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During the Westside Neighbors Picnic July 19
at the Westside Community Center... ABOVE: The food line, which started forming
at least a quarter-hour before the official noon start, moves past the grill
(viewable in the background), manned as in past years by OWN board member Terry
Brunette (in white chef's hat), and on to the side dishes and beverages. BELOW:
Michael and Barbara Garcia display their Spirit Award certificate, which they had
just received, honoring the major renovations to their Bott Avenue home.
SECOND FROM BOTTOM: Colorado Springs Utilities volunteer (and retired
lineman) Tom Hutchison gives a presentation on electrical safety. Helping is Bill
Morse, another volunteer, retired from the city-owned enterprise's electric
standards division. Not shown is another volunteer, Karl Shafer, also a retired
lineman. BOTTOM; Sallie Clark, a Westside resident, former OWN president and
currently a county commissioner, shakes hands with firefighters. (Note: She was
dressed for the County Fair, which was her next stop that day.)
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The event was put on by the Organization of Westside Neighbors (OWN), the city-recognized advocacy group for the older Westside.
Diners were treated to bratwursts and/or hotdogs, along with a variety of side dishes and dessert items - some of them donated by local merchants, some brought by attendees in a spirit of potluck. A musical group led by John Wise performed for the fourth straight year.
The barbeque featured the announcement of the 10th annual Spirit Awards, which honor “improvements to commercial and residential properties that contribute to the beauty and ambiance of the Westside Neighborhood Strategy Area that OWN represents,” according to the summer edition of the OWN newsletter, the Westside Story.
The address of 2119 Bott Ave., a 1905 house owned by Michael and Barbara Garcia, was one of the winners. The Garcias have lived there 3 ½ years, all the
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Others receiving Spirit Award certificates are:
- 1431 W. Pikes Peak Ave. (a former church renovated into a house). The owners are Mago and Ann Lauritzen. The property is on the market.
- 600 S. 21st St. - the Colorado Mountain Brewery (a brewpub/restaurant framed into the north end of the historic Midland Roundhouse building in 2012).
- 503 W. Colorado Ave. - 503W Open Kitchen Craft Bar (a restaurant/art gallery created where the Dutch Mill used to be).
- 624 S. 21 St. - Dutch Brothers Coffee (a new, drive-through coffee business outside the Roundhouse).
- 410 South 26th St. - Garden of the Gods
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- 2625 W. Colorado Ave. - Alchemy (renovation work in a historic commercial building).
- 1015 W. Colorado - LeBistro (historic renovations).
Among the picnic attendees were firefighters from Stations 3 and 5 (for once not called away on an alarm during the event), political office-holders (Don Knight, Sallie Clark, Bernie Herpin, Terri Carver and Pete Lee) and one aspiring to return to office (Michael Merrifield).
“We try to be part of the Westside community by coming out here and participating,” said Richard Renz, a driver/engineer with Station 5. And, he credited Station 3 for doing the same.
Providing information during the picnic were booths manned by Colorado Springs Utilities volunteers (on electrical safety) and by Tim Roberts of City Traffic Engineering (on the bike lane/sharrow project for West Uintah Street this fall).
“Everything went real well,” said OWN President Welling Clark. “We had about a dozen people who said they were new to the Westside, and told us this was great.”
Westside Pioneer article
(Posted 7/24/14;
Community:
Neighborhoods)
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