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Business Improvement District
Beauty and the BID
Good things are happening in the Downtown Business Improvement District!
 Streetscape improvements are under way on the west side of Nevada, from Bijou to Colorado. When all is complete, pedestrians will enjoy the same look and feel prevalent along Tejon and cross streets in the core district - new flower planters, widened sidewalks with "bump outs" and the retro style street lamps. Funded through the City's user-driven Parking Enterprise System, these improvements expand the visual scope and experience of Downtown. Pending user fee collections, such improvements will continue in subsequent years.
All sidewalks within the BID, from Boulder Street south to Colorado Avenue and Cascade Avenue east to Nevada, were power-washed prior to the start of last month's U.S. Senior Open, reports BID Manager Beth Ortiz. "Now we're focusing on maintenance for the rest of the season, primarily along Tejon," she said. In addition, the BID crew is maintaining all the planter beds and weeding regularly. Alley litter and weeds are being removed as quickly as possible, too.
 Speaking of the July 28-August 3 U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, the BID's cross promotion of "Putt Around Downtown," an 18 "hole" flight of sidewalk chalk drawings throughout the Downtown core was a colorful welcome for tournament visitors and a great reminder to locals to head on over to the hotel's east course. Free transportation between downtown and The Broadmoor was provided Wednesday through Friday via our DASH shuttle.
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Downtown Development Authority
Challenge Grants Deliver
What do a church, music festival and gourmet cookware shop have in common? They're all recipients of 2008 DDA Challenge Grants.
SamEppley, owner of Sparrow Hawk Gourmet Cookware, is excited about his store's relocation from Bijou Street to 120 North Tejon. "We've got a much bigger space, and a whole warehouse for storage on the lower level - which we haven't ever had."
 With a $40,000 DDA Challenge Grant, Eppley was able to complete a major facelift of the building sandwiched between Old Chicago and the old Michelle's building. The building's façade was repainted, the front entry moved to the side, and a striking display window constructed. Inside, the long narrow space accommodates a much-improved shopping flow.
Eppley officially opened at the new location on August 1, but remains open at the old shop through the end of the month, too, with some great "closeout" prices on a variety of products. Many sale items are also available at the new Tejon store - so you might just want to pop in at each! Hours are 9:30 to 5:30, Monday through Saturday, and noon to 4:00 on Sunday. For more details on lines carried, visit Sparrow Hawk online.
The little white church on the west side of Nevada across from the grandly renovated old Lowell School wasn't exactly turning heads. Fronted by an odd amalgamation of cement walls and chain link fence, with cement barriers between sidewalk and street, and little vegetation (save some persistent weeds), the historic property had seen better days.
The 40 or so members of Perfect Peace Baptist Church, 832 South Nevada, had recently paid off the building's mortgage and knew "something had to be done about the exterior" - but their financial resources were thin. Then a pleasant surprise showed up in the mailbox.
That surprise was a DDA brochure detailing grant opportunities. Billy Stewart, an usher at the church, spearheaded the church's challenge grant application. When an award for $15,000 was made, "we were simply overjoyed. What a blessing!" Stewart said.
As of mid-August, Perfect Peace's gravel parking lot has been paved and striped, a door has been replaced, the wall around the foundation repaired, new frames and storm windows installed, and a handicap ramp built. An awning for the main entrance is being fabricated, a safety rail for the ramp is on order, and the congregation is working through City permitting to have the church sign moved from street side to yard. The congregation also wants to do some landscape planting and pruning, and get the chain link fence replaced with something more attractive.
"We're just a small group," Stewart said, "but we want to be good neighbors. This grant helps us do that."
 A $10,000 DDA Grant to KRCC helped expand the second annual Blues Under the Bridge music event from an evening concert to a two-day festival. About 2,000 guests grooved to the stylings of major headliners such as Coco Taylor, and Coco Montoya, and Ginal Sicilia on June 21 and July 26. Performances by the Ken Saydak Band, George Whitesell
and His All Stars featuring Jill photo by Jeff Kallaus
Watkins, Jack Hadley and Dan Treanor, among many, many others, rounded out the noon to 10 p.m. festival days. Attendees came from as far away as Texas!
The location - the open space between the Smokebrush building and the Trestle building, beneath the Colorado Avenue bridge - is ideal for a blues festival, said KRCC's music director, Jeff Bieri. "Just about every show, someone would be performing 'Hobo Blues' or something like that, and you know, a train would come rolling by. The crowd loved it!"
The enclosed location also made moot any weather concerns, and enabled a good flow of Bristol Brewing Company's custom beers, selections from Sovereignty Wines and the event's signature "But-B" mixed drink. Slayton's Barbecue, The Buffalo Gals and Serranos Coffee also provided food and drinks.
Bieri hopes to grow the event more in 2009, making it a two consecutive days festival over a weekend, and ideally partnering with more downtown businesses - including hotels - to offer destination packages and incentives.
To keep apprised of next year's event, you can sign up for a newsletter at the Blues under the Bridge web site.
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On the Move Downtown
Sportique Scooters to park business on South Tejon
You know you want one.
Take your pick from four top brands - Piaggio, Vespa, Genuine or Kymco - at Sportique Scooters, soon to relocate from its historic 431 East Pikes Peak address to a more visible 523 South Tejon.
Scooters are hot now - Sportique's July sales doubled from a year ago - and not just because they barely nibble on gas. "They're just fun to ride," said local dealer Simon Penner, who owns a vintage collection but also recently splurged on a 2008 Genuine Stella. "They're hip, they're cool and they appeal to people of all ages." For somewhere between $2,000 and $10,000 you, too, can discover your own inner cool.
Sportique opened in downtown Colorado Springs in 2003. "While we've loved the character of the building on Pikes Peak, it's somewhat off the beaten path. On Tejon, we'll benefit from a lot more traffic. And it will be great to join a community of businesses that are dedicated to improving the south end of downtown," Penner said. He's doing his own part, working quickly to spruce up the new digs with new signage and refurbished terrazzo tiles.
Sportique Scooters is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 442-0048 for more information.
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From the Downtown Snoopster
Shirley: A Downtown Diva
The 1996 Sebring convertible parked on Tejon Street between 10:30 and noon belongs to Shirley. Every day this 87-year-old makes the rounds downtown. Here's her story.
Snoopster: Why do you come downtown every day?
Shirley: My mother died of boredom when she was 98. She had all her teeth and her marbles, but she was just bored. I don't want to die of boredom, so I come downtown.
Snoopster: Where do you go, and what do you do?
Shirley: I go to Bryan-Scott, Putogether, Mrs. Field's, the Great Southwest and sometimes Terra Verde and Kirk and Hill. I love to shop. I have a black belt in shopping.
Snoopster: Why those places?
Shirley: The people are friendly, and I like to keep up to date. I love clothes, although I don't want to look too young or silly. I take good care of my body.
Snoopster: What is your greatest asset?
Shirley: Legs. I have great legs.
Snoopster: How do you keep so trim if you eat a lot of Mrs. Field's cookies?
Shirley: I don't eat them: I give them away to my friends who work downtown.
Snoopster: What else do you like besides giving gifts?
Shirley: Well, my world includes cats, dogs, and men.
Snoopster: Men?
Shirley: Because my husband was such a good, handsome man, I've always been interested in men. He knew when to be macho and when not to be. Downtown has some good-looking men, like Roberto, at Bryan-Scott, and Ted Blum, the jeweler above the Famous. My mother-in-law was married eight times. She didn't get bored.
Snoopster: Is anything missing from downtown?
Shirley: More people and a drugstore where I could buy perfume.
Snoopster: Where do you go when you leave downtown?
Shirley: I go home and read fashion magazines.
Snoopster: How do you like your convertible?
Shirley: I love it. I have always had a convertible, and I will always have a convertible.
Snoopster: Thank you for not boring me.
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Welcome New and Renewing Members
NEW MEMBERS
ASSOCIATE LEVEL
Alpern Myers Stuart LLC, Al Ziegler
SUSTAINING MEMBER LEVEL
Centennial Reproductions, Dawn Abeyta
RENEWING MEMBERS
ASSOCIATE LEVEL
AA Construction, Gay Smith
Beckett Development, Ted Beckett
Jennings & Jennings, Inc., Wayne & Sylvia Jennings
New Colorado Square, LLC, Sheila Barbree
Saboz, Linda Bridger
MEMBER LEVEL
Bain Family Foundation, Jeffrey Bain
First Bank, Geoff Wright
First Christian Church, Kathe Petersen
Pikes Peak Center, Dot Lischick
BKD, LLP, Wendy Henry
First Congregational Church, Ruth Roland
J.E. Dunn Construction Co., Kevin O'Gara
Rothgerber, Johnson & Lyons LLP, Lanice Miller
SUSTAINING MEMBER LEVEL
Saks Building LLC, Jolanthe Saks
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Comments or questions? Please let us know! Email info@downtowncs.com or call (719) 886-0088.
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