I hope all of you voted by taking your ballots to one of these locations:
Or vote in person. In other words, don’t mail them. The election results are already being spun in the mass media so keep your blood pressure down at this point, smoke a cigar, or drink a big glass of unsweetened iced tea.
Today’s Laura and Rebecca Friday email with embedded links point out the really important things happening locally and in Colorado. No matter how the elections turn out - and they are important - this is what we MUST know that will impact us locally in Colorado Springs and our state.
Jay
Giant State Budget Proposal Announced, City Auditorium Renovation Plans, New Fire Station Opens, and More!
Here are some of the stories we are following this week. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for up-to-the-minute news.
Tuesday, November 8 is Election Day. If you still need this, here is a roundup of 2022 ballot guides from around the state.
Early voting ballot count is currently falling short of 2018. Have you cast your ballot yet?
One cable TV provider was treated very differently by Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser when he was probing cable TV providers for wrongdoing. Can you guess why they were treated differently? If you guess, “campaign donations” you would be correct.
If you need help paying your heating bills this winter, the LEAP program, for low-income households, has started accepting applications.
The Colorado Springs City Auditorium is going to be renovated and expanded. The Colorado Springs Community Cultural Commission, a non-profit, will be using a combination of private donations and, of course, gobs of your tax money, to do this. And yes, to those who have been paying attention, COVID relief funds will fund part of this effort, that has zero to do with COVID relief.
Colorado Springs has just opened the 23rd fire station in the city. This station, aptly named Fire Station 23, will be located on Printers Parkway just east of downtown.
Governor Jared Polis has just introduced his $42.7 billion budget proposal for the next fiscal year. This budget is, of course, a 7% increase from the last fiscal year. Your budget decreases. Government budgets only increase.
Gubernatorial hopeful Heidi Ganahl has some thoughts on this gigantic budget, and the priorities outlined in it.
One of the two electric scooter providers in Colorado Springs has pulled out of the business after one year of low ridership.
Colorado Springs Utilities has decided to put an electric substation in an established neighborhood near Austin Bluffs and Union. Neighbors would obviously be opposed to this, so CSU simply announced it was happening, and too bad for you if you don’t want to live near it.
Colorado Springs City Councilwoman Stephannie Fortune has been diagnosed with leukemia. We wish her the best in her recovery.
Colorado’s ballot contains a big helping of class envy. Envy a huge motivator for some, and it is not the proper role of government to harness envy into political power. But here we are. In the end, everyone pays.
On that note, Proposition 121 would reduce the state income tax rate from 4.55% to 4.4%, benefitting everyone who has an income, regardless of any class envy.
Colorado Springs traffic engineers are looking for ways to reduce crashes at certain intersections within the city. Some of these intersections already have red-light cameras, so we guess that hasn’t worked.
Infill is coming for you if you live in Black Forest. A proposed development plan would increase housing density tenfold, and build a hotel. So much for the peace and quiet of a home in Black Forest.
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