Northglenn voters will soon decide the fate of a battle over control of an economic redevelopment group.

At issue is the Northglenn Urban Renewal Authority, or NURA, a quasi-governmental agency made up of local residents and elected officials. A faction of city councilors say the urban renewal authority - created in 1990 to help fight blighted areas - needs more government oversight.

Currently, members of NURA are appointed by the mayor to serve five-year terms , though appointments must be confirmed by a vote of city council. Some city councilors believe that's unfair because citizens aren't given a chance to vote on the authority's members.

Councilman Gene Wieneke, who helped spearhead the issue, also points out NURA members cannot be appointed to or removed from the agency's board of commissioners without the approval of the mayor.

"Once you're on the NURA board, basically you need to keep the mayor happy, not the council," he said.

Wieneke is among five council members who voted to place the issue before Northglenn residents. Ballot issue 2H asks voters to transfer governance of NURA over to city council - which would effectively replace the current board with city council members.

NURA commissioner Tim Long is fighting 2H and says Wieneke and others are attempting to mislead voters on the issue. Long believes they are more interested in taking control of NURA's coffers, estimated at $5.2 million in cash and another $2 million in assets.

"Obviously, Northglenn is up against it with the general fund, so now city council wants that money," he said.

Long, who was appointed to the NURA board in 2005, said the authority has a strong track record in economic redevelopment. He points to the redevelopment of the old Northglenn Mall - now known as the Northglenn Marketplace - as one of many projects NURA has successfully helped complete.

Long believes the current system of appointing members to the board works better because the board can focus solely on economic redevelopment. City councils that double as urban renewal authorities can become bogged down in the minutiae of administrative details, he said, and lose sight of the bigger picture.

He also believes Wieneke, who is running for mayor of Northglenn, is using the issue for political gain.

"It's political," Long said. "It's a one-man wrecking crew."

Wieneke called that assertion "hogwash," adding he's long been opposed to independent boards serving as urban renewal authorities because "they are accountable to no one."

"There's a lot of power in these authorities and it should be in the hands of people who were elected by the citizens," Wieneke said.

Joey Kirchmer: 303-954-2650 or kirchmerj@yourhub.com