Lamar City Council meeting of October 12, 2026 included input from audience members, involved moratorium discussion

Lamar City Council held a regular, bi-monthly meeting on Monday, October 12, 2026 and it was a lengthy one.  Not only were there a large number of agenda items to discuss, there were four ordinances that, by law, needed to be read in their entirety.  Added to that were a large number of audience members present wishing to speak during the Public Comments portion of the meeting.  As such, Mayor Kirk Crespin suggesting moving Agenda #18, which was discussion about the city’s proposed moratorium on data centers closer to the beginning of the meeting to accommodate any audience members who may needed to leave before the end of the meeting.

As such, after the consent agenda was approved, the meeting moved to the public comments.  All of the nine citizens who spoke at the meeting were strongly against the city approving any data centers to be built in our community.  The first gentleman to speak mentioned the exhaust water temperatures the centers produce, saying it would raise temperatures in the area around a center. The second speaker said “I really don’t want to be here, but this matters”.  She went on to say she doesn’t want to live anywhere that has a data center, listing her concerns about toxins to the air and wildlife. “God save our farmers” she added, saying that she has read where animals near such centers quit mating.  She also felt that such a facility wouldn’t be built or maintained “by anyone here” and would only provide minimum-wage jobs for cleaning people and security.  The third speaker asked how a data center would be beneficial to the community, saying that this year’s drought “should be a wakeup call” and that farmers suffered and lakes dried up.  She then mentioned the potential harm to the monarch butterfly migration, the Two-Shot Goose Hunt, and the Snow Goose Festival.  She spoke about how fortunate Lamar is to have North Gateway Park where roadrunners, herons, and more can be seen and would be affected.  “Just say no” she asked Council.

Next, a speaker wanted to thank former Councilmember Bates for suggesting the 24-month moratorium and added that he felt any guidelines Council may adopt in their policy-making for data centers should include stipulations that no center can be built within 5 miles of people or livestock due to potential chemical leaks and that there be no increase in residents’ water rates with any such center having to subsidize any increased water usage. “The billionaires should take their dirty business elsewhere” he ended with.  The next speaker said “We are all aware of the detrimental issues” of noise and pollution.  She felt that the promise of jobs created by centers was a fabrication and said people all over the country are rising up against data center, asking why cities are having to “fight them away instead of fighting for them to come” if they are so great.  She wanted to remind councilmembers that “Your first priority is the people in your wards.  People voted in good faith that you would have their best interests at heart”.  The next speaker said she recently bought her home here and was the third generation in her family to own it.  “I don’t want to leave here but I will leave (if a center was built) and I am an asset to this community” she said.  She also said that Council works for its residents.  She demanded an outright ban on data centers and feels the issue was being “ramrodded through” and mentioned what she feels is a lack of transparency by Council who she feels talks to the community like they are ignorant.

Another speaker also mentioned that he didn’t want to have to be here tonight, mentioning that with him was his mother and that it was her birthday but that they felt it was important to be at the meeting to voice opinions.  He felt that Council’s original 24-month moratorium was the right decision to allow time to do research by scientists and utility experts.  “Economic growth can’t mean growth at any cost” he said.  “You were elected to listen to your constituents”.  The next speaker said “The people here tonight and last time and online have made it very clear that if you move forward, you are betraying every single one of them”.  The last speaker mentioned that she was also at the last meeting where a number of citizens spoke out against the idea.  “You did not hear one person say they want to have a data center here” and mentioned the coal plant failure.  “Stop the garbage.  I will fight this city”.

The meeting then moved on to the rest of the agenda.  The City Treasurer and City Clerk had no reports to give.  City Administrator Hammes listed several upcoming events.  Saturday, October 17 will have the “Halloween Classic Championship” martial arts at the Community Building.  Doors open at 9 am.  Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids.  Ages 6 and under are free.  Thursday, October 22 will be the annual “Moonlight Madness” on Main Street from 5-7 pm.  The 1^st annual LCC Craft Fair will be held Saturday, October 31 and Sunday November 1.  Trunk or Treat events include: The Lamar Public Library Friday, October 30 from 5-7 pm; Lamar Elks Lodge Saturday, October 31 from 6-7:30 pm; Grace Family Worship Center Saturday, October 31 from 6-8 pm.  Alexis Qualls, Manager of the Lamar Animal Shelter was present to give an update. She said she had been in her role for 8 months and that she was confident in her work.  She mentioned increased adoptions and that she maintains the pet pantry, has good partnerships with shelters and rescue groups, and a great relationship with all the local veterinarians and dog groomers.  She began opening the shelter one Saturday afternoon a month to accommodate people who work during the week and is adjusting shelter hours from 7 pm to 4 pm to 8 am to 5 pm, saying few people came in before 8 and that the later closing time would also help working people.  She is also designing a new sign for the entrance, as the current one is very small.  She is working on developing a foster program to utilize more volunteers and hopefully increase adoption numbers.

Councilmember reports began with Mayor Crespin explaining his idea of “Town Hall Tuesdays” as another way to get feedback from the community about their concerns or ideas.  He then wanted to assure Lamar residents that there were no non-disclosure agreements signed with any data centers, saying that because of the community opposition, the original company who approached the city moved on and that the “conversation stopped there”.  “Will another company come again (a data center wishing to locate here)? Yes, so it’s important to get feedback to put regulations in place” explaining the need to have the moratorium to allow time for that.  All councilmembers then spoke, most saying they were opposed to data centers themselves and that there were no “backroom deals” being made.  Councilmember Headlee expressed his frustration with residents, in that “not one” person had approached him personally with their concerns, yet many feel free to comment on social media.  “Please come talk to me” he said.  “I’m honest and open”.  They all spoke about the need to set up regulations in order to legally dissuade any such company from wanting to locate here.

In New Business, Lamar Light and Power Superintendent Houssin Hourieh presented the department’s proposed 2027 Budget in detail.  Next, public hearings were held for the 2027 Budget and annexation and initial zoning of property known as the Valco subdivision. No one present spoke for or against the issues at tonight’s meeting.  The moratorium discussion was next, having been moved up in the meeting as previously stated in this article.  Councilmembers had, in their packets for the meeting, a copy of City Attorney Lance Clark’s email stating that “an unusual length of time” can be seen by developers as a way of suing the city, which is why he was recommending a 6-12 month moratorium.  Councilmember Johnson suggested a compromise from the previously voted-on 24 month one to an 18-month moratorium.  Crespin said he felt a 6-month one wasn’t feasible.  He then mentioned that if Council decided on a length of time outside the recommendation of the city attorney, any lawsuits could also involve personal ones against individual councilmembers, as was done with the power plant lawsuit.  CIRSA will only cover the city if they are acting on the recommendation of the attorney.  (In his email, Clark said an 18-month moratorium was ‘on the fringe’ and wasn’t recommended by him).  Crespin also explained again that the purpose of the moratorium was to allow the city time to establish exactly what guidelines the community wants to set up.  “You can’t just say ‘you can’t build a data center in Lamar, Colorado’ without saying it’s because of X,Y, or Z” he explained.  “Once you can say exactly why (because of guidelines decided upon from work done during the moratorium), that’s the ending point” and that hopefully it will dissuade those companies from wanting to locate here. Councilmember Gonzales motioned that an 18-month moratorium be established and it was approved by other councilmembers.  It was suggested and agreed upon that a committee be formed consisting of some councilmembers, local citizens and county representatives to come up with those guidelines.  This would give the citizens a voice in the decision-making.  Headlee agreed to chair such a committee.  The city will be announcing how residents can apply for the committee. Crespin said there should also be surveys, town hall meetings or meet-and-greets to keep the community engaged in this decision-making process. Headlee will bring his ideas about this new committee to the next meeting.

The ordinances that were read at the meeting were all approved.  Lamar Chief of Police Ridder had three items on the agenda.  First was asking Council to approve and allow the mayor to sign a Motorola Solutions Municipal Lease for upgrades to the E-911 dispatch system.  These will allow Prowers Communications to communicate with other state-wide communication systems.  The E-911 Authority Board voted to purchase the upgrades on a three-year purchase plan due to incentives including a $63,000 discount.  Most of the expenditures will come from the 911 Authority Board funds on hand and is figured into the 2027 fiscal year budget. The request was approved.  His next request for him to be allowed to apply for the Victims Assistance and Law Enforcement (VALE) Grant for 2027.  The department is requesting a $25,000 grant for 2027.  The money from the grant provides the police department with supplies to notify victims of their rights and resources in the community. This request was also approved.  Lastly, he asked Council to approve and authorize the mayor to sign the AVIS application to submit to the state designating Main Street as an “Automated Vehicle Identification System Speed Enforcement Corridor”.  The area, near the Lamar Middle School, is already marked with signage for the camera, which is not yet active.  Once it is, it will be timed to the flashing school zone lights which will allow for fines to be doubled during those hours and there will be a 30-day warning period before fines are assessed. It was approved.

Council voted, with Councilmember Gonzales being the sole ‘no’ vote, to ratify approval of a letter of support endorsing City Administrator Hammes for appointment to the vacant Colorado Municipal League Executive Board. Gonzales, later in the meeting, told Hammes it wasn’t personal but that he felt Hammes “hasn’t been here long enough” and that he wanted Hammes to focus on Lamar. Also approved was a letter to the Colorado Division of Environmental Health and Sustainability regarding an annual financial assurance requirement for the landfill. The City is required to complete an annual financial assurance process for the landfill.  American Environmental Consulting, LLC is the city’s consulting firm and generates cost estimates annually adjusting closure and post-closure estimates for inflation.  The estimates are disclosed in the City of Lamar Annual Audited Financial Statements.  The next agenda item, submitted by the City Treasurer, asked Council to approve and authorize the mayor to sign a consulting agreement with Gallagher Benefit Services to continue providing employee benefits consulting services, including plan administration, renewals, market analysis, carrier negotiations, regulatory guidance, and ongoing support for the city’s health and welfare programs during the upcoming plan year.  There is no direct cost for this, as it is paid through the County Health Pool.  It was approved.

The next item was in regard to City Council liaison appointments to Boards within the city.  Councilmember Gonzales will serve on the Airport, Planning and Zoning, and PATS boards.  Councilmember Jenkins will serve on the Housing Authority, Library, and Public Safety boards.  Councilman Headlee will serve on the Tree, Community Resource and Senior Center, and Main Street Lamar boards.  Councilman Zavala will serve on the Chamber and Adjustments and Appeals boards.  Councilman Johnson will serve on the Parks and Recreation, PEP, and Historic Preservation boards and Councilman Seay will serve on the Water and Golf boards.  Mayor Crespin will serve on the Lamar Utilities, SECED, and SECOG boards as well as the CML Policy Committee board, along with Hammes.  Discussed next was the City of Lamar’s New Year’s Eve Gala benefiting the William Wooten Public Safety Building grant matching renovation fund.  The idea came from an Executive Session of Council.  The event will be held December 31, 2026 from 8 pm to 1 am at the Lamar Elks Club for adults over age 21.  Fundraising efforts will include ticket sales of $60 per person or $100 per couple.  There will be a silent auction of donated items, a live auction for high-value/high-interest donated items, and a “Whiskey Draw” ($80 per ticket for donated bottles of whiskey of varying value assigned randomly to purchasers of these tickets – the alcohol cannot be consumed on premise at the event).  There will be hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar and a DJ.  It was approved and voted that the City not spend more than $3,000 to promote and operate the event. The funds spent on same will be reimbursed from proceeds of ticket sales. It is hoped that this can be an annual event to support any future needs of the building.

The meeting finally came to the last agenda item which was a discussion about instituting a social media policy for City official social media pages, including Facebook and YouTube. Hammes explained that there have been, during the livestreaming of the last couple of meetings, several offensive or vulgar comments and that city staff don’t feel that behavior is appropriate on official city sites/streaming platforms, as people of all ages are able to watch these.  Crespin added that having someone moderate the comments on the city’s Facebook page in order to hide or delete comments violates the First Amendment rights of the commenters and leaves the city open for lawsuits.  “What is vulgar or offensive to one person may not be so to others” he added.  The Colorado Municipal League has advised state municipalities to either not censor their official social media platforms at all or institute a total ban, which is what Council voted to do at tonight’s meeting.  Councilmember Seay added that he had reached out to one of these posts on Facebook and the commenter didn’t respond.  “I think people are just venting” he said, “but the city page is not appropriate and not conducive to dialogue”. Other councilmembers added that comments on social media can “get lost” and again asked people to pick up the phone and call their ward’s Councilperson to speak in person about issues they have instead of doing so on social media. Crespin said people are free to post or repost anything on their personal pages and will be able to add “like, dislike or other emojis” on the City’s page, but won’t be allowed to comment.

Before the meeting was adjourned, Crespin and Councilmember Headlee both thanked the people in attendance for wanting to speak to Council.  Councilmember Johnson wanted to thank Pat Mason and the city crews for getting Willow Valley repaved so quickly and that it was very much appreciated.  The meeting was then adjourned for an Executive Session with the city attorney to receive advice about specific legal questions under C.R.S. 24-6-402 (4)(b) regarding personnel matters.  The next City Council meeting will be Monday, October 26, 2026 at 7 pm.

By: Barbara Crimond