After several studies costing $250,000, the Aurora City Council has decided to seek more input from the community on whether it becomes a city and county.
If the feedback is positive and the split City Council comes to an agreement, it could decide this spring whether to put a city-county question on the 2015 ballot.
“I’ve been a longtime supporter of becoming a city and county,” Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan said in an e-mail. “I don’t see either Denver or Broomfield asking to go back to city-only status, so I’d like Aurora to take advantage of the same benefits they get.”
would be the first step. The Colorado legislature would have to agree to put it to a statewide vote, then a majority of voters in Colorado would need to endorse it.
In that scenario, the earliest Aurora could become a city and county is 2021.
said Aurora would be $367 million in the red for ongoing expenses over 20 years if it moves to a city and county government model.
Another projected that Aurora would be $137 million in the black in that same time. That includes eliminating duplicate positions and contracting jail services instead of building a new facility.
Councilman Bob LeGare has opposed the city-county issue, but he says he is keeping an open mind.
He said Aurora just doesn’t have the commercial tax base to support it.
“I know the mayor says, ‘If not now, when?’ ” LeGare said. “And my answer to that is when we have a little more commercial real estate tax base similar to other cities and counties.”
