Health hazard and disgrace

Have you noticed the crumbling, dilapidated gas station at the corner of Platte and Nevada? Do you know that it is embedded with the health hazard asbestos? Have you noticed General Palmer’s gaze facing away from this hazard and disgrace to our city? When I questioned City Council members about when the gas station will be removed, the response was that the YMCA owns the property and does not want to pay the $250 thousand needed to clean up the asbestos health hazard on the site. What? Isn’t the Y supposed to be one of our leading institutions dedicated to promoting our best health but openly refuses to clean up cancer causing asbestos on its property? What are the county and city health departments doing about a serious violation of our ordinances? What about serious and dangerous violation of our zoning laws?

Is our Mayor aware of this health hazard and disgrace to our city? Are not Mayor Yemi Mobolade and the departments under him responsible for taking action against these violations?

If you had such a violation of health and zoning laws on your property you would be fined and given demand orders for an immediate removal. So why are the mayor, our city attorneys and health and zoning departments allowing the Y to jeopardize us with such a health hazard and allowing a visual disgrace at our most prominent city site? The Y doesn’t want to pay for the cleanup of its property. Shame on the Y. Shame on our mayor and city and county departments for failing to protect us.

James Ciletti

Colorado Springs

Penalty for solar producers

I purchased my rooftop solar system in February of 2022 at which time I selected the rollover option as part of my net metering agreement with Colorado Springs Utilities. That means any surplus I produce by the end of the year (1,000 kWh/year average) is rolled over into the next year to balance out the months when I don’t produce more than I use. I am not paid for any surplus I generate and have 3,500 kWh currently banked in my account. My system produces a surplus 8 months of the year (March-October).

The letter I received from CSU regarding the shift over to peak demand billing was insulting to those of us with rooftop solar systems implying we were leeches on the system during the peak demand period of 5pm-9pm because we weren’t producing solar electricity at that time. There was no recognition of the solar energy being produced by the 9,000 rooftop solar producers during the rest of the day when businesses were open and air conditioning systems were operational. Instead, we were informed we would be charged $50 per month or $600 per year for our subsidized use of the energy we were using during the peak demand period.

In a letter to the editor, Tristan Gearhart stated that the maximum increase/decrease during the peak demand period for other electrical users would be plus or minus $4 per month. In a more detailed news article Gearhart recognized the importance of solar driving down prices during the sunniest middle part of the day. If so, then why are they proposing a $50 per month fee for solar producers? Solar makes sense. This penalty for solar producers does not!

Dave Lovell

Colorado Dprings

Every right to speak out

A couple of local broadcasters today were critical of President Donald Trump’s focusing on the ubiquitous falsehoods perpetrated by legacy media. “Doesn’t he have more important things to do? Can’t we move on from the Charlie Kirk shooting?” No.

American culture (“Woke culture,”) has spawned a coarseness that has evolved from screaming and shouting now to death. The President, as the leader of the (so-called) free world, has called out the uglier aspects of the extreme left. But who does he think he is, trampling on our Free Speech?

Try, a man who has had multiple ridiculous, groundless lawsuits, two attempts on his life and non-democratic acts to even remove him from ballots in the Presidential race. Now, he sees his “son” killed by these monsters. Regardless of what you may think of President Trump, the man and the policies, it’s safe to say he has every right to speak out now.

There is an old-fashioned phrase that comes to mind this week as Jimmy Kimmel joins the fray by besmirching a good man’s assassination: “Freedom is not license.” So, no, we cannot “Just move on.”

The rot in our culture must be recognized and dealt with. Accommodating violence cannot stand.

Karen Cacy

Colorado Springs

Speech can get you in trouble

Two letters in today’s Gazette lamented Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension for falsely declaring that Kirk’s accused killer was MAGA. The writers declared that the 1st Amendment protected his speech. (Right to speak our minds, Say what you think).

As a former American government instructor at a university you’d recognize, I’m writing to prove that they were both wrong on the Constitution’s 1st Amendment. Here’s why:

The federal constitution both specifies government authority and, relevantly, restricts authority. The 1st Amendment restricts government (“Congress shall make no law …”) so as to prevent elected and unelected officials from punishing residents for their speech. It has no authority over private entities, such as ABC News. Please understand clearly – the 1st Amendment does not and cannot restrict what a company does about an employee’s speech.

If you embarrass your company, they can fire you. If you declare that the company’s founder is a fink, they can fire you. If the boss really likes the mayor and you publish a letter saying the mayor is a moron, your boss can fire you.

The 1st Amendment is great and nearly unique to the US. But don’t complain when speech gets you in trouble with the boss.

Ed Herlik

Colorado Springs