Colfax town hall: residents press for downtown upgrades, EV chargers and relief on sewer debt

Colfax City Council held an open town-hall workshop Feb. 12 to gather resident ideas for community improvement projects and to hear concerns about sewer debt and downtown economic activity. Residents proposed small, budget-friendly “face lifts” and larger projects aimed at drawing more people from Interstate 80 onto Main Street.

The meeting opened with a reminder from the City Manager that the session was for listening only and that council members would not deliberate during the public-comment portion. Among the earliest suggestions, a resident urged improved signage and traffic-calming measures, including possible roundabouts near Highway 174 and a more visible Colfax sign with a railroad motif. “I just am concerned with, the traffic through Colfax,” the resident said.

Electric vehicle charging was a recurring topic. One resident urged the city to work with Placer County to install chargers on Main Street to capture travelers between Auburn and Tahoe. City staff reported that AM PM has a contract with Tesla and a fast charger is being built behind the AM PM, and that there are low-output chargers by the train depot and behind 3 Pines restaurant.

“That's where those are gonna go,” staff said when explaining the AM PM/Tesla arrangement, noting the city had been in talks but a commercial representative secured the contract. Another resident said an older charging unit at the train depot has been free for years but is now broken and that the city appears to be supplying electricity without recovering costs; staff said the site could be removed, updated or converted to a paid service depending on agreements and repairs.

Downtown placemaking ideas included a small playground adjacent to a solar-topped kiosk that could provide shaded seating, Wi‑Fi and interpretive panels about Colfax history; a private donor has offered to fund the playground and to help move a caboose to create space for the project. “They could sit under the shade of this roof with solar panels,” a council speaker said while describing a proposed layout near the depot.

Council members also discussed novelty attractions such as a choo-choo clock, pedal railcars and improving the ballpark restrooms, benches and crosswalks. Staff said bench rehabilitation by a local cabinet business and irrigation repairs are already planned, and that they will bring cost estimates for items such as removable art-park fencing (roughly $25,000) to upcoming budget workshops.

Several residents focused on sewer finances and annexation. A speaker asked whether annexing nearby Shady Glenn would include properties between it and the city and whether inclusion would affect funding for a sewer system loan. The resident said the city is still paying off a loan “of $5,000,000” from past councils and asked about options for loan relief from state or county sources. City staff explained that sewer funds are enterprise funds that must stay in sewer and cannot be used for unrelated projects such as a skate park; they also said recent system improvements avoided fines and that projected solar savings could delay a rate increase for at least one year.

Staff and council acknowledged a reported surplus from the recent audit and said they will consider putting money into reserves for street maintenance; one council member suggested setting aside $100,000 a year to accumulate funds for improvements. A resident noted the city spent $60,000 on a prior downtown redevelopment plan and asked whether that study will be used as a reference for new projects.

On staffing and retention, a resident asked about the outcomes of a staff survey; staff replied the city raised salaries last year to levels above a comparable CIP rate and that pay will be part of the budget discussion. Visitor-center staff member Tim told the council visitors consistently praise Colfax and that the center frequently directs people to local businesses, which council members cited as support for tourism-focused efforts.

The council closed public comment, said staff will compile the ideas for the budget workshops and solicited topics for the next town hall. No motions or votes were taken; the meeting was adjourned at 7:02 p.m.

Next steps: staff will present cost estimates and proposed priorities during the midyear budget workshops, where the council can translate suggestions from the town hall into funded projects or programs.