Stripper-Turned-Mayor Gets Booted

Mayor Koleen Brooks said she wasn't disappointed about being ousted after a contentious year in which she has been accused of everything from flashing her breasts at a bar to ordering a hit on a police officer.

"It probably just saved me 10 years on my life," she said after a landslide recall vote Tuesday.

Brooks, a former stripper accused of mishandling her job, was removed from office by a vote of 339 to 176 on Tuesday, or 66 percent to 34 percent. She said she accepted the results but will ask for a recount to ensure they were accurate.

She also said she might run for mayor or another town office again next year.

Lynn Granger, elected to finish the year remaining in Brooks' two-year term, said she hopes her tenure will be a quiet one.

"I think boring after the last year maybe isn't a bad thing," she said.

Brooks, 37, was elected mayor of this old mining town 45 miles west of Denver last April. Zoning changes are the official reason for the recall, but people are also angry about Brooks' actions.

She has been investigated for allegedly ordering a hit on a police officer and faces criminal charges for fabricating a story about being attacked. No charges were filed in connection with the alleged officer plot.

Brooks also was accused of baring her breasts in a bar last October, a charge she denies.

Four members of the town Board of Selectmen survived recall votes Tuesday after being criticized for approving new zoning regulations without a public referendum.

Town Clerk Phyllis Mehrer said the campaign was intense. "Frankly, it's gotten ugly," she said.

Brooks has said her opponents are resisting change. As mayor, she has supported increasing the tax base by encouraging new business and building a skate park for children and a footpath across a town creek.

"I've got my year in, and if they think they're going to go back to the old ways, they're wrong," she said. "There are more people like me who are going to speak up."

The zoning regulations, which voters upheld Tuesday by a 287-220 vote, have divided residents. Some believe the new regulations would tarnish the town's Victorian architectural feel by allowing contractors to build newer structures. Others hope the new regulations will draw people to the town.

Mehrer said 61 percent of Georgetown's registered voters cast ballots.