A debate Wednesday over establishing a new addiction treatment center in southeast Colorado Springs brought out both skeptics and supporters of the proposed reuse of a former hotel.

The New York-based behavioral health network Aspen BHC asked the Colorado Springs Planning Commission to approve a development plan that turns the Holiday Inn Colorado Springs Airport on Aeroplaza Drive into a facility for substance abuse and mental health treatments.

The proposed reuse for the hotel was controversial after it was announced in July because the building is roughly a block away from Panorama Park and a half-mile walk from Bricker Elementary School. The city’s staff report on the application said it received a “high volume of comments” from neighbors worried that the treatment center would increase crime in the area.

The Planning Commission approved the plan 5-0 late Wednesday morning, with four voting members of the commission absent from the meeting.

Aspen’s CEO Chris Foster said that in the past 15 years, there has never been an incident where someone staying at one of Aspen’s treatment centers left and committed a crime in the area.

“If safety is a concern, I’m here to tell you it shouldn’t be. I take pride in what I do, and everything I do is built around safety, compassion and competence,” Foster said.

Medical facilities such as an outpatient treatment center are allowed by the zoning for the site, so the question to the Planning Commission was solely about the redevelopment plan.

Foster’s presentation showed the design of the building would largely remain the same once it was converted. The top three floors of the building will have residential beds for up to 88 people going through the rehabilitation process. An additional 44 beds would be on site to help people with other mental health issues in addition to their addiction.

Foster said the center would start by focusing on the patients who have already gone through a 30-day treatment plan and are voluntarily seeking a place to continue their recovery. The focus reassured the owner of the neighboring Holiday Inn Express, who told the Planning Commission he supported the proposal.

Aspen hoped to expand to more outpatient and drop-in services around the end of 2026. Several of the planning commissioners said they would like to get a chance to weigh in again if that happened because it would change the dynamic for the area.

Six people spoke against the project during the Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday, including RISE Southeast Executive Director Joyce Salazar and Pastor Anthony Grier from True Spirit Baptist Church.

Most of the opponents said they needed more evidence that the treatment center wouldn’t pose a risk to neighbors or families visiting Panorama Park. Some residents worried a drug treatment facility would stigmatize the area and affect other improvements being sought by the Southeast Strong neighborhood plan.

“Placement is everything. Just because a facility is possibly going to go under does not mean you just throw anything in the neighborhoods there, where people have worked so hard to make their area a safe space,” Grier said.

Residential addiction recovery center proposed in southeast Colorado Springs – Colorado Springs Gazette

Another half-dozen people who are in recovery for addiction spoke in favor the project. Derrek Villagrana, a local recovery peer coach for addicts, said that a structured treatment center would help to address some of the ways southeast Colorado Springs has been impacted by drug addiction.

“When individuals heal, our neighborhoods heal too. I am living proof that recovery is possible. I went from being part of the problem to part of the solution,” Villagrana said.

Wednesday’s vote is the final decision unless a resident appeals the approval of the development plan to the Colorado Springs City Council.

Aspen BHC’s website also listed a center in northern Colorado Springs in the ‘coming soon’ section.