AltWeeklies Wire
Residents Bemoan the Heat at Colorado Springs Homeless Centernew
Residents of the R.J. Montgomery New Hope Center say the center's conditions are unsanitary and unsafe, while the director swears it's cool and clean.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
07-16-2009 |
Housing & Development
Despite Hopes, Incoming Soldiers Won't Bolster Colorado Springs' Housing Marketnew
Take close to 6,000 soldiers -- many with families -- and make them move to Colorado Springs. Add a federal program meant to help troops with reassigned units sell their homes, and sprinkle in some hope that the local housing market has bottomed out. You have the makings for a healthy local housing boom, save for one crucial thing: Many soldiers are in no position to buy.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
07-14-2009 |
Housing & Development
Numbers Suggest New Vets Court in Colorado Will Be Busynew

No one knows how many veterans will find space in the specialized court -- which will try to identify current and former soldiers whose criminal activity is tied to combat experiences -- when it starts up Aug. 1 in Colorado Springs. But advocates say the aim is to find an alternative to stuffing vets behind bars.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
07-14-2009 |
Crime & Justice
To Proponents of Natural 'Death Care,' Colorado Springs Feels Like Fertile Groundnew
A Boulder nonprofit aims to educate and empower families to care for their own dead in less conventional ways that are more meaningful to them, more affordable and more environmentally conscious.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Jill Thomas |
06-09-2009 |
Children & Families
Colorado Springs Assembles Emergency Plan to Save Olympic Committee Projectnew
Until funds were produced to renovate the Olympic Training Center, the USOC wouldn't sign a lease for its new Colorado Springs office building. And until the USOC was in, the city wouldn't go millions into debt. This charade couldn't go on forever. And the city has decided to end it.
Colorado Springs Independent |
J. Adrian Stanley |
04-07-2009 |
Economy
Workload Is Getting Worse for Colorado Springs Copsnew
After years of slow growth, Colorado Springs' police department is staring down a budget cut. The chief says police, already struggling to keep up, are cutting corners, skipping investigation of lesser crimes, and using volunteers to do real police work.
Colorado Springs Independent |
J. Adrian Stanley |
02-17-2009 |
Crime & Justice
Fort Carson's Top Commander Talks About Mental-Health Care, Classrooms and Morenew
Maj. Gen. Mark Graham has led a Colorado Army installation through some difficult times since 2007.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
02-17-2009 |
War
Budget Cuts Could Spell Doom for Colorado Springs Community Centersnew
The department known as Parks and Rec covers much of the fabric of life in Colorado Springs. People agree that the programs and facilities are popular and well-used. Yet the city's recreation services manager say the programs could vanish and the facilities could close.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Deb Acord and Ralph Routon |
01-27-2009 |
Economy
Drunk Tank: Colorado Springs Loses Its Detox Facilitynew
Emergency rooms will soon be the only safe place for chronic substance abusers to crash in Colorado Springs. What's that say about the rest of us?
Colorado Springs Independent |
Matthew Schniper |
01-27-2009 |
Drugs
$35 for Your Thoughts on the Economynew
What justifies a national news story saying the psychic business is booming in these uncertain times?
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
12-11-2008 |
Economy
Thanks to No Child Left Behind, Military Recruiters Swoop into Schoolsnew
NCLB forces high schools that receive federal funding to provide upperclassmen's contact information to the Armed Forces -- unless a parent specifically has opted out. The law also requires that military recruiters be given the same access to public schools afforded to college recruiters and potential employers. In response, some school districts limited the access of all recruiters to high schools, but others rolled out the camouflage carpet.
Colorado Springs Independent |
J. Adrian Stanley |
09-23-2008 |
War
Rev. Richard Cizik: Thou Shalt Go Greennew
Religion and social issues aside, Cizik, 57, has become well-known the past few years for pushing a theme not usually associated with the evangelical movement: taking care of the Earth.
Colorado Springs Independent |
John Weiss |
09-16-2008 |
Religion
Transportation Costs Force Universities and Students to Wise Upnew
Colorado's higher education outlets are shifting to accommodate suffering students via online courses. The University of Colorado at Boulder alone reported a 20 percent jump in online and distance-learning enrollment from last summer to this summer.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Mandy Moench |
08-19-2008 |
Education
Floyd Gessner, the 5 Million Mile Mannew

At 76 and with more than 40 years at the same company, Floyd has no plans to retire. He speculates that he's driven between 4 and 5 million miles. To put that in perspective: Earth's circumference at the equator is 24,902 miles. Floyd has effectively driven around the world at least 180 times.
Colorado Springs Independent |
Matthew Schniper |
08-01-2008 |
Economy
Pasties in Public? Not in Colorado Springsnew

Turns out the city's public indecency ordinance prohibits exposure of the "genitals or buttocks of either sex or the breast or breasts of a female." Lt. David Whitlock, a police department spokesman, says officers twice asked the women to either put on shirts or leave the park. "That is a proper interpretation [of the law]," he says. "The only statutory defense is breast-feeding."
Colorado Springs Independent |
Anthony Lane |
08-01-2008 |
Civil Liberties