man standing at podium at town meeting
Tony Rigatoni's and Rooftop Tavern owner Reza Ardehali address the Morrison Town Board Jan. 21, calling for action against Trustee Paul Sutton for comments critical of his restaurant and others. He has also repeatedly asked the board for help with parking issues. Credit: Jane Reuter

Triggered by an earlier meeting in which one Morrison trustee suggested decreased restaurant business could be solved by improving their food, the town’s business owners descended in force on Morrison’s Jan. 21 board meeting. They asked again for help with parking issues they say are hurting their bottom line, and one restaurateur called for action against Trustee Paul Sutton.

Sutton, who made the critical comment, is a University of Denver professor currently participating in an international Fulbright Scholar Program. He was not at this week’s meeting, but responded via email to Reza Ardehali’s board request.

“If Reza wants me removed from the board, he can initiate a recall petition that my constituents can vote on,” Sutton said. “I stand by my comments about the quality of food in some of the restaurants in Morrison. My comments are supported by independent measurements from Yelp and other social media and by the Town of Morrison survey of residents.”

Board members at the meeting said they heard the merchants’ concerns and agreed they’ll take action to address their parking concerns, which run the gamut from heavy ticketing and inadequate signage for paid parking to a lack of parking in high season.

“We started paid parking for the businesses because they wanted more turnover,” Trustee John Leonard said. “The whole idea was to support the businesses. But they’re saying it’s not working. If it’s hurting you guys, we should fix it.”

Mayor Chris Wolfe asked the owners at the meeting to survey the town’s entire business community and come back to the Feb. 4 meeting with their recommendations. Meanwhile, the town will review its contract with Interstate Parking, which manages the paid system.

“Businesses, come to us with your plan,” he said. “We’ll discuss it, and vote after that.”

The board’s plan forward followed sometimes emotional comments from several town merchants, most notably Tony Rigatoni’s and Rooftop Tavern owner Ardehali. He asked the board to remove or sanction Sutton, saying his comments at the Jan. 7 meeting violate his responsibilities as a town trustee.

Ardehali, Morrison Inn owner Butch Luedtke and Morrison Holiday Bar owner Dave Killingsworth jointly pitched their parking concerns to the board Jan. 7. Sutton said parking was not to blame for their downturn in business.

“Make your restaurants destinations where the food’s good and people want to eat there,” he said, adding he’s had bad experiences eating at their establishments.

“Mr. Sutton’s abject disrespect for the town restaurants should not be tolerated,” Ardehali said. “His public comment sent the message (that) the food in this town sucks (which is) bulletin board material for every other restaurant in the region. Why eat in Morrison – even its town officials say the food there is terrible.”

Ardehali said Sutton has “fiduciary duties to the town,” and cited a board resolution that trustees should support, appreciate and respect the interests of the community.

“Listening to all viewpoints and facts with an open mind before deciding an issue is another duty in the resolution,” Ardehali said. “Yet during the hearing, Mr. Sutton remarked, ‘I’m done with this conversation. There’s lots of parking in town.’

“This is a member who took an oath to represent me and this community. He has to answer for that behavior,” Ardehali continued. “The town charter provides for removal of a Trustee for malfeasance. I hereby request the mayor investigate and consider sanctions against Mr. Sutton, including but not limited to his removal from the board.”

The board did not immediately respond to Ardehali’s request.

“I’m hurting, my business is hurting, all of us are,” said Barbara Boudreaux, owner of La Boutique Des Boudreaux. “The finances should show it. It’s parking right now. I hope we all can keep jobs.”

Krista Gaasvig, owner of the Hungry Goat restaurant, said she is a fan of paid parking but the system needs changes. She offered the board several potential solutions, including free parking during the slow months of January, February and March, a reduction in the hours in which paid parking is enforced, and better signage.

“Parking is an issue that needs to be addressed and soon,” she said. “I get told all the time, ‘I didn’t know it was paid.’ People get frustrated that they got a ticket, and they say I’ll never come back to Morrison again. Enhancing the signage would make sense.”

She also believes the town needs more parking.

“We are a seasonal town,” she said. “You build your water treatment facility for peak usage. We need parking for peak usage.”

Morrison Holiday Bar owner Dave Killingsworth, who has repeatedly addressed the board about inadequate parking, spoke again Jan. 21.

“I’m not feeling the community,” he said. “I never really have. I’d like you guys to go out and have a retreat and see what you want to do to make community here.

“You got $37 grand from me last year in sales tax,” he continued.. “I want a refund. You’re not helping us. I don’t know why the town of Morrison makes it so tough for any of the businesses to get by.”

Several board members expressed their empathy for and desire to help the merchants, including Mayor Wolfe, who opened the meeting with a statement.

“We love our businesses, we love our residents and we really want everybody to know we’re working hard to represent and do the best we can,” he said. “We know there are hiccups every once in a while.

“My dad once told me for every problem, there’s a solution,” he continued. “That’s the attitude (of) our town manager and this board. We want to move forward, and make sure you know we appreciate you.” 

Morrison’s sales tax revenue dropped from about $2.4 million in 2023 to $1.9 million in 2024, according to town records. Some of that could be attributed to the mid-October closing of Café Prague, a popular downtown Czech food restaurant.

During that same time, the town took in almost $300,000 in parking revenue, including parking fees and tickets, according to town documents.

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