In 1947 the Colorado State legislature passed a law that allowed communities to create urban renewal special districts through the vote of the general electorate. The purpose for the law was to create a vehicle by which communities could rehabilitate slum and or disaster areas within their communities.
The Estes Park Urban Renewal Authority is an independent and separate governing body and was created and approved by a vote of the citizens of Estes Park, to rehabilitate the Downtown Commercial District after the 1982 Long Lake natural disaster. The powers and authorities of the district are confined to the voter approved improvement district, in the case of EPURA, the downtown commercial district. To accomplish the recovery after the 1982 disaster, money was raised through the issuance of bonds; investors purchase the bonds (shares). As a TIF district money to pay back the investors are accumulated within the community using TIF, tax-increment-financing.
To accomplish the rehabilitation of slums or disaster areas effectively urban renewal authorities are granted special powers of authority not granted to town trustee bodies. It is assumed that special or emergency conditions require special powers and authorities to raise money and accomplish planned and approved projects. Urban renewal authorities and powers are intended to be expressed on a very specific and defined area with a very specific and defined plan during a predetermined span of time.
To better understand urban renewal authorities it is necessary to understand the definitions of the powers that these authorities have.
The definitions of the powers and authorities that EPURA has are listed:
(1) Authority or "urban renewal authority" means a corporate body organized pursuant to the provisions of this part 1 for the purposes, with the powers, and subject to the restrictions set forth in this part 1.
(2) "Blighted area" means an area that, in its present condition and use and, by reason of the presence of at least four of the following factors, substantially impairs or arrests the sound growth of the municipality, retards the provision of housing accommodations, or constitutes an economic or social liability, and is a menace to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare:
(a) Slum, deteriorated, or deteriorating structures;
(b) Predominance of defective or inadequate street layout;
(c) Faulty lot layout in relation to size, adequacy, accessibility, or usefulness;
(d) Unsanitary or unsafe conditions;
(e) Deterioration of site or other improvements;
(f) Unusual topography or inadequate public improvements or utilities;
(g) Defective or unusual conditions of title rendering the title nonmarketable;
(h) The existence of conditions that endanger life or property by fire or other causes;
(i) Buildings that are unsafe or unhealthy for persons to live or work in because of building code violations, dilapidation, deterioration, defective design, physical construction, or faulty or inadequate facilities;
(j) Environmental contamination of buildings or property;
(k) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2004, p. 1745, § 3, effective June 4, 2004.)
(k.5) The existence of health, safety, or welfare factors requiring high levels of municipal services or substantial physical underutilization or vacancy of sites, buildings, or other improvements; or
(l) If there is no objection by the property owner or owners and the tenant or tenants of such owner or owners, if any, to the inclusion of such property in an urban renewal area, "blighted area" also means an area that, in its present condition and use and, by reason of the presence of any one of the factors specified in paragraphs (a) to (k.5) of this subsection (2), substantially impairs or arrests the sound growth of the municipality, retards the provision of housing accommodations, or constitutes an economic or social liability, and is a menace to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare. For purposes of this paragraph (l), the fact that an owner of an interest in such property does not object to the inclusion of such property in the urban renewal area does not mean that the owner has waived any rights of such owner in connection with laws governing condemnation.
(3) "Bonds" means any bonds (including refunding bonds), notes, interim certificates or receipts, temporary bonds, certificates of indebtedness, debentures, or other obligations.
(3.3) "Business concern" has the same meaning as "business" as set forth in section 24-56-102 (1), C.R.S.
(3.5) "Displaced person" has the same meaning as set forth in section 24-56-102 (2), C.R.S., and for purposes of this part 1 shall also include any individual, family, or business concern displaced by the acquisition by eminent domain of real property by an authority.
(3.7) "Governing body" means the governing body of the municipality within which an authority has been established in accordance with the requirements of this part 1.
(4) "Obligee" means any bondholder, agent, or trustee for any bondholder, or any lessor demising to an authority property used in connection with an urban renewal project of the authority, or any assignee of such lessor's interest or any part thereof, and the federal government when it is a party to any contract or agreement with the authority.
(5) "Public body" means the state of Colorado or any municipality, quasi-municipal corporation, board, commission, authority, or other political subdivision or public corporate body of the state.
(6) "Real property" means lands, lands under water, structures, and any and all easements, franchises, incorporeal hereditaments, and every estate and right therein, legal and equitable, including terms for years and liens by way of judgment, mortgage, or otherwise.
(7) "Slum area" means an area in which there is a predominance of buildings or improvements, whether residential or nonresidential, and which, by reason of dilapidation, deterioration, age or obsolescence, inadequate provision for ventilation, light, air, sanitation, or open spaces, high density of population and overcrowding, or the existence of conditions which endanger life or property by fire or other causes, or any combination of such factors, is conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, infant mortality, juvenile delinquency, or crime and is detrimental to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare.
(8) "Urban renewal area" means a slum area, or a blighted area, or a combination thereof which the local governing body designates as appropriate for an urban renewal project.
(9) "Urban renewal plan" means a plan, as it exists from time to time, for an urban renewal project, which plan conforms to a general or master plan for the physical development of the municipality as a whole and which is sufficiently complete to indicate such land acquisition, demolition and removal of structures, redevelopment, improvements, and rehabilitation as may be proposed to be carried out in the urban renewal area, zoning and planning changes, if any, land uses, maximum densities, building requirements, and the plan's relationship to definite local objectives respecting appropriate land uses, improved traffic, public transportation, public utilities, recreational and community facilities, and other public improvements.
(10) "Urban renewal project" means undertakings and activities for the elimination and for the prevention of the development or spread of slums and blight and may involve slum clearance and redevelopment, or rehabilitation, or conservation, or any combination or part thereof, in accordance with an urban renewal plan. Such undertakings and activities may include:
(a) Acquisition of a slum area or a blighted area or portion thereof;
(b) Demolition and removal of buildings and improvements;
(c) Installation, construction, or reconstruction of streets, utilities, parks, playgrounds, and other improvements necessary for carrying out the objectives of this part 1 in accordance with the urban renewal plan;
(d) Disposition of any property acquired or held by the authority as a part of its undertaking of the urban renewal project for the urban renewal areas (including sale, initial leasing, or temporary retention by the authority itself) at the fair value of such property for uses in accordance with the urban renewal plan;
(e) Carrying out plans for a program through voluntary action and the regulatory process for the repair, alteration, and rehabilitation of buildings or other improvements in accordance with the urban renewal plan; and
(f) Acquisition of any other property where necessary to eliminate unhealthful, unsanitary, or unsafe conditions, lessen density, eliminate obsolete or other uses detrimental to the public welfare, or otherwise remove or prevent the spread of blight or deterioration or to provide land for needed public facilities.
“Blight” as defined in Estes Park by EPURA may mean many of the buildings in the down town business district are a “blight” can be confiscated torn down and replaced. Many if not most of the properties in the downtown business district pose fire hazards, contain toxic molds, inadequate electrical wiring, are in need of extensive repair, are empty or closed the majority of the year posing an economic “blight”. If you are a building owners in the down town business district and have not been paying attention you should, Forever Living Resorts, the EPURA corporate partner in the development of the Conference Center, purchased the building on the corner of Elkhorn and Moraine, they are extensively renovating it. EPURA “blighted” the Visitors Center, spent TIF tax monies to build a new one. EPURA can take your property using the property tax you pay into the system to do it.
The members of the EPURA board are appointed by the Mayor. Current Board members are Randy Repola; Irene Little; Paula Steige; Gerald Swank; Ron Wilcocks; John Ericson Jr.; the paid director is Will Smith. They meet the third Wednesday of each month at 8:00 am in town hall.
EPURA is set to expire in 2008, the town has hired a team of attorneys to explore ways to indefinitely extend the powers and authorities of EPURA. The mayor has on many occasions falsely labeled EPURA the planning arm of the town. There are many valid reasons to mandate the retirement of EPURA.
In an intergovernmental agreement negotiated in a series of executive sessions between EPURA and the Town Trustees the majority of EPURA TIF funding is handed over to the town and combined with the general fund. The laws of Colorado are very specific about intergovernmental agreements between special districts and other governmental bodies, such agreements and assumption of power must be approved by the electorate in a general election any such agreement has never appeared on any general election ballot here in Estes Park.
31-25-115. Transfer - abolishment.
Statute text:
(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part 1, the governing body of a municipality may designate itself as the authority when originally establishing said authority. A transfer of an existing authority to the governing body may be accomplished only by majority vote at a regular general election.
The use of an established urban renewals real powers to accomplish rehabilitation of slums and blighted areas is one thing, the misuse of these powers to accomplish economic development where blight and slum are not present is a growing problem across Colorado there are several pieces of legislation currently being developed to eliminate the abuse.
