All town leaders resigned, leaving no government to fix water
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold formally declared the town of Hartman abandoned on July 29, a little more than a month after being advised in writing that the town’s drinking water had lacked chlorine for more than one month, was not potable, and “smells horrible,” according to public documents.
The declaration came after all of the town’s board of trustees and its clerk resigned, leaving Hartman unable to hold local elections or operate its water infrastructure. The town had a population of fewer than 60 at the time of the 2020 U.S. census.
The Denver Post described the administrative failure of Hartman as having “no analog in recent state history.” The newspaper reported that political infighting, accusations of fraud, and a physical fight at a governing board meeting prevented any operator from stepping in to address the town’s failing water tower, which had gone without substantial repairs for years. The outlet compared the quarrels to the 19th-century feud between the Hatfield and McCoy families in Appalachia.
Resident Jessie Simmons petitioned the secretary of state on June 17 to declare the town abandoned. In a 15-page order granting the request, the secretary of state’s office wrote that not declaring Hartman abandoned “would leave the residents in further legal limbo during a health hazard, with no authority to conduct business, hold elections, or fix their water infrastructure so that clean water can be delivered to the town residents.” The order stated that abandonment “is the only legal mechanism in Colorado [law] that creates an avenue for residents of the area to receive clean water.”
The order cited Colorado law permitting the dissolution of incorporated communities that can no longer maintain a government. Barring a successful appeal, responsibility for Hartman’s infrastructure will pass to the surrounding Prowers County government.
Not all residents supported the declaration. Resident Shawna Casey said, “Hartman is not a failed town. Hartman is a town that was failed by the systems designed to protect it.”
Former board member Pam Packer, who the Guardian reported is worried about the future of her town, was among those photographed at the scene. Former mayor Catherine Fernandez was also present at her family home in Hartman but made no attributed statement. Residents had been under a boil-water order for the entire year preceding the abandonment.