Votes at a glance: Custer County board approves lodging-tax measure and several operational actions

The Custer County Board of Commissioners handled a range of formal actions on July 30, 2025. The most consequential action was adopting Resolution 25-32 to place a lodging-tax increase on the Nov. 4, 2025 ballot (see separate article). The board also voted on the items summarized below.

Votes and key details

- Intervention Inc. memorandum of understanding (useful public service program) - Motion: Approve an MOU adding Custer County to Intervention Inc.’s community-connections program to administer court-ordered useful public service (UPS) sentences. - Key terms: Intervention will administer the program at no cost to the county and collect defendant fees under its existing practices. The arrangement is consistent with how other counties in the judicial district operate UPS services. - Outcome: Approved. Commissioners recorded “aye” votes for Paul, Lucas and Kanda during the roll call; motion carried. Effective Aug. 1, 2025.

- Chip sealer: purchase and repair authorization - Motions: (1) Authorize purchase of a chip sealer (contract/quote on file). (2) Authorize shipping the county chip sealer off for repair/upgrades and approve a vendor quote to install an updated computer system. - Financial notes in meeting: a vendor quote for repairs/updates was stated as $52,877.50; local trucking for transport was estimated at about $3,900; chip-seal material line-item mentioned at approximately $15,000. Commissioners approved the repairs/purchase subject to appropriation in the 2026 budget process and capped certain charges as discussed at the meeting. - Outcome: Motions approved by voice vote; board agreed to proceed subject to appropriation and budget timing.

- Sale of two sheriff’s office vehicles to the City of Walsenburg - Motion: Approve contract for sale of two sheriff office vehicles (2018 and 2020 Durango models) and enter intergovernmental agreement with Walsenburg. - Payment timing: Buyer’s payment scheduled to be made Jan. 2, 2026 (per agreement language noted in meeting). - Outcome: Approved by voice vote.

- Acceptance of donated sheriff vehicles and equipment - Motion: Accept donated fleet vehicles and vehicle radios offered to the sheriff’s office. - Clarification: The sheriff provided updated written confirmation the donations are offered without conditions; donated units will be placed into service and used within the sheriff’s fleet; some vehicles will be assigned to the posse. - Outcome: Donation acceptance approved by voice vote.

- Sealed bid for county lots in Golden Valley - Motion: Open and accept a sealed bid submitted for several small county lots in Golden Valley (50-by-100-foot parcels). A single sealed bid from Diane Hampton of West Point, Colorado, offered $5,000 for a block of four lots; commissioners moved to accept the bid. - Outcome: Bid accepted by voice vote.

- Accounts payable - Motion: Approve accounts payable batch for July 30, 2025. - Notable line items called out in meeting: compactor payment to United Business Bank ($140,000); jet A tank installation at the airport (Eaton Sales and Service, $99,260.32, with $8,000 held back); chip-seal materials (BlackRock Material & Supply, $95,496.98); various road-and-bridge and other vendor payments. - Total presented: $514,187.91 (as read during the meeting). Outcome: Approved by voice vote.

What the votes mean: Several of the approvals are operational and budget-related (vehicle sales, vendor payments, equipment repair) and will be handled through existing department budgets or subject to appropriation. The lodging-tax resolution is the only item that requires voter approval to take effect.

Roll-call & procedural notes: Most items were approved by voice vote. Where roll-call answers were read, commissioners answering in the affirmative included Paul, Lucas and Phil Kanda (recorded in the meeting transcript for several pertinent motions).