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HomeMy WebLinkAboutbocc.packet.10222014 0 Maroon Creek Caucus AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY REGULAR MEETING DATE: October 22, 2014 AGENDA ITEM TITLE: Recognition of a Maroon Creek Caucus STAFF RESPONSIBLE: John Ely, County Attorney, Cindy Houben Director Community Development ISSUE STATEMENT: This is the second reading and public hearing of a resolution recognizing the Maroon Creek Caucus. BACKGROUND: In order to have a coordinated voice in land use and planning matters affecting the Maroon Creek drainage, the residents of the Maroon Creek valley wish to form their own caucus independent of the existing but currently inactive Maroon/Castle Creek Caucus. Article IV of the Home Rule Charter, a copy of which is attached, establishes the procedure for the recognition of a caucus. The BOCC has the opportunity to recognize the formation of the caucus through approval of a Resolution as noted in H.R.C. Section 4.2. The recognition of this caucus and its designated caucus area will supersede the recognition of the previously existing Maroon/Castle Creek Caucus and its designated area, such that the previously existing caucus becomes two smaller, separate caucus areas existing side by side. LINK TO STRATEGIC PLAN: Livable and Supportive Communities KEY DISCUSSION ITEMS: 1. The applicants have attached information for the BOCC's consideration reflecting compliance with the Home Rule Charter with respect to the establishment of a caucus area. 2. In accordance with the Home Rule Charter, the BOCC must make the following findings pursuant to Article IV in order to support recognition of the caucus: (i) Initial Meeting, Section 4.1. At an initial meeting within the proposed caucus area called by a qualified elector, it shall be decided by a majority vote of the qualified electors whether a caucus should be formed. The caucus shall adopt operating procedures and by- laws. (ii) Composition, Section 4.3. Caucus shall include all general electors and non-resident property owners. (iii) Voting, Section 4.4. One vote per member for action items. (iv) Recognized Caucus Area, Section 4.5: a) The Maroon Creek valley is a recognized caucus area as it "reflects geographically contiguous areas with social, economic, cultural and environmental communities of interest" to the greatest extent possible. b) There shall be only one caucus per geographic area. 3. Relative small size of the area and number of potential participants. 4. Inclusion of the area in an already existing caucus. A map depicting the recognized Maroon/Castle Creek Caucus area is attached. BUDGETARY IMPACT: Commitment of staff liaison to facilitate and assist caucus pursuant to the Home Rule Charter Section 4.7. Potential development of an additional master plan. RECOMMENDED BOCC ACTION: Adopt resolution establishing the Maroon Creek Caucus. ATTACHMENTS: Resolution Exhibit"A"-Description of Proposed Caucus Area Exhibit"B"-Proposed Caucus Map and Enlargements City of Aspen Map Map of Existing Maroon/Castle Creek Caucus Section IV Pitkin County Home Rule Charter Letter requesting recognition of Maroon Creek Caucus Public comment- Castle Creek Valley resident e-mail 10.1.14 Public comment-Castle Creek Valley resident letter 10.3.14 RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF PITKIN COUNTY, COLORADO, RECOGNIZING THE MAROON CREEK CAUCUS RESOLUTION NO. -2014 RECITALS 1. The residents of the Maroon Creek valley wish to form an officially recognized caucus. The caucus area is described in Exhibit"A" attached hereto and depicted on the map attached hereto as Exhibit`B". 2. Formation of a caucus is permitted subject to compliance with Article IV of the Pitkin County Home Rule Charter. After satisfying itself that the provisions of this article have been met, the Board of County Commissioners is authorized to recognize the caucus and establish the caucus area by resolution. 3. The following provisions of the Home Rule Charter regarding the recognition of Caucuses have been addressed by residents as required: a. After written notice was sent to all known property owners within the proposed caucus area calling a meeting to be held on July 28, 2014, a majority vote of the qualified electors and non-resident real property owners in attendance determined that a caucus area should be formed for the rural area of Maroon Creek. b. After recognition of the caucus area by the BOCC, the caucus will adopt by-laws and operating procedures within the scope of Article IV of the Home Rule Charter. 4. The recognition of a Maroon Creek Caucus and the designation of the caucus area supersedes the recognition and designation of the previously existing Maroon/Castle Creek Caucus such that the previously existing caucus becomes two smaller, separate caucus areas existing side by side. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of County Commissioners of Pitkin County, Colorado hereby officially recognizes the Maroon Creek Caucus, with boundaries described herein on Exhibit"A" and depicted on the map attached hereto as Exhibit "B" and awards the Caucus all functions set forth in Article IV of the Pitkin County Home Rule Charter. INTRODUCED, FIRST READ, AND SET FOR PUBLIC HEARING ON OCTOBER 8, 2014. NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING AND TITLE AND SHORT SUMMARY OF THE RESOLUTION PUBLISHED IN THE ASPEN TIMES WEEKLY ON OCTOBER 9, 2014. NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING AND THE FULL TEXT OF THE RESOLUTION POSTED ON THE OFFICIAL PITKIN COUNTY WEBSITE (www.aspenpitkin.com) ON OCTOBER 10, 2014. ADOPTED AFTER FINAL READING AND PUBLIC HEARING ON OCTOBER 22, 2014 PUBLISHED BY TITLE AND SHORT SUMMARY, AFTER ADOPTION, IN THE ASPEN TIMES WEEKLY ON , 2014. ATTEST: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS By By: Jeanette Jones Robert A. Ittner, Jr., Chair Deputy County Clerk Date: APPROVED AS TO FORM: MANAGER APPROVAL John Ely, County Attorney Jon Peacock, County Manager EXHIBIT "A" MAROON CREEK CAUCUS Beginning at the SE corner of Lot Two, Heatherbed Lodge PUD, continuing across Maroon Creek Road to the Western edge of Lot 17, Aspen Highlands Village PUD, continuing South along the City of Aspen Town Boundary around the perimeter of Aspen Highlands Village PUD until the Aspen Highlands Ski Area Boundary. The Caucus Boundary follows the Aspen Highlands ridge line to an elevation of 12,839'just below Hunter Peak (13,497). The caucus boundary then cuts NW to the Buttermilk ridge line above and including the Maroon Bells parking lot at the end of Maroon Creek Road. The boundary follows the ridge line down to the Southern most tip on the Buttermilk Ski Area. The boundary heads East to a point on the western edge of Lot 1, Heatherbed Lodge PUD, then South along the Western edge of Lots 1 and 2, Heatherbed Lodge PUD, then east along the Southern boundary of lot 2, Heatherbed Lodge PUD to the Point of Beginning. *the proposed Maroon Creek Caucus does not include any parcels located within the City of Aspen. *the proposed Maroon Creek Caucus does include only two parcels within the Urban Grown Boundary for the City of Aspen. These parcels are located directly south of the Heatherbed Lodge PUD. *this does not substitute for a proper legal description of the Proposed Maroon Creek Caucus. P ro po'e_d:1' Highlands Detailed Map ''.I City of Aspen & Urban Growth f� Skyview PUD „Maroon Creek Caucus i 1 /p Flit c.,A����° �' Boundary Detailed Map 5 , ,!�. )---- ‘-7---7%) i ! �� 1 Parcel i <:, 49/ 0 !Ga i 4� r 4' -----41? 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ARTICLE IV— CAUCUSES Added 11/3/98 4.0 Preamble The word "caucus" may derive from an Algonquin Indian term describing their advisory form of representative democracy. In the Pitkin County experience, the word connotes representative democracy at the most local level where policies are formulated and recommended by the people whom they most affect. Once formulated at the local caucus level, these policies provide elected and appointed county officials with recommendations to enact just laws and policies. 4.1 Establishment of Caucuses: Initial Meeting 4.1.1 A caucus may be established by any qualified elector who calls a meeting at a convenient time and place within the proposed caucus area. An information campaign shall be conducted to ensure that all qualified electors and non-resident real property owners in the proposed caucus area know of the date, time, place and purpose of the meeting. 4.1.2 At the initial meeting it shall be decided by majority vote of the qualified electors (and non-resident real property owners) in attendance whether a caucus should be formed. 4.1.3 Each caucus shall adopt its own operating procedures and by-laws within the scope of this Article. 4.2 Recognition of Caucuses The Board, after satisfying itself that the provisions of this Article have been met, shall recognize the caucus and establish the caucus area by resolution. 4.3 Composition A recognized caucus shall consist of all the qualified electors who reside in the caucus area, together with the non-resident owners of real property within the caucus area. 4.4 Voting Each caucus member shall have one (1) vote on all matters appropriate for caucus voting. Voting on any other basis may be conducted on special matters for information purposes only, and must be clearly identified as such. HOME RULE CHARTER 1 8 Includes 1978 through 2011 amendments 4.5 Recognized Caucus Area Recognized caucus areas to the greatest extent possible shall reflect geographically contiguous areas with social, economic, cultural and environmental communities of interest. There shall be only one (1) recognized caucus in each geographic area. Each caucus shall provide proposed definite boundaries for their caucus area to the Board. 4.6 Function A caucus, upon recognition by the Board, shall have a recommendatory function for all matters directly affecting the caucus area, and shall permit its members to report minority views, as well as majority views, and division of votes with any such recommendation. Further, a caucus shall have a recommendatory function for all planning matters affecting the caucus area, as well as other County matters affecting the caucus area including, but not limited to, budgetary and work program matters. Added 11/398 4.7 County Government Support of Caucus The County Manager, or designee, shall designate staff to be responsible to serve as liaison with the caucuses to facilitate and assist caucus communications and processes. The county may provide such other technical, logistical and financial assistance to facilitate effective caucus activity. Added 11/3/98 4.8 Notice of Meetings The caucuses shall provide notice of meetings through such means as newspapers, Internet, radio, mailings, telephone and local public notice bulletin boards. The county may help in this process by providing up to $1,500.00 annually in cash or in-kind services to each caucus to help provide notification and publication of minutes of its meetings. Added 11/3/98 4.9 County Notification of Citizens The County will annually publish, in at least one (1) local paper, by a one- third page notice, the date, time and place of the annual caucus meeting if that information is known to the County prior to annual caucus meeting. Added 11/3/98 4.10 Meetings Each recognized caucus must designate a set date, time and place for its annual meeting when officers are elected. Added 11/3/98 4.11 Master Plans HOME RULE CHARTER 19 Includes 1978 through 2011 amendments The County Commissioners and the Planning and Zoning Commission will encourage the development of Caucus Master Plans. The County Commissioners shall specify the criteria for the Caucus Master Plan development procedures, and local caucus approval. Caucus Master Plans which satisfy such criteria shall be recognized by the Planning and Zoning Commission, and County Commissioners. The Caucus Master Plan shall be considered as one of the primary advisory documents in the development of county laws, rules and regulations which affect caucus areas. HOME RULE CHARTER 20 Includes 1978 through 2011 amendments September 26, 2014 BY EMAIL Pitkin County Board of County Commissioners Cindy Houben, Pitkin County Community Development Director Re: Request for Recognition as the Maroon Creek Caucus Dear Commissioners and Cindy: In the tradition of representative democracy espoused through the County Home Rule Charter and the Land Use Code,the vast majority of the qualified Pitkin County electors and property owners from Highlands to the Maroon Bells request that the Commissioners recognize and formally establish a Maroon Creek Caucus. As the following discussion will show, we have complied with the spirit, intent, and legal requirements for formation, and recognition of our caucus will facilitate a grassroots collaborative that has always been at the heart of Pitkin County governance—but is currently lacking in the Maroon Creek valley today. I. Background The caucus system has been in place in Pitkin County for many years, dating back to 1990 in our area when a caucus was established by BOCC Resolution#90-99 for the Maroon/Castle area. In 1992, a series of"Statements"were adopted by the caucus to provide direction for future development, though no formal master plan was adopted. In 1998, the Pitkin County voters adopted Article IV, Caucuses, as part of the County Home Rule Charter, stating in the preamble that"the word [caucus] connotes representative democracy at the most local level where policies are formulated and recommended by the people whom they most affect ... these policies provide elected and appointed county officials with recommendations to enact just laws and policies." (Pitkin County Home Rule Charter, section 4.0, emphasis added.) As such, caucuses are recognized by law as recommending bodies with two primary responsibilities: 4.6 Function Letter to BOCC Re: Request for Recognition of Maroon Creek Caucus September 26, 2014 Page 2 of 5 A caucus, upon recognition by the Board, shall have a recommendatory function for all matters directly affecting the caucus area, and shall permit its members to report minority views, as well as majority views, and a division of votes with any such recommendation. Further, a caucus shall have a recommendatory function for all planning matters affecting the caucus area, as well as other County matters affecting the caucus area including,but not limited to,budgetary and work program matters. 4.11 Master Plans The County Commissioners and the Planning and Zoning Commission will encourage the development of Caucus Master Plans. The County Commissioners shall specify the criteria for the Caucus Master Plan development procedures, and local caucus approval. Caucus Master Plans which satisfy such criteria shall be recognized by the Planning and Zoning Commission, and County Commissioners. The Caucus Master Plan shall be considered as one of the primary advisory documents in the development of county laws, rules and regulations which affect caucus areas. (Pitkin County Home Rule Charter, emphasis added.) The Colorado State Legislature also adopted mandatory comprehensive planning requirements (C.R.S. 30-28-106(4)), and Pitkin County—already a leader in master planning in Colorado—moved to update its existing plans and caucus infrastructure. To this extent, in 2003, a Maroon/Castle Creek Master Plan was adopted, which, interestingly enough, did not include the entire adopted caucus area because of annexations by the City of Aspen. To our knowledge, the County did not amend the caucus area at the time of adoption of the 2003 Maroon/Castle Creek Master Plan, even though significant portions of the caucus area were not addressed by the plan(e.g., Moore/Five Trees, Highlands Village, Iselin, and Aspen Valley Hospital). After the adoption of the Maroon/Castle Creek Master Plan, the caucus functioned for a number of years, but by 2006 was inactive. For over eight years—eight years of significant development in Pitkin County—the defunct Maroon/Castle caucus has had no voice in land use and planning matters affecting the two separate drainages. Neighbors have done their own thing regarding various development proposals,but there has been no coordinated voice and perspective from a caucus. The County recently began an update process for the caucus area master plans, some of which are over ten years old, which called into question—for us—the appropriateness of the Maroon and Castle Creek drainages as one gigantic planning area. Our neighborhood began meeting and discussing the possibilities, and we decided that it would be appropriate and desirable for us to form a separate Maroon Creek caucus area, more in line with the smaller caucuses of Emma and East of Aspen. We believe that a smaller caucus area, one that is actually Letter to BOCC Re: Request for Recognition of Maroon Creek Caucus September 26, 2014 Page 3 of 5 functionally geographically contiguous (as compared to the Maroon/Castle caucus area, which crosses Highlands to achieve contiguity), will better achieve the County Charter objectives of creating caucuses that are representative of the particular"social, economic, cultural and environmental communities of interest." (Pitkin County Home Rule Charter, section 4.5. II. Compliance With Home Rule Charter The County Charter provides the following with respect to the establishment of caucus areas: 4.1 Establishment of Caucuses: Initial Meeting 4.1.1 A caucus may be established by any qualified elector who calls a meeting at a convenient time and place within the proposed caucus area. An information campaign shall be conducted to ensure that all qualified electors and non-resident real property owners in the proposed caucus area know of the date, time,place and purpose of the meeting. 4.1.2 At the initial meeting it shall be decided by majority vote of the qualified electors (and non-resident real property owners) in attendance whether a caucus should be formed. 4.1.3 Each caucus shall adopt its own operating procedures and by-laws within the scope of this Article. Back in early July, we communicated with the Community Development Department, as follows: Dear Cindy and Ellen: Fourteen of the eighteen single-family property owners in the rural area of Maroon Creek recently met and determined that we should form our own independent caucus area. The reasoning is that the Maroon/Castle Caucus has not adequately represented our unique interests here in the Maroon Creek rural area (it is now inactive), and we believe it would be more appropriate and much simpler to adopt a caucus area plan that addresses the special concerns of our area--the gateway to the Maroon Bells. To that end, Mike Waters (President of the Maroon Creek Ranch HOA) and I have familiarized ourselves with the County Charter requirements for formation of a caucus area. We would greatly appreciate the participation and support of the Letter to BOCC Re: Request for Recognition of Maroon Creek Caucus September 26, 2014 Page 4 of 5 Community Development office in this process--both with the formation of the new caucus area and also the formulation of a caucus area master plan. Let us know what help you are willing/able to offer in this respect. As qualified electors, Mike and I will be calling a meeting on Monday, July 28 to determine if there is majority support for the formation of a Maroon Creek Caucus. Will the two of you assist us in the outreach that the County Charter contemplates? Thanks so much for your thoughts and input as both Mike and I are new to this process. Sincerely, Marcella Larsen Co-Manager, Larsen Family Limited Partnership 1959, 1965, 1967 and 1969 Maroon Creek Road Mike Waters President, Maroon Creek Ranch Homeowners Association 2021, 2045, 2135, 2156, 2165 and 2175 Maroon Creek Road On July 29, we provided the following update: Hi Cindy and Ellen: We wanted to update you on the progress of the formation of a Maroon Creek Caucus for the rural area of Pitkin County. After our informal meeting where interest was expressed in such a caucus, written notice was sent to all property owners in the area from Mike Waters and me for an initial meeting pursuant to section 4.1.1 of the Home Rule Charter. On Monday, July 28, a meeting was held at 4 p.m. where a majority vote of the qualified electors (and non-resident real property owners) in attendance determined that a caucus area should be formed for the rural area of Maroon Creek. Out of the ten attendees,the vote was unanimous. Additionally, six other property owners who were unable to attend the meeting indicated their support for the new caucus. As we believe we have complied with the Home Rule Charter provisions for formation of the caucus, the next step would appear to be a resolution by the BOCC recognizing the caucus. As we would like to notice an annual meeting for August 18 at 4 p.m., we would greatly appreciate your assistance in obtaining Letter to BOCC Re: Request for Recognition of Maroon Creek Caucus September 26, 2014 Page 5 of 5 BOCC recognition of our community's desire to form a caucus recognized by the County charter. Thanks, Cindy and Ellen, and please let us know if there is anything further we need to do to get this caucus started. Thank you, Marcella Larsen To date, and since July, we have complied with all requirements of the County Charter for establishment of a caucus, and our group would like to be recognized by the BOCC. It is our understanding that a map of the proposed caucus area—roughly the area from the city limits of Highlands toward Maroon Bells—will be prepared by the Community Development Department, along with the resolution of approval. III. Caucus Intentions The Commissioners may have questions about where we intend to go with our newly formed caucus. Our first effort will be outreach, ensuring that we not only have all of the property owners involved, but also qualified electors who may be renting along Maroon Creek Road. After we have been approved as a caucus area, we will adopt bylaws that comply with the Home Rule Charter, most likely a hybrid of those from the Emma and Woody Creek caucus areas. We will also try to engage users of Maroon Creek Road(e.g., the Forest Service, Aspen Cycling Club and similar groups) to ensure that we have the broadest possible community perspective about what should happen in our area. Finally, we will update the 2003 master plan for our area. There, we would love to have the assistance of Community Development,but we understand that it is likely we will have to fundraise to obtain additional funds that will allow us to proceed expeditiously. Assuming we are able to raise those funds, this is all good news for Pitkin County and the future of the Maroon Creek valley. Our community and your constituents are genuinely excited to engage with the Commissioners in this collective, grass root planning effort, and we hope you will approve our caucus area soon. Thank you, Marcella Larsen and Mike Waters For the would-be Maroon Creek Caucus 10/1/2014 Pitkin County Mail-Split of Castle/Maroon Caucus XrItIPi LOU r rr' Jane Achey <jane.achey@pitkincounty.com> l G3 Split of Castle/Maroon Caucus 1 message joseph wells <joewells@me.com> Wed, Oct 1, 2014 at 9:40 AM To: attorney@pitkincounty.com Cc: Cindy Houben <cindy.houben@pitkincounty.com> John, I bumped into Cindy this morning. She mentioned that an issue is on Tuesday's agenda regarding breaking off some portion of the Maroon Creek Caucus area from the Castle/ Maroon Caucus. As you probably are aware, the Castle/Maroon Caucus has been inactive for some time. The last person willing to take on the responsibility of running the meetings, sending out notifications, etc. left town on what was to be a fairly brief sabbatical and never came back. The process of holding meetings would be a lot simpler if we had a current e-mail list of owners, but that is a painstaking process to assemble, as is the alternative of notifying owners by snail mail, based on the record addresses. At one time, I actually thought that splitting the two valleys into separate caucuses might make it simpler to get each back up and running as a caucus. Personally, I am less concerned with what happens over on the Maroon Creek side than in my own valley and I am sure that most of the owners over there feel the same way about the Castle Creek Valley, so it seemed to be a fairly logical thing to do. In discussing this with one of the women who is very involved in the Meadowood HOA(her name escapes me and I don't quickly find her e-mails), she points out how difficult it has always been to get people to show up for meetings. A smaller"pool"of property owners would just worsen that situation. In thinking back to our past meetings, I would have to say that most who attended were from Meadowood and the older Highlands single family areas. Cindy's apparent desire to draw a distinction between areas within the UGB and areas outside seems to further complicate the discussion. I think that Cindy may have been focussed on drawing the distinction for the purpose of updating the Master Plans, and perhaps not for the day-to-day operation of a caucus. Based on my discussions with other property owners, I tend to agree with them that we would be hard-pressed to hold meetings without some of the larger single-family areas that have historically been a part of the Caucus. If you would like to discuss, please give me a call at 925-8080. Thanks, Joe Wells httos://mail.a000le.com/mail/ca/u/0/?ui=2&ik=1 ecde246a9&view=ot&search=inbox&th=148cc5ecbac3bc53&sim1=148cc5ecbac3bc53 111 Joseph Wells Post Office Box 4259 Aspen,Colorado 81612 Phone:970.925.8080 e-mail Address:joewells@me.com October 3, 2014 Mr.John Ely Pitkin County Attorney 530 East Main Street Aspen, CO 81611 RE:Proposal to Form a New Maroon Creek Caucus Hand Delivered Dear John: There is a staff comment in the packet for next Wednesday's BOCC Agenda Item which indicates that the County does not have a copy of the current boundary for the Castle/Maroon Caucus (the "Caucus"). A number of years ago, in response to a lack of clarity regarding the boundary of the Caucus, I worked with the County GIS Department to prepare a map of the area included within the Caucus. The intent was to include all unincorporated lands within the Maroon and Castle Creek drainages down to State Highway 82. The boundary extends up to the ridgelines surrounding the area, so that all of the mining claims lying within the drainages are inside of the Caucus boundary. However, any areas within the Ski Area Permits for Buttermilk and Aspen Mountain Ski Areas (for which we could not locate maps at the time)were intended to be excluded, so that the two ski areas which lie primarily outside of the Caucus would not be included simply because a relatively small, inconsequential, portion of either ski area happened to extend into one of the two drainages. I am forwarding a black and white copy of that colored map for your use. Areas within the Caucus are cross-hatched. As you can see, the Caucus boundary includes all areas within the two drainages that are not within the Aspen City Limits, without regard to whether they are within or outside of the UGB. Therefore, subdivisions such as Meadowood and the older subdivisions at Aspen Highlands are included within the Caucus because they have not been incorporated into the City, and residents of those areas clearly share concerns about land-use proposals in the vicinity. This map was endorsed at a meeting of the Caucus, so I consider it to be the official map of the Caucus. I will attempt to superimpose an approximate boundary of the proposed Maroon Creek Caucus onto the Caucus map prior to next week's meeting. Mr.John Ely Pitkin County Attorney Page two of two One issue that needs to be considered in reviewing the proposed boundary for the new caucus is whether it matters that the portion of the Aspen Highlands Ski Area within the Maroon Creek drainage would be within the new caucus boundary and the portion within the Castle Creek drainage would remain within the original Caucus boundary, while the base area would be within neither, because it is within the City. I am not sure whether it does matter or not,but I think that the residents of Castle Creek would be reluctant to lessen their input into proposals regarding Aspen Highlands when it involves land within the Castle Creek drainage. Please let me know if you have any questions. erel , Joseph Wells