CENTRAL CITY - The Central City Council held a short public meeting on July 15, 2025, to approve a Special Event Application for the Great Central City Beer Festival, sell a small parcel of land to the Colorado Department of Transportation, approve the inclusion of property into the boundaries of the Central City Business Improvement District, and release a payment to the Central City Opera for $25,000.

The heavy lifting for the night was shifted to their executive session, where the council heard from their legal counsel regarding changes to the municipal code concerning business licenses for sexually oriented businesses (SOBs) and discussed the potential sale of City-owned property located at 103 Eureka Street.

Changes to the municipal code regarding licensing SOBs were originally scheduled for a first reading as Ordinance 25-04, but switching the discussion to the executive session was unanimously approved during the call for changes to the agenda.

The reason for this switch was to hear from legal counsel regarding what the differences were between the current regulations and the proposed changes.

Alderman Zane Plsek wanted to know what was being changed in the municipal code, why it was being changed, and how the new changes were going to be enforced.

The unanimous approval of the special event application involved the temporary closure of Main Street during the event, which is scheduled for Saturday, August 23, 2025.

Added to the meeting agenda was a request for $25,000 from Eric Chinn, the Director of Historical Properties for the Central City Opera. The money had already been allocated in the 2025 budget and the board supported releasing the funds.

Plsek pointed out the 2026 budget was going to be tight and the yearly disbursement to the opera company was going to be reviewed.

Ordinance 25-05, selling city-owned property at I-70 Exit 243 to the State of Colorado for their I-70 Floyd Hill to Veterans Memorial Tunnels Project, was unanimously approved. The small parcel of land was sold for $248,780, with the money being deposited into the Public Property Trust Fund.

City Manager Daniel Miera explained that the money from the property sale went to the special fund for future property purchases but could be redirected by the Council for other purposes.

The other ordinance that passed unanimously approved the inclusion of certain property into the boundaries of the Central City Business Improvement District, which would subject it to the improvement district mill levy.

There was one public comment regarding the changes to the municipal code for licensing SOBs, cautioning about the potential for runaway legal costs.

During council comments, Alderman Marcia Enloe raised concerns about speeding traffic on Eureka Street and cited an example of a speeding truck that turned out to be a city public works truck.

Public Works Director Marc Johns was at the meeting and commented that they are currently putting in a stop sign on the street and are considering installing speed bumps.

Mayor Jeremy Fey used his time to encourage people to volunteer for the fire department. Fire Chief Gary Allen was present and said that the department has a minimum age of 18 and is looking for people who want to serve their community and help out.

The next regularly scheduled Central City Council meeting will be on August 5, 2025, in the Central City Council Chambers in Central City at 6 p.m.