Montrose, CO — City Councilors met for their regular meeting Tuesday evening, March 1, to consider a number of ordinances and contract awards for projects around the city.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, City Councilors Roy Anderson, Dave Bowman, Barbara Bynum, Dave Frank, and Doug Glaspell met online along with city staff via the Zoom platform. The public was also invited to attend. The following is a summary of the primary topics discussed during the meeting.
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD
No members of the public offered comments.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Councilors voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the March 2, 2021, special meeting and regular meetings. The city’s archive of past meeting minutes can be found at CityofMontrose.org/ArchiveCenter.
WATCH Tuesday’s meeting here.
MONTROSE RECREATION DISTRICT COMPREHENSIVE MASTER AND STRATEGIC PLAN FUNDING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve $30,000 to partner with the Montrose Recreation District, MRD, in updating their Parks & Recreation Comprehensive Master Plan this year. The total amount estimated to complete the plan is $130,000, according to MRD.
The MRD’s master plan will create a roadmap to ensure an appropriate balance of parks and recreation facilities and amenities now and into the future. The planning team will collect and analyze data from the district and the city to develop a clear set of goals, policies, and standards for the entire open space, trails, and recreation facilities system and program development for the next ten years. The MRD’s last plan was completed in 2005, with a minor update in 2009. The district believes a holistic, system-wide approach is critical so that the district and city can jointly plan services for the entire community.
The plan is to consider: existing parks and recreation amenities within the district’s boundaries; existing and future plans of other governmental recreation stakeholders within Montrose County; the recreation needs and desires of the current population of the district; and future and trending growth potential.
The project scope includes:
• A strong public process with a statistically valid survey and many public engagement activities
• Review and projection of demographics and trends
• Analyzing existing and future facilities and levels of service
• Ranking and prioritizing demand and opportunities
• A strategic plan that considers short, mid, and long-term steps, strategies, and priorities – including funding options
The district plans to kick off the process in March and anticipates final plan delivery in December 2021.
WOODGATE ROAD REALIGNMENT
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2527 on second reading, granting and authorizing an exchange of real property within the city for the purpose of realigning the Woodgate Road right of way between Arland Drive and East Oak Grove Road.
The Woodgate Road Realignment Project is one of the city’s largest capital projects of 2021.
City Engineer Scott Murphy said as far back as the 2008 Comprehensive Plan the community has envisioned connecting Woodgate Road at its northern end to East Oak Grove Road. This connection aims to relieve heavy traffic congestion in the area and give an alternative to Townsend Avenue, especially for local residents.
Murphy said the city has been working with two landowners to secure the rights of way and easements necessary to construct the realignment project. These include RDMJK Woodgate Investments (RDMJK), the owner of nine parcels within or directly adjacent to the realignment, as well as a homeowner on Storm King Avenue where the roadway crosses the corner of an existing residential parcel. Both property owners were cooperative throughout the city’s land purchase efforts without any need to consider the use of eminent domain.
The city and RDMJK have agreed to terms that provide an equitable exchange of property.
Councilors also voted unanimously to approve RDMJK Woodgate Division of Property, an official act of the city to approve the division of the Woodgate Property.
For more information, including frequently asked questions about the project, click the link. (www.cityofmontrose.org/746/Woodgate-Realignment)
ORDINANCE 2528 - SECOND READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2528, on second reading, to rezone property within the Woodgate Realignment Project area to "B-3 General Commercial District" and "B-2 highway Commercial District."
ORDINANCE 2530 - FIRST READING
City Council unanimously approved Ordinance 2530 on first reading, which will vacate three city right-of-ways within the former Russell Stover candy factory property.
Councilors held a public hearing before holding a roll-call vote. The council will vote on a second reading of the ordinance at the April 6 regular meeting.
ORDINANCE 2531 - FIRST READING
City Council unanimously to approve Ordinance 2531 on first reading, amending the zoning district designation of Lot 1 of the Stover Minor Subdivision Property Rezone Map from "P" Public District to "I-1" Light Industrial District, and Lot 2 and Lot 3 of the Stover Minor Subdivision Property Rezone Map from "P" Public District to "B-2" Highway Commercial District.
Senior City Planner Amy Sharp said the ordinance is to rezone the Stover property located at 2190-2200 Stover Avenue and consists of approximately 27.2 acres. The company executed its right to purchase the property when the company left Montrose in 2020 following 38-years of operation under a land lease agreement with the city. Following the sale to Russell Stover, the city was obligated to rezone the property, according to Sharp.
Councilors held a public hearing, taking several public comments regarding the rezoning before holding a unanimous roll-call vote. The council will vote on a second reading of the ordinance at the April 6, regular meeting.
ORDINANCE 2529 - SECOND READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2529 on second reading, vacating a right-of-way deemed surplus on South First Street for the construction of the new Public Safety Complex.
The subject property is located near Centennial Plaza on the south side of South First Street. Through the design process of the new Police Department, it has been determined that the subject property is better suited to being included as part of the PSC project. The auxiliary building of the PSC, which includes operational support services and training for the Police Department, will encroach on this piece of South First Street.
NORTH 9TH SIDEWALK EXTENSION CONTRACT AWARD
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve $89,063 to Ridgway Valley Enterprises for the construction of the North 9th Street Sidewalk Extension Project.
City Engineer Scott Murphy said the City of Montrose is continually working to improve pedestrian connectivity throughout the city by constructing missing-link sidewalks, especially along minor arterial roadways.
The recent completion of the Connect Initiative recreation trail, development within Colorado Outdoors, and feedback received during neighborhood meetings have helped to make the missing link on North 9th Street between Selig and Grand Avenues a high-priority sidewalk extension. As a result, the Engineering Department was directed to design and bid the project.
The city completed the design of the sidewalk extension in January, which includes modifications to the Grand/North 9th roundabout’s eastern leg to feature an ADA-accessible crosswalk, detached five-foot sidewalks along the northern side of the roadway, and decorative rock between the curb and sidewalk.
Construction of the project was put out for bid on January 26 and bids were publicly received on February 10, 2021. Bids were received from six contractors and all bid totals included a 10-percent contingency.
Murphy said the low bidder, Ridgway Valley Enterprises, is considered qualified to perform the work and the city has recent positive experience working with them on multiple city projects. The city’s local preference policy would not change the outcome of bidding in this case.
The project is slated for completion by the end of June.
LA RAZA SPORTS COURT PROJECT CONTRACT AWARD
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve a proposed contract award totaling $106,726 to Kuboske Construction for work at La Raza Park.
According to Public Works Manager Jim Scheid, the City of Montrose has been working with the La Raza Park neighborhood on a concept plan for improvements to the park. A plan was developed and approved that includes the replacement of the existing basketball court and the addition of solar lighting, benches, and a small amount of sidewalk.
Schied said the work will be complete by the end of June.
STAFF REPORTS
City Finance Director Shani Wittenberg delivered a sales, use, and excise tax report for January 2021.
Read the report in its entirety here.
YOUTH CITY COUNCIL
Youth City Councilor Josie Coulter said the youth council is busy making public service announcements for use on social media on a variety of subjects, including the recruitment of the next generation of youth council members.
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All City Council meetings are recorded and made available online via the city’s website and cable channels 191 for Charter subscribers and 970 for Elevate subscribers. Replays of council meetings are also broadcast at 6 p.m. on the same channels on days that the council is not in session.
In addition, each regular meeting is archived on the City of Montrose’s YouTube channel.
Residents can watch all regular City Council meetings and work sessions live through the city’s website at CityOfMontrose.org/Video.
For more city news visit CityOfMontrose.org.