BY FREDA MIKLIN
GOVERNMENTAL REPORTER
On May 2, voters in the South Suburban Parks & Recreation District (SSPRD) will elect two members to its five-person board. Terms are four years and board members, elected at large in staggered years, can serve up to two consecutive terms.
League of Women Voters of Arapahoe and Douglas Counties (LWV) sponsored a candidate forum on April 15 at the SSPRD Sports Complex at 4810 E. County Line Road. Julie Huygen moderated. The unassuming Ms. Huygen is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force, a Judge Advocate General, holds a B.A. from Harvard in government, served as one of the lawyers for the Secretary and the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force, and was even a Presidential Scholar in high school.
Candidates Elizabeth Watson, John Priddy, Pam Eller and Michael Edwards participated. Candidates Alexis Barrere and Ken Lucas did not attend. No reason was given for their absence.
The subject that the moderator said had received the largest number of audience questions was the way SSPRD directors are chosen. Unlike other districts, SSPRD only mails ballots to residents who complete a form requesting an absentee ballot. All other voting is done in person at one location. The largest number of votes received by any director in the last election was 0.6% of the number of SSPRD residents. The moderator asked the candidates what should be done to increase voter participation or whether the current level is acceptable.
On the cost of sending ballots to everyone, Watson said it was $500,000. According to current SSPRD director David Lawful, the $250,000 is likely the more accurate estimate.
Watson said that the cost is prohibitive but that SSPRD could include an absentee ballot application in one of its quarterly activity catalogs that go to all residents and that voter registration tables should be set up at SSPRD public events.
Edwards agreed, but pointed out that sending campaign materials to all the district’s voters would be very expensive (board directors earn $150/meeting).
Eller, who was on the board from 2010-2018, said, “I do not think it’s OK to have 1% participation in elections,” but, “It’s even more complicated than the cost,” because SSPRD spans different cities and parts of cities in three counties and it would have to coordinate with three different county clerks to get the correct list of voters, concluding, “Raising voter participation is valuable, but I’m not sure how it is accomplished.” She also pointed out that one of the reasons for low voter participation might be “voter satisfaction.”
Priddy said that he would rather see hundreds of thousands of dollars spent fixing a park than trying to get ballots in the hands of all voters but, “I don’t think the issue will go away,” and the current level of voter participation “is not acceptable.”
Asked the first thing they would do if elected, Eller said she would, “study more closely SSPRD’s new master plan and its strategic plan,” along with ongoing projects, pointing out that she had no personal agenda.
Priddy agreed with Eller on priorities, noting the board had adopted its 2022 Master Plan less than a week ago. He added, “This is a $130 million enterprise.”
Watson said she would announce to the public that there had been an election because she believes communication is currently insufficient, pointing to the fact that only two people attended the 2023 budget meeting held in 2022. She also said, “It is super-important to connect to the in-district community.”
Edwards said he would, “dive into the financials,” pointing out that the new master plan is largely an update of the former one. He would look closely at, “where the dollars come from, where they are spent, what the maintenance levels are,” and listen to the people.
Next, the moderator said, “Let’s go ahead and address the elephant in the room, Pickleball!” She asked the candidates if SSPR should offer, “more opportunity for pickleball, less opportunity for pickleball, or does South Suburban have it just about right?”
Priddy said he was part of “the overflow crowd” at a hearing held by the Centennial City Council on March 21 about pickleball (See Page 1). Pointing to the six new courts going in at SSPRD’s Lone Tree Rec Center, he said an agency like SSPRD should serve, “the wants and needs of its community,” and, “There is a growing desire to engage in pickleball.”
Watson pointed to SSPRD’s obligation to do, “what the in-district taxpayers want,” and in 2017, when they approved a $40 million bond issue, they said they wanted indoor pickleball courts. She reiterated, “I think the SSPRD board should pay attention to their in-district taxpayers…”
Edwards said it is important to make pickleball accessible but also, to make certain it’s not impactful on more residents than necessary by mitigating the sound it produces.
Eller pointed out, “SSPRD has tried very hard to mitigate conflict with neighborhoods over other things, as well as pickleball.” She recalled SSPRD working with neighbors to minimize impacts when lights were installed at Cornerstone Park, and noted that SSPRD offers indoor pickleball at its rec centers, where there are no conflicts with neighbors.
Asked if they would support expansion of SSPRD in the future, Watson said, “It depends on what the in-district taxpayers want.”
Edwards said yes to additional open space, but other additions would have to be evaluated “on a case-by-case basis.”
Eller said, based on her experience, “SSPRD does not seek annexation. The current annexation of RidgeGate was requested by the developer and Lone Tree and the developer is doing a great job.”
Priddy said, “Growth needs to be planned and this district has done a credible job of planning for growth.”
Asked what new amenities they would seek for SSPRD and what they would upgrade, all the candidates pointed to Goodson Rec Center as the prime location for updating. Eller noted that the Sheridan Rec Center is leased from the school district and the lease is set to expire in the next four years. Priddy added that SSPRD is currently “at an impasse” with the
Sheridan School District over that lease.
Ms. Huygen asked the candidates how they would improve communications with SSPRD residents about board decisions and other actions taken.
Watson said, “That’s a big part of why I’m running for this position. There is room for improvement in communication with our in-district members. I would love to see all board meetings broadcast and recorded to provide access to our in-district community. I would love to see financial information included on the last page of the catalog mailed out to all in-district members…for them to have a voice and provide input to the board.”
Edwards agreed, pointing to the importance of the board getting input from residents.
Eller said this is a longstanding issue that led to the development of the current SSPR website that includes email addresses and phone numbers for board members. It also includes agendas and minutes for board meetings. She also pointed out that it is important “to work with municipalities and other organizations in the district because that’s how you reach a lot of people,” recalling that she sat on and attended quarterly meetings of the High Line Canal Working Group that included all the area cities, Arapahoe County, and other districts when she was on the board previously.
Priddy pointed out that it is always important to seek ways to communicate “across the breadth of an organization…to get more people engaged, both in-bound and out-bound.”
Biographical information about board candidates and their answers to other questions can be found at https://www.ssprd.org/News-And-Events/Post/19946.
SSPRD was formed in 1959. It includes over 151,000 residents of the Cities of Littleton, Lone Tree, Sheridan, Centennial west of I-25, and the Towns of Bow Mar and Columbine Valley, plus areas in unincorporated Arapahoe, Douglas, and Jefferson Counties.
SSPRD’s proposed 2023 budget is $97,705,386. Funds come from property taxes, user fee programs and allocations from debt proceeds.
Anyone who rents or owns property within the SSPRD’s 46 square mile boundaries is a District resident. District residents can vote in person at the Goodson Recreation Center, 6315 S. University Blvd, Centennial, CO 80121, or they can request that an absentee ballot be sent to them by completing a form found at https://www.ssprd.org/board-election. They can also contact Jennifer King, Designated Election Official, at 303-483-7011 to arrange to get an absentee ballot by phone. Completed absentee ballots can be mailed to or dropped off at Goodson Rec Center or SSPRD, 4810 E. County Line Road, Littleton, CO 80126. They must arrive by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day, May 2, 2023.
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