February 2, 2024
Dear Weld County Commissioners,
I'd like to thank you on behalf of the Town of Eaton for your continued commitment to honoring our Coordinated Planning Agreement (CPA), first adopted on December 20, 1999. The CPA is and will continue to be, an important document that shares our collective County and Town vision for the future of land use development.
Section 19-7-80 of the Weld County Code allows for amendments to the CPA from time to time. In 2019 and 2020, the Town approved two separate resolutions to update the Town of Eaton's Comprehensive Plan and corresponding Urban Growth Area (UGA) map. The Town also made a permissible request to the County to reflect this newer map in the County Code. The requested update would align the Town of Eaton's community vision in the Comprehensive Plan with the County's planning referral process. The updated map provides a better, more coordinated assessment of potential engineering needs and development standards for any new proposed urban development. It does not change the terms of the 1999 agreement.
The Town of Eaton is proud of our agricultural roots, and we support our neighbors and friends who are farmers and ranchers in and around our community. The updated UGA map does not remove or alter any protective language associated with current private property uses. In fact, it defends existing rights to farm by strengthening the Town and County's shared community development review process. Additionally, it allows the Town and County leaders to be thoughtful about the future of growth and its impact on all current landowners in the shared UGA area when an urban land use request is made.
The Town of Eaton appreciates our collaborative relationship with Weld County, and we look forward to an updated UGA map addition to be approved by the Board of County Commissioners in February. This update will allow us to continue our coordinated land management practices that protect the health, safety, and prosperity of our communities.
Sincerely,
Mayor Scott Moser
Town of Eaton, CO
February 3, 2024
Commissioner Kevin Ross - Chair & Weld County Board of Commissioners,
I am writing to let you know that next week I will be considering referral of Weld Commissioner Lori Saine to the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission for her actions while acting in her official capacity and on behalf of your board.
I have witnessed Ms. Saine knowingly making false statements about the Town of Eaton during one of your regular public meetings. She did this to purposely undermine something as simple as the Town recording its Urban Growth Area map.
More recently, she has found it necessary to appear in public meetings to discuss our work with the County to update our Coordinate Planning Agreement. As you well know, Ms. Saine represents District 3 and the Town of Eaton is in District 1. In the last week I have fielded several complaints and messages from concerned residents who live in the county, outside our city limits. These complaints are fueled by comments that Ms. Saine has made that have led the public to believe that the Town of Eaton is going to annex a three-mile radius around our Town limits, essentially taking away property rights of farmers and residents within this radius. I have attached a screenshot of one such communication forwarded to me by a member of our farming community. The Town of Eaton’s roots are in farming and ranching. In updating our agreement with the County, we feel this will only strengthen our shared commitment to our neighbors in the county.
I am convinced that Ms. Saine’s sole intent is to sow discontent and cause confusion for the residents of our community. I consider what she has done to be highly inappropriate and unethical. Make no mistake, her actions are purposeful and, in my opinion designed to cause friction between the Town of Eaton and the Ag community.
I am calling on Ms. Saine to resign her position as County Commissioner. I understand that it is highly unlikely that Ms. Saine will resign and therefore I urge you as a board to investigate any action that you can take to stop her continued efforts to undermine the good works of your board and the other municipalities in the county. The people of Weld County deserve better.
Please note - given that my communication with you is public record, I am also sharing this information with members of the media.
Sincerely,
Mayor Scott Moser
Town of Eaton, CO