Concerns from local residents and some Erie leaders are mounting over a potential deal to lease or sell the town\u2019s mineral rights at the site of the Draco Pad, as key discussions about the matter continue behind closed doors.<\/p>\n
The issue stems from Civitas Resources \u2014 which recently merged with SM Energy Company \u2014 expressing interest in mineral rights owned by the town near the planned Draco well pad<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \u201cThe town was approached (by) several actors in the oil and gas field exploring potential lease of its mineral rights,\u201d David Frank, Erie\u2019s environmental services director, said at a December meeting of the Town Council.\n<\/p>\n To better understand the value, the council at that meeting voted 4-3 to hire Alameda Mineral Advisors to evaluate the town\u2019s mineral assets and solicit bids from companies.\n<\/p>\n The company would only be paid if a deal is completed, receiving 7.5% of the total value, capped at $4.5 million, according to the agreement approved by the council.\n<\/p>\n Councilmembers Emily Baer, Anil Pesaramelli and Dan Hoback voted against the agreement. Mayor Andrew Moore, Mayor Pro Tem Brandon Bell and Councilmembers Brian O\u2019Connor and John Mortellaro voted in favor.\n<\/p>\n Since then, residents have voiced frustration over the matter, which has been discussed in private talks of the council and town staff.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very concerned that decisions regarding \u2026 Erie\u2019s minerals have been made in executive sessions and not in public sessions,\u201d one resident told the council during a meeting this month.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s going to have a negative impact on anybody that lives in Erie\u2019s house, just depending on proximity, whether you\u2019re up against certain assets, whether you\u2019re getting fracked under, whether you own a well,\u201d another resident said.<\/p>\n Alameda Mineral Advisors was formed in 2024 by Matthew Owens, whose LinkedIn shows him as the former chief operating officer of Civitas, the company tied to the Draco Pad site.\n<\/p>\n An email sent this week, addressed to the Erie Town Council, said: \u201cAnd this deal is being brokered by an individual who used to work for this company. And we are paying this person millions of dollars??\u201d<\/p>\n The email adds: \u201cI\u2019d also ask that you consider a more open approach with the public\u2014this is not your land to broker, it is ours.\u201d<\/p>\n Owens could not be reached by the Daily Camera\u00a0for this story.<\/p>\n Mineral rights tied to the Draco project<\/p>\n Mineral rights give their owner the legal ability to access and extract underground resources such as oil and gas \u2014 or to lease or sell that access, according to a Cornell Law School webpage.<\/p>\n Erie\u2019s mineral rights that could be leased are within the drilling area tied to the Draco Pad, a project the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission in March 2025 approved in a 4-1 vote despite concern from the nearby community. According to Civitas\u2019 website<\/a>, the Draco project has \u201cpad construction\u201d scheduled for this year, which will include \u201cconstruction of sound walls to minimize disturbance to the surrounding area.\u201d<\/p>\n The project calls for 26 wells in unincorporated Weld County near Erie, and would drill more than 7,000 feet down and then extend horizontally for roughly five miles, according to the town<\/a>, reaching beneath parts of Erie and Boulder County.<\/p>\n Town officials previously said they were disappointed in the state\u2019s decision but would continue working to protect residents.<\/p>\n Divided council<\/p>\n Baer called the potential leasing of the town\u2019s mineral rights a \u201cslippery slope.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis seems like a departure from our stance as a town, where suddenly we\u2019re entertaining lease offers,\u201d Baer said in December. \u201cMy principles are not up for purchase.\u201d<\/p>\n Bell pushed back on that comment, framing the effort as due diligence.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a little put off by that remark,\u201d Bell said. \u201cMy integrity is worth more than a business deal. This is not a business deal. This is fiduciary responsibility, which we owe the residents.\u201d<\/p>\n Moore said the goal is to understand what options the town has.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you assume that Draco is going to get drilled, then I want to get something out of it for the town,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u2018An opportunity to see if Draco can be stopped\u2019<\/p>\n Recent state legislation puts the town in \u201cuncharted territory,\u201d Frank said. The town has leased its mineral rights before but hasn\u2019t done so \u201cin a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn the past, the choice was to negotiate a lease or a sale or be force-pooled. And so it was always in your interest to find a deal,\u201d Frank added in December.<\/p>\n Force pooling is a process by which any interested person, \u201ctypically an oil and gas operator,\u201d according to a definition from the state<\/a>, may apply to the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission for an order to pool oil and gas resources located within a particularly identified drilling unit.<\/p>\n