Vote NO on 5A

Protect downtown Manitou springs

A very small group of Manitou Springs voters have an important decision to make at the March 3rd Special Election.

Less than 200 voters living in downtown will decide Issue 5A, an effort by the City of Manitou Springs to dissolve the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District and take control of its parking lots and assets.

The City’s effort is nothing more than a money grab as it faces mounting budget pressures from fiscal instability caused by the loss of marijuana tax revenue.

Dissolving the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District is unnecessary and will hurt downtown Manitou, including residents, visitors, locally owned businesses, employees and the City as a whole.

5A will allow the City to seize control of the district’s parking assets and then redirect them into filling the City’s short-term budget gaps.

Manitou Springs Metropolitan District is a model of community investment, fiscal responsibility and results. It has served downtown businesses, residents and visitors reliably for more than three decades.

5A threatens the success of downtown parking.
Vote No on 5A to protect downtown Manitou Springs.

Voting No on 5A will:

  • Keep the District’s Wichita and Smischny lots affordable and well maintained, benefiting local residents and visitors through access to affordable parking and ensuring locally owned businesses can support the City’s economy.

  • Ensure that the District’s existing parking lots and the future Ute Pass Motel lot continue to operate at minimum taxpayer expense and with full fiscal accountability and transparency through the metro district.

  • Protect these valuable community and economic assets from being mismanaged or sold by the City.

Voting Yes on 5A will:

  • Give the City a monopoly on downtown parking, allowing City Council to increase parking rates at will. Increased parking rates will hurt local residents and push shoppers and visitors away from downtown Manitou Springs.

  • Allow the City to seize the District’s assets to fill its growing budget hole, using a short-term money grab to address the City government’s significant fiscal irresponsibility.

  • Remove any limitations on the City to use parking revenue for other budget purposes or to sell the lots or use the land for other City purposes.