Minutes - Planning Commission

I. CALL TO ORDER & PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO FLAG

Chair Hemphill called the June 3, 2026 Planning Commission Meeting to order at

6:30pm.

II. ROLL CALL

Following the Pledge of Allegiance, Chair Hemphill asked the Secretary to call

roll.

Roll Call:

Commissioner Booth - present

Commissioner Leef - present

Commissioner Dreckman - present

Commissioner Sawusch - present

Commissioner Schatz - present

Vice Chair Braudes - present

Chair Hemphill - present

A quorum was present.

III. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA

Commissioner Dreckman moved to approve the agenda of the June 3, 2026

Planning Commission Meeting. The motion, seconded by Commissioner Booth,

carried with all voting in favor thereof.

IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

2026-285 Approval of the May 20, 2026 Planning Commission Meeting Minutes

Attachments: May 20, 2026 Planning Commission Meeting Mintues

Vice Chair Braudes moved to approve the Meeting Minutes of the May 20, 2026

Planning Commission Meeting. The motion, seconded by Commissioner

Dreckman, carried with all voting in favor thereof.

V. PUBLIC COMMENTS

Public Comment was taken from resident Sam Badger, 1324 Brookfield Place,

Erie, CO 80516. Mr. Badger voiced concerns that the Parkdale subdivision lacks

dedicated parks and open space after the developer paid a fee-in-lieu of park

dedication. Residents in the neighborhood were told that a future school would

serve this purpose. With the school now reportedly delayed, the neighborhood

residents are concerned they may be left without local recreation/parks despite

the fee-in-lieu and neighborhood bonds.

VI. GENERAL BUSINESS

2026-334

Election of Chair and Vice Chair of the Planning Commission

Chair Hemphill announced Agenda Item 2026-334: Election of Chair and Vice

Chair of the Planning Commission.

Chair Hemphill reviewed the election process procedures for Chair and Vice

Chair that were distributed to the Commission the previous day and confirmed

that the Commission will follow the outlined process.

Chair Hemphill opened it up for nominations for the Chair.

Vice Chair Braudes nominated Chair Hemphill as Chair of the Planning

Commission. Chair Hemphill accepted the nomination.

Commissioner Booth nominated Commissioner Sawusch as Chair of the Planning

Commission. Commissioner Sawusch accepted the nomination.

With no other nominations or objection, Chair Hemphill closed the nominations

for Chair.

The Commissioners voted by secret ballot. Ballots were collected by Secretary

Jaime Medina. The ballots were reviewed and counted by both Secretary

Medina and Secretary Melinda Helmer. Secretary Helmer announced the results

to the Commission.

Receiving 5 votes, Commissioner Sawusch was elected to the position of Chair of

the Planning Commission.

Chair Hemphill announced that Commissioner Sawusch will assume the roll of

Chair for one year.

Without objection, Chair Hemphill continued with the election of Vice Chair and

opened it up for nominations of Vice Chair.

Commissioner Booth nominated Commissioner Dreckman as Vice Chair of the

Planning Commission. Commissioner Dreckman accepted the nomination.

Chair Hemphill nominated Vice Chair Braudes as Vice Chair of the Planning

Commission. Vice Chair Braudes accepted the nomination.

With no other nominations or objection, Chair Hemphill closed the nominations

for Vice Chair.

The Commissioners voted by secret ballot. Ballots were collected by Secretary

Jaime Medina. The ballots were reviewed and counted by both Secretary

Medina and Secretary Melinda Helmer. Secretary Helmer announced the results

to the Commission.

Receiving 5 votes, Commissioner Dreckman was elected to the position of Vice

Chair of the Planning Commission.

Chair Hemphill announced that Commissioner Dreckman will assume the roll of

Vice Chair for one year.

Chair Hemphill asked if Chair-Elect Sawusch would like to take over the meeting

or if he should continue to the next agenda item.

Chair-Elect Sawusch stated that with the next agenda item, he would like for

himself and Vice Chair-Elect Dreckman to move forward and lead the

conversation.

Chair-Elect Sawusch noted that per the municipal code, there is one additional

officer that needs to be elected. There would be an election of the Chair, Vice

Chair, and Secretary. Historically, staff has filled the role of Secretary by taking

the meeting notes and asked Deputy Town Attorney Eliot Schaefer to confirm that

an election of a Secretary should occur.

Deputy Town Attorney Schaefer confirmed Section 3-1-4-A. of the municipal code

provides that each board or commission shall elect a Chair, Vice Chair, and

Secretary from among its full membership. There is a code requirement to elect

a Secretary. The rules and procedure pre-date the code which was revised in

November 2025, also contemplates a secretary with consistent duties and

responsibilities as noted in the code.

Chair-Elect Sawusch noted that because of the nature of the order of the

Commission, staff has performed the secretarial duties but by code the

Commission is required to have a Planning Commission Secretary to which

Deputy Town Attorney Schaefer confirmed.

The Commission continued discussion on whether electing a secretary required

prior agenda notice, since tonight's agenda only noted elections of a Chair and

Vice Chair. After reviewing the agenda, the Deputy Town Attorney suggested

adding the election of a Secretary with a vote at the next meeting. Expectations

of the Planning Commission Secretary was discussed. Additional clarification

was requested regarding whose name should appear on the secretary's signature

line for signed resolutions, and whether an ordinance would be needed to define

required signatures and determine if updates are necessary to reflect staff or the

Commission Secretary.

The Deputy Town Attorney will look into the questions raised tonight and noted

the board does have the authority to adopt bylaws to memorialize an election

process, the role of the Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary, and how resolutions are

executed. It may not require a code change but the Commission does have

some authority to establish an operating process.

With no further questions, Chair-Elect Sawusch closed this item.

2026-335

Discussion of Annual Report to Town Council

Attachments: Draft Presentation

Chair Sawusch announced Agenda Item 2026-335: Discussion of Annual Report to

Town Council.

The start of the discussion focused on having Commissioner Hemphill take the

lead since he drafted the original version of the presentation. Commissioner

Hemphill explained that the presentation didn't have many changes form the

previous iteration and still includes former Commissioners Burns and Baham as

most of the work occurred during their tenure. Staff contributions are also

reflected and acknowledged. The draft covers the period from September 2025

through May 2026 and provides a high-level overview of land use cases, UDC

recommendations, and a rules and procedures over for the new commissioners.

Some potential changes would include new staff, Jaime Medina, the CIRSA

training, outlining the 2026 Goals, and noting future responsibilities.

Chair Sawusch asked for confirmation of the Deputy Town Attorney regarding

Section 3-1-5 of the code and if the Commission will be reporting bi-annually or

annually to the Town Council. It was confirmed that the municipal code only

requires one report per year though this does not mean that the commission can't

request an item on the Town Council agenda.

The Commission discussed expanding tasks, as Chair Sawusch requested

revisiting the conversation about rules and responsibilities, noting that this topic

has come up several times in the past. Further discussion centered on the need

to create bylaws, since only rules of procedure had been adopted by Town

Council in 2022 and no bylaws had been established under the current Boards &

Commission code. The Commission asked whether there was an official work

plan - there were no objections to developing one. Looking at 2026 goals, two

priorities emerged: working with staff and the town attorney's office to draft

bylaws, and developing a work plan.

The Commission requested clarification on what types of items a work plan might

include and also emphasized being mindful of staff time and resources as

staffing is tight - along with the commission's agendas. Questions were raised

about whether the commission may hold study sessions. A reminder was noted

that the Commission does have some available budget that can be utilized for

some of the items being discussed.

The Commission does agree that they should avoid canceling regularly

scheduled meeting as this could be an opportunity to advance this work. Chair

Sawusch asked if anyone had any thoughts, potential goals or ideas on how the

commission can better themselves as the experts in planning and zoning within

the community.

Clarification was requested on whether anyone tracks statistics on case volume,

number of approved units, and what is it that creates the work of the commission.

Staff indicated this information can likely be compiled depending on what the

commission would like to see in a report. It would be helpful to see this

information laid out in a chart. This kind of data could help the commission be

more effective in their roles.

One commissioner noted their surprise during the CIRSA training to learn that the

Board of Adjustment and Appeals has not met in years, which may indicate that

the code is functioning well but would also suggest that the word isn't getting

out.

There was an ask for an update on the Comp Plan and whether staff has

considered producing an annual report that compares approved development to

the Comp Plan, highlights alignment, and identifies areas that may require

updates. Staff responded that targeted amendments to the Comp Plan are

already planned, and they will follow up with the commission on what an annual

report could look like if this is something the commission wants to see and how it

could be formatted. The Commission would like to have staff verify dates should

there be items the commission could address.

Wrapping up the discussion, the goal is for the commission to stay consistently

informed and effectively function as the long-range planning commission for the

town. This aligns with the commission purpose - ensuring that current and future

development supports the community's long-term vision. The commission wants

an annual cross-board study session to understand how other boards' decisions

influence the Comp Plan as it relates to Planning Commission items. Chair

Sawusch would like an opportunity for "Town Hall 101" educational sessions to

cover items like User Guides, Capital Fund, and Water Allocations among other

things. The commission recognizes this as an ambitious goal, their time is

volunteered, and they would like to help the community, and potentially assist

Town Council where they can.

Deputy Town Attorney Schaefer added that the commission derives its authority

from the charter and ordinances. The commission - in a quasi-judicial role -

reviews certain applications in the UDC. As the commission begins to think about

their role and responsibility, to keep in mind that it may require an amendment

to the UDC, or other provisions of the code.

Chair Sawusch thanked the Commission for the very productive discussion.

VII. STAFF REPORTS

Chris LaRue, Principal Planner noted that the next several upcoming Planning

Commission dates are June 17, 2026 and July 1, 2026. The land use case that

was scheduled for July 1, 2026 has been removed but there are items on the

agenda for the July 15, 2026 meeting.

VIII. COMMISSIONER REPORTS AND DISCUSSION ITEMS

Commissioner Schatz will not be available in-person for the July 15th meeting.

Commissioner Braudes gave insight on how to obtain an official excused

absence for the meeting.

Chair Sawusch will wrap attendance into the meeting policy and understands

that Council is discussing the hybrid policy and believes that this option is

available. Chair Sawusch has no objections to doing hybrid and will leave it to

staff for the ability to grant that access.

Commissioner Leef will need to participate remotely for the June 17th meeting

and has notified staff. Commissioner Leef extended his appreciation to

Commissioner Hemphill and to Commissioner Braudes for their service to this

Commission stating his appreciation for their work as well as the training

opportunities.

Vice Chair Dreckmand echoed the sentiments.

Commissioner Hemphill appreciated the adventure being Chair and will get the

presentation over to Chair Sawusch.

Commissioner Braudes congratulated Chair Sawusch and Vice Chair Dreckman

and added that the Erie Pride Celebration is this Sunday from 2-6pm with 44

booths, 6 food trucks with various entertainment lined up.

Commissioner Booth congratulated Chair Sawusch and Vice Chair Dreckman and

thanked Commissioner Braudes and Commissioner Hemphill. Commissioner

Booth continues to learn from everyone up here at the dias and appreciates the

extra learning opportunities.

Chair Sawusch extended a thank you to former Chair Hemphill and former Vice

Chair Braudes for their work and effort put into this past year. The Commission

wouldn't be sitting here without their leadership and guidance. Thank you to the

others for putting their faith in him as the next Chair.

For staff, the Commission continues to receive comments on the Parkdale School

as does Council. This is a Boulder Valley School District consideration - can we

address this on the website?

Last Tuesday, Council had various items related to water - fee increases and an

emergency resolution regarding remaining water credits and allocations to the

town. This will substantially change the growth in Town. Two years ago there

were 900 units issued and last year 400-500 units, and it will affect our population