Black Hawk is optimistic for 2021 and wishing all a Merry Christmas!

All employees and projects maintained during the trying times of 2020 By Randy Beaudette Highlights of the December 9, 2020 Black Hawk City Council Regular online meeting includes many end-of-year business items such as 2021 Annual Budget, City employee Holiday schedule, and the grant agreement with CDOT to keep the Black Hawk and Central City Tramway running. Mayor Spellman called the Council to order promptly at 3:00 pm followed by Roll Call and an online Pledge of Allegiance. Roll call revealed Council members that were present online included Linda Armbright, Paul Bennett, Jim Johnson, Hal Midcap, Greg Moates, and Benito Torres. Also present online were City Attorney Corey Hoffmann, City Manager Stephen Cole, City Clerk/ Administrative Services Director Melissa Greiner, and Deputy City Clerk Michele Martin. City Attorney Hoffmann asked the usual but necessary request to Council to declare any Conflicts of Interest on any issue appearing on the agenda other than those already disclosed and filed with the City Clerk and Secretary of State. There were no objections from the City Council or from anyone online. Approval of Minutes Black Hawk City Council approved the meeting minutes from the November 11, 2020 Regular Meeting and the December 1, 2020 Special Meeting with no corrections or amendments. PUBLIC HEARINGS 2021 Budget (Resolution 69-2020) Black Hawk City Council approved a resolution summarizing expenditures and revenues for each Fund and adopting a Budget for the City of Black Hawk, Colorado, for the calendar year beginning on the first day of January 2021 and ending on the last day of December 2021, and appropriating sums of money to various Funds and Spending Agencies in the amount, and for the purposes set forth. The proposed Budget is as presented at the November 11, 2020 work session, with two exceptions. Funding in the amount of $60,000 has been included for a drone laser show, and the subsidy to the Gilpin Ambulance Authority has been reduced by $4,492. There were no comments supporting or opposing this Resolution 69-2020. For a complete review of the 2021 budget, go to: https://site.cityofblackhawk.org . General Property Tax Levy (Council Bill 31/ Ordinance 2020-31) The purpose of this Ordinance is levying the General Property Taxes for the Year 2020 to help defray the costs of Government for the City of Black Hawk, Colorado for the 2021 budget year. This ordinance sets the City’s property tax mill levy at .036 mills for 2020, to be collected in 2021. There were no comments supporting or opposing Council Bill 31, and Black Hawk City Council approved Council Bill 31 unanimously. Tram Grant InterGovernmental Agreement (Council Bill 32/Ordinance 2020-32) Black Hawk City Council approved Council Bill 32, which is an Ordinance ratifying the authorization for the City Manager to execute the CARES Act Grant Amendment between the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), Division of Transit and Rail, and the City of Black Hawk dba Black Hawk and Central City Tramway in an amount not to exceed $190,093. The City was successful in receiving a grant from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Distribution from CDOT was based on previously awarded 5311 grant funding. This grant allows reimbursement of transit related expenses related to the coronavirus and requires no local match. This grant allows reimbursement retroactive to January 20, 2020. This Amendment adds the phase II grant award of $81,740 and extends the time to utilize the funds until December 31, 2021. The City will be able to submit reimbursement requests for all cleaning, maintenance and fuel for the transit service as well as any startup costs once the service resumes. There were no comments supporting or opposing Council Bill 32. Gilpin Ambulance Maintenance IGA (Council Bill 33/ Ordinance 2020-33) This Council Bill authorizes the execution of the InterGovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the City of Black Hawk and the Gilpin Ambulance Authority regarding fleet maintenance services for 2021. The City provides fleet maintenance for the Gilpin Ambulance Authority. The Authority utilizes the City Fleet Maintenance Department for all of their routine service as it is convenient and cost effective. An informal survey of in-town shops was conducted to verify our hourly rate was extremely competitive. The Fleet rate is set at $110/hour billed in full one-hour increments. All parts are invoiced to the Authority at cost. There were no comments supporting or opposing Council Bill 33 and Black Hawk City Council approved it unanimously Colorado Information Sharing Consortium IGA (Council Bill 34/ Ordinance 2020-34) Black Hawk City Council accepted approval on Council Bill 34 which is an Ordinance approving the City’s participation in the InterGovernmental Agreement in the Colorado Information Sharing Consortium. The Black Hawk Police Department has applied for and received grant funding to join the Colorado Information Sharing Consortium, a Colorado local government entity (the “CISC”) and Numerica Corporation, a Colorado corporation (“Numerica”) and become a member/user of Lumen. Lumen is a joint law enforcement data sharing system that helps Colorado Law Enforcement and the Criminal Justice members share their RMS information. The Black Hawk Police Department regularly contacts subjects related to the metro area during their call for service. The information obtained from the Lumen system will benefit our detectives and officers who investigate cases. There were no comments supporting or opposing Council Bill 34. ACTION ITEMS Methodist Church Window Restoration (Resolution 71-2020) Baseline Project Manager Matt Reed presented Resolution 71-2020 for approval which is Change Order #2 to the Construction Manager/ General Contractor contract dated February 27, 2019, accepting the increase of $64,858.84 to the Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) for the purpose of restoring all stained glass windows in the historic church building located at 331 Gregory Street. The GMP for the Gregory Street Plaza currently encompasses some exterior work at the historic Methodist church, including rehabilitation of the brick and construction of a new deck. Change Order #2 would authorize Roche Constructors to enter into an agreement with Watkins Stained Glass to fully restore the stained glass windows in this building. The windows are generally in fair condition, with several cracked glass pieces, several mismatched glass pieces, and bowing of a few windows. Restoration would repair these imperfections, replace lead came and cement where necessary, and perform a thorough cleaning of the windows. Black Hawk City Council approved Resolution 71-2020 unanimously. Disposal of Surplus Property (Resolution 72-2020) Resolution 72-2020 is a Resolution replacing Resolution 24-2018 giving the City Manager additional authorization to dispose of surplus or unused vehicles and excess equipment. In 2018 the City Council authorized the City Manager to dispose of surplus or unused equipment under Resolution 24-2018. However, the resolution did not include the disposal of unused or surplus vehicles. This resolution rescinds Resolution 24-2018 and replaces it with this resolution which adds City Vehicles to the City Manager’s list of approved items that can be disposed of. Black Hawk City Council approved Resolution 72-2020 unanimously. Agreement for Transit Related Services (Resolution 73-2020) This Resolution authorizes the execution of the Fifth Addendum to the Agreement with MV Transportation Inc. for providing the Management and Operation of the Driver Team Services for the Black Hawk and Central City Tramway for 2021. The Black Hawk and Central City Tramway has been suspended since last March. The City is cautiously optimistic that it will start back up on January 1st. The intent is to resume the schedule that was in place when the system was suspended. The shuttle bus will continue to circulate through both cities on a specific route with specific stops. The route takes approximately 20-30 minutes to complete. A single bus will continue to operate Monday through Thursday and two buses will continue to operate Friday through Sunday. The City is in receipt of grants under the CAREs and 5311 that will help defray the costs for operations for 2021. The costs associated with this addendum include a 2.5% increase over last year. A motion was made for approval by City Council and it passes unanimously. 5280 Strategies Personal Services Agreement (Resolution 74-2020) Resolution 74-2020 is a resolution approving the ninth Addendum to Personal Services Agreement with 5280 Strategies, LLC, who has been the City’s lobbyist since 2010. There is no increase in fees for 2021. Motion passed unanimously. M&C Communications Personal Services Agreement (Resolution 75-2020) Black Hawk City Council also passed Resolution 75-2020 which is a resolution approving the third Addendum to Personal Services Agreement with M&C Communications. The City first contracted with M&C Communications for assistance with its public relations needs in 2017. The first annual contract for public relations, marketing, and social media management was executed in 2018 with the first addendum approved in 2019 and second addendum approved in 2020. Due to the constraints on funds for 2021, the City has scaled back its PR and Marketing contract with M&C Communications to development and management of social media content. All other services are offered on an a-la-carte basis. Pinnacol Assurance 2021 Contract (Resolution 76-2020) Pinnacol Assurance’s quote for Workers’ Compensation coverage for 2021 is 16% lower than the 2020 premium. The decrease in premium is a result of a 10% reduction in payroll for 2021. The City’s Experience Mod increased from 0.85 to 0.95 which limited saving s for 2021. However, to offset the Experience Mod, the City’s Workers’ Compensation broker, IMA of Colorado, was able to negotiate some significant schedule rating discounts through the underwriter as a result of being clients of Pinnacol for ten (10) consecutive years. Black Hawk City Council approved Resolution 76-2020 unanimously. City Council 2021 Regular Meeting Schedule (Resolution 77-2020) Resolution 77-2020 is a resolution adopting the 2021 City Council Regular Meeting Schedule. 2021 Holiday Schedule (Resolution 78-2020) Resolution 78-2020, is a resolution adopting the 2021 Holiday Schedule. Historic Preservation Committee Schedule (Resolution 79-2020) Resolution 79-2020, is a resolution adopting the 2021 Historic Preservation Commission Regular Meeting Schedule. Black Hawk City Council approved Resolutions 77, 78, and 79-2020 unanimously. End-of Year Comments Mayor Spellman lead the comments stating that it would be an understatement saying this has been a challenging year for all in Black Hawk, Colorado, and the entire country. The sad aspects of all this is the inability for Council to convene in person in which the Mayor misses. “It’s little things like having department leaders giving their reports in person, the ringing of the bell, all of us seeing if Lance is going to make it upstairs to the chambers before the bell, and going downstairs to see what cookies are left on the plate after Paul and Linda go through them.” It’s the small but entertaining things that the Mayor misses the most. Being able to see one another, keeping up the enthusiasm, and seeing what we are doing in the City is good. He commended everyone for working through these challenging times and stated that the City’s staff and team members have done an excellent job and he wishes all a Merry Christmas and the happiest of holidays. Alderman Torres added that most municipalities around the country have cut back to the point that projects and development have been stopped. Black Hawk being the exception has not done any of that. Mr. Torres added, “It is a real testament of making good, sound decisions. Sometimes we argue but we always arrive at a good decision. There is a lot of respect and unity on this Council and I would like to congratulate everyone on this Council for that.” Alderman Armbright commented that she is happy that all the City’s employees were able to retain employment through these trying times. Legal Counsel City Attorney recommended a brief Executive Session to review matters concerning the City’s device fee, land use issues, and potential legislation. Executive Session Black Hawk City Council approved a motion to adjourn to Executive Session per C.R.S. 24-6-402 (4)(b) to confer with an attorney for the local public body for the purposes of receiving legal advice on specific legal questions. Next Meeting The next Black Hawk City Council regular virtual meeting will be held January 13, 2021 at 3:00 pm. For more information go to www.cityofblackhawk.org .

Black Hawk is optimistic for 2021 and wishing all a Merry Christmas!

Patrick Henry Sweeney

Related Posts

Keep the High Country Clean: Your Complete Guide to Waste Management with Timberline Disposal

When the Lights Go Out: Why Power Outages Are Becoming Part of Daily Life

Craig Station’s Final Chapter: Can Federal Intervention Save Moffat County’s Economic Lifeline?

Central City Has Never Been Afraid of Big Moments. Until Now.

Colorado’s Quiet Watch: How Real ID, License-Plate Cameras, and Ring Doorbells Are Building a Shadow Surveillance State—and What Citizens Can Still Do to Opt Out

About Us

Quick Links

News Categories

Weekly Newsletter

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password

Are you sure want to unlock this post?

Are you sure want to cancel subscription?

Black Hawk is optimistic for 2021 and wishing all a Merry Christmas!

Support authors and subscribe to content

Subscribe

Related Posts

About Us

Quick Links

News Categories

Weekly Newsletter

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password