TAXES

FROM PAGE 6 in a way that had hamstrung government entities that rely on property tax revenue, the Sun reported.

See more on that at tinyurl.com/ SunGallagherExplain.

Nationally, Colorado has relatively low residential property taxes, according to an analysis by the conservative Tax Foundation. Colorado conference center. ranked 47th in property taxes paid as a percentage of owner-occupied housing value in 2020, according to the foundation.

Interviews also revealed concerns about tra c congestion and transit in and out of the city as well as an emerging theme of sustainability and environmental issues.

Lacewell said there is recognition of limitations concerning land availability, housing and transportation costs as well as the physical location of Parker seen throughout the interview process.

“We’ve also heard from businesses, both large and small, that they are struggling to recruit talent due to housing, cost of living, transportation costs,” said Lacewell. rough the market assessment, PUMA examined the existing conditions and plan to identify future economic land use and employment opportunities in the growing community.

According to Senior Associate Andrea Buglione, Parker has maintained its status as a retail destination and retail vacancy is at an all time low, however, this is creating challenges for smaller emerging businesses looking for a ordable space.

A recurring topic among the council and associates was the sense of community in Parker. According to the analysis thus far, a trend shows people feel like the sense of community is worsening. On the other hand, Councilmember Laura Hefta believes that is inaccurate as the town has added events to the PACE Center and arts and culture entertainment.

Moving forward, the group brainstormed how the survey could reach more people to get an accurate reading of the sense of community. e associate team also plans to conduct exit interviews for businesses that left Parker and look into partnerships with private and regional sectors.

“Economic vitality really needs to balance preserving that unique lifestyle [of Parker] moving forward, that is a key core value,” said Segal. Associates at PUMA plan to to come back to the council for further discussion.

And while businesses pay more, their taxes still appear to be lower than the national average, according to the Colorado Sun. Colorado had the 17th best “State Business Tax Climate” for 2020, according to the Tax Foundation. Colorado had the 14th best “property tax rank” for businesses in 2020, according to the foundation.

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You can help keep your community healthy. The Douglas County Health Department investigates communicable diseases. You can help by reporting infectious diseases along with animal bites that break the skin. To report, visit douglas.co.us and search Health Department many of them are already working together to address the housing issues and what can be done at the local level. e City of Centennial has been working for more than a year on a housing study focused on the local needs. Centennial Mayor Stephanie Piko said SB23-213 would wipe that out and require municipalities to follow new requirements.

In Castle Rock, Mayor Jason Gray said, “ e town’s policies — and more importantly, our planning — have provided for an array of market-based housing choices within Castle Rock while respecting property owners’ rights and ensuring quality town services, like longterm renewable water. We cannot allow the governor and the General Assembly to upend our community’s planning and character — and Castle Rock homeowners’ nancial investments — with this overreaching legislation.”

Gray said the council will vote on a letter and resolution to o cially oppose SB23-213 on April 4.

Castle Rock is not alone. In Parker, while the council hasn’t taken a stance on the bill, town o cials said a discussion and possible vote would be coming soon. Littleton may also consider an o cial action to oppose the measure.

In an email statement to Colorado Community Media, Littleton Mayor Kyle Schlachter said he appreciates the legislation the bill is trying to address, while noting that housing is an important issue that even Littleton has labeled as a top priority.

“While I personally would support much of the land use changes SB23213 suggests here in Littleton, such as ADUs (accessory dwelling units), missing middle housing, parking requirements, and occupancy requirements — I am concerned about the unprecedented preemption of home rule authority,” he said. “I think removing local input from land use decisions would be a step in the wrong direction for our state.” rough home rule, Piko said, Centennial has worked directly with citizens to create housing options to t local needs, which SB23-213 would end.

Home rule is a form or structure of governing de ned by the citizens of a municipality or county that allows for more control over matters of local signi cance.

“Centennial has recently engaged with our residents on several large housing projects, like e Streets at Southglenn and e District. Between e Streets at Southglenn and e District, we’re looking at adding an additional 3,000 units to our community,” she said. “ at process allowed for the opportunity to engage with citizens, the developer and the city to work through project proposals together to amend projects to meet the needs of our community. Even though not every citizen is happy with the outcome, they have the opportunity to have their concerns heard by their local o cials who can be held accountable for the outcomes of the development.”

Warren-Gully said Arapahoe County is working to address the housing shortage. e county cur- rently has more than 108,000 units already approved for construction, which would provide homes for nearly 280,000 people.

“ at’s planned housing for all those people,” she said. “ e problem is all those homes will not be built by next year. Development will happen not overnight. is legislation just can’t make them get built faster.”

Arapahoe County is expected to reach 800,000 residents by the year 2030. e current population is just over 650,000.

Cherry Hills Village Mayor Katy Brown agreed with Piko and Warren-Gully, saying a lot of collaborative planning that has gone into meeting Arapahoe County needs at local levels would be undone with the bill passage.

“You’ve just heard a lot about the great work that’s being done to address housing needs locally in Arapahoe County,” she said. “You’ve heard about the smart and collaborative planning and development that takes into consideration the unique communities in our county. But this bill would put an end to all of that by taking decision-making out of the hands of local communities and giving it to the state.”

Under Polis’ land use bill, cities and towns would be barred from limiting the construction of multiplexes and add-on housing units.

Opponents say that is not so simple.

In Colorado, Warren-Gully said, it may sound good to create these plans to force more housing, but the cost is not necessarily going to compute. To give an example, WarrenGully said when a home valued at $450,000 is instead developed into a triplex where the units are sold for $750,000 each — a ordability is still an issue.

“Density does not address affordability,” she said. “We have to be much more intentional to make things a ordable.”

Brown said zoning is currently created by local governments with extensive input from the community.

“By allowing increased density on any single-family lot as a use-byright, this bill takes away a community’s ability to situate housing where it makes sense,” Brown said. “Where it can be sustainable for things like water and sewer. Questions like — Are the pipes underground big enough to handle the increased volume of water and well, frankly, poop that has to go down them? Are the roads and tra c, are the roads wide enough to accommodate the travel, parking and emergency vehicle access? My community still has some narrow dirt roads. It wouldn’t make sense to build an apartment building there, but we might be required to do so under this new legislation.”

Piko said she supports the idea of building more townhomes and condominiums in the metro area, however, past legislative decisions and liability for developers have created a hesitancy to build them over the years.

Schlachter said SB23-213 could also create extra layers of bureaucracy and regulations and that passage of this legislation would mean restricting development of new housing instead of encouraging it.

During a recent town hall, Sheridan Mayor Tara Beiter-Fluhr said with current projects and future plans, the city is working to increase a ordable housing without mandates from the state. SB21-213 does not actually guarantee a ordable housing while municipalities like Sheridan are working to provide “truly a ordable housing,” she said.

With housing being a statewide concern, Schlachter said SB12-213 does not cover it. Schlachter said solutions that work for Denver may not make sense for Littleton, just as Littleton solutions may not work for neighboring communities.

“I wish the a ected municipalities had been brought to the table sooner to help craft legislation that would better address the issues regarding housing a ordability,” he said.

SB23-213, which was o cially introduced on March 22, will be discussed in committee on April 6.