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Governor Polis to announce distribution of money from American Rescue Act
On Monday, Governor Jared Polis, and members of Colorado’s legislature, and members of Colorado’s federal delegation will discuss the state’s plans to distribute federal funds made available to Colorado as part of the American Rescue Act.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury released the allocations and spending guidelines for the $5.7 billion that will soon be headed to Colorado and its local governments as part of the American Rescue Plan.
President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion stimulus package back in March, which includes $350 billion for state and local governments across the country they will be able to use in several ways to come out of the pandemic.
Colorado and its local governments will get $5.7 billion in total from the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds: $3.8 billion for the state; $1.1 billion for counties; $551 million for metropolitan cities and $265 million for local governments with 50,000 or fewer people.
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Wildfire evacuation concerns a key reason Mountain Shadows neighbors protest development proposal
Residents in Mountain Shadows are again taking action against a controversial redevelopment project. A proposed zoning change would allow developers to add over 400 apartments to the site currently home to a massive office building at 2424 Garden of the Gods Road.
Neighbors in Mountain Shadows aren’t mincing words. “They’re on a free for all with all these developers,” Mountain Shadows resident Roxanne Dunn said. “We’re just trying to get recognition that we’ve had enough.”
As a form of protest, some neighbors organized an event to remind people of the impact to the community with the 2012 Waldo Canyon Fire, specifically problems with the need to immediately evacuate homes.
"When traffic got stalled, when cars were getting choked out on the smoke and ash, they feared for their lives. Because they were just sitting there as the fire was moving around," said Mountain Shadows Neighborhood Association President Bill Wysong.
On Tuesday, they’ll make their voices heard in front of city council as the project’s developers present their plans. "It’s not that we don’t want to see it developed,” Wysong said. “It is zoned office and light industrial.”
They just don’t want to relive the darkest days of their lives.
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Get your latest First Alert 5 Weather forecast
We've been craving a week of summer-like weather across southern Colorado, and this looks like the week we've been waiting for!
Sunny skies and warm afternoon temperatures are expected to be widespread today across the region with a cooling breeze through the afternoon. Highs will warm into the 70s and 80s this afternoon with a few thunderstorms out east along the Kansas border.
We could see a few isolated storms east of El Paso County overnight but severe weather isn't expected.
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US Air Force Academy graduation preparations
Graduation for the US Air Force Academy Class of 2021 takes place on Wednesday afternoon. Ahead of that event, the US Air Force Thunderbirds are coming to town.
The aerial demonstration team will arrive in Colorado Springs on Monday around 11:30 a.m. for a site survey.
We'll also witness a full practice for their graduation demonstration on Tuesday from 10:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
The graduation event will take place Wednesday morning with the Thunderbirds flyover at the conclusion of the ceremony around 1:00 p.m.
You are not allowed to stop along the side of any roads to watch the team practice or perform a flyover.
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Largest seat belt enforcement period begins Monday
The Click It or Ticket campaign begins today and will run through Sunday, June 6. The campaign comes in advance of the “100 deadly days of summer,” which historically marks an increase in traffic fatalities between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Statewide, Colorado’s seat belt use is 86%, which is 4% lower than the national average of 90%. To date in 2021, there have been 193 deaths on Colorado roadways, a 12% increase compared to this time last year.
During the November 2020 Click It or Ticket enforcement period, 1,352 unrestrained drivers and passengers were issued citations across Colorado.
COLORADO’S SEAT BELT LAWS
- Adults — Colorado has a secondary enforcement law for adult drivers and front-seat passengers. Drivers can be ticketed for violating the seat belt law if they are stopped for another traffic violation.
- Teens — Colorado’s Graduated Drivers Licensing (GDL) law requires all drivers under 18 and their passengers, regardless of their age, to wear seat belts. This is a primary enforcement, meaning teens can be pulled over simply for not wearing a seat belt or having passengers without seat belts.
- Children — Colorado's Child Passenger Safety law is a primary enforcement, meaning the driver can be stopped and ticketed if an officer sees an unrestrained or improperly restrained child under age 16 in the vehicle.
- Fines for not buckling up in Colorado start at $65, and parents or caregivers caught with an improperly restrained child can receive a minimum fine of $82.
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