People living near Pioneer Park have bear concerns

A man who lives on the outskirts of Pioneer Park in Pleasant Valley says bears have been running rampant in his neighborhood.

Tim Campbell, a resident of Panorama Drive, sent KRDO videos that show the large animals frolicking in the area over the weekend.

Campbell says he wants people who live in the area to be bear aware, especially for their children.

“Most people might just think they’re over in the mountains,” Campbell said. “We have kids right across the street, and those bears walked across here in broad daylight. If kids aren’t aware, or they just think it’s cute, they might get too close.”

We spoke to Colorado Parks and Wildlife officer Corey Adler, who oversees the Pleasant Valley neighborhood. Adler says that with only six officers and a whopping 450 calls in the El Paso County area since April, they can’t make it everywhere.

However, Adler still urges people to report any kind of bear activity.

“Even if it is just a sighting, we could put a dot on a map, that way we can keep track of where these bears are,” he explains.

Adler says the bears could be visiting the area for a number of reasons and can often be found “hiding” in creek beds and drainage ditches.

There’s a drainage ditch just a few houses down from Campbell’s residence.

When it comes to combating the bear activity, the city is considering a plan to roll out bear-proof trash cans. Right now, it’s unclear if a decision has been made, and in which neighborhoods the mandatory bear-proof trash cans would be implemented.