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Southeast Colorado Residents Deliver 31,000+ Signatures Opposing Karman Line Annexation
Description: The Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District Released the Following Press Release Regarding the Protest of the Colorado Springs Karman Line Annexation...
Southeast Colorado Residents Deliver 31,000+ Signatures Opposing Karman Line Annexation to City Clerk
(Colorado Springs, CO, Feb. 26) – Today, more than 31,000+ petition signatures of citizens opposing the Karman Line annexation will be delivered to the City Clerk’s office at Colorado Springs City Administration Building, sending a message to the City of Colorado Springs and its City Council that the flagpole annexation is unwanted by the community. Details below:
The Delivery of petition signatures opposing Karman Line annexation to Colorado Springs City Clerk’s office on Wed., Feb. 26 at 2:30 p.m. At the Colorado Springs Administration Building, 30 South Nevada, COS, 80903
The Karman Line flagpole annexation, approved by Colorado Springs City Council on Jan. 28, is a more than 1,900-acre housing and mixed-use development located three and a half miles east of Colorado Springs city limits.
On Feb. 5, concerned residents from the Pikes Peak Region launched a historic effort to rescind the decision, charged with collecting more than 18,000 signatures from Colorado Springs residents to move forward with a referendum.
In less than three weeks, the group gathered 31,344 signatures, far exceeding the required number of 18,646 and demonstrating the profound unpopularity of the project. Dawn Shelstad, a community organizer, said, “This was a remarkably easy signature to get. Virtually every single person we talked to opposes the Karman Line annexation.”
If 18,646 signatures of the 31,344 are verified, “it shall be the duty of the Council to reconsider” the annexation application again, now with a clear, citywide message of opposition (City Charter 12-60(a)(3)).
If the City Council votes to approve the annexation again, a special election will be held this summer, and the voters will have the final say on whether the Karman Line annexation moves forward.
Residents oppose the project for the following reasons:
- Strain on city services like utilities, including an additional $89.9M to $134.9M utilities expense (source: cost estimation Colorado Springs Utilities presented to City Council on Jan. 14)
- Public safety response times
- Lack of water; impact on Lower Arkansas Valley farmers and ranchers
“For the last three months, neighbors adjacent to the Karman Line property, as well as many citizens of Colorado Springs, have been asking the City of Colorado Springs and City Council to listen to our concerns and vote against the annexation proposal. To date, that has fallen on deaf ears,” states Ann Rush, community organizer. “We are hopeful, with 31,344 signatures in hand, the City Council will listen to the community and vote against this annexation. If they continue to ignore citizens’ wishes, the proposal will be voted upon this summer, with a significant cost to taxpayers.”
The last time a referendum effort was organized was in 1988.
“It is reassuring to see that so many Colorado Springs citizens recognize the significant strain on resources that these new annexations, like Karmen Line, will have on their city and that they are willing to challenge City Council’s decision to grow Colorado Springs in this unsustainable way.” states Jack Goble, General Manager, Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District.
“We are supportive of this effort and are hopeful that Colorado Springs voters understand that ttheir city has already committed over 11 billion gallons of water per year that they do not have to fully build out Colorado Springs as it sits today, not including the additional water needed for any new annexations. Acquiring this large amount of new water supply may not be possible and most of it will come from the permanent dry-up of Lower Arkansas Valley farmland. We want to thrive alongside our northern neighbors and not be sacrificed for their growth.”
