes the improvement of our public walkways by offering a 50% cost share agreement with local residents and businesses. Additionally, the city employs this project for the upkeep of other sidewalks as well as for ADA compliant ramps, curbs, gutters, curbs, and gutters. This year's initiative encompass the encompasses the installation of approximately 680 square yards of concrete sidewalk, 505 linear feet of curb and gutter and 190 square yards of 88 curb ramps along with various other concrete work throughout the city. And then included below um there's the pure per yard and linear foot comparisons between 2025 and 26. You can see that there's some variation. And it's a little bit higher this year for the square yards on sidewalk reconstruction repair and sidewalk new, but it's a little bit less this year for curbon gutter repair and curbon gutter new. Um, we put this out to bid on bidet. We had a 1,02 contacts with 23 bid document downloads. The bid opening was held on March 11th, 2026. only one bid was submitted. Um that bid was submitted by Candeleria Construction with a bid price of $268,513. Um I would say the the great news is that that comes in under our engineers estimate which is awesome. Um, and being that there was one bid and being that it was below the engineer's estimate, the staff recommends that the

2026 cost concrete cost share project be awarded to Candelary Construction, Inc. at its bid price of $268,513, which is approximately 6% lower than the engineers estimate and $26,487 under budget. I can answer questions as well. I have a question. Sure.

On your chart that includes the 2025 and the 2026 prices, you've got the sidewalk RNR and the the renewal and then the sidewalk new and curbon gutter and curbon gutter new. There's a big discrepancy in those numbers and I was wondering if you could walk us through that, how that worked. increase of $60 per square yard in the sidewalk new and a decrease in of $9 and a decrease of $13 in the curb and gutter. So I just out of curiosity, can you

um I don't I don't know of any market reasons as far as concrete suppliers that would have caused those variations. Um, I know last year we had more than one bid and we went with a lowcost estimate and um, so I I know I can infer why last year's base price for the the sidewalks was less. Um, that being said, I'm not quite sure curb gutter tends to be a little bit more work. I'm not quite sure it ends up being cheap why it ended up being cheaper in this bid. Um, that would take a pretty careful breakdown of or and conversations with the two contractors that put forth those bids and why they think that those two things cost more or less year-toear. And um, I haven't had those conversations with those contractors as to why. So, I can't I'm sorry I can't really answer why. It seems odd to me, too, that I would think that the curb and gutter would be more, but it just isn't. So, it's good news, but I don't know why. I appreciate you including the the cost estimate. I think that helps just to know like kind of what your budget was and then to see the bid bids or bid that comes in how it compares.

Yeah. And our engineers were expecting a greater increase in cost due to economic factors that we haven't seen yet. So that's encouraging. Yeah,

it it's uh kind of discouraging to see 23 downloads and and then only one submitted, but as you stated, it's lower than uh what you have budgeted. So, if there are no further questions, um I move to accept and award the bid for the 2026 concrete cost share project to Candelary Construction Incorporated at its bid price of $268,513 and to authorize the city manager to negotiate and sign a contract and related documents with the company on behalf of the city. Motion made by Lewis and seconded by Randall. Do yes. Randall,

yes. Lewis, yes. Keoffer, yes. Medina, yes. All right, we're going to move on to 7B on our agenda. The consideration of acceptance and award of a bid for the 2026 service center roof replacement project. Will council will consider awarding the 2026 service center roof replacement project to PRQ Topline LLC DBA topline installers and authorizing the mayor to negotiate and sign a contract on all related documents with the company on behalf of the city. Presented by Casey Simpson, our interm director of public works.

Yeah. Um a little background here. Um it uh I'd like to point out something at the beginning. It says the public works department is seeking a qualified roofing contractor to overlay and I think overlay is the key word because this highlights um at least in my experience a proactive approach to taking preventative action rather than having a roof failure. Um an overlay is also cheaper than a full roof roof replacement. And so I also want to just clarify that I mistakenly put roof replacement project in the title and it's really an overlay which means the existing roof will stay in place which offers a cost savings to the city and I think a great example of preventative maintenance. Um to further read the background um the overlay is on will go over the aging and deteriorated roof membrane located on the administrative portion of the service center. The ad admin portion is separated from the shop and the shop just has a different uh roof construction. It's metal. Um the existing roof does have many patches, a lot of wear and tear. The HVAC project we did in 24 that stretched into 25 yielded a lot of scratches and tears and um damage to the roof with the installation of those HVAC units. Um, it should be said that if the roof condition is not addressed soon, the membrane could become saturated in areas of weakened integrity such as the corroded roof coping or existing patchwork. It's also worth noting that the existing membrane has exceeded its intended service life and it remains a suitable candidate for overlay rather than full removal removal and replacement. Um, the primary objective of this project is to prevent future water intrusion and restore the integrity of the roofing system. the overlay of the existing roof should provide a durable long-lasting solution. I believe the the warranty on these um projects is 20 years. Um so a

long-lasting solution that improves drainage and performance. Uh we put out a RFP to experience roofing companies for services related to the overlay. The RFP was prepared and advertised in the Cortez journal on the website and on bidnet. There was 680 contacts, 72 downloads, and we did end up with quite a few firms responding. Um, nine firms responded. Um, money for this project is was budgeted in the general services capital outlay in the amount of 165,000. And um although topline or PRQ topline LLC was not the lowest cost proposed submitted um the firm scored highest in overall score based on the evaluation criteria established in the RFP and the qualifications element. Um so we we uh reviewed nine proposals all firms appeared qualified um but based on the scoring matrix we selected PRQ topline. Um, it's recommendation of the selection committee that PRQ topline LLC DBA topline installers be awarded the 2020 and I can answer any questions you might have. Thank you for your thorough propo thorough explanation. I don't think we have a lot of questions. um the the matrix, the scoring matrix, and being able to see that we're both under budget and received a lot of bids, I think, is is very clear. Um unless anyone has any other questions, I'm happy to make a motion. Uh, I move that city council award the contract for the

2026 service center roof replacement roof overlay project to PRQ Topline LLC DBA topline installers and authorize the city manager to negotiate and sign a contract and any related documents on behalf of the city for this purpose. Second. Motion made by Doy and seconded by Lewis. Randall, yes. Keoffer, yes. Lewis, yes. Do, yes. Medina, yes. Um just quick question Casey for you track who responds to bids or just who we've chosen and the kind of work we've done.

Open gov just evaluates performance of v selected vendors. It doesn't there's not a in the mod the asset management module. There is a contract management. There's a there's a whole solicitation and procurement module that tracks all those who apply which we don't have in the asset management. We only track performance of contractors we've selected. Okay. Yeah, probably not necessary. Just curious. I think it'd be cool, but we just don't have that functionality yet.

All right. We're moving on to 7C on our agenda, the Harrison Street Waterline Project, where council will consider approving the Harrison Street Waterline Project estimate submitted by Ramco Developments LLC and authorizing the city manager to negotiate and sign a contract and any other documents necessary on the behalf of the city. Presented by Casey Simpson, our interimm director of public works.

All right. Um, this one's a little bit unique. uh in our um water distribution master plan. This specific line was not noted as one that is uh due for replacement due to aging. Um it is however we did we we did ascertain that this line needs replacement because it's too small to satisfy the fire protection needs of the properties on um Harrison Street. Um, the installation of a new 6-inch water line along water line along North Harrison from Arbicam to Monizuma is required to meet current and future domestic and fire protection demands in accordance with Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Um, it arose because a property owner is seeking to install that uh fire suppression system and the current water line's not big enough. So, in collaboration with the work required for this property, we're seeking to con uh extend the work that the the private resident is doing and make a full circular system as opposed to that line dead ending dead ending in the middle of Harrison Street. So this will continue their work from their property south to meet up with Monizuma so that um the water gets circulated in the systems. The circulation is really important um for water treatment purposes so that water doesn't sit in a deadend line. Um so I think this is an opportune project. Um it is a cost savings to the city. It achieves a necessary end that's required for the fire suppression system. and um we have uh the funds and the project is estimated to cost $42,260. The amount is budgeted in the water fund

and we recommend that council approve the Harrison Street waterline project estimate submitted by Ramco Developments LLC and authorize the city manager to negotiate and sign a contract and all their documents necessary on behalf of the city. And I'm open to questions. So that's increasing from a 2inch line to a 6 inch line. So that's got to have a tremendous impact on the on the pressure. I would think that

Yeah. And I didn't know Mr. Canada was going to be here tonight, but as he's here, uh, he might be able to support or answer questions in connection with the fact that the suppression system that was installed can't be serviced by that 2-in line. And that came up. We found that after that suppression system was installed, which then led to the property owner needing to pursue an an alternative line or a bigger line of the six inch and then the engineering happened to say this is what we actually need to service the fire suppression to protect the residents that are living in those homes and in that in that multi- family dwelling. Did that answer I may have rabbited hold. I don't know if Okay.

No, that that answered my question. I was just think I was just surprised that that whole area was served with a a 2-in line to begin with. It surprised me, too. I mean, I'm relatively new to the position. I don't know how many twoinch lines we have. Yeah. Yeah, I would think not. Okay. Thank you. Seems like a good opportunity to take advantage of.

Absolutely. Do you think there are more areas like this that are kind of a surprise that we'll come to find? Uh we have most of the water distribution mapped out and thus far the engineers haven't called out any other concerning 2-in lines in the system. Most of the concerns are the age of the lines. This just happens to be unique one. I I don't know why it happened. I think I think this is a a very acceptable price for this project. Um, and if there's no further questions, um, I move that city council accept the estimate for the Harrison Street waterline project with Ramco Developments LLC at its estimated price of $42,260 and that the city manager be authorized to negotiate and assign a contract and all other documents on behalf of the city for this purpose.

Second. Motion made by Lewis and seconded by Dobrey. Kea, yes. Randall, yes. Do yes. Lewis, yes. Medina, yes. Okay, we're going to move on to 7D agenda. Ordinance number 13626, an ordinance adopting an employee agreement and fixation on the compensation for city manager Drew Sanders. Presented by Patrick Coleman, city attorney.

Thank you, Madame Mayor. If you'll recall, annually uh Mr. Sanders contract is up for amendment and I believe to date he's had four amendments. Uh in any event, uh those amendments create a separate document and I think the consensus of council was that perhaps a single document should be adopted representing his employment agreement. And so what you have before you is an ordinance approving that employment agreement. And if you'll recall, we've determined for the last couple years that the the charter does require for council to fix compensation. An ordinance is required and that's what you have before you. It's an ordinance on first reading and it's adopting a new employment agreement that contains a couple of modifications from the previous amendments. We can go over those now or as I said this is a first reading of the ordinance. Uh it will require a public hearing on second reading in a couple weeks. But, uh, basically that's what's before you. And the current or the the exhibit A to the ordinance, uh, combines all of the amendments that have occurred to date. Great.

Yeah, I think we can get more detail at the second reading. Really, it's just like said, kind of a cleanup of the contract. Um, and same for the next because we did both there.

I move the council approve on first reading ordinance number 13626 an ordinance adopting an employment agreement and fixing compensation for city manager Drew C. Sanders at $191,776 effective April 13, 2026 and set for public hearing and second reading on April 14th, 2026. Second motion made by Dobri and seconded by Lewis. Keoffer. Yes. Do yes. Randall, yes. Lewis, yes. Medina,

yes. All right, we're going to move on to 7E on our agenda. Ordinance number 1363 series 2026. Uh first reading of ordinance 1363 series 2026 an ordinance adopting the employment agreement and fixing the compensation for city attorney Patrick Coleman presented by Drew Sanders, city manager.

Yes, mayor and council. Uh I won't totally rehash what the city attorney says since it's very very similar to this. I would also uh perhaps suggest to council that it's not necessarily a new contract, but more of a replacement to take the unwieldy uh massive document that was getting a little out of control and uh putting them back into easily understandable language. Uh this is uh also uh reflects the uh will of uh the instructions of the council that was given to me uh after his evaluation and uh all that information is contained in here and I am prepared to discuss that uh tonight or uh perhaps uh next meeting at the second reading. Okay. I move that council approve on first reading ordinance number 1363 series 2026, an ordinance adopting an employment agreement and fixing the compensation for city attorney J. Patrick Coleman at $174,342 effective April 13, 2026 and set for public hearing and second reading on April 14th, 2026.

Second motion made by Dober and seconded by Keoffer. Lewis, yes. Randall Keoffer, yes. Do yes. Medina, yes. Okay, we're going to move on to 7F on our agenda. Ordinance number 1364, series 2026, an ordinance creating an airport advisory committee for the city of Cortez, Colorado, presented by Drew Sanders, city manager.

Yes, mayor and council. Uh we have had a lot of interest in um trying to get more uh voices out there at the uh airport to help us make decisions and how we proceed with uh the growth of that airport. So, uh, what I've got in front of you is the first reading of an ordinance that, uh, is establishes a advisory committee that is very similar to every other advisory committee that we had. That would be the same structure, the same amount of people. We did put in this ordinance an allowance for a youth member out there, especially where we've got so many youth that are uh, getting into aviation around here. And so uh I submitted to you uh on the floor for first reading uh and then uh prepared to discuss that more in depth next reading. But uh it is pretty simple is merely establishing that committee. I I just want to say when I first came on board two years ago, our uh airport director Jeremy Patton uh talked about having this and he talked about some of the issues that they previously had when there was an advisory committee. And usually when an advisory committee uh starts to deteriorate, it's it's because uh an agenda is not developed. That's that's meaningful. And um that's usually at fault for for for that director. When I've seen advisory committees fail, it's it's not because of the individuals there. It's because the the meetings typically don't have any meaning. Um, I don't think that's going to be the case with this one. I And I think it's excellent. I know um Mr. Patton has some

individuals, some community members already lined up that are are ready to go with this if if this uh should take place. Um, if there's no questions, I'll make a motion. Is any other questions? I move that the city council approve on first reading ordinance number 1364 series 2026 an ordinance creating an airport advisory committee for the city of Cortez, Colorado and set for a public hearing and a second reading on April 14th, 2026. Second uh motion made by Lewis and seconded by Randall Keoffer. Yes. Do Lewis?

Yes. Randall, yes. Medina, yes. All right, that's the end of new business. We'll move on to number eight on our agenda, draft ordinances and resolutions. We have none tonight. So, number nine is city attorney report.

Thank you, Madame Mayor. Uh just just have one item that I wanted to mention that uh my office is beginning to work on. If if you recall, there was concerns on the uh rec center sales tax that the proper ordinances weren't adopted back when the ballot issue was approved. Uh we are being proactive and uh preparing any possible ordinance changes that might result if the ballot issues that are coming up on the current election in April are approved. And also we're looking at any that might be required to be rescended in the event the ballot questions are not approved. So we we don't want to be caught 10 years down the line saying what were they doing? So, uh, it it, you know, and it some of it may be wasted energy, but I don't want to wait two months in the drafting process before and it will only apply to a couple of the members of the current council, but uh, you may see some new ordinances that come before you as a result of the election. That's all I had. Thank you.

Appreciate that, Pat. Thanks for being All right, we'll move on to number 10 on our agenda. City manager report.

Yes, council. I do have a report for you this evening. Uh first of all, the annual uh city of Cortez employee appreciation event that was uh known as the champions of charm this year was held this past or on Saturday, March 14th at the Elks Club. Uh, it was yet again another success and I would like to take the opportunity to thank the committee members Carla Odell, Carla Ross, Kelly Codner, and Aselyn Hager for their hard work and dedication to make this happen. So, thank you guys. Next, the finest and I'm told I think what happened to that party has to stay at that party. I think that was the unwritten rule. So, anyway, next, uh, the finance department is in the middle of our annual audit process. they've been working diligently on this. Uh this definitely requires a lot of staff time and is a very stressful process for them. I just wanted to also thank them publicly for their hard work and professionalism in making sure that this important task occurs. And lastly, I just wanted to share with council and the community that uh as you know, the Iran war has created some significant uncertainty with US economic outlook. Uh certainly driving oil prices higher and reducing expectations that inflation will cease or ease or the Federal Reserve will be able to cut rates this year. Other concerning factors such as softening labor markets, uh persistent inflation pressures are also concerning to us and the local government. In reaction to the uncertainty, we and your local government are uh monitoring global events and national events closely and have already taken some minor steps to keep us in the strongest financial position possible. Furthermore, we're just preparing to take some additional appropriate action should economic circumstances require it. Council will be kept informed should significant action be necessary. The bottom line for this is we're prepared. we're we're we're not flatfooted on this

and just doing what we can to be uh proactive. So, and that ends my uh report this evening. Thank you. All right, we'll move on to number 11 on our agenda, the city council committee uh reports. So, 11A is the mayor's report on the workshop, and we did not have a workshop tonight, so we'll move on to 11B, other board reports, and we'll start with Councilman Lewis. Okay. No report for arts committee. No report.

Okay. Quick night. All right. We're going to move on to number 12 on our agenda. The second portion of the public participation. Uh individuals have a limit of three minutes per person. Do we have anyone in the audience who'd like to make public comment? Okay. Uh seeing none, we'll move on to other items of business. We have none tonight. So, uh, 14 is, uh, adjournment. Madam Mayor, may I make Oh, yeah. Do you want to just a quick comment?

Uh, this Sunday, March, uh, 29th, is the anniversary and the day that we recognize the Vietnam veterans in 1992. That was when the US forces withdrew finally from Vietnam, s from South Vietnam. And that was also the time of the final prisoner exchange. So, I just want to comment and say everyone remember your Vietnam vets and thank them. Thank you, M. Thanks for that reminder. Uh, does any other council members have anything they want to Okay, madame mayor, I move that we adjourn this meeting. Second. Motion made by Doy and seconded by Lewis. Randall,

yes. Keoffer, yes. Do yes. Lewis, yes. Medina. Yes. All right. Thank you all for being here. Good night. Realized we didn't get our six hours a month. Six hours a