"I don't want to paint a picture that everything is just fine. It's not." That's what Mayor Phil Lund told the Cañon City Daily Record in mid-October about the Royal Gorge Bridge & Park, the attraction Cañon City owns and leases to a private operator. The current operator's contract runs out Saturday, October 31. On Sunday, November 1, CMBH Partners, LLC is set to take over under a new lease.
For people who live here, the lease is the real news. It puts free community days and local season-pass discounts in writing for the next 25 years or more. The weekend that's supposed to start all that still had unresolved problems as of the latest public report.
One contract since 1967
Most of us have never known the bridge under anyone but Royal Gorge Company of Colorado. That company's arrangement with the city began May 29, 1967, according to the Daily Record. City Administrator Ryan Stevens describes what the city is closing out now as "a contract that has been in place since the late 1960s and has had 13 amendments since it was originally signed."
Choosing the next operator took about three years:
- 2023. City Council was weighing another extension for the current operator and decided to put the bridge out to competitive bid instead. "Because it had been over 60 years with the same operator, that we owed it to the people of Cañon City," Stevens said.
- 2024. The city hired a consultant.
- July 10, 2025. The city posted its request for proposals for an operator to run everything at the park: the bridge, attractions, food and beverage, retail and maintenance. Proposals were due September 5, 2025.
- Late 2025 into 2026. Stevens said "a handful of applicants" applied and CMBH was selected, followed by months of negotiation.
- June 18, 2026. City Council approved the CMBH contract unanimously. Operations begin November 1, 2026.
The full contract is posted with the June 18, 2026 special meeting agenda on the city's website. It's usually called a 25-year lease with two 10-year extensions, which means CMBH could run the park until 2071.
What the lease puts in writing for locals
Here's what the new agreement includes, as the Daily Record reported in June:
| Lease provision | What it says |
|---|---|
| Community days | Two free community days per year |
| Locals' season passes | Discounted season-pass rates for locals |
| Schools | Discounted pricing for school and educational groups |
| Local events | Support for certain local events, plus community engagement |
| Capital improvements | $3 million in the first 10 years, with $1 million due by March 1, 2029 |
| New attractions | At least two new major attractions between Nov. 1, 2036 and Oct. 31, 2051 |
| Inflation | Consumer Price Index escalators built into many provisions |
The new attractions also involve city money. The city will help pay for them through a sinking fund that grows from $600,000 to $1 million. "It was very important that we see improvements during the course of those 25 years, so we built in different opportunities for that to happen through the course of the lease," Stevens told the paper.
Brent Hargrave, who spoke for CMBH at the vote, said: "It is a partnership between us and our employees, and the city of Cañon City."
Two practical questions are still open: whether annual passes and gift cards bought from the current operator will be honored, and what the winter hours will be after November 1. If you hold a pass or gift card, ask the park directly before your next visit.
Why a closed bridge shows up in the city budget
Locals have more at stake than a day trip with visiting relatives. The bridge works like a landlord deal. CMBH pays rent as a share of revenue. The city keeps 25% of admission revenue and 10% of food, beverage and merchandise sales, the same split as the old contract, plus 10% of special events.
The paper's two reports on what that brings in don't match exactly. In June, the Daily Record said the city's annual take was "presently around $2.5 million." Its October 16 report put the figure at about $3 million a year to the general fund. It added that this money helps give Cañon City one of the lowest tax rates in the state, and that even a one-week closure could cost the city an estimated $57,534.
Each attraction counts toward that money too. The SkyCoaster is currently closed to riders. Hargrave wrote that keeping it closed could cost about $600,000 a year in revenue. Under the lease, the city gets a percentage of every dollar the park earns, so a ride that's closed or a lost week in November costs the city general fund as well as the operator.
What was still open as of Oct. 16
On October 9, Hargrave sent a five-page letter on CMBH's behalf to Stevens, City Council and Mayor Lund. The Daily Record got it through an open records request.
"…significant issues remain unresolved, access to the property remains restricted, and we continue to encounter delays and a lack of communication that are jeopardizing our ability to execute a successful transition."
The letter made five requests:
- Specific dates when CMBH would get access to the property
- A complete list of known deficiencies, who is responsible for fixing each one, and when
- A written plan for repairing the SkyCoaster
- Clarity on property conditions that could limit how CMBH runs the park
- Named assignments for transition responsibilities
Hargrave also raised the condition of the parking lots and "unresolved matters involving intellectual property and naming rights." That second item is why nobody should assume the park's name or branding will stay exactly as they are after November 1. The letter also said some problems trace to the outgoing operator's deferred maintenance, needed repairs and other obligations under its current agreement.
The city answered with its own position. Stevens said the city and CMBH "are on the same page and working closely as the end of the existing lease approaches." He also said he couldn't address some parts of the letter because they "are either being negotiated or may be subject to arbitration or legal action." Council held a special executive session on Monday, October 12. Lund said he believes council members "are going to do all they can to keep the bridge and park open on Nov. 1." He added that a closure could happen. He also spoke up for "lots of great employees at the bridge."
All of this describes where things stood on October 16. Things may have changed since then, so check the city's announcements and the Daily Record before you plan around November 1.
The last days under the 1967 contract
Boo at the Bridge is the last event on the calendar before the handover. The Royal Gorge Region events calendar lists it daily through Saturday, October 31, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the park, 4218 County Road 3A. It includes costumes, candy and family activities. That leaves Thursday, October 29, Friday, October 30, and Saturday, October 31. The 31st is both Halloween and the final day of the current contract.
For a local planning ahead, the useful questions are practical ones:
- Passes and gift cards. If you have a season pass or gift card from the current operator, ask the park whether it carries over after October 31.
- Winter hours. Confirm hours for November before you drive out with guests.
- SkyCoaster. It was closed to riders as of mid-October. Don't count on it for a visit.
- Free community days and local pass rates. The lease guarantees both. The new operator will set the dates and prices, so watch for CMBH's first announcements.
The first deadline in CMBH's lease that anyone can check is $1 million in capital improvements by March 1, 2029.
The bridge has been part of Cañon City's economy for nearly six decades, and that matters to homeowners here, from the city budget to what visiting buyers see first. If you're thinking about what local landmarks and city finances mean for your property's value, Gold District Realty can walk you through it with real local numbers. Start with an Instant Property Valuation and we'll go from there.
