The Edgewater City Council convened last Tuesday, February 20, 2024, for a regularly scheduled work session and business meeting.
The meeting began with the work session. All members of the council were present, either in person or virtually. This week, the work session addressed an update to the general business rules of procedure. As mentioned in past recaps, city council meetings in the area and across the nation have been victim to hate speech from virtual commenters. The council is proposing several rule changes to help protect the Edgewater City Council and public from this disturbing trend. These rule changes include allowing the Mayor to amend the starting time of any meeting, as well as suspend any meeting for a period of time to try and correct any audio/visual problems. The rules would also move public comment on any non-agenda items to immediately follow the consent agenda. The council is also proposing that first priority for public comment be given to those who register with the clerk in advance, with second priority given to any commenters that are physically present at the meeting. Before speaking, commenters must provide their first and last name and whether or not they live in Edgewater. Anyone attempting to register with “clearly false or fictitious” information will not be permitted to comment. Public comment would be limited to 3 minutes, after which their microphone may be muted. Comments will not be permitted in writing, except in cases where it may be a reasonable accommodation. As such, the chat function on the virtual meeting would be disabled. The meeting was then opened for public comment. Edgewater residents Larry Welshon and Karen Hing both offered public comment in general agreement with the changes. The Mayor and Council were also given the opportunity to comment, but there were none, and the work session concluded. City Council will vote on the rule changes at their next business meeting.
The night moved on to the business meeting. The consent agenda was adopted unanimously and without discussion. The next item on the agenda was communications from city staff, boards, and memberships. Community Services Director Kit Lammers spoke first, with an update on the 25th Ave. construction. Mr. Lammers said Edgewater had some big crews working recently, to take advantage of the good weather. There has been water line work, and construction is now shifting towards concrete work. The improvements will progress on the north side of 25th (between Sheridan and Benton) and then work will shift to the south side, where more work is needed due to drainage issues.
Next, Chief Sonstegard spoke briefly about the revamped EPD website, stating it’s one of the most comprehensive websites for a police department of its size in the nation. He also spoke of how, due to hail damage to the fleet last year, EPD has acquired 4 new hybrid cruisers, bring the total number of hybrids in the fleet to 6. Chief Sonstegard finished by speaking of how proud he was to host the recent memorial service for retired EPD Officer Gretchen Gordanier.
City Manager Dan Maples spoke next. He invited council and the public to the upcoming celebration of life for Kent Johnson, former Edgewater City Councilor and Fire Chief. Mr. Maples also pointed out our new ADA compliant podium in the chambers.
There were no comments from Boards and Commissions.
Mayor Conklin spoke next, letting Council and the public know his time as chair of DRCOG is coming to an end, he also mentioned that Edgewater will be joining the Jeffco Economic Development Corporation, and with that all 6 Jeffco cities are participating.
The next matter of business for the night was awards. The new president of the Filipino-American Community of Colorado, Domingo Belen, took the (new ADA compliant) podium. Mr. Belen was there to present the Council and Mayor with their Community Partnership Award in appreciation for their continued support.
Next was a presentation from CDOT about the Sheridan Multimodal Corridor Plan. The presentation was detailed and can be found at the link below.
https://www.edgewaterco.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/3356/638440148319930000.
The planning phase of the project is finished, and it is entering the design phase. The hope is to provide a safer, more pedestrian friendly Sheridan corridor with center medians in spots, and safer more advanced crosswalks.
Next came two resolutions. The first, resolution 2024-3, a resolution reappointing judge Jeffery Chan as the presiding municipal court judge and approving the associated judicial services agreement. It was approved unanimously. The second, resolution 2024-4 adopting the Edgewater ADA transition plan was also approved unanimously.
The meeting was again opened for public comment. Two Edgewater residents spoke, both in regard to the CDOT Sheridan Corridor Plan. Both spoke of how they would like to see more crossings, and a safer environment for pedestrians.
Up next was a detailed slide deck Urban Forest Management update, pushed from earlier in the meeting due to technical difficulties, which can also be found in the link above. The hope is to improve Edgewater’s tree canopy was well as educate the public on proper care of trees.
Next came the second reading of Ordinance 2024-1, which proposes multiple fee changes for city services and programs as discussed in prior meetings. The ordinance passed unanimously.
The evening wound down with comments from the Mayor and Council. The general consensus was that it was a productive evening, with thanks to the city staff, presenters, and a general mood of excitement over the various projects discussed in the meeting.
Edgewater City Council meets the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month at 6:30 P.M. meetings can be attended in person at the Edgewater Civic Center or virtually.
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