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Gilpin County commissioners approve animal-response MOU, finance reorganization and liquor-permit actions
Summary
At its March 24, 2026 meeting the Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners adopted a memorandum of understanding to formalize volunteer animal-response teams, approved a finance department reorganization, cleared several liquor permits and a retail liquor-license transfer, and recessed for executive session on property and personnel matters.
The Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners on March 24 approved several administrative actions and local permits during a meeting that included the sheriff's annual report, a memorandum of understanding for volunteer animal response and a finance reorganization.
The board adopted resolution 26-032 to formalize volunteer animal-response teams and to permit the county manager to execute the memorandum of understanding and related operational arrangements. The MOU will work with a local 501(c)(3), No Animal Left Behind, and seeks tri-county coordination with neighboring jurisdictions for large-animal and small-animal sheltering in critical incidents. Commissioners discussed volunteer affiliation requirements, training-cost sharing (expected to be a combination of nonprofit fundraising, leftover funds from a prior program and limited county support) and verification/release procedures for owners reclaiming animals. The board voted to adopt resolution 26-032 by voice vote, 3-0.
While the motion referred to a funding release, the verbal figure in the meeting transcript was garbled when read aloud; the clerk's office should be consulted for the exact dollar amount recorded in the adopted resolution. The board authorized the county manager to finalize the operational agreement and to work with the sheriff's office on deployment protocols.
The board also recessed and convened as the local liquor licensing authority to approve special-event alcohol permits for county fairgrounds events in 2026 (spring 5K, artisans market, county fair, Fairground Frenzy and Turkey Trot among the dates published in the March 12 Mountaineer) and voted to transmit those applications to the state for final action, 3-0. Separately, the board approved a transfer of the Coyote Liquors retail license to Sojo Goods LLC (purchasers Jose and Tanya Garcia Payne); the sheriff's office and state background checks were reported clear and zoning compliance was confirmed. Commissioners noted one practical question: whether the new license term will run two years from state approval or follow the normal renewal cycle; staff said the state determines the effective licensing dates and will report back.
The board approved resolution 26-030 to reorganize the finance department, merging the payroll administrator and accounts-payable specialist into one role and creating a new finance HR clerk classification, citing improved efficiency from recently implemented software; the resolution passed 3-0 and took effect immediately.
Other business included the county attorney's report, manager's project updates (slash-yard hour changes, community annex schedule, congressional spending applications) and a long legislative update by the lobbyist group Policy Matters. The commissioners recessed to executive session to discuss a water-rights lease/acquisition and a personnel matter related to the county manager's employment contract; the board returned and adjourned at 3:04 p.m.
Votes at a glance: consent agenda approved 3-0; resolution 26-032 (animal-response MOU) adopted 3-0; liquor-special-event permits approved for submission to the state 3-0; Coyote Liquors license transfer to Sojo Goods LLC approved 3-0; resolution 26-030 (finance reorganization) adopted 3-0.
