Author: KRDO

Scott Harrison

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Officials this week revealed that a whopping 95% of streets to be repaved during the next ten years are in residential neighborhoods, but the remaining 5% will include a busy street through the heart of the city that regularly draws complaints from drivers.

The highlight of next year’s paving list is Circle Drive, which connects to Fillmore Street on the north end and to Interstate 25 on the south end.

The project, which is part of the annual 2C expanded paving program funded by a voter-approved sales tax increase, will place fresh asphalt on a pair of three-mile stretches of Circle — between Fillmore and Platte Avenue, and between Airport Road and I-25.

You may wonder why the mile of Circle between those areas isn’t part of the project; the reason is because that segment is in good condition.

Drivers have regularly complained about poor conditions on affected parts of Circle — especially between Platte and Palmer Park Boulevard, and from Airport to both sides of the bridge construction on the south end of Circle.

In fact, South Circle has deteriorated so badly that in the spring of 2024, crews performed emergency paving between Fountain Boulevard and Monterey Road.

The upcoming South Circle paving coincides with the scheduled completion of the bridge project by the end of this year.

“With the proper preventative maintenance and the proper intervals, this road, we won’t have to come back and repave this road, hopefully for 25-plus years,” said Corey Farkas, public works operations and maintenance manager. “We’re going to have to continue to maintain it. We’ll inspect it.”

Other major streets on next year’s paving list are: Palmer Park, between Circle and Academy Boulevard; and the east segment of Cheyenne Road, between Nevada and Lake avenues.

To see the city’s interactive map of paving plans through 2027, visit: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/db395f7befa741aeb58346bfc5f390e6.

Some of those plans are considered tentative and subject to change.

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Rob Namnoum

The Pine Creek boys soccer team advances in the Class 5A playoffs. The Eagles defeated Arvada West 4-1 on Wednesday night. They will play Grand Junction on Tuesday.

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Rob Namnoum

The Classical Academy boys soccer team is moving on in the Class 3A playoffs. The Titans defeated DSST College View 2-0 on Wednesday night. They will play The Academy next Tuesday.

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Celeste Springer

FOUNTAIN, Colo. (KRDO) — A Fountain cat mom is issuing a big thank you to an arborist-turned-hero after her cat was stuck about 35 feet above the ground.

According to Tonya Towles, her cat Loki decided to climb a tree this week. Unfortunately for Loki and Tonya, the tree was not something one would describe as “small.”

(Courtesy: Mikaelle Towns)

Towles said she called the fire department and animal control with no luck. She posted on social media, and the next morning, many people tried (unsuccessfully for hours) to coax Loki down. There wasn’t a ladder long enough, or a “psp psp” enticing enough, to get the cat.

But then came Sean Stouffis with Arbor One Tree Services. Towles says Stouffis saw one of her posts on social media and knew he had the perfect equipment to rescue Loki.

“Within minutes of giving him my address, he was on his way,” said Towles. “He was kind, professional, prepared, and patient. He immediately geared up and got to climbing.”

Video shows Stouffis belaying down the tree with Loki in hand as the cat meows; KRDO13 could not confirm if Loki’s meows were ones of joy, or whether the headstrong kitty was dismayed that his act of rebellion was coming to a close.

Regardless, Towles says Stouffis comforted Loki all the way down. The cat is happily back home with family– just in time for National Cat Day on Oct. 29.

KRDO13 is always looking for heartfelt stories like this for our Absolutely Colorado segment. If you have a story idea, please click here to share it with us.

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Scott Harrison

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — City public works officials gathered Tuesday to reflect on the accomplishments of the 2C expanded street paving program.

Sub-freezing temperatures the past two nights arrive just as crews finish up the final projects on this year’s paving list; Tuesday’s gathering was along Flying W Ranch Road.

This marks the tenth year of the 2C program, funded by a sales tax increase approved by voters in 2015.

Former mayor John Suthers created the plan while campaigning for the first of his two consecutive terms.

While some voters thought that campaigning on a sales tax increase was political suicide, many others expressed a growing frustration with the countless potholes caused by streets crumbling from years of deferred maintenance.

In 2019, voters extended the tax for five years, and last fall, a ten-year extension passed by nearly a 3-to-1 margin.

Officials stated that in the ten years of 2C, crews have repaved 2,000 miles of lanes — nearly a third of the city’s streets.

During the next ten years, the city plans to continue its recent trend of increasing its focus on side streets, with 95% of future paving work to be in neighborhoods.

Other benefits of 2C include upgrades to the concrete framework along repaved streets — sidewalks, curbs, gutters, and ramps — to increase safety for pedestrians.

Still, some voters express dissatisfaction with 2C, feeling that it’s taking too long for their streets to be repaved.

“We do have the potential to possibly add streets or move streets again, depending on coordination,” said Corey Farkas, the city’s public works operations and maintenance manager. “But, we do ask people to let us know. Call us. Let us know. We’ve got other alternatives. If we can’t get to your road with 2C, within this particular program, we can make sure that it gets on the next program.”

As for potholes, The Road Warrior recently reported on the city hiring a dozen new public works employees who are taking advantage of recent dry weather to reduce the backlog of repair requests.

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Bradley Davis

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – The Pueblo Heritage Museum is inviting a professional ghost hunter on Thursday to give tours of the museum to educate about Pueblo’s history with a supernatural twist.

Gail Conners said she works to preserve history through storytelling and paranormal investigation. She educates groups on the history of the building she searches while teaching patrons her techniques and equipment for discovering spectral phenomena.

Museum manager John Wendt said they invited Conners to host the tours after multiple staffers reported ghost sightings and supernatural encounters.

One particular spooky and recurring instance is the manual door to the archive room closing behind the staff, locking them in the room.

The museum hosted a tour earlier this month. Wendt said it was so popular, they decided to do it again this week.

Thursday’s tours run from 6:30 to 9 p.m. It’s $20 and currently on a waitlist, but Wendt said they can probably squeeze in a few more people. He said he plans to schedule another tour in November to accommodate the demand.

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Rob Namnoum

The District 20 field hockey team defeated Smoky Hill on Tuesday night 1-0 to advance in the Class 4A playoffs. They will play Colorado Academy on Thursday.

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Rob Namnoum

Caroline Kerscher is the only senior on the Air Academy cheer squad and her teammates are planning on celebrating her on Friday night. The Kadet football team will play their final home of the season on Friday.

The cheer squad will wear custom Caroline shirts to celebrate her four years on the Kadet cheer squad. It is a genuine gesture toward Caroline, who has made quite an impact on all of the girls on the cheer team.

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Rob Namnoum

Air Academy High School was our week six winner of the Qdoba Friday Night Blitz Spirit Award. On Tuesday, the Kadet cheer squad received the Qdoba Friday Night Blitz Spirit Award plaque.

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Mackenzie Stafford

UPDATE: 10/29/2025 The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office has publicly released the victim’s identity as 38-year-old Jeremy Campbell. His photo is below.

38-year-old Jeremy Campbell was murdered while driving for Uber, deputies say. (Photo provided by Campbell’s family)

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – Arrest records are unveiling new details in the homicide investigation of an Uber driver.

EPSO arrested 27-year-old Khayla Dawson after an Uber driver’s body was found in a field near the Woodlake Trailhead. The trailhead is located near Hodgen Road and Eastonville Road.

El Paso County Sheriff’s Office

According to arrest records, the victim was reported missing by his family in the early hours of Monday, Oct. 27. His family told deputies that he drove for Uber, and it was not like him to disappear.

Deputies were able to ping his phone, which led them to a location near Polaris Junction apartments. There, deputies say they found his car abandoned with a significant amount of blood inside. They later located his cell phone in a stairwell of the apartment, records say.

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office says they were able to obtain information from Uber on his last ride. According to Uber’s data, his last customer was Khayla Dawson. Timestamp data said the trip began just before midnight, but was canceled by Dawson more than three hours later.

According to Dawson’s recounting of events, she “felt cooped up” and “wanted to get out of the house” and ordered an Uber. Deputies say she initially told detectives that she was going to visit a friend, but changed her statement later, saying she actually wasn’t going to visit anyone and just wanted to go for a “joy ride.”

Dawson said the Uber driver picked her up from her apartment at Polaris Junction. Deputies say she claimed she fell asleep in the car, and awoke to the Uber driver reaching back to sexually assault her. She says she stabbed him in self-defense, and the driver also had a knife.

According to arrest records, during the struggle, the driver accelerated through a barbed wire fence, ending up in a field. Deputies allege that she dumped his body in the field and drove his car back to her apartment.

During a medical evaluation, Dawson was found to have a broken knee bone, arrest records say.

Deputies went to search her apartment, and said there was a knife missing from a butcher block in her kitchen. A butcher knife matching this description, as well as a folding knife, were located in the field by the driver’s body, deputies say. Additionally, EPSO says they found the driver’s car key hidden inside a dryer sheet box in her laundry room, and also the driver’s wallet inside a lunchbox.

“We’re deeply saddened by this devastating loss. Our heartfelt condolences go out to the driver’s family during this incredibly difficult time. We have been in contact with law enforcement and are supporting their investigation in any way we can,” a spokesperson for Uber said.

Dawson is charged with 1st Degree Murder, Aggravated Robbery, Motor Vehicle Theft, and Tampering with Physical Evidence.

KRDO13 Investigates learned that Dawson is a former athlete with Olympic Dreams. In 2024, she competed at the USA Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, in the shot put. According to the Colorado Chapter of the USATF, she placed 22nd overall with a distance of 16.86m. The top three make the Olympic team.

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