\u201cWe were informed of this on a Saturday, one business day before the revote. Last week, we heard all these people speak up against this deal,\u201d said Erie resident Larisza Krista, who opposed the deal, addressing the Town Council on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782361791_980_DCC-L-ERIEDEAL-0625-01.jpg\")
The Erie Town Council meeting space was at capacity Tuesday evening. Residents spoke about a potential deal to sell the town’s mineral rights. (Staff writer\/Julia King)<\/p>\n
The mineral rights item came back to the table after Councilmember Brian O\u2019Connor, who had voted against the deal June 16, asked that town leaders reconsider.<\/a><\/p>\n According to the town\u2019s rules, any council member who voted \u201con the prevailing side of an issue may call to have reconsideration of that item at the next Regular or Special Meeting,\u201d a Saturday news release from the town said.<\/p>\n Mayor Andrew Moore, Mayor Pro Tem Brandon Bell and Councilmember John Mortellaro on Tuesday evening voted in favor of the agreement. O\u2019Connor flipped his vote from last week to join them.<\/p>\n At the meeting, O\u2019Connor said he changed course because he learned after the meeting on June 16 that a number of residents who wanted to speak did not because they felt \u201cintimidated,\u201d he said, and the council received \u201cnumerous\u201d emails requesting a reconsideration.<\/p>\n \u201cThis also allowed other residents to become aware of the agreement,\u201d O\u2019Connor added.<\/p>\n Councilmembers Emily Baer and Anil Pesaramelli voted for the second time against the agreement. Councilmember Dan Hoback, who was absent from last week\u2019s vote, also voted against.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not what our community wants. \u2026 This is not in alignment with our values,\u201d Baer said prior to the vote, and Pesaramelli said his vote was, in part, about \u201ctransparency\u201d for residents.<\/p>\n The Draco project has been expected to move forward regardless of Erie\u2019s decision to sell its mineral rights, according to the town.<\/p>\n \u201cThe drilling will happen, whether we do something or not,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n How Erie got here<\/p>\n Despite objections from the Erie community, a plan from Civitas Resources for the Draco oil and gas project was approved in March 2025 by the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission, designed to include 26 wells drilled from a pad in unincorporated Weld County, before extending over 7,000 feet underground, turning horizontally and running west for more than 4 miles beneath portions of Erie and unincorporated Boulder County.<\/p>\n To begin drilling, an operator must demonstrate it has access to the underground mineral resources included within an approved plan, and secure a drilling permit from the state commission.<\/p>\n Erie officials have said the town was first approached in 2025 by Civitas \u2014 which earlier this year merged with SM Energy \u2014 about acquiring town-owned mineral rights that exist within the broader area of the Draco Pad project.<\/p>\n Under the agreement approved Tuesday, SM Energy would take ownership of Erie mineral rights, or a small percentage of the total drilling area approved as part of the Draco plan.\n<\/p>\n In return, Erie is expected to receive more than $23 million in combined cash and future revenue, including a $4.5 million cash payment and 3% of production revenue for the life of the Draco project. Erie officials estimate that revenue share could exceed $19 million over the next 20 years or more, according to town spokesperson Gabi Rae.<\/p>\n (Rae said that estimated production revenue went up when the town\u2019s\u00a0potential share changed from 2% to 3% \u201cthe day or two before\u201d the June 16 meeting, in an amended version of the agreement.)<\/p>\n Erie would also receive three parcels totaling about 160 acres on County Line Road, estimated to be worth roughly $14 million, and the deal would require SM Energy to perform plugging and abandonment operations for 17 wells.\n<\/p>\n O\u2019Connor said the biggest factors for him in ultimately supporting the deal are the plugging of the wells and a provision that Erie can conduct onsite inspections at the Draco site, while Moore called the land acquisitions \u201cthe goose that lays the golden eggs.\u201d<\/p>\n Numbers float around deal<\/p>\n Matt Owens \u2014 the consultant Erie contracted for the town\u2019s negotiations with SM Energy \u2014 has claimed that the deal could bring the town much more than the two-digit-million numbers, saying in a statement posted to LinkedIn<\/a> that it contained \u201cup to $465 million in financial benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n Owens has also called the potential deal \u201cthe most lucrative oil and gas mineral rights transaction that has ever occurred in Colorado. \u2026 over 10,000% greater than standard mineral rights transactions in this area in terms of value received per acre.\u201d<\/p>\n He did not respond to the Daily Camera\u2019s questions about specific supporting information for those statements.<\/p>\n When asked whether the town agrees with Owens\u2019 estimate of $465 million, Rae told the Camera: \u201cThat number is based on a lot of assumptions about a future that \u2026 is not certain. If we do get the parcels of land, we would then begin environmental assessments and other feasibility studies that would tell us a lot more about what is possible there, and what the potential revenues could be.<\/p>\n \u201cAt this point, the number is not something we would use as an accurate estimation for budgeting,\u201d Rae added.<\/p>\n Responding to Owens\u2019 LinkedIn post, multiple council members have disputed its accuracy, with O\u2019Connor on Tuesday calling his estimates \u201cexaggerated.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoback told the Camera on Saturday the post included \u201cgrossly inflated numbers of projected benefits for the town.\u201d<\/p>\n Residents opposed to the deal said the post created more confusion. One speaker told the council the post was \u201cinappropriate and inflammatory.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \u201cThe lack of accessible public information around this deal has left the people of Erie vulnerable to the influence of anyone who can claim insider information or insight into this deal,\u201d resident Emily Brecht told the council on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Residents speak on deal<\/p>\n![\"Councilmember](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782361791_661_DCC-L-ERIE_2MJ9854_74f5fe.jpg\")
Councilmember Brian O\u2019Connor speaks during a special Town Council meeting in Erie on June 16. (Matthew Jonas\/Staff Photographer)<\/p>\n