At a Pueblo City Council work session on July 7, 2025, city Chief of Staff Brian McCain described a series of city updates, including a newly launched Pueblo Police Department "drones as first responders" program, an August neighborhood safety event, upcoming transportation planning meetings, a parks ribbon-cutting and results from a recent pothole blitz.

City context: The Pueblo Police Department went live with its drones-as-first-responders program on Friday, McCain said, operating initially within a roughly 2-mile circumference around the PMCJ. The program currently has two real-time crime center (RTCC) technicians trained to fly the drones; pilot training for RTCC technicians occurred on July 3. McCain said the department has received FAA waivers that allow flights up to 200 feet without an observer and that additional drone sites are planned on the East Side and South Side of town. Year two of the program is planned to expand to five drones to cover a larger portion of the city. The department will conduct test flights over the next two weeks before deploying drones in response to calls for service, McCain said. The city noted the Pueblo Police Department is the first department in Colorado to launch the program in partnership with Brink Drones.

Why it matters: City officials presented the updates as steps intended to increase public-safety coverage and community engagement while testing operational and regulatory limits. The FAA waivers and planned test flights are steps the department identified as necessary before operational deployment.

Other city items presented by McCain:
- Neighborhood safety night: The Pueblo Police Department and the Arkansas Riverwalk at Pueblo will host Neighborhood Safety Night on Aug. 2 from 4 to 8 p.m. on Allen Hamill Drive. McCain said the event will include community engagement activities.
- Transportation summit: The City of Pueblo, Pueblo County and the Pueblo Area Council of Governments (PACOG) will hold a regional transportation summit on July 9 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the San Gres de Cristo Art Center. The summit will present materials to support two planning efforts: a comprehensive safety action plan (CSAP) focused on roadway safety and a 2050 long-range transportation plan for multimodal priorities. Residents who cannot attend in person were directed to take online surveys through the city's website and social media channels.
- Parks slab reopening: Pueblo Parks and Recreation will host a ribbon cutting and grand reopening of a recently completed slab on July 31 at 1 p.m. McCain said the project included new murals and installations paid for in part by a $500,000 Colorado Lottery investment; the city said new lights, benches and backboards were installed and local artists completed mural work.
- Pothole blitz: Public Works completed a pothole blitz during the week of June (date not specified), deploying five crews that filled approximately 1,500 potholes and used nearly 11 tons of cold-mix asphalt across five days.

Legislative outreach: McCain said he has met with the Romeros and that council had received a budget outlook showing a gloomy state fiscal picture; he reported staff discussed pursuing legislative changes tied to a formula tied to "Prop 1 23 fixes" (term used in the meeting). McCain said, with council approval, the Romeros would begin outreach to the Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) to start drafting legislation. Councilor Martinez and Councilor Maestri verbally indicated support during the meeting; Councilor Flores did not object. McCain said he would give the Romeros direction the following day if council agreed.

What happened next: The department plans test flights over the next two weeks and will not use drones in response to calls until testing is complete and staff confirm operational readiness, according to McCain. The city encouraged public participation in the July 9 summit and announced the parks reopening event on July 31.

Ending: City staff provided handouts and directed residents to the city's website and social media for more information on events, surveys and timelines for the drones program and the transportation-planning efforts.