An undeveloped piece of land near Sand Creek High School will be the newest property added to the Pikes Peak Library District. The library’s Board of Trustees voted Tuesday night to purchase the lot on Pony Tracks Drive for $936,000, with the hope it could eventually become home to a new librar y in the northeast section of Colorado Springs. The purchased land is a 1.9-acre parcel on the southeast side of the intersection of Carefree Circle and Peterson Road, behind a Maverik gas station and slightly west of the high school. The parcel is owned by Krause LLC, according to the library’s purchase agreement, and will be purchased using the district’s unassigned funds. Chief Operating Officer Heather Laslie said the board had been exploring multiple options for future library land on the eastern side of Colorado Springs. Once the seller signs off on the purchase agreement, Laslie said the district will have 45 days to inspect the land to ensure it would work for a future library. “It’s a strong opportunity to get land as centrally located as this is, which is becoming less and less available. So I am extremely optimistic there won’t be any problems going through this process,” board member Aaron Salt said. One question the board would need to address is the need for a detention pond and how much that would limit the potential space for a building on that property. District staff told the library board that it hoped to get at least 10,000 square feet for a building and parking lot. The purchase was met with cheers from a small group of library supporters. The trio, who use the Pikes Peak Library District to teach adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, have attended months of library board meetings to advocate for a new facility to be built in the northeast section of the city. “Children, families and all residents in that area deserve the same resources, even if they can’t drive 20 minutes to the library,” said Jade Stone, who also lives in the northeast section of Colorado Springs. The vacant land purchase adds to a pair of deals the library district made in August to take ownership of library buildings that had previously been rented spaces. The library board approved $2.2 million to purchase the Ruth Holley Library and $400,000 for the Ute Pass Library. Pikes Peak Library District approves $2.6 million purchase of Ruth Holley and Ute Pass library properties – Colorado Springs Gazette Library Board Chair Julie Smyth said the board of trustees and library leaders would likely place something on the Pony Tracks Drive land “as soon as it is feasible,” which could mean holding lockers for library books or a small modular building. The library would then begin fundraising to pay for a permanent location. ...read more read less