Home Rule and Main Street, USA
For Cripple Creek and the southern Teller region, 2026 could mark the time when “the rubber meets the road” regarding the community’s ambitious push to finally become a Destination Tourist Mecca, or at least to get the locomotive down the economic track.
The coming year could determine whether the town progresses in trying to revitalize its downtown and gain more local control, and whether it can finalize its much-needed divorce from onerous state statues. Or will residents just hear more talk and a rehashing of the same debate locals have confronted for three decades.
During the last year, Cripple Creek made big inroads politically by approving the formation of a home rule charter committee, the first major step in gaining home rule designation and developing the first-ever Cripple Creek city charter. Voters overwhelmingly said yes to the idea of home rule. That’s a big step, as home rule has often been viewed quite skeptically by elected leaders, business operators and casino owners in Cripple Creek. But town officials helped overcome these perceptions through organizing a series of town meetings in 2025, featuring experts in the formation of home rule governance in various communities across Colorado. A continual public education process must continue through this year, as the term home rule itself often confuses people.
Now, in 2026, the real work in reaching the finish line will occur. A nine-member charter group, mostly elected by the voters, must now come up with an actual city carter, with the document slated for an official vote later this fall. Mayor Annie Durham, who has been monitoring the work sessions, cautions that a city charter doesn’t have to be a massive document. She notes that in some smaller cities a 15-page charter often worked.
The city charter effort may try to address such problem issues as deteriorating buildings, sitting idle and gathering dust along the main downtown core; and redoing how the city calculates gaming revenue, and basing these fees more on adjusted gross proceeds, rather than a total machine count.
From our perspective, look for a very successful vote on home rule again, with the charter easily getting approved. But as far as changing the way the city handles gaming device revenue, don’t hedge your bets on that card. The casino operators are a little touchy on these subjects. We certainly hope the town progresses in its fight against deteriorating structures that once reigned as former casinos.
And 2026 could become a prime time for its Main Street program to take off, with big revitalization plans for the Pocket Park, next to city hall and better signage. More than anything, more locals will understand what Main Street is really about. This term has often turned off residents in the past. And again, 2026 will definitely be a big winner for special events. Unfortunately, the city got off to a delayed start with the Ice Castles attraction due to an extremely warm month of December, causing a near month delay in the opening of this attraction. Oddly enough, Cripple Creek encountered the same weather challenges confronting the Colorado ski resorts.
Also, 2026 will become a time for solidifying its relationship more with SSR mining, especially with its water agreement.
Affordable Housing and Daycare
And yes, Cripple Creek can’t go anywhere without more emphasis on affordable housing and infrastructure. More complex meetings will continue with the grant possibilities further explored and explained by City Administrator Frank Salvato. But as with all towns these days, the problem associated with the federal block of grants amounts to a legitimate threat.
Regardless, the town’s childcare project, “A Place for Kids,” will move forward. Opening day probably won’t occur until sometime in 2027, but the project will move ahead, or the council could experience the wrath of long-time civic leader Mary Bielz. That’s a fate they don’t want to encounter.
All in all, 2026 will bustle with activity in Cripple Creek.
Down the Pass
Art Hub Renaissance Strikes Again
Down the Pass in Green Mountain Falls and the lower Ute Pass, Green Box will still remain a big player. It will be hard for the town to outdo its signature display from 2025, “Off the Beaten Path,” but don’t say it can’t be done to members of Green Box. The summer Green Box Arts festival will emerge again as a central event, and the summer will feature another invasion of out-of-town travelers. Last year, an estimated 100,000-plus ventured out to view this display. Don’t think that figure will be beat, but look for more out-of-town travelers, and more usage of the Green Mountain Falls Skyspace installation.
But at the same time, Bronc Day will gain more followers. The town’s former luster as a tourist mecca will become more realistic and look for good times for local restaurants.
Sewer, Roads and Tickets
However, infrastructure and roads will become the issues that frustrate residents and leaders, again and again, with no sure answers. Moreover, Mayor Todd Dixon will continue his campaign for a solution to the town’s wastewater woes and battling a state government intent on declaring war on septic systems. We will give Todd an A for effort, but he will face the same pitfalls as the Teller County commissioners in dealing with tough odds in confronting a super majority of Democratic lawmakers. Too often, these lawmakers are intent on developing pro-health and green rules that sound great for big cities but are hard for towns like GMF to comply with Plus, the town will encounter more grant problem due to the federal government’s stance.
The ongoing war between the Trump administration the state of Colorado won’t help. And then there is the war between rural towns and the state.
On the controversial side, the town’s new anti-speeding campaign, capped by state-of-the art cameras, could get testy, with opinions mixed on this subject. But more locals are starting to slow down. Business operators favor this approach, but some locals see this as an attack against them. Look for this debate to get aired out as the year progresses. It won’t rival the fight that occurred years ago, when GMF was perceived as a speed trap, and the old town hall building was torched by several speeding offenders, but it will get interesting when these cameras are installed along U.S. Hwy. 24.
But in reality, this type of approach in monitoring speeding is becoming more common. So, slow down or open your wallet.
