Town board to work on facilities plan

October 21, 2009

By Cherry Sokoloski

The Wellington

 

At its Oct. 13 work session, Wellington (Colorado) Town Board members offered some long-range ideas to incorporate into next year’s town budget. A draft budget for 2010 has been prepared and can be accessed at www.townofwellington.com.

Board member Mishie Daknis cited a need for better town government facilities.

“We’ve got to do something with town hall,” she said, noting that it’s too small for current needs.

Daknis said a ballot proposal for a new town hall could be combined with a request for a community recreation center. “It’s time to start planning in that direction,” she said. “I would love to bring it to a vote.”

Mayor Larry Noel commented that a tax issue in the current economy “doesn’t have a chance.” He also said that a location would have to be found before a proposal could be floated to town citizens. Daknis said she would like to move forward in finding a suitable location.

Town administrator Larry Lorentzen said that moving town hall off Cleveland Avenue would be a good idea, since the main street location is more appropriate for tax-generating businesses.

Lorentzen said he would allocate funds in next year’s budget for a master facilities plan for Wellington. Such a plan could include a new town hall, a town shop, rec center and possibly a Boys & Girls Club facility. He will investigate what such a plan might cost before the Oct. 27 town board meeting.

Daknis also said she would also like to see more sidewalks built on routes that children take to school, especially on Sixth Street north of Cleveland Avenue. The recently completed sidewalk on Washington Avenue has drawn a lot of praise from townspeople, she said.

More money for park planning will be part of next year’s budget. Lorentzen said that the town recently received 13 proposals, ranging from $150,000 to $200,000, for design work on Buffalo Creek Park. The current budget has $30,000 designated for this purpose, so work on the park design can begin this year, Lorentzen said.

The process of choosing a company to design the park will begin immediately, according to Lorentzen. He could recommend a contractor to the board as soon as the Oct. 27 meeting, but if interviews are necessary the process will take longer.

Total cost of developing the park, Lorentzen said, will likely range from $2.1 million to $2.9 million.

Lorentzen said budget work sessions will be held before every town board meeting until December. At the next session, scheduled for Oct. 27 at 6:30 p.m., the board will begin to look at goals for specific funds within the budget.

The draft budget, estimated at $9.32 million, is slightly higher than this year’s budget of $9.19 million. The levy for property taxes — 14.230 mills — is projected to remain the same.

Wellington is being cautious and budgeting for a slight decrease in sales tax revenue, expecting to collect $545,250 in 2010.

A public hearing on the 2010 budget will be held Dec. 8. The budget will be adopted at the same meeting.