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County attorney reports stalled sheriff sale at Ironwood site, landfill methane rulemaking and several pending legal matters
Summary
The county attorney updated commissioners that a sheriff sale relating to the Ironwood property did not proceed, CDPHE will reinspect the site, the county is participating in a coalition on proposed landfill methane rules, and several civil cases and labor negotiations are active.
Montezuma County’s attorney told the Board of County Commissioners on Aug. 26 that a scheduled sheriff sale for the Ironwood property did not proceed because lienholders and the property group appear to have reached an agreement, and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) will conduct another site visit.
The attorney said he and CDPHE counsel had followed up with Ironwood’s attorneys but had not yet received a response. He said county officials do not believe cleanup work is actively ongoing at the site and described continued concern about fire danger on the property.
The attorney also reported that the county is participating in a coalition of public landfill owners and operators to engage on proposed methane regulations before the Air Quality Commission. A public hearing was continued to a later quarterly meeting and coalition members planned follow‑up meetings to discuss next steps. "We're gonna continue advocating through this coalition for a good outcome, for public landfills and obviously for Montezuma County," the county attorney said.
On litigation, the county attorney said the county received a wrongful termination complaint from a former sheriff's office employee and has referred the matter to its insurance carrier. He also reported that the county filed a motion to dismiss in the Ellis Lewis civil action that arose after the board's denial of a subdivision application; he said he expects the motion to be granted but that Lewis will likely have leave to amend.
The attorney said a separate wrongful‑termination matter involving Bonnie Anderson is near settlement but not yet finalized, and that the county is preparing jury instructions and other filings for upcoming child protection and jury trial deadlines. He also said the county will meet virtually Sept. 4 with FOP representatives to hear their initial collective‑bargaining proposal related to sheriff's office employees.
Why it matters: The Ironwood site is a continuing county environmental and public‑safety concern. Separately, methane regulation changes could affect public landfill operations and costs. The litigation and labor matters could carry financial and operational consequences for the county.
Next steps: CDPHE will conduct a follow‑up site inspection of the Ironwood property; county counsel will continue coalition work on methane rules and will coordinate with the county’s insurer and outside counsel on pending litigation and labor negotiations.
