Inform Firestone

Firestone group wants annexation on ballot

By Kacia Munshaw
Longmont Times-Call

FIRESTONE — For the second time in less than a year, LifeBridge Christian Church’s attempt to annex its Union development into a municipality has prompted a petition drive.

Last August, Longmont residents gathered enough signatures to force the City Council to either reconsider its annexation of Union or put it to the vote of residents.

In December, LifeBridge’s business arm, 4C, withdrew its application to annex into Longmont and, in March, applied for annexation into Firestone. The town board approved the application in April.

Now, a group known as InformFirestone wants the town’s residents to decide whether the Union development should become part of Firestone.

The group of 10 Firestone residents hopes to start circulating referendum petitions Thursday that would force the town board to reverse its decision to annex the Union property. If the group collects 250 valid signatures, which represents 5 percent of the town’s registered voters, the annexation would go on the November ballot or go to voters in a special election.

“We are not interested in saying that LifeBridge Christian Church or the Union development is bad,” said Dan Sanger, member of InformFirestone. “What we want right now is more information.”

Specifically, the group wants to know the project’s overall cost to the community, how the town will provide services such as police and fire protection and the availability of water for both the commercial and residential uses, among other issues, he said.

The group’s members, Sanger said, think town trustees moved too quickly to approve annexation of the Union development, which would include 1,200 residential units, commercial development, a senior living center and religious civic center.

“It is our intent to bring this decision before the citizens of Firestone and to provide them with an opportunity to gather as much information as possible before making a decision that has the ability to change the face of Firestone forever,” Sanger said.

If town clerk Judy Hegwood approves the petitions’ wording, InformFirestone members will have until June 15 to get at least 250 signatures.

They will be setting up posts at King Soopers and the Firestone post office, and will also go door to door, to collect signatures, Sanger said.

Martin Dickey, chief operating officer of 4C, said Tuesday afternoon he had not seen the petitions or a press release sent out by InformFirestone and did not have a comment about the petition drive.

Firestone Mayor Chad Auer also said he was unaware of the particulars of the petitions and could not comment.

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