Courier View Pikes Peak
Pikes Peak 3.20.13
Teller County, Colorado • Volume 52, Issue 12
Commissioners lean toward prohibition By Pat Hill
Carrie Weeden, administrative assistant in the sheriff’s finance department, receive high praise from her boss, Sheriff Mike Ensminger, along with the five-year service employee award. Looking on is Commissioner Marc Dettenrieder. Photo by Pat Hill Because the state is mandated to adopt regulations and establish an excise tax by July1, commissioners Marc Dettenrieder, Paul and Norm Steen are caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. “There is the opportunity to rescind the ordinance,” Fetrow said. Several members of the audience argued against the prohibition. “Amendment 64 states that the first $40 million of tax revenue will go to improve our schools,” said Woodland Park attorney Michael Slivka. “The Department of Revenue is moving rapidly to set up the required infrastruc-
ture.” Slivka then threw a verbal dart. “We should not allow ignorance and fear to continue to be exploited by those with a political or financial stake in continued prohibition,” he said. Charles Houghton, an attorney in Colorado Springs, urged the commissioners to ease the transition for owners of medicalmarijuana establishments who want to sell recreational marijuana. “I hope you will recognize that these people have spent Prhibition continues on Page 5
Ideas abound for farmers market Nonprofit of the year and probably the most consistently successful event to hit Woodland Park, Farmers’ Market is evolving to include a feasibility study by consultant Aaron Zaretsky. “Public markets tend to be places where all kinds of different people come together on common ground to rub shoulders, feel safe and secure in an exciting environment,” said Zaretsky, speaking to a group of residents including the market’s founders Earlynn Cowman, Judy Crummett and Lois Sill. “Woodland Park is a terrific farmers’ market; people really love it.” While the study is in progress, Zaretsky made suggestions for “tweaking” the market: ● Add indoor space to counteract the mountain weather patterns. “The goal, or the mission of the market, should be to provide a place where people shop, week in and week out to
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RE-2 seeks new principal Deeper budget cuts than planned might become necessary nengelberg@ourcoloradonews.com
It was only the first reading of an ordinance that prohibits anything to do with recreational marijuana in Teller County but the commissioners appear to be leaning toward approving the prohibition in the future. “We’re in a position where the federal government has a law that says `this substance is controlled, aka, illegal,’” said commission chair Dave Paul at the meeting March 14. “The Controlled Substances Act needs to be repealed or amended on a states’ rights’ basis.” Jan Fetrow, senior planner with Community Development Services Department and her staff recommended denial of the ordinance. This, despite the document’s recognition that President Barack Obama recently stated that marijuana issues would not be a federal priority. “Nonetheless, as a complex and novel issue, this topic will remain at the forefront,” states the ordinance, in part. The complexity stems from Colorado voters’ approval of legalizing recreational marijuana, which is in direct contrast to federal-government laws. In Teller County, 51.5 percent approved the measure in Nov. 2012. The county’s proposed ordinance deals with recreational marijuana and leaves in place regulations regarding medical marijuana in Colorado. “We have four medicalmarijuana establishments in the county and they won’t be affected at all,” Fetrow said.
phill@ourcoloradonews.com
75 cents
By Norma engelberg
phill@ourcoloradonews.com
By Pat Hill
March 20, 2013
buy fresh food,” he said. ● Add a commercial kitchen to provide a place for “celebrity” chefs to do demonstrations “Have the market provide a nutritional label including branding, marketing and help with distribution,” Zaretsky said. ● Have more products represented. ● Offer a one-third split among current, experienced and new business vendors ● Find a way to attract out-oftowners, particularly, among the 600,000 people who live in Colorado Springs On the other hand, in a town of around 7,000 people, more than half visit the market every Friday in the summer. “That’s extraordinary; the market is beloved by the people who shop there,” Zaretsky said. “Markets reflect what’s unique about a community.” Product displays as well as the market environment are critical to the success of any market, he said. “A function of the public market should be to bring in people who can help the vendors create displays
The Woodland Park Farmers’ Market is one of the most successful events in the recent history of the city. The market was founded by Earlynn Cowman, Judy Crummett and Lois Sill. File photo that look, smell and feel wonderful,” Zaretsky said. “One way to do that is to have people producing food products, baking bread, making chocolate or roasting coffee. You walk in and are assaulted by the visuals, the eye candy.” For the budding entrepre-
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neur out there, Zaretsky offered a teaser that capitalizes on a natural resource. “Find someone who can establish a trout farm and have them develop a cottage industry, smoking, packaging and making some kind of trout spread with cream cheese,” he said. “Create an environment that is sensuous, makes people hungry and do the worst thing they could possibly think of, parting with their money.” In addition to offering a gathering place for the community, markets are economic drivers. “There is nothing you can do in the way of economic Farmers Market continues on Page 5
Summit Elementary School Principal Eric Owen moving on at the end of the school year and Woodland Park RE-2 School District hopes name a new principal by April 26. At the March 13 RE-2 board meeting, Superintendent Jed Bowman and Assistant Superintendent Linda Murray talked about their recent meeting with Summit staff and parents to see what they want in a new principal. “They really just want Eric to stay,” Bowman said. “We’re all sad to see him go.” Next fall, Owen will be the new principal at Mountainside Elementary School in Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8. Bowman also reported on two school finance bills. A new school finance bill, Senate Bill 13213, has been presented at the General Assembly by Sens. Michael Johnston and Rollie Heath and Rep. Millie Hamner. “This bill is a complete replacement of the (School Finance) Act of 1994,” Bowman said. “I’m not clear on all of its provisions but I believe that if it passes districts, such as ours, whose mill levies are less than 25 mills will have to ask voters for an increase or lose funding. …Our district would probably lose $750 per child.” The forecast under the state’s current school finance bill also isn’t as good as he hoped it would be. “We’ve been hearing generally positive news all year and now the state is saying something else,” Bowman said. “We thought we would be receiving an additional $220 per pupil but now the estimate is only $120 per pupil.” Because of the district’s declining enrollment, even with the full $220 per pupil increase, budget cuts were in the offing. “We’ve gone from $500,000 in cuts to $800,000 in cuts,” Bowman said. “I’m really tired of this…I’m frustrated…I’m a little bummed out.” School Psychologist Adric Arndt reported on proposed changes to the district’s preschool program. Each elementary school in the district has three half-day preschool sessions four days a week. He is proposing that one of the half-day sessions be changed into a full-day session, five days a week. This change is needed because several local childcare facilities have closed, he said, adding that the state only allows the district a set number of preschool slots. If the new school finance act is approved as submitted, schools will be allowed to enroll all of the 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old preschool pupils who apply but they would still only be funded as half-day pupils. “We’re hoping a full-day preschool program will help us to retain more students for kindergarten,” Arndt said. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for April 10.
Summit Elementary School Principal Eric Owen knows how to get into the fun side of education. Here he is dressed up for a school Halloween party. Photo by Norma Engelberg