Wellington (Colorado) voters will have choices to make on April 6. They will choose between two candidates for mayor and select three town board members from among four men in the race.

Voters may question candidates March 17 in a forum sponsored by The Wellington newspaper. The forum starts at 7 p.m. in the Leeper Center. Candidates will have a time limit to answer questions presented through a moderator. The forum will conclude by 9 p.m.

Among the candidates, four currently serve on the Wellington Town Board of Trustees. Larry Noel is seeking a third four-year term as mayor. He is being challenged by trustee Travis Vieira, who is completing his first term. The mayor is paid $100 per month.

Incumbent town board members are Mike Steely, who has served 15 years, and Travis Stevens, who has served four years. Newcomers to town elections are Ernest Cienfuegos-Baca, who moved to Wellington in 2002, and Lloyd “Bill” Sullivan, a resident since 2005. Town trustee is an unpaid position.

Registered voters may cast their ballots between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on April 6 at the Leeper Center, 3800 Wilson Ave.

The town board is an amicable group that generally makes decisions with unanimous votes. A close split vote is rare, but that occurred last summer.

The controversy developed when Nunn-based Northern Colorado Poultry asked to build a slaughtering and processing plant in a light industrial zone on the north side of Wellington. Town board hearings drew large crowds, with most of the opponents from the neighboring Buffalo Creek subdivision. The plant was approved on a 4-3 vote through the conditional use process.

In response, irate residents gathered enough petition signatures to force the Wellington Town Board to repeal its approval or set an election for a citizen vote. Just as the town board was ready to take up the issue, Northern Colorado Poultry abruptly closed its business in Nunn.

A new ownership group, Mountain States Poultry & Meats, then decided to build the plant in the adjacent industrial zone, where animal processing is a use by right. On Jan. 6, the Wellington Planning Commission unanimously approved the site plan. Because it is in an industrial zone, the project did not require a town board vote.

In individual interviews with the candidates, The Wellington asked them to explain their votes.

Candidates also responded to questions about recent town budgets that have made significant dips into the town’s fund balances, which built up during the boom years. By using reserves, the town has been able to offset declining revenue that has resulted from the recession.

The audited fund balance at the end of 2008 totaled about $9.14 million. If revenue and expenses for 2010 follow budgeted predictions, the town’s fund balance will be at $5.5 million at the end of this year, and lower if the town spends up to $2 million allocated to buy an additional water source.

This year, Wellington will spend $8.4 million to operate town government and make capital improvements, such as street repairs.

The Wellington also asked candidates if they would consider a recreation tax district, which would need voter approval, to provide more facilities and activities for area residents.

Candidate comments follow.

Larry Noel

Noel, 54, is a Realtor working with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Fort Collins. He moved to Wellington in 1980, and has been self-employed in the real estate business for 30 years. He lives in The Knolls Subdivision.

Noel said his experience in real estate convinced him that the 4,200-square-foot poultry plant to be built in Wellington will not deflate residential property values, as opponents contended. He added that he would stick with his vote if the same issue came up in the future.

“I let everyone talk as long as they wanted,” the mayor said. “I wouldn’t have changed any part of it. I’m a big property owners’ advocate.”

Noel said Wellington needs to improve its tax base and revenue stream. “That’s why I came up with the plan to defer building fees,” he said.

The town board recently approved the plan to let homebuilders postpone paying impact fees up to one year rather than paying all fees when they get building permits.

Noel, a board member for 17 years, said Wellington will have to look at budget cuts next year if revenues don’t improve. “At least we have something to dig into; a lot of communities don’t,” he said.

The mayor said he would not oppose putting a recreation tax district on the ballot, but he doubted it would pass. “People are pretty strapped,” he said.

He noted that the town already supports the Boys & Girls Club by providing a building and paying utilities, and the town has hired consultants to begin design work for Buffalo Creek Park. “I think we do quite a bit,” he said.

In two or three years, Noel said, the town might be able to work toward getting a new recreation building with gymnasiums and space for the Boys & Girls Club.

Noel has also served 17 years on the town planning commission. He’s a member of the Wellington Area Chamber of Commerce and a 30-year member of the Fort Collins Board of Realtors.

His real estate experience, he said, has taught him about infrastructure, development agreements, financing and timelines. “I deal with a lot of people, a lot of contracts and negotiate a lot of things,” he said.

In the early 1990s, he co-developed the 49-lot subdivision called Wellington Place. He more recently developed a 65-lot subdivision in Greeley.

The candidate emphasized his leadership experience and said he spends at least 15 hours a week on mayoral duties. If elected to another four-year term, Noel said, he will continue to help the town grow.

Travis Vieira

After four years on the town board, Vieira, 37, is running for mayor. He has also served five years on the planning commission. Vieira is assistant manager at Main Street Market in Wellington. He lives in Buffalo Creek Subdivision.

Vieira discovered Wellington a decade ago and decided to make it home. He and Henry Morales opened Henri’s Bistro in 2001. The business closed after two years, and Vieira became a trainer at Fitness1. He went to work for Main Street Market in 2008.

Vieira’s lobbying for youth activities started at age 12, when he served on a youth advisory board in Wheatridge. Now the candidate wants to find more opportunities for Wellington’s children. Residents want “facilities to do things with their kids where they live,” he said, and such amenities could have a regional draw and bring in income.

Before going to voters, Vieira said he would survey what people want, what it costs and what grants are available. “Most of the time you need matching money, and that’s where the taxing district would come in,” he said.

Turning to government, Vieira said the controversy over slaughtering facilities “was a perfect example of how politics should work and maybe how it failed.”

After the first hearing at the town planning commission, which drew no opposition, Vieira voted in favor of the poultry plant. The crowd at the town board hearing, however, changed his mind.

“People were coming to me from other subdivisions saying, ‘I don’t want it by my neighborhood.’ That’s a pretty good feel for what the community wants,” he said. A conditional use application “has to fit in with what the neighborhood wants. I think some of us missed that.”

Vieira said his career has trained him in management and customer service. “You’re working for the voters and for the community,” he said. “Your job is to serve them and look out for their best interests.”

Vieira had no worry about using reserve funds to balance the budget. “Considering the state of the economy, we have managed very well,” he said.

The candidate also said town government needs to be more involved in bringing in new businesses and supporting existing businesses.

Another goal is to open lines of communication between town board and citizens inside and outside town limits.

“We have a lot of smart people in this community,” he said. “If they feel like they’re involved, they are going to support the community. If they feel like town hall is going to do what it wants, and their ideas and opinions have no value, we will continue to be a bedroom community.”

Mike Steely

Steely, 63, has served on the town board since 1995. He is the owner of Steely Trucking, a business founded by his father in the 1950s. He moved the business to Wellington in 1990 and lives near the downtown area.

Steely is concerned about the town’s recent reliance on reserves to balance operating budgets.

“I really want to keep an eye on this,” Steely said. “I would not like to see reserves drop below $3 million, unless a very good opportunity came along to buy water resources.”

Steely said he wants to serve another four years to keep Wellington running smoothly. “We’re in a lot better shape than most communities,” he said. “I would like to see us continue doing that.”

He was among the four who voted in favor of allowing a poultry processing facility as a conditional use. He said he inspected the plant in Nunn on a day it was not operating and found it to be clean. The Wellington building was planned so that people would not see the animals, and trash would be taken away every day, he said.

“I didn’t see it really bothering anybody,” Steely said. “I’m very pro on business coming to town. We need jobs to keep more things in the community.”

He said he would weigh incentives for new businesses based on what they do for Wellington’s tax base and employment.

On the topic of building more recreation facilities, Steely said Wellington does not have the money right now. He doubted voters would approve a recreation tax district.

Travis Stevens

Stevens, 35, is seeking re-election after serving one term on the town board. He is the owner of Stevens Insurance Agency in Wellington, which is part of Farmers Insurance Group. Stevens moved his business to Wellington in 1999, and his family moved here in 2001. He lives near the downtown area.

Stevens was one of the three board members who voted against the conditional use application for the poultry plant. His opinion was based on a personal visit to the Nunn plant when it was processing poultry, he said.

“What they told us about how it would be run and what I saw were two different things, and that caused me to oppose it,” Stevens said.

He’s also against having a slaughtering plant in the industrial zone.

To preserve its reserve funds, Stevens said, the town board needs to figure out ways to get new money into town.

“I would like to see more in the way of business incentives to attract the businesses we want, not the businesses we have to take, to generate revenue,” he said.

Stevens said he believes the town board is flexible and business-friendly. “We can have good discussions and come to a conclusion on what we think is best for the town,” he said.

Stevens, who has two children, said he would like to see more activities and facilities for youth, but a new tax would be his last resort. “Our job is to find other methods without taxing someone,” he said.

Stevens is a member of the chamber of commerce, past chair of the Community Activities Commission and past chair of the Wellington Recreation Sports Association.

Ernest Cienfuegos-Baca

Cienfuegos-Baca, 41, is running for elective office in Wellington for the first time. He owns Ernest Cienfuegos-Baca Agency of American Family Insurance, with an office in Fort Collins. He lives in Wellington West.

Prior to opening his business, he worked as a counselor at Larimer County’s Workforce Center. He is a member of the Wellington Housing Authority board and the chamber of commerce. He’s also a foster parent and past scout master, and he sponsors several community groups.

Cienfuegos-Baca said he attended the last public hearing on the poultry processing plant, sitting in the back where he could hear the perspectives and concerns of town residents. He probably would have voted against a slaughtering facility, he said, but he did not gather independent information.

“If you are going to bring a business to town, you have to have community support for the business as well, not just business support.”

The candidate added that he is skilled at playing devil’s advocate to better understand another point of view.

“What I bring is an open mind,” Cienfuegos-Baca said, “an ability to listen to both sides to make a knowledgeable vote.”

Cienfuegos-Baca, who has two children, said he would be willing to present a recreation district property tax to the community for a vote. A community center has been at the top of residents’ wish list for a long time, he said, but the town is not much closer to getting it built.

On the topic of balancing town budgets, Cienfuegos-Baca said all communities are tapping into reserves.

“That’s why we have reserves — to use during tough economic times,” he said.

Bill Sullivan

Sullivan, 37, is an on-call anesthetist at Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital. He lives in ViewPointe Subdivision.

Sullivan said he has followed Wellington politics through the newspaper and town web site and decided he wanted to get involved. Wellington is a lot like his hometown in Oklahoma.

Having a bachelor’s degree in animal science, Sullivan followed the debate on the poultry processing plant.

“On the one hand, I think it’s good to embrace our agricultural heritage,” he said. “But I worked for Tyson Foods for a while, and I know all about chicken smell … I probably would have voted no.”

Sullivan said he is “very fiscally conservative,” but he agrees reserve funds should be used in economic downturns. If budget cutting becomes a necessity, he said, he would focus on keeping people employed first.

He also has two children at home and said he has found there is not much for them to do in Wellington. Sullivan said he would favor asking residents if they want a recreation tax district, and he would vote yes.

“We have to keep improving things to draw people to Wellington and fill all the vacant houses,” Sullivan said.

An outdoor pool for summer recreation is on his wish list, but he wants to know more about what others want.

Sullivan said that during his career, he has developed management and teaching skills. “I have good people skills,” he said. “I am genuinely interested in knowing about people and what goes on in their lives.”

It’s important for town board members to listen, he said, “and always keep in mind who we represent.”