(1) The rail district shall be a body corporate and a political subdivision of the state, and the board has the following general powers:
To have and use a corporate seal;
To sue and be sued and be a party to suits, actions, and proceedings. The provisionsof the "Colorado Governmental Immunity Act", article 10 of title 24, C.R.S., shall be applicable to any rail district, or employee thereof, formed under this article.
To enter into contracts and agreements affecting the affairs of the rail district and toaccept all funds resulting therefrom pursuant to the provisions and limitations of part 2 of article
1 of title 29, C.R.S.;
To contract with private persons, associations, or corporations for the provision ofany service related to the operations of the rail district within or without its boundaries and to accept all funds and obligations resulting therefrom;
To borrow money and incur indebtedness and other obligations and to evidence thesame by certificates, notes, or debentures and to issue general obligation or revenue bonds, or any combinations thereof, in accordance with the provisions of this article;
To refund any bonded or other indebtedness or special obligations of the rail districtwithout an election in accordance with the provisions and limitations of this article;
To acquire, dispose of, and encumber real and personal property, including, withoutlimitation, rights and interests in property, including leases and easements, necessary to accomplish the purposes of the rail district;
To acquire, construct, equip, operate, rehabilitate, and maintain those rail facilities asauthorized in section 32-12-108 to accomplish the purposes of the rail district;
To operate such acquired facility itself or subcontract such operation to a private orcommon carrier;
To have the management, control, and supervision of all the business affairs andproperties of the rail district;
To hire and retain agents, employees, engineers, attorneys, and financial or otherconsultants and to provide for the powers, duties, and qualifications thereof;
To construct, establish, and maintain works and facilities in, across, or along anyeasement dedicated to a public use, or any public street, road, or highway, subject to the provisions of section 32-12-111, and in, upon, or over any vacant public lands, which public lands are now, or may become, the property of the state of Colorado, and to construct, establish, and maintain works and facilities in, across, or along any stream of water or watercourse; however, in the exercise of such powers, the rail district shall not displace or force the relocation of public utility facilities except by agreement between the district and the public utility;
To provide for the revenues needed to finance the rail district, subject to the limitations of this article; to fix and from time to time increase or decrease and to collect rates, fees, tolls, and other service charges pertaining to the services of the rail district, including without limitation minimum charges and charges for availability of the facilities or services relating thereto; to pledge such revenues for the payment of securities; and to enforce the collection of such revenues by civil action or by any other means authorized by law;
To adopt and amend bylaws setting forth rules of procedure for the conduct of itsaffairs and providing for the administrative organization and structure of the rail district, consistent with this article;
To adopt by resolution regulations not inconsistent with state law which are necessary, appropriate, or incidental to any authorized service provided by the rail district. Said regulations shall be compiled and kept by the secretary so as to be readily available for public inspection.
To appoint citizen advisory committees to assist and advise with respect to servicesand powers of the rail district;
To accept on behalf of the rail district gifts, grants, and conveyances upon such termsand conditions as the board may approve;
To have and exercise all rights and powers necessary to or implied from the powersgranted in this article.
Source: L. 82: Entire article added, p. 510, § 1, effective April 23.