COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — The Downtown Partnership presented a one-year progress report on the "Clean and Safe" initiative to Colorado Springs City Council Monday, with leaders pointing to cleaner streets and reduced reliance on police as early signs of success.
Businesses have responded positively to the program, which launched with the goal of making Downtown Colorado Springs more welcoming.
Program officials said their own security teams have handled most issues, with the Colorado Springs Police Department called only a handful of times over the past year.
Downtown Partnership CEO Chelsea Gondeck said the first year served as a learning experience.
"We launched this as a pilot program to figure out what makes sense for our city and... we've seen some successes to date," said Gondeck. "We've seen some challenges, and we're really looking at what is the opportunity to carry this forward to make sure that downtown is clean, safe, welcoming, and walkable."
Gondeck also said a one-size-fits-all approach is not effective for addressing the issues Downtown faces.
"There's not just one avenue to address the issues that we're experiencing Downtown, but rather, you know, it takes a village," said Gondeck. "It takes all sorts of resources in order to make sure that Downtown is thriving and vibrant."
The program still faces criticism. Councilmembers Dave Donelson and Brandy Williams questioned whether penalties for low-level offenses are enough to deter crime.
The partnership also acknowledged an ongoing struggle to connect people experiencing homelessness with the services available to them.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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