Pueblo City Council Regular Meeting – April 15, 2026

The Pueblo City Council met in regular session on April 15, 2026. The agenda and transcript date the meeting as Monday, April 13, 2026, but the supplied timestamp is 2026-04-15 12:30:00+00:00; this summary follows the supplied date. The meeting included three proclamations, public testimony about youth programming and pedestrian safety, a 13-resolution/27-ordinance consent agenda, three regular agenda resolutions, two quasi-judicial matters, final readings of seven ordinances, and a citizen ethics complaint against the mayor. Votes were 7-0 except as noted.

Consent Calendar

• The council amended the agenda to table item S8 indefinitely; a revised MOU with Friends of City Park is expected to return on May 11, 2026. The amended agenda passed 7-0.
• The council voted 7-0 to approve the March 23, 2026 regular meeting minutes as distributed. No written minutes document was included in the materials provided.
• The council passed the consent agenda 7-0, enacting resolutions M1-M13 and introducing ordinances N1-N27 on first presentation, setting public hearings for April 27, 2026, and ordering publication by title. The oral recitation in the transcript skips N23, which the agenda lists as converting three vacant Emergency Medical Officer positions to Fire Engineer positions. Key consent items included: M1 Elizabeth Street sewer rehabilitation contract amendment ($335,581.40); M2 Haaff Elementary Safe Routes to School project ($173,352); M3 emergency storm sewer repair and change order; M4 Orman concrete improvements; M5 Northern and Vassar asphalt transfer ($10,000); M6 emergency sewer repair at 1904 Lake Avenue ($7,252.21); M7-M10 board appointments; M11 Stag Liuzza legal services compensation; M12 Monument Avenue pedestrian improvements ($327,750.75); M13 FTA certifications; N1 Cherry Lane rezoning from B-3 to R-3; N2-N5 CSAC community services funding agreements; N6 DOLA predevelopment grant ($49,950); N7-N8 Habitat for Humanity $1 property sales; N9 shelter operations funding ($145,000 transfer from ARPA interest plus $100,000 from unapproved general fund balance); N10 fires and grills in parks; N11 Sunset Park lease with the Presbytery of Pueblo; N12 Dibble engineering services for Taxiway A Sealcoat; N13 Colorado Energy Office funding amendment; N14 Villa Bella Expeditionary School property donation and release; N15 Big R Holdings lease; N16 Kirkland donation agreement; N17 Polaris vehicle donation to the Pueblo Police Department; N18 opioid settlement participation for six remnant defendants; N19 Pueblo School District 60 opioid abatement subrecipient agreement; N20 weeds code correction and native-plant landscaping exemption; N21 2025 Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code; N22 motorized vehicles on bikepaths; N24 Safe Streets for All federal funding decrease from $681,600 to $428,615.01; N25 airport restaurant lease with SoCo Frontier Enterprises; N26 police union collective bargaining extension through December 31, 2027; and N27 Project Falcon option-to-purchase agreement.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Aaron Guterres, describing himself as a product of the city tennis program, opposed eliminating it. He said he had heard conflicting budget figures, including one as high as $40,000, asked for a transparent line-item audit net of registration fees and donations, noted that community members are willing to donate $10,000, and called the Lake Avenue crossing to the new soccer fields dangerous.
• Isaiah Martinez, speaking on behalf of Central High School students, asked for a crosswalk at Lake and Grant. He said the city funded the new soccer field at Grant and Madison for about $897,000; Central has more than 1,000 students; the existing crosswalk near RMSER is not where students actually cross; the tennis courts lack handicap-accessible parking; and Colorado pedestrian fatalities have increased 77 percent since 2018. He asked that the crosswalk be installed this month or next.
• Sophia Gonzalez, a Central High School tennis player, supported keeping the city tennis lesson program. She said the program gave her confidence and access to a lifelong sport, her six-year-old sister already uses it, Coach Miller began through the program, and not every family can afford private lessons.
• Dave DeSenzo discussed the Popeblock building and suggested the west side could be marketed as a data center because it has raised floors, Liebert cooling units, network connections, and generators. He also raised general fund concerns and requested more information on consent items M2, M12, N9, and N27. During regular agenda resolutions, he urged delaying Q1-Q3 spending until budget clarity and said nonprofits should raise their own funds.

Council Member and Mayor Commentary

• Councilor Hernandez said he and Mayor Graham had discussed the Lake Avenue crossing earlier that day and wanted to get students help sooner rather than later.
• Councilor Ruiz Gomez called youth tennis a public-health prevention investment and said she would work toward a solution.
• Councilor Boston said some budget cuts are unavoidable unless tax revenue increases, but hoped donations could keep the tennis program alive; he also supported disposing of the Popeblock building.
• Councilor Gomez read a separation-of-powers memo stating that City Council-initiated legislation does not require executive-branch approval or city attorney preclearance, and that attempts to delay or control council legislation would violate the Pueblo City Charter.
• Councilor Dante reported a town hall with about 20 attendees; the top topics were homelessness and Fourth of July fireworks.

Regular Agenda Resolutions

• Q1 passed 6-1: The council transferred $592,341.60 from Projects to Be Determined to project WW2608 and awarded a $493,618.60 construction contract to Tony J. Beltramo and Sons for the 2026 Carl Sitter Parkway Sanitary Sewer Project, with $98,723 in contingencies. Staff and the mayor clarified that these are wastewater enterprise funds, not general fund dollars.
• Q2 passed 6-1: The council authorized $2,500 from council contingencies to the Pueblo Latino Veterans Association for the Hispanic Heritage Exhibit at the El Pueblo History Museum and Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center from September 15 to October 14, 2026. Staff said this was the first request for the exhibit; last year the council sponsored the awards ceremony for $1,500. Councilor Dante said he personally would not support more than $1,500 for such sponsorships.
• Q3 passed 6-1: The council authorized $2,000 to BITS of Freedom for the Run for the Roses Kentucky Derby Fundraiser on May 2, 2026, at 3 p.m. at Pueblo Diversified Industries. Councilor Boston noted BITS of Freedom did not receive CSAC funding, and councilors asked for donor and fundraising information before future requests.

Quasi-Judicial Proceedings

• R1 approved 7-0: Rezoned 611 Broadway Avenue from R-2 single-family residential to B-1 neighborhood business at Agape Church’s request, to allow an electronic variable message sign and bring the religious institution use into compliance. The site has been used as a church since 1967; the Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval 7-0; no public testimony was offered.
• R2 approved 7-0: Approved the VIA Subdivision, a resubdivision of Lot 10, Lakeshore Estates Filing No. 2, generally east of Assero Avenue and north of West Pueblo Boulevard. The 3.2-acre site includes a Champion Express Car Wash built in 2023; the subdivision creates two lots, including about 1.7 undeveloped acres for future commercial use. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval 7-0; no public testimony was offered.

Ordinances – Final Readings

• S1 passed 6-1: Approved a quitclaim deed transferring city-owned Goodnight Barn property to Goodnight Barn Historic Preservation, Inc. Staff said the conservation easement held by the Pueblo County Historical Society includes inspection and enforcement rights, and extinguishment requires judicial action; a simple reverter clause could bring liens or liabilities back to the city. Laurel Campbell and Bill Zwick spoke in favor; Zwick said the organization has sought a lease for six years and the transfer will allow it to pursue grants and events. Debate included concerns about giving away a city asset and future maintenance liability.
• S2 approved 7-0: Approved a facility use agreement with Flix North America, which owns Greyhound Lines, for $42,000 per year for five years for a parking space used about four or five times a day for five minutes.
• S3 approved 7-0: Approved an agreement with Pueblo County extending public transit and paratransit services into unincorporated areas of Pueblo County for five years at $79,500 per year, with a 3 percent annual increase.
• S4 approved 7-0: Approved a telecommunications license agreement with Forged Fiber 37, LLC, which is taking over Lumen fiber assets in city rights-of-way.
• S5 passed 6-1: Approved CI2613 Employee Clinic Renovations, transferring $60,000 from the Health Self Insurance Fund for first-floor renovations at the Dittmer building to establish the employee health clinic. Most work will be done in-house; contracts cover new doors and window frosting. The Health Self Insurance Fund is separate from the general fund.
• S6 approved 7-0: Approved a use permit and rental agreement with the Colorado State Fair Authority for the citywide cleanup on May 2, 2026, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Large-item drop-off will be at the State Fair and CSU Pueblo; green waste drop-off will be at Pueblo Recycle Works.
• S7 approved 7-0: Approved a new intergovernmental agreement with Pueblo County for Community Services Planning, Administration and Accountability Services, transferring administration of the CSAC funding process from the county to the city. If not approved, CSAC would cease to exist and there would be no mechanism to administer the $550,000 already budgeted. New funding priorities include first-time applicants, organizations not funded the prior year, non-operational funding, and low-to-moderate-income child care at reduced rates. A tentative joint work session is scheduled for June 1, 2026.

Ethics Complaint (Item T1)

• A citizen filed ethics complaint E26-1 against Mayor Heather Graham. The law department reported that the complaint failed to state a prima facie claim because the mayor’s act of filing an ethics complaint against a council member while receiving her charter salary is not an official act, and her salary is not a financial interest under the code of ethics. The council voted 6-1 to accept the communication and 7-0 to dismiss the complaint.

Key Outcomes

• Approved 7-0: amended agenda; March 23 minutes; consent agenda; R1; R2; S2; S3; S4; S6; S7; and dismissal of the ethics complaint.
• Approved 6-1: Q1; Q2; Q3; S1; S5; and acceptance of the ethics communication.
• S8 was tabled; a revised Friends of City Park MOU is expected May 11, 2026.
• Next steps include public hearings on April 27, 2026, for consent ordinances, final reading of CSAC funding recommendations on that same date, the citywide cleanup on May 2, 2026, and a tentative CSAC work session on June 1, 2026.
• Council members said they would follow up on the Lake Avenue crossing and the city tennis program, but no formal vote was taken on those public-comment topics.