Greeley City Council Work Session – June 9, 2026

The Greeley City Council held a hybrid work session on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, beginning at 6:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers at 1001 11th Avenue, Greeley, Colorado. Mayor Dale Hall presided; six of seven councilmembers were present, with Councilmember Ryan Roth excused. The agenda included reports from councilmembers, findings and recommendations from the West Greeley Project Citizen Oversight Committee, a Water and Sewer Board interview, a Greeley 311 update, a 2027 budget development update, and a motion to enter executive session. No formal action was taken except the 6–0 executive session motion.

Reports from Mayor and Councilmembers

• Councilmember DeBoutez reported attending the North Front Range (US 34 Corridor) TMO meeting; the organization has new Executive Director Nathan Vanderbrook, formerly of CSU and CDOT. She announced Bike-to-Work Day on June 24.
• Councilmember Huddleston reported attending Friday Fest, which will continue each Friday through the summer, and the Blues Jam.
• Mayor Pro Tem McDonald also attended the Blues Jam, noting that Robert Randolph headlined.
• Councilmember Olson thanked the West Greeley Project Citizen Oversight Committee for its dedication and teamwork and thanked Tyler from the Greeley Tribune for attending and reporting on the meetings.

West Greeley Project Citizen Oversight Committee Findings and Recommendations

• Committee Chair Bob Locke, with Committee Members Jeffrey Kennedy and Tom Pfankuch, presented at 6:01 p.m. Locke praised city staff and reported that at the committee's most recent meeting staff shared that the city was not bondable for this project. The committee therefore recommended a pause in its work.
• Locke explained that staff are seeking a financial partner that could bring the city back to a bondable position; if and when a partner is secured, a new set of financial figures would be required and the committee would reconvene to scrutinize them before making recommendations to council.
• Kennedy read statements from absent committee members Nick Kenny and Scott McPherson. Kenny said the committee could not recommend moving forward without a meaningful financing partner and a different risk profile, and would re-evaluate the full financial picture if conditions change. McPherson said the recommendation is a placeholder position—neither support for nor opposition to the project—until a partner is secured and business plans, consultant analysis, and pro forma are re-evaluated.
• Pfankuch said the committee came very close to moving the project forward and that Greeley is financially capable of making the project work under the right conditions, emphasizing its importance to Greeley's housing profile. He also said communication around the project had been poor, and a subcommittee is compiling a readable five-to-seven-page summary to better inform the public.
• Councilmember DeBoutez thanked the committee and said pausing and gathering more information was the right course for the community. Mayor Hall also thanked the committee.

Water and Sewer Board Interviews

• Interviews began at 6:18 p.m. Mayor Hall said two applicants had been scheduled: incumbent Cheri Witt-Brown and Antonio Molina-Haro. Molina-Haro was not in attendance, which disqualified him from further consideration.
• The council interviewed Witt-Brown, a current Water and Sewer Board member. She described about 25 years as a private-sector developer and builder, more than 10 years with Habitat for Humanity, and work on Hope Springs, described as the largest Habitat community in the Western region.
• She said she is interested in continuing because of the board's long-range water planning, including Terry Ranch, and because she wants to represent underserved residents and help keep municipal utilities affordable.
• On attendance, she estimated missing about one board meeting per year on average. She evaluated Greeley's water system as well managed, with more than seven reservoirs and extensive infrastructure, and noted the city did not have to impose water restrictions this year.
• Mayor Hall stated that the formal appointment vote will occur at the next City Council meeting.

Greeley 311 Update: Improving Access to City Services

• Assistant City Manager Kimberly Southern introduced the item at 6:28 p.m.; Director of High-Performance Government and Innovation Kylie Jackson and IT Special Projects Manager Sara Martinez presented.
• Greeley 311 is a centralized non-emergency city service request platform available through a mobile app, a phone number, and an online portal. It internally routes requests so residents do not have to identify the correct department.
• The system soft-launched alongside the new city website in August 2025 and has entered a full public awareness campaign, including stickers on city vehicles, bus shelter and bus-back advertising, and yard signs at parks and city facilities.
• Presented data showed more than 1,200 requests received, an average resolution time of about nine days, a customer satisfaction score of 3.6 out of 5, and roughly 3.5–4 requests per day. The most common request type was streetlight concerns.
• Next steps include ongoing workflow refinements, implementation of call center technology, and future development of an AI-enabled chatbot for ticket creation on the city website.
• Mayor Hall asked about response timelines. Jackson said service level agreements are being tailored to each request type, with a goal of acknowledging all requests within two business days.
• Mayor Pro Tem McDonald asked about an emergency escalation path. Martinez said that for emergency-type issues, the platform immediately displays an emergency phone number rather than accepting a ticket. Registered users can track their own requests, and anonymous submissions are also allowed.
• Councilmember DeBoutez asked whether animal-related calls such as stray dog reports should go through 311. Martinez said residents should still call the non-emergency police line for animal matters because 311 is monitored only during regular business hours. She also said the app is available in English and Spanish, with other language options by phone.
• Councilmember Huddleston asked whether staff had measured administrative time savings from 311. Jackson said this is an important metric and meaningful data would be more achievable once the call center component is fully operational.

2027 Budget Development Update

• Deputy Director of Budget and Policy Kalen Myers presented the recap at 6:46 p.m. Council has reviewed seven departments to date: Municipal Court, Fire, Police, Emergency Management, the City Manager's Office, Budget, and Finance.
• Of the identified $18.1 million general fund budget gap, $17.2 million, or 95%, has been addressed through department proposals, leaving $893,000 still to resolve.
• Councilmember Huddleston asked how department revenue-generation efforts are tracked relative to the gap. Myers confirmed revenue improvements are reflected in departmental reduction totals, and additional global savings options, such as fund balance and carryover, will come forward from the budget team.
• Councilmember Olson noted the city collected approximately $5.2 million more revenue than anticipated in the current year. Myers confirmed the gap is based on revenue projections, so higher revenues could make the gap smaller; she added that council could reconsider how reductions are applied, distinguishing one-time versus continuous revenue streams.

Community Development

• Kelli Johnson noted Code Compliance is proposed to move back into Community Development in 2027, but each area was evaluated against its own reduction target.
• Community Development was assigned a 17% reduction target of approximately $1.14 million. The department met the target primarily through revenue and cost recovery strategies rather than direct service cuts, generating about $1.1 million through fee adjustments, new cost-recovery measures, and recaptured revenue.
• This approach accelerates the 2023 fee study roadmap from about 45% toward 85% cost recovery. Service impacts include elimination of the Neighborhood Improvement Grant Program and city-sponsored HOA training, elimination of seasonal intern support, and potential pressure on the 90-by-90 development review initiative (90% of development review decisions within 90 days).
• Interim Director Don Threewitt said paid interns had provided productive value, especially in GIS-related work, but cutting the program would slow non-critical work rather than core services. He also said third-party mediation services were cut, while the neighbor-to-neighbor program continues with existing staff.

Code Compliance

• Code Compliance was assigned a 17% reduction of approximately $162,000. The department identified about $177,000 in savings by eliminating a vacant inspector position, aligning revenue projections with actual collections, and updating fee structures. It will move from six to five inspectors.
• Core neighborhood response services remain in place, but reduced flexibility and backup coverage may result in slower resolution of larger or more complex cases.
• Councilmember DeBoutez asked about the hearing officer's ability to reduce fines to zero. Staff said minimum fines are set by code and cannot be reduced to zero, though rulings can be appealed. Buxton Demers said enforcing minimum fines consistently would yield approximately $18,000–$28,000 in additional revenue based on 2025 data, and proposed moving from a flat $25 stipulation to $50 per violation for pre-hearing settlements.
• Councilmember Olson said he has been frustrated for years with code-compliance pace and fines, and asked staff to continue evaluating ways to make the program more effective.

Economic Development and Urban Revitalization

• Economic Development and Urban Revitalization was assigned a 25% reduction target of approximately $659,000. The department met the target through about $469,000 in expense reductions and $190,000 in new revenue.
• Key reductions include cuts to external partner funding, elimination of the workforce development function, and a shift to a shared business analyst model. Partner agency funding reductions account for approximately $86,000 in savings and would require council direction before implementation. New revenue includes small administrative support fees for overhead associated with Greeley Urban Renewal Authority activities.
• Councilmember Huddleston asked about workforce development partnerships and the track record of partner agencies such as Upstate Colorado. Threewitt acknowledged the significant value of regional lead generation and said the department is building direct relationships with industry-specific national site selectors.
• On post-mortems of near-miss site selections, Threewitt said the most common deficiencies identified are lack of power, water infrastructure, and shovel-ready inventory; key local deficits include vacant flex space and timely power delivery, while the Water and Sewer Department's industrial water bank is expected to be a significant asset. Councilmember Olson clarified that the issue is not a lack of water but lack of infrastructure to deliver water to specific sites; Threewitt confirmed.
• Councilmember Olson said economic development is among his top priorities alongside safety, security, and infrastructure. City Manager Brian McBroom said the Cascadia and Catalyst projects are designed to open West Greeley broadly for development, with infrastructure benefiting about 20 square miles.
• Councilmember DeBoutez asked about real estate revenue opportunities. Threewitt described reframing the real estate management office as a land office model, including commission-based purchases, lease revenue optimization, energy and mineral rights leasing improvements, and application fees for external leasing activities.

Homeless Solutions

• Homeless Solutions was assigned a 25% reduction target of approximately $875,000 and met the target. An additional $325,000 in grant reductions brings the total identified funding reduction to about $1.2 million; when expiring grants and one-time funding are included, the overall resource reduction is approximately 48% compared to 2026.
• Kelli Johnson emphasized an important distinction: the department's 2026 shelter funding included a $1 million one-time allocation that has not been re-allocated for 2027, while the ongoing base shelter commitment is $200,000.
• The most significant service changes are in outreach and rapid rehousing. The outreach team is reduced from four positions to two case managers focused on problem-solving and resource coordination, with direct encampment response and non-emergency homeless-related calls shifting back to police and other departments. Rapid rehousing shifts from a traditional long-term assistance model to a rapid-exit model focused on helping the greatest number of households quickly.
• Director Mandy Shreve said United Way has committed to stretching available dollars to maintain shelter operations through the end of the cold weather season and is working to identify a partner to take over shelter services. Johnson noted that a possible partnership with the Denver Rescue Mission is no longer an option. City Manager McBroom said the shelter's annual budget is approximately $2.5–$3 million, of which the city's $1.2 million was not enough.
• Councilmember DeBoutez said this department reflects the most difficult aspect of the city's budget situation; the cuts are necessary, but the community will now be managing homelessness primarily through EMS and police, addressing symptoms rather than root causes.
• Councilmember Olson said mental health underlies much of homelessness and that organizations such as North Range Behavioral Health and Frontier House are better positioned than government to provide services; he noted the city took over direct service delivery around 2021–2022 and said partnering would be more sustainable. Johnson said this perspective aligns with the direction she and Shreve are pursuing.
• Mayor Pro Tem McDonald called the shelter critical infrastructure for keeping vulnerable individuals out of downtown businesses and parks, noted that Greeley as the county seat effectively serves the entire county's homeless population, and said county and municipal partners should contribute financially.
• Mayor Hall said the Mayor's Homelessness Task Force remains active and he has been exploring conversations with other communities to broaden participation and share responsibility.

Housing Solutions

• Housing Solutions was assigned a 17% reduction target of approximately $168,000. The department met the target by eliminating one position, recalibrating the G-HOPE down payment assistance program budget by 37% to align with actual spending, and making revenue adjustments.
• Director Deb Callies said the best G-HOPE year was 2025, with 11 closings and a highest annual expenditure described in the transcript as just under $75,000; the meeting minutes state just under $750,000, an apparent typographical discrepancy.
• On Proposition 123 down payment assistance, Callies said the city applied for a two-year, $1 million grant but did not receive the award; a community partner, Impact Development Fund, received it instead, and the city will partner with that organization to extend the benefit of those funds to Greeley residents.
• Callies confirmed that private activity bond housing developments approved the prior week use traditional affordable housing financing tools outside the general fund. The expectation is approximately 500 housing units in Greeley over the next three years, including new construction and preserved units.
• Staff said the department's ability to accelerate the Housing for All strategy will remain constrained, and the focus will be on maintaining current programs.
• Mayor Hall acknowledged the difficulty of the budget process and thanked staff for the thoroughness of their work.

Executive Session and Adjournment

• Councilmember Olson moved, and Mayor Pro Tem McDonald seconded, a motion to enter executive session to discuss the purchase and transfer of real estate, receive negotiation instructions, and if necessary receive legal advice related to the Civic Campus project and associated intergovernmental and development negotiations. The motion cited C.R.S. §24-6-402(4)(a), §24-6-402(4)(e)(I), and §24-6-402(4)(b), and Greeley Municipal Code §2-151(a)(1), (a)(5), and (a)(2). It passed 6–0 at 7:58 p.m., with Councilmember Roth absent.
• No scheduling items were reported.
• Council entered executive session in the Colorado Room at 8:08 p.m. and concluded at 9:12 p.m. The executive session was electronically recorded as required by Colorado Open Meetings Law, and the recording will be retained for 90 days. The meeting was adjourned after the session.

Key Outcomes

• The West Greeley Project Citizen Oversight Committee recommended pausing its work until a financing partner restores a bondable position; no formal council action was taken.
• Antonio Molina-Haro was disqualified from Water and Sewer Board consideration due to non-attendance; the formal appointment vote for Cheri Witt-Brown will occur at the next City Council meeting.
• Council received the Greeley 311 update; staff will continue work on service level agreements, call center technology, and public awareness.
• Council reviewed 2027 budget reduction proposals for Community Development, Code Compliance, Economic Development and Urban Revitalization, Homeless Solutions, and Housing Solutions. The remaining $893,000 budget gap is still unresolved, with more work sessions planned through June and July.
• Council approved, by a 6–0 vote, entering executive session for the Civic Campus real estate and negotiation discussion; the session and meeting concluded at 9:12 p.m.