It’s a classic growth story: longtime residents of a rural neighborhood in El Paso County find themselves up against a newly annexed subdivision of Colorado Springs.
The old-timers live in farmhouses on large lots with wells and septic systems and dirt roads. The newcomers live in new homes on paved streets enjoying city water, sewer and other services.
Here is an overview of the area:
Here is how the neighborhood looked before construction in a photo taken by Larry Larsen, city planner:
Scenes like this were common. Ski Lane residents Bill and Maureen Marchant drove their 1947 Ford 9N tractor to maintain the road. This view of is looking north on Ski Lane.
It’s not quite as idyllic on Ski Lane anymore. Construction has brought dozens of new homes just over the hill. And the hill has disappeared. If the Marchants tried to drive their tractor north today, they’d plow into a guardrail and over a 12-foot cliff created by developers.
Here’s a look from FlashEarth.com:
Neighbors are furious about the road being obliterated and say they are at risk because the new neighborhood configuration – and the loss of Ski Lane – makes it difficult for emergency services to reach them. They are served by Black Forest Fire Department from the north. Here is a look at the way things were:
Everything changed when Cumbre Vista developer Paul Howard’s crews started grading for the subdivision’s streets and sewers. Ski Hill was chopped in half, leaving a huge mess and a cliff where the road had been. Here’s a photo the Marchants took of construction:
Check it out from above in this view from FlashEarth.com:
Suddenly, Ski Lane ended and neighbors had to work their way west along Sorpresa Lane on a narrow, twisting road deemed too dangerous for postal employees to negotiate to deliver the mail.
Gilpin Peak Drive replaced Ski Lane north of the neighborhood. Here is what neighbors saw when they approached on Gilpin from the north:
City Planner Larry Larsen intervened on the county residents’ behalf when no one else would listen. He negotiated a compromise that included installation of the guardrail and widening of the turn required for emergency vehicles, and the neighbors, to reach Ski Lane. Here is how it looks, looking west down Sorpresa Lane:
Not only did they lose their access, residents of Ski Lane found their road wiped off the map. Here is a page out of the 2007 MacVan The Map Company map book. Ski Lane is gone:
The neighbors are in a court fight to re-establish their historic northern access route, arguing they have a deeded right of way to Ski Lane. A judge will decide if the new access created by Cumbre Vista developers is adequate or if a replacement for Ski Lane north must be created.
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First off, Ski Lane has been a road since 1956, when the surrounding land was divided up into parcels of land, and a Deeded Right of Way to Sorpresa Lane, Ski Lane and El Glen was created and granted to all adjoining property owners and their assigns FOREVER. Mr. Paul Howard (Infinity Development) purchased most of the land adjoining those 3 roads which gave him the same Deeded ROW as the remaining 6 Ski Lane property owners. The plans for the Cumbre Vista Development (Called Powerwood 3&4 at the time) were submitted in 2005. On the plans, the adjacent county portion is left blank. The grading plan showed the elevation of the new grade elevation lines but conveniently left off the elevation of the existing elevation lines. There was no way to determine how the new grade compared to the old grade. These plans were created and submitted to the City of Colorado Springs by Matrix Design on behalf of Infinity. No mention of existing ROWs were to be found anywhere.
While I definitely agree, the City should have been more careful in protecting the adjacent county residents, I believe Infinity deliberately omitted (hid) the fact that their development would be 12 feet lower than the adjacent county residents land, and that this 12 foot drop would happen to be on the residents ROW and by the way, would chop it off! Even the residents, could not have been able to discern the difference in elevation at that critical intersection of Ski and Sopresa.
I know for a fact that the residents repeatedly expressed their concerns (to Infinity and the City) about the future of Ski Lane because, being in the county, all of their emergency services (fire, ambulance, sheriff) come from Black Forest which is north of Ski Lane. They did not want their northern access to turn into a zig-zagging, complex, route through a development. I’m sure you’ve all gotten lost inside some of the developments in the Springs before.
From 2005, the residents tried at least 6 times, using 3 different avenues (phone, e-mail, personal visits) to get their county commissioner, Mr. Wayne Williams, to help. He NEVER ONCE got back to any of them. The residents bounced back and forth from City to Couty to City to County and back again. Each said either “I can’t help you, you’re in the County” or “I can’t help you, the road in question is in the city”. Finally, in 2006, city planner, Larry Larson, took up their cause.
Here’s the kicker – while the City was trying to sort things out i.e. address the residents concerns, the developer went on his merry way. In June, 2006 he closed Ski Lane “Temporarily” (stated in a note to residents the day before he closed it) and started moving dirt around. By the way, the grading plan was revoked in July, 2006. The City mandated to the developer to proceed at their own risk.
Imagine the surprise of the residents, when in May, 2007 the dirt movers cut a 15 foot deep ditch right across Ski Lane. They thought it was for Utilities until one of them (in the business of moving dirt) read a stake at the bottom of the ditch. It indicated the ditch was in fact, the new level of Sorpresa lane (intersects with Ski).
It was the plan of Infinity, to cut Ski lane down to meet the new level of Sorpresa. The residents were very strongly opposed to this hill down to Sorpresa. It would create a tunnel effect – It would create a snow collector – it would be washed away with each snow storm – it would be a dangerous intersection – It would create 3 cliffs!
The thing Paul Howard said the City forced them to do, was to leave what was left of the original Sorpresa alone – put a guard rail at the top of it, and create an access to the new Sorpresa. That’s what Howard was forced to do! The city would not let Howard grade down Ski to meet Sorpresa. Furthermore, the City will not let Howard proceed with Phase three of Cumbre Vista until the ROW issue with the residents is resloved. Howard’s solution? Sue the residents for quiet title – i.e. get the courts to take the ROW away from them.
By the way, Howard has never attempted to get any easements from any of the residents of Ski Lane. He was just going to TAKE what he wanted the same way he took the dirt away and lowered Sorpresa.
Also, the Sheriff has been called 3 times to Ski and Sorpresa. The first time, yes, they let us down because we argued the closing of Ski was, we thought, illegal. The Sheriff said it was a civil matter. The 2nd and 3rd times, the Sheriff did help us STOP Infinity from cutting Ski Lane down to Sorpresa.
There is tons more to this story, but I’ve spent, and yet more of my time on this mess. One more thing, I live on Ski Lane, and am one of the ones who has been fighting this fight for 2 years now. It’s caused more stress and grief and pain for me, my family, and all my neighbors. And now I have to contend with a law suit. I pray the court system will not let me down.