Fort Lupton City Council brought out the checkbook during its Dec. 7 meeting.

It unanimously approved cost increases for city insurance plans to cover city computers from cyber attacks, workers’ compensation and the boiler and machinery units. The outlay is about $184,000.

Council also approved a $10,000 request for a new dump trailer for Coyote Creek Golf Course. General Manager Tyler Tarpley said the new equipment would be able to carry about four

times as much material as the one he wanted to replace. Turf Time submitted the lowest of three potential bids.

Council also approved a $12,750 request for a retention bonus for the public works department. Director Roy Vestal said turnover has been extensive – 11 employees have left in the past two years – in his department.

“We haven’t been fully staffed,” he told council. “The proposal comes from salaries we couldn’t pay because we didn’t have a full staff.”

Vestal said two employees have 15 years’ service time. One has four years’ time, and two are in their second year of employment. Five have been on the job less than one year.

Appointments

Council also made a bath of appointments Dec. 7. Geri Holton has a new term on the Fort Lupton Public & School Library that ends Dec. 31, 2025. Bushrod White has a three-year term on the city’s planning commission that ends Dec. 15, 2024.

Fort Lupton Police Department Lt. David Hempel is on the Weld County Communications Advisory Committee and the county’s E-911 board. Cristian Gonzales-Torres is the city’s representative on the Fort Lupton Urban Renewal Authority. His term expires Dec. 7, 2026.

Online access

Fort Lupton will change its online access to council meetings next year. The new platform is Go To Meetings, according to City Clerk Mari Pena.

Fort Lupton – like many other cities and government agencies – offers online access for its council meetings in light of the pandemic. In-person attendance is available, too.