Black Canyon Quarry Open Space

In September 2022 the City of Colorado Springs purchased 315 acres of open space near the Cedar Heights and Oak Valley Ranch neighborhoods, located on the city’s western edge.

These areas were identified in the 2014 Park System Master Plan as candidate properties to add to the City’s open space system. In the coming years, the properties will undergo separate master planning processes with opportunities for public input on future use and development.

More about the properties

The new open space includes two properties, both of which were purchased from Castle Concrete: Black Canyon Quarry and the frontage property of the Pikeview Quarry.

Black Canyon Quarry

Black Canyon Quarry, which is 163 acres of property adjacent to Williams Canyon, is located to the west of the Cedar Heights neighborhood and Garden of the Gods Park.

From a regional perspective, this property offers future potential to provide trail access to the Pike National Forest’s Waldo Canyon area. The U.S. Forest Service is currently engaged in an ongoing public planning process to reimagine Waldo Canyon.

Frontage property of Pikeview Quarry

Also included in the purchase is 152 acres of undeveloped land directly east of the Pikeview Quarry. This frontage property, which features rolling hills and oak brush, is located immediately south of Blodgett Open Space and west of Allegheny Drive and the Oak Valley Ranch neighborhood.

The 100-acre Pikeview Quarry was not purchased. However, it could be acquired at a later date as a donation from Castle Concrete on condition of state approval of physical reclamation and at the city’s sole discretion.

Cost and funding

Both properties are fully funded by revenues from the TOPS Open Space Category.

• Black Canyon Quarry and 90 acres of the Pikeview frontage: just over $6 million
• Remaining 61 acres of the Pikeview frontage

More about TOPS

TOPS is a 0.01 percent sales tax first approved by voters in 1997 that generates approximately $9.5 million annually. It is used exclusively to preserve and steward open space lands, trails and parks.

In recent years, TOPS has generated approximately $9.5 million annually. From those funds, between $3-3.5 million a year is set aside specifically for acquiring open space. The open space category also funds the maintenance and operation of existing open space properties. Some years, there are not properties available to purchase, allowing the acquisition funds to accumulate for future opportunities.

The city owns more than 6,700 acres of TOPS property, including Bluestem Prairie, Corral Bluffs, High Chaparral, Red Rock Canyon, Stratton and Union Meadows open spaces. TOPS funding has also contributed to more than 50 of the city’s parks, trails and open spaces.

The purchase follows City Council’s unanimous approval in June as well as recommendations made in May by the Parks Advisory Board and the TOPS Working Committee.