Mayor Steve Bach said Wednesday he will not support a proposed 105-mile cycling event called Tour of Colorado Springs this year, raising doubts about whether or not the event can get off the ground without the mayor’s support.
“My concern in the present instance is I don’t see a plan. I still haven’t seen a plan,” Bach said during the Mayor’s Counsel Meeting.
Organizers said the proposed June 30 event could generate between $2 million and $3 million for the local economy and draw up to 2,000 cyclists to a course that would make a 105-mile course around Colorado Springs.
“It’s a very interesting idea,” Bach said. “I’m just concerned about we don’t have enough time to make sure it’s well organized as it should be, that we’ll have reasonable liability risk. We can never have zero liability risk, but reasonable. We just feel we need to take a more strategic approach to this.”
Steve Cox, the mayor’s chief of economic vitality and innovation, said he met with the promoters Wednesday morning.
“What I told them this morning is we’re not going to support that from a (city) staff perspective,” he said.
Dave Csintyan, interim CEO of the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Corp., said he didn’t know “where the sticking points are” but that the chamber aligned with the event because it was an economic vitality engine for the region.
“I also respect the fact that when you’re asking the public sector to come alongside of you, all the t’s have to be crossed and the i’s dotted, so that remains to be seen where the issues are,” said Csintyan, who was at the meeting.
“And I didn’t hear in there that council was going to align with the mayor. They may still pursue it,” he added.
Csintyan said he didn’t know whether the event could go out without the mayor’s support.
“I haven’t closed the door,” he said.
David Whitaker, of Spectrum Marketing, which is organizing the proposed event, could not immediately be reached for comment.
When organizers pitched their idea during a council meeting last week, Bach indicated he would support the event. Organizers were asking the city to provide as much as $89,000 in police, fire and traffic control services.
“I kind of set you up inadvertently at the last meeting because I served up the subject and then didn’t say, ‘By the way, I’m not supporting it,’” Bach told council members.
“Now I’m not supporting it today.”
Cindy Aubrey, the mayor’s Chief Communications Officer, said on Facebook: “What the Mayor is not in support of is spending taxpayer dollars on this event. He said he did not want City funds covering the costs.”
During the meeting, Bach said the city needs to look at private partnerships and that the cycling event may be better suited for 2013.
“You talked about raising money, Tim, thank you very much,” Bach said, referring to Councilman Tim Leigh, an avid cyclist.
“I’d feel a whole lot better about something like this … if we had some financial partners in the mix,” he said.
This should be a privately funded event. No public funds whatsoever!
Of course he won’t support it. It will generate between $2 million and $3 million for the local economy and draw up to 2,000 cyclists and he’s penny wise and pound foolish like the rest of his ilk.
With the current state of Colorado Springs streets, they would have to use mountain bikes…
Wow..good old Bach..gets better everyday…AHOLE
A small investment by the public in an event open to the public and taking place on public streets is well worth it if it brings millions of outside revenue into the city.
FPC I love comments like yours, considering the very Internet you post on wouldn’t have existed without public funding.
…in the words of Roger Rabbitt, “…whattamaroooon!”
Zen..I pay for my internet access. Just like I pay for all things “I” use. If you want to see a bicycle event, you pay for it. I don’t need ro pay for your goodtimes. I’m glad you like my comments! I can always find time for beggers and whinners…just won’t PAY for you beggers and whinners!
This city is dependent on sales tax to pay for services like roads, community centers, park maintenance, public safety, etc. We need them delivered effectively and efficiently but we need money coming in. Anything that can help our local economy shouldn’t be so easily dismissed. I’d rather spend 68,000 on an event that could and most likely would help our city rather then continue to pay more consultants to investigate old news like USOC, past employees, settle frivolous lawsuits, etc. Money is going out from the city all over the place, that’s the reality. It’s just going to cleaning up messes rather then positive changes for our city.
It would create havoc with traffic throughout the area and judging by local so called snow storms we haven’t even begun to handle those effectively. Our local PD and sheriffs office would probably request we go to “cold calling” because of the bike race.
Bill Gates had no money when he started up Microsoft – in fact, he sold IBM an operating system he had not even created.
But he had VISION.
I would have to agree with Councilwoman Czeltadko: Spend the 89,000 to make 2 million? The fact that there is no planning – - John Kennedy had no plan when he said we would go to the moon in one decade. We did. And came back. (Armstrong real happy about that part)
Perhaps being less of a gutless city with no vision – someone from out of state could be brought in to organize and ‘plan’ the event on a cost plus basis with pay coming out of the proceeds and no up front money.
Leave the mayor to organize some fingerpainting events.
I think we should vote Bach out and Cindy Aubrey in as Mayor, Cindy Seems to know alot more about what the mayor means when he’s speaking before he should.
More back peddling
Bach is not good for Colorad Springs
Lilithia
Ms. Czelatdko,
You lost me when you state, ” spend 68,000 on something that could and most likely
would help our City”… I
don’t know where you practice your financial risks but your comnent is why Government is broke. You spend money and don’t KNOW where the money comes from or goes with economic philospohies like “could and most likely would”. You are a Councilperson, you mean you don’t KNOW? Listen, if I went to my Financial Officer and told him/her if I spend 68,000 it could and most likely would save us something and it may even help our Quality. I would be laughed out of the office/meeting. Every dollar I spent in my Corp world had to be accounted for on an absolute ROI. YOU ARE A PUBLIC SERVANT! You didn’t just lose my support for this Cycle event…you just lost my vote in your next election! Get a grip!
The Colorado Sp Visitors Bureau has figure of about $135 per visitor per day.
2,000 x $135 = only $270,000 not the $2-3 million claimed!
Spectrum Marketing? Did I miss it on the Colorado Secretary Of State’s Business page, couldn’t find it.
It is interesting when you hit this story on the Gazette – or are on the net at your email or website – the algorithms designed to tract what we are looking at or typing about – - bring to the right side of the page all kinds of ads on bikes – biking gear – bike races in other areas – even ads for lawyers lest you fall off your bike. Big business that other areas are capitalizing on.
When I first started coming here in the 1950′s – it was a neat little tourist town with an army base. It is now 2012 and is is still a little tourist town with an army base. Little bigger. No more economically viable.
With no real industry – no manufacturing – not being a transportation hub or center for research and development – - would it be of any benefit to put a little into promotion and start taking advantage of the USOC being here to draw attention to the area as a sports mecca?
Maybe draw even more events – some manufacturers of sports equipment – maybe even a bike manufacturer? The $89,000 is less than some SUV’s. Thanks to a time when we had a real director of economic development, there is a fair start on becoming known as a data and IT center. Good location. No earthquakes – no tsunamis in recent history – no hurricanes. Safe physical environment with many unemployed. Could be a good thing to boost the economy
The sports angle could be run at the same time. The LPG brought in some green. The last bike race brought in some green.
if bach and his stooges can’t get in on some of that money they want no part of it. the race to the getto is on for our poor village.
Everybody makes money on this EXCEPT the city – who picks up the tab for extra police costs, etc.
How about having the organizers ask their sponsors to pick up these costs?
Once again, Bach proves how short-sighted he is. The man has no vision for this city at all.
He doesn’t understand that bringing this event here opens the door to bringing in more events, and also for making this event bigger. It won’t happen in one year, but it will happen. More events=more $$$. Bigger events=more $$$.
Even worse is that the “economic vitality” guru doesn’t get it. Of course, when he’s collecting $180K/year and a fire chiefs pension, I guess HIS economic vitality is just fine.
boomer49, that was Bugs Bunny, not Roger Rabbit.
…And you call yourself a “Boomer”… smh.
To recover the cost of the Cities investment of 68,000 the event on it’s own merit would have to bring 3.6 Million dollars of spending. The sponsor only wanted to carry a 1M dollar policy to protect the City from law suits. As I basically said on the Feb. 13th during Informal Council…I can not spend general fund or reserve dollars on this type of event for 1500 possible cyclist to come to our city during our peak tourist season without a guarentee of getting a return on investment. Every day of the year 450,000 citizens ask for more or better public safety, transportation and improved streets/infraastructure and we tell them no.
I have been working to get Council to put a process in place to deal with OUT OF BUDGET cycle events. These events need to be throughly vetted before I give taxpayer dollars to an event. I need one more vote to move forward – so far Tim, Lisa, Brandy and myself have said yes…could you guys get me one more councilmember to want to have a process in place to be sure your precious tax dollars are spent wisely and thoughtfully?
Thank you Angela for your stewardship of the taxpayer dollars. ROI is the indice we want to embrace, not feel good ” wishes and hopes” from ill equipped organizers who want to proceed based upon bogus and unsubstantiated projections of revenue. These proponents od the event should produce a reasonable and vetted business plan to support their guarantees. We don’t spend tax dollars on “probably” and “might”
…that is how people who spend other peoples money want to execute. I applaud you Angela, for your due diligence and attention to details!
Richard Skorman……………..