For some, the street is all they have

Re: The Final Vote? Colorado Springs Car Camping Ban — March 10, 2026.

The air was heavy in the council chambers. Sadness lingered even before the final vote was cast. I felt defeated, as if I had let down the neighbors and loved ones I advocate for. I wondered whether we had done enough, said enough, or clearly shown the real human impact of the decision being made that day.

Why did the original voting date suddenly change? What was the rush? It felt like cheating in a game of chess—moving pieces before everyone even realizes the rules have changed.

When the snow came on Sunday, I remembered my brother Danny wrapped in his blanket with his dog, Kalissee, in his car. I thought of everyone still out there tonight trying to find a warm place to rest and feel safe.

The car camping ban will not eliminate the behaviors that concern some people. Instead, it will create more disruption as individuals are displaced, pushed farther away, and placed in situations where they are more easily exploited.

Many people have no family or friends to ask for help. Some are fleeing unsafe family situations. For them, the street is all they have.

State parks have time limits and fees the indigent cannot afford. The mountains are unforgiving and far from resources. This will only deepen isolation, alienation and lead to more deaths. There’s no immediate medical response, cell service is unreliable, there is no access to lighting, restrooms, water, or food—nor reasonable accommodations for those with disabilities.

Seniors are fragile, many people face health concerns, others will not be able to get to work or school easily and children are extremely vulnerable.

Shelter is not a luxury; it is essential for a life with dignity. Living in a car for shelter is a basic human right of survival when no other options are available.

Why do people have to fight so hard for fundamental and basic human rights, when our very own Constitution guarantees that every person is allowed them.

Edie Wren

Fountain

Legislation without solutions

I disagree with David Leinweber’s op-ed regarding the camping ban. He cited several issues related to homelessness. He said it’s unsafe to sleep on the streets. Dozens of people who testified at the Council meetings already knew this. If sleeping on the streets is unsafe, why make it illegal for people to sleep in vehicles, which is a safer option?

Second, he said that more housing, programs, and funding aren’t solutions, and instead, poor people should take responsibility. The majority of the homeless are in temporary circumstances and do not cause problems.

Homelessness is rising due to a lack of affordable housing in our City, for which the Council has policy solutions that they are unwilling to approve, such as zoning changes to allow more affordable housing. More than half of our renters are cost-burdened and at risk of homelessness. We also lack enough transitional housing to help people. Dozens of service providers, faith leaders, and people with lived experience testified to the lack of services, yet Leinweber believes the homeless should accept services.

Worse, the Council moved the vote up by three months, even though community groups were working on a Safe Parking Program as an alternative. Why the rush? Why couldn’t the Council follow the original timeline to allow community services? During public comments at the meeting, it seemed Leinweber spent more time testifying than listening to the community. He said compassion without progress leaves people where they are. So does legislation without solutions.

Brenardo Garcìa Martì

Colorado Springs

Shifting utility usage

I just got a phone message advising the so-called Energy Wise variable electricity rates are kicking in next week. That means higher kilowatt-hour prices for the hours when people need electricity the most; workdays 5pm to 9pm. When we’re getting home from work, it’s getting dark, temperatures start falling, dinner must be made, kids work on their homework, prime-time TV and cable viewing, and on and on.

They make a logical-sounding case for why it’s necessary to nudge people into shifting their electricity use to times when there’s less demand for it. But that’s also nothing less than an admission of their failure to construct and maintain an infrastructure that keeps up with demand. Demand that should come as no surprise, after all. This isn’t the sort of “service” Americans are used to getting. Imagine going to McDonald’s and, because they’re understaffed or more than the usual customers appeared, they raise all the menu prices until people go away.

There are precedents for increasing the price of something when demand for it is highest. One that comes to mind is periodic news that, as hoards of Floridians drive out of state to escape an impending hurricane, the service stations increased the price of gasoline. Reasonable, right? Because it encouraged each customer to buy a bit less during the emergency; leaving some for the next carload.. But you’ll also recall that every time it happens, the news is filled with cries of “price gouging”.

H. Wayne Hall

Colorado Springs

Diverting TABOR funds

Regarding the diversion of funds from TABOR for K-12 education. I agree with Chuck Graham and Billie Nigro. We must not take money from TABOR. Kevin Vick is surely in favor of this. Why? Because he is part of the Colorado Education Association. The more money spent on education, the more money goes into his pocket. There is a sense of panic now that the Department of Education is going away and that states now have to fund their own schools. I find that the biggest problem is indeed the unions.

They barter for more money for teachers’ salaries, but that is not all. We, as taxpayers, are funding their retirement benefits. Those two, together, are their “real” salary. Unions make sure they get as much as they can. Why is it the majority of folks working in any other field have to put into their own 401K from their salaries? I have a friend who is a retired teacher, and she laughs every time she and hubby go on vacations overseas (at least 6/year), because the money comes from her retirement money from teaching.
Colorado needs to take a DOGE dive into unemployment insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, and others to find the money to support education.
I guess unions and teachers have a motto. Ifit’s free, It’s for me!

Bonnie Staton

Colorado Springs

Stealing TABOR refunds

So the Democrats are putting together another scheme to try to take TABOR refunds away from Colorado taxpayers with SB135. They claim the money would go to help fund K-12 education. They chose people to testify for the bill, crying and telling their sad stories about how teachers don’t make enough money and students are suffering. Well guess what?

There are workers all over Colorado who don’t make enough money and their families are suffering. Even a small TABOR refund helps Colorado families struggling to make ends meet. Tabor was voted in to control government growth which the liberals in Denver have been fighting ever since it was voted in. They seem to forget that they work for us – not the other way around.
Here’s a thought. Why not put a measure on the ballot that would add a line to the Colorado State tax return that would give the tax filer the choice to keep their Tabor refund or direct their refund to the State of Colorado. Give us – the citizens of Colorado a choice and let us decide whether we want to keep our Tabor refunds or not, instead of trying to steal it from us.

Sharon Ferguson

Woodland Park