Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers seeks re-election

Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers announced his plans to run for re-election Tuesday morning.

Suthers was elected mayor by an overwhelming majority in May 2015. Before being elected mayor, he served as Attorney General of Colorado from 2005 to 2015.

The Colorado Springs municipal election will be on April 2, 2019.

Suthers first revealed his plans on KRDO NewsRadio, then in an interview with KRDO NewsChannel 13.

“I set Labor Day as a deadline,” Suthers said. “That’s what I did four years ago. I had some more lucrative alternatives, but I really find meaning and purpose in this job. My health is good and my energy level is good.”

Suthers turns 67 this fall.

Among his biggest accomplishments during his current term are convincing voters to approve a sales tax increase for expanded road paving and passing a fee to finance stormwater projects.

Voters rejected a similar fee several years earlier.

Suthers also avoided a lawsuit against the city by Pueblo County regarding stormwater impacts to Fountain Creek. The city agreed to pay $460 million over 20 years — financed by the stormwater fee — for stormwater projects.

However, the Environmental Protection Agency stepped in and sued the city for past stormwater issues. The case will be heard starting Thursday in a federal courtroom in Denver.

Suthers said he wants to continue infrastructure improvements, downtown development — including major projects in the City For Champions concept — manage growth and reduce homelessness.