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Frank(s)town: To be or not to be?

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Contributed by: Joseph Kirchmer/YourHub.com on 11/21/2007

Residents of Frankstown say they will appeal a decision made Nov. 14 by the state that designates the small community as "abandoned."

The decision, made by Secretary of State Mike Coffman, also designated nine other communities as abandoned, including Acequia, Deckers, Douglas, Greenland, Huntsville, Lehigh, Louviers, Russelville and Westcreek.

The communities were ruled abandoned because none have held an election in at least five years.

The Douglas County Board of Commissioners asked for the ruling after residents of Frankstown attempted to re-establish as a town in order to have more control over zoning matters, which are now controlled by the county.

Frankstown with an "s" is not to be confused with Franktown, which also is a Douglas County community.

John Evans, the attorney for residents of Frankstown, is arguing that Frankstown was designated as a town under Colorado Territory Law that was established in the 1870s.

Douglas County courts rejected that claim, but Evans appealed. It is currently being considered by the Colorado Court of Appeals.

If the ruling is not upheld by the Colorado Court of Appeals, residents would need to gather 150 signatures on a petition to hold a vote to incorporate, as Castle Pines North recently did. The problem is that there are only 19 registered voters in the area that was zoned in the 1870s as Frankstown.

"Frankstown is the only way these people can incorporate," Evans said.

The Court of Appeals will make a decision on the matter in coming months, Evans said.

In the meantime, Frankstown voters conducted their own election this month in which they elected a board of trustees, a mayor and a mayor pro-tem.

Douglas County Clerk and Recorder Jack Arrowsmith said the Frankstown vote was not held through the county's clerk and recorder's office.

If the Colorado Court of Appeals decides Frankstown is an official town, he said the election would be considered valid.

"Right now, we're in limbo," he said.

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What do you think about this issue? Should Frankstown be allowed to incorporate under an old law or is the county justified in having them incorporate through the current process? You can post your comments here on the site or e-mail them to me at kirchmerj@yourhub.com.

You also can call me at 303-954-2650 with your comments. Responses may be published in the next print edition of YourHub.com.

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