Pro-Redtail Ridge group lodges complaint against opposition

LOUISVILLE — Yes for Louisville, an elections committee formed in support of retaining the Louisville City Council’s approval of the Redtail Ridge development plans, says an opposing lobbying group lacks transparency in its campaign materials. 

In most instances, Colorado elections laws require that campaign messaging such as flyers and websites include a disclaimer that includes the name of the person that paid for the communication as well as the identity of a natural person who is the registered agent of the lobbying group. 

Citizens for a Vibrant Sustainable Louisville, a group registered by Sherry Sommer that opposes the Redtail Ridge approval and is asking voters to repeal that decision in a special election April 19, has failed to make the necessary disclosures, Yes for Louisville organizer Terre Rushton alleges. 

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“I just want to make sure that everyone is playing by the rules,” Rushton told BizWest.
The special election, which the Louisville City Council initiated after a successful petition led by Sommer and other opponents of the Redtail Ridge plan, asks voters to decide: Shall Louisville Ordinance No. 1811, Series 2021, An Ordinance Approving the First Amendment to ConocoPhillips Campus General Development Plan (Redtail Ridge Master Plan), be approved?

A “Yes” vote allows Redtail Ridge developer Brue Baukol Capital Partners LLC to move forward with its plans to build up to 3 million square feet of office, industrial and flexible-use buildings at the long-vacant, former Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) site off U.S. Highway 36. 

A “No” vote would result in the site reverting to its previous land-use designation, which is more restrictive than the plan approved by the Louisville City Council in 2021 after more than a year of debate and public hearings. 

The first campaign finance reports for both lobbying committees are due on March 29.

While she couldn’t cite specific dollar figures on Monday, Rushton told BizWest that Yes for Louisville has “had a lot of individual contributions,” along with contributions from Redtail Ridge’s developer.

In the group’s upcoming disclosures, “we’re going to reflect to the letter every contribution from Brue Baukol — of course they’re involved in this,” she said. “We will be absolutely open and transparent, but I don’t know exactly to date what [Brue Baukol] has put into the campaign.”

Rushton’s group filed a complaint against Citizens with the Louisville City Clerk last week that includes a series of examples of alleged violations of disclaimer rules:

First, some yard signs with anti-Redtail Ridge messaging include no information about what group paid for them and to whom that group is registered, according to the complaint.

Furthermore, the complaint says disclaimers on materials that do include information on the sponsoring group omit information about the registered agent. 

“If this stuff is really paid for by the Citizens for a Vibrant Sustainable Louisville, it should say that and it should have Sherry [Sommer’s] name on it as the registered agent,” said Rushton, an attorney who is married to former Louisville mayor Chuck Sisk. “… What they need to do is take down the signs that don’t contain this [disclaimer information.]”

The complaint also alleges that campaign materials could lead readers to imply that a group called PreserveLouisville.org is behind the messaging. No such group exists. Yes for Louisville and Citizens are the only recognized political issue committees for the special election, according to the Louisville City Clerk Meredyth Muth’s office, which confirmed to BizWest the receipt of Yes’ complaint. 

Muth told BizWest on Monday that she was in the process of reviewing the complaint. 

“If our campaign has made an error of some kind, it was unintentional, and we would remedy within the timeframe established by the rules set by the city of Louisville,” Sommer said in an email.

Citizens has until March 30 to correct any violations or to provide the clerk’s office with a written explanation as to why the group’s organizers believe they have not committed a violation.

If neither occurs, fines could be assessed.