This year, Granby Ranch Metropolitan District’s property owners are seeing a question about repealing unused debt authorization on their ballots. Granby Ranch Metropolitan District Manager Charles Wolfersberger is the designated election official for this ballot measure and explained what it would mean for homeowners in the district if it passed.
The ballot language reads, “Shall all previously authorized and unissued debt authorization granted by the voters in all prior elections to Granby Ranch Metropolitan District, with the exception of all authorization to refund existing debt, be forever repealed and rescinded effective immediately?”
Wolfersberger explained that he works with many homeowner-controlled metropolitan district boards and one recurring issue that these board members encounter is discovering they still have hundreds of millions of dollars of borrowing authority after being voted in. This borrowing authority usually comes from a prior election that gives developers the means to build out a development.
Wolfersberger explained that the current Granby Ranch Metropolitan District debt capacity of a little over $170 million was passed back in 2003 and 2004.
According to state law, after 20 years, any special district voter-authorized debt expires. However, the law’s language is not completely clear and only explicitly states that debt capacity in the form of general obligation bonds expires, according to Wolfersberger. There are other debt instruments other than bonds that could theoretically be used by the board, he said.
If the district board members wanted to, they could borrow more money without permission and homeowners living in the district would be saddled with more debt to pay off. Wolfersberger explained that because of this possibility, many district boards are introducing ballot measures similar to this one to ensure that future boards cannot borrow more money without permission from voters.
This chart shows the fiscal information for ballot issue 6A. This issue will be voted on by members of the Granby Ranch Metropolitan District. Grand County Clerk and Recorder/Courtesy image
Proponents of the ballot issue say that if the district’s board of directors utilized the current unused debt capacity of approximately $170 million, it would increase the district’s current debt to an unsustainable level. If this entire debt capacity were to be utilized, it would mean that the approximate 800 properties contributing to the district’s tax base would take on around $200,000 of debt and property taxes would be increased, according to supporters of the measure.
If passed, this ballot measure would ensure the expiration and termination of all current district debt capacity, no matter the form of the debt, which was previously approved 20 years ago.
“This ballot issue is broad enough and written in such a way that it’ll slam the door shut on the district’s ability to issue any kind of debt ever without voter permission,” Wolfersberger said.
This measure would not restrict the district from utilizing debt for future infrastructure projects. If a future board desires to advance a project that requires debt capacity, then the board can send out another ballot measure in order to raise new debt capacity.
Wolfersberger can’t tell voters how to vote on the issue, but said that he believes it’s ultimately a good thing that this issue is going to voters, who will decide whether it passes or fails.
“I think that putting this decision out to the voters is a great thing … It’s great that the board’s allowing this decision to be put to the taxpayers to vote,” Wolfersberger said.
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