What does Colorado Springs' future look like? Tuesday's election will help shape it

Apr. 3—Colorado Springs residents armed with paper ballots will rediscover soon just how mighty their pens are in shaping the city.

The results of Tuesday's municipal election will lay the foundation that will help shape the city's future as a revamped City Council and new mayor make key decisions about growth, housing affordability, water availability, public safety, parks, transit, and investment in roads and economic development, local politicos and residents said this week.

"These elections directly affect the issues that people (talk) about every day," said Mike Williams, executive director of Citizens Project, a nonpartisan nonprofit advocating for equity, justice and inclusion.

"Depending on who is elected or not, that's going to determine if the status quo is different from the last eight years. Colorado Springs is growing. I think this election is absolutely pivotal for what's going to happen in the next four years in our city."

Voters will choose the third strong mayor from among a crowded field of 12 candidates with three fundraising front-runners, longtime politicians Sallie Clark and Wayne Williams, and businessman and political newcomer Yemi Mobolade.

The new leader will act as the city's chief executive officer and will enforce laws and ordinances, create a strategic plan for the city and submit an annual budget to the City Council, among other duties.

In Mayor John Suthers' case, success has meant a growing city and economy, new revenue for roads and storm drainage, and allocating more money in the annual budget for police and firefighters, he said during an interview with The Gazette in mid-March.

The best mayor for Colorado Springs will be a person with management experience who can stand alone, said Steve Bach, who served as the city's first strong mayor from 2011-2015.

"We need a mayor with relevant experience that will provide (him or her) the ability to get things done and make quality decisions," Bach said.

"We need a mayor who we can trust will be independent of undue special interests and someone who will have the courage ... to make tough decisions, even if it's not always popular."

Additionally on Tuesday, residents will choose four new representatives from 13 candidates to fill about half the seats on the nine-member City Council. They are the legislative body that also guides and determines land use decisions and oversees Colorado Springs' four-service utility — responsibilities that literally mold the city.

For example, the council in 1988 grew Colorado Springs by an additional 24,000 acres, or 38 square miles, when it approved an annexation agreement for the sprawling Banning Lewis Ranch and ensured growth will march east. And a recently approved water rule that will block new major annexations in the near-term solidified Banning Lewis Ranch as the focal point for new homes and businesses.

"Electing a mayor is important, but the City Council election is extremely important because (voters) will be putting in four new people (on the dais). That will have a huge impact on things like our future development, water ... and parks, recreation and open space issues," said Lionel Rivera, who served as Colorado Springs mayor from 2003 to 2011.

Right now, the power to select the city's next leaders lies with the few who choose to participate. As of Thursday, about 16% of voters had returned their ballots and about 38% will likely participate in Tuesday's election, based on figures from the last mayor's race in 2019.

Though municipal elections are nonpartisan, the council has leaned toward the conservative side in its decision-making over the last several years — particularly after former Councilman Richard Skorman resigned from his District 3 council seat at the end of 2021. Skorman had been a longtime progressive voice in local politics.

Last January, the council appointed Councilwoman Stephannie Fortune to fill Skorman's vacancy and represent downtown and the city's southwest corner until this April. She has typically voted conservatively during her time on the dais.

Fortune, who announced she was diagnosed with leukemia in November, is not running Tuesday for another term.

With Fortune and three at-large representatives leaving the council — Councilman Bill Murray and mayoral candidates Wayne Williams and Tom Strand — Tuesday's election could potentially shift the dais into a more centrist body, the Citizens Project's Mike Williams said.

"It just depends on the turnout," he said. "I think history has shown if turnout is not good then it'll be a very conservative council, like we've had historically, because historically (voter turnout) has been (low). But I know there's been a lot of effort in the city to get people to cast their ballots and get their voices heard."

The election could also break up what some see as overrepresentation of Colorado Springs' northern district on the dais. At-large Councilmen Murray and Wayne Williams reside in District 2, which is represented by Councilman Randy Helms.

The next mayor and City Council should quickly address issues that have at times polarized residents and city officials, including Colorado Springs' future growth and development, as well as topics such as water availability, affordable housing, public safety and parkland, residents and politicos said.

These are issues that didn't seem to get as much of a spotlight in past elections, said Josh Dunn, professor and chairman of the political science department at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs.

"For instance, in the first strong mayor race (in 2011), it seemed like the issue had been the dysfunction of city government leading up to that, which led to change in the strong mayor system," he said.

The question of how much influence outside interest groups like land developers have in city elections is also at the forefront of conversation this year in ways it has not been in past elections, Dunn said.

Powerful developers like Norwood Development Group, La Plata Communities, Ron Johnson and The O'Neil Group, as well as dark money donors, have poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into supporting their preferred candidates and have drawn lines in the sand on issues like water availability and annexation, said resident Kent Obee, a parks advocate who led an effort to pass a parks ballot issue in 2020.

"That's the big tug-of-war that's going on here in this election," he said.

Overall, residents want to see a mayor and council who are transparent and widely available to hear their concerns and answer their questions, Rivera and Mike Williams said.

"They want to see that the mayor and City Council put them first, that the needs and the goals of the city come first," Rivera said. "... We hope they're going to work for the good of our community and our region, and they're not here just because they always wanted to be mayor or always wanted to be on City Council."

The Gazette's Mary Shinn contributed to this report.