Author: The Gazette Letters
-
LETTERS: Taxpayers should pay attention; Front Range Rail
Taxpayers should pay attention Academy District 20’s proposed FY2026-27 budget is not a scandal. But it is a warning sign about priorities. The district proposes more than $442 million in total spending while expenditures exceed revenues by roughly $12 million. At the same time, D20 now faces the costly reality of replacing a superintendent who…
-
LETTERS: How valuable is rooftop solar?; background checks
How valuable is rooftop solar? Last week, Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) unveiled its new net energy metering concepts under the banner “Net Metering Modernization.” “Modernization” in this framework begs an important question: What does a modern grid look like? The American energy system was designed in the 19th century to address the problem of transmitting…
-
LETTERS: The real issue is not salaries; give officials some grace
The real issue is not salaries As a former City Councilor and member of the Colorado Springs Utilities Board, I’m troubled by the outrage over the CSU CEO’s pay increase. I believe the outrage is feigned and politically motivated noise by the greenies who are unhappy with the successful conservative operational philosophy that keeps our…
-
LETTERS: Mixed messages leave community uncertain; lifelong learning process
Mixed messages leave community uncertain Reading at the Rock in Rockrimmon, Colorado Springs, will celebrate its first anniversary on May 30 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. COS Reads, a nonprofit organization, established the interim Reading at the Rock library after the Pikes Peak Library District closed the Rockrimmon Library and ended library services in…
-
LETTERS: A slap in the face; Colorado government
A slap in the face Voting unanimously to hand a fired utility executive a golden parachute is like your pipes bursting, flooding your basement, and you thanking the plumber by filling his pockets with gold bars on his way out. The Colorado Springs Utilities Board’s 9-0 vote to grant CEO Travas Deal a salary tracking…
-
LETTERS: From contract renewal to suspension; waste of rate-payer dollars
From contract renewal to suspension Recent commentary regarding Academy District 20 has tried to frame Superintendent Jinger Haberer’s removal as another ideological battle over books, parental rights, and student name-change policies. But the larger issue facing District 20 is much simpler, and far more important to taxpayers and families who support the district. The public…
-
LETTERS: National Day of Prayer; take back our schools
National Day of Prayer On Thursday, May 7, an estimated 2 million Christians in 33,000 groups across 50 states stood united for the 75th anniversary of the National Day of Prayer, which has been celebrated since 1952, when Democratic President Harry Truman first declared it. I led 100 at the Gateway Prayer Garden. Some non-attendees…
-
LETTERS: Nothing was free; Colorado’s gun laws
Nothing was truly free Good riddance to Colorado’s free summer bus fare program, better known as “Zero Fare for Better Air.” After four years and millions in taxpayer subsidies, the program failed to accomplish the two goals it was justified by: significantly reducing ground-level ozone and restoring transit ridership to pre-pandemic levels. At some point,…
-
LETTERS: Reasons for vandalism; a waste of time, money
Reasons for vandalism Regarding the Gazette column “Why abortion radicals resort to vandalism” (May 13): Paul Batura’s column gives many reasons for the vandalism by abortion radicals. Some of his premises are logical or supernatural. I can offer additional insight, both logical and supernatural. The reason for vandalism against pro-life entities is…
-
LETTERS: No place for Buc-ees; making an immeasurable mark
Not the place for Buc-ee’s Buc-ee’s is trying to build a travel center at County Line and I-25, near Monument and Palmer Lake. Imagine, if you will, the Renaissance Festival in Larkspur. No, not the festival itself. Imagine hopping on the freeway and not being able to drive to Denver on the weekends during the…