Army scales back Piñon Canyon expansion

The Gazette

Published July 17, 2008 at 10:10 p.m.
Updated July 17, 2008 at 10:10 p.m.

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The Army sounded retreat in its fight for more training land in Las Animas County.

The military shredded its request for 418,577 acres of ranchland and is now looking for 100,000 acres to add to Fort Carson's Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site.

Further sweetening the deal, the Army is trying to woo lawmakers in southeast Colorado with the promise of 100 civilian jobs at the training site and $140 million in construction that will go to improvements if the Army gets approval to buy the land.

Keith Eastin, an assistant Army secretary overseeing the deal, was in Colorado Springs on Thursday to tout the compromise, which is focused on buying land from "willing sellers" rather than seizing it through federal condemnation laws.

"If someone wants to sell it, we would like to buy," Eastin said. "We believe there are willing sellers."

For more coverage from the Gazette, click here.

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