Findings are in on Battlement Mesa Incorporation Feasibility Analysis

PRESS RELEASE
February 14, 2011

The Board of County Commissioners received the findings from the Battlement Mesa Incorporation Financial Feasibility Study completed by BBC Research and Consulting February 7, 2011. The study addressed the financial feasibility and policy issues associated with the potential municipal incorporation of the community of Battlement Mesa.

Battlement Mesa is an unincorporated subdivision of about 1,650 homes in western Garfield County, Colorado. It was established in 1980 as a residential community largely intended to support the area’s then burgeoning oil share industry. The county and a variety of special districts and homeowners associations currently provide public services to the planned unit development subdivision.

Although financial feasibility and potential fiscal impact are the primary issues addressed in the study, there are a variety of policy and practical considerations in the discussion of Battlement Mesa incorporation. These ancillary issues include: a determination of incorporation process; options for city boundaries; home rule versus statutory charter; implications for public entities currently serving the area; considerations for community governance structure, and impacts on local land use controls. These issues are addressed in the body of this report as well as an analysis focuses on other specific questions.