Greeley city council unanimously agreed to urge voters to vote ‘no’ on ballot questions 2G and 2H
By Kelly Ragan
On Tuesday, city council members unanimously voted to urge voters against ballot questions 2G and 2H, two proposed amendments to the city’s charter that would change the way it handles water.
The ballot questions were put forth by a citizen group called Save Greeley’s Water, with mayoral candidate John Gauthiere at the helm.
The two amendments would give Greeley citizens much more control over the decisions the city makes regarding water, something Gauthiere says the city needs after it purchased the water and storage rights to Terry Ranch.
“I support a no vote because it’s going to hinder the way we make basic water decisions going forward. I could go into a long soliloquy about all the different things we do month-to-month at every single water board meeting,” said city councilmember Tommy Butler. “We’re signing off on a bunch of things that would have to go to a special election or wait until the next year to be voted on, and that’s not a way to manage water. I urge people to vote no on this, it’s not the right thing to do.”
City councilmember (and at-large candidate) Brett Payton agreed.
“Water is gold – platinum in Colorado. We don’t always o everything perfectly, we know that, but shutting down our opportunity to acquire, sell, trade in water is going to be horrific for the city,” Payton said. “I would absolutely vote no on both of those.”
The resolution spelled out the city’s complaints more clearly, citing timeliness, cost, and additional elections as problems with the amendments.
Timeliness and cost
According to the city, ballot question 2G would require the city to hire a consulting engineer to conduct comprehensive studies before excess water or infrastructure was sold or leased.
Ballot question 2H would require the same before the city could use recycled wastewater or groundwater for non-potable purposes, according to the city.
These processes, according to the city, would slow things down and drive costs up.
“If approved by the electorate, the proposed changes to the charter will have a devastating and detrimental effect on the city’s ability to provide quality water services to the citizens at reasonable rates now and in the future,” according to the resolution.
Additional elections
According to the city, 2G would require any sale or lease to be approve by a majority of all registered voters within the city.
This would also be expensive and time consuming, according to the city.
“If the initiated ballot questions are passed, the city will be the only city in Colorado to require elections to approve routine water service decisions including purchasing, leasing and distributing water and infrastructure,” according to the resolution.
Additionally, the city argued that the measures would require water decisions to get a majority vote from all registered voters in the city, regardless of election turnout, making it “extremely unlikely that any measure required to go to an election” to be approved.
In a previous interview with the NoCo Optimist, Gauthiere said he believed the ballot titles council approved were prejudiced and misleading.
“Unfortunately, the ballot titles are in the hands of the adversary – and the city is our adversary here,” he said.
The ballot titles read as follows:
Ballot Question 2G: Shall the Greeley Home Rule Charter be amended to further restrict the City’s power to sell or lease excess water or infrastructure, including limiting the normal practice of temporary leasing to agricultural or industrial users, and likely increasing water costs and affecting the quality of service, by requiring an outside engineering study for such action, then voter approval by a majority of all registered electors, regardless of turnout, in a special election?
Ballot Question 2H: Shall the Greeley Home Rule Charter be amended to restrict the City’s acquisition and use of water and its responses to drought and other emergencies, likely increasing water costs and affecting the quality of service, by requiring that the purchase, lease or use of critical portions of Greeley’s existing and future water supply be subject to additional outside engineering analysis and then voter approval by a majority of all registered voters, regardless of turnout, in a special election?
Mary Gauthiere handed out fliers at a previous city council meeting with alternative ballot titles preferred by Save Greeley’s Water – though the alternative tiles are not the titles voters will see on their ballots.
The alternative titles, not approved by city council, read as follows:
Shall the home rule charter of the City of Greeley be amended to add section 17-9 to provide that: water rights or water supply and treatment facilities belonging to the City of Greeley may be sold or otherwise permanently disposed of only after the question of such sale has first been submitted to and approved by the registered electors of the City of Greeley?
Shall the home rule charter of the City of Greeley be amended to add section 17-10 to provide that: ground water or recycled wastewater may be purchased, leased or provided through the City of Greeley’s water system to the citizens of Greeley for their drinking water or non-potable use only after the question of whether to buy, lease or provide such ground water or recycled waste water has first been submitted to and approved by the registered electors of the City of Greeley?