Erie Town Council Meeting - February 24, 2026: Detention Ponds, Town Center PD, and Council Rules
Erie Town Council Meeting - February 24, 2026
The Erie Town Council met on February 24, 2026, to address a consent agenda, hear public comments, discuss a proposed amendment to the Town Center Planned Development (PD) zoning, and review updates to council rules and procedures. The meeting also included council member reports and an executive session, followed by approval of two resolutions appointing an acting and interim town manager.
Consent Calendar
- Items 2026-136 and 2026-134: Approved unanimously. These included a resolution approving a third amendment to an agreement with HDR Engineering for the Erie Lake Dam Rehabilitation Project (final design and construction services) and a resolution approving a construction contract with Geo Solutions for the same project.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Derek Tez (1560 Alpine Court, Vista Ridge): Expressed frustration about communication breakdown regarding the A19 and A20 detention ponds. Noted that neighborhood construction notices were received after work began, that no renderings or final design have been shared, and that contrary to prior assurances, seven trees have been removed. Asked for renderings, revegetation plans, and a clear design.
- Shannon Milliken (Thornton resident, parent of Erie student): Testified about fear in the community due to silence from local government regarding immigration enforcement. Stated that people of color feel unseen and that leadership’s lack of acknowledgment sends a message of conditional belonging. Urged council to address these concerns.
- Steve Clark (new Vista Ridge resident): Shared that he and his wife moved for the natural pond (A20) and mountain views, but found trees removed and the pond turned into a mud pit. Reported that Public Works provided timelines but no final rendering. Asked for resident input on the final design and requested council members visit the site.
Discussion Items
- Town Center PD Amendment (Item 2026-124): Deborah Norman (Planning and Development Director, retiring after 27 years) presented a request for council authorization to initiate a land use application to amend the Erie Town Center PD zoning. Changes include adding live-work units to the Four Corners area, allowing hotel/museum/parking garage uses on town-owned property, increasing maximum building height to 45 feet for civic buildings and parking garages (consistent with existing hotel height), updating frontage build-out calculations, and aligning parking maximums with the UDC. Staff reported that the changes aim to address development challenges, particularly attracting commercial tenants to Erie Commons and the town-owned parcel. Council members asked about live-work demand, frontage build-out details, and potential revenue impacts. The resolution to authorize the application (Resolution 26-030) passed unanimously.
- Council Rules, Code of Ethics, and Virtual Participation Policy (Item 2026-55): Meredith Meath (Director of Administrative Services) presented proposed updates to three policies: Rules of Procedure, Code of Ethics and Conduct, and Virtual Participation Policy. Changes align with the home rule charter and current practice: require public comment at special meetings, remove requirement for speakers to give full address, allow up to six minutes per public comment, clarify that the code of conduct is adopted by ordinance, and expand virtual attendance options for board/commission members (with in-person chair requirement). Council members discussed enforcement mechanisms, handling of confidential information, and applicability to all boards and commissions. Feedback was collected for further refinement; the item is expected to return for final approval.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously.
- Town Center PD Amendment: Resolution 26-030 to initiate the land use application was approved unanimously. The application will proceed through normal review (neighborhood meeting, planning commission public hearing, then council final decision).
- Council Rules and Policies: No vote taken; council directed staff to collect written feedback by a deadline and return the documents for approval, possibly on a consent agenda.
- Acting/Interim Town Manager Appointments: After executive session, council approved two resolutions appointing Melissa Wiley as acting town manager (retroactive February 18–24, 2026) and as interim town manager effective February 25, 2026 onward. Both passed unanimously.
- Other: Council member reports included: a community healing event held on Friday; recognition of Erie’s first Olympic gold medalist, Jacob Slavin (Erie High School graduate, USA hockey); and updates from CML legislative workshop (concerns about state budget shortfall and Prop 123 funding) and Northern Water NISP project status.
Meeting Transcript
With respect for the Collier Shear Hill detention pond improvement. Next item is 2026-136, a resolution of the town council, the town area approving a third amendment to the agreement for professional services with HDR Engineering for the Final Design and Construction Services for the Erie Lake Dam Rehabilitation Project. And the last item is 2026-134, a resolution of the town council of the town area approving a construction contract with geo solutions for the Erie Lake Dan Rehabilitation Project. We have a motion to approve the consent agenda. So moved. Second. We have a motion and a second. All in favor, say aye. Aye. Aye. All opposed, say no. All right, consent agenda passes. All right, we'll move on to public comment. And we have anybody signed up. We do. All right. So let me just read what public comment is. Uh it's remember that public comment is not an interactive question and answer forum, but rather a time for you to state your comments on a particular item or issue. Public comment provides the opportunity to discuss items that are not public hearings. Please sign up using the kiosk in the lobby. Um, if you have a handout, please give it to the town clerk to the left. They will distribute it to the council, included into their the meeting record. When called upon, please uh state your full name and um location for the record. Public comment is limited to three minutes per person. You'll be given a 20-second warning when your three minutes are almost up. At the three-minute mark, you'll be asked to wrap up your final sentence. All opinions are welcome. Please be respectful of each other and ensure everyone feels welcome to show their comments. Please refrain from any cheering, clapping, booing, or otherwise disruptive behavior. Um, our first person is Derek Tez. All right. Since you've probably received multiple emails from me, we we know what we're talking about here. Derek, if you'll just state your name in the case, Derek just for the record. Uh 1560 Alpine Court in Vista Ridge. I'm here to just really discuss the A19 and A20 detention ponds. And I want to just start trying to figure out our communication or where are we going with them? I've been in multiple communications about those ponds since 2014. And at tw in 2014, when I had an issue with the ponds, we all we got was finger pointing. The city finger pointed to the metro district, the metro district pointed to the city, the HOA pointed to the golf course, et cetera. Now that it changed in basically October of 2021, when the city on the Metro District, whether it was a lawsuit or however it was settled, it was settled that the city was going to take things over and making sure that it would be maintained everything. And since then, the communication has completely fallen apart on what's happening to those ponds. Fast forward to today. Um we got a neighborhood construction notice. Okay, where we're at. The construction is already started. The interesting thing is we don't have a single rendering of what the either one of the ponds look like. I reached out to Matt Shark at the golf course, who's the golf course manager, who I'm on first name basis with, because I do play golf there. When I asked him if he had anything, he goes, No, I have nothing, except for they're being drained. When I shared with him that their concrete is going in, he was shocked. And then he found out one of the concrete, what I'll call boxes, at least on hole number two, is going to be in direct flight from the fairway to the hole.
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