Estes Park trustees approve Policy 671 revisions, remove Estes Nonprofit Network from funding list

The Estes Park Town Board voted Tuesday to approve revisions to Policy 671, the town’s policy for funding outside entities. The changes remove the Estes Nonprofit Network from the list of groups eligible to apply for base funding as it ceases operations, while also making administrative updates to reporting and policy language. Trustees discussed whether to also add the Estes Chamber of Commerce Foundation to the eligibility list, but left that for a later decision.

Management Analyst Susanna Simpson said staff recommended removing ENN because it “will be ceasing their operations this year.” She said other edits broaden references from the Town Administrator’s Office to the town generally and return Community Initiative reporting to a fixed deadline matching the base-funding report schedule because that approach is easier to track.

Mayor Gary Hall said the Chamber Foundation has taken on many of ENN’s functions and could eventually be eligible for base funding. But several trustees said that question should be handled separately. Trustee Bill Brown said ENN and the Chamber Foundation were “two separate issues” and that any future town funding should be tied specifically to replacement nonprofit-support services rather than the foundation’s broader work.

Mayor Pro Tem Marie Cenac said she was “99% sure” ENN was not officially dissolved yet, but said removing it from the list still made sense because it did not apply for base funding this year and appears to be moving in that direction. She also said adding the Chamber Foundation was not part of the meeting packet and deserved more public notice and more information for trustees and residents.

During public comment, one speaker urged the board to create a clearer policy for how organizations become eligible entities, saying the current list can seem “cherry-picked.” After that, Brown moved to approve the revised policy as presented, and Mayor Hall announced that it passed with the edits.

Trustees said they may revisit whether to add the Chamber Foundation to the eligibility list later. Staff said the board can amend that list at any time, though any application for actual base funding must still work within the town’s budget cycle.