The Manitou Music Foundation turned 5 years old in September 2023! Itâs been a good ride, despite the bumpy road the pandemic created for two of those years. We are engrained into the Manitou Springs and the Old Colorado City communities. MMF is very much a community organization of musicians, music fans, workshop attendees, local […]
Compared to planned neighborhoods like the North End and post-war planned suburbs from Bonnyville to Briargate, Old Colorado City and the historic Westside neighborhoods that surround it are a hot mess. The houses, the streets, the architecture and the landscaping have never been constrained by high-falutinâ planners. Streets abruptly curve, dead end and loop around […]
Itâs staggering how much difference a year makes. Itâs been almost a year since the Pikes Peak Bulletin was brought under the umbrella of Sixty35 and most of the content was shifted online. In todayâs world, it made sense. After all, most news is consumed on some kind of digital device and it seemed to […]
On Tuesday, Dec. 19, our City Council voted unanimously (three times!) to sign contracts on behalf of Manitouâs beloved Carnegie Library. With the hiring of the architect, construction company and ownerâs representative, the final pieces are in place for the expansion and ADA-compliance of the Manitou Springs Carnegie Library! Itâs a true Christmas miracle! That […]
At this time 12 months ago, everyone involved with Creative Alliance Manitou Springs thought 2023 would bring all kinds of challenges and opportunities. Looking back now over the past 12 months, those expectations were on target. For those who need a primer, the Creative Alliance â or CRANE, as the organization likes to be known […]
Small local newspapers were abundant in 19th and early 20th century Colorado. Every town, however small, boasted its own weekly or semi-weekly. News, gossip, cheerful advertisers and compelling stories kept them afloat. Few survive. Many, including the Colorado City Iris, the Colorado City Argus (1909-1921), the El Paso County Democrat (1906-1921) and the Colorado Springs […]
On a bright and cheerful morning last week, I drove a few blocks from our Westside house to the Old Colorado City History Center at 1 S. 24th St. It’s an all-volunteer organization, so it’s open only 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Over the years, the OCC History Society has published/sponsored several books about […]
The latest gigantic downtown high-rise apartment building scheme debuted a few days ago, and was duly saluted by a front-page headline in our daily newspaper. It’s a fascinating read â both in size, amenities and cost, the 36-story building is a big city project. In effect, the builders are bidding a not-so-fond farewell to what […]
A little more than a year ago, the Buena Vista football team suffered an upset loss to Colorado Springs Christian in the Class 1A playoffs. What wasnât published at the time was that several players were missing because they violated the student-athlete code of conduct â a code very similar to the one found in the […]
The demise of the Colorado Springs branch of the Tattered Cover was sad but predictable. Downtown Colorado Springs has long been graced by spirited, friendly and locally owned bookstores, while the Tattered Cover had morphed from a single Denver bookstore to a wannabe regional chain. We Westsiders are happy to have Westside Stories on Colorado […]
Unlike our Manitou Springs neighbors, we who live or do business in Old Colorado City or the Westside donât have agency. If our overlords in Colorado Springs want to meter parking in formerly free OCC lots and help themselves to the cash, too bad for us. If traffic to the mountains clogs residential roads, thatâs […]
We have a plan for sustainability that will take us in into the future. I am excited to welcome you all to the new Pikes Peak Bulletin. I live here, just like you, and I am inviting you â readers, residents and visitors in Manitou Springs, Old Colorado City, Cascade, Chipita Park, Green Mountain Falls […]
By Judy Carnick Iâm thinking (as I often do these days) of our Carnegie Library. Did you know that less than half of the 30-plus Carnegie Libraries that were built in Colorado are in existence today? Did you know that, originally, Manitou Springsâ Police Department was located in the Manitou Springs Carnegie Library? The Carnegie […]
After the Ides of March, when the collapse of Sixty35 Media led to a forced exodus of employees and contributors, it seemed that weâd all have to change careers. Local newspapers have been shutting down throughout the country, and none are hiring. As a person of a certain age (hint: thatâs when the first digit […]
For more than a century, spanning the cityâs 150-year history, Manitou Springs has had a newspaper to call its own. It was actually the Manitou Springs Daily Journal for decades until 1933, then a weekly for the 90 years since, mostly as the Manitou Springs Journal and Pikes Peak Journal operated by the Graham family, […]
Simple ways to help alleviate climate change To the editor and the community: As you may know, many human activities have caused an increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, causing the climate to shift. Between fossil fuel emissions in the atmosphere, deforestation and agricultural activities, the problem is only getting worse. Itâs been reported […]
School District 14 is no place for bullying To the editor: Hello, I am a student at Manitou Springs School District 14 and I have been very disappointed at the school recently. Over the past couple months, I have noticed an increase in bullying. I myself have been bullied, and a friend of mine as […]
by CailĂ©an Anderson After owning and managing restaurants for 22 years, Jamie and Alisa Young opened Toasted, their cafĂ© in the heart of Manitou Springs, in May 2022. Before coming to Colorado, the couple had lived in Albuquerque and their businesses in the area â the Stella Blue music venue, Sandia Crust gourmet pizza, Rockinâ […]
Many thanks to the kind people of Manitou Dear big-hearted community: After two years off due to COVID-19, we werenât sure how successful our 12th annual Warm Clothing Drive would be, but once again our wonderful community came through with tons of coats, boots, hats, gloves, sweaters, socks and other warm clothing to give away […]
According to the CoPIRG (Colorado Public Interest Research Group) Foundation, âColorado is not moving fast enough to improve recycling and composting. In the fifth year of the âState of Recycling & Composting in Colorado Report,â Eco-Cycle and CoPIRG found Colorado is failing to meet its recycling and composting goals and remains one of the 20 […]
