City council president hopes to defend seat in District 3

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Colorado Springs City Council District 3 covers the Southwest part of the Springs including downtown, Old Colorado City, west to Gold Camp Road, and south to border Fort Carson.

Richard Skorman

Colorado Springs City Council President Richard Skorman is looking to fend off three opponents in District 3 as he runs for his fourth term. Skorman was elected to two previous terms from 1999 to 2006. He was most recently elected in 2017.

“This will probably be my last run for any office, but there's several really important issues that I want to make sure are moving forward before I hang up my hat,” said Skorman.

Skorman said fire mitigation efforts are at the top of his list after the Bear Creek Fire burned too close for comfort.

“Boy, we could have lost Cheyenne Canyon,” said Skorman. “We could’ve lost some of the Broadmoor. It’s very, very scary. I think that we can be much more prepared. We have the ability to do much more mitigation.”

The small business owner runs Poor Richard’s, Old Richard’s, and Rico’s with his wife. Skorman said urban development, homelessness, and affordable housing are also important to him. With several incumbents up for re-election, Skorman suggests voters take their experience into consideration when casting ballots on April 6.

“It think it’s important for me and maybe a couple of the other incumbents to be there just to have the ability to move things along quicker,” said Skorman.

Olivia Lupia

District 3 native Olivia Lupia is running on a platform of transparency and accessibility. The 25-year-old Cheyenne Mountain High School graduate promises to listen to District 3 residents.

“I have gotten to grow up as the city has grown up,” Lupia said. “I represent a fresh voice, a fresh face. And who better to kind of lead the charge in the city’s next phase than those of us who are going to inherit it and become good stewards of it?”

Lupia describes herself as a constitutional conservative. She says her highest priority is listening to voters' voices.

“It’s actually one of the biggest problems I hear in talking to every constituent,” said Lupia. “And it’s that city council doesn’t listen, which then encompasses a whole bunch of practical problems. So city council doesn’t listen to the way this district wants to handle homelessness. It doesn’t listen to the way this district feels about development.”

If elected, Lupia plans to educate Colorado Springs residents about local sex trafficking.

“You can’t call it public service without truly serving the public, even on the issues that aren’t pretty to talk about.”

Arthur Glynn

The military brought Arthur Glynn and his family to Colorado Springs about 15 years ago. 

“We saw that people were genuinely happy,” said Glynn. “And over the last several years, we’ve kind of seen some of that magic that we know as Colorado Springs dissipate.”

In order to bring that so-called magic back, Glynn said it’s important to make sure residents are properly represented.

“Part of the reason for running is to see if we can retain some of the values that brought us here in the first place,” said Glynn.

If elected, Glynn said wants to focus on what’s causing homelessness in District 3. And unlike incumbent City Council President Skorman, Glynn is strongly against legalizing recreational marijuana in Colorado Springs.

“We are just starting to see the implications of the devastating effects that marijuana has had on our society…particularly high THC levels,” said Glynn.

Henry McCall

Henry McCall’s run for city council stems from a January encounter with Colorado Springs’ current council members. McCall says he presented the idea of a one-year moratorium on residential rate increases to the city council. After being shut down, McCall decided he would be the best candidate to protect residents’ best interests.

“How we can help people, is when they don’t have any money, don’t raise their rents, and don’t increase their utility bill,” said McCall. He referenced a recent city council vote that will raise utility rates for CSU customers.

McCall said he briefly served on the city council in Northern California in the early 1980s. He then spent 25 years in Texas before moving to Colorado Springs City Council District 3 five years ago to be closer to family.

“I feel I will be elected,” said McCall. “I feel I’m the best-qualified person. I don’t feel any of the incumbents are worthy of being re-elected.”

McCall believes eliminating Colorado Springs’ city sales tax would entice more people to shop local and help the economy rebound. McCall also supports a $15 per hour minimum wage increase.

KRDO Newschannel 13 is in the process of reaching out to council candidates in districts 4, 5, and 6.

Meet Colorado Springs City Council District 1 and District 2 candidates.