Grindings provided a smoother surface on Sandstone in Topaz Ranch Estates in this Oct. 10, 2024, photo. Concerns about the district’s roads have resulted in a rough couple of years for board members.
Photo by Kurt Hildebrand.
An error in the ballot resulted in a question about who was supposed to be on the Topaz Ranch Estates General Improvement District Board when Jan. 1 rolled around.
Clerk-Treasurer Amy Burgans acknowledged responsibility for instructing voters through the ballot to select two open seats on the board when there were actually three.
On Wednesday night, member Alton Randall resigned and was reappointed to the board.
Chairwoman Sharon Becker said the board formally accepted Randall’s resignation on Wednesday.
Besides Randall, Shelly Gonzalez, who came in third in the November election, was also seeking the board seat.
“Both presented to the board and the community members who attended the meeting,” Becker said. “Public comment was heard from four public members. Two supported the appointment of Mr. Randall, one supported the appointment of Ms. Gonzalez, and one opposed the appointment of Ms. Gonzalez.”
Board member Michael Tanner sought to appoint Gonzalez, but without a second his effort failed. After that, Cynthia Sanchez supported reappointing Randall, which was successful, Becker said.
Burgans said the issue came up after Randall came in fourth out of four candidates for the board. Gonzalez was third, and if the ballot had been correct would have taken a seat.
She said that initially she and the District Attorney’s Office misinterpreted the provisions of statute to indicate Randall didn’t have to seek office until 2026.
However, a letter from the Attorney General’s Office clarified the issue, saying that Randall’s seat should have been included on the ballot.
Becker and Burgess won the election.
But once the election was over, there isn’t a provision in state law to seat the third vote-getter, according to a letter from Deputy Attorney General’s Greg Ott to Burgans.
As a general improvement district, Topaz Ranch Estates has its own elected board and tax authority.
Last year, Douglas County commissioners discussed a request from a prior board to take over the district and a subsequent petition due to concerns over its roads. The county decided against taking over the district in March 2024 and approved a resolution to that effect on April 4, 2024.
Becker said work is continuing on the roads that were damaged in the winter of 2023.
“It is slow, but we are working at it,” she said. “We used Federal Emergency Management Agency funding to improve about two miles of road.”
Work will continue next road season using the district’s resources.
“We are planning on continuing the improvement through our own funding from here forward, as we are waiting for FEMA reimbursement,” Becker said. “We have a great cohesive staff in the office.”
Burgans said the churn on the score of districts, both general and specific, in Douglas County has been difficult to track.
District board members are allowed to appoint members to take over for those who resign, something that took place three times in 2024 in just the TRE district.
In December 2023, county commissioners voted to replace three Elks Point Sanitation District trustees who didn’t actually live in Douglas County. None of the five trustees on the board at the time had ever been elected.
In January, county commissioners appointed two entire five-person Tahoe district boards where no one sought election in November.
