A Castle Rock Town Council meeting Tuesday became consumed by allegations that a councilmember attempted to trade a town policy decision for the withdrawal of a recall effort against him.

The allegations against Councilmember Mark Davis surfaced during public comment and prompted an unsuccessful effort by some of the council to censure him for what they described as “unethical” conduct.

The controversy is tied to a recall effort against Davis launched Aug. 11 by Castle Rock resident and business owner David Miles, who also serves on the town’s Design Review Board or DRB.

Miles told The Denver Gazette the recall was initially driven by disagreements over Davis’ positions on growth and development in downtown Castle Rock and his efforts to eliminate the advisory board.

The board was created in 2010 to review downtown development proposals. Its membership includes representatives from the Planning Commission, Historic Preservation Board, Downtown Development Authority and downtown property owners.

According to town documents, amendments to the municipal code over the years have shifted some of the board’s responsibilities to administrative review and the Town Council. For qualifying applications involving less than 10,000 square feet of new development, the DRB serves as the final decision-making authority, subject to appeal.

Under the Castle Rock Town Charter, voters may seek the recall of a councilmember by gathering signatures equal to at least 25% of the votes cast in the most recent election for that office.

During the council’s public comment period Tuesday, Miles accused Davis of attempting to trade public policy decisions for political concessions.

Miles distributed copies of text messages to councilmembers and alleged Davis contacted both him and the father of another recall organizer after learning of the recall effort.

According to messages reviewed by The Denver Gazette and described by Miles during public comment, Davis sent Miles a text on Aug. 16 stating, “I’ll drop getting rid of the DRB if you pull the recall. Let me know by Monday morning 8 a.m.”

Miles characterized the message as an attempt to exchange an official policy position for the withdrawal of a lawful political action.

“That is quid pro quo,” Miles told The Denver Gazette. “I’ll do this for you, if you do this for me.”

Davis did not respond to attempts to contact him via phone and email on Thursday. Davis did not speak directly to the allegations during the council meeting, in which members voted on the censure proposal.

Miles also alleged Davis contacted the father of another recall participant and discussed development-related matters before asking whether the recall effort could be withdrawn.

One text message reviewed by The Denver Gazette appears to show Davis stating, “I don’t mind playing hardball … It goes with the job.”

Another appears to show Davis asking the individual’s father, “Do you want to talk to your son … and ask him if he wants to pull back that recall.”

At the public comment period, Miles called for Davis’ resignation and an independent investigation into his conduct.

“To me, this is simple,” Miles told councilmembers. “Public decisions should never be offered in exchange for stopping lawful political activity.”

The allegations come amid a broader debate over the future of the Design Review Board.

In a previous discussion, Davis defended his support for dissolving the DRB. He said his intention is not to attack board members but to improve efficiency for a board that had met only four times in the previous 12 months, according to county documents.

“I’m just trying to bring forward efficiency and accountability,” Davis said.

Councilmember Kevin Bracken disagreed with the dissolution of the DRB, noting the issue had been discussed for years.

“Is this an effort to take the power back from the boards and commissions and let councilmembers decide how they want it to look, what they want to do,” Bracken said. “It keeps coming up but I haven’t heard any substance behind the why.”

Mayor Jason Gray also defended the DRB as an opportunity for citizens and business owners who have a vested interest in downtown to have a say in its development.

“I think what is disappointing is, sometimes, as a council, we don’t take seriously the people who really put in the effort and the money into downtown,” Gray said.

Following public comment, Councilmember Ryan Hollingshead made a motion to censure Davis, a symbolic expression of condemnation of a public official’s conduct.

Hollingshead said Davis’ actions violated the council’s code of conduct and reflected poorly on the entire governing body.

“I feel like Councilmember Davis has owned his actions already and apologized for it in some circles, and I think it’s clear that this is what happened,” Hollingshead said. “We’re going to move forward after this, but I do think there needs to be some action taken.”

Town code prohibits councilmembers from soliciting any gift, reward, compensation or gratuity for the primary purpose of rewarding the member for an official action they have taken or may take.

Councilmember Kevin Bracken seconded the motion.

“It’s a very real conversation via text message, and it’s super concerning,” Bracken said. “This is a reflection on all of council.”

Others urged caution.

Councilmember Max Brooks argued the board should consult with the town attorney before imposing disciplinary action.

“I think not having a discussion and rushing to judgment is wholly inappropriate and dangerous,” Brooks said. “We’ve got something in this country called due process and I would want that for everybody up here.”

Councilmember Tim Dietz agreed that more review is needed before taking formal action.

Tensions escalated between Dietz and Bracken when Dietz referenced previous disputes involving text messages, saying, “You’re no peach either when it comes to texting and accusing people of things. Do you want me to let the public know?”

That prompted Gray, the mayor, to intervene.

“Guys, guys, guys, absolutely stop,” Gray said.

Gray ultimately supported censure, arguing immediate action was warranted.

“I think two more weeks is too long for a censure,” Gray said. “I think this is going to be tried in public. It’s going to be tried on social media and eventually maybe even tried in a court of law.”

The initial censure vote failed, with Hollingshead, Bracken and Gray voting in favor, while Davis, Brooks, Dietz and Mayor Pro Tem Laura Cavey voted against.

After discussion about whether Davis should participate in a vote involving his own conduct, the council revisited the matter. Davis recused himself, but a subsequent vote produced the same result, leaving the motion short of a majority.

Miles told The Denver Gazette that organizers are now refiling the recall effort with allegations focused specifically on what they characterize as misuse of public office and attempted political bargaining, rather than solely on policy disagreements over growth and development.

If successful, the recall would trigger a special election in which Davis would be eligible to run.