What are the allowed flying times at the civilian and military airfields? Having flown both military and civilian, I know almost all runways have curfew hours as a compromise between operations and noise problems. Jets fly from the city’s airfield after 10 p.m. or before 6 a.m. several times a month. Is that normal?
- Ed Herlik
John McGinley, the airport’s assistant aviation director — operations and maintenance, replied: “The FAA has to approve any curfew imposed by an airport, and it is a very complicated process. An airport curfew involves a federal law that was adopted in 1990 through the Airport Noise and Capacity Act which sets standards, studies and cost benefit analysis to be submitted to the FAA for review and approval.
Curfews imposed prior to 1990 were allowed to be grandfathered.
 

“An additional complication involves our grant assurances through the FAA Airport Improvement Program, or AIP, which state that we have to provide access to air carriers on reasonable and not unjust terms. Is it normal for an airport of this size to have a noise curfew? I would say no.”
“While most people are familiar with the airline operations at COS, they may not be as familiar with the other types of flying.
“At COS, most of the military flying happens during the day or in the evening, but not all of it.

“There will always be a few military missions that require late night flights. While there aren’t many of these, they are critical to the missions performed by the local military installations.

“On the civilian side, there are a number of cargo and charter operations that operate at night. They provide a broad range of services, including passenger charters, freight services, document deliveries and small package services.

“These services are time-sensitive, and are often dependent on night operations to ensure next-day delivery of services.”

Why is there not a crosswalk where all The Broadmoor employees exit on the road as it transitions from Lake to Mesa going along the northern side of the hotel - by the cleaners - to the clear doorway in the wall surrounding the employee lot?
At the same time there is one about 100 yards farther up the road to the north by the last roundabout, which is not only unused, it leads into a solid wall of the hotel’s employee parking lot. It has been this way for months, and with the Senior Open soon upon us, should be corrected, for both safety and sanity.
- John
 Terry McHale, director of facilities at The Broadmoor, said, “We petitioned the city in order to get a crosswalk by the Broadmoor Cleaners, and they are taking our request under advisement. We are hopeful that our request will be granted, as it is a high-traffic pedestrian area. The crosswalk that is located at the north end of The Broadmoor, near the last roundabout, is used by residents and other pedestrians. Although no employees utilize the crosswalk, it is essential to have a place where our neighbors can safely cross the road.”

THE NEW DEAL: A number of readers responded to requests for local photos and history of the WPA/CCC/New Deal era. Now it’s time to party. The 75th anniversary celebration will be kicked off at 5:30 p.m. May 8 at the historic Colorado Springs City Auditorium, 221 E. Kiowa St. The auditorium has murals that were painted as part of the WPA projects. The program starts at 6:15 p.m. and features “President Franklin D. Roosevelt,” and Kathy Flynn, Executive Ddirector of the National New Deal Preservation Association. Reservations should be made by May 6 to Amy at aprice@springsgov.com. The sponsor is the Pikes Peak Arts Council.

 I have a neighbor who refuses to pay for trash service and takes huge bags to Wal-Mart late at night. A friend said an elderly woman loads up her car and dumps it at his apartment complex every weekend. Isn’t this illegal?

- Mary P.

Yes indeed, it’s illegal. City Code 9.6.104, “Unlawful use of property of another,” says it is unlawful for a person to use the property of another without permission. This could be a big surprise to those trying to get something for free: penalties are as high as $500 and 90 days in jail. NEW

In The Broadmoor area there are several streets where non-fixed signs have been placed along the road that indicate parking is prohibited.
These are public streets and it is unclear to me whether the placement of the signs is legal and if this has been sanctioned by the city.
- Paul F. Eckstein
No and no. The signs are not “city standard” and are not enforceable, according to principal city traffic engineer David Krauth. His department is working with property owners to have the signs removed.

Colorado Springs is home to a unique interpretation of geologic history, the Geologic Column in Monument Valley Park conceived of by General Palmer and executed by Van Diest in the early years of 1900.
This column interprets the geologic history of our area with rocks taken from the canyon behind Glen Eyrie. The old El Paso Canal, which brought water from Fountain Creek to the reservoir at what is now Boddington Field, also provided water for a waterfall or cascade adjacent to the Geologic Column. The major flood of 1935 and Utilities cutting off the El Paso Canal in 1956 ended the water supply for the cascade.
If anyone has photos or memories about the years when there was a waterfall, please consider taking your photos to the Pioneers Museum where they could be donated or photographed and returned to you.
If you have stories or memories, please send to jricejon@gmail .com. Plans are under way to restore and interpret this feature unique in its conception to Colorado Springs.
- Judith Rice-Jones
Readers, here’s an opportunity to share your memories of the Geologic Column and the waterfall.

I wonder, what’s up with the plastic tent on the corner of Union and Vickers? My guess is it’s utility work (phone/electrical/cable) that someone forgot to take down. It’s been there for months.
- Greg Leikam
 Instead of Colorado Springs Utilities, it belongs to Qwest.
Some Qwest equipment was damaged in January, possibly when it was hit by a vehicle.  Jennifer Barton of Qwest says the equipment is being relocated, but they had to file for a right-of-way and are awaiting approvals. The tent will protect it until then.

Having the opportunity to walk west-side residential neighborhoods last summer, we have noticed many homes whose perimeter fencing along the sidewalk has a concrete barrier, some poured, some block, some stone in which the fence posts have been poured, mostly 6-8 inches wide and 4-12 inches tall. Walkways leading to the home from the sidewalks are free of this bordering so it would not have been to keep water out of the yard. It seems a very expensive “garnishment” to homes in what were “blue collar” neigborhoods at the time the area was developed.

- Tom Courtney, ex-resident

You’re seeing remnants of the El Paso Canal, which ran through this area. City founder Gen. William Jackson Palmer’s Colorado Springs Co. built the 11½-mile irrigation canal to bring water from Fountain Creek through Colorado City and the west side to provide water to Colorado Springs. He bought water rights along the creek in the early 1870s and the canal operated for more than 80 years. The beginning of the canal was Fountain Creek and 33rd Street, behind the Red Rocks Safeway. It ended in Evergreen Cemetery. The water was necessary in this semi-arid area as Palmer and his company were selling prime residential lots near Colorado College, downtown and what became the Old North End.
It was officially the El Paso Canal but had also been called the not-so-glamorous City Ditch. By 1956, Colorado Springs had metered water and the free water from the canal was discontinued. There are still concrete vaults covering parts of the canal, some of them along North Wood and Cascade avenues.

Throughout town we see red collection boxes (usually at the outer edges of a parking lot) marked in white lettering: “CLOTHING SHOES.” Two such locations: On Union Boulevard between Palmer Park Boulevard and Constitution Avenue, in the parking lot on the east side of the street and at the edge of the gas station close to the Navajo Hogan on Nevada Avenue. There is no indication who/why/what. Are collected items intended for certain recipients? Or are those in need (or want) able to take from the contributions?
- Colleen

 It’s a business: U’SAgain. The main office is in Chicago and it operates in 10 states, including Colorado. Marlene Ceja, director of community relations, said, “We’re doing our part to recycle and to save limited landfill space. Through our program people can recycle clothes. Textile recycling is a big need.” Some clothing is sent to be sold in low-income countries. Some goes to a rag company and the rag-making process “is really interesting to watch,” said Ceja. Some clothing is recycled into insulation for car doors, stereo speakers and inside caskets. Part of what is earned goes to U’SAgain but the company also has a fundraising program for schools, nonprofits and churches, Ceja explained. “It’s an educational tool and a way to have additional funds come into their program.” U’SAgain provides the tools and the organizational set-up, she said. Groups host events and learn about textile recycling. The bin sits at their location and the group is paid by the pound, receiving quarterly checks. In 2007 groups received a total of $250,000, Ceja said. Some businesses where bins are located donate proceeds to favorite charities but none of the businesses are paid for donating sites, Ceja said. The bins have the 800 number and Web site: 1-<(800) 604-9533, usagain2 .com and state that they are a “commercial business,” Ceja said.
 

Addressing the last part of your query: Taking items from the bins is a crime.

 The Peterson Museum is on the site of the first Colorado Springs Municipal Airport established in 1926. One of our historic buildings is the “Old City Hangar,” which was the first permanent structure built at the airport in 1928.Who actually built the hangar? We have a copy of a list from the City Engineer dated June 12, 1928, that shows the bids received to build the hangar: The low bid was W.L. Ross, $9,983; high bid was L.V. Martin, $13,937.

- Jeff Nash, assistant director and curator, Peterson Air and Space Museum

 Our thanks to Jody Jones in Special Collections at Penrose Library. The library had a June 13, 1928, Gazette that reported the municipal hangar contract was let to N.L. Ross (they have it with an N.) for just less than $10,000 ($9,983). City councilmen wanted the hangar finished immediately. According to the article: “Councilman Douglas Jardine drew attention to the fact that a big California air liner could not make the trip from Denver to Colorado Springs carrying delegates to the A.P.I. convention because of the lack of hangar facilities, and deplored such conditions.” He also wanted the hangar finished before an air meet in August.The hangar, the story said, had a capacity of four or five planes, depending on their size. In a June 17, 1928,  story a writer was aghast that “air ships” were arriving here at a place where there were no “housing accommodations for these ships and it was found necessary by the owners to stake the valuable airplanes down in the field.” The article also announced that The Broadmoor hotel would start a hangar of its own for the convenience of its guests who arrived here in their private planes.