The measure is a response to the ongoing Casey’s Pond crisis, but it wouldn’t be used to save the facility.
Caption: Dina Fisher helps her brother Vance straighten up his room at the Doak Walker House at Casey's Pond. Unlike the hotel-like lobby, Fisher says where her brother lives has pretty typical accommodations for a nursing home. (Dylan Anderson/The Yampa Valley Bugle)
After declining to send a property tax question to voters earlier this year, Steamboat Springs City Council took the first step toward doing just that on Tuesday by drafting a ballot measure that would ask voters to support a tax for so-called cradle to grave services.
In a 5-1 vote, council members passed the first reading of an ordinance that would impose a 1 mill property tax “for the purpose of providing child care and senior living health care services and facilities.” Council agreed on a 10-year sunset to the tax. Second reading is Sept. 3.
While the move is in response to the ongoing crisis with Casey’s Pond, this funding will not be used to save the senior living community from receivership, as initial bids to buy the property are due on Sept. 9 and Election Day is Nov. 5. Still, council members argued the measure would become even more important if the facility closes completely.
“The city is not in the business of taking care of senior citizens,” said Council member Joella West. “What the city can do with this funding is not address the issue of senior living and senior healthcare. What it can do is contribute to something that does.”
The property tax pitch is just the latest for a city that has long filled its coffers with sales tax revenues but now is seeking to diversify revenue streams. Council briefly considered a property tax discussion in January, before deciding they didn’t want to pursue a question this year. In July, two council members pitched a plan to consolidate fire services with a property tax — a plan that would pose a question in 2025 if pursued.
While some council members admitted this effort to put something on the ballot may be rushed, they noted voters have the final say.
“I’m amazed at how much the citizens, with all the emails and the conversations that we’ve had, how there’s an expectation for us to solve this, and we don’t have any money to solve this,” said Council member Michael Buccino. “If those citizens have that expectation of council and the city of Steamboat springs to help fill it, this is what the citizens of Steamboat Springs need to do to give us this authority.”
Council member Amy Dickson was the lone holdout in approving the measure, saying she felt like council was “rushing” into a ballot question, a word Council President Gail Garey used to refer to the situation as well. Dickson noted the idea of a ballot question was initially to help form a bid to save Casey’s Pond, and the question before them wouldn’t do that.
“I think we’re rushing into it and I think we need to pull back, and really pull back to the larger property tax or diversified revenue stream conversation,” Dickson said. “I support Casey’s Pond 100%. This won’t help them get out of the situation that they’re currently in.”
The ballot question includes child care as well, and Council members have discussed using this money to help subsidize a new child care facility that is being proposed as a partnership between the city, Routt County and the Colorado Department of Transportation.
Council members opted to leave any reference to Casey’s Pond out of the ballot question, fearing it could tank the measure if the effort to save the community falls short. But they also argued that failure to save Casey’s Pond would make the need for financial support for seniors even more important.
“If Casey’s Pond closes there is an even more dire need for senior help, senior housing, senior services,” said Council member Dakotah McGinlay. “And child care remains and issue that has been an issue for a long time that we haven’t had dedicated funding for.”
Casey’s Pond was placed into receivership by Routt County District Court on June 30, setting off a process to sell the heavily indebted community that has already seen residents in the Doak Walker Skilled Nursing and Assisted Living receive notice that their units are closing. Independent living resident are slated for a meeting with receiver Bellann Raile on Wednesday.
Last week, Council passed an emergency ordinance to allocate $2.5 million in short-term rental tax revenues toward buying Casey’s Pond, a move that hopes to spur enough philanthropic donations to create an offer to buy the facility out of receivership. The money council allocated is likely a fraction of what would be needed for a competitive bid.
“We may not know if this [ballot measure] will make a difference in the end for Casey’s Pond, but I hope that it signals to our philanthropic partners in the community how invested the community and the city is at trying to resolve these issues,” McGinlay said. “Hopefully those partners feel more inclined to step forward.”
Council members encouraged more public comment ahead of second reading on Sept. 3. In the lone public comment on Tuesday, resident Bill Jamison argued that council had taken steps they could to solve the problem already, and that the ballot measure was taking advantage of the situation.
“I think it was Churchill that said ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste,’” Jamison said. “You addressed that last week with your emergency [ordinance]. … You are using a crisis of this receivership to push through on short notice a property tax for child care, senior care and who knows what, without giving the community time to really discuss this.”
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