Citizens Worried Parks And Transit Cuts

By: Mireya Garcia

COLORADO SPRINGS-It was a lively meeting Tuesday afternoon with City Council. Springs’ citizens talked about how budget cuts would affect lives.

The city budget wasn’t even on the agenda for the city council meeting, but that didn’t stop the concerned citizens who showed up this afternoon.

In order for the City Council to balance the budget, some major sacrifices were made. The means no more park maintenance, major cut backs on the bus schedule, and an unsure future for community centers for the upcoming fiscal year.

Lonnie Miera spoke at during public comments at the beginning of the meeting, he said, “this is not fair to the seniors, to low income, families, foster and single parent families…and they are hitting everybody like that.”

Another major concern was the severally reduced public transit schedule. The people who spoke out against the transit cut backs said the council’s proposal would leave people jobless and stranded at home.

Ed Billings asked the Council why the City is punishing bus riders. He said, “we depend on those buses so we can get to our jobs.”

June Waller is a member of the Black Round Table, and she said community centers aren’t being given enough time to find alternative funding.

Under the proposed plan, community centers will only be given three months of funding, and they would have to come up with the rest of the nine months in funding on their own.

The Mayor said that he and the other City Council members would be willing to help the community centers get private funds but that they couldn’t extend the 90 day deadline for them to come up with the funds.

The city budget will be finalized in two weeks.