Letter to the Editor – Longtime Hartman resident responds to recent Letter to the Editor regarding Hartman

I Mark Cooper am writing this in response that was submitted in the editor of the prowers county journal on July 2nd and August of 2025 about Hartman. The letter was written by Shauna Casey. It caused defamation to three trustees on the Hartman Town board. Ms. Casey has only lived in Hartman for the past two and a half years. She corresponds and meets with small groups of individuals who continuously cause turmoil within the town. She tries to fight battles she knows nothing about.

Hartman has been gripped with scandals for the past 13 years. The very downfall of the Town began with the Simmons step down and were no longer on the board. The former board began to run the town as they pleased with no regards to status and or law. They spent the town’s money frivolously and irresponsibly. There had not been an election in 8 years before 2020! All public records were removed from the annex in 2022, where meetings are held before the new board was sworn in. The new board had to hire an attorney to force the return to public records and properties of the town. The attorney was also hired to force the current mayor at the time and one trustee to resign from their position on the board. They enacted an illegal ordinance to stay on the board for 2 years. The new clerk and board had to start their terms with no records to reference, contacts for pertinent business regarding the town, and no direction from the passport to move forward. There were several unpaid bills in the town name, which made conducting business with local businesses difficult.

The start of a new board’s terms was beginning of the incessant harassment by one group of individuals. There have been disturbances at a board meeting, trustee being videoed and yelled at while doing anything around the town, phone calls to complain to the State Of Colorado, petitions for recalls, business to the county clerk’s office, place to Colorado Municipal League, etc. It’s been a consistent battle to get anything done for the town.

The town had water running down the road from a leak in the water tower for over 2 and 1/2 years. The town’s water system was out of compliance and there have several fines because of the non- compliance. We were able to get the water tower repaired, but now have large debt to pay for this service. We had a grant waiting to be awarded to the town for 3 years. The State Of Colorado will not release the funds until the town pulls together and stops the recall petitions, fighting, harassment, constant complaints, phone calls and emails. There are board members who have tried to make peace and get along for betterment of the town. The group in Hartman that claims to care about the town, has done nothing but tried to cause issues with current board members. The Town of Hartman is broke and we have large sums of debt. The town is facing another hardship of recalls that will cost $1,500 instead of everyone working together to get the town back in compliance. Since the town does not have the funds, a recall cannot and will not be held .

Trustees on the current board admit they have made mistakes by hiring clerks that were dishonest and did not do the job they were being paid to do. These same mistakes were made by previous boards as well but there has been no accountability for that, just hypocrisy. The trustee still wants to work with others and get the town in compliance for the water system as well as financially.

It has been impossible to conduct Town business at meeting because of the harassment towards three trustees. The mayor does not conduct the meeting with respect to Robert’s Rules of Orders. She has allowed appointed board members to scream, and yell volgar words at other board members several times, telling others to “shut up”, also accused one of the board members of having an affair with the two individuals that were hired to do the town’s watering system. She also allowed this individual to call other members vulgar names, slam her hand down on the table and stand up as she was going to fight other board members. The trustees being attacked must record the meetings on their own personal devices to have proof of how meetings are conducted. The mayor sits and laughs at what has been said in the meetings, instead of conducting the meetings with professionalism. One of the trustees that has been harassed has Ms. She’s was being yelled at during the last meeting for the town. She ended up getting up to leave the meeting, and the appointment trustee that was yelling told her to “sit down” and that she was not to go anywhere until she resigned. When trustee left the building the appointed trustee, if you leave you are “vulgar name” done. The three trustees were told by appointed trustees they need to take training from Colorado Municipal Legal regarding duties of being a trustee; but this is the same person using vulgar language at a public meetings.

From my point of view the town of Hartman is financially broke. The town operates off the water account. Due to the pass board members that did not file exemption orders or budgets in the past 14 years we do not qualify for our county or state money. the misuse of money too from the prior board members and that was either stolen or used for things that were not accountable for no receipts or nothing was made. The town is in debt to approximately 100,000 for the town does not have the money to pay for. The town is bankrupt.

I have lived in Hartman for over 63 years and I want individuals to know the real story of why Hartman has not been able to accomplish anything within the last 3 years.

Sincerely,

Mark Cooper – Long time town of Hartman resident