Rick Langenberg
It’s basically impossible to undergo a local election these days without dealing with a proposed sales tax hike.
As a result, voters this November will consider plans in both the city of Woodland Park and the town of Green Mountain Falls for small, proposed sales tax levies, aimed at generating needed revenue for certain entities.
And not surprisingly, both propositions have commanded considerable discussion and online chatter from both sides of the political aisle.
These debates aren’t unusual, as sales tax levies have become the main funding fuel for local governments, which often use this tool, compared to raising mill levy rates.
Woodland Park Tax Hike
Voters in the City Above the Clouds will decide the fate of 2B, aimed at helping out the Woodland Park RE-2 School District by increasing the city’s sales tax by .25 percent, starting January 1, 2027.
This is the latest version of a plan to assist the school district, which has endured a rocky financial past, capped by much political unrest.
In a measure touted by city leaders as a council compromise, the planned tax would be restricted to assisting the WP School District with payments on its existing Certificate of Participation (COP) debt from previous building upgrades.
The city mulled increasing this sales tax to .50 percent, more in line with an initiative proposed by a citizens’ group that fell short in generating an adequate number of signatures to force the issue to a vote. Instead, the council stuck with the more conservative .25 percent figure.
Based on comments at an earlier council meeting, the plan has generated much support.
However, comments on social media outlets are quite mixed, with some critics accusing the school administration of outright poor management. They see the plan as rewarding incompetence and view this as an insult to those who attend charter institutions, such as the Merit Academy.
At the same time, a few council leaders admit they bear some responsibility for the district’s current fiscal woes since they voted to rescind a previous sales tax benefiting the district, following much political tension between city and school board leaders.
But with a new school board in place, city leaders say they are more comfortable in proposing a deal that will work well for both entities, but one with plenty of controls and specific language on how the money can be used.
The big question: Can this idea be sold to the voters who have the ultimate say in whether this tax plan moves forward or not.
Woodland Park is not the only town with a sales tax question under consideration in November.
Renovations for old Marshal’s Office in Green Mountain Falls
In Green Mountain Falls, town voters will decide on a .50 percent sales tax hike for the purpose of renovating the old town Marshal’s Office building downtown and possibly leasing this space to a prospective new business operator. If successful, this would mark the first new tax hike approved locally in years.
Similar to the sales tax plan in Woodland Park, this proposition has generated plenty of online commentary, with mixed views.
Ironically, this issue hardly generated a single comment until several weeks ago. Since then, it has become the talk of the town. There is no shortage of opinions and suggestions regarding how this planned tax should be handled.
Mayor Todd Dixon is a big supporter of the issue and has displayed photos of the current dire strait condition of the marshal’s office. He says this plan was always given much emphasis in past years.
But other community leaders wonder if the town’s funding priorities should be reviewed with more money being allocated towards fire mitigation than towards capitol expenses for a questionable building site. Strong opposition towards the plan has been voiced by former Green Mountain Falls Mayor Lorrie Worthey, who questioned the safety of the building itself, and the funding priorities involved.
Town Administrator Caleb Patterson, though, believes the plan could set the stage for the town to generate more economic development and retail opportunities by renovating the old building into a future business operation, such as a small convenience store outlet.
The plan, according to the ballot issue, could generate close to $60,000 in its first full year of operation. If more money is raised, the additional revenue would be used for additional capital improvement projects.
The tax would expire at the end of 2030.
The possible usage of the old marshal’s office is still a debatable issue. Some online commentators, while supporting the possible tax levy, favor using this building as a historical site or for space for the Ute Pass Historical Society. The current ballot issue does not stipulate how the future site can be used.
