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Archive for the 'Public Communications Office' Tag

Landlord: Bach gives public ‘greater voice’ at Utilities

October 16th, 2012, 9:19 am by

The people of Colorado Springs have a “greater voice” on issues involving Colorado Springs Utilities since Mayor Steve Bach came into office.

That’s the gist of an email that a Colorado Springs landlord sent to the city’s Communications Office Tuesday morning.

“We live in Georgia for now, and I wish I was there to review the CSU budget and speak up about CSU budgets in front of Council.  When I lived there, we made an effort, but CSU was always stronger than the public comments and typically got what they wanted,” Marge McCarthy said in the email.

“From what I have read about the Strong Mayor, and the new transparencies, I think the public has a greater voice,” she said.

The Communications Office shared the email with The Gazette and other print media.

“I know that there are some print folks writing about Utilities issues right now, so I just wanted to pass (it) along,” city spokesman Jarred Rego said in a telephone interview.

Here is the full text of the email:

Bravo!

Even though I don’t live in CS right now, we own a home there that we rent.  We wrote into our lease that we will pay 30% of water during the summer months in an effort to keep the tenants watering the lawn.

We live in Georgia for now, and I wish I was there to review the CSU budget and speak up about CSU budgets in front of Council.  When I lived there, we made an effort, but CSU was always stronger than the public comments and typically got what they wanted.

From what I have read about the Strong Mayor, and the new transparencies, I think the public has a greater voice.

In August, I came back to get our home ready for new tenants.  For about 3 weeks in August, we placed utilities in our name and the bill for 3 weeks was just under $400.  It was quite a shock, but somewhat expected.  The September portion of WATER ONLY from the tenants’ utilities bill is $170, that is water only. (I wish we could xeriscape more, but the appeal is to have a yard that is user friendly, so that is what we have…bluegrass.)

Anyway, CS always used to boast about low utility costs, but somewhere along the line that went out the window.  I would love to have the opportunity to review the CSU budget and find savings, but I don’t live there right now and doubt anyone would listen to me from Georgia, even though we plan to move back someday.

I am grateful to Mayor Bach for being a Strong Mayor. The moniker fits and I like the changes that I have read about.

Carry on,

Marge McCarthy

 

Posted in: City Administration • People • Utilities • • • • | 9 Comments »

City seeks communications specialist

June 13th, 2012, 10:40 am by

UPDATE: This blog post has been updated with new information.

Three months after two employees in the Communications Department were sent packing for “budgetary” reasons, the city says it is hiring a senior public communications specialist in that office.

The job pays between $56,388 and $70,476.

“The Communications Division at the City of Colorado Springs is not adding a position,” Chief Communications Officer Cindy Aubrey said in a message.

“Unfortunately, Mary Scott, will be leaving us to take a teaching position – a transition she has been working on for the last few years. We will miss Mary and we wish her well in her new teaching job.”

According to the job posting, the new employee “must be a dynamic, creative individual who brings a spirit of innovation and re-invention to the City Communications Department.”

“You will perform research and analysis using a variety of resources to craft appropriate media messages, write press releases, opinion editorials, and other materials and work with members of the national, regional, and local media to share City stories; identify proactive opportunities for media outreach; coordinate media conferences; track and analyze media coverage trends on key issues of interest; and assist with all scheduled City / Mayoral events. Responsibilities also include writing/editing web material; responding to press inquiries; public outreach opportunities; and working closely with crisis communications team.”

Click here to read the entire job posting.

Posted in: Budget • City employees • • • • | 7 Comments »

Attention bicyclists: Sharrows will be discussed tomorrow

May 23rd, 2011, 11:04 am by

Mary Scott at the city’s Public Communications Office just issued the following news release:

The Bicycle Advisory Committee, a sub-committee of the Citizens Transportation Advisory Board, will hold its monthly meeting tomorrow, May 24, at the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services administration building at 1401 Recreation Way.

The meeting begins at 5:30 p.m. and is open to the public. The draft guidelines for Shared Lane Markings will be discussed as part of the agenda.

Go to www.springsgov.com/sharrows for more information and to view the draft guidelines.

According to that website:

Shared Lane Markings (sometimes called sharrows) are street markings that are installed in some locations on streets as an awareness tool to serve two main purposes:

Provide guidance to bicyclists as to where they should ride on a shared roadway as in away from the open door area of parked cars; not weaving in and out of traffic; riding with traffic, not against it; not riding on sidewalks, etc.

Alert motorists to the possible presence of bicyclists, set expectations as to where the bicyclists will be riding, and as a reminder to share the road.

Posted in: Meetings • • | 1 Comment »

City blocks request for letter from Culbreth-Graft

April 23rd, 2010, 11:29 am by

The city doesn’t want to give up the letter that former City Manager Penelope Culbreth-Graft sent to City Attorney Patricia Kelly last week asking for a $105,000 payout.

Immediately after learning of the letter’s existence yesterday, The Gazette requested a copy.

Apparently others did, too, because city spokesman John Leavitt e-mailed a response to two others essentially denying the request.

The city’s reason?

The letter — get ready for this — isn’t “readily available.”

The city may also be invoking attorney-client privilege.

“We are aware of your recent requests about a letter from Ms. Culbreth-Graft to City Attorney Pat Kelly,” Leavitt said in the e-mail.

“The materials are not readily available and may be privileged in any case,” he added. ”As soon as any information is available, we will let you know.”

Posted in: City Administration • Colorado Open Records Act • • • | Post a Comment »

City asked for $50,000 to keep homeless in motel rooms

April 21st, 2010, 12:19 pm by

Two months after passing a law to get dozens of homeless people out of highly visible ramshackle camps, the City Council is considering spending $50,000 to put them up in a motel.

Homeward Pikes Peak is requesting $50,000 from the city and hoping to get $50,000 more from the county to continue to pay for motel rooms for the homeless, said Bob Holmes, executive director of the local coordinating agency for homeless services.

“It would be used to fund keeping these individuals at the Express Inn,” he said.

“This is not the Antlers,” Holmes added, referring to the downtown Hilton. “They are three to a room, same sex, and they’re required to go out and look for work. They have to show anywhere from one to five employment contacts a day based on their ability.”

Even if the city and the county contribute $50,000 each, Holmes said he expects to need at least an additional $50,000 to rent motel rooms until “sometime after Labor Day.”

But after that, he said, the program has to end.

“This was for emergency, short-term help,” he said.

“We are really making a strong effort to let people know that this is not forever,” he added. “This is a few months more, and you’ve really got to get moving, get a job, get your benefits. Do whatever you need to do, but make a plan.” 

Holmes said a $100,000 grant from the El Pomar Foundation that the agency has been using since mid-February to rent rooms at the Express Inn on Cimarron Street will dry up by the end of May, prompting him to ask Mayor Lionel Rivera for financial assistance.

Holmes said he asked Rivera for $100,000 to match El Pomar’s grant, but Rivera suggested the city provide $50,000 and the county pitch in $50,000 more.

“My request to the county is based more on the fact that we’ve cooperated with (two separate) no-camping ordinances to make them seamless across the city and county,” Holmes said.

“I think it would be, for lack of a better phrase, a preventative maintenance investment for the county to help us as well,” he said. “The homeless individuals who cannot attain self-sufficiency are a problem for all citizens, whether you live in the city, whether you live in the county.”

Rivera did not immediately return a call for comment today.

But city spokesman John Leavitt said the mayor sent the Public Communications Office a note this morning asking that an item be added to Monday’s informal agenda.

Leavitt said the item on the agenda is listed as “no-camping ordinance impact on homeless service providers and request for funding.”

Holmes said the transitional housing at the Express Inn has been effective. He said more than 70 homeless people have found jobs and more than 80 have returned to where they came from.

“I’m hoping to spend less (money) in the second three months because we’ve moved so many people either back home or to self-sufficiency through employment,” he said.

Posted in: Budget • City Council • • • • | 9 Comments »

City apologizes for putting out ‘misinformation’

August 31st, 2009, 4:56 pm by

The city today acknowledged it was responsible for providing “misinformation” that caused some City Council members to unfairly criticize The Gazette on Friday.

It all started Thursday when the always helpful Public Communications Office e-mailed the news media a copy of the agenda for Friday’s special council meeting.erase4a

“We have received numerous calls today regarding tomorrow’s special City Council meeting,” city spokeswoman Sue Skiffington-Blumberg said in the e-mail. “As a courtesy, we are attaching the published agenda.”

Although the city initially publicized the meeting as a public hearing, the agenda didn’t indicate that the council would take public testimony, prompting a call for clarification.

City spokesman John Leavitt called City Attorney Patricia Kelly for answers.

“I checked with Pat Kelly,” Leavitt said in a voice mail message. “There is not a public comment portion of the meeting. It’s really just to consider the documents and to approve the documents. I’m glad you checked on that…You probably saved us all.”

Based on the information provided by Leavitt, it was reported Friday that the public wouldn’t get a chance to weigh in before the council took a vote. (The print version of the story didn’t include Leavitt’s quotes.)

A few council members were less than pleased with the story.

“Jerry Heimlicher and (Vice Mayor) Larry Small calling,” Heimlicher said in a voice mail message.

“We’re kind of curious where in the world you got the information that … the public won’t be allowed to talk before we vote because that’s totally false. You’ve done, I think, an injustice to the community by putting that in there because it is a public hearing in the normal sense. That’s why we scheduled it,” he said.

During the 1 p.m. meeting, Heimlicher reiterated his concerns and wondered whether the meeting should be rescheduled.

Mayor Lionel Rivera told him the meeting had been properly noticed.

“I have learned over the last two months that you cannot believe what you read in The Gazette,” the mayor said from the dais. “They frequently get bad information or choose not to print a correction. I think maybe the public might be used to that.”

No one from the Public Communications Office stood up during the meeting to offer any clarification, and Kelly was mostly mum. Kelly told the council there may have been “a little bit of confusion” because it was the first time she had put an agenda together and she hadn’t specified that there would be a public hearing.

“That may have led to some confusion,” she said.

At 3:08 p.m. today, Skiffington-Blumberg sent an e-mail apologizing for the “misinformation.” She copied the City Council in the e-mail.

“I believe my office owes you an apology,” she said in the e-mail.

“You were told by John Leavitt that City Council would not be taking public comment during their special meeting August 28, 2009.  The City Council did, in fact, plan to take public comment. John Leavitt had been told the meeting agenda would be council discussion and a vote. He shared that with you in good faith as next steps in the process.   I left a message for you the morning of August 28th attempting to correct the misinformation you were given, but it did not make it to you in time to be posted online. The Public Communications Office strives to provide reliable, accurate information to our media partners.  In this case we did not accomplish that goal.  Please accept my apology.”

Posted in: City Council • • • • | 1 Comment »