Nov. 4, 2021 Vol. 20, No. 50 Serving Manitou Springs, Old Colorado City and Lower Ute Pass
$100
Graham, Whetherhult win; MSSD14 misses out on ballot issue
The spirit of Emma Crawford Photos by Bryan Oller Manitou Springs residents and people who love the city didn’t let the second cancellation of the Emma Crawford Coffin Races keep them from having fun. Hundreds of people, dressed for the occasion, watched hearses parade by on Saturday, Oct. 30. The races were cancelled in 2020 and this year as a precaution during the pandemic, since thousands of people pack downtown for the event.
Sallie Knox Hall rides by on her scooter.
By Rhonda Van Pelt
Cayci Luiten channels Emma’s spirit during the parade.
On Tuesday, Nov. 2, Election Day, Manitou Springs was watching two races and one ballot issue. The two contested races were for mayor, pitting incumbent John Graham against longtime resident Alan Delwiche and write-in candidate Tyler Graefe, and the Ward 3 City Council seat, with former Councilor Bob Todd facing political newcomer Michelle Whetherhult. Graham will start his second term as mayor in early January. He defeated Delwiche 832 votes to 437, according to the unofficial results on the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder’s Office website. That’s a split of 65.56 percent to 34.44 percent as of Wednesday, Nov. 3. As a write-in candidate, Graefe’s votes were not among the posted results. After the preliminary results were announced at the end of Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Graham and Delwiche went to a local watering hole to talk about Manitou’s future. “We both felt upbeat and energized. In
An undead person waves from the window of a souped-up hearse.
See ELECTION/page 3
Tenant dealing with inhumane conditions in Manitou complex By Rhonda Van Pelt Imagine that you come to the Pikes Peak region and fall in love with it, as people do. Imagine you’re renting an apartment where you can look out your window and see Pikes Peak. But your little piece of paradise will make your life hell. Justin Drake moved into a small apartment at 28 El Paso Blvd. in May 2021. That building and the one at 30 El Paso Blvd. are managed by Abuzz Property Management, based in Colorado Springs. Drake has to run the water for several minutes before it’s hot, because his one-bedroom apartment and seven others share one water heater. He pays the landlord $90 per month for water, which
includes what’s wasted while he’s waiting for it to heat up. According to Drake, a maintenance man arrived, ran the water for a few minutes and said the management company already knew about it. It’s not their problem and Drake should have checked the water situation before he moved in. Ironically, water in the shower comes out so hot Drake and his neighbors risk being scalded. That’s a major problem for Drake, who lost a leg in an accident in mid-2018. He sits in a shower chair, which makes it hard to move out of the way. But it gets much, much worse. Imagine that, the next month, sewage starts leaking from under your toilet. Naturally, you ask
for help via the management company’s tenant portal. The Abuzz maintenance man called Drake and said that, if sewage isn’t still coming up, they don’t care about it. Drake doesn’t have a record of that phone call, but started communicating via email after that. He’s also tracking the problems and every action he’s taken to try to get help. On Oct. 1, Drake’s toilet stopped working at all. A plumbing company arrived late in the evening and cleared the sewage line up to 100 feet. The toilet was usable, but water was coming up
See DRAKE/page 6
INSIDE DON’T FORGET TO FALL BACK ON SUNDAY.................PAGE 3 COUNCIL OKS LIBRARY RENOVATION CONCEPT.........PAGE 4 SKELETON CRAZE RESULTS AND PHOTOS..................PAGE 9
