When the Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region was founded, Colorado Springs held a dubious distinction. At that time, the city was the largest in the United States without a professionally staffed arts agency. That changed in 2006, and the nonprofit has now reached its 20th year of operation.
The organization grew out of a gathering of roughly 60 members of the arts community who came together to develop a cultural plan, eventually determining that a smaller, more dedicated group was needed to carry the work forward. Susan Edmondson and Kimberley Sherwood responded by establishing the COPPR board and nonprofit. They brought on Bettina Swigger as the organization's first executive director, and among the earliest priorities was helping arts groups with marketing — an effort that led to the creation of PeakRadar.com, a centralized arts and events calendar.
COPPR is the only regional arts agency in Colorado, distinct from other local efforts such as the Palmer Lake Arts Council, the Manitou Creative District, and the Pikes Peak Arts Council. While those volunteer-led groups and membership organizations support the arts within their own communities, COPPR — which covers El Paso and Teller counties — is the only body in the region operating with a professional staff and has maintained programs for more than two decades.
The organization's stated mission is to support and promote the arts while helping to shape the region's identity and economy, functioning as the arts sector's voice in regional leadership and working to connect and grow that sector. Every ten years, COPPR releases a cultural plan; its most recent, Arts Vision 2030, launched in 2021 in partnership with the Bee Vradenburg Foundation, a nonprofit that advocates for local artists and provides grants to arts and culture organizations.
In 2014, COPPR established the first local Arts Month, joining a broader October tradition that Americans for the Arts, a national nonprofit, had initiated in 1993. Public funding currently makes up the largest share of COPPR's revenue at 60 percent, encompassing a Lodgers and Automobile Rental Tax contract with the city of Colorado Springs alongside other grants, including support from Colorado Creative Industries. Additional revenue comes from in-kind support, foundation grants, individual contributions, program sponsorships, corporate contributions, and investment returns.
Executive Director Angela Seals has emphasized that community participation is essential to sustaining the region's arts scene. She urged residents to buy tickets and take chances on unfamiliar work, drawing a comparison to attending a Switchbacks match regardless of the outcome: "You should have the same spirit of adventure when you go to Theatreworks and see a play you've never heard of."
Last year, COPPR acquired a permanent home at 287 E. Fountain Blvd. downtown, where more than 2,000 square feet of space is now available for community programs. Seals described the purchase as a milestone, noting the organization completed it through its own financial management rather than a capital campaign.
How the agency will mark its anniversary publicly, and what programming it plans to roll out in connection with Arts Vision 2030, has not yet been announced.