A plan to drop hundreds of apartments onto a rural stretch of Highway 83 reunites a familiar Tri-Lakes cast — and the county’s own staff recommends approval even as the county’s own plan argues against it.
Author Archives: Michael Christensen
Michael Christensen is the editor of The Monument Independent. He holds a BA in history and an MS in statistics, and has spent 30 years in marketing — the last 15 focused on digital marketing, data analytics, research, and artificial intelligence. In his professional work he is Director of Marketing Operations, Marketing Analytics, and AI Initiatives.
For the past ten years he has worked in educational research, land use assessment, and local government research — the three subjects that account for much of what this paper covers. The statistics training informs how the Independent handles numbers: test scores, campaign finance filings, and public-meeting vote records are traced to primary documents, and the method is published alongside the findings.
He is a married father of four school-age children. He coaches youth soccer, hikes in the Colorado mountains, fly fishes, and reads historical non-fiction and, less defensibly, books about data analysis strategy.
Posted inLocal News
The Road That Lost Its Baptists
How Baptist Road got its name: a vanished fox farm, the Black Forest Baptist Assembly summer camp, a salvaged bell — and why the only church on the road today is Lutheran.
Posted inGovernment
Board Games: How El Paso County Commissioners Are Elected, Paid and Tempted
Five commissioners run a half-billion-dollar county. On June 30, voters in its fast-growing north will pick the one who matters most. An explainer.
Posted inGovernment
Town Delays Monument Lake Paid-Parking Decision to July 20 After Residents Push Back
Five residents raised concerns at the May 18 hearing. The council also adopted an AI use policy and the 2026 Stormwater Master Plan.
Posted inGovernment
Who Actually Governs the Tri-Lakes? A Field Guide
Five governments and a web of special districts make the decisions that shape Monument and Palmer Lake. Here is who votes on what.
Posted inGovernment
Follow the Money: Buc-ee’s, the Ford Amphitheater Network, and the 2026 Commissioner Races
Who is funding the District 1 and District 5 candidates, what the money wants, and why the June 30 primary will likely decide the Buc-ee’s vote before any application is filed.