NEWS RELEASE
LONGMONT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP
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Longmont Economic Development Partnership (EDP), a non-profit economic development organization serving the City of Longmont, today announces its endorsement of and support for local ballot measures 3C and 3D on the November ballot.
Ballot Question 3C asks voters to authorize the City of Longmont to borrow up to $80M for the purpose of financing water system improvements and replacement of aging water system infrastructure to be paid back by City water utility enterprise revenues.
By endorsing this measure, the Longmont EDP Board of Directors recognizes that Longmont's history of investing in its infrastructure ahead of growth has been critical to its economic success.
In the case of ballot measure 3C, Longmont EDP recognizes that using bond and debt servicing spreads out the cost of needed infrastructure improvements over time to avoid rate spikes keeping rates more predictable for users and distributes costs more equitably across both current and future residents.
Further, bond financing allows the City of Longmont's Water Utility to make improvements in the near future rather than waiting until funds become available or relying on short-term repairs to extend the life of the City's water infrastructure.
"Longmont's reliable, scalable utility infrastructure, including water, has been a key selling point for Longmont in attracting new businesses to the community and supporting the growth of our existing industry base" stated Longmont EDP president Jessica Erickson, "Longmont currently has the best water supply and quality on the Front Range, and the City's ability to maintain that standing is critical to its economic future, which is why we are supporting Ballot Question 3C."
Ballot Question 3D asks voters to authorize an amendment to the City of Longmont Home Rule Charter to allow for leases of City property for up to 30 years.
The Longmont ED Board of Directors is endorsing this measure because it believes that the proposed change to the charter is important to, and will have a positive effect on economic development in Longmont by putting Longmont in a better position to negotiate public-private partnerships that support the goals, priorities, and objectives of the City's Advance Longmont 2.0 economic development strategy, those of Envision Longmont, and those of the City Council's work plan.
Expanding the City's leasing authority from 20 to 30 years gives the City greater control and flexibility in negotiating land leases in the best interest of the City and its residents. The charter change would still allow for the City to enter into shorter leases when doing so provides greater value; however, the flexibility would give the City the ability to explore alternatives that may better further Longmont's economic development goals.
According to Longmont EDP president Jessica Erickson, "We are in unprecedented times facing unprecedented challenges in the wake of COVID-19, and we still cannot fully enumerate the impacts to our local economy.
Now more than ever is not the time to be limited in our options for pursuing development that supports the long-term recovery and ongoing resilience of our community, which is why we encourage Longmont's residents to vote yes on 3D."
Longmont residents can learn more about ballot question 3D from Our Best Longmont at https://ourbestlongmont.org. Our Best Longmont is a coalition of local individuals and organizations, including Longmont EDP, advocating a "yes" vote on Ballot Question 3D.
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