Colorado Springs’ road improvement sales tax has been so successful that crews will begin work on projects for its second run before the first expires, city officials said.

Voters approved a second five-year term for the 2C tax last month with 65% of the vote. That term begins Dec. 31, 2020, at 5.7 cents on every $10 purchase, down from the original 6.2 cents.

Street repairs initially slated for 2C’s second term — dubbed 2C2 — will begin before the end of next year, City Councilman Don Knight said.

“We were estimating about $50 million a year, and it’s turning out that we’re going to average $56 million a year from the taxes,” Knight said. “So, we’ll actually get started on 2C2 projects with 2C1 money and we’ll be doing them in 2020.”

Knight and other members of the city’s 2C advisory committee met after the election to discuss the ongoing tax. During that meeting, staff unveiled a map and timeline of road improvement projects through 2025.

Main roads and arterials were the primary focus for the repairs when 2C passed in 2016, Public Works Director Travis Easton said.

“For the first five years, we were trying to get the (roads) most used by the most citizens, to really make sure we’re making their commutes better and things like that,” Easton said. “The best bang for our buck.”

About 8% of the approximately 1,000 lane miles repaired or repaved since 2016 were residential streets, Easton said. That will change soon.

About half of the anticipated 884 lane miles to be paved by 2025 will be residential streets, he said.

“We know we have a lot of residential roads (needing repairs). … We just want to recognize that need and try to address that,” he said.

Knight said many residents will likely be pleased to see their residential streets on the repair list for the next five years, but others might feel left out.

“When people see that their street hasn’t been touched since their houses were originally built and if they’re not on the 2C2 map, then the question is, “How do I get my street fixed then?’ ” Knight said. “Does that mean I have to wait until 2026 until I have a chance of someone even coming out to take a look at my street?”

All is not lost if a specific street isn’t on the repair list, Knight said. The city has other funding sources for road and infrastructure work.

Anyone with concerns can always reach out to council members or public works, Knight said.

“Travis and his folks will put it on a list, and they will go out and investigate and they will rank it with all the other complaints that they get on other streets,” Knight said.

A full list of road projects can be found at coloradosprings.gov/2c and email addresses for council members can be found at coloradosprings.gov/city-council.

Crews pave a Colorado Springs road in a project paid for by the 2C tax.

THE GAZETTE File