High winds and no snow results in Stage 1 fire ban
Central City
Central City’s fall election
could be pivotal because three
of the five aldermen’s seats
will be up for grabs in the
Nov. 3 General Election.
to the council in December
following the passing of Linda
Armbright, who served for 19
years as a city alderman, is
seeking a four-year term.
Senior Reporter
Four Black Hawk and three
Central City aldermen seats,
including one held by Mayor
Jeremy Fey, will be up for
election this year, although
both cities will use different
methods to conduct their elec
tions.
Black Hawk’s election will
use traditional paper bal
lots and will be conducted
between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on
Tuesday, April 7. The polling
place for voters will be in the
City of Black Hawk council
chambers, 211 Church St.,
next door to the Black Hawk
Police Department.
Fey, in the eighth and
final year of two consecutive
terms, is not permitted to seek
re-election under the city’s
regulations. Four years ago,
alderman Jeff Aiken lost his
bid for the mayoral position to
Fey. However, Aiken defeated
Fey and incumbent Marie
Mornis when he ran for the
District 1 seat on the Gilpin
Board of County Commission
ers in November 2024.
By Becky Osterwald
Managing Editor
Gilpin County Sheriff Kevin Armstrong confirmed dur
ing the Board of County Commissioners meeting on Jan.
13 that he had implemented a Stage 1 fire ban on Dec. 23,
2025.
Black Hawk
The city of Black Hawk’s
biennial election will be held
on the first Tuesday in April,
which is April 7.
“This was shortly after the wind event that we had …
and then we saw no relief [in the weather pattern] what
soever,” Armstrong added. He noted the forecast did not
include any chance of snow — just low humidity and high
winds — which would increase the chance of a wildfire.
There are fewer than 90
residents of voting age within
the city’s boundaries. Any
resident considering running
for one of the four council
seats can pick up a candidate
nominating petition and
information packet from the
Black Hawk City Clerk’s office
at 201 Selak St. Petitions must
be returned to the clerk’s
office no later than 5 p.m. on
Monday, Jan. 26.
Four of the six aldermen’s
seats will be up for election
in 2026. They are currently
held by council veterans Hal
Midcap and Jim Johnson,
along with recent newcomers
Cynthia (Cindy) Linker and
Lorraine (Rene) Wiley.
“As you well know, we have had little or no snow, and
what little snow we have had has been blown into Kansas.
We need to be mindful of the use of fire in our county,”
he stated. “We don’t want a Marshall fire. That would be
catastrophic because of the winds that we’ve had.”
The four-year terms of Cen
tral aldermen Todd Williams
and Marcia Enloe, who were
elected in 2022, also will be
available on the five-member
Board of Alderman, which in
cludes the mayor’s seat. Enloe
said she’s considering seek
ing another term. Williams,
who became engaged several
months ago, said he doesn’t
plan to seek re-election be
cause he hopes to move to the
East Coast during 2026.
Because of the high winds last month, Armstrong said
trees were blown over and could become fuel if a wildfire
starts.
Johnson has served on
council for 16 years since his
first election in April 2010.
Midcap was an alderman
from July 1995 to April 2000.
He was elected again in April
2014 and has remained on
council for the past 12 years.
With limited resources available to Gilpin County, the
sheriff said the fire ban will remain in place until signifi
cant snow falls. Residents need to be mindful of those
restrictions and the danger of wildfire. This includes
ensuring that counties surrounding Gilpin are also at the
same stage of a fire ban because visitors to the mountain
communities are unaware of county boundaries.
Potential candidates must
be a U.S. citizen and at least
18 years old at the time of
the election. They must also
be a registered elector who
has been a city resident for at
least 12 months preceding the
date of the election. In addi
tion, state law prohibits Black
Hawk’s elected officials from
holding a gaming license.
Linker, Black Hawk’s
former Department of Com
munity Development director,
retired from her city position
in October. However, she
was appointed to the council
in December following the
Oct. 31 death of Greg Moates.
If she wins on April 7, her
two-year term will be up for
election again in 2028 be
cause Moates was re-elected
in 2024.
Residents who plan to run
for mayor or alderman can
pick up nominating paper
work in early August and will
have 20 days to complete and
return it to the city clerk’s of
fice in city hall, 141 Nevada St.
Armstrong is sure no one would question using water
from Missouri Lakes to fight a wildfire by air. However,
because the “fire season” runs from April through Oc
tober, there are limited air resources available in Colo
rado for the rest of the year, even though the state is in a
drought.
Not up for election this year
are Mayor David Spellman
and aldermen Paul Bennett
and Benito Torres. They and
the late Moates were re-elect
ed without opposition in early
2024.
Armstrong plans to hold more community meetings to
urge residents to take responsibility for their own public
safety during major events.
The seats held by Alder
men Chuck Spenser and
Zane Plsek won’t expire until
2028. However, it is unknown
whether either is considering
a run for mayor this fall.
It’s important that if a resident receives a reverse 911
call or a HyperReach message, they take action because
there is an emergency and “they need to pay close atten
tion.”
Wiley, who was appointed
