Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parks topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents urge council to spare Meadows Park Community Center as parks funding faces cuts
Summary
Multiple Southeast Colorado Springs residents and community leaders testified against proposed cuts that would close Meadows Park Community Center and reduce parks funding by double digits, saying closures would strip youth programs, food supports and safety nets from already under-resourced neighborhoods.
Several residents and community leaders told the Colorado Springs City Council that proposed 2026 budget cuts to parks and community centers would disproportionately harm Southeast neighborhoods and erase long‑standing local supports.
Carol Beckman reviewed budget numbers and said parks would face a 10.5% cut in the proposed 2026 budget while the general fund overall was down about 2.5%. Beckman said parks' share of the general fund declined from 8.4% in 2008 to about 4.4% in 2025 and would be roughly 4% under the 2026 proposal, creating a large maintenance backlog.
Joyce Salazar, executive director of RISE Southeast, said Meadows Park Community Center has long served as a trusted hub for children, mentors and families, and warned that closing the center would mean lost programming and fewer safe places for youth. "When those programs disappear, our kids lose more than activities," Salazar said. Emily Tamayo, a youth program specialist, said residents felt cut off from decisionmaking and urged more outreach to nonprofits who will bear the burden of service reductions.
Speakers offered local solutions. Trish Anderson said a neighborhood grocer (Bargain Mart) could help bring affordable food to the area and suggested maintaining a daytime police presence at the center to address rising gang and violent crime. Karen Fleming, a long‑time Meadows Park employee, emphasized that community centers are about "saving people" and urged restoration of funding and stronger partnerships with the city.
Council members acknowledged the public turnout and said the council must decide what level of service taxpayers want and how to pay for it. A council member noted staff layoffs and furloughs are already underway and that options discussed include referring revenue measures to the ballot; no final funding decision was made at the meeting.
The public comment period closed with the moderator adjourning the special meeting; council members signaled continued deliberation on the budget and potential next steps.
