Residents of Palmer Lake will decide the fate of a proposed Buc-ee’s travel center after the town’s Board of Trustees voted 4-3 Thursday night to postpone a zoning hearing over the proposed annexation.

The vote came during a contentious special meeting of the trustees.

What’s next? Residents of the small town on the north edge of El Paso County will eventually vote on the annexation.

Meanwhile, the trustees’ meeting will be continued Feb. 5.

Thursday night’s continuance led the board to adjourn before anyone in attendance had an opportunity to speak during public comment. Trustee Amy Hutson told the crowd she was voting to adjourn because she didn’t “want to be here all night.”

Around 100 people had crowded into the hall with over a dozen watching on a TV outside because there was not room as the tense meeting began. Numerous individuals interrupted trustees and to shout at the town attorney and board members who voted for the continuance.

The banging of Mayor Dennis Stern’s gavel was drowned out by shouts from the crowd at various times.

Stern ordered the police chief to tell one individual to sit down and stop shouting or else she would be removed. No one was removed or cited by police for any actions during the meeting.

“If you allow people to scream and shout, you won’t have any order,” Stern told The Gazette.

Stern also said he believes the majority of people in attendance were not from Palmer Lake but from surrounding areas like Monument.

The decision comes after Palmer Lake residents voted to adopt an ordinance requiring any increases in size of the town to be decided as an automatic ballot question. That measure goes into effect on Oct. 25.

A letter from a law firm representing the company instructed the town clerk to postpone the hearing on Thursday until after an election is held, according to board documents. Town staff recommended approving a request for an annexation election and to continue the public hearing at a later date.

Buc-ee’s consultant Mark Waller told The Gazette the tone of the meeting was “terrible” and made him “embarrassed to be a member of this community.” He was accompanied by a police officer on his way out.

The two trustees who won a recall election, Moseley and Beth Harris, along with Trustee Atis Jurka, voted against both measures.

“Obviously the votes, in all cases, did not go the way I would have preferred,” Harris told The Gazette. “At the same time, ultimately the will of the people will prevail and they will have the opportunity to make that happen for themselves.”

Gazette news partner KOAA contributed to this story.