Lamar City Council Extends Arby’s Sales Agreement

Former Building at 1002 North Main

An Arby’s fast-food restaurant is still a ‘go’ for Lamar.  The city council authorized Mayor Kirk Crespin to sign an amendment to the purchase and sales agreement for the former WHO property at 1002 North Main Street.  The amendment with RB Colorado LLC, extends the review period to August 12 and includes a thirty-day extended option if needed.  Crespin, during the July 11^th council meeting, explained there had been some delays in meeting some property evaluation deadlines.  The Seller agrees to pay all costs and expenses for the Phase II environmental assessment.

Councilmembers voted to follow the direction of several other towns and voted not to receive Opioid Settlement Funds from the state that derived from a national lawsuit against a drug manufacturing company.  Lamar Police Chief, Kyle Miller, explained the city’s first-year share would be $2,902.51 with approximately $1,500 a year to follow for 18 years for a total of $25,810.05.  Had the city decided to receive the funds, it would have had to spend the money outlined in a MOU agreement and the annual use would have to be tracked by the city for the life of the agreement and reported to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council.  These funds will now be used on a regional basis where the combined impact may produce better results, according to Chief Miller.  As specified in the agreement, reports on how the funds are used are divided into five categories:  Prevention and Education, Treatment, Harm Reduction, Criminal Justice and Recovery.

Chief Miller told the council the department received the full $5,603.61 requested from this past March from the Colorado POST in-service grant.  The funds will be used to cover costs to secure training and equipment for the police department for one year.  The Chief also outlined a Memorandum of Understanding between the department and Advantage Treatment Centers, LLC for their Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) audit.  The police department currently handles any call for service at the Lamar ATC on East Maple Street.  The agreement covers calls of sexual abuse.  The department routinely responds to such calls, but the agreement is now formalized.

Community State Bank submitted the lowest interest rate out of the three returned to the City of Lamar for financing for the lease/purchase of a 2022 Ford F250 pickup to be used by the City Administrator, Rob Evans, as part of his hiring agreement.  The interest rate of 3.75% was the lowest submitted by the three banks and the Mayor Pro-tem signed the contract following council’s approval.

Administrator Evans highlighted some future events for the community including his weekly, ‘Coffee with Rob’ sessions on Wednesdays.  Several are scheduled at city offices including the Public Works office on July 20^th and the Admin offices on the 27^th from 7am to 8am.  Evans said these locations will allow residents an opportunity to interact with municipal employees in their workplaces, gaining some insight into how those departments operate.  All clubs or individuals are welcome to submit dates to schedule a meeting with Evans.

Mayor Crespin noted that Lamar has been selected to host the Lamar Junior Babe Ruth 2023 Colorado Babe Ruth Cal Ripken State Tournament which will run from June 29th-July 2nd, 2023.  He said 35 teams will be in town next year for players between 8 to 15 years old.  Lamar was a host city in 2021.

The monthly Lamar Chamber of Commerce’s Farmers Market will run from 8am to 1pm this Saturday, July 16^th at the chamber parking lot and the Enchanted Forest on East Beech Street.  Contact the chamber at 336-4379 for vendor information.  The council approved the reappointment of Rich Maggart to the City’s Adjustment and Appeals board for a five-year term ending in 2027.

The council ended the meeting with an executive session with the City Attorney to receive legal advice on specific questions under C.R.S. Section 24-4-402(4)(b).
By Russ Baldwin