I had a lunch meeting recently, and there, I was complimented on an article I wrote about El Paso County sponsorships. I researched how county public servants took your tax money and handed it out to organizations throughout the county. They do it every year. Here’s that article if you missed it. My lunch companion then noted that the county doesn’t have a funding mechanism for sponsorships, unlike the city of Colorado Springs.
The city has a special tax called the Lodgers and Automobile Rental Tax (LART). It’s an additional tax collected from visitors when they stay at local hotels or rent cars. Each year, a committee hands out those funds to city event organizers. I’m not a big fan of any taxes, but the LART process is slightly more palatable than a government entity just taking tax money from local citizens and handing it out willy-nilly. Plus, the visitors to the city pay the tax. Still, it got me thinking. Does the City of Colorado Springs have the nerve to fund events and offer sponsorship money outside of the LART process? They are in a budget crisis after all.
I filed a Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) request and asked. The initial response was that I needed to hone in on which specific department I was asking about. After careful consideration, I chose the City of Colorado Springs Parks Department for my first investigation.
The Parks Department recently announced budget cuts estimated at $950,000.
The cuts included:
- Turning off the Penrose Fountain at America the Beautiful Park
- Closing 25% of park bathrooms
- No portable bathrooms
- Playgrounds, potholes, and asphalt repairs will be reduced 25%
- Maintenance will be discontinued in neighborhood and community parks
- Reduced mowing frequency
- Decreased fertilizer and broadleaf weed control applications
- Reduced repairs and replacements caused by vandalism and theft
It’s apparent the Parks Department is really hurting for money and can’t spare a dime, right? They can’t even fund bathrooms for taxpayers! Nothing says “we’re broke” like turning off a fountain and locking the porta-potties. Maybe taxpayers can just cross their legs and hold it until the budget crisis is over.
We received information from the CORA indicating that the Parks Department is distributing sponsorship funds. They’re doing it primarily through Pikes Peak America’s Mountain (PPAM) Enterprise. It’s an entity under the Parks Department.
2025 PPAM Sponsorships
- Manitou Springs Ice Cream Social $300
- Manitou Springs Mumbo Jumbo Gumbo Cookoff $200
- Manitou Springs Coffin Races $2,500
- Pikes Peak Region Attractions Summer Kickoff $2,500
- Buffalo Bicycle Lodge Bluegrass Festival $1,000
- Visit Colorado Springs Tourism Awards Celebration $500
- Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame Golf Tournament $500
There were other handouts like 4-pack passes for golf at the city golf courses, and highway passes up to Pikes Peak, too.
We understand that these aren’t significant amounts of money in the grand scheme of things, but when you can’t even pay for the necessities, you shouldn’t be handing out money for a Gumbo cookoff. If these events want money, they should go through the LART application process. The Parks Department is clearly circumventing the LART process to hand out taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
Reach out to the City Council members and the mayor and ask why they don’t have money for park bathrooms but do for these events.
Mayor Yemi Mobolade yemi.mobolade@coloradosprings.gov
Lynette Crow-Iverson Lynette.Crow-Iverson@coloradosprings.gov
Dave Donelson Dave.Donelson@coloradosprings.gov
Kimberly Gold Kimberly.Gold@coloradosprings.gov
Nancy Henjum Nancy.Henjum@coloradosprings.gov
David Leinweber David.Leinweber@coloradosprings.gov
Roland Rainey Roland.RaineyJr@coloradosprings.gov
Brian Risley brian.risley@coloradosprings.gov
Brandy Williams Brandy.Williams@coloradosprings.gov
One thought on “No Money for Park Bathrooms, But Plenty for a Gumbo Cookoff”
I strongly disagree with COS Parks Dept giving money away to the municipality of Manitou Springs. Keep investigating Rebecca!