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CHAPTER ONE:
<br />INTRODUCTION
<br />HISTORY OF COLORADO MUNICIPALITIES
<br />The earliest settlements in Colorado formed in response to basic frontier challenges such as ensuring food, water,
<br />shelter, and the safety of the territory's first pioneers and their families. Many of these settlements began as military
<br />forts, the first being Bent's Fort in 1832 near present-day La Junta. Other forts that formed around the same time
<br />include Fort Lupton, established in 1836, and Fort Pueblo, established in 1842.
<br />Mexican Americans in southeastern Colorado created the first permanent civilian settlements. Among these was San
<br />Luis, established in April 1851, which remains the oldest continuously inhabited town in Colorado.
<br />Pioneers and fortune seekers continued to form communities as part of the westward expansion of the United
<br />States. The Pikes Peak Gold Rush of the late 1850s fueled a wave of mining settlements. The front -range
<br />communities of Denver, Boulder, La Porte (predecessor to Fort Collins), Fountain City (predecessor to Pueblo), and
<br />El Paso (predecessor to Colorado Springs) were all established in 1859. The silver boom and the cattle industry
<br />encouraged later settlements during the 1870s. Silver towns included Leadville, Silverton, and Idaho City (now Idaho
<br />Springs), then Aspen, Rico, Telluride, and Creede. Agriculture towns included Greeley, Longmont, and Sterling.
<br />Colorado towns and cities continued to grow and multiply through the decades. The state is now home to 272
<br />separate municipalities that range in population from fewer than 20 residents to more than 600,000 residents.
<br />INTRODUCTION TO MUNICIPAL LAW: CITIES AND TOWNS
<br />FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS
<br />The states, and their political subdivisions (including municipalities), must always operate within the constraints of
<br />the federal constitution, which acts as the supreme "law of the land."' Legislation by Congress must be pursuant to
<br />the "enumerated powers" outlined in the federal constitution. Where Congress has such legislative power, its laws
<br />prevail over state constitutional provisions and state and local legislation.' The Colorado Constitution is the supreme
<br />state law that governs all municipal governments, and all municipal actions must conform to both state and federal
<br />constitutional requirements and limitations. The most basic source of Colorado legislation governing statutory
<br />municipalities is Title 31 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, although many applicable laws appear elsewhere in the
<br />statutes.3
<br />CLASSES OF MUNICIPALITIES
<br />According to state law, and as used in this publication, the term "municipality" means a city or town and, in addition,
<br />any city, town, or city and county that chose to adopt a home rule charter pursuant to the provisions of article XX of
<br />the state constitution. Citizens establish a municipality through a process known as incorporation.° Colorado's state
<br />statutes set forth the general classifications of municipalities: statutory municipalities, home rule municipalities, and
<br />special territorial charter municipalities. Each of these major classifications is discussed below.
<br />Statutory municipalities. Statutory municipalities have only those powers granted by state legislation. Except as
<br />specifically limited by state constitutional provisions,' the state legislature has complete power over the creation,
<br />organization, and power of statutory municipalities. Except in limited circumstances, the courts generally construe
<br />state legislation strictly against finding implied grants of power for statutory municipalities.'
<br />1 U.S. CONST. art. VI, § 2.
<br />2 Garcia v. San Antonio Metro. Transit Auth., 469 U.S. 528 (1985) (overruling the prior rule of Nat'l League of Cities v. Usery, 426 U.S.
<br />833 (1976) (holding that a state possessed "traditional governmental powers" with which not even Congress could interfere)).
<br />3 All statutory citations in this publication are to the 2016 edition of the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.) as amended and revised by
<br />the Seventy -First Colorado General Assembly at its First Regular Session in 2016.
<br />4 C.R.S. §§ 31-2-101-109.
<br />5 Examples of state constitutional limitations on state legislative power over municipalities include: COLO. CoNST. art. V, § 35 (General
<br />Assembly cannot delegate to any special commission or private corporation the power to supervise or interfere with municipal
<br />affairs); COLO. CoNST. art. X, § 7 (General Assembly cannot impose taxes for municipal purposes).
<br />6 Dillon, Mun. Corp. § 55 (2d ed. 1873); McQuillin, Mun. Corp. § 10.09 (3d ed. 1996). See Phillips v. City & Cty. of Denver, 34 P. 902
<br />(Colo. 1893); City of Durango v. Reinsberg, 26 P. 820 (Colo. 1891); City of Aurora v. Bogue, 489 P.2d 1295 (Colo. 1971); City of
<br />Sheridan v. City of Englewood, 609 P.2d 108 (Colo. 1980); see also C.R.S. § 31-15-101(2) (general grant of implied and incidental
<br />powers).
<br />Heather Balser / City of Louisville
<br />Order #azzovQr�r
<br />CdR!Xb&� UNICIPAL LEAGUE 1
<br />opyright by C
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