Tag: bob loevy
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Remembering ‘open space’ hero Bill Ruskin
Bill Ruskin died in early August at the age of 87 surrounded by loving family. His death brought back many memories of checking out potential “open space” for Colorado Springs with Bill back in the mid-1970s. “Open space” was an exciting new concept at that time. Existing parks were regarded as being for heavy human…
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COMMENTARY: Constitution Avenue extension proposed again | Bob Loevy
It’s back! Once again, a city agency is proposing to extend four-lanes-wide Constitution Avenue from Paseo Road along the old Rock Island railroad tracks through Monument Valley Park and connect it to Interstate 25 at the West Fontanero Street interchange. This is a real pain for the quiet residential neighborhoods that border the old Rock Island railroad grade. One of them is…
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State rules, not city’s, will protect Springs neighborhoods next to big day care centers
Here is an update on recent plans by the city of Colorado Springs to allow “large” day care centers in both two-family and single-family zones. The city Planning Department is considering recommending that large day care centers with 16 or more children (no upper limit) be allowed as a “permitted use” in both two-family and single-family residential zones. A “permitted” use means that the large day care center can be located in the two-family or single-family zone without any public action by either the Planning…
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Passenger train service from Denver to Fort Collins? | Cronin and Loevy
A “Joint Service” plan is being developed that would bring passenger rail service from Denver north to Fort Collins by 2029. The passenger trains would be paid for with existing funds from the Denver Regional Transportation District (RTD) and other Colorado agencies that are working to institute passenger train service in Colorado. No voter-approved tax…
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Home rule has protected Colorado cities for over 125 years | Cronin and Loevy
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Colorado is currently gripped by a political struggle between the governor plus the legislature in Denver and populous home-rule city governments, mainly on the Front Range, such as Colorado Springs. In the past few years, the legislature has been passing bills that applied to city government policies, which for many years had been the sole province of mayors and city councils. These new state laws have mainly…
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Mail-in ballots: Why the controversy | Cronin and Loevy
Most Coloradans enjoy the right to vote by mail at election time. Most Americans favor this process. But President Donald Trump is trying to federalize (nationalize) this practice and shift the supervision of voting from county clerks to the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Postal Service. He issued an executive order to this…
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Bill would allow large apartment projects in single-family neighborhoods | Cronin and Loevy
There is an old joke that goes something like this. “When the state legislature is in session, no person and their property are safe.” That is not a joke in the older, more traditional neighborhoods that surround the downtown regions of Colorado’s major cities. For the past two years, the annual sessions of the Colorado legislature have produced a steady stream of bills that attempt to take control of city planning and zoning functions away from city governments and put…
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Redistricting scheme would give Colorado Democrats seven House members, split El Paso County | Bob Loevy
A proposed redistricting plan, which could give Colorado seven Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives and only one Republican, would split El Paso County into two parts and thereby weaken the county’s influence in Congress. El Paso County, which contains all of Colorado Springs, currently is mainly in the 5th Congressional District. The…
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Additional thoughts on State of the Union address/rally | Cronin and Loevy
The U.S. Constitution’s Article II states that “He (the president) shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient … “ On Jan. 8, 1790, our first president, George Washington, appeared at Federal Hall…
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What Gallup polls teach us about presidents | Cronin and Loevy
The Gallup organization, founded by George Gallup, announced on Feb. 11 they will no longer conduct their well-known polls that rate whether Americans approve or disapprove of the way presidents are handling their job. Gallup began these polls in the late 1930s, halting them only during World War II. The Gallup staff has said no…