Mayor's Message, July 2023
Hello Neighbors!
July has arrived with a BANG! Happy Birthday America! Wow! How fabulous were those fireworks, friends? Our small-town Festival on the Fourth is one of many events that makes our community unique. I had so much fun riding in the Monument parade representing Palmer Lake and showing the greater community just how special we are.
A huge thank you to Awake the Lake and Tim and Laurie Caves, who led this year’s Firework Committee. Thank you for celebrating our community with a fantastic party! Palmer Lake truly has the best small-town firework display in America! Our community of volunteers is unmatched in drive and enthusiasm!
This summer is all about the beautification of our parks and trails. The Parks Commission has been hard at work and is in the beginning stage of the trail connection project. Connecting the Town to both Glen Park and the Elephant Rock property will allow walkability and access to more of Palmer Lake. While the excessive rain has been a challenge, our volunteers and trail experts have been mitigating, designing, and developing our trail with passion and purpose. There are several workdays coming up for the trail project and interested volunteers should contact Gene Kalesti for more information at gkalesti@gmail.com. We appreciate all our volunteers!
Speaking of the rain, our Public Works Department has had quite a bit on their plates and have been diligently cleaning up after Mother Nature’s frequent outbursts! When you see town staff out and about, working on the roads, please consider a high five or a word of encouragement.
Our community was awarded a substantial grant to benefit Centennial Park and lake area! The grant is an incredible gift provided by the Pikes Peak Area Council of Government for pickleball courts and additional restrooms. The grant is to enhance the lifestyle for seniors enjoying the outdoors. Awake the Lake, along with the Palmer Lake Parks Commission and staff, will collaborate to bring this vision and design to fruition. More to come as the project progresses.
The workgroup for the Elephant Rock Master Plan held a kickoff meeting to explore and create options to plan for the development and preservation of the property. Please reach out to Trustee Jessica Farr for information and details to be involved in this process, JFarr@palmer-lake.org. The Board of Trustees will continue to pursue lease agreements for development of the Eco Spa and development of “Star View Ranch” (with owners of Andiamo catering). We look forward to sharing more information as it becomes available.
As summer progresses, the Board will address numerous business topics. The Board of Trustees will be holding an extra workshop next week. We are looking forward to wrapping up the water fund discussions and anticipate learning more options this month. Consideration of a stormwater enterprise fund remains a high priority for the Board. If there is one thing all this rain has taught us, it is the importance of a long-term solution for drainage throughout the town.
The Palmer Lake Arts Council is hosting a children’s painting class on July 10th from 2-4pm. The class requires a $10 cost for material. Please contact Vicki Mynhier at vmynhier@msn.com to register. I have it on good authority that the Art Council has hired a playwright to write a melodrama about life in Palmer Lake and will be casting residents for this historic play soon! I can’t wait!
Thank you for your continued calls, emails, meetings, and most of all for your continued support. I appreciate how much our community rises to each occasion and strives to be a part of the solution. We are Palmer Lake and, together, we can move mountains!
Glant Havenar
Mayor of Palmer Lake
