I know that a lot of people will be grilling and barbecuing and I was told that it’s against the law for us to use our grill on our balcony. We live in an apartment complex. True?
— Cheryl J.

ANSWER
If apartment decks or balconies are constructed of combustible material, the city fire code doesn’t allow certain types of cooking devices: charcoal grills, solid fuel cooking appliances, smokers, oil fryers, hibachis and any other type of open-flame cooking device. None of these can be used within 10 feet of any combustible construction.
So, if your balcony, porch or lanai — or apartment building or house — is wood, common sense dictates no open flames. And take that turkey way out in the open if you want to fry up the bird.
If you have an electric grill or an LP gas grill with a tank size of 20 pounds or less, you can show off your barbecuing skills to your heart’s content. No apartment restrictions.
However, you can’t store that spare LP-gas cylinder on balconies made of combustible material, inside your apartments or in the interior of an apartment building.
The fire department’s Web site on springsgov.com reports that charcoal grills, smokers, and wood cookers have caused several apartment fires locally.
So, happy grilling and be safe.

We live in the flight pattern for the Colorado Springs airport. On June 25 a Southwest Airlines plane was landing at the airport. Since SW does not fly out of here, what’s up?
— Bill

ANSWER:
Planes were diverted here because of the weather. On June 25 there were five tornadoes spotted in the Denver area and one damaged a mall near E-470. Because of the proximity to Denver International Airport, some incoming planes from a number of different airlines were diverted to Colorado Springs where the weather was a little nicer. This has happened on other occasions, too, including during DIA blizzard conditions.

I saw “What about weeds?” in Did You Ever Wonder? June 13.  Landowners are responsible for controlling their weeds.
What about city owned property?  I live adjacent to several lots the city owns and only once in 45 years have I seen anyone out here to clean the area. I have been mowing down their weeds.
— Ted

ANSWER: We checked with city code enforcement and the property owner — public or private — is responsible for cutting the weeds.
However, “city code does not require land in its natural state to be mowed,” said code enforcement officer Ken Lewis. If it’s an empty field and no building within 55 feet, it isn’t required to be mowed. “If you (a private owner) owned a big old field we wouldn’t make you mow it either.” The ordinance has been in place since 1982. For county weed problems call 520-6300; 444-7891 for city.

I’ve seen a lot of new, big art downtown over the past week or so. Most are sculptures. Does that big frog catching the fly on one of the buildings have anything to do with the other art?
— Lianne W.

ANSWER: Simple answer: No.
There are 13 new pieces of public art all around downtown as part of the annual Art on the Streets project. You’re pretty observant  because all the pieces hadn’t been installed until Friday.
The art will be there for a year and one of the pieces will become the latest addition of permanent public art, joining 50 others from the 11 years of the program.
For a big clue about the giant frog at Pikes Peak Avenue and Tejon Street, catch the name Vladimir Jones on the side of the building. It’s a marketing/public relations firm.
One of the Vladimir Jones clients is the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, which has adopted the almost-extinct Panamanian Golden Frog as a major rescue and conservation project.
Kitty corner across Pikes Peak Avenue, Josh and John’s has added a new frog-colored ice cream flavor this summer, Panamanian Golden Fudge, with a percentage going to the zoo.

What is the highest point in the city of Colorado Springs?
— Matthias Learned

ANSWER
Well, readers, what’s your guess? Many in our newsroom thought it was Pikes Peak or the city reservoirs on Pikes Peak, but these aren’t inside the city limits.
Next most favorite guesses: Blodgett Peak and the antenna farm on Cheyenne Mountain.
The winner: Look southwest to “The Horns,” the northern peak of Cheyenne Mountain standing 9,212 feet tall. Phil Friesen of the city’s Department of Information Technology pinpointed it for us.
It’s in the city up to where private land abuts Pike National Forest. Another section of the mountain, which had been homesteaded, is in Cheyenne Mountain State Park. The antennas aren’t in the city.
In 1925 Spencer Penrose built a zigzagging highway to the top of the northern peak, where he added a now-razed Southwestern lodge. The peak is called “The Horns” because its pointy rocks look like a dragon’s head.
For Blodgett Peak look toward Rockrimmon. The part of the peak in the city is 8216 feet, according to Parks and Recreation Department cartographers, although the summit is 9423.
Cedar Heights, above Garden of the Gods, soars to 7,670 feet where there are lots and homes. However, reported Jennifer Kudla of the Cedar Heights Sales Office, the development’s Solitude Park, running from the developed area to Pike National Forest, is higher. A helpful Cedar Heights resident used his GPS to measure Solitude Park, which rises to 8,200 feet.
Now, just for fun, what’s the lowest point in the city?
Friesen mapped that too and found it “about 10.9 miles east of ‘The Horns’ along Fontaine Boulevard, midway between Powers Boulevard and Marksheffel Road. The elevation here is 5,706 feet. That makes for a pretty impressive elevation difference of 3,506 feet within the City!”
Our thanks to everyone who helped us find the answers.

On Northpark Drive, south of Garden of the Gods Road, (there) is a monument to the mayor of Colorado Springs between 1967 and 1973. The monument stands in a roundabout surrounded by some really terrible landscaping, and the monument itself is in desperate need of repair. Why was this particular location selected, and who is responsible for the maintenance of this monument?
— Rick Jacobs

ANSWER: When Northpark Business Park was built, this special monument was erected in honor of a longtime businessman, former Mayor T. Eugene McCleary. Matt Craddock, manager of Craddock Columbine Realty Co., appreciated being apprised that the monument was not being maintained.
“This structure was originally built several years ago (late ’70s or ’80s) when Craddock Development Co. was actively developing the area,” he said. “The structure was maintained by Craddock Development Co. and several long-term businesses in the area. My understanding is that the structure was eventually to be given to the city, since Craddock and many of the long-term businesses no longer operated in that area after the mid-’80s.
“It was about six years ago that we cleaned up the monument after Mr. McCleary’s son-in-law let us know that no one was maintaining it. Obviously, the city is not maintaining the monument even though it is on a city-dedicated street.
“Our people will paint the monument and clean up the landscape area. Ultimately, there needs to be a long-term solution to this island and its care, so we will approach the city to work out a long-term solution. Gene McCleary (who died in 1998) meant a great deal to the city and to my parents, who provided the monument to Gene and one of the city’s first industrial parks.”

On Van Teylingen Street there are two traffic lights within a convenience store driveway of each other, one at the intersection of Wesley Drive and the other at Queen Anne Way.  Sometimes the signals aren’t coordinated so you get the green light from the first light, only to have to stop at the second light.
— Paul

ANSWER
The Queen Anne Way leg of this intersection was added as part of the Austin Bluffs and Union project, according to city traffic engineer Rob Helt. “The access out of the neighborhood near the southeast corner of Austin Bluffs and Union was eliminated by the addition of the bridge structures. During the majority of the day, the traffic signals are coordinated together. During the late evening and early morning hours, the separate signals are allowed to run a very short cycle length to minimize side street delay.  The variation in signal timing will allow the intersections to cycle independently and may appear uncoordinated.”

Can anyone explain what happened to Conejos Park, a neighborhood park in an area once called Little Mexico.
The park was next door to a local grocery store and included art work by Fred Schumm. Schumm has a fascinating history. He was born in Colorado and began creating sculptures at the age of 9. He attended the Colorado Springs School of Fine Arts on the GI Bill following World War II. He went on to receive a Fulbright Grant to continue his study of sculpture in Italy. Later he was a resident of the renowned MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire.  Schumm constructed a wonderful dragon slide which was a major visual feature of Conejos Park.  He was also the artist responsible for the wonderful ‘Big Cheese’ sculpture formerly located in Boulder Crescent Park.  A close friend of Myron Wood, Schumm’s work was photographed as it was constructed by Wood.  These images are currently available at the PPLD.
Can anyone shed any light on why and when the park was removed?
—JRJ 

Local historians, can you help? Blog your Conejos Park memories or e-mail to linda.navarro@gazette.com

The Red Rock Church meets at Pine Creek High School each week. I was always told that because of rules regarding the division of church and state, churches were not allowed to have activities on public school property.
— Kathy

ANSWER

Most districts rent out their facilities to organizations, including churches.
You asked about an Academy District 20 school, and spokeswoman Nanette Anderson responded:
“Pine Creek High School is not unique in accommodating local religious organizations that want to rent facilities for their Sunday services. Many public schools in the region invite congregations to rent their facilities. Because children are not at school for organized school activities when the church is using the building and because students are not required to attend the services, the separation exists. The schools and the churches typically view the arrangement as a win-win because the churches rent the facilities for less than it would cost to build a building. In Academy School District 20, the school administrators are allowed to keep the rental money for uses that benefit students.”
School District 11 has the same policy. Spokeswoman Elaine Naleski said:
“We rent our buildings — it is an extra income to the school district. Many years ago, the D-11 superintendent was instructed to think entrepreneurially and, at that time, started renting our buildings and selling advertising. The money goes back to the schools to do things they couldn’t do otherwise.
“Because we rent our buildings, we can’t be discriminatory. The churches, before they get their permanent locations, are some of our best rental customers. It is not in violation of church and state because they pay all cost of operations and a rental fee.
“We’re very careful about to whom we rent. We’re concerned if the nature of the rental could be harmful to other people, including the neighborhood, and the building. We’re not going to rent to anyone who would be doing anything obscene or a hate group. No alcohol or tobacco are allowed on the premises.”

I tried to take my son to the Dr. Lester L. Williams Fire Museum on Printers Parkway a few Saturdays ago and was very surprised to find that it’s not open on the weekends. 
Why is it only open when everyone is working? My son was very disappointed.
— Mrs. Moore
Williams was the Fire Department’s physician and historian, and the museum contains his collection of memorabilia.
It is a nonprofit museum overseen by a volunteer committee. A paid staff member is required when the museum is open, so hours are limited to weekdays or by appointment.