Rooney Valley News

One of the first events in the creation of  residential special districts is to eliminate the constitutional right of the future residents to vote on taxes and bond debt.  It is in every ballot issue I have seen after reviewing countless special district creation ballots over the past three years.

Brookfield did it to us in 2006.  Stole our right to vote on future taxes and bond debt.  Eight of them.  All Brookfield employees.

In 2017 we recalled the Brookfield employees off the boards.

We have one more job to do.  We need to take back our right to vote on future taxes and bond debt.

You may recall that last year we voted on whether or not to allow Lakewood to keep excess taxes.  We had that vote.  It belonged to us as the residents of Lakewood.  We voted yes.

You may recall that this year we voted on whether or not to allow Jeffco to keep excess taxes We had that vote.  It belonged to us as residents of Jeffco.  We voted no.

If they want to raise taxes or issue bond debt in Lakewood or Jeffco, we have to vote on it.  It is a constitutional right.

But in Solterra, that same constitutional right to vote on our special district taxes and bond debt was taken away.  Right now that debt is over $2 million each year.  Brookfield wants to increase the debt.  From $29 million to a total of about $60 million.  Eight Brookfield employees in 2006 “voted” in their “election” to take that right away from the voters – which of course is us.

So we need to take it back.

The way we do that is with a new ballot issue for the May, 2020 election.  A ballot issue repealing the ballot issue passed by the Brookfield employees in 2006.

It will take about a weekend, maybe two.  To get the signatures of our neighbors to place the ballot issue on the May 2020 ballot.

The question will be: do we, as the voters and residents of the Solterra special district (Fossil Ridge) vote, yes or no, to repeal the 2006 ballot which stole our right to vote on future debt.   Our group will research and come up with the exact language for the ballot.

If it passes, then we will take back that same right to vote yes or no on future tax debt and bond debt that we have for Lakewood and Jeffco.

And it is really important right now to have that vote.  Because Brookfield sent two lawyers to the last board meeting.  And I expect they will show up at every meeting.  Trying to persuade the board of directors to  tax us another $30 million.

The board is frightened that if they don’t we might get sued.  But if that decision is made by the voters, they cannot sue us to make us vote to issue taxes.  Can’t be done.  Unconstitutional.

But more importantly, that decision does not belong to the board.  It belongs to us.  We need to take it back.

Even though the board is made up of folks initially appointed by the person initially appointed by Brookfield to “manage” the residents, it wouldn’t matter if I sat on the board.  5 people should not be making the decision on whether or not to tax each of us another $30 million.

That vote belongs to us.  Each one of us.

And unfortunately, the board is made up of folks who opposed or did not support the original recall and who have said several times over the past three years that  we should pay Brookfield $30 million because they are afraid Brookfield will sue us.

I’m not worried about that.  If they do, they will lose.  Especially if we vote no.  They can’t sue us to make us vote to pay them $30 million.

Conicidently, I met Brookfield’s new attorney assigned to tax us another $30 million.  She lives in Ken Caryl Metro District.  That is interesting because their right to vote on future taxes and bond debt was not taken away by their developer.  Perhaps because their developer lives there along with some of their attorneys.

They have the right to vote on future debt.  We don’t.  Brookfield took it away.  We want it back.

And Brookfield’s new attorney also shared with me that she and the board’s attorney are really close.  Worked together in the past.  No doubt the board’s attorney has called her, Brookfield’s new attorney, for advice in the past.

You see how this works.  As the board’s attorney once said – its just the name of the game.  The special district game.

Please email me if you can help with this effort.  Jkhjr1@gmail.com  It is worth a little time and potentially $30 million in future taxes.

We need to put on the May ballot the question of whether or not to repeal the 2006 ballot passed by the Brookfield employees.

Signatures on a petition will do it.   We did it to recall the Brookfield employees off the boards.  We know how to do it.  We started with the recall.  We were successful.  We need to finish the job by taking back our right to vote.

John Henderson