No need to vote again on Burlingame

A referendum petition that aimed to put Aspen’s Burlingame Ranch housing project before voters has been ruled both insufficient and moot.

It appears city voters won’t be asked to vote again on the worker housing project.

Hearing officer Karen Goldman issued a ruling today that invalidates the petition on two grounds: The circulators failed to include a summary as worded and approved by the city clerk, and a May 3 ballot question rendered the referendum moot.

Her ruling comes after a protest hearing Friday on several challenges lodged against the petition by local resident Frank Peters.

The petition, which sought to put the annexation of the Bar/X Ranch before voters, was circulated by Councilman Terry Paulson and local resident Toni Kronberg. The Bar/X contains a piece of land slated for the Burlingame housing.

Goldman’s decision could be appealed in court, but Kronberg said she won’t take that step.

Kronberg conceded the May 3 public vote on the annexation of the Bar/X essentially fulfilled the intent of the referendum. The City Council chose to put the question on the ballot; the referendum presented the potential for another election on the same issue.

For more on Goldman’s ruling, see Thursday’s Aspen Times.