Drake Power Plant stays for now

The Colorado Springs utilities board voted to keep the Martin Drake Power Plant’s current generating system. But they’ll fund a study in the 2013 budget that will look at retiring the plant.

The debate on whether or not to keep the plant has been ongoing, with critics saying its downtown location hurts business.

City leaders have looked into other options, but now, especially after the financial hit of the Waldo Canyon Fire, some wonder if this is the right time to take action.

“Yeah, it’s an eyesore. Do you want it in the middle of downtown? Of course not,” said Council President Scott Hente. “But do you get rid of it? And do you get rid of it at some degree of expense? And if you do get rid of it, how do you replace that electric generation capacity? That’s not cheap either.”

Hente says you also have to look at some of the plant’s positives, like its reliability and cost effectiveness.