Author: Billie Stanton Anleu
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Southwest downtown Colorado Springs plans unveiled for City Council
Plans to revive Colorado Springs’ southwest downtown will be presented to the City Council Monday, along with a proposal to swap city land for a parcel owned by subsidiaries of Nor’wood Development Group. Nor’wood is the master developer for the downtown quadrant, where the U.S. Olympic Museum is expected to break ground this spring. Plans…
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Colorado Springs Utilities board swaps leaders, gets update on wildfire danger
Colorado Springs Utilities Board leaders switched positions Wednesday, with members voting unanimously to make Tom Strand the chairman, then voting 5-4 to make Andy Pico vice chairman. The latter vote by the board, which consists of the full City Council, again showed that new Councilman David Geislinger’s vote will be crucial. He also cast the…
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Skorman, Gaebler take Colorado Springs City Council leadership roles
Only a few hours after being sworn in to the Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday, a new progressive majority made itself known, electing Richard Skorman council president and re-electing Jill Gaebler to be president pro tem. The 5-4 votes on each choice found Councilmen Merv Bennett, Andy Pico, Don Knight and Tom Strand suddenly…
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ON UNSOLID GROUND: Help for Colorado Springs landslide victims still on hold
Saturated earth in western Colorado Springs took days, weeks and months to form landslides that have ruined about 26 houses, and resolution of the homeowners’ woes, likewise, is moving at glacial speed. “I’m very frustrated because I’m making two mortgage payments, and I don’t see any activity,” said Linda Carroll, who abandoned her landslide-socked house…
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Concern about construction starting while lawsuit pending raised at Strawberry Hill meeting
At the second public hearing on crafting a master plan for Strawberry Hill, a city property conveyed to The Broadmoor in a land swap, Colorado Springs residents focused Thursday on two chief concerns. One question, unanswered since the March 8 public hearing, is whether ground will be broken on the 182-acre property before a lawsuit…
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Outgoing Colorado Springs council members bid a fond farewell
Nearly every official and key staff member of Colorado Springs government and Colorado Springs Utilities gathered Wednesday night to laud the public service provided by departing Councilwoman Helen Collins and Councilmen Keith King and Larry Bagley. Council President Merv Bennett led the storytelling, noting that Bagley – who headed the Marijuana Working Committee – “will…
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Trump’s budget takes aim at grants funding safety net programs in Colorado Springs
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to show Shawna Kemppainen now is a board member for the Continuum of Care. The White House aims to eliminate grants that Colorado Springs uses to help residents who struggle with homelessness, disabilities, domestic violence and other woes. Community Development Block Grants could be cut by 50 percent…
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Tourism bill fails, aviation museum won’t be piece of City for Champions projects
Colorado Springs’ fourth City for Champions project – the city’s proposed World War II aviation museum downtown – isn’t going to happen, Mayor John Suthers told the City Council during a luncheon meeting Tuesday. An essential piece of state legislation got shelved Thursday, killing hopes that Regional Tourism Act money could go to the downtown…
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Colorado Springs City Council bids three colleagues adieu
Grateful and wistful farewells were bid to one third of the Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday, as departing members Larry Bagley, Helen Collins and Keith King participated in their final council meeting. “I don’t see any greater commitment to public service than on the Colorado Springs City Council,” Mayor John Suthers said in thanking…
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El Paso assessment rate sinks as property values rise
There’s good news and good news for homeowners in Colorado Springs and the rest of El Paso County. Even as local housing values continue to climb, the state assessment rate is dropping for the first time since 2003, meaning lower property taxes in 2017 and 2018 for homeowners. The projected statewide residential assessment rate is…