Pueblo voters react to landslide victory for Black Hills Energy
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -- By a shockingly large margin, Pueblo voters rejected Ballot Question 2A during a special election Tuesday.
If Ballot Question 2A had passed, the city would have left Black Hills Energy to form a public electric utility run by the Pueblo Board of Water Works.
According to updated numbers from the Pueblo County Clerk on Wednesday, 21,286 voters were against the measure, while 8,846 were for it.
KRDO spoke with several 'No' voters earlier Wednesday to find out why they voted the way they did. We learned many of their reasons varied.
Some feared the cost of buying out a privately owned business.
"Every pole, every wire in the air, everything that is owned by a power company must be bought if a city is going to take it over they are going to have to purchase all that,” said James Hoff.
“We only got ten more years [on the contract] to go," said Pueblo resident Julia Thompson. "By the time this is all litigated and went to court the ten years would be up so why waste the time and the energy.”
Others didn’t believe the Pueblo Board of Water Works were the right choice for the job.
“One is water and the other is wattage and they are totally different," said Jim Mattis.
“In the past, city takeover projects have not gone very well," said Kimberly Martin. "It’s a track record issue."
For the voters that cast 'No' ballots, many say the TV advertisements from the pro-Black Hills Energy Campaign, 'Pueblo Cares,' had little to no affect on their decisions.
However, when KRDO asked if Black Hills Energy was a good electricity provider for Pueblo, the answers were mixed.
Some are happy with the investments the electricity provider has made in Pueblo. While others believe rates are still way too high, and view Black Hills Energy as a lesser of two evils.
Mayor Nick Gradisar, who largely advocated in favor of 2A, says he is willing to get back to the negotiating table with Black Hills Energy on how to best move forward.
Vance Crocker, the VP of Colorado's division of Black Hills Energy, says the offer they made before the special election, which includes a five year rate freeze and new renewable energy projects leading to rate savings, is still on the table.
Looking to the future, there are another ten years on Black Hills Energy's contract with the city of Pueblo. However, there is another optional off ramp in five years -- if the Pueblo City Council of 2025 chooses to use it.
