Brookfield and Big Sky apparently didn’t take Green Mountain seriously when in 2018, 2019 and 2021 Green Mountain said “no” to extraterritorial service outside the boundary of their district.
Brookfield recently dragged Green Mountain into a lawsuit filed against Solterra (Fossil Ridge District) trying to get the Court to force Green Mountain to provide additional service outside the district boundary.
After a short trial Monday and Tuesday, yesterday (Saturday) afternoon, the Court said “no”.
Congratulations to Dylan Woods, counsel for Green Mountain, and the current and past (Alex Plotkin and Jeff Baker) board members for representing the residents and not the developers. Something that is rare and had been for a long long time.
Here is the decision. With a couple headliner excerpts below.
ORDER DENYING AMENDED MOTION PURSUANT TO C.R.S
You may recall that Brookfield and Adam Paul wrote the Solterra IGA with Green Mountain in 2008. Green Mountain agreed to allow hook ups until January 15, 2023. Brookfield and Adam Paul didn’t amend the service plan or have a public hearing. They cut corners and “just did it”.
But the Solterra IGA agreement expired January 15, 2023. It turned into a pumpkin. On that date, there was no longer any obligation to provide hook ups to Brookfield in Rooney Valley.
Yet, Brookfield wanted more hookups past that date. Green Mountain said “no thank you”.
As they do, Brookfield insisted that it was “entitled” to more hookups past the date.
The Court has now said “no you’re not” (paraphrasing).
One of the obvious but most important findings by the Court was this:
“Green Mountain is a special district created to collect and transport wastewater for treatment. Because Fossil Ridge falls outside the geographic boundaries of Green Mountain, Green Mountain’s governing documents do not obligate it to provide Fossil Ridge with sanitation services. See Exhibit 2. Instead, Green Mountain provides sanitation services to Fossil Ridge under the terms of an Intergovernmental Agreement for Extra-Territorial Sewer Services (the “IGA”). Exhibit 18.”
It seems so simple but Brookfield and Big Sky just ignore it. Their supporters do too. There is no obligation by Green Mountain to provide service to Rooney Valley. Period.
And if you want to change that and create an obligation by Green Mountain to provide service outside its boundary, you need to get permission which involves public hearings. You need to follow the rules. Not “just do it”.
The sanitation district that does exist and does have an obligation to provide service to Rooney Valley is Mt. Carbon. Which, coincidently, is owned lock stock and barrel by . . . . Lennar. And Lennar is the buyer in the wings for . . . . Big Sky. So why keep bothering Green Mountain.
It appears it’s all about money. And CDN (the three Canadian land speculators who bought most of Rooney Valley, including Solterra) can make more money if Green Mountain provides the service than if Lennar has to pay for it by building up Mt. Carbon. CDN can make a killing if only Green Mountain would cooperate. After all, thats why Green Mountain is there . . . . right.
In developer world it has nothing to do with public service and protecting scarce public resources. Putting it rather crassly and bluntly, it’s about making profit on the backs of taxpayers. Which is why it’s a mistake to have developers or their representatives running government bodies formed to provide public services in the best interests of the residents, not the developers. There is a difference between a government run by developers and one run by residents. Referring back in history, “What is good for General Motors isn’t always good for America.”
The Court went on to find that Green Mountain complied with the Adam Paul and Brookfield Solterra IGA and did everything, absolutely everything, they promised to do. Including abiding by the expiration date of January 15, 2023. A date set by . . . . Brookfield and Adam Paul.
Green Mountain followed the law and the IGA. Still Brookfield complains.
Green Mountain followed the law and stopped the Big Sky IGA (passed by the prior board the very night they were being voted out of office) before it got started. Still Big Sky complains.
Will Brookfield eventually get sewer for their final sections in Rooney Valley. Will Big Sky get sewer. Very likely. And from where they should have in the first place – Mt. Carbon – once Mt. Carbon provides sewer to CDN/Big Sky across the street (McIntyre).
Or maybe Brookfield and Big Sky will stop cutting corners and work with Green Mountain to follow the rules. Do a new IGA as promoted in 2021 by a former president of Green Mountain for Big Sky. Only this time, following the rules, with an amendment to the Service Plan and a couple public hearings.
There is a new Green Mountain board asserting “it is different from the prior board”. They may be willing to consider such an alternative. . . . . Maybe.
Speaking of which, one of the “fun” exhibits that turned up in the trial Monday and Tuesday in this case was this:
Its an email from the former Green Mountain president when she was preparing the presentation to the public on March 30, 2021, to try to convince the residents to support a new IGA with Big Sky and settle the Big Sky case.
In the email she is working with her closest advisors getting their input on how to best persuade the public to join her position for a new IGA. One of whom is . . . the plaintiffs suing Green Mountain along with Big Sky.
Here is a prior blog from that time when the subject came up noting some difficulty in identifying the source of (and challenging the veracity of) some numbers. Now for the first time we know the source – an email from the then district engineer just two weeks before. An email that the former president suggested be shared with the other board members . . . but never was . . . . maybe because the plaintiff was on the email and would have been revealed as part of her advisory group . . . . promoting settlement on the terms set by . . . . the plaintiffs.
Green Mountain Update: One Director and Counsel in Overdrive Selling a new IGA
Hopefully the new “independent” board will choose a different path if they decide to consider settlement with Big Sky . . . one that represents the residents instead of the developers . . . . one that seeks counsel from knowledgeable residents as well as the special interest businesses . . . one that understands the difference between the role of business in making money and the role of government in providing public service using scarce public resources in the best interest of the residents. There is an important element of . . . public . . . . trust . . . . present in one and absent in the other.
Is selling “sewer to outsiders at a premium profit to build up capital reserves which also promotes high density development of Rooney Valley and use of scarce public resources” part of the Green Mountain mission statement.
It could be. And maybe it should be.
But that is a policy decision that should reflect the public will. And the only way for that to happen is through full disclosure and public hearings. And if no one cares or shows up, then you have your answer.