Citizens for a Better Falcon held their second town hall incorporation meeting in early April.The committee’s spokesman, Mike Hurd, put to rest the idea that Colorado Springs might annex Falcon’s commercial area.”At this time, annexation is most likely not a problem,” Hurd said.But Hurd identified the 160-acre parcel at the southwest corner of Stapleton Road and Meridian Road as a reason for incorporating Falcon.The parcel is owned by the state of Colorado, and the state has issued an oil and gas lease on it and another 640-acre parcel nearby.”Other than El Paso County, we currently have no protection from possible oil and gas operations right in the middle of town, and the county has no experience governing oil and gas leases,” Hurd said. “They’re learning how to do that right now.”Hurd said there are another 40 to 50 oil and gas leases along Highway 24 to the southeast of Falcon.”As property owners and citizens, we’re really concerned about this,” he said. “At the same time, by not being incorporated, we may not be able to take full advantage of the opportunity oil and gas exploration represents.”Funding for incorporation“We don’t see property taxes as a source of revenue,” Hurd said.Instead, if voters approve incorporation, the city would be funded by its sales tax. To increase its sales tax revenue, the city could opt out of the Pikes Peak Rural Transportation Authority.Opting out would reduce the sales tax rate in Falcon to 3.9 percent, allowing room for a city sales tax of 1 or 2 percent. A 2-percent city sales tax would generate about $2.4 million for the city, he said.”We’ve got to make the city’s budget work at $2.4 million or less; a low sales tax rate benefits Falcon by attracting residents and commercial developers,” Hurd said.If the city needs more than a 5.9 percent sales tax, incorporating the city is not feasible, he said.Hurd said their research shows the Falcon area generates about $120 million in sales, but 68 percent of Safeway’s sales and 34 percent of Wal-Mart sales are untaxed food sales.Members of the audience were skeptical that $2.4 million would be enough, especially if the city wants to have its own building department.The city would get some assistance from the county, said Maureen Juran, the committee’s legal counsel.State law requires a year-long transition period during which counties are required to continue providing services in newly incorporated cities, she said.New boundariesHurd introduced new boundaries for the proposed city that are smaller than the original boundaries.The boundary along Raygor Road has moved eastward because residents along that road presented a petition saying they felt more a part of Black Forest than Falcon.The new map also shows The Meadows subdivision as an unincorporated enclave within the city’s boundaries. The homeowners association at The Meadows sent a letter saying they voted to remove their entire subdivision from the proposed city’s boundaries, Hurd said.The committee plans to recheck Raygor Road and The Meadows to make sure they haven’t disenfranchised anyone who wants to vote on incorporation.Juran said enclaves like The Meadows are a bad idea because they cause confusion about who maintains roads and who provides law enforcement service.The boundaries could change again.One audience member said he was from an HOA that’s planning to withdraw like The Meadows did.Owners of 40-acre parcels could also opt out because Colorado statute allows it, Juran said.TimelineHurd said the incorporation effort is sticking to the timeline established in January:
- Mid-June – At http://CityOfFalcon.net – publish detailed information about how an incorporated Falcon would be financed.
- July 5 – Publish a full description of the services a city government would provide, the city’s budget and its final boundaries, including the parcel numbers of all property within the final boundaries.
- July 25 – File paperwork in district court, including the names of nine election commissioners who will oversee the election and nine charter commissioners who will write the city’s charter if voters approve the formation of the city. So far, there are only three people willing to be election commissioners. The committee must also post a bond to ensure it can pay for the election.
- Nov. 8 – Election Day
