COLORADO SPRINGS — Dozens of people gathered Wednesday night to hear a panel discussion about development in Colorado Springs and ways the city can grow responsibly.
The City of Colorado Springs hosted the event with Colorado Springs Utilities at the Hybl Sports Medicine and Performance Center.
Panelists included Common Sense Institute Executive Director Kelly Caulfield, state demographer Nancy Gedeon, Colorado Water Conservation Board Section Chief Russ Sands, economic consulting firm Vice President Julie Herlands, and Founder of TDG Architecture Mark Tremmel.
The experts discussed future population trends in Colorado Springs and sustainable ways to annex land into a city. Caufield said Common Sense Institute data shows the city needs to add 32,000 to 43,000 more housing units by 2028 to keep up with population growth. Tremmel said ways to get there could include reimagining the typical neighborhood design to include more walkable communities and better public transportation.
When asked about how to increase affordable housing across the city, panelists offered solutions like creating more higher-density housing and pushing for better laws to encourage condominium construction.
The discussion also aimed to educate residents about the city's ongoing effort to update the current annexation plan, called AnnexCOS. The city's planning department said the current plan was approved in 2006. The annexation plan lays the policies and framework for how the city can grow. Katie Carleo, the assistant planning director, said the city hopes to have the new annexation plan approved by the middle of next year.
Kerri Waite, a Colorado Springs resident, attended the panel discussion. She lives on the west side of the city and has concerns about leaders balancing quality of life with new development.
"I understand that growth is economically necessary and good, but unless there's a vision, mission, purpose, and it's followed, then, you know, whoever has the most money or whatever the need might be perceived to be economically at the moment, can just sort of come and permanently change things and ruin the natural beauty and just the quality of life," she said.
Waite said she hopes city leaders keep residents' interests top of mind as they move forward with the annexation plan.
Guidance for AnnexCOS is laid out in PlanCOS. Some of the goals for the new annexation plan include an emphasis on redevelopment within city limits, a focus on vacant lands within the city with access to utilities, a focus on water provision for new annexations, and to annex only if it's fiscally beneficial. The city said it will host future public engagement opportunities to specifically address AnnexCOS in the coming months.
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