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24.03.04 FINAL - WEBSITE PACKET_____________________________________________________________________________________ MEETING AGENDAS AND PACKETS ARE FOUND AT: WWW.AVON.ORG MEETING NOTICES ARE POSTED AT AVON TOWN HALL, AVON RECREATION CENTER, AVON ELEMENTARY AND AVON PUBLIC LIBRARY IF YOU HAVE ANY SPECIAL ACCOMMODATION NEEDS, PLEASE, IN ADVANCE OF THE MEETING, CALL TOWN CLERK MIGUEL JAUREGUI CASANUEVA AT 970-748-4001 OR EMAIL MJAUREGUI@AVON.ORG WITH ANY SPECIAL REQUESTS. DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING AGENDA Monday, March 4, 2024 MEETING BEGINS AT 3:00 PM DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY PUBLIC MEETING BEGINS AT 3:00 PM 1.CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL 2.APPROVAL OF AGENDA 3.DISCLOSURE OF ANY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST RELATED TO AGENDA ITEMS 4.PUBLIC COMMENT – COMMENTS ARE WELCOME ON ITEMS NOT LISTED ON THE FOLLOWING AGENDA Public comments are limited to three (3) minutes. The speaker may be given one (1) additional minute subject to Board approval. 5.NEW BUSINESS 5.1. Legal Primer for DDA Members (Geoff Wilson, Wilson Wiliams Fellman Dittman) 6.MINUTES 6.1. Approval of January 5, 2024 Downtown Development Authority Meeting Minutes (Town Clerk Miguel Jauregui Casanueva) 7.ADJOURN Public Comments: Avon DDA agendas shall include a general item labeled “Public Comment” near the beginning of all Board meetings. Members of the public who wish to provide comments to the Board greater than three minutes are encouraged to schedule time in advance on the agenda and to provide written comments and other appropriate materials to the Board in advance of the Board meeting. The Chairperson shall permit public comments for any action item or work session item and may permit public comment for any other agenda item, and may limit such public comment to three minutes per individual, which limitation may be waived or increased by a majority of the quorum present. Article VI. Public Comments, Avon Downtown Development Authority Simplified Rules of Order A LEGAL PRIMER FOR TOWN OF AVON DDA MEMBERS MONDAY, MARCH 4, 2024 AVON, COLORADO GEOFFREY WILSON, PARTNER AVON CODE OF ETHICS TOWN CODE –CHAPTER 2.30 POLICY BEHIND THE LAW “The proper operation of democratic government requires that public officers be independent, impartial and responsible to the people; that government decisions and policy be made within the proper channels of the governmental structure; that public office not be used for personal gain; and that the public have confidence in the integrity of its government.” •As a home rule municipality, Town’s detailed provisions in this area supersede similar State law provisions. •But State and Town provisions serve identical policy objectives. •Folks with a basic moral compass ordinarily recognize that the conduct proscribed in ethics codes is wrong, or at least recognize its time to ask the lawyer. CRITICAL DEFINITIONS Under the Town of Avon Code of Ethics: •Officer means any person holding a position by election or appointment in the service of the municipality, whether paid or unpaid, including the members of the Town Council, any other Town board, committee or commission, any employee and any independent contractor. •Official act or official action means any vote, decision, recommendation, approval, disapproval or other action, including inaction, which involves the use of discretionary authority. •Substantial financial interest means an interest owned or held by an officer which is: •An ownership interest in a business. •A creditor interest in a business; •An ownership interest in real or personal property; •A loan or any other debtor interest; •A directorship or officership in a business. An officer shall be presumed to have a substantial financial interest in any of the above-mentioned interests owned, held or controlled by such officer's spouse or dependent children. PROHIBITED CONDUCT These prohibitions are located in Section 2.30.060, aimed at preventing “Conflict of Interest.” In “conflict” situations, a private interest could interfere with your duty, as a public officer, to act solely in the public’s interest. A public officer shall not: 1.Disclose or use confidential information acquired in the course of such officer's duties:(a)In order to further a business or other undertaking in which such officer has a substantial financial interest; or (b)For any use which would be detrimental to the Town. 2.Engage in a substantial financial transaction for his or her private business purposes with a person whom such officer inspects or supervises in the course of his or her official duties. 3.Perform an official act which directly and substantially affects to its economic benefit a business or other undertaking in which such officer has a substantial financial interest. 4.Perform an official act which directly and substantially affects a business or other undertaking by whom the officer is employed, or by whom such officer is engaged as counsel, consultant, representative or agent. (slide 1 of 3) PROHIBITED CONDUCT A public officer shall not: 5.Acquire or hold an interest in any business or undertaking which such officer has reason to believe may be directly and substantially affected to its economic benefit by official action to be taken by the agency over which he or she has substantive authority. 6.Perform an official act directly and substantially affecting to its economic detriment any business or other undertaking when such officer has a substantial financial interest in a competing business or undertaking. 7.Solicit or accept a present or future gift, favor, loan, service or thing of value from a person under circumstances which would lead a reasonably prudent person to believe that such gift, favor, service or thing of value was made or given primarily for the purpose of influencing or attempting to influence such officer in connection with an official act, or as a reward for official action he or she has previously taken. The provisions of this Paragraph shall not apply to those circumstances described in Paragraph 2.30.070(3). (slide 2 of 3) PROHIBITED CONDUCT A public officer shall not: 8.Perform any official act under circumstances which give rise to appearance of impropriety on the part of the officer. 9.Make or accept any ex parte communication or contact concerning a matter which is to be determined after a public hearing without making the contents of such communication or contact a part of the record of such public hearing. 10.Appear on behalf of any private person, business or entity, other than himself or herself, his or her spouse, or minor children, before the Town Council, any Town Commission or the Municipal Court; (slide 3 of 3) CONDUCT NOT PROHIBITED Section 2.30.070 clarifies that a number of circumstances that are not prohibited as constituting a conflict of interest. A public officer is NOT prohibited from: •Accepting or receiving a benefit as an indirect consequence of the performance of an official act. •Taking official action when such officer is similarly situated to other Town residents, such as adopting general land use regulations, owning property within a special or local improvement district, voting for taxes or bonds, adopting ordinances of general applicability or otherwise acting upon matters involving the common public interest, except that this exemption shall not apply to interests of Officers of the Avon Urban Renewal Authority in any project or in any property included or planned to be included in any project and the provisions of C.R.S. §31-25-104(3) shall control. •Receiving such compensation for his or her services to the Town as may be fixed by ordinance, pay plan, budget or other similar official action. (slide 1 of 2) CONDUCT NOT PROHIBITED A public officer is NOT prohibited from: ◦Soliciting or accepting gifts or loans which are: •Campaign contributions reported as required by law; •An occasional nonpecuniary gift, insignificant in value; •A nonpecuniary award publicly presented by a nonprofit organization in recognition of public service; •Payment of or reimbursement for actual and necessary expenditures for travel and subsistence or attendance at a convention or other meeting at which such officer is scheduled to participate; •Reimbursement for or acceptance of an opportunity to participate in a social function or meeting which is not extraordinary when viewed in light of the position held by such officer; •Items of perishable or nonpermanent value, including, but not limited to, meals, lodging, travel expenses or tickets to sporting, recreational, educational, or cultural events; •Payment for speeches, debates, or other public events, reported as honorariums to the Town Manager; •A loan at a rate of interest which is not substantially lower than the commercial rate then currently prevalent for similar loans within the Town. (slide 2 of 2) GIFT REPORTING REQUIREMENTS Section 2.30.170 supersedes a similar state Constitutional provision, and provides, in part: •Any Town Officer who receives any present, or offer of future, individual gift, favor, loan, service or thing of value in excess of fifty dollars ($50.00) and such gift is offered due to such person's status as a Town Officer then such officer shall report such gift and the estimated value to the Town Clerk. The Town Clerk shall promptly disclose gifts received, or offer of future gifts, to the Town Council. The failure of a Town Officer to report a gift to the Town Clerk shall constitute a violation of this Chapter. •Council shall determine if gifts received or offered in the future constitute a conflict of interest in accordance with this Chapter. Council members who are the recipient or intended recipient of a gift shall not vote on whether such gift constitutes a conflict of interest unless such gift is offered to Council as a whole or offered to Town generally. (slide 1 of 2) GIFT REPORTING REQUIREMENTS Section 2.30.170 supersedes a similar state Constitutional provision, and provides, in part: •Gifts which are given by an individual who is a relative or personal friend of the recipient on special occasions shall not be deemed a conflict of interest. Gifts which are given without the purpose or intent to influence a Town Officer in connection with an official act or as a reward for an official act performed and gifts which do not create the appearance of impropriety shall not be a conflict of interest. •Gifts which are received which are determined by Council to be a conflict of interest shall be returned. The receipt of a gift or the failure to return a gift or reimburse the equivalent value when Council determines such gift is a conflict of interest shall constitute a violation of this Chapter. (slide 2 of 2) PROHIBITED INTEREST IN TOWN CONTRACTS Section 2.30.120(a) provides that: “The Town shall not enter into any contract with a Town Officer (including spouse or minor children of the Town Officer) to provide any compensation from the Town for the provision of goods or services and shall not approve any vendor permit or privilege to conduct commercial business on Town property during such officer's term, appointment or employment with the Town; provided that this restriction shall not apply to compensation provided to any Town Officer for performance of official duties for the Town..” •Various exceptions and qualifications apply to this prohibition. If you believe that this restriction may be applicable to a contract with which you have a connection, consult with the Town Attorney. Section 2.30.130 provides that “A former Town officer may not, within six months of the conclusion of their term of office “contract with or become employed by an employer who contracts with the Town involving matters with which such officer was directly involved during such officer's term of office with the Town.” SUBSEQUENT EMPLOYMENT COLORADO OPEN RECORDS ACT (CORA) C.R.S. 24-72-200.1, ET SEQ. CRITICAL DEFINITIONS UNDER CORA Under CORA: •Custodian means and includes the official custodian or any authorized person having personal custody and control of the public records in question. This may include elected officials. •Public records includes “all writings made maintained or kept…by a political subdivision of the state,” which concern public business or the expenditure of public funds. •Writings includes “all books, papers, maps, photographs, cards, tapes, recordings, or other documentary materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics. •Includes digitally stored data, including without limitation electronic PROCEDURES FOR A CORA REQUEST In these situations, the affected local officials work directly with the Town clerk and attorney: •Upon request for a public record, if the record is not immediately available, it must be produced within a “reasonable time”, which CORA says is “presumptively” 3 days. •CORA provides for an extension of time, to 10 days, in certain circumstances. •Because CORA both requires and prohibits release of certain records, processing of a CORA request often requires close review of the requested record by the clerk and the city attorneys. •The City has in place a CORA policy, approved by Council, which sets forth the procedures for requesting a public record and associated fees. The price of getting it wrong… •CORA provides that if the withholding of a requested record is not proper, the government will have to pay the applicants attorneys fees (plus get a black eye in the local media!) COLORADO OPEN MEETINGS LAW (OML) C.R.S. 24-6 -401, ET SEQ. CRITICAL DEFINITIONS Under Colorado OML: •Meeting means “any kind of gathering, convened to discuss public business, in person, by telephone, electronically, or by other means of communication.“ •Local public body means any board, committee, commission, authority, or other advisory, policy-making, rule-making, or formally constituted body of any political subdivision of the state and any public or private entity to which a political subdivision, or an official thereof, has delegated a governmental decision- making function but does not include persons on the administrative staff of the local public body.“ •Note the exclusion in the foregoing definition for “administrative staff” •Chance meetings and social gatherings: The requirements of the OML do “not apply to any chance meeting or social gathering at which discussion of public business is not the central purpose.” OPENNESS AND NOTICE OF MEETINGS Under Colorado OML: •Open meetings are “all meetings of a quorum or three or more members of any local public body, whichever is fewer, at which (1) any public business is discussed or (2) at which any formal action may be taken are declared to be public meetings open to the public at all times.” •Notice is required for “any meetings: •At which the adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation, or •Formal action occurs, or •At which a majority or quorum of the body is in attendance (or is expected to be in attendance), Under OML, these meetings shall be held only after “full and timely notice to the public.” (Note: OML does not define full and timely notice, but it does provide a post on the entity’s public website as an example of acceptable notice by posting.) MINUTES AND PROHIBITION ON SECRET BALLOTS Under Colorado OML: •Minutes of any meeting of a local public body at which the adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation, or formal action (1) occurs or (2) could occur shall be taken and promptly recorded, and such records shall be open to public inspection. •A secret ballot means a vote cast in such a way that the identity of the person voting or the position taken in such vote is withheld from the public.” •Except in narrow cases, “neither a state nor a local public body may adopt any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, or regulation or take formal action by secret ballot…” EXECUTIVE SESSIONS Executive sessions are contrary to general philosophy of openness in the OML. The policy basis for e-sessions is the recognition that the public interest can best be served if certain specified matters are discussed in private. •Bases: OML specifies the permitted bases for e-sessions, including advice from the attorney, discussion of real estate transactions, personnel matters and instructing negotiators, among other basis. •The purpose of an e-session is to deliberate, not to make final decisions. OML is clear on this. •Process: Following announcements about the lawful purpose and basis of the e-session, a vote of 2/3 of the quorum present is required to go into executive session. •In order to assure that the body stays on the announced topic(s) and does not make formal decisions or take formal action, OML requires that e-sessions be electronically recorded. •The e-session tape is not a public record. A person may request that a judge listen to the tape to determine if violations occurred, upon certain showings of objectively “reasonable” belief that such violations occurred. CLOSING THOUGHTS AND FINALLY… •Serving on a local public body is a team sport. If you want to do more than give speeches, you need others to vote for your position. •If somebody disagrees with your idea, they aren’t calling you stupid ( they may be calling your idea stupid !). And when you disagree with somebody, you should be conscious to make it only about the idea, not the advocate. Succeeding at team sports means not alienating everybody by getting personal. •Put otherwise, practice the art of disagreeing without being disagreeable. Have some perspective: our issues are important, but not life threatening. Take a breath. •Do your homework. Read the packet. Pay attention. Ask questions if you aren’t clear on something. Being an effective team member means knowing your stuff. (slide 1 of 2) AND FINALLY… •Your first obligation is to serve the public interest, but we work with our business community. The “public” interest is not necessarily contrary to or hostile to private interests; indeed, public and private interests can and often do align. It is in no way a “conflict” to consider and implement “win-win” solutions. •Don’t follow others who decide to misbehave. If somebody acts like a jackass, that’s their problem; its not a signal for everyone to become a jackass. Ignore the bloviating and histrionics ( they probably didn’t read the packet!); stay cool, on task and on message. •Feeling squeamish or nervous about the legal propriety of some action you’re contemplating? , pay plan, budget or other similar official action. (slide 2 of 2) QUESTIONS? DDA MEETING MINUTES MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2024 HYBRID MEETING, IN PERSON AND VIA MICROSOFT TEAMS AVON DDA MEETING MINUTES, FEBRUARY 5, 2024 PAGE 1 | 2 1. ROLL CALL Present in Person: DDA Board Chair Tony Emrick, DDA Board Vice-Chair Brandt Marott, DDA Board Secretary Chris Neuswanger, and Board Members Bill Glaner, Wayne Hanson, and Matthew Fitzgerald. Councilor Rich Carroll joined the meeting at 3:11 p.m. Present Virtually: Marcus Lindholm was present at roll call and departed the meeting at 3:57 p.m. Staff: Town Manager Eric Heil, Deputy Town Manager Patty McKenny, Finance Director Paul Redmond, Town Clerk Miguel Jauregui Casanueva, Community Development Director Matt Pielsticker, Planning Manager Jena Skinner, and Planner II Max Morgan. Absent: Board Members Rob Tartre and Scott Tarbet. The meeting was called to order at 3:02 p.m. DDA Board Chair Tony Emrick presided over the meeting. 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Board Member Bill Glaner presented a motion to approve the Agenda. Board Secretary Chris Neuswanger seconded the motion. The motion was approved with a 7-0 vote of those present. 3. DISCLOSURE OF ANY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST RELATED TO AGENDA ITEMS Board Chair Emrick asked if there were any conflicts of interest, and none were disclosed. 4. PUBLIC COMMENT No public comments were made in person nor virtually. 5. BUSINESS ITEMS 5.1 IGA for Tax Rebates with Other Districts Town Manager Eric Heil delivered his presentation related to the IGA for Tax Rebates with other Districts, to carve-out the Confluence, Avon Station, and Village Metro Districts from the Avon DDA, and asked for leeway to be included in the motion to give Staff the ability to adjust the final legal language of the IGA as needed. No public comment was made in person nor virtually on Microsoft Teams. After deliberations, Board Secretary Neuswanger presented a motion to approve the IGA to be presented to Avon Town Council under Resolution 24-02, with leeway for Staff to negotiate the final legal language of the IGA as needed. Board Vice-Chair Brandt Marott seconded the motion. The motion was approved with a 7-0 vote of those present. 5.2 Work Session: Sun Road and East Avon Redevelopment Plan Updates – Introduction and Visioning Town Manager Eric Heil introduced the work session and was joined by Community Development Director Matt Pielsticker and Planner Max Morgan who delivered a presentation related to Sun Road and East Avon Redevelopment Plan updates. Pielsticker also introduced Bill Campie, President of DTJ Design, Keith Walzak, Director of Urban Design and Planning of DTJ Design, and Katy Moylan, Designer of DTJ Design. After Pielsticker’s presentation, the DTJ Design team introduced themselves to help facilitate the work session. Board Member Glaner mentioned that the railroad corridor needed attention as part of this discussion, and Heil agreed and asked for the Avon DDA Board Members to make a note of it to analyze what might be financially viable to take a realistic look at options for that area. Approaches discussed included converting it a rail to trail, so that pedestrian access connects both sides of Town. DDA MEETING MINUTES MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2024 HYBRID MEETING, IN PERSON AND VIA MICROSOFT TEAMS AVON DDA MEETING MINUTES, FEBRUARY 5, 2024 PAGE 2 | 2 Once the presentation concluded, Avon DDA Board Members were invited by DTJ Staff to participate in a visioning workshop to capture observations, opportunities, concerns and success measures for this area. Ample discussion and deliberations ensued. No public comment was made in person nor virtually on Microsoft Teams. 6. MINUTES Board Vice-Chair Brandt Marott presented a motion to approve the Minutes from Avon DDA Board Meeting held December 4, 2023. Secretary Neuswanger seconded the motion. They were approved with a 7-0 vote of those present. 7. ADJOURNMENT DDA Board Chair Emrick adjourned the meeting at 4:59 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Miguel Jauregui Casanueva Avon Town Clerk These minutes are only a summary of the proceedings of the meeting. They are not intended to be comprehensive or to include each statement, person speaking or to portray with complete accuracy. The most accurate records of the meeting are the audio of the meeting, which is housed in the Town Clerk' s office.