John Suthers reflects on first year as Colorado Springs’ mayor

It was a year ago that John Suthers, a former Colorado attorney general, began his first term as mayor of Colorado Springs.

Now, he begins his second year with two major accomplishments under his belt: a voter-approved sales tax increase to pay for five years of expanded street paving and the apparent end of a long-running dispute with Pueblo County regarding stormwater issues.

“I thank the voters for approving the tax increase and thank the City Council for its cooperation in getting a stormwater agreement done,” he said.

Suthers also mentioned the creation of more than 7,500 jobs and continued planning of the City for Champions project as positives during his administration.

Objectives for his second year in office include a continued effort to address homelessness, a plan to find money for city employee pay raises and a plan to build a new police substation to replace the existing station on the city’s southeast side.

“The existing station no longer meets our needs,” Suthers said. “A new station will cost between $10 million and $12 million.”

Dealing with growth in the city and finding a way to improve tourism marketing are two other goals Suthers mentioned during an interview Tuesday with KRDO NewsChannel 13.