Westminster staff outlines education-first outreach for proposed 2025 sales-tax measure

Westminster communications staff told the City Council on July 28 that the city will begin an educational outreach campaign tomorrow ahead of a possible 2025 ballot question to raise sales tax for emergency response and neighborhood street repairs.

“We focus on educating the public, not promoting a position,” Communications lead Andy Le told council. He said the campaign’s aim is to “inform the community, gather meaningful input, and support a transparent decision‑making process,” and that final approval of any ballot language will be up to council and the voters.

Le previewed a two‑mailer schedule and a digital advertising plan. The city intends to send an initial mailer to residents “tomorrow” outlining needs and a second mailer two weeks later if council approves draft ballot language; the statutory deadline for the city to set the ballot question is Aug. 25, 2025. Le said a consultant contract for digital work totals $49,300 and estimated the mailings’ bulk cost at about $36,000 (Le said he would provide the exact postage amount). He also said the total mailer distribution across two rounds will be 80,000 pieces and that the campaign relied on a citywide poll with more than 1,500 responses.

Le described the outreach as a three‑phase rollout that began in June, emphasizing awareness, public input and refinement of messaging. Key messages Le listed were that “six‑minute response times can mean life or death,” that the proposal couples fixing streets with public‑safety investments, and that the ask is “leaner” than a 2024 proposal. He said staff’s materials include videos, flyers and an online hub (westminsterco.gov/forward) and that union president Corbin Gray joined a livestream to discuss emergency response.

Councilors and other speakers welcomed the presentation but asked for specific changes. Councilor Dumont and others urged more storytelling—individual resident or firefighter accounts and clearer images of road damage—to help the public connect data with everyday experience. Several councilors also asked staff to plan targeted outreach to renters and to explore nonpolitical partnerships with schools to educate families as the school year begins.

A group supporting the measure, Citizens for Quality Westminster, announced it had obtained an EIN and would begin soliciting donations and helping with canvassing and events. Le said staff will continue to limit communications to education rather than advocacy in order to comply with legal constraints on city electoral activity.

What’s next: staff said it will send the first mailer, continue digital ad buys and community interviews, and return to council on Aug. 11 with potential draft ballot language for review. If council sets the question by Aug. 25, the second mailer would introduce the ballot language.