Colorado Springs city leaders tour damaged areas of Fountain Creek in Pueblo

Colorado Springs council members and Springs Utilities workers are walking a mile in Pueblo’s shoes.

Pueblo city leaders guided Springs leaders by checking out the damaged areas of Fountain Creek in Pueblo.

“I’ve driven by, I’ve actually come down and looked at it, but I done it from the interstate. It’s different when you walk down here and look at the significance of the damage,” Colorado Springs City Council President Merv Bennett said.

They got a dose of what Pueblo went through from the floods earlier this year.

“We wanted to make sure they understood what it was that we were going through, the impacts that happened when flooding does happen up north,” Pueblo Assistant City Manager of Stormwater Jeff Bailey said.

Colorado Springs leaders started the tour near 40th Street and Dillon Drive where they saw embankment damage and the debris that settled there.

The group then went to East 11th Street to see the damaged trails and embankments.

Bennett said he is more motivated to help Pueblo during the flood season.

“It’s making sure we protect our friends and neighbors both up in Colorado Springs, here in Pueblo and the Lower Arkansas Valley,” he said.

The most recent Springs budget show $19 million going toward a stormwater enterprise.

“The biggest thing is to work together and trying to find the best solution or solutions to help solve the erosion issues and a lot of the damage that it causes,” Bailey said.

Bailey said the floods on Fountain Creek earlier this year caused millions of dollars worth of damage to property.