john suthers
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Merv Bennett, former member of Colorado Springs City Council and longtime YMCA leader, has died
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Merv Bennett, a former member of Colorado Springs City Council and a major force behind the growth of the local YMCA, died Saturday after a long illness, former Mayor John Suthers said. Bennett was 77. “Our city has lost one of its finest citizens,” Suthers said in a statement. “Merv Bennett’s love for Colorado Springs…
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Colorado Springs officials already preparing for ‘near certain’ mayoral runoff
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Before ballots for the nonpartisan April 4 municipal election have even hit residents’ mailboxes, city officials are already preparing for the likely possibility that two candidates will head for a showdown in May as they campaign to become Colorado Springs’ next mayor. With 12 candidates in the crowded running to succeed Mayor John Suthers, who…
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‘A mistake was made’: Calls grow louder to reverse 2019 law that lowered penalty for fentanyl possession
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The deaths of five Commerce City residents, reportedly due to overdoses tied to fentanyl, prompted lawmakers on both sides of the aisle at the state Capitol to call for changes in state law Tuesday, with some calling the law that eased penalties for drug possession a “mistake.” “Clearly a mistake was made” to lower…
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Gov. Jared Polis, lawmakers, law enforcement officials announce public safety bill package
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Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday unveiled a $113 million public safety package designed to take Colorado from the middle of the pack to one of the top states in the nation for public safety. Ahead of the package’s rollout at a Thursday state Capitol news conference, Polis in a Wednesday interview told Colorado Politics his…
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Law enforcement groups withhold support for Polis’ public safety pitch, although they back other parts
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Three of the state’s largest law enforcement groups told Gov. Jared Polis in a letter Thursday that proposals pushed by Democrats in the legislature – which he has signed into law – have contributed to soaring criminality in Colorado and made prevention more difficult. The new laws, the coalition said, have collectively prioritized offenders “over victims and…
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Sharp divisions over criminality, economic relief underline first day of Colorado’s 2022 legislative session
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Democratic and Republican legislators offered sharply divergent diagnoses and solutions to Colorado’s most pressing challenges when the second regular session of the 73rd Colorado General Assembly convened on Wednesday at the state Capitol in Denver. Marking the opening day ceremonies, leaders from both chambers delivered speeches that highlighted their common ideals -a safer community, quality…
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Garnett, McKean share goals, but sharply differ in solutions to crime, inflation
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The top Republican and Democrat in the state House shared the same goals – a safer community, quality education and economic relief for Colorado’s nearly six million residents – but sharply differed in their diagnosis of the challenges and the solutions they want the state to adopt. Marking the opening day of this year’s legislative…
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COVER STORY | Hot Topics of the 2022 General Assembly
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With 2022 an election year, lawmakers traditionally back off a bit from introducing controversial bills. That’s why they have approved some of the biggest measures of the past six years – oil and gas reform, Colorado option, climate change and greenhouse gas – in odd-numbered years when they worry less about voter reactions at the ballot box. Will…
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Amazon buys Colorado Springs Airport site for massive distribution center, 1,000-plus jobs coming
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Gazette reporter Wayne Heilman describes Amazon’s plans to open a huge distribution and sorting center across from the company’s delivery station in Peak Innovation Park, the business park owned by the Colorado Springs Airport. Securing its future in the city, Amazon has bought land at the Colorado Springs Airport where it will build a 4-million-square-foot…
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PERSPECTIVE: A fight to lead our cities: Councils and mayors battle for control
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Denver City Council members increasingly exude hostility toward a longstanding system that authorizes an elected “strong mayor” – now Democratic Mayor Michael Hancock – to run the city’s day-to-day operations. The council serves in a traditional legislative role, never hiring or firing key staff members or telling them how to do their jobs. The push…
