Lafayette eyes municipal broadband, EcoPass for November ballot

Following its neighboring communities, Lafayette officials Tuesday will vote to refer several issues to the November ballot — including municipal broadband and an increase in property taxes to fund a citywide EcoPass.

Council members will also vote Tuesday to appoint one of the last seven candidates to fill an open council seat vacated by Tom Dowling.

When Boulder County officials asked residents earlier this year to consider a proposal that would raise property taxes to help fund free mass transit passes, a poll suggested that voters would most likely reject a ballot initiative. Now however, Lafayette officials are hoping that a similar program on a smaller scale will be better received this election cycle.

“This is sort of the next step for our community,” Mayor Christine Berg said. “To give an opportunity like this to residents at a really cost effective rate is really exciting. Not to mention the sustainability piece of it — potentially taking traffic off the road. The traffic problem is going to continue to get worse, and taking the opportunity to take the bus would help reduce that issue.”

The tax initiative would increase property taxes by a 1.25 mill levy for the next six years to provide an EcoPass at no charge for every Lafayette resident who requests one.

If approved, the proposal would likely increase the property tax by roughly $35 to $40 a $350,000 home in Lafayette.

An EcoPass would provide unlimited rides on all RTD buses and trains throughout the Denver metro area, including Boulder County.

A survey taken by Talmey-Drake Research and Strategy Inc. last month suggested that if the election were held at this juncture, support for the lower-level EcoPass ($35) would have a 56 percent favorable support rate.

Of those who were surveyed, 8 percent were “undecided” on how they would vote at the $35 level.

“The folks that are opposed to it are very strongly opposed to it,” Lafayette spokesperson Debbie Wilmot said last month. “But on the other side, those who support it feel very strongly as well.”

Given the high percentage of Lafayette voters who feel things in the city are going in the right direction — coupled with the perception that sensitivity to taxes in Lafayette is lower than in the county as a whole — officials have expressed that the climate looks to be favorable for taking the 1.25 mill levy, $575,000 ($35/household) city EcoPass tax initiative to the ballot later this year.

“People are generally really excited about (the initiative),” Berg said. “I think there’s a larger picture — a positive community impact regardless of your views on the bus.”

Earlier this year, Boulder officials considered a similar citywide EcoPass proposal, though funded by a head tax.

The Boulder City Council considered putting a head tax — an idea long-favored by City Councilman Matt Appelbaum — on the ballot last year amid a heated community debate about whether the city’s many employers are paying enough to offset the impact of workers driving into Boulder.

The head tax was pulled from the ballot because business groups said the idea was being rushed through without enough outreach and because council members were unclear what, exactly, the tax would pay for.

“We need a regional solution to the traffic problem and its only going to get worse in Lafayette,” said Councilor Stephanie Walton. “This sort of component to a solution is necessary.”

Municipal broadband

In addition to Tuesday’s EcoPass decision, Lafayette’s council will vote on whether to refer the increasingly popular trend of municipal broadband to November’s ballot.

The motion — providing options between three forms of community broadband: municipal, public-private or fully private — would follow in the footsteps of several other Boulder County communities; including Boulder, Longmont, and as of last week, Superior.

“We had discussed quite awhile back the desire to cross the digital divide,” said Berg. “It’s really just kind of house cleaning to provide more opportunities for more municipality.”

Because of a 2005 state law, cities must ask voters whether they can provide telecommunications services, essentially entering the marketplace with other companies such as Comcast and CenturyLink.

“We really just want to improve connectivity in Lafayette,” Berg said.

Among other provisions, the state law requires local governments to secure voter approval before entering into the broadband business. Without such approval, the law limits the ability of Colorado municipalities to provide a wide spectrum of services, including: free internet service in city libraries, parks and community centers; leveraging government infrastructure and partnering with private businesses to provide affordable and high-speed internet service throughout the entire community; and direct provision of broadband services by municipal governments.

Besides the perks of a faster internet connection, forced competition in the form of local government fosters positive business growth, according to attorney Ken Fellman.

“(Municipal broadband) gives any local government the ability to leverage their network investment to enter into competition with their own price and speed,” Fellman said. “You don’t have to be Longmont, but you can say to private actors, ‘look at these options we have.'”

If approved in November, the exemption from the law would allow Lafayette to consider numerous options for being involved in broadband services. Options include installing and leasing fiber to private entities, creating a public-private partnership to provide services or directly providing services, officials said.

As Lafayette looks to embark on the long process towards opening themselves up to municipal broadband and potentially providing the system in the future, the city will look to its western neighbor, Boulder, as the city grapples with the issue itself.

“Broadband is a puzzle with a lot of pieces to fit together,” Fellman said. “But it certainly doesn’t hurt to have the option.”

Council replacement

Among Tuesday’s crowded agenda also is council’s deliberation and decision on who of the seven candidates will be appointed to City Council.

After Tom Dowling announced his resignation amid plans to move out of state last month, Lafayette officials have held a public process to find someone to fill his spot.

Anthony Hahn: 303-473-1422, hahna@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/_anthonyhahn