Author: KRDO

Scott Harrison

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Snow accumulation and sub-zero temperatures on Monday morning led officials to postpone one of two planned road closures related to construction projects.

The closures were officially to start at 6 a.m. on a three-mile stretch of Las Vegas Street between Janitell Road and Highway 85/87, and on the eastbound on-ramp to Milton E. Proby Parkway above Academy Boulevard.

While the Las Vegas closure began as scheduled, officials decided to postpone the parkway closure for a day because of the weather.

Closures on Las Vegas are nothing new; they’ve occurred intermittently as part of the two-year, $40 million project to replace four aging bridges above the street, on Circle Drive.

That project essentially ended late last year, but crews are preparing for the final step of tearing down the eastbound bridge over railroad tracks.

The closure is scheduled to last three weeks.

Meanwhile, the ramp closure on Milton E. Proby Parkway will last much longer, not reopening until the end of May; crews are upgrading water and drainage infrastructure as part of the city’s ongoing South Academy Boulevard improvements project.

As KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior reported in an update last week, the project should be finished by the summer of 2028.

On a related note, many drivers hope that the final phase of the Circle bridge replacement means that the Willwood Tunnel will reopen soon.

The single-lane tunnel is a shortcut under Interstate 25 between Janitell and The Broadmoor World Arena, but officials closed it early during the bridge project because of traffic congestion from drivers trying to avoid the construction.

Just west of the scheduled Las Vegas closure, crews continue to build a new train crossing under the MLK Bypass to Hancock Expressway.

Click here to follow the original article.

Nick Carter

A COLD WEATHER ADVISORY remains in effect for Southeast Colorado until 8 AM Sunday morning. This advisory stays in effect because wind chill temperatures as cold as -25 degrees F are likely in the affected area, which means that exposed skin can turn frostbitten in as little as 30 minutes. Although Colorado Springs and Pueblo are not in this affected area, please dress in layers if you have to be outside today through Sunday.

Pueblo, Canon City, and La Veta Pass are all under a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY until 5 AM Sunday. These areas could see up to 5 inches of snow between Saturday night and mid-morning Sunday.

Skies will clear over Colorado Springs during the nighttime hours, and low temperatures will drop into the single digits above and below zero. Sunshine will return on Sunday morning, but then another shot of bitter cold air with afternoon snow showers returns during the mid afternoon hours. Expect daytime temperatures to reach the low 20s on Sunday, but then the mercury drops as those snow showers drop in from the north.

If you’re headed up north to watch the Denver Broncos play, plan on a kickoff temperature of 24 degrees, but the wind will make it feel like 13 degrees! There’s a 30 percent chance of snow showers throughout the game as well, but this will be light, fluffy powder that won’t really affect travel.

Temperatures in the 40s to near 50 degrees return to Southeastern Colorado during the work week. Until then, stay warm!

Click here to follow the original article.

Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Closing weekend festivities for Skate in the Park have been rescheduled in light of bitterly cold temperatures in the forecast.

This weekend was slated to be the last weekend of Skate in the Park, and was to have special themed days and activities.

The events have now been pushed back to Friday, Jan. 30, and Saturday, Jan. 31, with the rink closed this weekend due to safety concerns.

On Jan. 30, the Girl Scouts will take to Acacia Park and connect families with information on local troops and opportunities for girls. Additionally, skaters can get free beanies courtesy of Tallgrass (first-come, first-served).

On Jan. 31, U.S. Figure Skating will head to the park for free classes, demonstrations, trivia, and giveaways. Representatives will be there from 10 a.m. to noon, and later from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Click here to follow the original article.

Celeste Springer

MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The City of Colorado Springs is considering offering zero-fare Mountain Metro Transit rides between Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs. Officials hope the change will cut down on parking and traffic issues, which are a contentious problem for many Manitou Springs residents.

Manitou Springs is a popular destination for tourists visiting the Pikes Peak Region, though its quaint small-town streets have proven to have difficulties accommodating the volume of visitors and vehicles.

In an effort to alleviate the issue, Manitou Springs has added several parking lots with service to different areas across town, but some concerns from residents have persisted.

Under this latest proposal, Mountain Metro Transit would not charge fares for Route 3, which serves Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs. Additionally, service times would increase from every 30 minutes to every 15 minutes.

There are also several other proposed changes for Mountain Metro routes, which you can view by clicking here.

Residents can submit their input on the plans, and the feedback is due Feb. 5.

Click here to follow the original article.

Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Officials in Colorado Springs held a press conference on cold weather preparations on Friday morning.

Southern Colorado is gearing up for dangerously cold weather Friday into the weekend. According to the City of Colorado Springs, wind chill temperatures will remain near or below zero for much of Friday and into Saturday and Sunday night.

City officials are urging families to be prepared by following the forecast closely, paying attention to alerts from news agencies or the local government. Families should have emergency supplies, like flashlights, water, and non-perishable food.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department says those with gas fireplaces should ensure they have working CO detectors. Additionally, house fires can be a risk for homes with wood-burning fireplaces where chimneys have not been properly cleaned throughout the years.

The city also asks that residents prepare their vehicles. Do not travel with less than a half-tank of gas, and keep cold-weather gear and blankets in your car.

Additionally, the city is urging those with livestock to have a covered area for them to retreat to.

If you need help, officials ask that you call the Pikes Peak United Way at 211. Officials say there is a real risk of injury or death to those who are left exposed in the upcoming cold conditions. Additionally, those who are unhoused can seek shelter at the following places during this emergency response time:

Springs Rescue Mission: 5 W. Las Vegas St.

Hope COS: 1930 W. Colorado Ave.

Families can go to the Salvation Army Hope Center: 709 S. Sierra Madre St.

If the Salvation Army Hope Center gets full, officials say Catholic Charities will step in to match families with places to stay.

Mountain Metro Transit is offering rides to shelters through Sunday. Anyone can board a city bus from any bus stop and let the driver know they are seeking shelter. There is no fee for the ride, and no pass is required.

For a compiled list of information and resources from the Pikes Peak Regional Emergency Management department, click here.

Click here to follow the original article.

Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Mayor Mobolade of Colorado Springs held his monthly press briefing Friday morning.

Mayor Mobolade’s first press briefing of the year outlined the city’s goals, which he says are “strategic doing,” for the year.

The mayor highlighted six high-priority items:

Emergency response times

“When you call 911, you deserve a fast response,” said Mayor Mobolade.

According to the mayor, the city has improved the response time for high-priority calls from 15 to 11 minutes in 2025. The city hopes to lower response times even more with new technology, staffing, call processing, and resource management.

Dependable street maintenance

Mayor Mobolade says there will be an extra focus on potholes, and is looking to update policies and procedures to ensure potholes are repaired quickly. The mayor says city crews filled 75,000 potholes last year.

To see more KRDO13 coverage on local road conditions and work, click here.

Safer roads through the integrated traffic safety program

The city says it is going to use data, technology, infrastructure improvements, and public education programs to reduce traffic-related injuries and deaths; plans include expanding speed enforcement cameras.

RELATED: Colorado Springs police begin issuing tickets from new mobile speed cameras

“We’re going to coordinate safety messages across departments to keep our public informed and engaged,” said Mayor Mobolade.

Expanding “Keep It Clean and Safe” to address the visible impacts of homelessness

“What I love about Colorado Springs is we are a compassionate city. And we’re also a city that believes in order, safety, and shared responsibility,” said Mayor Mobolade.

The mayor said the city plans to expand the “Keep It Clean and Safe” initiative into other key business districts.

Driving innovation at Peak Innovation Park

“Peak Innovation Park is one of our most exciting areas for new economic opportunities in our city,” said Mayor Mobolade.

The mayor says the city hopes to develop and prepare more land at the park to bring in even more companies and the jobs that come with them.

RELATED: Coca-Cola plant coming to Colorado Springs

Mobolade says a new 250,000 squarefoot office space was just unveiled at the park, representing a $63 million investment.

Balanced growth

“Our focus this year is going to be on growing wisely,” said the mayor.

The City of Colorado Springs hopes to grow, but under restraint and with rules in place to prevent harming existing residents and infrastructure, the mayor says.

Click here to follow the original article.

Scott Harrison

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — Crews with the county and with the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) routinely use salt brine to pre-treat streets and roads before winter storms arrive.

However, in preparation for this late-week storm, the county applied the brine, but CDOT decided against it.

The difference in strategy, apparently, relates to when each agency expects snow to accumulate.

Crews apply salt brine — water with roughly a 25% salt mixture — to prevent ice and snow from bonding with pavement, making it easier for plows to remove.

“We didn’t feel it was the best approach for the storm,” said CDOT spokeswoman Amber Shipley. “It’s a timing issue with temperatures. The efficiency of salt brine drops (as temperatures drop). The traveling public can rest assured that our teams are ready to tackle the flakes as they fall.”

Temperatures began falling in the early afternoon on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the county sent six trucks — each equipped with an 800-gallon tank of salt brine — to apply the liquid.

“It’s just resources and timing,” said Tim Stickel, a county highway manager. “Being as efficient as we can, getting out there trying to get all those roads, our resources. You know how big our county is. Trying to make sure we can hit them all, so we can reduce that potential bond as best we can. So, everybody has their own little tweaks to the procedures.”

He said that crews normally apply salt brine a few days before a storm.

“And too late is usually when you’re already in the middle of the storm. It’s not effective like magnesium chloride or some of the other products that are out there. So, it’s not a good de-icer. It’s a good pretreatment.”

The county and CDOT said that salt brine is effective, inexpensive to make, and isn’t as harsh as chemicals such as magnesium chloride.

Still, CDOT uses magnesium chloride — primarily on highways during storms — because nothing works better at ice removal.

CDOT began using salt brine in 2018, and the county started the following year.

Both entities add a rust inhibitor to the brine to protect vehicles.

Colorado Springs doesn’t use brine, and officials planned to hold a news conference Friday morning to discuss their storm preparations.

Click here to follow the original article.

Bradley Davis

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – Instead of packing it in, the Mt. Carmel volunteers are layering up and braving the elements to host the organization’s community food distribution.

“It puts food on our table,” recipient Judy Davis said. “Being out here in the cold at 12 degrees is very honorable.”

Mt. Carmel hosts the food distributions twice a month on the second and fourth Fridays. It’s open to everyone, not just veterans. The distributions go all-year long. It makes for some stubborn volunteers bearing some pretty severe temperatures in the Winter months.

While Mt. Carmel will rarely reschedule the distributions because of severe weather, it said low temperatures are not an excuse. On Friday at 10 a.m., the wind chill is expected to be single digits. If you need food, you can expect Mt. Carmel to greet you with puffy coats and free meals.

“First day back for this year, and to see all the volunteers that came out, knowing what we would be facing with the weather, this is fantastic,” volunteer Gordon Randall said.

The distribution is at 1125 W. Moreno St. from 10-11 a.m.

The future distribution dates for the next few months are February 13, February 27, March 13, and March 27.

Click here to follow the original article.

Paige Reynolds

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – A former City of Pueblo employee is suing the city, alleging he was fired after speaking with KRDO13 Investigates about being assaulted on the job.

William Ward filed the lawsuit after previously coming forward in December 2023, when KRDO13 Investigates reported on an on-the-job assault at the Pueblo Fleet Maintenance Garage and concerns over how the city handled the incident.

In that report, Ward said he was punched in the jaw while attempting to break up a fight between two other city employees. Video obtained by KRDO13 Investigates showed the moment Ward was struck.

Police charged Marshall Pinz with assault the same month the incident occurred. However, internal city documents obtained by KRDO13 Investigates showed Pinz was allowed to continue working and was not placed on leave until roughly two months after his arrest.

Ward also previously told KRDO13 Investigates that city leadership had been informed of a physical threat Pinz allegedly made toward another employee the day before the assault, but no action was taken at that time.

“If the city had handled this appropriately from the beginning, we wouldn’t be here,” Ward’s attorney Richard Orona said. “This became about accountability.”

Ward spoke with KRDO13 Investigates in December 2023 about the assault and the city’s response. According to the newly filed lawsuit, about six months later, Ward received a notice of disciplinary consideration for insubordination. The notice cited speaking with KRDO13 after being “specifically directed not to.”

Court records show Ward filed a complaint against the city and was terminated in July 2024. The lawsuit claims the termination amounted to retaliation for speaking publicly about workplace safety concerns.

A spokesperson for the City of Pueblo said the city could not comment on the lawsuit or its claims. However, the spokesperson provided a statement regarding media policy, saying:

“In 2021, the City created and hired (January 2022) the position of the Director of Public Affairs to serve as the City’s primary liaison to the news media. It is expected that all media requests regarding City matters are directed to, and responses coordinated by, that department.”

Court records obtained by KRDO13 Investigates indicate the city plans to ask for dismissal of the lawsuit.

KRDO13 Investigates also attempted to reach Pinz for comment but has not been able to make contact. Court records show Pinz was later sentenced to probation and community service.

Click here to follow the original article.

Celeste Springer

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Colorado Springs Utilities and Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) are considering bringing new activities to Rosemont Reservoir, including reserved camping.

Currently, Colorado Springs Utilities says seasonal fishing is allowed at the reservoir, though they are considering adding other outdoor options, including non-motorized boating and restroom facilities.

“CPW management would provide more active oversight of public recreation and safety in balance with watershed protection and our operational needs in this remote area,” said Springs Utilities CEO Travas Deal in a press release.

Springs Utilities says Colorado Springs City Council will discuss the plans at its Feb. 10 meeting.

Click here to follow the original article.