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February 26, 2014
75 cents Teller County, Colorado | Volume 53, Issue 8 A publication of
pikespeakcourier.net
Residential care center approved Teller County Waste ordinance tabled again By Norma Engelberg Contributing writer
Woodland Park City Council’s approval of a residential prescription drug abuse recovery center proposed for 115 Trull Road at its Feb. 20 Woodland Park City Council meeting seemed anticlimactic. So much opposition to the project was expressed at the Feb. 6 meeting, either in person by neighbors or by letters to council, that it looked as if the project would be denied but legal questions came up at that meeting and deliberation was tabled the next meeting to give Woodland Park City Attorney Erin Smith time to find the answers and draft a legal opinion. The council met in executive session before its Feb. 20 meeting to hear Erin Smith’s full report but she gave a brief sum-
mary of the report in open meeting. The gist of her opinion was that council cannot use the conditional use process to deny a residential care facility. If the project meets the city code’s conditional use permit criteria, it must be approved. However, the city can impose conditions that would mitigate such a project’s impact. Besides the conditions set down by the planning department, including the necessity of obtaining a state license and providing proof of insurance, in her motion to approve councilmember Carrol Harvey added three more conditions: that there will be no signage directing the public or visitors to the facility, that no out-patient care will be provided and that no 12-step or other addiction-recovery meetings be held at the facility except for clients in residence. When it came time to vote, Harvey voted against the motion she made. It passed Center continues on Page 14
Colorado Springs City Councilmember Val Snyder takes the podium at the Feb. 20 Woodland Park City Council meeting to present the city a $5,000 check to help it start up the application process to receive a Main Street Program designation. Standing behind Snyder are Woodland Park Office of Economic Development Director Brian Fleer, left; Councilmember Gary Brovetto, who has made the Main Street designation his passion, and Henry Yankowski, building official for Pikes Peak Regional Building. Photo by Norma Engelberg
AmeriCorps youth assist Pike National Forest, Lake George with fire prevention By Sonja Oliver
Contributing writer For the past several weeks a group of fresh-faced, energetic young people have been living and working in the Lake George area as part of an AmeriCorps team. From both the East and West Coasts, to the Deep South and through the Midwest, this group of nine individuals represent the country’s best. Participation in AmeriCorps provides them with an opportunity to build practical skills, teamwork, leadership and character.
About AmeriCorps
According to AmeriCorps Community Relations Specialist Heather Dirck, the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) is a national service program in which 2,800 young adults are selected yearly to serve in areas located throughout the nation. Teams are comprised of 8-12 members (ages 18 to 24 years old) and work on projects identified to address critical needs. The term of service is ten months and individuals may serve for two terms. Team members work on a variety of six- to eight-week-long projects related to natural and other disasters, infrastructure improvement, environmental stewardship and conservation, energy conservation, and urban and rural development. In exchange for their service, AmeriCorps members receive $5,550 to help pay for college, or to pay back existing student
A sign identifying an area that is being burned states “Controlled Burn” on Park County Rd. 90 southeast of Lake George, to inform residents and passers-by who might be alarmed by the smoke. loans. While serving, members can receive payment forbearance of student loans. Members must also contribute 80 hours towards a community service project of their choice such as tutoring students or volunteering with community organizations. Other benefits include a small living stipend, room and board, travel, leadership development, increased self-confidence and the knowledge that, through active citizenship, people can indeed make a difference.
AmeriCorps at Lake George
The team that has been residing at the Lake George Pike
POSTAL ADDRESS
Two members of the Americorps team working and living in the area tend one of over 100 burn piles at a 12 acre site located southeast of Lake George. Photos by Sonja Oliver National Forest ranger station is based out of the AmeriCorps Southwest Region campus in Denver which serves eight states in the central and southwest parts of the country. The Lake George project is the second of four projects for their NCCC term, which began in October, 2013. According to a recent press release one purpose of the AmeriCorps NCCC is “to be an additional resource that the forest service can use to respond to fires and mitigate them.”
“Fire management [and mitigation] is important work that teaches people valuable skills in leadership, team work, and pushing yourself to your physical limits,” team leader Heather Cushing said in the press release. Cushing has returned for a second year in the program. The AmeriCorps group in Lake George is one of two teams who received two weeks of training in January as Type 2 Wildland Firefighters, which covered proper chainsaw handling, fire shelter us-
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age, and hazardous fuel reduction. The training paid off: both teams responded to their first wildland fire assisting with mop-up of the 2-acre Ensign Fire near Pikes Peak. According to team member Sun Li Beatteay, his team was assigned to the Lake George area to reduce the potential for fire. Their most recent project has been basic fuel reduction and the burning of brush/slash piles, a 12 acre area
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Fire continues on Page 14
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