Lamar City Council meeting of April 13, 2026

Members of Lamar’s Tree Board displaying the new Tree City USA flag

Lamar City Council met on April 13 as well as holding a work session prior to the regular meeting.  The work session included a presentation by David Land with Ayers Landscape Architecture.  Ayers has been working on the city’s Parks and Recreation Master Plan for several months as part of the city’s overall Comprehensive Plan.  During that time, the company attended several public events in Lamar to speak to community members and get a feel for what the community wants out of their park system.  Land said they got good feedback from a large number of people completing surveys as well as having conversations with him at these events. He presented a slide presentation to Council, which highlighted several things the city has expressed interest in focusing on, including using existing parks and resources, utilizing data-driven recommendations, and having a robust public outreach and engagement.  He also said the Prowers County Youth Council members were invaluable by helping him at the events and getting people engaged and talking about what they want out of the parks system.  He ended the presentation by listing the takeaways: Reinvesting in existing resources and facilities, expanding recreational programming and focusing on outdoor recreation in areas like the trails and North Gateway Park.

Also speaking to Council at the work session was Andy Curry, owner of BMS.  He was speaking on behalf of himself and Brian Herrera, owner of Home Store.  As business owners who supply materials to contractors for construction projects, they feel the “playing field isn’t level” when compared to stores in Garden City.  Kansas’s minimum wage is much lower than Colorado’s which makes the profit of doing the same business here higher than it is in Kansas due to increased payroll costs. He stressed the importance of keeping money local, and presented copies of data showing how much money is generated in a local economy when it is spent in the town, with examples showing that anywhere from 45-74% of money spent locally remains local.  He spoke about how local companies like BMS and Home Store have been providing a living for their employees for many years and that  money spent by those employees adds to the local economy. They are proposing to council a 6% surcharge, issued through the building department, for builders not able to show receipts for materials purchased in Lamar.  Council will discuss this further and possibly have another work session to discuss before making any decisions.

City Treasurer Kristin Schwartz told Council about two grants that the city did not receive, one of which was for the new Public Safety Building.  That grant was denied because the proposed building will be a multi-use facility with both police and fire departments sharing the space.  She said they are seeking other funding via several other grants they are applying for.  City Clerk Linda Williams did not have anything to report.  City Administrator Mitch Hammes had several announcements.  He reminded everyone that there are free landfill and transfer stations weekends throughout the month of April, but that no pickup services are available.  Lamar Lanes is hosting “Pins for Prevention” on Sunday, April 26 from 3:00-5:00 pm.  This is a free family bowling event.  The Prowers County 4^th annual “Plant a Pinwheel” for Child Abuse Prevention Month will be held April 15 from 4:30-6:30 pm in the Shore Arts Center pocket park.  The event includes a free meal, music and more.  Sparrow House Ministries food pantry will be open the following dates in April:  April 16 from 12:00-1:30 pm and again from 6:00-7:30 pm and again on April 23 from 6:00-8:00 pm.  They will be closed on April 30.  Hammes also said the city had conducted interviews with a candidate for the new public relations position.  Lastly, he mentioned that the city is in urgent need of two more patrol vehicles and that another department in Colorado is retiring some which are well-maintained and that he is looking into this as a possible solution.

A public hearing was held at the beginning of the New Business portion of the meeting.  The hearing was for the proposed 220 Holly Street Annexation as part of the Prowers Economic Prosperity’s “Shovel Ready” program.  Brooks O’Hearn with Shamrock Homes was present at the meeting.  Shamrock has purchased several acres of the 220 Holly Street property which will be used for a commercial development.  He said that half of the parcel was already in the city limits but has asked for the remaining half to be annexed so that the project can move forward.  The project’s goal, he said, is to capture some of the heavy traffic that goes through town, allowing them to shop here,  providing new jobs as well as tax profits for the city.  He said he appreciated everything the city has done to help with the project.  No one was present at the meeting wishing to speak in opposition to the annexation.

Next on the agenda was approval of Proclamation No. 26-03, “A Proclamation of the City of Lamar Declaring April 28, 2026 as Arbor Day and April 26-May 2 as Arbor Week”.  Present at the meeting were several members of the city’s Tree Board who showed the new city flag proclaiming Lamar as a “Tree City USA” for the 35^th year.  Council heard about bare root trees being planted, with the help of local 5^th grade students, at various locations in the city and that each of the students will also receive a tree to take home to plant.

City staff asked for permission to apply for any funding opportunities that may arise for the Wooten Public Safety Building.  This was granted.  Lamar Police Chief Kevin Ridder was present at the meeting proposing the addition of a sex offender registration fee by the department.  Ridder said that he is proposing a $25 initial registration fee as well as a $25 yearly registration fee.  The city currently has 37 active registered sex offenders.  A list of these can be found on the city’s website at https://ci.lamar.co.us by clicking on the “Registered Offenders” at the bottom of the list under the Police tab.  Council approved the new fee unanimously and the fee will begin on May 1, 2026.

A renewal of the Allen Aviation Commercial Lease Agreement was approved for one year.  Cody Allen of Allen Aviation requested the renewal of the current agreement to lease space at the Southeast Colorado Regional Airport to operate his Part 145 Repair Station for Aviation Electronics and Services.  The current lease agreement requires a month-to-month lease payment of $500, due the first day of each month.  The renewed lease agreement will expire on March 31, 2027.

City Facilities Manager Kolby Brubacher addressed Council concerning the need for a new LED screen in front of the Community Building.  The city, along with Community State Bank, will work together to purchase a new LED 6mm 4 foot by 8 foot sign to replace the current one which is no longer working.  Brubacher asked for approval of a purchase agreement and screen subscription package with Cirrus for the sign.  The warranty and subscription services will last for 5 years, with subscription payments dropping off after the fifth year.  Brubacher said the new sign will have a much better picture quality than the old sign had.  As City Attorney Lance Clark has not had a chance to review this contract with Cirrus, Council member Brent Bates motioned to table the issue until the next meeting so that Clark can do so.  It was voted to table this issue until then.

Diane Pool spoke to Council asking permission to have professional stunt bike rider Keith Wineland perform at the Wild West BBQ Cook-off April 24-25.  The city will not be asked to help set up the performer’s equipment, as Mark Carrigan has offered to do this.  There will be barriers in place around the performance area for the protection of viewers.  Mayor Crespin asked if the city will need to do any grass repairs after this, but both Pool and City Parks and Recreation Direction Anthony LaTour assured him that no repairs will be needed, as the demonstration will be held in the area of Willow Creek Park where the Rod Run blowup car is held each year.  Council voted to approve this pending the addition of the city on the performer’s insurance policy.  Ms. Pool assured Council that she would get this addition made before the performance.

Lastly, Council member Bates read the 220 Holly Street LLC Ordinance, which asks for approval to annex the 19.23 acres of the property not already within city limits, for its first reading.  A second reading of the ordinance will be held at the next meeting.  Council then adjourned to go into Executive Session.  The next meeting of City Council will be held Monday, May 11 at 7:00 p.m.

By: Barbara Crimond