Mackenzie Stafford
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – On Monday, the Downtown Partnership presented the Clean & Safe Pilot Program to the Colorado Springs City Council. It comes after the Downtown Partnership launched the 19-month pilot program to drive economic development in Downtown Colorado Springs. The nonprofit says this aims to improve safety, cleanliness, and the overall experience for businesses, residents, and visitors. They hope that by creating a more welcoming and vibrant urban environment, the program will increase foot traffic, attract private investment, support local businesses, and generate long-term economic growth for the city and region.
Despite reports of decreasing homelessness overall, public disturbances continue to increase in the Downtown district, the Downtown Partnership shared.
“This program is a direct response to what we’ve been hearing from our businesses: the need for a more consistent, inviting, and welcoming environment to support customers and employees,” said Chelsea Gondeck, Interim CEO. “When people feel good about being here, they stay longer, spend more, and come back. This initiative lays the groundwork for sustained business success and long-term investment in the heart of our city.”
Pat Rigdon, the new Director of Downtown Safety and Public Space Management, is spearheading the effort with his rare perspective. Rigdon is a former Deputy Chief of Police, the former owner of Mary’s Mountain Cookies downtown and a resident.
“Historically, we’ve provided limited supplemental security and coordinated disjointed services from other providers,” said Rigdon. “A coordinated, proactive approach to public safety is essential to ensuring Downtown remains competitive and inviting for everyone, and this program aims to provide a proof of concept.”
The nonprofit says the program is a proactive, holistic model integrating three main strategies:
· Welcoming and knowledgeable Ambassadors to assist and guide visitors during peak tourist times, as well as provide eyes on the streets to coordinate with other resources to address issues promptly
· Expanded supplemental private security to increase visibility and coverage throughout the greater Downtown area from the early mornings to the early evenings
· Outreach personnel dedicated to the Downtown area who are focused on addressing homelessness and behavioral health in coordination with public safety and service providers
They say that all together these efforts aim to create a cleaner, safer, and more connected downtown environment.
The program will be continuously evaluated and refined to identify the most effective strategies for addressing the increasing challenges related to public safety, homelessness, and cleanliness. The Downtown Partnership plans to hold a town hall meeting where business owners will be able to provide feedback on the pilot program in the coming months. Upon completion, the nonprofit looks forward to data-driven recommendations from the program to guide the development of a permanent initiative supported by sustainable, dedicated funding.
Business owners in Downtown Colorado Springs tell KRDO13 this new program can’t come soon enough.
Terra Verde on Tejon Street shared their joy when learning of the Clean and Safe Pilot and how it aims to help the homeless population while decreasing disturbances.
“I love that because I know it keeps everybody safe, which means our customers want to come down here more because it has become a problem, probably in every city. And so I think it’ll be a great thing. And we can explain what’s going on and how we’re helping people keep safe. And people want to walk into a store if they see that no homeless people are walking around,” explained office manager Tara Schutz.
Schutz says the security guards already on staff are incredibly kind and will check in on businesses to see if they need anything throughout the week. Now she’s looking forward to having two more in the downtown area.
“Especially when you said there will be more presence here. I mean, that just makes me happy,” shared Schutz.
It’s similar to what Rigdon says he’s heard from many business owners downtown.
“I’ve met with about 60 businesses. One of the frequent things that they talk about is early morning hours and how, you know, they just find people sleeping, in either the doorway, preventing their employees from getting in those kinds of things. So the security officers showing up at 6 a.m. will help clean the area so the merchants can get into the business areas. They’ll encounter people, I’m sure, if they need services, they can help them at that time of day if they’re willing. But it’ll kind of just set the tone for the day,” explained Rigdon.
Hence the change
“We currently have a contracted security company that provides eight hours of security seven days a week. But we’re going to expand that. And certainly, during Thursday, Friday and Saturday when we have a lot of pedestrian traffic downtown, a lot of visitors, we’re going to have two teams of two security guards, but they’re going to also expand their hours to 18 hours a day Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and then 16 hours a day is going to be, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. So it’s really going to be an increase. And we hope that does a couple of things. Number one, just a visible presence, makes people feel a little bit more safe. But we also hope it positively impacts the police. they can’t be everywhere all at once. And so we’re hoping that 90% of the calls that happen down here can be handled by our, great security guards and leave the police to do some of the bigger things,” shared Rigdon.
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