BIG 4 story warehouse to be built in mid-county

Lynn Volkens

02/08/2007 - Gilpin County Commissioners Al Price, Jeanne Nicholson and Forrest Whitman began their February 6^th meeting at 9:00 a.m. with a 25-minute executive session to consult County Attorney Jim Petrock about potential litigation.

Joint Agreement with Cities

  The County joins the Cities of Central and Black Hawk and their Sanitation District by approving the First Addendum to the Agreement Concerning Joint Defense and Confidentiality. The agreement, initiated in January of this year, regards a legal dispute in which the parties have similar, if not the same, interests. The addendum addresses language and punctuation of some of the clauses.

Public Comment

  During the first public comment segment, a resident of the South Beaver area questioned why a tax abatement had been granted to Ames Construction Company at a prior meeting. County Manager Roger Baker explained that two trucks, owned by Ames, had been charged as personal property and should not have been. The abatement was a rectification.

Mid-County Warehouse Gets Go-Ahead

  Commissioners conducted a continuance of the public hearing for a special use permit for Ameristar Casino. The Black Hawk casino sought the permit to build a four-story, 26,000-square-foot industrial warehouse in mid-Gilpin, on the west side of Highway 119 just south of Renaissance Solutions. The warehouse will be used for storage of non-hazardous hotel supplies (toiletry, paper, cleaning, canned and frozen food goods). Ameristar will be the sole casino using the warehouse. The facility will be staffed and operated six days a week from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Semi- truck deliveries are proposed mainly for mornings with smaller trucks (truck bed size about 8 by 8 feet) shuttling goods to the casino in the afternoons. At the original public hearing on January 23^rd, several residents spoke against awarding the special use, citing increased pollution and traffic, and lack of successful screening efforts for completed buildings in the area.

  Ameristar representatives, asked to bring traffic studies and expanded landscape plans, provided the results of a traffic study conducted on Thursday, October 19^th, 2006 at Mile Marker 15.15, Highway 119. The study showed daily traffic volume of 2,729 vehicles. The peak hours for southbound 119 were 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. The northbound lane is busiest at 11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. The traffic counts showed 174 vehicles passing the proposed warehouse location during the peak morning hours and 261 during the peak afternoon hours. Ameristar is proposing twelve truck trips (six in/six out) per day in addition to employee trips. A table included in their report projects up to 24 daily trips. Commissioners determined the traffic impact would be minor.

  The landscaping plan includes a performance bond equal to 110% of the cost of the plants and labor. County Planner Rears said a Landscape and Maintenance Agreement would be required, providing additional maintenance of the landscape into perpetuity. Berms to help screen the building are also required. Approved trees and shrubs (including blue spruce trees) will be specified in that agreement. Should Ameristar fail to keep the landscaping up to County standard, Gilpin staff will step in to do so. Costs incurred by the County will then be recorded with the County Clerk as a lien upon the property.

  No one from the public spoke for the project. A man from the South Beaver area, as well as the woman who spoke during public comment time, both expressed concerns about the height. The man also asked how much of the traffic will be semi-trucks. He was told approximately one-third. He told Commissioners he was not necessarily for or against the project, just wanted to ask his questions. The woman spoke against the project because of its size (about the size of a city block and a half, square, she reckoned) and also asked if a Black Hawk fire inspector would be inspecting the project. The warehouse will be located within Colorado Sierra Fire District jurisdiction. CSFD has contracted with a Black Hawk firefighter to provide inspection services for their jurisdiction. The firefighter is a fully qualified fire inspector/marshall, explained a CSFD representative. The woman speaking against asked how to petition to stop the structure. Attorney Petrock told her it would be a matter for court.

  All three Commissioners expressed concern about the height of the building, noting that it is approximately the same height as the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) building in the same area but would not sit “in a hole,” referring to the below-highway level of that structure. Instead, the Ameristar warehouse will rise approximately 38 feet above highway level. However, the height is in compliance with the County’s Master Plan for development of this village area, which Commissioner Whitman pointed out, had developed as a heavy commercial area. He had discussed it with Planning Commission members and noted that committee recommended approval, finding the warehouse to be “in harmony” with the surrounding village center area. The only reason for the special use review was because of the purpose of the building – storage of materials away from the site of their use. Height and size issues would need to be addressed through Master Plan/zoning avenues. They approved the permit.

Liquor License Procedure Changed

  At the request of County Planner Ray Rears, the Commissioners approved Resolution 07-01 regarding liquor license approvals. Prior to obtaining a liquor license, applicants will be visited at their site to determine all applicable zoning regulations are being met. Rears notes by previewing the site, any zoning violations can be rectified prior to Commissioners’ (acting as the Local Liquor Licensing Authority) consideration for approval. By changing the procedure, the County hopes to avoid costly attorney and staff time (and potential legal action) for removal of minor zoning violations, primarily sign ordinance violations. Liquor-licensed establishments have been the principal violators of County sign ordinances in the past.

Kingdom of Gilpin BLE

  Kingdom of Gilpin Estates property owners Joseph and Cynthia Davis applied for and received approval of a Boundary Line Elimination to combine three small lots (Unit 1, Lot 26 and Unit 2, Lots 45-46) into one parcel of 0.92 acres. They earned a $1,000 BLE bounty in the process. That brings the total reduction of developable County lots to 1,413 since the program began in 1987.

Tunnel District Grant

  “It’s really really good news,” commented Commissioner Whitman. County Planner Rears had applied for a grant to conduct a cultural resource survey of the Gilpin Tunnel District. His work had paid off in the form of a Colorado Historical Society grant of $41,349. The Gilpin Tunnel District is a 13-mile corridor running along the railway from the Rollins Pass area to Pinecliffe.

Proposed Legislation – A Disaster

  County Attorney Petrock advised Commissioners that House Bill 70-12-18 (Governmental Immunity Law) is a “total disaster” and could affect Gilpin County. Petrock explained that the law, if it passes the legislature, requires public facilities such as swimming pools, jails, etc. to be upgraded or rehabilitated to meet the standards of the day. Expense will rise, he said, as the buildings age, causing a particularly hard financial burden to smaller entities such as Gilpin County.

In Support of Locals

  Commissioners directed a letter of support be sent to Triad Early Childhood Council, expressing support of that organization’s efforts on behalf of Eagles’ Nest Child Care Center. A $500 Gilpin contribution commitment is included.

  Commissioner Nicholson provided an update on discussions at the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) last week regarding the proposal process and prioritizing of gaming funds. Road construction/improvement in the impacted areas is a focus, she said, as is funding operating costs of non-profit and governmental children’s service programs. Funding would offset the detrimental impact of gaming on essential community services provided by those agencies, she said, further explaining that there is a larger picture not considered by many citizens. It is very difficult for small businesses, such as care providers, to hire and keep staff when casinos offer better pay. That difficulty is one caused by the gaming industry and has a negative impact on the local community, she said.

  Nicholson also announced plans to hold informal discussion meetings (Fireside Chats) on a monthly basis at the Community Center. The first is scheduled on Thursday, February 8^th from 7-8:00 p.m. The purpose is to provide additional access to Commissioners to discuss citizens’ concerns and interests. Dates will be published in local newspapers.

Monthly Departmental Reports

  Parks and Recreation Director Penny Kipley’s January 2007 report announced completed implementation of the new electronic check-in system. Using the new technology, the County can track visits to the Community Center by individual and by purpose. Per the new electronically generated report, the Center was visited by 1,080 Gilpin residents and 153 non-residents. The report further provides a breakdown of the residents: 565 adults, 432 youth and 83 seniors. Not only are the unique individuals recorded, but whether they use a resident or other type of pass (such as a Fit Pass) or are drop-in visitors is also specified. People who are at the Center just to observe an activity (swimming, basketball, etc.) are recorded as “observers” and included in the total count of visits. The final numbers for January show 4,657 visits by 1,213 individuals. That’s an average of 155 visits per day.  Drop-in admissions brought in revenues of $2,456. Membership revenue totaled $4,205. Commissioner Nicholson said she was “very impressed” with the statistics, saying the electronic count could not be attributed to “just a few individuals with repeat visits.” The numbers show that a significant number of the Gilpin population uses the facility, indicating a good reason for Commissioners to continue to support it, she said.

  Parks and Recreation Department goals for 2007 include a redo of the sidewalk and wall on the south side of the building, adding a fence and stairs to Elks Field (the smaller ball field), plus a ball field vendor structure and shade screening, developing additional cooperative programs with Gilpin School, expanding the youth basketball and soccer programs to more age-groups and increasing enrollment in the summer camp program with the intent of making the program self-sufficient. The department is currently researching procedures to allow patrons to pay fees by credit card. Kipley reports the downstairs floors are in need of more sealant. The Center will be closed February 16^th to accomplish that work.

  Cooperative Extension Director Irene Shonle submitted her January report. Informational pamphlets about noxious weeds will be available for distribution this year.

  Sales of seedling trees continue. Shonle will host a day-long symposium on March 10^th about forest health in the morning (pine beetle, conifer identification, fire mitigation.) In the afternoon County Commissioners Nicholson and Whitman will conduct panel discussions about renewable energy strategies, including the biomass system planned for the new Road and Bridge building. The 4-H After-School, Woodland Riders and Cloverbud programs are all growing in attendance.

 No Meeting on 20^th

  The meeting adjourned at 10:25 a.m. Commissioners meet again on Tuesday, February 13^th.  There is no Commissioner meeting the following week (February 20^th).