LOCAL

Last week in this space you were able to hear from Ann and Jerry Healey, who have entrusted their collection of 24 community newspapers to us at the newly formed Colorado News Conservancy.

This week, as the new owners and operators of this newspaper, we want to give you an opportunity to hear directly from us and learn about our plans.

With an eye toward retirement, grandkids and new adventures, Ann and Jerry sold Colorado Community Media to the Conservancy. The Conservancy is a partnership between the National Trust for Local News and The Colorado Sun, a local digital news organization that some of you may already know.

We were aided by a network of Colorado organizations who share our commitment to keeping newspapers in local hands and to ensuring that you continue to benefi t from the unique, hyperlocal coverage that you have come to expect from this newspaper and the others in the CCM family. One of the Colorado Community Media newspapers has been serving its community for more than 150 years, and others have decades of history. We feel a deep responsibility to continue that legacy and ensure your paper is still providing quality news and information for decades to come, as well as bringing the businesses that provide the core fi nancial support for these publications together with readers in the local communities they serve.

So what will change, and what won’t? We’ve already heard those questions from readers and local business owners who feel strong ties to the reporters, editors, sales staff and others who bring the news to you.

For starters, we are seeking to fi ll the big shoes of Jerry Healey in the role of publisher. We are looking for someone who is as passionate about community and local service as Jerry has been. We are so grateful that he has agreed to stay on this month to help ensure we have a smooth transition.

We do not plan the staff cutbacks, cost-cutting or layoffs that have become far too common in the news business these days. In fact, we are looking to bolster the fi ne work already being done to serve you, the readers and supporters of this paper. Our job is to keep your local media strong and growing.

The Colorado Community Media name will stay the same, as will the name of the newspaper you know and trust. The same goes for the phone numbers, email addresses and the website of your paper. You can reach out to the hard-working people here at the paper in the same ways you always have.

We purchased Colorado Community Media because we are committed to serving our readers, our local businesses and our communities and to sustaining the important community role played by these papers.

We want to thank Ann and Jerry once again for their hard work and dedication over the years to providing community media to your town and others.

We promise them — and you — that we will work hard to serve you and make you proud.

From left, Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro and Lillian Ruiz, co-founders of the National Trust for Local News, and Larry Ryckman, editor-in-chief of The Colorado Sun, are leaders of the Colorado News Conservancy partnership that has purchased Colorado Community Media. ABOUT THE COLORADO NEWS CONSERVANCY

The Colorado News Conservancy is a public benefit corporation formed to preserve Colorado Community Media and ensure that its 24 weekly and monthly newspapers remain locally owned. The Conservancy is a joint venture by the National Trust for Local News and The Colorado Sun. The Trust is a new, national nonprofit organization formed to provide the financing, new ownership structures and expertise needed for established news organizations around the country to become sustainable and deeply grounded in their communities. The Sun is a journalist-owned, award-winning digital news outlet that strives to cover all of Colorado, bring understanding to important issues and contribute to a more vibrant, informed and whole Colorado.

To contact us, email CNC@ColoradoCommunityMedia.com or call 303-5664100.

Thornton Amazon warehouse target of state labor complaint

Linda Rodriguez alleges Amazon retaliated against her for speaking up about COVID-19 protocols

BY LIAM ADAMS LADAMS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

A complaint fi led with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) alleges that Amazon retaliated against a former employee at its Thornton warehouse for raising concerns about workplace conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Towards Justice, a Denver-based nonprofi t law fi rm, and Attorney Hunter Swain of Swain Law, LLC, fi led the complaint on behalf of Linda Rodriguez as a prerequisite to potential legal action in the future, said David Seligman, executive director of Towards Justice. The Department of Labor and Employment will investigate Rodriguez’s allegation that supervisors at the Thornton warehouse fi red Rodriguez for speaking up about problems she saw at the facility with contact tracing, cleaning and communication.

“It seemed like Amazon just wanted to pressure people to keep coming to work during the pandemic, even though we were terrifi ed, and so they didn’t tell us whether we’d been exposed and didn’t even explain to my Spanish-speaking co-workers in a language they could understand that they shouldn’t come to work if they were sick,” Rodriguez said in a press release.

In a copy of the CDLE complaint, Rodriguez said supervisors at the Thornton warehouse did not enforce mask-wearing and social distancing, ensure proper cleaning of the facility, provide correct information about contact tracing and adequately communicate about COVID-19 safety protocols in Spanish.

Rodriguez began speaking up last June after learning through other employees, not company offi cials, that a coworker she came into contact with later tested positive for COVID-19, the complaint said. That fi rst time, Rodriguez complained to her supervisor who, “immediately shut down the conversation, responding that Amazon had instructed him not to discuss the confi rmed infection,” the complaint alleges.

A regular issue Rodriguez observed was that warehouse employees did not provide important COVID-19 safety information — including warnings that employees should not clock in and enter the facility if they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms — in Spanish during pre-shift meetings. Thus, the complaint said, “Amazon was able to maintain pressure on its Spanishspeaking workers to continue attending work even if they felt sick.”

Rodriguez expressed her concerns to supervisors several times throughout the summer months and little was done in response, the complaint alleged. On Aug. 22, Rodriguez shared with a supervisor she was considering fi ling a complaint with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). On Aug. 24, Amazon suspended Rodriguez for “time theft” and later terminated her.

Amazon spokesperson Maria Boschetti said in a statement, “The facts of this case are clear: Ms. Rodriguez was terminated for timecard fraud or ‘time theft.’ On at least a half dozen occasions over a ten-day period, Ms. Rodriguez clocked in and then either left the building or failed to report to her work assignment.”

Boschetti added, “When interviewed, with just one exception, Ms. Rodriguez did not deny the allegations nor was she able to justify them.”

Rodriguez and her attorneys defend in the CDLE complaint that Amazon’s reason for fi ring Rodriguez is a “...pretext to disguise its unlawful retaliation against her” and that a fi ling with the Colorado Civil Rights Division proves as much.

“I saw that Amazon was scared of me speaking out for myself and my co-workers. It intimidated me and ultimately fi red me when I raised my voice, but I’m not backing down,” Rodriguez said in a press release.

The CDLE complaint asks the department to determine if Amazon violated Colorado’s Public Health Emergency Whistleblower (PHEW) Act, which protects workers who raise concerns about workplace violations.

Hwy. 85 and Bromley Lane Brighton, CO 80601 303-659-6844 Hwy. 85 and Bromley Lane Brighton, CO 80601 303-659-6844 Hwy. 85 and Bromley Lane Brighton, CO 80601 303-659-6844

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Brighton Fire Rescue o cials said lightning appears to be the cause of a May 5 tanker fi re near U.S. Highway 85 and Weld County Road 6. It started shortly before 1 p.m. Crews from the Brighton, Fort Lupton, Mountain View, South Adams and Southeast Weld fi re protections districts assisted and brought foam to the fi re scene. The fi re involved four empty fi berglass water tanks. Crews used water tenders to shuttle water to the fi re site. No one was injured. Smoke from the fi re was visible from as far away as Commerce City.

United Power brings I-76 EV station online

STAFF REPORT

A Keensburg gas station will offer aid to electric vehicles, becoming I-76’s fi rst charging station.

United Power is adding an Electric Vehicle Charging network to fi ll a large charging gap along the I-76 corridor for electric vehicle commuters. Travelers to be able to “fi ll up” at United Power’s ChargePoint Fast EV Charging station conveniently located at the Market Street Mart and Shell Gas Station in Keenesburg. Its grand opening was set for 2 p.m. May 11.

RACING

Police Department, Adams County Sheriff’s Offi ce and the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s offi ce.

Representatives of various departments are meeting to brainstorm the most effective strategies to curb street racing, though they already have one advisement for street racers: take advantage of state patrol’s “Take it to the Track” program at Bandimere Speedway in Jefferson County.

Metro police departments already know Bandimere won’t cut it, since the pandemic made for less busy roads, an appealing prospect to street racers. Thus, Thornton and Northglenn have beefed up enforcement in areas and at times where street racing is more likely to occur. Westminster, Brighton, Thornton and Northglenn all have assigned a specifi c person or team to study the issue and develop mitigation strategies.

Some departments are also reducing car parties that pop up in large parking lots. Car enthusiasts will, on a whim, gather in the parking lots of businesses or shopping malls, to show off their cars to one another, said Westminster Police Sgt. Terry Hasse, the department’s street racing point person. Many times, the gatherings won’t escalate and at worst, be noisy. However, it will sometimes lead to street racing, Hasse said.

Westminster PD is working with businesses to provide no-trespass orders for car clubs congregating in their lots. The department is also reaching out to car clubs directly and asking them to have peaceful gatherings. Esslinger said, “We as an agency and other agencies are open to working with all the car clubs for a solution.”

Westminster police and the other departments emphasized they are taking the issue seriously, even if it sometimes feels that the issue is rampant. Though the issue is complex, Esslinger said, “The last thing any police offi cer would want to do is knock on anybody’s door and report to that family member that somebody had lost their life due to this behavior of street racing that could have been prevented”

Food donations coming into the communities

BY BELEN WARD BWARD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

A new, unique mobile food truck is coming to neighborhoods to help families in need with healthy foods.

The Weld County Food Bank unveiled its new mobile food truck May 5.

“I’m just thrilled that it’s fi nally funded and it is here. It’s going to be out serving the community. We wanted to do this a couple of years ago, but COVID set us back and there is an incredible need for fresh produce. We’re in a farming community and now it is going to be huge for the people we serve and the kids,” said Bob O’Connor, CEO of the World Food Bank.

The truck was fi nanced through the partnership with Northern Colorado United for Youth and the Halliburton Charitable Foundation.

“We have been a longstanding member of this community. We’ve had a facility in the area for over 50 years, and employ quite a few people, particularly from the Weld County area. So it’s important for us to get back to the community that we live and work in,” said Robert Harber, vice president for Rocky Mountain Haliburton.

NOCO Unify- “Impact the Life of a Child,” an organization that has been around for more than 14 years, also donated funding to help start the mobile food truck.

“We are an all-volunteer organization that raises money for at-risk and in-need youth in Larimer and Weld counties. We’ve just crested the $5 million raised mark, and we give back on average, anywhere between $150,000 and $250,000 a year to Larimer and Weld County charities specifi cally serving at-risk and Indian youth,” said Jeremy Jeremy Holt with NOCO Unify. “We get a lot of support from local business owners, and we take every dollar that we raise and put it right back into the community.”

The program is called Farms to Families.

“It’s a very unique truck that was custom built by a company in Canada, that we’re going to utilize to take the fresh product such as produce, meat and dairy to smaller communities,” said Weston Edmonds, communications manager with the Weld County Food Bank.

The food bank partnered with numerous agencies and nonprofi t agencies that do not have the access to produce, dairy or fresh meat. The mobile food truck will be used to help the agencies distribute food to smaller communities and to senior living complexes where a lack of transportation can make it hard to get access to food.

“We are also going to target lowincome senior living complexes so we can go to the seniors and give them what we have on hand without giving them large amounts of food that they just can’t use,” said Edmonds.

The food bank offers a child feeding program in summer called “The Summer Feeding Program.” When the food truck parks in a neighborhood to give children fresh fruits the parents can grab some produce from the truck as well.

“We are excited because we’ve seen other food banks in the feeding American network do this on huge scales for up to 100 families and it allows us to target people in those smaller communities,” said Edmonds.

Edmonds said in the fi rst year of COVID the food bank had an 80% increase of people coming in for food before COVID. Also, with the child feed program, there was an increase in the number of kids needing meals and snacks which increased by 130%.

“We’re hearing from those families that they were furloughed for a bit, but they’re back to work but had to use up their savings. They had to stretch their means and they’re still recovering, said Edmonds. “ It’s good, but I think it’s going to be a while for people to recover. “

O’Connor said that one in fi ve people is hungry and one in four children is without food. This year, the food bank distributed more than 16 million pounds of food in Weld County.

“Unfortunately, it is all-time record and served the double amount of people that we have in a standard year,” Edmonds said.

O’Connor added, “We are so grateful for all coming together and helping us through volunteers and fi nancial donations. “

Bob O’Connor, CEO, with the World Food Bank giving a speech to the organizations that donated funding to the new mobile food truck that will be set up in communities

to provide food. PHOTO BY BELEN WARD

EAGLE VIEWADULT CENTER

1150 Prairie Center Parkway • Brighton, CO 80601 • 303-655-2075 • www.brightonco.gov

The Eagle View Adult Center hosts FREE virtual activities as seniors stay safer at home. If you are 55 or older, call 303-655-2075 to get on the email list to receive the weekly Eagle View E-Blast. Or visit https://www.brightonco.gov/280/Eagle-View-Adult-Center to get Zoom links. The links are posted on the website on Sundays. Eagle View Adult Center Update: Eagle View Adult Center will re-open on a limited basis on Monday, May 17. Due to restrictions, all programs and activities will require advanced registration by calling 303-655-2075. Hours of operation will be M– F, 8:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. All patrons will be required to wear masks inside the facility at all times. We can’t wait to see you!!! e May/June Senior Pride newsletter lists all classes and programs. It can be mailed to you by calling the center at 303-655-2075 or download at: https://www.brightonco.gov/DocumentCenter/ View/23656/Newsletter---May-June-2021-Final Eagle View Special Happenings is Week: Lost Lodges of Rocky Mountain Nat. Park (Wed. May 12 @ 1:30 p.m.) Upcoming Programs - Mark your calendars and register early! Medicare 101 (Tues. May 18 @ 2:00 p.m. - Again at 6:00 p.m.) Active Minds: e U.S. Electric Grid (Wed. May 19 @ 1:30 p.m.) Bingo by Zoom or Phone ( urs. May 20 @ 12:30 p.m.) Download a bingo card at: https://bingobaker.com/#1228516. Or call 303-655-2075 and we will mail you one. Stay Fit Programs Join via Zoom a few minutes before start time. Zumba Gold ( urs. May 13 @ 9:00 a.m.) Move It or Lose It! ( urs. May 13 @ 10:00 a.m.) Line Dance (Fri. May 14 @ 9:00 a.m.) More Upcoming Programs e Roaring 20’s w/Paul Flanders (Tues. May 25 @ 12:30 p.m.) Feathered Friends: Great Horned Owl w/Anne Price (Wed. May 26 @ 1:00 p.m.) e Story of Lucille Ball w/Evan Weiner (Wed. June 2 @ 1:00 p.m.)

To Schedule a Virtual Tour or for more info call Nellie at: 303-659-4148

Peace Officers Day

Flag Raising and Presentation by Commander Domenico Saturday, May 15, 8 A.M. Coffee & Snacks Provided

Location: Rocky Mountain Baptist Church 1895 Egbert Street * Brighton, CO 80601 303-430-4343 For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Rm 13:1

Fuel purchases, deliveries, rideshare trips could see added costs

BY JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN

Colorado Democrats formally rolled out their massive transportation fee-implementation and spending bill on May 4 with support from top business leaders and two Republicans, saying 2021 is the year to fi nally tackle the Holy Grail that is the state’s longstanding infrastructure defi cit.

“This is the year we will make it happen,” Senate Majority Leader Steve Fenberg said as Senate Bill 260 was introduced.

The bill would impose new fees on motorists purchasing gasoline and diesel fuel, while also adding additional costs to deliveries, rideshare trips and electric vehicle registrations. The fees would raise about $3.8 billion over the next decade and, paired with an infusion of the Legislature’s general fund, contribute to more than $5 billion on spending.

Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers and state Sen. Kevin Priola of Henderson were the two Republicans who joined Democrats, including Gov. Jared Polis, at a news conference to announce the legislation.

“As a conservative Republican, I’m not here this afternoon because I’m a fan of everything going on with the Colorado Legislature these days — far from it,” Suthers said. “But I am here to support this transportation package, because I believe Colorado must move forward to invest in its transportation infrastructure, and this is the best, most collaborative effort that I’ve seen to do so.”

Suthers says he opposed a recent proposal to raise sales taxes to pay for Colorado’s transportation needs, but that he thinks the measure introduced May 4 strikes the best balance possible, making road users pay their fair share and lawmakers open their purse strings.

“While I personally would prefer perhaps a greater contribution of general fund, or more money into highway construction and less into multimodal, I’m a political realist and I understand political compromise,” he said. “And I don’t see a better package coming through the Legislature or the voters anytime soon. And I strongly believe we simply cannot kick this can down the road any longer.”

Mike Kopp, president and CEO of Colorado Concern, and Kelly Brough, president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, were also at the news conference to voice their support.

Kopp called the measure a “breakthrough step.”

Most Republicans balk at fees

The GOP support is notable because Republicans at the Legislature have generally chafed at the notion of raising fees to pay for transportation projects. Most conservatives, including the powerful group Americans for Prosperity Colorado, think voter approval should be sought before any new costs are placed on motorists and question the legality of the fee structure.

“It is unconscionable that our lawmakers could even think of moving forward with all the negative feedback they have received with only weeks left in the session to spare,” AFP Colorado State Director Jesse Mallory said in a written statement. “Coloradans, their families, and their businesses cannot possibly shoulder another fi nancial burden after the pandemic. If our lawmakers can’t carry out the duties of their position and hold themselves accountable to voters, then we will — plain and simple.”

Mallory’s group plans to cosponsor a 2022 ballot measure with Colorado Rising State Action, another conservative group, to give voters the option to reduce the gasoline tax in response to the Legislature’s fee plan.

Sen. Ray Scott, R-Grand Junction, said during a Colorado Sun forum on transportation funding recently that enacting fees would be “incredibly dangerous to our economy and to the well-being of people in Colorado.”

Scott said his party would instead like to see a quarter of the roughly $4 billion Colorado is receiving from the latest coronavirus relief package used for transportation. “We could solve every fi scal problem — from K-12, to higher ed, to roads and bridges — with this money if we don’t get distracted.”

But Priola and Suthers rejected their fellow conservatives’ argument. Priola said he thinks Senate Bill 260 spreads the burden around fairly, and Suthers — who is also Colorado’s former attorney general — said he is confi dent the fees are legal and will hold up in court.

The governor said support from people like Priola and Suthers proves that the policy strikes the right balance.

“It’s rare to see people of so many different perspectives coming together around something that we need to do,” Polis said. “Most importantly, this bill is for you. It’s to fi nally fi x our damn roads.”

Parts of the bill were fi rst unveiled to reporters in March, but several changes have been made since then. Those alterations include:

Gasoline and diesel fuel fees would start lower — at 2 cents per gallon starting in July 2022 — and increase 1 cent every year up to 8 cents • The delivery fee was initially set at 25 cents, but it has been hiked to 27 cents • The additional fee on top of the existing $50 charge for electric vehicle owners would be increased by a range of $55 to $159 instead of by a range of $60.19 to $153.20 • The total general fund contribution would rise to $1.5 billion from $1.2 billion • The total dollars in the plan increases to $5.3 billion from $5 billion • $2.5 million would be set aside for Front Range rail, up from no allocation in earlier versions of the measure

Some proposals stayed same

Some elements did not change between the earlier version and the one introduced on May 4. That includes plans to charge a new, fee of 30 cents per trip on Uber and Lyft rides starting in 2022 and eventually increasing it based on the federal Consumer Price Index. The fee would be cut in half for people carpooling in a rideshare, or riding in an electric vehicle.

Republicans and Democrats have been battling over how to fund transportation projects in Colorado for years. Voters in recent years have rejected ballot questions to raise taxes, bond and retain excess tax revenue to pay for infrastructure.

The money generated by the new fees would go toward a myriad of projects and not just expanding existing roadways.

“This will help us reach our climate goals through electrifi cations and also by investing in multi-modal transportation,” said Sen. Faith Winter, a Westminster Democrat and prime sponsor of the transportation-funding bill.

House Speaker Alec Garnett, a Denver Democrat who is also a prime sponsor of the bill, said Colorado is losing its competitive edge because of its transportationfunding defi cit.

“We have a transportation crisis in Colorado,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

Colorado Sun staff writer Lucy Haggard contributed to this report.

This story is from The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. Used by permission. For more, and to support The Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com.

@ 11am / Free House Speaker Alec Garnett, D-Denver, speaks at the Colorado Capitol on May 4 about Senate Bill 260 to raise and spend millions on May 13th - Jun 26th

transportation. PHOTO BY JESSE PAUL/THE COLORADO SUN Colorado Photographic Arts Center, 1070

Bannock St, Denver

Morning tra c ramps up on Interstate 25 through Thornton earlier this year. A proposal State Legislators are considering would impose new fees on motorists purchasing gasoline and diesel fuel, while also adding additional costs to deliveries, rideshare trips

and electric vehicle registrations. STEFAN BRODKSY