Craig Daily Press / Council addresses utilities, property

COLLIN SMITH

June 27, 2007

• Kum & Go at 895 Yampa Ave. will be allowed to sell beer, and its expansion will not be stopped because it is more than 500 feet from Craig Middle School

• Typographical errors in the Land Use Code pertaining to downtown Craig were amended

• The liquor license for Gillam Inc. dba Stockman’s Liquor at 574 Pershing St. was renewed

Changes to how the city handles water and gas billing were addressed by the Craig City Council Tuesday. City Ordnance No. 966 has been in effect since last month and was passed officially into city code last night.

To help work with a new computer system, the city decided to send water and gas bills 10 days earlier than before, and the format has reverted to traditional letters and envelopes as requested by the post office. The ordnance passed unanimously.

Craig Finance Director Bruce Nelson delivered the May financial report. Sales tax revenue is up from last year, showing continued economic growth, but water fund revenue was less than anticipated, which he said was because of the effects of the summer months.

There has been a huge spike in revenue from licenses and permits compared to last year and what was budgeted for 2007. Nelson attributed this to the increase in construction around the city.

City Manager Jim Ferree discussed a water line rupture on First Street. He said that the city should apply for grants to replace the old ductile iron pipes, which have rusted, with PVC.

Also on the agenda was a dispute between two neighbors about the legality of storing work materials at a residential home. The City Council, City Attorney Kenny Wohl and Ferree all agreed that the problems amounted to a civil matter, and that no city zoning statutes had been violated.

“If you want to start a homeowner’s association and pursue action in civil court, then that’s your right as a citizen,” Councilor Joe Herod said. “The violations of neighborhood convenances have nothing to do with the city of Craig.”

In regards to private property laws, there also was an issue where KOA Campgrounds contended that RV’s parking in undesignated, empty parking lots was illegal. The City Council decided that at this time, there were no laws regarding where RV’s could park and that they did not have the right to tell businesses what to do with their property.

“We’ve had a lot of citizens come before us recently unhappy with the zoning codes,” Councilor Byron Williams said. “In reality, if we make them too strong we end up like Steamboat. If we make them too weak then we have an ugly city. It has been a fine balance we have tried to maintain and we hope people can see that.”