Wheat Ridge council sends 1% sales-tax measure to Nov. 3 ballot
The measure could raise up to $11.7 million in its first full fiscal year and support an estimated $236 million in phased capital projects.
Wheat Ridge City Council voted unanimously Aug. 24 to ask voters to approve a 1% city sales-and-use-tax increase for capital improvements. The measure will appear on the Nov. 3, 2026, ballot, and the tax would begin Jan. 1, 2027, if approved.
The council approved Council Bill 16-2026 on second reading, adopting Ordinance No. 1849, Series 2026, according to the Aug. 24 council meeting. The vote advances the measure to voters; it does not impose the tax.
The ballot question asks voters to approve an increase of “up to $11,700,000 annually in the first full fiscal year,” with additional revenue in later years as the tax base grows. The money would support:
- Street and infrastructure maintenance
- Bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements
- Preservation of community spaces at Wilmore Davis and Kullerstrand elementary schools
- Replacement of the Anderson Park outdoor pool
- Modern police and city-services facilities
- Operations and maintenance of those investments
The question also asks voters to authorize the city to collect, retain and spend the revenue as a voter-approved revenue change and exception to state constitutional and other spending limits. The city’s agendas and minutes contain the full ballot language.
Financing and project choices
City staff estimated that the tax could generate about $11.7 million in its first full fiscal year and support roughly $236 million in phased capital investments over a decade. The $236 million figure is an estimate of financing capacity, not an authorization to spend that amount or a commitment to complete every listed project.
The financing model discussed Aug. 24 assumed phased 30-year certificates of participation issued in 2027, 2031 and 2036, along with pay-as-you-go spending from revenue remaining after debt obligations. Staff said the approach could reduce the cost of holding borrowed money before projects are ready and allow the city to address needs over time.
Staff and council discussions identified a civic center or combined police and city-services facility, replacement of the Anderson Park outdoor pool and possible school-property purchases as near-term priorities. Streets, infrastructure maintenance and bicycle and pedestrian improvements would receive ongoing or excess-revenue funding. The city has not adopted a project-by-project cost schedule or binding construction sequence.
Earlier council discussions considered other financing levels. Piper Sandler’s Andrew Ma estimated that a 1% sales-and-use tax could support up to $151 million in certificates of participation, compared with about $113 million at 0.75% and $75 million at 0.5%. A sales-tax revenue-bond structure could support about $121 million at 1%, $91 million at 0.75% and $61 million at 0.5%. Those were financing scenarios, not borrowing approvals.
What the tax could cost
Wheat Ridge’s current local sales-tax rate is 3.5%. A one-percentage-point increase would bring the city portion to 4.5% on taxable purchases, or an additional $1 for every $100 in taxable sales.
The city has not published an estimate of the typical annual or monthly effect on a Wheat Ridge household or a total projected effect on businesses. The actual impact would vary by household and business purchasing and by which transactions are taxable or exempt.
The council’s action sends the measure to the ballot, but voters have not decided it. The project list, financing schedule and tax-impact estimates could receive additional explanation during the ballot process.