register |  login
› CASTLE ROCK
Loading Ad
Visit Other Hubs:
ADVERTISEMENT
Loading Tower
Blog
Blog Entry 20 of 43 A view from The Hill
Hi, I'm Joey Kirchmer, author of this blog and a community journalist at YourHub.com. I live at the intersection of 13th and Washington, smack dab in the middle of Capitol Hill. If you have news tips about Capitol Hill or the greater Denver area, feel free to e-mail them to me at kirchmerj@yourhub.com. You can also call me at 303-954-2650. Otherwise, sit back, relax and enjoy these blog entries.

Blog Url: http://denver.yourhub.com/~DealinInDouglas

Three tax measures included in '07 ballot

Contributed by: Joseph Kirchmer/YourHub.com   on 10/9/2007

DOUGLAS COUNTY - A property tax increase that would fund the construction of three new libraries will be included in this year's election, which will be an all mail ballot.

County Clerk and Recorder Jack Arrowsmith said the ballot counting machines were recently tested and functioned "flawlessly."

"It worked as expected," he said, noting the machines worked perfectly in the '06 election as well. It was the voting machines that kept voters standing in line, he said.

The ballots will be mailed out to all registered voters Oct. 12, Arrowsmith said, and includes a blue book, which gives voters an impartial analysis of the issues.
There are three countywide issues on the ballot this year and a few local ballot items.

Issue 5A, a property tax increase to fund new libraries, is the only countywide proposal to raise taxes. The other two tax measures are continuations of existing sales taxes.

The library's proposal will ask voters to approve a 1.25 mill levy increase for all Douglas County residents, according to James LaRue, library director at Douglas County Libraries.

The increase breaks down to $9.99 per $100,000 on the assessed value of a home, LaRue said. Since the average value of a home in Douglas County is approximately $300,000, the property tax increase would amount to approximately $30 per year, or roughly $2 per month, he said.

In addition to the new Parker library, the mill levy increase also would fund a new library in Castle Pines, which would open in 2008 or 2009, and a new library in Lone Tree, which would open in 2010, LaRue said.

County residents will face two ballot issues that ask voters to continue existing taxes that are scheduled to sunset. The first, Issue 1A, is a continuation of a sales tax for the Douglas County Justice Center.

Voters approved a sales tax increase in 1995 that helped fund construction of the Douglas County Justice Center, which opened in 1998 and includes the county's courtrooms, sheriff's office, jail cells and dispatch center.

The sales tax for the Justice Center, which amounts to 23 cents on a $100 purchase, is set to expire in 2011. The ballot issue will ask voters to extend the tax into 2021 instead in order to continue to fund operations and maintenance costs.

Ed Brewer is the chair of the Public Safety Advisory Committee, which is made of local residents that studied and ultimatelyrecommended the ballot issue. He said the continuation of the sales tax makes better sense because some of the sales tax revenue is spread out from shoppers who live outside of the county.
If the sales tax were to transition to a property tax increase, it would be paid for entirely by county residents, he said.

The other tax continuation measure, Issue 1B, would extend an existing sales tax of 40 cents on a $100 purchase to maintain and improve the county's streets, roads and bridges. The tax, slated to sunset in 2010, would be extended through 2030 if approved.

The proposal will mark the first time in 11 years that the library district has gone to voters to ask for a tax increase, LaRue said. He noted that the total growth in checkouts in Douglas County has gone up 18 percent over the course of the past five years, while the nationwide average is around 2 to 3 percent.

Castle Pines North residents will have a special election on four separate ballot items, 2B, 2C, 2D and 2E. 2B asks voters whether they're for or against incorporation and the remaining three are two property tax increases and a 2.75 percent sales and use tax that would be used to fund basic government services, such as street repair and snow removal.

Castle Pines North is vying to become its own city. If voters approve, the county would get its first new city since 1995 when Lone Tree incorporated.

The final issue, 5B, is a property tax increase for residents in the Grandview Estates Rural Water Conservation District, a small community near Lone Tree. The 1.5 mill levy increase, which would raise close to $10,000 annually, would be used to fund organization expenses.

Voters also will choose three new school board members for the Douglas County School District.

District A is the most crowded of all the races, with five candidates all vying for the same position. District C meanwhile, features only one candidate while District F is a race between two.

Got election questions? Click here.


SUBMIT COMMENT

Rate the above blog



Current Rating
Based on 3 user ratings.

Talk Back : submit comments to the blog

*Note: you need to log-in to add a comment or rating.

Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
Submitted By: Robert Vinci
posted on 10/22/2007 @ 10:11:01 PM
Rated Blog Entry
You covered the ballot issues quite well. As for the canidates I would liked to have been given some background information on each.
[Report as objectionable]
Submitted By: Michael Rule
posted on 10/10/2007 @ 9:46:35 PM
Rated Blog Entry
Why would I, way down here in southern Douglas County, care to finance libraries I will never use? Especially in castle Pines!!! My vote is no.
[Report as objectionable]
Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
SAVE AND SHARE THIS BLOG ENTRY
BLOG ENTRY RSS FEEDS
BLOG LIST
WANT TO WRITE FOR YOURHUB.COM?
Want to see the stories you write and the photos you shoot featured in the YourHub.com Thursday print section available all over the Front Range and with home subscriptions of the Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Post? All you have to do is  register,  then post a story or column, start a blog or tell everyonewhat events are happening in town. We will print the best stories, columns, event listings, photos and blog entries in our print sections.

ADVERTISEMENT
Loading Ad

Loading Ad
ADVERTISEMENT
Loading Ad

This YourHub.com community is produced by The Denver Newspaper Agency
Web Development and Channel Analytics provided by Indigio

terms of use //  privacy policy
the staff //  advertise //  help & faq
buy photos