97th CML Annual Conference

Nearly 1,300 people, including close to 700 municipal officials, ascended to Breckenridge from June 18–21 to participate in the largest annual gathering of municipal officials in the state. CML's Conference Planning Committee and staff assembled a non-stop schedule designed to assist municipal leaders in their communities and to create valuable networking opportunities to learn new ideas from each other.

During the week, conference attendees had the opportunity to participate in sessions focusing on significant current and emerging issues in such areas as open meetings, leadership, community engagement, affordable housing, water supply, oil and gas, climate, transportation, municipal courts, broadband, homelessness, libraries, opportunity zones, and many more.

Materials Available Online
Conference handouts, presentations, and other materials are available at www.cml.org/home/networking-events/annual-conference.

Keynotes
CML staff is always working to ensure the general sessions include great keynote speakers. This year, the speakers were: author and professional speaker Mary Kelly, PhD (Opening Session), recently retired CML executive director Sam Mamet (Meeting of the Minds Luncheon), Gov. Jared Polis (Thursday Luncheon), and professional speaker Tim O'Shea (Closing Session).

Elected Officials Receive MUNIversity Recognition
CML MUNIversity recognizes the efforts of local officials who go the extra mile to increase their leadership capacity and knowledge of municipal governance and key issues. CML offers credited courses throughout the year, credit for attending outreach and district meetings and the annual conference. Three stages of learning — Fundamental, Leadership, and Graduate — are recognized, and awards are given to individuals reaching each level.

The Fundamental Level is the first segment of the program and recognizes those officials who have earned 30 credits. Those earning certificates in 2019 are Charley Able, Lakewood councilmember; Clint Anderson, Fort Morgan councilmember; Roy Anderson, Montrose city councilor; Ronald Austin, Delta mayor; Myles Baker, Windsor mayor pro tem; Avril Beattie, Limon trustee; Marsha Berzins, Aurora councilmember; David Black, Sheridan councilmember; Dave Bowman, Montrose mayor; Scott Brock, Glendale councilmember; Tyler Brook, Blue River trustee; Cheryl Brown-Kovacic, Salida councilmember; Cathie Brunnick, Lone Tree mayor pro tem; Henry Carpenter, Lone Tree councilmember; Val Carr, Woodland Park mayor pro tem; Scott Charles, Erie trustee; Paul Chavoustie, Granby mayor; Jim Collins, Las Animas mayor; Steve Conklin, Edgewater mayor pro tem; Robin Crossan, Steamboat Springs councilmember; Tiffany DeKay, Silverton trustee; Robert Drexel, Gunnison city councilor; J.W. Edwards, Brighton councilmember; Crystal Elliott, Commerce City councilmember; Nancy Ford, Arvada councilmember; Scott L. Ford, Steamboat Springs councilmember; Storm Gloor, Glendale councilmember; James Goodwin, La Junta councilmember; Matthew Gordon, Severance trustee; Jill Grossman-Belisle, Timnath mayor; Chris Hazlett, Cripple Creek mayor pro tem; Michael Hillman, Idaho Springs mayor; Jeff Hindman, Berthoud mayor pro tem; Mark Humbert, Brighton councilmember; Lanie Isbell, Eaton mayor pro tem; Leah Johnson, Loveland councilmember; William Karspeck, Berthoud mayor; Dario Katardzic, Glendale councilmember; Laura Keegan, Edgewater mayor; Dolores Killen, Olathe mayor pro tem; Ken Kreie, Fruita councilmember; Ken Kreutzer, Brighton mayor; George Lantz, Greenwood Village mayor pro tem; Margarito Leon, Wiggins mayor; Kevin Lindell, Fort Morgan councilmember; Carlos López, Trinidad councilmember; Sonja Macys, Steamboat Springs councilmember; Mark McGoff, Arvada councilmember; Donald McLeod, Severance mayor; Herb Meyring, Fraser trustee; Gregory Mills, Brighton councilmember; Eric Montoya, Thornton councilmember; Candace Moon, Centennial councilmember; Bob Muncy, Del Norte trustee; Deborah Nasta, Dacono councilmember; Scott Norquist, Glendale councilmember; Joan Peck, Longmont councilmember; Carrie Penaloza, Centennial mayor pro tem; Stephanie Piko, Centennial mayor; Jeffri Pruyn, La Junta mayor; Charles Richardson, Aurora councilmember; Dan Richardson, Carbondale mayor; Christopher Ryan, Delta mayor pro tem; Victor Salazar, La Jara trustee; Matthew Salka, Bayfield mayor; Anita Seitz, Westminster mayor pro tem; Steve Skadron, Aspen mayor; Rob D. Smith, Olathe mayor; Willie Spaedt, Garden City trustee; Janet Spangenberg, Edgewater councilmember; Kristin Stephens, Fort Collins councilmember; Connie Sullivan, Lyons mayor; Kara Swanson, Edgewater councilmember; George Teal, Castle Rock councilmember; Harold Thomas, Federal Heights councilmember; J.R. Thompson, Rocky Ford mayor; Orville Tonsing, Holyoke mayor; Austin Valdez, La Jara trustee; Mike Waid, Parker mayor; and Kirby Wallin, Brighton councilmember.

The Leadership Level is the next level and recognizes those elected officials who have earned 60 credits. Those recognized and receiving pins and certificates for 2019 are Todd Brown, Telluride mayor pro tem; Bruce Brown, Cripple Creek mayor; Pauline Christensen, Longmont mayor pro tem; Bette Maurer, Ouray councilmember; Samantha Meiring, Firestone trustee; Kathi Meyer, Steamboat Springs council president pro tem; Adam Paul, Lakewood mayor; John Ponikvar, Craig mayor; Ron Rakowsky, Greenwood Village mayor; Larry Strock, Lochbuie trustee; Ricky Teter, Commerce City mayor pro tem; Dan Torres Jr., Sterling mayor; Wade Troxell, Fort Collins mayor; Donna Wall, Julesburg trustee; Ron Weidmann, Centennial councilmember; Heidi Williams, Thornton mayor; and Larry Zaragoza, La Jara mayor.

Lastly, plaques were given to Graduate Level elected officials, each having completed 100 hours or more of training. They are George Heath, Firestone trustee; Ramey Johnson, Lakewood councilmember; Lisa Northrup, Fort Morgan mayor pro tem; David E. Ott, Lochbuie mayor pro tem; Eileen Waldow, Fraser mayor pro tem; and Colleen G. Whitlow, Mead mayor.

Attorneys
The CML Municipal Attorneys Section hosted several Continuing Legal Education (CLE) accredited sessions at the conference. More than 100 attorneys representing municipalities statewide attended.

The Attorneys Section elected new officers: President Robert Sheesley, Commerce City attorney; Vice President Carrie Daggett, Fort Collins city attorney; Secretary-Treasurer Doug Marek, Greeley city attorney.

Special Happenings
On Wednesday, mayors from around the state packed the Imperial Ballroom at Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center for the Mayors' Mingle — an opportunity to discuss challenges, successes, and spend time networking. On Thursday, a special reception was held with Sam Mamet, CML's recently retired executive director.

Fun Run Results
Congratulations to the winners of the CML Annual Fun Run and Walk. The top three female finishers were Kari Distefano, Rico town manager; Amber Blake, Durango assistant city manager; and Tara Tubb, Colorado Department of Local Affairs program manager. The top three male finishers were Ken Sherbenou, Montrose Recreation District executive director; Kevin Daniel, guest of Alamosa Councilmember Kristina Daniel; and Matt Michel, Wellington trustee.

Municipal Heroes
At the Thursday Luncheon, the two recipients of the CML Municipal Hero Award were recognized: Brad Doherty, Branson water commissioner, and Jamie Dominguez, Alamosa resident. Visit the CML annual conference page to view videos of the two recipients. Following the awards, CML Executive Director Kevin Bommer announced that the CML Executive Board approved rebranding the Municipal Hero Award starting in 2020. The award will become the Sam Mamet Person of the Year Award and will be presented at the Thursday Luncheon next year. More details will be announced early in 2020.

CML Board and Officers Elected
CML Executive Board members were elected at the Annual Business Meeting held at the conference on June 20. The new board convened following the meeting and elected new executive officers. Elizabeth (Liz) Hensley, Alamosa mayor pro tem, was elected president of CML for 2019–2020. Robert (Bob) Widner, Centennial city attorney, was elected vice president, and Kathi Meyer, Steamboat Springs council president pro tem, was elected secretary-treasurer. Wade Troxell, Fort Collins mayor, will serve as immediate past president.

Six new board members were elected and six incumbents were reelected. The new board members are Barbara Bynum, Montrose mayor pro tem; Greg Caton, Grand Junction city manager; A.J. Euckert, Dacono city manager; John Kettling, Deer Trail trustee; Christian Morgan, Kersey town manager; and Russell Stewart, Cherry Hills Village mayor. Those reelected to the board are Kendra Black, Denver councilmember; Cathie Brunnick, Lone Tree mayor pro tem; Elizabeth (Liz) Hensley, Alamosa mayor pro tem; Dale Hall, Greeley councilmember; Jessica Sandgren, Thornton councilmember; and Robert (Bob) Widner, Centennial city attorney.

Colorado Association of Ski Towns Elects New Officers
At the Colorado Association of Ski Towns (CAST) meeting on Thursday, June 20, the CAST membership held board elections. The new CAST Board of Directors are President Dean Brookie, Durango councilmember; Vice President Dara MacDonald, Crested Butte manager; Secretary/Treasurer Rick Holman, Breckenridge manager; At-Large Board Member Todd Brown, Telluride councilmember; and At-Large Board Member Nancy Kerry, Frisco manager.

Westminster 2020
Save the date for the 98th CML Annual Conference at the Westin Westminster, June 23–26, 2020. You can view a highlight video of the Westminster area on CML's annual conference page, where other future conference locations and dates are also listed. You may also suggest a session topic for 2020, using a session proposal form found on our website. The deadline for session proposals is Aug. 30.