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January 21, 2015 VOLU M E 5 4 | I S S UE 3 | 7 5 ¢
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Drones land in the mountains By Kaitlyn Pratt
Contributing writer The popularity of small civilian drones, or Unmanned Aircraft Systems, has taken off like wildfire. The drones have become popular for hobbyists, who can use them to take scenic bird’s eye view photos and videos. They are also increasingly being used by fire departments and search and rescue teams. This new trend might just be starting to catch on in the quiet mountains of Teller County, where the pristine views and mountainous terrain create a unique challenge for drone flyers. Robert Schubert is a drone hobbyist who uses his DJI Phantom 2 to take photography and video of Colorado’s beautiful scenery. “Here in Colorado, there are endless resources for good videos,” he said. Right now he mainly takes nature shots out in the country, and hopes to get his horses used to the noise of the machine so that he can get some footage of them. He adds that there are many practical uses as well. “Ranchers can use them to keep track of livestock.” He also said that because of the
drone’s ability to cover a lot of distance in a short amount of time, they are ideal for finding a fence that’s down, or for checking out a lightning strike area to make sure there are no fires. Hobbyists and photographers aren’t the only ones who are making good use of this technology. Joshua Gilson, CEO at Multicopter Warehouse, said that he often sells drones to firefighters, search and rescue teams and even police crews who can use them to get a better view of crime scenes. Some of the drone models can have infrared and full spectrum cameras installed to help fire fighters and search and rescue teams locate hot spots. Mike Smith, President of Teller County Search and Rescue, said that the use of drones for search and rescue has been discussed. “We’ve talked to a couple of people about possibly using them,” he said. “The problem is they cost a lot, and we don’t always know where to deploy them.” The drones are also limited on flight time and the distances that they can reach, restricting their practicality for the job. Smith said that search and rescue has had been made offers to borrow a drone, and they will do demos this spring. “We just need to try it out.” He thinks that the best place to use them would be at Mueller State Park and the Crags, because they already know the general areas where people get lost. He adds
This drone takes flight in the shadow of Pikes Peak at Memorial Park in Woodland Park last week. Photo by Kaitlyn Pratt
that while search and rescue is not using them to find people just yet, he has personally used one to search for a lost dog. While the mountains provide an ideal location for drone footage, they also provide their fair share of new challenges as well. The altitude as it turns out does make a difference. According to Gilson, the main impact the altitude has is on efficiency. They can still fly the same distance and height, they just can’t fly as long. He says that a drone that gets about 20 minutes
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WP Council honors WPPD Deputy Chief Contributing writer
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have safety mechanisms in place, and classes can be taken, Gilson said. “People are always afraid of the unknown and always will be,” Gilson added. Schubert states that it is also a matter of respect. “You want to respect other’s privacy, so you shouldn’t view other’s property,” he said. Current FAA regulation states that drones cannot be flown higher than 400 feet, and must not be flown within three miles of an airport.
Gomes moves to TCSO By Norma Engelberg
PIKES PEAK COURIER
of flight time at sea level, will get about 18 minutes of flight time at this altitude in Colorado. If one was to take a drone up to Pikes Peak, it would get about 15 minutes of flight time. Schubert said that there are different sets of propellers that can be installed to give the drones better lift in the high altitude. Right now the technology of drones is new enough that regulations are just barely starting to catch up. The main concerns voiced tend to have to do with safety and privacy. The drones do
John Gomes, Woodland Park Police Department deputy chief, has been picked as Teller County’s new undersheriff, replacing Stan Bishop. To honor his 27 years of service to the city, the regular Jan. 15 Woodland Park City Council meeting started with a buffet and presentations of plaques by WPPD Chief Robert Larson, Woodland Park Police Sgt. Chris Adams and County Sheriff Mike Ensminger, who also welcomed Gomes to his new position. WPPD’s new Deputy Chief Miles De Young told the full house that Gomes is a tough act to follow and gave flowers to Gomes’ wife Janet. They’ve been married for 40 years. City Manager David Buttery also had a few stories to tell before Gomes spoke in gratitude for all the support he has received from his wife, his city and his department over the past 27 years. The evening’s agenda included making appointments and reappointments to the following committees and boards: Historic Preservation: Council reappointed Larry Black, who was touted as the town historian, and former Woodland Park Mayor Gary Crane to new the-year terms. Board of Adjustments: Council reappointed John Hanlon and Andre Leclercq as regular members, along with Michael Marte and appointed Russ Wekamp as an alternate. Board of Review: Crane was also reappointed as a regular member and Jeff Cahill was appointed as an alternate. Keep Woodland Park Beautiful: Pat Hyslop was appointed to fill an open seat on this committee and received a trash grabber and an orange vest. The city is looking for volunteers to fill other open seats on this committee.
After council approved the board and committee candidates, City Clerk Suzanne Leclercq sword them in to their various positions all at the same time. Council approved four ordinances on initial posting and set their public hearings for Feb. 5: to accept a $2 million, no-interest loan to start work on the wastewater treatment plant upgrade, rescind setback requirements for auto sales lots, set the Pikes Peak Courier as the city’s official method for posting public notices and take the first steps to issue not more than $10.1 million in bonds for the Woodland Aquatic Center. Council also approved three resolutions. The first accepts the recommendations by the Community Investment Review Committee to partially fund 18 local organizations of the 23 that applied for funding. Some of these organizations will receive exactly what they requested, most will receive less than they requested and one, Little Chapel Food Pantry will receive $500 more than it requested. Five organizations will receive no funding: the Colorado Mounted Rangers’ application didn’t have enough information, Habitat for Humanity of Teller County asked for money to use for fundraising and has salaried employees, Mountain Top Cycling Club is a club, Prospect Home Care & Hospice already has a $1.13-million budget and 71 percent of its funds go to salaried employees, and the WP Panther Recycling Program will be able to collect e-recycling fees from the city as the city’s official electronics recycler. The second resolution will reactivate the council’s Charter Review Advisory Committee that was originally established in 2000. Mayor Pro Tem Carrol Harvey wants the committee reactivated because, aside from the review in 2000 that resulted in the voter approval of 10 charter amendments 2001, the charter hasn’t been fully reviewed since it was first adopted in 1977 when Woodland Park became a home rule city. Harvey and Councilmembers John Schafer
Woodland Park Police Deputy Chief John Gomes and his wife were honored at the Jan. 15 Woodland Park City Council meeting. Gomes is the new undersheriff at the Teller County Sheriff ’s Office. He is being replaced as deputy chief by Miles De Young. Photo by Norma Engelberg and Ken Matthews have agreed to serve on the review committee and council will be looking for four Woodland Park citizens to severe, as well. All review committee meetings will be open meetings. The third resolution sets the single-family residential water taps available in 2015 at 80. City officials hope to sell more water taps this year but projected 2015 water tap revenues is based on selling only five taps. Councilmember Gary Brovetto announced that the design for a 140-foot mural to be painted somewhere in the city will be unveiled at the Feb. 19 council meeting. Council and staff finished the meeting with a farewell to City Planner Lisa Parnell who is making a career move back to her home state of Nebraska.