At the Craig City Council meeting on Feb. 13, City Manager Peter Brixius delivered an introductory update on the state’s handling of immigration and its potential impact on the community.

Brixius shared a recent Department of Labor publication focusing on “Our New Americans,” covering various aspects such as settling in Colorado, accessing services, health insurance, and legal assistance.

The city and county have scheduled a joint workshop for Feb. 27 to delve deeper into the issue.

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“At that workshop, I think we’ll talk about some of the impacts to the city,” Brixius shared. “How we maintain services and how we stay on top of this situation.”

Brixius addressed concerns about an alleged increase in illegal immigrants being bussed to Craig from Denver, dismissing exaggerated social media reports.

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“The Facebook post (in question) was exaggerated incredibly,” Brixius explained, noting that the post claimed that “8 busloads” of illegal immigrants had recently arrived in Craig.

Brixius said that “it hasn’t been as extensive as the post, but we have had considerable impact over the last two years.”

“I think it’s important that we make this a priority,” said council member Derek Duran. “If we don’t, that 6-member busload will turn into that eight (full) busloads.”

Craig Mayor Chris Nichols also threw his support behind the joint city-county workshop, advising council members to do their best to attend, even with it being scheduled for the middle of a regular workday, as he felt it was likely to be “very important.”

Nichols informed the council that Denver Mayor Mike Johnston has requested for his government’s departments “to cut their budget 15% to deal with the influx and the impact on the city — from housing and shelter and all the costs associated.”

Nichols noted that Denver is a sanctuary city, suggesting that such changes are “happening everywhere in the country — so I think a good conversation to have (in Craig).”

Brixius informed the council members that he had forwarded them “resolutions and proclamations that have been passed in Douglas County and Addams County on the east slope” to peruse prior to the workshop.

“They’re starting to take some action trying to maintain the services in their communities and not drain their coffers in support of what’s happening in our country right now,” Brixius said.

Brixius also informed the council about a USDA workshop scheduled for Feb. 21 at the Center of Craig. The workshop aims to connect local businesses with USDA programs for expansion purposes. According to Brixius, the city is keen to explore ways to support community growth and development.

“We do have some local businesses that are pretty interested in USDA programs right now for expansion purposes, so we’re trying to connect those businesses with this opportunity,” Brixius said.

During the meeting, Nichols also led a discussion on local liquor regulations, citing discrepancies in penalties for violations.

Nichols said he asked for the discussion to be put on the agenda following the council’s dealings with two cases of local liquor violations in October 2023.

Nichols stated that in the past “the city has relied 100% on the state enforcement” for violations, but noted that “the city has all powers to do the same thing the state does.” He questioned whether the city should take additional steps in cases of local liquor violations.

The council expressed a need to revisit regulations, with council member Randy Looper initially suggesting individual meetings with violators in lieu of a council workshop.

Other council members, including Jesse Jackson and Nathan Butler, emphasized the importance of establishing clear guidelines and standards for consistent enforcement prior to meeting with violators.

“We definitely need to have a clear standard across the board,” Butler said.

City Attorney Heather Cannon suggested the possibility of employing a hearing officer to oversee show-cause hearings in place of the council.

“I think that wouldn’t be a bad route to at least look at, due to the fact that we all change seats every two years,” Duran observed. “I think a workshop would be beneficial to us to hear all those options.”

Duran suggested opening up the workshop to local business owners, offering transparency about the increased severity of consequences for violations.

Duran also suggested including marijuana regulations in the workshop discussions.

“With seven marijuana stores and with grocery stores selling alcohol now, it might be something we look at since there’s 18 business now in town that are providing (substances),” he said.

The council agreed to set a workshop for March 26 to delve into both liquor and marijuana regulations.

Former city council member Vicki Huyser addressed the council during the meeting’s public comment session to express her appreciation for the council’s attention to the issue, which has remained a major point of concern for Huyser since her time on the council.

Looper closed out the meeting with a proposal for a workshop to address the rising number of short term-rentals in the city. The council tentatively agreed to a workshop later this spring.