Many neighborhood streets not included in plowing plan

Many drivers and homeowners in Colorado Springs are eager to have their streets plowed but hundreds of streets are not part of the city’s plan.

According to a map provided by the city, those streets are considered private and are not maintained by city crews. Most of the affected streets are only a few blocks long and lead into subdivisions.

The map shows city streets in black and private streets in red. To see the map, visit: https://coloradosprings.gov/sites/default/files/public_works/streets/files/snow_map_r-grids_-_public2.pdf.

Some of the affected streets are in the new and growing Gold Hill Mesa subdivision, located on the city’s southwest side — including the main entrance off 21st Street.

Several homeowners there are disappointed, hoping city plows would clear snow in the neighborhood. A private contractor plowed the area but some homeowners said they’re dissatisfied with the quality of the work.

“Driving around town, this seems like the worst street to be driving down right now, right here in our own neighborhood,” said Paul Gambill, a resident. “So yes, it is a concern.”

Bob Willard, the developer of Gold Hill Mesa, said people don’t understand the difficulty of snow removal during and after a storm that left at least a foot of snow.

“At the time we did (this) development, the city did not have equipment that was narrow enough to work on these streets,” Willard said. “So we had no choice but to do our own internal snow removal.”

Willard said he is reconsidering the situation because the city now has equipment that would be effective in the subdivision.

In many instances, contractors or homeowners’ associations are responsible for plowing on private streets. But occasionally, such streets aren’t plowed at all.

KRDO NewsChannel 13 is waiting on a response from the city on whether there are exceptions to the policy. A Gold Hill Mesa resident said he saw a city plow in the neighborhood on Thursday evening.