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Volunteers reporting on community issues in Monument, Palmer Lake, and the surrounding Tri-Lakes area

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Articles from Vol 24 No. 2 - February 3, 2024

Northern El Paso County Coalition of Community Associations (NEPCO), Jan. 20 – Group hears from law enforcement officials

By Marlene Brown

The Northern El Paso County Coalition of Community Associations (NEPCO) held its bi-monthly meeting on Jan. 20. NEPCO’s purpose is to serve and be an area-wide point of contact for interaction with local government and agencies regarding land use matters that impact member associations and their residents. NEPCO’s area of interest is bordered on the north by the county line, on the east by Meridian Road, on the south along Northgate Boulevard to Highway 83, and west along the ridgeline of the Front Range.

NEPCO has over 50 members of homeowner associations (HOAs), which represents over 10,000 homes and over 20,000 registered voters. Cherry Creek Crossing is the newest member HOA to join NEPCO.

Board President Mike Aspenson announced that the Land Use Committee chair is open. Current Committee Chair Bob Mooney is retiring but is available for training anyone that is a member of an HOA. They will be able to run and update the spreadsheets and files that coordinate with the county Planning Commission using EDARP (epcdevplanreview.com), which is a database of current land development projects in the county that is available to the public and the Monument Planning Commission. For more information, interested parties should email president@nepco.org. No experience needed.

Beth Lonnquist, chairman of the Wildfire Preparedness Committee, Red Rocks Ranch Home Owners Association, explained that January is the time to begin planning wildfire mitigation. Contact the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Protection District dba Monument Fire District (MFD) for a chipping date. The chipping is free for HOAs. MFD will send two firefighters and chipper truck. They will man the truck, and the homeowners need 10-12 volunteers to get small trees and brush ready for the chipping day and to feed the chipper. To sign up your HOA for chipping day, go to www.monumentfire.org.

Wildfire Neighborhood Ambassador training class is coming Feb. 21-March 27 online. This year’s six modules will be presented by Fire Adapted Colorado for free to residents of neighborhoods that already have established slash chipping programs and want to build more depth in their Firewise volunteer group. For information, call Lisa Hatfield 719-339-7831 before Feb. 14.

Guest speakers—law enforcement

Undersheriff Jeff Kramer spoke on behalf of the county (EPC) Sheriff’s Office. It is the largest sheriff’s office in the state, with 542 sworn personnel and 336 professional staff. EPC is the most populous county in Colorado. The office also runs the EPC Jail, which is like a small city. As of Jan. 20, there were 1,100 inmates in the jail. On any given day there are 100-200 inmates that must be transported to court in downtown Colorado Springs. The officers have mental health and crisis intervention training. There are 11 school resource officers working for the office that are contracted and are placed in county schools.

County areas are divided into districts. Northern District 1 is Woodmoor, Gleneagle, Monument and Palmer Lake. District 2 is Black Forest and eastward. District 1 has 11,200 houses with goals of call response times of 15 minutes for one car and 20 minutes for two cars depending on the call priority. Black Forest has a 20-minute response time and Falcon 20-25 minutes.

The Town of Monument’s new police chief as of May 9, Patrick Regan, is working to hire five more officers. The officers would include two to be hired this year, two more would be school officers and one would be a detective. Plus, more are needed as supervisors. Regan has over 23 years in leadership and training positions. He moved here from Arizona and mentioned the crime rate is very low in the Tri-Lakes area compared to what he is used to.

Woodmoor Chief of Police Kevin Nielsen spoke next. Woodmoor has eight sworn officers. They work in collaboration with Monument and Palmer Lake police and the Sheriff’s Office. They have a Missing Persons Officer, Kelly Fisher, and two resource officers at Monument Academy. Most of their calls are criminal trespass and vehicle break-ins, smash and grab, porch pirates, and mail theft. Nielsen said to be sure to lock up your cars and if there was no mail in your box you might be a victim of theft.

Be sure to sign up for Peak Alerts, and in event of an emergency messages can be sent via text, phone, email, or mobile app. See https://elpasoteller911.org/246/Peak-Alerts.

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NEPCO meets every other month, and the next meeting is scheduled for March 9, 10 a.m.-noon at the Woodmoor Barn, 1691 Woodmoor Dr., Monument. For more information regarding membership and future meetings, go to www.nepco.org

Marlene Brown can be reached at marlenebrown@ocn.me.

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January Weather Wrap

By Bill Kappel

For the second consecutive year, temperatures were below normal and precipitation was above normal in 2023. This continued the trend around the Palmer Divide so far this winter and hopefully will continue into spring. The month started off warmer than normal and ended warmer than normal, but most days in between were cold and unsettled.

After a quiet first three days of the month, a period of cool and snowy conditions moved in. This produced measurable snowfall each day from the 4th through the 8th. During the period snow wasn’t continuous but off and on each day, accumulating 6-10 inches for most of us.

In the middle of the month, a strong blast of Arctic air invaded the region and most of the country. High temperatures reached 40F on the afternoon of the 9th, but that was the last time we reached above freezing until noon on the 16th. This is an extremely long time frame for us as even in very cold outbreaks we usually scour out the cold air within a few days and westerly, warming winds kick in.

However, this time, the cold air mass was deeper than normal and had a couple of reinforcing surges. Westerly winds never materialized until the end of the event. Temperatures reached the teens and 20 below zero on five consecutive nights from the 13th through the 18th. During the period, snowfall wasn’t heavy, partly because the air was so cold, but we managed to pick up 2-4 inches over the period.

Mild conditions moved in quickly behind the departing cold air, with highs reaching into the mid- and upper 40s on the 17th and 18th. A quick shot of cold air and light snow moved in overnight on the 18th and kept temperatures cold on the 20th with highs in the low 20s. Once again, mild conditions moved in quickly, with high temperatures 30 degrees warmer than the day before, hitting the low 50s. Temperatures remained slightly warmer than normal over the next week, with highs in the 40s each afternoon from the 21st through the 25th.

The final storm of the month began to affect the region during the early evening of the 25th. However, this storm was of Pacific Ocean origins, and this meant relatively mild conditions. Temperatures were only slightly below freezing during the event, producing heavy, wet snowfall that felt more like April than January. The relatively warmer air mass was also able to hold higher levels of moisture, and this resulted in some quick accumulations, with the storm producing 4-7 inches from the evening of the 25th through the morning of the 26th. After this system departed, mild temperatures returned to the region to end the month. Highs moved through the 40s on the 27th to the 50s from the 28th through the 31st, a bit of a January thaw before we head into our snowiest months of winter.

A look ahead

February is often a transition month as we move from the dry and cold conditions in December and January toward relatively warmer and wetter conditions of March and April. Precipitation averages around an inch with just over 20 inches of snow expected and average high temperatures in the 30s. It can get very cold in February with Arctic air making brief pushes into the region. However, days begin to get a little longer, which leads to some nice, sunny days, and the snow that does fall begins to melt faster.

January 2024 Weather Statistics

Average High 40.1° (-°) 100-year return frequency value max 48.4° min 30.8°

Average Low 13.4° (-0.2°) 100-year return frequency value max 26.6° min 6.6°

Highest Temperature 58° on the 14th

Lowest Temperature -21° on the 15th

Monthly Precipitation 0.91” (+0.28” 39% above normal) 100-year return frequency value max 1.56” min 0.01”

Monthly Snowfall 16.4” (+”, 10% below normal)

Season to Date Snow 58.1” (+5.3”, 10% above normal) (the snow season is from Oct 1 to Sept 30)

Season to Date Precip. 0.91” (+0.20”, 22% above normal) (the precipitation season, Jan 1 to Dec 31)

Heating Degree Days 1257 (+160) 1097

Cooling Degree Days 0

Bill Kappel is a meteorologist and Tri-Lakes resident. He can be reached at billkappel@ocn.me.

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Letters to Our Community – Thank you

From those of us who walk around Monument for exercise, to shop, etc., thank you to the churches, businesses, and individuals who clear their sidewalks after snow events. It is a safety issue and keeps us from having to walk in the streets. A special thanks to St. Peter Catholic Church for completely clearing the sidewalks around its buildings and property immediately after snow events. It is very much appreciated.

Joyce Lash

Click here for Guidelines for Letters

Disclaimer: The information and opinions expressed in Letters to Our Community are the responsibility of the letter writers and should not be interpreted as the views of OCN even if the letter writer is an OCN volunteer.

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Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Celebrating the classics in 2024

By the staff at Covered Treasures

“A classic is a book that has never finished what it has to say.”—Italo Calvino

Classics are available for readers of all ages and stand the test of time. They are well worth revisiting (or reading for the first time) as we all move forward into 2024.

The Grapes of Wrath

By John Steinbeck (Penguin Classics) $18

First published in 1939, Steinbeck’s Pulitzer Prize-winning epic of the Great Depression chronicles the Dust Bowl migration of the 1930s and tells the story of one Oklahoma farm family forced to travel west to the promised land of California. A portrait of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless, of one man’s fierce reaction to injustice, and of one woman’s stoical strength, the novel captures the horrors of the Great Depression and probes into the very nature of equality and justice in America.

The Secret Garden

By Frances Hodgson Burnett (Harper Collins) $10

This gorgeous paperback includes Tasha Tudor’s iconic illustrations, an extended author biography, activities, and more, making it the perfect collector’s edition or a wonderful gift for young readers. When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle’s great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. The gardens surrounding the large property are Mary’s only escape. Then, Mary discovers a secret garden, surrounded by walls and locked with a missing key. With the help of two unexpected companions, Mary discovers a way in—and becomes determined to bring the garden back to life.

Stuart Little

By E.B. White (Harper Collins) $7

Stuart Little is no ordinary mouse. Born to a family of humans, he lives in New York City with his parents, his older brother George, and Snowbell the cat. Though he’s shy and thoughtful, he’s also a true lover of adventure. Stuart’s greatest adventure comes when his best friend, a beautiful little bird named Margalo, disappears from her nest. Stuart is determined to track her down and ventures away from home for the very first time in his life. He finds adventure aplenty. But will he find his friend? Whether you curl up with your young reader to share this book or hand it off for independent reading, you are helping to create what are likely to be all-time favorite reading memories.

West with the Night (A Memoir)

By Beryl Markham (North Point Press) $17

If the first responsibility of a memoirist is to lead a life worth writing about, Markham succeeded beyond all measure. Born Beryl Clutterbuck in the middle of England, she and her father moved to Kenya when she was a girl, and she grew up with a zebra for a pet; horses for friends; baboons, lions, and gazelles for neighbors. She made money by scouting elephants from a tiny plane. And she would spend most of the rest of her life in East Africa as an adventurer, a racehorse trainer, and an aviatrix—she became the first person to fly nonstop from Europe to America, the first woman to fly solo east to west across the Atlantic.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

By Betty Smith (Harper Perennial Classics) $19

From the moment she entered the world, Francie Nolan needed to be made of stern stuff, for growing up in the Williamsburg slums of Brooklyn, New York demanded fortitude, precocity, and strength of spirit. By turns overwhelming, heartbreaking, and uplifting, the Nolans’ daily experiences are raw with honesty and tenderly threaded with family connectedness. Smith has created a work of literary art that brilliantly captures a unique time and place as well as deeply resonant moments of universal experience.

A Wrinkle in Time

By Madeleine L’Engle (Square Fish) $9

Late one night, three otherworldly creatures appear and sweep Meg Murry, her brother Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin O’Keefe away on a mission to save Mr. Murray, who has gone missing while doing top-secret work for the government. They travel via tesseract—a wrinkle that transports one across space and time—to where Mr. Murray is being held captive. There they discover a dark force that threatens not only Mr. Murray but the safety of the whole universe. A Wrinkle in Time is the first book in Madeleine L’Engle’s Time Quintet.

Until next month, happy reading.

The staff at Covered Treasures can be reached at books@ocn.me.

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February Library Events – Adult Reading Program begins; tax assistance available

By Harriet Halbig

The Monument Library’s Winter Adult Reading Program began on Feb. 1 and will continue through March 31. Enroll online at ppld.org or at your local library and log reading and other activities for 30 days to win prizes. Attendance at selected library programs also count as activities. Please see the website for details.

Free assistance in tax preparation is available for those who earned less than $60,000 in 2023. Appointments for help are available beginning in February. Locations include Library 21c and East at the northern end of Colorado Springs.

Vitalant Blood Donation (formerly Blood Systems) will administer a blood drive on Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please contact Jean Carrier at the library at 719-488-2370 to register.

The Tween Dungeons and Dragons club will meet from 4 to 5:30 on March 1. This club welcomes those ages 9 to 12.

Harriet Halbig can be reached at harriethalbig@ocn.me.

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