Cross Creek is a newer neighborhood that is just south of Mesa Ridge Parkway a couple miles east of one of the main gates to Ft Carson. Because of its close proximity to Ft Carson, Cross Creek (and its adjacent neighborhoods: Creek Terrace, Cheyenne Ridge, and Country Crossing) are popular neighborhoods for military families.
Home in these neigborhoods vary from $140,000 to $350,000.
In 1926, Spencer Penrose started the Cheyenne Mountain Zoological Society to house his ever growing exotic animail collection. Over ten years later, Mr. Penrose started a non-profit public trust for the city and the zoo has been growing ever since. The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo also includes the Will Roger's Shrine and a 1932 World's Fair Carousel.
The zoo has always been a popular spot here in Colorado Springs because of its unique spot with breathtaking views. Its deemed as country's only mountain zoo and one of the highest at a elevation of 6800 feet. It also has a elevation gain of over 120 ft (thats about a 10 story building) so make sure you wear the appropriate shoes. Expect to get a good workout. Dont worry, its all worth it in the end.
My family and I recently got back into geocaching now that the weather is warming up here in Colorado Springs. For those who don’t know what in the world “geocaching” is….here is the definition straight from Geocaching.com:
“Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game for gps users. Participating in a cache hunt is a good way to take advantage of the wonderful features and capability of a gps unit. The basic idea is to have individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. All the visitor is asked to do is if they get something they should try to leave something for the cache.”
Geocaching started in 2000 and has spawned out of control across the world. For my kids, it is like going on a treasure hunt; they love to find the cache and to see what is inside. We love to do it as a family outing (and it gets us away from the TV/computer and outside!)
The rules are simple:
Take something from the cache
Leave something in the cache
Write about it in the logbook
Each cache online comes with clues and GPS coordinates.
We recently upgraded my husband’s GPS relic to a new Garmin eTrex which now show a map with the cache’s location. You can download the caches to the GPS and then follow the direction until you find the location and then it’s time to search away!
In Colorado Springs, there are over 500 caches spread throughout the city…too many for it to even plot on the Google Map of the city.Around Fort Carson, there are over 230 caches within just a few miles of the military base. They can be found off our local bike paths, in outdoor shopping centers, off scenic views, in trees, under logs and rocks, and anywhere else you can hide something!
Even though spring is coming to Fort Carson, the Colorado Springs weather is once again is throwing us a curveball from the spring-like weather we had on Saturday. My family and I spent most of the day outside enjoying the warm weather and even broke a sweat doing some outdoor spring clean up.
Sunday’s temperature has DROPPED OVER 40 DEGREES and we have snow with strong wind gusts today with anywhere from 1 to 10 inches possible depending on where you live in the Colorado Springs area. Anyone who has lived in Colorado Springs even for a short time knows this is typical, but none the less…it is still hard to take when it happens. So if you are relocating to Fort Carson, you have been warned!
Road conditions: Road conditions are classed as Green, Amber and Red.
GREEN: Road movement has no restrictions and vehicles may operate in accordance with normal safety precautions.
AMBER: One or more of the following conditions exists:
*Roads are mostly snow packed and/or icy in spots. *Snow is falling at a rate that is causing accumulation on the road but is being cleared adequately by snow removal assets. *Road conditions would cause moderate and possibly hazardous delays to drivers. *Conditions are such that for maximum safety and to prevent accidents it is best to eliminate as much unnecessary traffic as possible.
RED: One or more of the following conditions exists:
*Roads are snow packed or covered or are extremely icy in spots. *Snow is falling at a rate that exceeds Fort Carson's ability to adequately and quickly clear the roads. *High winds and snowfall are causing zero or near zero visibility conditions. *Average snow accumulation on roadways has exceeded four inches. *Conditions would cause lengthy and dangerous delays to drivers. *Operating non-essential activities would cause unnecessary hazardous driving conditions to the community.
In delay and closure announcements, it is often the case that Mission Essential Personnel must report. Below is the definition to clarify who is considered Mission Essential. The Installation Operations Center will not know the status of individual personnel.
MISSION ESSENTIAL PERSONNEL: During severe weather, some agencies and routine events must remain open. The personnel required to execute these functions are considered mission essential. Basically, personnel would be mission essential personnel if any oft the following applies life, safety and health).
These are the proposed mission essential functions assumed needed during severe weather to meet the GC guidance (life, health and safety) are listed below.
a. Limited medical functions; all external clinics closed. b. Normal firefighter services. c. Utilities services staffing and snow removal. d. Provost Marshal desk operations, patrols, traffic investigator, MPI. e. Reduced Food service; limited mid day commissary. f. Unit level security (SDO and CQs). g. Gate guards (close low usage gates 5 & 20). h. Installation Operation Center Watch Personnel. i. Personnel deemed essential IAW Unit Commanders.
MISSION SUPPORT or NON-ESSENTIAL PERSONNEL: This comprises all Soldiers and civilians who are not designated Mission Essential.
DELAYED REPORTING: This is implemented when it has been determined that road conditions are AMBER or RED. Soldiers and Civilian Employees must understand that Fort Carson roads may be cleared but those within their living area isn’t. Data is gathered from all possible sources before this decision is made (CSPD, Colorado State Patrol, Department of Transportation etc…). When the decision is made one of the following courses of action is issued.
*Off-post personnel do not report for duty. *Only mission essential off-post personnel report for duty. *Off-post personnel delayed reporting. (Recommend a report time.) *Off-post personnel report at the regular time. (No announcement is made).
PHASED RELEASE: To safely manage the flow of personnel and vehicles off post, personnel will be released in a staggered manner as follows:
*First released are personnel who live more than 15 miles from Fort Carson. *30 Minutes Later: Second released are those who live between 5 - 15 miles from Fort Carson. *30 Minutes Later (One Hour After 1st Group): Third release are those who live within 5 miles of Fort Carson
Supervisors will determine which category each employee / Soldier is in and assist with early release.
One thing to note is that note closures or delays at Fort Carson, are ONLY for Fort Carson and do not apply to any of the other military installations. Since weather varies so much from one side of town to the other, always check YOUR military installation for their closures and delays.
To get current delay and closure information at Fort Carson, you can call 526-0096
For the current weather conditions and forecast, you can go to Stormtracker 13.
Crown Hill Mesa is located just west of 8th street and south of Highway 24. It is about halfway between Fort Carson and the Air Force Academy. This newer area has homes built in 2000 to brand new homes (John Laing Homes). The neighborhood also has a great park and playground with a skate ramp for the older kids. The views of the city and mountains are terrific! It is conveniently located near downtown Colorado Springs and Bear Creek Regional Park.
Neighborhood Statistics:
10 ACTIVE listings : $295,000 to $439,000 - AVERAGE DAYS ON THE MARKET (DOM) - 103 days
1 home UNDER CONTRACT with a list price of $339,900 - 220 DOM<!--[endif]-->
5 SOLD homes (since Aug 2007) : $280,000 to $331,500 -117 average DOM
Fort Carson will be getting almost 5000 new troops by 2013. Last month, Fort Carson announced they would be getting even more troops from Ft. Hood making them one of the largest Army installations. Here is a breakdown of the troop movements.
2003: 14,500 soldiers, two brigade combat teams.
2007: 17,500 soldiers, three brigade combat teams.
2010: 24,500 soldiers, four brigade combat teams.
2013: 30,000 soldiers, five brigade combat teams.
The increase in Fort Carson troops is expected to create more than 3000 more civilian jobs, increase local and state taxes by $20.5 million, and bring in as much as $250 million per year to local businesses. It is expected that Fort Carson will spend over 1 billion dollars in new housing to accommodate the new soldiers.
Several subdivision projects are already underway in the area and will help to ease the housing pain. Banning Lewis Ranch is a new master planned community on the very east side of Colorado Springs that runs from Woodmen Road all the way down past Peterson AFB (almost 14 miles in length) and approximately 75,000 homes and businesses. Fountain, CO also has many new neighborhoods. Classic Homes, Richmond American, Pulte, Engle, Aspen View Homes, and Oakwood Homes all have projects underway.
If you’re moving to Colorado Springs soon, you may find that you’re left without your household goods for a few days and sometimes longer. The JPPSO (the Joint Personal Property Shipping Office) here in Colorado Springs only gives you a couple of hours to respond to them when your household goods get to the area or it gets put into temporary storage. With our recent move, our goods were put immediately in storage without a phone call until the next day (reason’s unknown). Luckily for us, getting them out and delivered was easy and fast, but for some that is not the case, especially during the summer months. You may have no where for them to be delivered to. Maybe you were waiting until you got here to rent a house/apartment, you haven’t closed on your new house yet, or you just put your name on the military housing list. Don’t fret; there are places and people to help you. For those Colorado Springs military families needing temporary lodging there for:
Fort Carson
Colorado Inn in Bldg. 7301 on Woodfill Road. It is first come, first serve and reservations can be made up to 60 days in advance. There are 150 family and single efficiency rooms. Room rates run from $44 to $64 per night depending on the size and amenities. There are limited pet rooms, so you may need to board your little family member elsewhere. Colorado Inn at 719-526-4832.
The Loan Closet can help loan you some items while you are waiting for your household goods. They have kitchen accessories such as pots, pans, dishes, silverware and glasses, cots, folding tables/chairs, car seats, high chairs, electric skillets, vacuums and televisions.
Peterson AFB (also NORAD and USNORTHCOM assignments)
Pikes Peak Lodge is located in Bldg 1042 at 125 E. Stewart Ave. They have 153 visiting quarters as well as 67 temporary lodging facilities (TLF) for permanent change of station status. TLF rates are just over $30 a day. All rooms included DSL high-speed internet. All rooms are pet and smoke-free.
The Family Support Center’s Relocation and Family Service program houses Peterson’s loan locker and can be used to borrow a few items until your good arrive.
United States Air Force Academy
USAFA Rampart Lodge is located in Bldg 3130 off of Academy Drive, east of the Officer’s Club. The Lodge has TLF (Temporary Lodging Facilities) quarters as well as VOQ (Visiting Officer’s Quarters). According to their website, rates run from $35 and up for TLF. Free high speed internet is available in every room. No pets are allowed; boarding is required.
The Colorado Springs Gazette recently published their annual guide to Colorado Springs Holiday City Lights. Our family can’t wait each year to view holiday. Each Christmas Eve we drive all around to view lights. It really gets us in the holiday spirit. Since we have lived all around the country in the past ten years, we have had the pleasure to check out lights in quite a few areas. We noticed this year, that Colorado Springs has SO many homes with the holiday spirit, way more than any other town we have lived in. The sense of community is so welcoming!
A few weeks ago, I was coming home from shopping and I noticed some bright lights in our neighborhood. Holy Cow…two houses in our neighborhood were completely lit up…I mean like a Clark Griswold house! We drive by them at least a few times a week because it is just amazing. They really put the rest of the houses to shame. Sadly, I noticed that they weren’t listed in the guide published. If you live in the north side of Colorado Springs and want to see some great holiday lights, they are off of Highway 83 and Springcrest (just north of the Briargate Parkway, in the Pinewoods subdivision). You cant miss them once you are in the neighborhood.
The guide lists the Holiday Lights by which area in the city they are, it even has a map with the homes marked. Print it out and get in the Holiday spirit!
This is the time of year everyone is waiting to see if they will get more for housing. But dont worry, if your BAH went down, you dont get less for housing, that is locked unless you fall into a couple of circumstances. But if the rate went up you will get the higher amount now if you are still at the same duty station. If you are moving in 2008 you will get whatever the rate is for that new duty station.
Depending on where you are at in the country, the rates can jump by a few hundred dollars to only a few dollars.
BAH rates are determined by rental data not mortgage data. Rental rates can vary from 2% to 5% each year in some areas, to 5% to 10% in other areas.
For Colorado Springs military personnel, the 2008 BAH rates went up or stayed the same depending on your rank. The only year that they went down since 2000 was last year for 2007. This year they are back up to where they were at for 2006.
Yesterday was Veteran’s Day and in honor of our Veterans, Fort Carson will be honoring their families with Military Family Appreciation Week. It runs from November 10 until November 18th and is sponsored by the MWR (Moral, Welfare, and Recreation). Fort Carson has a variety of programs and activities planned for its Colorado Springs military families.
Normally, I don’t toot my own horn since my husband is currently an active duty solider, but I feel the need to HONOR my fellow military families. You see, we have been lucky…very, very lucky. My husband was just starting graduate school when September 11th happened and already had a change in the normal career path of an Army officer. Since then he has been in teaching capacity or in school himself. While the schooling has taken him from us for months at a time, we haven’t had to deal with too many missed holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, but most importantly haven’t had to worry about our solider being in Iraq.
I think about those everyday who loved ones are gone, going and or worse have been killed in the line of duty. The strength that they have is way beyond anything I myself can even comprehend. Yes, there is some guilt but I know he has been doing his part in teaching our newest leaders in the Army.
Please think about our Veterans AND their families on this federal holiday.
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Even though spring is coming to 
One thing to note is that note closures or delays at Fort Carson, are ONLY for Fort Carson and do not apply to any of the other military installations. Since weather varies so much from one side of town to the other, always check YOUR military installation for their closures and delays.
The Colorado Springs Gazette recently published their annual guide to Colorado Springs Holiday City Lights. Our family can’t wait each year to view holiday. Each Christmas Eve we drive all around to view lights. It really gets us in the holiday spirit. Since we have lived all around the country in the past ten years, we have had the pleasure to check out lights in quite a few areas. We noticed this year, that Colorado Springs has SO many homes with the holiday spirit, way more than any other town we have lived in. The sense of community is so welcoming! 
Yesterday was Veteran’s Day and in honor of our Veterans, Fort Carson will be honoring their families with Military Family Appreciation Week. It runs from November 10 until November 18th and is sponsored by the MWR (Moral, Welfare, and Recreation). Fort Carson has a variety of 
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