Edgewater City Council Recap: October 1st, 2024

The Edgewater City Council met on Tuesday, October 1st for the first of 2 business meetings this month. All members were present with the exception of Councilwoman Stierer. Former Councilman Berg’s seat remains vacant.

The meeting began promptly at 6:30, but for those attending virtually (myself included) the sound was not unmuted for the first five minutes or so. There was one comment from the public, however without sound I cannot say what was said. The official meeting minutes will provide a record though.

Next came resolution 2024-15, which was discussed in the previous meeting. All this resolution does is grant the authority to Judge Gary Jackson to swear in Edgewater’s newest judge, Gina Hickman. The resolution passed unanimously, and the swearing in of Judge Hickman followed. Judge Hickman was sworn in by her mentor, Gary Jackson, and her older brother was in town to perform the robing. Hickman spoke after thanking a wide range of friends, colleagues, family, and staff.

A brief intermission followed. Reportedly, there were snacks.

The meeting resumed with communications from city staff. Council was informed the vacancy on the council would be sent to the paper on 10/15, printed on 10/24, closed on 11/21. Interviews for the vacancy will be on 12/3.

Next, Mayor Conklin gave membership updates for Metro Mayors and DRCOG.

There were not reports from boards or commissions.

Presentations followed. There were 3 on the evening’s agenda. First to speak was Don Lombardi and West Metro Fire Chief. Lombardi spoke of Colorado Task Force One, our elite urban search and rescue that assists FEMA when called upon. Presently they are in Asheville, but have been providing support in the South for some time now. Lombardi also spoke positively of the recently adopted Jeffco Community Response Team pilot. He then spoke of West Metro’s ISO Class 1 rating, the best there is, how it means residents in the district get the most affordable premiums, and urging the council to tell legislators to leave the fire districts alone for awhile, and any tax savings from budget cuts, the residents will pay in increased premiums. Lombardi also spoke of several hurdles West Metro is facing including supply chain issues and construction costs.

Next to present was Deputy City Manager Mills, speaking about community development, followed by Amber McGee presenting on the Parks and Recreation department. Both speakers used informative slide decks that can be found in the full meeting packet here:

https://www.edgewaterco.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/4124/638632957678311846

Next on the agenda was Resolution 2024-14, a restated intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between Edgewater, Arvada, Golden, and Jeffco establishing the Jefferson County Regional Special Weapons Tactics Team (JCRS) or more commonly referred to as SWAT. This team is long established, Edgewater joined in 2005, this is just updating a long standing agreement. “Business as usual” according to Chief Sonstegard. The resolution passed unanimously.

Item 12 was next on the agenda. Resolution 2024-18, a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) concerning the Jeffco Community Response Team, a subject discussed at length in previous meetings. The resolution passed unanimously.

Next came property easements for the planned roundabout at 26th and Harlan. This too passed unanimously.

General business followed. First, approval of a contract for a recruiter in finding Edgewater’s next police chief. A brief discussion ensued with council members stressing they wanted to see transparency and take public input during the process. The contract was approved unanimously.

Next came a vote on updating Planning and Zoning rules of procedure. Council discussed what attendance should maybe look like, with a recent scheduling conflicts resulting in board members conducting interviews to fill open seats virtually, while the candidates attended the meeting in person. Edgewater Resident Larry Welshon took the podium to speak about his experience being interviewed in that particular meeting. Mr. Welshon did not think it was appropriate. Comments from council in the following discussion tended towards agreeing. However, a rules update was what was up on the docket, so it was voted on, and passed unanimously.

Board of Adjustment and Appeals Rules of Procedure were also amending their rules. The changes were approved unanimously.

The meeting wound down with Mayor and Council comments. Most everyone welcomed Judge Hickman. Many thanks were given to the staff for their presentations. And many comments were made on the success of the Hometown Festival, especially the pie eating contest.

As always, the meeting closed with a discussion of upcoming agenda items.

The next business meeting is scheduled for October 15th at 6:30. The meetings can be attended in person at the Civic Center, or virtually through the link provided in the meeting agenda.