The Colorado Court of Appeals has upheld Boulder’s use of stormwater utility fees to pay for the South Boulder Creek flood mitigation project at CU South, marking the latest setback for residents seeking to block a project that has been in the works for more than a decade.
The project includes building a concrete spillway along U.S. 36 and creating a detention pond to reduce the risk of flooding for about 2,300 residents who live in the 100-year South Boulder Creek floodplain. Properties in that floodplain have a 1% chance of flooding in any given year.
The lawsuit centers on whether the city’s use of stormwater utility fees to fund the project constitutes a tax. The plaintiffs, Save South Boulder and several Boulder residents, argued that it does and therefore requires voter approval under the state’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR). They also argued the fees violate TABOR because many residents who pay them will not directly benefit from the project…