The Castle Rock Town Council met on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, at 6:00 PM in the Town Hall Council Chambers. All seven council members were present. The meeting included a proclamation for Fire Prevention Week, a review of a metropolitan district bond issuance, introduction of the 2024 proposed budget, presentations from service contract organizations, and first readings of two ordinances related to morals offenses and meeting protocols. All votes were unanimous (7-0) except where noted.
Thank you, Mayor Gray. Friends, esteemed members of our town council and cherished community members. As we gather here today, we're reminded of the rich tapestry of beliefs and traditions that make our community so vibrant and unique. In this diverse assembly, we find unity in our shared commitment to the well-being and progress of our town of Castle Rock. In this moment of reflection, let us put aside matters on tonight's agenda and instead focus on the values that bind us together. Let us call upon the spirit of unity, respect, and cooperation that guides us in these endeavors. Regardless of the paths we walk in our personal lives, we come together as one community, each contributing to the mosiac of our town's shared identity. In this spirit of togetherness, let us bow our heads, close our eyes if you wish, and take a moment of silence to offer our own thoughts, prayers, or reflections according to our individual beliefs for the welfare of our community and all its residents. May our town continue to thrive as a place of opportunity, understanding, and compassion. May our leaders be guided by wisdom, empathy, and fairness as they serve the interests of all. And may our collective efforts result in a brighter and more harmonious future for generations to come. Thank you. And let us commence this council meeting with a spirit of cooperation and goodwill. Amen. Councilmember Hollingshead. Here. Councilmember KV. Yes. Councilmember LaFleur. Here. Councilmember Brooks. Present. Councilmember Deeds. Here. Mayor Pretembracken. Present. Mayor Gray. Here. All are present. Bless you. Next, please rise with pleasure leadance. I'm going to start with council comments. I have two things I wanted to uh talk about fairly quickly. First is that uh I'm always always uh heartened and not not disheartened uh when I get uh positive comments about how our council can deal with each other better and how we've been dealing with each other better, um, how we're doing respectful for our citizens, um respectful towards each other, and uh that's always nice to hear. I got a couple of good comments the last few weeks. Um with that, I mean I always tell people you know uh really try to figure out your self-reflection, um, what you can do better, what you can't do better, uh, what what you're what you've done, um, maybe unto others. Um, but you know, you begin with yourself, but also be good to yourself, and uh that way you can be better to others. Uh next, I wanted to uh just bring awareness to uh breast cancer awareness month. Um my wife is is um past in her her breast cancer for a couple years now, and it's fantastic, but there are plenty of people out there that that don't make it. Um so for all those who are fighting, um, for all those who will fight, and then for all those who have fought breast cancer, um uh my heart goes out to all of you, and hopefully we have a great month and and great future with with uh curing and and taking care of breast cancer. And with that, Ryan Hollinson. No comment tonight, thanks. Laura Katie. No comment this evening. Thank you. Deslafleur. Yeah, I just want to say thank you to uh Dave and your team and all of our staff and department heads that take the time to attend our council open house. Appreciate you guys. I know they're supposed to show up. But I can still show gratitude.