A decision to add an additional 1,900 acres of land on the east side of Colorado Springs might be reversed. The recently approved annexation known as Karman Line could mean about 6,500 new homes near Schreiver Space Force Base.
But a petition to challenge the approval is valid, according to city clerk Sarah Johnson. People opposed to the annexation collected enough verified signatures to force city council to either repeal the annexation or hold a special election on June 17 to let voters decide if it should stand.
According to Johnson’s presentation during a council work session on Monday morning, citizens turned in a petition with 31,817 total signatures on February 26.
Johnson said her office accepted 19,863 of those signatures as individuals registered to vote at the name and address listed on the petition. They rejected 11,954 signatures for addresses not found, not matching names, or not being on record as a resident of the city. The minimum number of valid signatures needed was 18,646.
In order to meet the timing required by city code, the council will consider the repeal during their first regular meeting next month, on April 8. Someone could protest the validity of specific signatures before then. If that happens, and more than 1,217 signatures are invalidated, the process would change.
Earlier this month an attorney for developer Norris Ranch Joint Development LLC sent a letter to the 4th Judicial District District Attorney’s office requesting an investigation into the petition gathering process for possible violations of Colorado’s elections laws.
The letter alleges that false statements were made by signature gatherers for the Karman Line annexation referendum. It also alleges that a competing developer, Norwood Development Group, is “funding and orchestrating the referendum.”
The DA's office has not returned requests for comment, but Councilor Dave Donelson raised the concern during the meeting.
Trevor Gloss of the city attorney's office said “As far as I know, the district attorney has not taken any steps and that would not delay the current issue.”
Johnson said the price tag for a special election is the same as a regular election: between $450,000 and $500,000.
Johnson also noted that the petition is only applicable to the ordinance covering the main part of the development annexation, and not other parts of the so-called flagpole that would connect it to the rest of the city.
