Mindy Leary, Gilpin County. On July 22, 2020, County Manager Abel Montoya and Business Analyst Jaime Tirado hosted the second workshop to discuss creative solutions for reopening the Gilpin Community Center. The center has been forced to close because it is not a statutory requirement for the county which is facing a growing financial crisis amid the pandemic.
Recently the county had to make several staff layoffs and close the Community Center Campus which included the gym, pool, arena, barn, senior services, daycare services, etc. During the virtual Zoom meeting, there was a live chat with links to community surveys. Eighty-one people were in attendance at the beginning of the meeting.
About 2,000 people visited the campus in 2019, averaging 17 visits per person. It costs about two million dollars annually, including unforeseen repairs and utilities. Currently Gilpin County does not have a sales tax so as to continue its agreement with Black Hawk to fund one million annually to Gilpin County Schools. For this reason, property taxes will probably be the focus of raising funds.
The county would need 4.5 mills to generate enough revenue to fund the Community Center. One mill equals $440,000 and the county currently has 9 mills for the school and the Fire Department, but these are separate from the county.
In addition, the discussion will also consider funding for the Sheriff’s Department, equaling 4.5 mills as well to restore lost services and/or prevent deeper reductions. The grand total would be 18 mills in addition to the 9 mills currently held.
The county has a little more than 6,000 residents, as measured in 2018 with a median house value of $337,000 and a median salary of $75,000 per household. The county property tax rate is 7.15% and if you times that by $337,000 and then times that by the mill levy of 9 mills, it equals $228/year. Divided monthly it equals about $18, the cost of an average meal; meaning if every property owner gave up one lunch then the county could fund the community center and the Sheriff’s Office.
County Attorney Brad Benning talked about Gallagher and Tabor laws that were intended to stabilize property taxes in 1982. Property tax revenue is typically the main revenue of a county. Mill levies have acted to balance out lower tax revenues so as to stabilize the budget.
The county is considering a debrucing measure which means getting rid of Tabor limits so that a county can stabilize its revenue by keeping taxes above their needs. Gilpin is one of only five counties in the state that have not debruced.
If only user fees were instituted, then the cost would be approximately $1,000 per year per person. If property tax fees were instituted, then it would cost $228 per household per year.
Tirado said online surveys would be open for two more weeks and had 56 initial respondents. The previous surveys from the first workshop had 118 responses. Thirty-nine percent voted for monthly meetings which will happen on the third Tuesday of every month with the next meeting being August 18 from 6-7 p.m.
The gym area had the most response for major community benefit with youth programs taking second in importance.
The mill levy and sales tax adoption had the most stable response from the county. One question is how the county could make up for the lost revenue to the school if a sales tax is put in place. County government representatives are doing more research into that matter.
Residents want the community center open as soon as possible and the fastest way to do that is with a mill levy. A special district plan couldn’t happen sooner than July 2021 and would need a group of residents to champion the cause.
The purpose of these workshops is to gauge community interest in reopening the community center and/or in preventing further reduction in law enforcement and what that could entail, especially what potential ballot measures would look like in November. Ongoing community participation is crucial to this process.
There will be five focus groups: Gym/pool, arena/barn, senior services, childcare and hobbyists. You can sign up for a focus group by emailing Gabrielle Chisholm at [email protected].
The next community center workshop will be held virtually on August 18, 2020, from 6-7 p.m. and can be accessed by visiting the county website.
(Originally published in the August 6, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)
