Regional Development  
Center (Hearing Room)  
2880 International Circle  
City of Colorado Springs  
Meeting Minutes - Final  
Planning Commission  
Wednesday, July 9, 2025  
9:00 AM  
2880 International Cir., 2nd Floor, Hearing Room  
1. Call to Order and Roll Call  
Kevin Walker, Planning Department Director, mentioned the Chair and  
Vice Chair are not in attendance and an Acting Chair needs to be  
appointed for the current meeting. Commissioner Marty Rickett was  
unanimously appointed as Acting Chair.  
Motion by Commissioner Hensler, seconded by Commissioner Casey, to  
appoint Marty Rickett as the Acting Chair for the July 9, 2025, City  
Planning Commission meeting.  
The motion passed by a vote of 8-0-1.  
8 -  
Aye:  
Commissioner Hensler, Commissioner Cecil, Commissioner Robbins,  
Commissioner Sipilovic, Commissioner Casey, Gigiano, Commissioner  
Clements and Commissioner Rickett  
1 - Chair Slattery  
Absent:  
2. Changes to Agenda/Postponements  
3. Communications  
Kevin Walker - Planning Director  
Kevin Walker, Planning Department Director, said Planning is working on  
including the outcome of the vote that did not pass for Karman Line  
Annexation into the AnnexCOS, the expected PlanCOS and Smart Growth  
processes.  
Mr. Walker said it is budget season for 2026, and they are diligently  
working on it.  
Mr. Walker said Southeast Strong Plan is moving forward for approval and  
will be brought before Commission around August or September.  
Mr. Walker said there are few leadership positions to fill within Planning,  
and interviews are taking place.  
4. Approval of the Minutes  
CPC 2568  
Minutes for the June 11, 2025 Planning Commission Meeting  
Presenter:  
Martin Rickett, City Planning Commission Acting Chair  
Attachments: CPC_Minutes_6.11.25 Draft  
Motion by Commissioner Casey, seconded by Commissioner Hensler, to  
approve the Minutes for the June 11, 2025, Planning Commission  
Meeting.  
The motion passed by a vote of 4-0-1-4.  
4 -  
Aye:  
Commissioner Hensler, Commissioner Robbins, Commissioner Sipilovic  
and Commissioner Casey  
1 - Chair Slattery  
Absent:  
Abstain:  
4 -  
Commissioner Cecil, Gigiano, Commissioner Clements and  
Commissioner Rickett  
5. Consent Calendar  
Motion by Commissioner Hensler, seconded by Commissioner Casey, to  
approve the Consent Calendar.  
The motion passed by a vote of 8-0-1.  
8 -  
Aye:  
Commissioner Hensler, Commissioner Cecil, Commissioner Robbins,  
Commissioner Sipilovic, Commissioner Casey, Gigiano, Commissioner  
Clements and Commissioner Rickett  
1 - Chair Slattery  
Absent:  
3760 E Boulder St. - Conditional Use  
5.A.  
CUDP-24-00 A Conditional Use to allow office and warehouse uses in the  
24  
MX-L/AP-O (Mixed-Use Large Scale with Airport Overlay) zone  
district consisting of an approximately 20,000 square foot lot located  
at 3760 East Boulder Street. (Quasi-Judicial)  
Presenter:  
Allison Stocker, Senior Planner, Planning Department  
Kevin Walker, Planning Director, Planning Department  
Council District # 4  
Attachments: CUDP-24-0024_Staff Report_20250620  
Attachment 1 - In Progress Development Plan  
Attachment 2 - Land Use Statement  
Attachment 3 - Project Statement  
CUDP-24-0024_Presentation  
7.5.601 CONDITIONAL USE  
10 S 23rd St Rezoning  
5.B.  
ZONE-25-00 Ordinance No. 25-65 to amend the zoning map of the City of  
04  
Colorado Springs pertaining to 2,163 square feet located at 10  
South 23rd Street from R-2 (Two-Family) to MX-N (Mixed-Use  
Neighborhood Scale). (Quasi-Judicial) (Second Reading and Public  
Hearing)  
Council District: 3  
Presenter:  
William Gray, Senior Planner, City Planning Department  
Kevin Walker, Director, City Planning Department  
Attachments: Ordinance_10 S 23rd  
Staff Report_10 S 23rd ST_WEG  
Attachment 1 - Zone Map  
Attachment 2 - Colorado City Plat  
Attachment 3 - Context Map  
Attachment 4 - Public Comment  
Attachment 5 - Project and Land Use Statement  
Attachment 6 - Rezone Legal and Drawing  
Attachment 7 - The Westside Plan  
7.5.704 ZONING MAP AMENDMENT (REZONING)  
Exhibit A Legal and Exhibit B Drawing  
CPC Minutes Excerpt - 10 S 23rd St. - 07.09.2025  
Signed Ordinance No. 25-65.pdf  
6. Items Called Off Consent Calendar  
7. Unfinished Business  
8. New Business  
2 Penrose Blvd Renovation - Use Variance w/ Land Use Statement  
8.A.  
UVAR-25-00 A Use Variance to allow the establishment of a Nonprofit Conference  
04  
and Education Center use within the R-E/HS-O/WUI-O (Single-Family  
- Estate with Hillside and Wildland Urban Interface Overlays)  
consisting of 3.24 acres located at 2 Penrose Boulevard.  
(Quasi-Judicial)  
Related Files: N/A  
Council District: 3  
Presenter:  
Chris Sullivan, Senior Planner, Planning Department  
Kevin Walker, Director, Planning Department  
Attachments: V2_Staff Report_2 Penrose Blvd Use Variance  
Attachment 1 - Project Statement  
Attachment 2 - Land Use Statement  
Attachment 3 - Concept Layout  
Attachment 4 - Potential Use Categories  
7.5.527 USE VARIANCE  
CPC Minutes Excerpt - 2 Penrose Blvd. - 07.09.2025  
Tamara Baxter, Planning Supervisor, presented the Use Variance to allow  
the establishment of a Nonprofit Conference and Education Center within  
the R-E/HS-O/WUI-O (Single-Family - Estate with Hillside and Wildland  
Urban Interface Overlays) consisting of 3.24 acres located at 2 Penrose  
Boulevard, in District 3. The proposed land use is a Non-Profit Conference  
and Education Center using the existing structure. The proposal includes  
interior and minor exterior modifications, additional parking and  
landscaping features. Ms. Baxter said there were two options to consider  
for this project, either rezoning or a use variance, and the second was  
selected. Based on UDC, if the primary use is not specified as permitted  
or conditional, the Manager can determine if a specific use for the zone  
district can be created. Standard Notice was sent out and no comments  
were received. The applicant conducted a neighborhood meeting on April  
7, 2025, where approximately 100 property owners attended. Agency  
Review was made, comments received were addressed and the project  
complies with PlanCOS and meets the review criteria.  
Applicant’s presentation  
Chris Lieber, Principal at N.E.S. Inc., introduced his team.  
Kyle Hybl, President and CEO for El Pomar Foundation, said it was  
founded in 1937 by Spencer and Julie Penrose, with the mission to  
enhance, encourage and promote the wellbeing of the people of Colorado,  
which is accomplished in three ways. He said the first is grant making as  
any private foundation, the second is leadership development, where they  
have a fellowship program for recent graduates and a program for  
minorities in Colorado Springs and Pueblo and third is community  
convening where Penrose House hosts different types of community  
meetings.  
Mr. Hybl said in 1944, after Spencer’s Penrose passing in 1939, Julie  
Penrose donated the house to Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, they run,  
among other things, Penrose hospital. He said in the late 1980’s the sisters  
put up a memory care service on the property but sold it back to El Pomar  
Foundation in 1992, to run it as a nonprofit conference facility. Mr. Hybl said  
the sisters used it as a retreat center from 1944 until 1992 and wanted to  
continue with the memory care facility but not as operators the whole time.  
He said as owners of the underlaying ground, when Common Spirit  
decided not to continue, El Pomar had the right to purchase the property,  
and the trustees decided this would be a good opportunity to amplify the  
community convening efforts, and add a nonprofit office space at Penrose,  
former Namaste. Mr. Hybl said they are hopeful of getting this project  
approved, the trustees believe it will benefit nonprofits and the citizens for  
decades to come. He said they are trying to be good neighbors as  
demonstrated with the community meeting held on April 7th. He said this is  
an opportunity to reconnect the property originally owned by El Pomar  
founders, it will enhance visitors’ experience for the Penrose House as an  
extension of the nonprofit meeting space, add administrative space,  
provide a climate-controlled area to show their historical pieces, and  
elevate the standard of care of the grounds on the southern property.  
Mr. Lieber said this site is part of the historic residence and described the  
residential properties to the north and southwest, as well as the townhomes  
development to the east and south. The Broadmoor hotel has some  
facilities to the east of the site, the Pauline Chapel, the Pauline School, the  
golf course, and The Broadmoor hotel are located further to the east. Mr.  
Lieber said the circulation and the arrival sequence will work not only for the  
benefit of El Pomar but also for the neighbors. He said access to this site  
is from Penrose Boulevard to the south of the property, and the main  
access to El Pomar is through Mesa Avenue. Mr. Lieber said in some  
ways this project is simple, however when looking at the zoning it got more  
complicated, and this is one of the reasons why they decided to request a  
use variance. He said most of the functions are zoned under the Planned  
Cultural Resort, and, at the beginning, they considered expanding upon  
that, however, being a legacy zone, it is no longer listed within the most  
recent update of the UDC. Mr. Lieber said the surroundings are mainly  
residential and there is a small piece of PDZ, formerly PUD, that the  
townhomes were created under, and the Broadmoor is under the MX  
zoning. He said most of the uses are primarily single-family residential,  
there are commercial uses as well, and the school to the northeast. He said  
they have been very specific and strategic about describing their request  
since the client knows exactly what their mission and vision are. Mr. Lieber  
said because they have that clarity, the use variance can provide over a  
new zoning classification that can allow a wide variety of potential uses. Mr.  
Lieber said Penrose Boulevard is the historic access point to the memory  
care facility, and they have already made a submittal for the development  
plan, which is not the application being presented, but will not change the  
footprint of the building, rather will clean up the exterior, and bring it up to  
the standards that the rest of the campus has. He said they are strategic  
about how parking will work, access would be through the front door off  
Mesa, past the front entrance of El Pomar and be able to utilize the  
conference center parking. He said the proposed plan does not intend to  
expand the number of participants, but rather be able to improve upon the  
offerings, especially from a weather perspective. He said they have also  
thought about giving pedestrians access and connectivity to all buildings  
and outdoor spaces. Mr. Lieber said there are two driveways that connect  
to Penrose Boulevard, one will be only for service delivery and staff access,  
the other for emergency access, and visitors will continue to use the front  
door. He said they will have ADA access and visitor drop-off right in front of  
the door through the parking. He said they will do some landscaping  
enhancements around the existing pond that provides fantastic views and a  
wonderful buffer to the neighborhood.  
Mr. Lieber said that since the PCR zone is no longer current, it was not  
applicable to them. He said they explored other commercial or office zones  
that allowed large gathering spaces but none of those uses fit this specific  
case or aligned with the desire to be precise. He said they also recognize  
that area is residential, and the setbacks are already established, so with  
the use variance the setbacks standards continue. Mr. Lieber said the  
process would be the same for the zone change or the use variance, they  
will have to go before City Planning Commission and City Council, and they  
believe that is important for the community for transparency. He said the  
code allows in unique situations for applicants to define a more specific  
use, and they took the time to arrive at “nonprofit conference and  
educational center” because it encompasses all that El Pomar want to do  
and accomplish. He said they further defined nonprofit administrative  
offices, conference rooms, assembly hall, archive storage, and outdoor  
gathering space, which would allow up to 45,000 square feet for the  
proposed use and not expanding beyond that footprint. Mr. Lieber said  
questions about how circulation and traffic will work came up in the  
neighborhood meeting. He said guests would continue to arrive off Mesa  
Avenue, continue past the front door and make their way to the west to the  
parking spaces. He said they will include additional parking spaces to the  
south, but guest access would be by the main entrance. He said the  
entrances from Penrose Boulevard are to be service and emergency  
access, therefore, are proposed to be gated. He emphasized these  
changes are not part of this application but of the development plan  
submitted. Mr. Lieber said they held a public meeting where approximately  
100 people were in attendance, they gave a guided tour and walked them  
around the site, they talked about screening and wildlife among other  
subjects that they were able to incorporate into the development plan  
proposal, including the vehicular circulation. He said they talked about the  
types of events and that it is not intended to be a commercial operation,  
hence the intentional use of nonprofit conference center. He said they had  
questions about the lighting which have been addressed. A traffic study  
was done and the results are available. Mr. Lieber said they looked at the  
change from memory care to conference center, recognizing that the use is  
affiliated with El Pomar, however, if they were to consider it as a  
standalone facility regarding traffic, all intersections would continue to  
function at service level A, with the exception of the Mesa intersection that  
would work at level B during peak hours. He said analysis of future traffic  
conditions indicates that the additional site generated traffic is expected to  
generate no negative impact on the roadways. Mr. Lieber said they think  
they meet all the criteria; they do have a unique situation to pursue a use  
variance. He said they are trying to be very specific for the benefit of the  
community and for El Pomar, to ensure they can continue to use that  
existing part of the property and expand those options. Mr. Lieber said  
regarding the Land Use Statement they clearly defined the proposed land  
uses; they talked about compatibility with the adjacent developments and  
their efforts to minimize impacts. He said the pond and the vegetation help  
the buffer to remain, and the outdoor gathering spaces have been  
strategically placed against the building at the core of the site. Mr. Lieber  
said they have been smart about vehicular traffic, and using all kinds of  
lights making sure they are not spilling any. He said they will need to light  
the pathways and the parking, but they can keep it to the interior.  
Public Comment  
None  
Commissioners’ Comments  
Commissioner Hensler asked if the property to the south belongs to the  
same owner and if there are no additional use variances required for  
pedestrian or vehicular access and for the fire lane. Mr. Lieber said the use  
will remain the same because the use variance application is specific for  
this parcel, however, there is a development submittal for the modifications  
on different parcels to add parking, pedestrian connections and gates.  
Commissioner Robbins said he likes what the team has put together for a  
much-needed space and he considers it is positive for the city.  
Commissioner Robbins said he likes what they are proposing for the traffic  
pattern as Penrose Boulevard can get busy, especially being in a  
residential area.  
Commissioner Hensler said she has been to events in the tent; it will be  
nice to be in a conference center and the grounds are beautiful.  
Commissioner Hensler said the preservation is important and she will be  
voting in favor.  
Commissioner Casey said it is a good project, it easily meets the criteria,  
and he will be voting in favor.  
Commissioner Cecil said she has comments for Staff regarding having  
adequate definitions to meet the popularity of stand-alone conference type  
venues as uses in the zoning ordinance because so many of the words that  
appear in the presentation overlap such as the auditorium-stadium  
definition, nonprofit club lodge service organization but does not have the  
public aspect of it. Commissioner Cecil said the library museum and  
cultural facility but is not exactly about the arts and culture end of it.  
Commissioner Cecil said maybe there is a use that would be better  
defined here or to get clarification on whether they intend to make general  
new developments that might be similar to this all PDZ's, because the prior  
zoning ordinance had the plan cultural resort, that would fit. Commissioner  
Cecil said she appreciates them wanting to narrow it so that it cannot be  
abused or reused at some other point in the future and disrupt the  
neighborhood.  
Commissioner Hensler said she agrees with Commissioner Cecil, that  
may be the unique character of the community, with centers for creative  
leadership and other conference centers and places that there is no  
definition for.  
Ms. Baxter said the definition is specific for this project, and she is not sure  
that it fits universally in Colorado Springs. She said this is why they decided  
to go with the use variance instead of the rezoning, proposing a very  
specific use category for this location.  
Commissioner Cecil said it is not the whole topic of the matter, and it might  
merit further exploration outside of this item.  
Acting Chair Rickett said he concurs, he thinks PCR and SU did not  
transfer over to the new code, and it may be something to address as  
changes on the code are being made. Acting Chair Rickett said it is an  
opportunity to modify the code into something that could continue to be  
used.  
Motion by Commissioner Hensler, seconded by Commissioner Casey,  
to recommend approval to City Council for the Use Variance to  
establish the Nonprofit Conference and Education Center based  
upon the findings that the request complies with the criteria as set  
forth in City Code Section 7.5.527.  
The motion passed by a vote of 8-0-1.  
8 -  
Aye:  
Commissioner Hensler, Commissioner Cecil, Commissioner Robbins,  
Commissioner Sipilovic, Commissioner Casey, Gigiano,  
Commissioner Clements and Commissioner Rickett  
1 - Chair Slattery  
Absent:  
9. Presentations  
10. Adjourn