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November 7, 2001 The town of Rico voted to increase taxes significantly during a mill-levy election Tuesday, but stopped short of taxes for a new sanitation system. Rico-ites narrowly approved a hefty mill-levy increase to hire a permanent town manager. Fifty-seven residents approved a 7.5-mill-levy increase to fund a full-time town manager, while 51 voted against it. Previously Rico has depended on grants to obtain experienced town managers. The current town manager, Eric Heil, has been funded by a Department of Local Affairs grant for the past three years. Heil plans to resign soon, but has expressed interest in remaining on as town attorney. Funding for a town sewer will have to come from elsewhere or wait for the next round of elections. The request for a 4.6-mill increase in the mill levy failed by a vote of 64 to 43. The money would have been used as matching funds for state-grants earmarked for town infrastructure. The community showed support for funding parks, fire protection and roads on a ballot question seeking extra taxes for those purposes. By a vote of 66 to 42 voters approved a 1 percent sales-tax increase for a parks fund, a 1 percent increase in lodging taxes, and a $2 per-square-foot excise tax on new structures. In all, 88 people voted in the Rico election, out of 187 residents. Also in Dolores County, the school board gained a new representative. Floyd Cook beat out Dan Johnson by a vote of 214 to 157, respectively. Cook will represent District F, vacated by Francie Gardner.
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Copyright © 2001 the Cortez
Journal. All rights reserved. |
