Pueblo lawmakers want headquarters decision reviewed

A bipartisan group of state legislators from the Pueblo area is calling for a review of the state's decision to keep the Department of Corrections' headquarters in Colorado Springs.

In a letter dated Thursday and addressed to Rep. Jim Kerr, R-Littleton, chairman of the state Legislative Audit Committee, the legislators assert that competing bids from Pueblo and Cañon City were more attractive and that the Colorado Springs option will cost the state more money.

Pueblo offered $1.5 million in incentives for the DOC headquarters and its 240 employees. But in announcing its decision Oct. 2, the DOC cited lower transportation costs and convenience to Denver as reasons for remaining in Colorado Springs and moving into a new, 100,000-square-foot building near the department's existing headquarters on Janitell Road. That lease expires in 2010.

The DOC is the only department of state government not headquartered in the Denver area. The heaviest concentration of state prisons is in the Cañon City-Pueblo area.

The letter-writers argued that transportation costs were not quantified, and not weighed against "the hard real costs of construction, maintenance and operation."

"An independent evaluation would insulate CDOC from further suspicions of bias," the letter said.

It was signed by Sens. Abel Tapia, D-Pueblo, and Ken Kester, R-Las Animas; and Reps. Dorothy Butcher, D-Pueblo, Buffie McFadyen, D-Pueblo West, Wes McKinley, D-Walsh, and Tom Massey, R-Poncha Springs. Also signing were Reps.-elect Sal Pace, D-Pueblo, and Edward Vigil, D-Fort Garland.

"We included operational efficiencies," said Katherine Sanguinetti, a spokeswoman for the DOC. "Travel to and from the headquarters, the central office location, is part of those operational efficiencies."

She said that even with the financial sweeteners, the Pueblo bid finished last among the five finalists.

If it finds merit in a complaint, the Legislative Audit Committee can refer it to the state auditor's office.

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Contact the writer: 476-1654 or dean.toda@gazette.com