Montrose, CO — City Councilors met for their regular meeting Tuesday evening, September 20, to honor the 235th anniversary of the drafting of the United States Constitution, along with considering applicants to serve on the Youth City Council and a trio of local ordinances. The council also reviewed sales, use, and excise tax collections for July 2022.
Councilors Barbara Bynum, Dave Frank, Doug Glaspell, David Reed, and Ed Ulibarri met in City Council Chambers along with city staff.
The following is a summary of the primary topics discussed during the meeting.
Watch the meeting here.
CONSTITUTION WEEK PROCLAMATION
Mayor Dave Frank read and signed a proclamation declaring the week of September 17 through 23 as Constitution Week in the City of Montrose.
Frank said September 17, 2022, marks the two hundred and thirty-fifth anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America by the Constitutional Convention and it is fitting and proper to accord official recognition to this magnificent document and its memorable anniversary and to officially recognize the patriotic celebrations that will commemorate the occasion.
Frank said members of the City Council “ask our citizens to reaffirm the ideals the Framers of the Constitution had in 1787 by vigilantly protecting the freedoms guaranteed to us through this guardian of our liberties, remembering that lost rights may never be regained.”
PUBLIC COMMENT
No members of the public provided any public comment to the council.
CONSENT AGENDA
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the September 6, 2022, special City Council meeting, and the September 6 regular City Council meeting.
The city’s archive of past meeting minutes can be found on the new Public Meetings Portal and at CityofMontrose.org/ArchiveCenter.
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve a Special Events Permit for the Black Canyon Boys and Girls Club to serve alcohol at their upcoming Dinner on Main event to be held September 24, on the 500 block of Main Street downtown.
YOUTH CITY COUNCIL APPLICANT INTERVIEWS
The City Council took time Tuesday to interview six applicants to serve the 2022-2023 term on the city’s Youth Council.
The council met with applicants Hunter Barton, Sydney Bell, Ciana Beller, Grace Hotsenpiller, Khloey Kuehn, and Maggie Ellen Kusar to ask questions about their views on public service in Montrose. Applicants Lucero Mireles-Rodales and Angie Packard were not present for their interviews.
The Montrose Youth Council was established by the Montrose City Council to encourage greater youth participation in the city’s government and is charged with actively advising City Council with thoughtful recommendations on issues concerning youth and assisting city staff in considering youth perspectives in its planning efforts. Members are selected near the beginning of each school year from a pool of applicants.
For more information visit this link.
ORDINANCE 2594 - SECOND READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve the extension of the moratorium to prohibit the establishment or relocation of any adult gaming arcade uses within the city limits.
City Attorney Matthew Magliaro said the state legislature took action this past spring to study adult gaming devices and prohibit the proliferation of adult gaming businesses as they collide with state gambling laws.
In September 2021 the City Council passed an emergency ordinance following numerous reports of crime and other illegal activity associated with a number of establishments in the city.
These activities may fit the legal definition of slot machine, gambling device, and/or simulated gambling device, which are prohibited under Colorado state law.
These businesses, which the city is referring to as Adult Gaming Arcades, have had secondary, negative impacts on neighboring businesses. Increased crime has also been reported in the areas surrounding these businesses, including illegal drug use, illegal drug distribution, public intoxication, violent crime, and increased calls for service from the Montrose Police Department.
The City of Montrose is extending the moratorium with the passage of this ordinance.
ORDINANCE 2595 - SECOND READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2595 on second reading, amending Title 5, Chapter 11, Sections 1,3, and 8, of the City of Montrose Municipal Code to reflect recodification of certain sections of the Colorado Revised Statutes.
Assistant City Attorney Chris Dowsey said the language in the proposed ordinance was outdated, and the new language being proposed was to address local pawn brokers. Dowsey said the language was to be updated to fall in line with changes in Colorado Revised Statues.
ORDINANCE 2596 - SECOND READING
City Councilors voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 2596 on second reading amending Title 5, Chapter 12, Sections 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10, of the City of Montrose Municipal Code to reflect recodification of certain sections of the Colorado Revised Statutes.
City Attorney Bennet Morris said this ordinance mirrors changes to language addressing local pawn brokers that were addressed in Ordinance 2595.
STAFF REPORTS
Finance Director Shani Wittenberg delivered the sales, use, and excise tax report for July 2022.
Read the reports in their entirety here.
Police Chief Blaine Hall said the city will be celebrating the opening of the new Montrose Public Safety Complex, located at 434 South First Street, on Tuesday, September 27. Hall said the public is invited to attend and take tours of the building following remarks by local and state officials.
COUNCIL COMMENTS
Mayor Dave Frank said the council will begin its annual budget review retreat on Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. at the Montrose Pavilion.
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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 or on-demand through the city’s Public Meetings Portal.
For more city news visit CityOfMontrose.org.