Commerce City Sentinel Express April 25, 2024

OBITUARIES: PAGE 4 | PUZZLE: PAGE 16 | CLASSIFIEDS: PAGE 17 | LEGAL: PAGE 19

Community invited to vote on new school name finalists

27J Schools is asking community members to share their top name choices for the district’s planned new high school and middle school.

Earlier this year, the district put out a call for name suggestions for both new schools. e community responded with over 400 responses and more than 200 unique name suggestions. e district’s Facility Planning Advisory Committee has narrowed these suggestions to a group of six nalists for each school and now community members can again provide their input.  Community members can vote at bit.ly/3U3QZrS online.

e 27J Schools Board of Education is expected to select names for both schools in June.

e design and construction of the district’s fourth comprehensive high school - in Commerce City - and the district’s sixth middle school - in ornton - are both being funded thanks to voter support of a 2021 Bond Program.

e new middle school is scheduled to open in Fall 2026 with the high school completed and opening in Fall 2027.

Anythink expands hours at three branches

p.m. Tuesday through ursday.

e three branches will also open at 9 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

All other branch locations will continue with thier current hours of operation.

“Responding to the needs of our customers is an important priority for us,” said Mark Fink, Anythink’s executive director. “Expanding the hours at these locations will provide residents with additional time and opportunities to visit the libraries in person and connect with the programs and resources they appreciate.”

e new hours began on April 16 at the Anythink Bennett, Anythink Commerce City and Anythink Perl Mack branches.

e Anythink Brighton, Anythink Huron Street and Anythink Wright Farms will keep their current hours, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through ursday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

Anythink Libraries will hours for Anythink Bennett, Anythink Commerce City and Anythink Perl Mack branches, opening an hour earlier at 9 a.m. and closing an hour later at 7

e Anythink York Street branch will keep its shorter hours. at branch is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through ursday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

All Anythink branches are closed on Sundays.

County seeks Healthy Farmers Markets input

Adams County is looking for feedback and opinions regarding the series of farmers markets they helped o er in 2023. Information

from an online survey, located at https://bit.ly/4879uzr, will help determine how the markets will operate in 2024.

In 2023, the Adams County Health Department and Human Services partnered to provide Healthy Farmers Markets for residents. e departments are planning to provide those again in 2024, and they’d like to hear from you.

e county helped schedule the markets on Tuesdays and ursdays at the Anythink Library Wright Farms and Huron Street branches.

e survey asks about location preferences, dates and timing preferences and what kinds of o erings and other services should be offered.

Alliance Business Assistance Center grants available

e Alliance Business Assistance Center is excited to announce that 2024 business grants are now available to support your business endeavors. Sta at the center can assist residents by helping to identify grants that align with their business goals and industry, providing guidance through the application process, ensuring that they have the best chance of success and providing other valuable resources for local business. To get started, visit our website at https://businessinthornton.com/ local-business/small-businesssupport-programs/business- nancial-assistance.

‘Taking No Chances’ e 17th Judicial District Attorney’s O ce and e Link, a community resource and assessment center in ornton, o er free, 10week programs to families of Adams County teenagers to help develop personal and interpersonal drug-resistance skills. Sessions are from 5:30 to 6;30 p.m. Wednesdays. Call 720-292-2811.

Commerce City seeking Snow Guardians

Commerce City Code Enforcement is introducing the new Snow Guardians program to help residents be good neighbors by o ering free snow removal services to residents who qualify.

Snow Guardians assist residents who are not able to clear their sidewalks of snow and ice to comply with the municipal code due to age, disability, or some other condition. Commerce City municipal code requires property owners are responsible for clearing public sidewalks adjacent to their property of snow and ice within 24 hours of the last snowfall.

Contact Code Enforcement to apply to keep you in compliance with the code and help keep our sidewalks safe!

To qualify, you must be a resident with limited nancial resources and be unable to shovel due to age, disability, or other conditions. Learn more about the program and apply at c3gov.com/CodeEnforcement.

Adams County adopts prevailing wage policy

Public project workers guaranteed fair wages, under new program

Contractors working on Adams County projects must provide a fair wage to their employees, according to a new policy adopted April 16.

e Board of County Commissioners approved a Prevailing Wage Policy that requires all Adams County government construction contracts valued at $250,000

or more must adhere to prevailing wage standards.

e policy would guarantee employees working on Adams County projects receive fair wages commensurate with their work, are classi ed correctly, and paid in a timely and accurate manner. e move is part of the county’s commitment to upholding equitable labor practices and supporting its workforce, according to a written statement.

County o fcials met with labor organizations, construction companies and residents to draft the new policy. Board Chair Emma Pinter expressed her enthusiasm for the policy, saying it re ects the

county’s commitment to fair labor practices and ensures individuals working on public projects are justly compensated.

“By ensuring fair wages and proper classi cation, we are investing in the well-being of our workforce and promoting economic stability within our community,” Pinter said in the written statement.

Adams County will rely on wage scales aligned with prevailing wage statutes used by the state and use software consistent with both state and federal government practices to determine wages that meet the policy.

Commissioner Charles “Chaz”

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Tedesco said the new policy will bene t workers and enhance the quality and integrity of county construction projects.

“ is is one of many times this board has shown support for our workforce, demonstrating our dedication to fostering a workplace environment where every individual is valued and respected,” said Tedesco.

e policy goes into practice in September and the county plans an education campaign to train sta and contractors and familiarize the public with the system which enables the entry of certi ed wage statements on a weekly basis.

Improvements in Laundry Machines Is Unending. Introducing Heat Pump Dryers

Over the last 20 years, I have listed many homes on the MLS, and when doing so it’s important to list the energy and water-saving appliances of the home in the MLS. Advertising a “high efficiency washer and dryer” became more and more common.

But now there are three generations of high efficiency that I can think of.

20 years ago, high efficiency meant front-loading. This reduced the amount of water needed compared to the old top-loading washers. New detergents were introduced for them.

Then, unexpectedly, a top-loading machine with no agitator took the title. Who knew that you could clean clothes that way? The washing machine saved water because it sensed the amount of clothes in the machine and adjusted the water use accordingly.

But what about the clothes dryer? Over the years you really could only choose between gas dryers and electric dryers, although I loved to point out the “solar dryer” in the backyard — a clothesline for drying clothes outdoors.

Meanwhile, it has always bothered me

how much hot air a dryer exhausts to the outdoors in the dead of winter instead of using that heat inside the house. An analog solution to that is the indoor lint trap. It is filled with water which traps the lint, and the warm air is exhausted into the room. The device is typically used when a vent to the exterior of the house is unavailable, but you might choose to use one because you want to capture the dryer’s heat instead of sending it outdoors. Remember, too, that the air which your home exhausts must be replaced by outside air coming in through cracks, bathroom/kitchen exhaust piping, etc. So you are not only losing that heat in the winter, you are drawing in cold air from outside. There are multiple solutions to this dilemma. In addition to using the lint trap described above (in which case you’ll want to seal the exhaust pipe to outdoors), you can replace your existing dryer with what’s called a condensing dryer, typically using a heat pump instead of gas or traditional resistancebased electrical heating.

A condensing dryer has the ability to keep the heat within your house through

internal processing. It’s also called a ventless dryer. Google it to learn more and to see where you can buy them (everywhere) and what they cost.

Heat pump dryers use less electricity than conventional dryers because they use an evaporator to remove the moisture and then recycle the warm air so they don't have to heat the ambient air again.

Because a heat pump dryer is ductless, you don’t have to worry about lint buildup in the vent pipe, which could lead to a fire. There are 13,000 household fires caused by clothes dryers every year in the U.S.

Because heat pump dryers are ductless, they can be installed in any room. Perhaps you’d like to have one in your walk-in closet or ensuite bathroom.

A secondary benefit is that because heat pump dryers operate at a lower temperature, your clothes will last longer.

You’d be amazed how many older building materials included asbestos. If you disturb asbestos, making it airborne, you endanger the health of yourself, your workers and your children.

Because asbestos doesn’t burn, it was used to wrap pipes and ductwork in older homes, and in other less obvious materials. If your home has popcorn ceilings which you want to remove, you should definitely test for asbestos first.

Asbestos is also present in older adhesives used with vinyl flooring. Older gas fireplaces had inserts made of asbestos. It is also found in older roof shin-

If you want to save space and don’t like stackable washers/dryers, you can buy an all-in-one machine that does both.

TheCoolDown.com offers other suggestions for saving energy and water, and reducing your personal carbon footprint. The single biggest savings is by using cold water unless absolutely necessary.

Also, dryer sheets and fabric softeners, they say, work by adding petroleumbased chemicals to your clothing, which can cause eczema. Dryer balls are a onetime purchase that work better. (We use them.)

We buy detergent in gallon-size plastic jugs, but they suggest buying powder instead since it’s questionable whether that jug, made from petroleum, will be recycled, even if you put it in the your recycling cart.

This article and the one below appeared in last week’s Denver Post column.

gles and siding, in certain Chinese drywall boards, in vermiculite insulation, and in some ceiling tiles.

Although asbestos materials are safe when left alone, disturbing them can be hazardous. See my post of this at http:// RealEstateToday.substack.com for useful links on this topic.

Transition homes planned for Westminster, Lakewood

The homes will not house sex o enders at least for the next two years

BY MONTE WHALEY MWHALEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Besides Northglenn, Westminster and Lakewood are among cities in the metro area that will soon open Mental Health Transitional Living facilities – group homes that drew the ire of Northglenn residents for housing convicted sex o enders.

A MHTL home is currently open in Littleton.

Northglenn protests from residents and local o cials prompted the Department of Human Services to amend their plans for the transitional facilities. DHS dropped the proposal to place sex o enders in the facilities and to allow only residents deemed nonviolent.

No registered sex o enders will be housed at any MHTL homes, at least for the rst two years of the program, said Mark Techmeyer, spokesman for the Colorado Department of Human Services.

“To ensure this program is successful for both communities and clients, we are engaging in a twoyear pilot admissions process, in which the goal will be to admit those

individuals who are most likely to safely transition to the MHTL Homes,” Techmeyer said via email.

e homes will not admit populations with a lower likelihood of succeeding in the homes, “…Including

individuals with a recent history of eloping/escaping from other treatment facilities, individuals with any recent assaultive behaviors, individuals with behaviors that require restraints or seclusions, any behaviors that may require a locked facility, as well as registered sex o enders,” Techmeyer said.

Techmeyer said it is a programwide policy that no sex o enders, even if the program is expanded to include them after this two-year pilot, will be housed within 1,000 feet of a school.

is year there are three homes planned for Colorado Springs, three in Lakewood, two homes in Northglenn, two homes in Denver, two homes in Pueblo West and one home in Westminster. One home is currently open in Littleton.

Techmeyer did not say exactly where the homes will be located. DHS is currently reaching out to the cities involved to “ensure partnership with each community,” he

Security has also been posted at the Northglenn facility – located at 11255 and 11275 Grant Drive – as there have been threats and concerning messages aimed at the homes.

“We expect the security needs to decline and don’t expect to have outside security at the homes fulltime,” Techmeyer said.

Randi Bazylak (left) and Zach Bazylak protest in Northglenn April 6 over transition homes nearby PHOTO BY MONTE WHALEY

House bill aims to close air pollution loopholes

Denver and Commerce

City o cials rally behind bill aiming to combat air pollution

BY ROSSANA LONGO BETTER ROSSANA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

O cials representing some of the most polluted areas of the Denver metro area have given their support to a bill seeking to address pollution disproportionately a ecting those vulnerable communities.

House Bill 24-1339 proposes measures to address harmful air contaminants by closing loopholes exploited by polluters while enhancing measures to safeguard communities.

Ean Tafoya, co-chair of the Environmental Justice Action Task Force, and state director of Green Latinos, hosted a virtual press conference with city leaders from Denver and Commerce City on April 17 to discuss the bill and raise their concerns with the escalating issue of pollution in their cities.

Denver City Councilwoman Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez of Denver and Commerce City Councilwoman Renée Chacon voiced their support for HB-1339. City leaders, including Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Commerce City Mayor Steve Douglas, have also thrown their support behind this legislation, sponsored by Democratic Reps. Mike Weissman and Manny Rutinel and Democratic Sen. Faith Winter.

Tafoya, a prominent advocate for environmental justice, has voiced strong support for the bill as well, saying that it recti es shortcomings in existing environmental legislation, the Environmental Justice Act, which was passed in 2020.

“Representatives Rutinel and Weissman have introduced HB-1339 to address the failure to uphold the Environmental Justice Act’s intent. We participated in the rulemaking process, but it didn’t align with our goals. Polluters shouldn’t just pay nes; emissions must be reduced,” he said.

Tafoya emphasized the urgency, stating, “Research links toxic particles to health issues, and we’re committed to tackling pollution from the worst facilities like Suncor. We can’t allow Governor Polis’s administration to backtrack on environmental justice.”

Gonzales-Gutierrez, who was in the House and a co-sponsor of the Environmental Justice Act, said the law was needed to safeguard those disproportionately a ected by environmental issues.

“We have yet to make good on those e orts,” she said, noting the trend of industrial pollution increasing instead of decreasing. “House Bill 1339 will ensure that the state complies with laws passed over three years ago.”

She highlighted the bill’s signicance beyond her constituents in Denver.

“ is bill is not only important for my constituents, my loved ones, and my family here in Denver, but there

are no boundaries when it comes to air pollution,” she said.

Chacon began her statement by recognizing her Indigenous roots, paying homage to the enduring presence of First Nations like the Ute, Arapahoe, Comanche, Chicano, and the 40 tribes that continue to call Colorado home.

“We are still here, and I see the word equity constantly thrown around in a way that does not look at our cumulative impacts,” she said. “It’s not OK to pollute or pay to sacri ce my community in Commerce City. Commerce City has people here living; we’re becoming a bedroom community.

“We’re not just against Suncor; we’re against bad emitters (who) are killing our children and making them have to miss school with constant asthma attacks, eczema, and so many other forms of diseases and cancers,” Chacon continued. “As people over polluters, not only should we pass legislation like this to nally develop a just transition, but we should nally recognize it in our workforce and our

labor unions and our communities. We’re all connected.”

Rebecca Curry, an attorney and policy counsel with Earthjustice at the Rocky Mountain O ce, outlined the objectives of HB-1339.

“ is bill seeks to hold the state accountable for several protections promised in the Environmental Justice Act,” she said.

She elaborated on the rulemaking mandated by the 2020 legislation, highlighting two key areas where the rules fell short.

“

e rst rulemaking, commonly known as the General Emissions Management rule, failed to guarantee the level of emissions reduction required,” Curry said. “Additionally, the DIC Permitting rule, meant to enhance monitoring requirements for new sources of pollution, also fell short by allowing most polluters to avoid monitoring their emissions and improperly dividing disproportionate impact communities into subclasses.”

Chacon said she saw a solution in doing the work for themselves.

“Honestly, this starts with adapting requirements for community monitoring to where we can develop community modeling on our own,” she said.

She also emphasized the need for improved community outreach, noting the di culty in engaging with agencies. Chacon proposed implementing best practices outreach and eventually legislating it.

“ is is one way to address the community outreach aspect, but this is only just the beginning,” she said and further advocated for the establishment of community oversight boards.

SEE LOOPHOLES, P7

Online tool helps find energy rebates

MICHAEL BOOTH THE COLORADO SUN

Paul Bousquet’s rst attempt at nding all the government and utility incentives to help him a ord a clean-heat overhaul in his Boulder home took him two frustrating hours.

en a kindly o cial told him of a new online tool that had just gone live, developed by Google fellows and the nonpro t Rewiring America, that put all of Colorado’s available federal, state, local and Xcel incentives into one easy search.

“What took me two hours takes ve minutes,” Bousquet said of the Rewiring America site. He can get $2,200 in subsidies for each of two cold-climate heat pumps and another $1,500 Boulder incentive, as well as long-term, low-cost nancing for a major home renovation that includes solar panels.  e calculator is available at homes.rewiringamerica.org/calculator online.

“ is tool is like AI for incentives,” Bousquet said, describing the new site at a launch by Gov. Jared Polis, and state energy and nonpro t leaders, held at a distributor of Mitsubishi clean-energy heat pumps near Denver International Airport.

Polis and others said the tool will be one key to linking consumers and contractors with lucrative appliance rebates and tax incentives for giving up natural gas-powered machinery in favor of electric versions that can be powered by renewable energy.

“ is will be a major selling tool for contractors,” Polis said after watching Google research fellows demonstrate the calculator for

some home projects at hypothetical Colorado locations. Colorado is the second state site to be launched by Google and Rewiring America, with another 11 states coming online soon.

“It was a hard state to do, because there are so many incentives,” Rewiring America CEO Ari Matusiak said.

e Colorado site also collects information on electric vehicle incentives, and Polis noted that by stacking up all the federal and Colorado credits and rebates, some Coloradans could save as much as $21,000 on a single qualifying electric vehicle. After Polis asked during the demonstration, Google’s coding team said Colorado’s extensive state and local e-bike incentives would also be added to the site, as well as incentives for replacing gas-powered lawn equipment with electric.

e site is bilingual for Spanish.

During the demo, researchers plugged in an example of a family of ve in Parker making less than the average median income for the area. Using the ZIP code and income levels, the site calculated there are incentives up to $20,000 for electri cation options such as new solar panels and wiring, fast chargers, heat pumps, on-demand hot water heaters and more.

Polis and other state o cials have lately been advertising the newest state incentive, a $450 tax credit for e-bike purchases that can be claimed at tax time without trying to win local incentive lotteries like Denver’s that have been overwhelmed with demand.

LOOPHOLES

“We have a lot of developers and industry able to in uence state rulemaking and state regulations,” she said.

Balancing economic concerns and community needs is a constant struggle for o cials in addressing pollution issues. Chacon recalled instances where economic gains were prioritized over community health, remarking, “I have legitimately been told from railyard systems that it’s for the economy that we’re able to hold down your community between 112th and 140th for four hours during some of the worst tra c density.”

Chacon said it’s important to recognize disproportionately impacted communities as places where people live and work.

“Commerce City is still seen as a transportation space, not a place that people live,” she said. “We live here

and we have to breathe here... we should be able to at least be involved in the decision-making spaces and have a quality of life again that has an equitable protection that you cannot pro t (from).”

Alex Golia, Director of State Climate Policy at the Environmental Defense Fund, addressed a question about potential loopholes that might still exist in the bill.

“ e bill would still allow compliance via greenhouse gas credit trading programs,” he said. “But the short answer for why that might be the case is that, if you’re participating in a robust greenhouse gas credit trading program, that reduction has real and veri able impacts.

“In the bill, there is a separate provision that requires the air commission to adopt facility-speci c limits on pollution for any facility found to adversely a ect disproportionately impacted communities, and that those reductions must occur on-site,” he continued. “Even if there is participation in greenhouse gas credit trading programs, you’re not just hot-spotting by allowing facilities located in the most vulnerable communities in Colorado to purchase credits in lieu of reducing emissions on-site.”

Chris Frensquez from El Seminario asked whether neighborhoods such as Elyria Swansea in Commerce City, historically dominated by industrial facilities like Suncor and meatpacking plants, are shielded by grandfather clauses hindering their relocation amid the advent of new technologies.

“ e time frame from when some of these original facilities commenced operations is extensive,” Tafoya said. “Re neries, for instance, have existed under various names for many decades. Despite advancements in environmental legislation such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, these facilities continue to operate under permits that allow them to

pollute, perpetuating violations and a pay-to-play dynamic.”

Tafoya highlighted recent instances where nes levied against these facilities, though signi cant, pale in comparison to potential earnings. He emphasized the community’s disproportionate burden, with minimal bene t reaped from these nes.

Regarding the potential for adopting emerging technologies, Tafoya underscores the speculative nature of such endeavors, cautioning against bestowing privileges upon entities with a documented history of environmental harm. He stressed the

Reps. Javier Mabrey, left, and Manny Rutinel of Commerce City speak at a hearing earlier this year. Rutinel is a co-sponsor of House Bill 24-1339, which is intended to curb air pollution for residents near industrial areas. COURTESY PHOTO

Our ‘Columbine at 25’ project

Last week, our newsroom released the rst part of our two-week series “How Columbine changed us.” It looks back on the 25 years since the tragic shooting at Columbine High School, where two armed students took the lives of 13 people before ending their own. e narrative often repeated in the media focuses on the killers and victims, but, as we reported in week one, it overlooks Columbine’s journey of

recovery, resilience and triumph.

In week two, we touch on the issues of safety in “How Columbine changed response.” In the aftermath of Columbine, schools across the country have increased security measures. ese include classroom doors that lock from the inside, single-point entry systems, security cameras, metal detectors, scanners and drills. And, rst responders have changed how they communicate.

Our biggest nding is that the de ning aspect of Columbine is not the shooting, but the response of the community. It is the indomitable spirit that has emerged and evolved at the school and surrounding area since 1999. is spirit is evident in the school’s Day of Service, held every April 20, the anniversary of the shooting. As teacher Mandy Cooke, a survivor of the 1999 incident, puts it, “We have turned that day into some-

thing so positive… making sure that our current students know how to be better humans in the world, instead of this awful, tragic thing that happened to us.” us, inclusive school culture is perhaps the most critical way Columbine changed us.

View the whole project online at coloradocommunitymedia.com/ columbine-at-25.

– Michael de Yoanna and Kristen Fiore, editors

The Columbine High School yearbook, one of many points of pride for students and the community and part of the culture that those close to the school say is also a part of what makes it safer. COURTESY OF KELLEY KELLOGG

BY HALEY LENA AND SUZIE GLASSMAN

Today, it’s common across the country for children as young as 4 and 5 to participate in active-shooter drills and shelter-in-place lockdowns about as often as they take standardized tests. at includes the Je erson County School District, where Columbine High School resides.

e Columbine of today has classroom doors that lock from the inside and a single-point entry for students, sta and visitors. It’s equipped with many visible and invisible ways to prevent and/or limit the impact of a mass-scale emergency, a kind that had not been on the national radar before the mass shooting.

While many people may believe school security is about physical barriers and policing threats, those working in the building today, including principal Scott Christy and social studies teachers Sam Bowersox and Je Garkow, say safety at Columbine is also about culture. As a result, the sum of those safety measures is far greater than the parts.

“Kids can’t learn if they don’t feel safe, and teachers can’t teach if they don’t feel safe. And so it’s everything. It’s incredibly important,” said Christy. “I think Columbine is the safest school in the world. My hope is that sta and students don’t think about what happened 25 years ago. ey see it as they see their school as a home, a place that they’re proud to be a part of, and a place that they know that they’re loved and cared for.”

Still, security has changed since the April 20, 1999 shooting.

John McDonald wasn’t at Columbine that day, but like countless others, his life was forever changed by the tragedy. Nine years later, he became the executive director of school safety for the Je erson County School District, including Columbine, and, since moving on, has continued to work to make schools safer.

“I hate to say good came out of it,” said McDonald. “But what came out of (the Columbine shooting) was the commitment to protect kids.”

Before the tragedy, school o cials and security o cers focused on the potential dangers outsiders might in ict on their buildings. Overnight, they had to shift their thinking to consider that students could be threats, too, and how that might impact school safety plans.

Doing so took its toll. Between 1999 and 2008, the school district had multiple executive directors of school safety.

“ e job was di cult,” said McDonald, who held the position for 14 years starting in 2008. “It was overwhelming for people.”

McDonald, who is now the chief operating o cer for the National Council of School Security, was rec-

ognized internationally as the architect of the Columbine High School security and emergency management plan.

In April 1999, with no incident command structure in the district, school security consisted of a handful of cameras outside the school and a few school resource o cers. ere was a disconnect with local law enforcement agencies, who were unfamiliar with the insides of the school, critical information that would be useful for saving lives during an incident.

According to a 2018 Federal School Safety Commission report, there was a rush by leaders across the country to add security o cers and speed up response times, among other measures. Security experts also began considering how students, who often hear rsthand about planned attacks or suicidal ideations, might help tip them o . As a result, the Colorado Trust awarded a $375,000 grant to establish the anonymous 24/7 hotline Safe2Tell.

It’s di cult to know precisely how the immediate security changes impacted students. Walking into Columbine in August 1999, Kelley Kellogg said she didn’t focus on the added security or the changes to the school other than being relieved that the library where the majority of the deaths occurred had been walled o .

Instead, she felt the typical nerves and excitement of any student on their rst day of high school. As a freshman, she hadn’t been there on the day of the shooting, but she knew

several classmates who had, including one whose sibling had died.

“Mostly, we didn’t talk about it, even my friend who’d been directly impacted,” said Kellogg. “But I felt incredibly safe. Everyone was super vigilant and protective. Frank DeAngelis (the principal at the time) and all of the teachers took such good care of us, shielded us from the media attention and made us feel loved and cared for.”

A 2021 Students’ Reports of Safety and Security Measures Observed at School published by the National Center for Education Statistics indicated four measures became more prevalent in the ensuing years, from 2009 to 2019.

Students saw an increase in the use of one or more security cameras, a locked entrance or exit door during the day, student identi cation badges and security guards or assigned police o cers.

e sitting Je erson County School District Executive Director for the Department of School Safety, Je Pierson, said that in addition to more alarmed doors, secure classrooms, and vestibules to check identi cation, more information and security is coming with added cameras and security guards.

“I think it sends a message to our kids and our parents that we’ve got an additional set of eyes that are highly trained individuals watching out for and keeping an eye on what’s going on in our buildings,” said Pierson.

Six years ago, McDonald hired Pierson as the district’s director of

safe school environments. In this role, he focused on enhancing partnerships between schools, district leadership, and the Department of School Safety, seeking to establish a more proactive approach.

Before taking on this role, Pierson was the principal at Standley Lake High School in Westminster and trained in federal and police safety and policing programs. Pierson said having rst responder training and the lens of an educator has helped him break down barriers to how schools should operate.

Far more than the enforced wearing of student IDs and the additional patrol cars posted outside, Kellogg said safety came from a sense of belonging.

“I feel like everyone just kind of tried to get along,” she said. “Because even though this really tragic thing happened, I felt like we were a part of a family. Kids are kids, and stu still happens, but I felt like everyone tried their best to take care of each other.”

Evolving approach to safety and security

McDonald noted that school districts across Colorado struggled to create cohesive security plans until 2008, when state lawmakers passed a law creating the Colorado School Safety Resource Center “to assist schools in preventing, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from emergencies and crisis situations and to foster positive learning environments.”

Columbine High School Principal Scott Christy stands on April 4 outside the Frank DeAngelis Community Safety Center in Wheat Ridge. He spoke to reporters there as part of the Je co Public Schools “media day” in connection with the 25th anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

PHOTO BY ELLIS ARNOLD

Communications problems led to state’s now-robust radio program

Colorado’s interoperable radio communication system for first responders has undergone continuous build-out over the past 25 years since Columbine. More commonly known as the digital trunked radio system (DTRS), this “system of systems” connects firefighters, law enforcement and other responders across a network of radios, both handheld and vehicle-mounted. While it has seen its share of problems from inconsistent funding to technology glitches, Larkspur Fire Protection District Fire Capt. Chad Campagnola says he’s confident in the system and in its ability to perform in the event of a large-scale emergency.

After more than 25 years of build-out, Colorado’s Digital Trunked Radio System has made a di erence, first responders say

BY DEBORAH GRIGSBY DGRIGSBY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

In the years before the shooting at Columbine High School, Colorado had already started to address challenges within its radio communications system for rst responders. Primarily directed at helping rural and mountainous towns mitigate dead spots in coverage, these e orts were a promising step forward, particularly during wild res, when aid spanned multiple jurisdictions.

But on April 20, 1999, when more than 40 separate agencies descended upon Columbine High School, communication broke down.

As police, re and medical personnel responded to the shootings that took 13 lives, radio frequencies overloaded because so many di erent agencies were all

trying to talk at once.

At one point, radios had become so useless that messengers on foot had to relay critical information between agencies, as then-chief of the state Fire Safety Division Kevin Klein told e Denver Post in 2011.

“Go back to Columbine — different responding agencies on different radio systems that couldn’t talk to each other,” Klein told the Post. “You had paralysis in the initial phase of the incident. We had to use runners to go back and forth to talk about what we’re going to do.”

But a quarter of a century later, many rst responders say that challenges aside, the state’s Digital Trunked Radio System (DTRS) has made a di erence.

Experts describe DTRS as a “system of systems” that connects re, law enforcement, medical, military and federal assets with a net-

work of radios, antennas and specialized software patches to bridge gaps between newer hardware and legacy equipment.

And even school districts can be part of the DTRS system.

“Any agency within the state can go to the system and connect with any other law enforcement or rst responder group that is on the scene of a critical incident,” Jacki Kelley, spokesperson for the Jefferson County Sheri ’s O ce, said of the DTRS.

Fire Capt. Chad Campagnola said the Larkspur Fire Protection District has been a part of the state’s DTRS systems since Douglas County transitioned to it in the early 2000s.

Campagnola, who has been with the department since 1992 and styles himself as the “district radio guy,” said that although the DTRS system added more capabilities for his team, the early roll-out was not without frustrations.

As in most jurisdictions, Campagnola cites the standard funding and technology challenges as the most troublesome.

Not only is the radio expensive,

but there are also fees for each radio to be on the system and for certain types of software upgrades. However, with more than two decades of build-out complete, Campagnola says he’s con dent in the system and feels it has evolved into a dependable asset that can help save lives and protect property.

Prior to DTRS, Larkspur had often experienced radio communication di culties due to its local geography and terrain.  ings are much better now.

“It’s de nitely an improvement from 24 years ago,” said Campagnola. “It’s also an improvement from two years ago. In our district speci cally, Douglas County has added more (radio) towers in the past ve years and that’s made an impact, especially for responders in the southern part of the county, as it a ects not just re but law enforcement, but roads and bridges, and the Douglas County School District — anyone operating within the DTRS coverage area.”

PHOTO BY DEBORAH GRIGSBY

PROGRAM

The Columbine Commission Report

Nine months after the Columbine massacre, then-Gov. Bill Owens signed an executive order creating the Columbine Review Commission in response to public outcry for answers. e 10-member board, chaired by retired Colorado Supreme Court Justice William H. Erickson, was charged with identifying lessons learned and how those lessons could prevent future tragedies.

e Columbine Review Commission Report was released in May 2001, nearly a year and a half later.

Anger and accusations ensued in the days after the report’s release as parents, school o cials and others demanded answers, saying the 174-page report completely “glossed over” the events that led up to the attack and failed to properly investigate police response.

e commission o ered its recommendations but made no requirements for mandatory implementation. e commission was disbanded after its report was released, further infuriating the public.

However, among the commission’s top recommendations was the need to improve communications and, as a byproduct, more coordination among emergency response agencies. It recommended continuing development of the Digital Trunk Radio System.

Speci cally, the Columbine Commission recommended that “agencies in parts of the state not yet within the statewide system receive funds for the purchase of TRP 100 or similar systems, enabling them to be available in the event of a serious catastrophe in any part of the state.”

While much has changed since 1999, improving the rst responder radio system has been di cult in the decades since. e challenge in building out — and sustaining — Colorado’s interoperable communication system seem to be consistent among agencies and falls into three distinct buckets: funding, planning, and training.

Colorado amply followed up with heavy investment in the DTRS program.

Putting a nger on exactly how much has been invested in Colorado’s DTRS program year-to-date is complicated as multiple sources of funding have been and continue to be employed. A  2016 memo from the Colorado Legislative Council provides an insight into the program’s early nancial history, nearing $250 million at the time.

But piles of money aside, what most didn’t realize is that this project would be far more than just buying new radios and issuing them to rst responders.

Building a statewide interoperable radio system would include the construction of multiple antenna

towers — some of them in hard-toget-to mountainous terrain — to bridge growing technology gaps between new and legacy systems. State technology experts would also have to identify and manage radio frequencies, as well as convince jurisdictions to collaborate and share resources.

Legislation to provide interoperable communication funding for schools

In 2011, more than 10 years after the mass shooting, then-Gov. John Hickenlooper signed into law Senate Bill 11-173. e bill addressed the lack of interoperable communications between schools and rst responders during an emergency. It augments the Colorado School Response Framework, created in 2008, to improve school crisis response by clarifying that interoperable communications are included in a school district’s school safety, readiness, and incident management plan.

Senate Bill 18-158 created the School Access for Emergency Response program, which provides schools with grant funding to purchase interoperable communication hardware and software, pay for equipment maintenance and provide training. e goal was to facilitate “seamless communications between existing school communications systems and rst responder communications systems.”

e state placed the SAFER program within the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and initially funded it with a $5 million transfer from the Department of Public Safety for

the 2018-19 scal year. Subsequent years were funded by State Public School Fund transfers through July 1, 2023.

Colorado’s O ce of Information Technology currently oversees the state’s public safety communications network and the DTRS.

But even with millions in local, state and federal dollars invested in the DTRS program, completing — and sustaining — a statewide interoperable radio system still has a few bugs.

While most emergency management and public safety experts say the state’s system has improved dramatically and local governments are more organized and collaborative since the Columbine shooting, there is still work to do.

Other jurisdictions have a similar take.

e Je erson County Sheri ’s O ce — an early adopter of DTRS, joining Douglas County and Arapahoe County in the program in the late 1990s — was among the rst to arrive on the Columbine scene in 1999.

e agency understands, rsthand, what can go wrong when rst responders are unable to communicate. Brad Ingermann, a commander with the Je erson County Sheri ’s O ce Patrol Division, said that while the state’s DTRS still has its challenges, his agency is far better o than it was at the time of the Columbine shooting and now clearly believes it has an interoperable radio system that works.

“While large-scale incidents such as Columbine are far more common than they used to be, they are

still very rare compared to events such as wildland res,” he said.

As Ingerman points out, wildland res can quickly spread across multiple jurisdictions and require a medley of rst responders and mutual aid partners — all arriving on the scene and many operating on di erent radio systems and channels.

DTRS helps solve this.

It does so by connecting rst responders by the use of pre-coordinated channels assigned to both day-to-day and emergency operations. Speci c talk groups are allocated based on responder function and assignments, freeing up channels and organizing incident information among multiple agencies and partners.

Hardware alone does not create interoperability

But interestingly, over the past 25 years, much of the federal dollars made available to states and local jurisdictions initially went toward the purchase of equipment hardware: things like handheld radios, car radios, repeaters, antennas and tower systems.

Some experts in the eld recall “radio spending sprees” to purchase the 800-MHz radios — quickly spending grant money to avoid getting caught up in product shortages and back-order delays.

Fran Santagata, a retired U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulatory analyst and former Douglas County emergency manager, said the same was true for Colorado.

Mobile data terminals or MDTs as they are known, are computers used in vehicles operated by fire, law enforcement and other fields to connect mobile units, such as this fire engine operated by the Larkspur Fire Protection District, to a central dispatch or communications center.

PHOTO BY DEBORAH GRIGSBY

A Day of Service: Columbine teacher assists with reshaping narrative

BY ELISABETH SLAY ESLAY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Every day Je rey Garkow frequents the halls of his alma mater.

Garkow graduated from Columbine High School in 2006 and now works there as a social studies teacher.

He is one of the rst people to help reshape how the school honors the 13 lives taken on April 20, 1999.

Prior to 2017, the school wouldn’t hold classes on April 20.

“My experience with April 20 on the professional side of things was that it was just a day o ,” Garkow said. “I think that was hard for a lot of people, especially for the sta who were here on April 20, 1999.”

So, in 2016, Garkow said he and other Columbine educators decided to reimagine the day o and launched Day of Service.

“ is, I think, is kind of giving us the chance to control the narrative a little more about what Columbine has been through and what we are now,” he said.

e rst Day of Service was held in 2017. Garkow said about 400 students volunteered to participate. Last year around 1,500 of the school’s 1,700 students participated in the event.

Students, alumni, sta and community members participate in various projects on the Day of Service including volunteering at nursing homes, spending time at animal shelters, cleaning up parks, working with younger students in the district and cleaning up the campus.

In 2019, Gov. Jared Polis signed a proclamation declaring that Colorado will observe a Day of Service and Recommitment on April 20 each year.

Over the years, more alumni have gotten involved with the day and even planned their own versions of the event at other schools or their places of employment.

Frank DeAngelis, former Columbine principal, said people have participated in the Day of Service from beyond the state — even as far away as Tanzania.

“It’s stu like that that I think is so important,” he said. “Because here’s the thing. ere are kids now that weren’t even born, but there’s certain messages — kindness, saying thank you … How do we make the world a better place?”

Mandy Cooke, a Columbine High School employee and survivor of the shooting, said the Day of Service reects the school’s current attitude of moving forward with hope.

“We have turned that day into something so positive,” she said. “And that is what I am most proud of — is making sure that our current students know how to be better humans in the world, instead of this awful, tragic thing that happened to us.”

For Garkow, the best aspect of Day of Service is the reactions from students who he says have loved participating in the celebration and carry that impact long after they graduate or leave.

“It’s just a really cool thing to hear students talk about that and how

much of an impact that made on them and how much they continue to want to do that now,” Garkow said.

Garkow was in fth grade at Governor’s Ranch Elementary School on April 20, 1999. All he really remembers is learning the impact that day had on the community.

Sometimes students ask him about the shooting and Garkow said he is as open as possible with them and does his best to answer their questions.

“

ere is so much misinformation online and on social media or on ReddIt or in news articles about our school and the culture of our school that I think students pick up on,” Garkow said.

Garkow feels protective of his students. He feels they should not have to answer to people who are curious about the school.

“What responsibility do our kids have to own that story when they weren’t even alive during it?” Garkow said. “I think a lot of our kids have a di erent take on it now because they didn’t experience any of it.”

As a student himself, Garkow didn’t fully comprehend what had happened but did witness how tightknit the community became.

“I came into the school already as a kid with a lot of pride in seeing what the community did after that and seeing how the community responded,” Garkow said.

He said DeAngelis became the center of that community in many ways.

“I think so much of why we are

the community we are today is because of Frank,” Garkow said. “ at guy absolutely gave up everything for himself to take care of the community and made sure every kid felt valued and welcomed.”

Garkow said DeAngelis later hired him to teach at the school. He worked with DeAngelis for a few years before DeAngelis retired.

“I absolutely love being in the school,” Garkow said. “ ere’s 20plus alumni who I think work in the building and I think that speaks a lot to the strength of the community (and) how much the school means to people.”

Garkow said the community of the school feels almost like a family.

“I think it’s rare to work in a place where so many of the people you were with are just dear friends,” Garkow said. “It’s pretty rare that I feel like I’m coming here just to work.”

Garkow works with a lot of his own former teachers.

“( ey) are mentors and friends and people who I hope I can model myself after as an educator just because they meant so much to me when I was a student here,” Garkow said.

Garkow said he hopes more stories about where the school is now are told rather than only re ecting on the past.

“ ere is so much tragedy but there have also been so many beautiful moments that’ve come out since, that I think it gives a much better picture of who we are now and where we are as a school,” Garkow said.

Social studies teacher and alumnus at Columbine High School, Je Garkow stands at his old locker from his time as a student. Garkow has pride in the school, which he shows each year at the school’s Day of Service on April 20. He assists with coordinating the event and feels it reshapes the narrative of Columbine as a school and community. PHOTO BY ELISABETH SLAY

PROGRAM

“But equipment alone doesn’t create interoperability,” she said. “ ere is a speci c element of coordination and planning required, as well as training. Prociency and comfort in using the equipment are just as important.”

For most jurisdictions, Larkspur included, a signi cant portion of their daily radio tra c occurs over the DTRS, as designed.

But, as Santagata suggests, many rst responders tend to be more comfortable with their daily comms channels than they are with their emergency channels.

“I think the DTRS got built out, the towers have helped tremendously, and all of the training has helped, but I think we still struggle at every event with the lowest common denominator, which is the individual rst responder only being

SECURITY

Additionally, the Standard Response Protocol, created by the I Love You Guys Foundation, was released in 2009 and is now used by countless districts across states. e guidelines made a di erence for the school district because they were an “emergency prepared, not emergency scared program” that everyone understood.

Columbine today

On a bright Tuesday morning, mere days before spring break, the energy at Columbine is relaxed and playful. e school’s 1,668 students walk the halls with ease, chatting with friends and making their way to class.

ey aren’t worried about potential threats or the possibility of something terrible happening. at’s because safety is baked into the very fabric of the school’s culture, and the students know it, explains Columbine SRO Eric Ebling.

Columbine is the only school in Je erson County with two SROs, Ebling and Dan Wonner, who have been there since 2017 and 2019. SRO Joella Gallegos works at one of the feeder middle schools and communicates constantly with Ebling and Wonner. Because of its storied past, Columbine also has more unarmed campus supervisors than others in the Je erson County School District.

Yet, safety doesn’t come only from the number of o cers.

“It’s people. It’s communication, and it’s philosophy,” said Ebling. “It’s not mind-reading technology or drones. e only reason we can make this work every day is with the mindset that everyone’s job is safety and security. Security is not just Dan (Wonner) and me, the sheri ’s o ce or even campus security. If you’re on this property, your job is safety and security.”

Pierson adds that “culture is one of the biggest mitigators.”

“If you have a culture that embeds

comfortable using the frequency they use day to day,” she said. “Almost every after-action report usually has a paragraph — or a chapter — on how communications broke down.”

“I think there’s de nitely truth to that,” said Campagnola. “Dealing with, like, a uni ed command with three agencies where we are, we are very comfortable with our primary work zone or operational zone.”

But Campagnola notes the solution to that is not just the responsibility of the individual radio user.

He said agency leadership also plays an important role in developing good muscle memory for users, looking at the bigger picture and developing relevant training exercises to reinforce those skills.

For the Je erson County Sheri ’s O ce, DTRS training for its personnel begins as early as with new recruits in the county’s law enforcement academy and continues with day-to-day use as the recruit

enters the force, and with annual exercises that help reinforce radio competency.

“But we are a think-outside-ofthe-box agency,” said Jacki Kelley, spokesperson for the Je erson County Sheri ’s O ce. “We have an initial plan and a backup plan, but as you know, emergencies don’t always go the way you plan or the way you train.”

But as communities continue to expand and population density increases, more funding will obviously be needed to support and maintain the state’s program.

Overall, most users seem to agree the DTRS system has made a di erence.

Is it perfect?

Not really.

“But I think it’s all good,” said Campagnola. “Like, I have no complaints about anything with our system. We’re continually improving it as a county and as a state, which is allowing for better interoperability.”

safety, connections, knowing your student by name, strengths and needs and making sure they have a reporting mechanism for when they hear or see something, those things are easy to implement, and they’re free,” Pierson said.

Columbine sophomore Madison Price sees the school’s security measures but also feels safe because, like Kellogg, who graduated long before her, there’s a sense that everyone in the school is dedicated to taking care of them.

“I do feel safe at school,” Price said.

“ ere’s people here to protect us.”

Today, the district’s Department of School Safety, which has over 100 security sta working round the clock,

continues to work directly with law enforcement and speak with other districts. It established a group of school safety administrators who meet once a month to discuss hot topics and are also part of a group that gives feedback to legislators.

Part of the culture is balancing the ne line between having too much of a physical environment that creates a prison-like mentality and keeping the physical presence there while maintaining a calm, inclusive and safe atmosphere.

“It has to be completely controlled internally,” said Pierson. “Which means student voices, teachers’ voices, parents’ voices, all those stakeholders have to be completely

involved and not just involved but invested in what looks like a safe school environment.”

e measures in place at Columbine are “night and day from what the security measures were back then,” said Pierson. “But our job is to continue to stay up with the times and keep our buildings as safe as they can be.”

e Columbine tragedy forever changed school safety and security measures as we knew them. Yet, the one thing the massacre couldn’t change was the unbreakable spirit of the Columbine community, which continues to embody former principal DeAngelis’ rallying cry: “WE ARE COLUMBINE.”

Hand-held radios, like this one, help first responders communicate with each other not only on a day-to-day basis but also during emergencies. This is thanks to significant investment by local, state and federal entities into Colorado’s interoperable radio system over the past two decades. DEBORAH GRIGSBY

Je Pierson, who serves as Je erson County School District’s director for the Department of School Safety, stands on April 4 outside the Frank DeAngelis Community Safety Center in Wheat Ridge. He spoke to news reporters there as part of the Je co schools “media day,” held in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

PHOTO BY ELLIS ARNOLD

Plan to quadruple property taxes on short-term rentals fails

Senate Bill 33 was voted down 6-1 in the Senate Finance Committee

BY JESSE PAUL THE COLORADO SUN

A bill that would have quadrupled the property taxes on many homes o ered as short-term rentals in Colorado was rejected in a Colorado Senate committee, marking at least the third time in recent years that such a proposal has failed at the Capitol.

Senate Bill 33 was voted down 6-1 by the Senate Finance Committee during the bill’s rst hearing, an outcome that came after months of loud opposition from vacation rental owners and companies like Airbnb and Vrbo.

e only “yes” vote on the measure came from its main sponsor, Sen. Chris Hansen, a Denver Democrat.

e measure proposed taxing short-term rental properties at the state’s commercial rate if they are rented to vacationers for more than 90 days a year — regardless of whether they are someone’s primary or secondary home. In 2023,

the property tax assessment rate for lodging properties was 27.9% compared with the 6.7% residential property tax assessment rate.  Hansen o ered an amendment that would have rewritten the measure to block hotels and motels from being converted into short-term rentals and to study the broader issue. at, too, was rejected by the committee.

Senate Bill 33 seemed to have a better shot at passing than its predecessors because it was drafted by the Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning Tax Policy and Task Force, an interim panel. Measures drafted by interim committees typi-

cally pass because of the extra scrutiny they receive.

Senate Bill 33 was rst introduced in the legislature in January. It’s rst committee hearing was continuously delayed as Hansen tried to nd a path forward for the measure.

But, ultimately, the opposition proved too great.

Short-term rental property owners, who showed up in force at the Capitol to oppose the bill, said that if the legislation passed they would be forced to sell their homes or reduce their rental nights to avoid the legislation’s 90-day threshold.

RENTALS

“ is new bill … unfairly and discriminately singles out STR owners,” Kristine Lee, who owns a short-term rental in Summit County, testi ed Tuesday night. “You see us as a cash cow.”

Lee said in reality she’s not making much money on her rental property as nightly rates decrease as demand wanes. She recently had to give up her property manager because she couldn’t a ord it.

Proponents of the measure saw it as a way to level the playing eld between hotels and vacation home rentals, which are taxed at much lower rates than commercial

properties. It would also generate more money for schools and local districts, which are funded by property tax revenue. Some highcountry hotels have converted into privately owned short-term rentals in recent years, which proponents contend has reduced local government property tax revenues.

Moreover, some see short-term rentals as a key driver of housing costs and availability in resort towns, which are increasingly unaffordable to Colorado residents.

e state estimates there are 24,100 short-term rentals in all of Colorado that rent more than 90 days a year.

“To the extent that we allowed businesses to be taxed at the lower residential level, we lose out on potential funding to support K-12

education,” Meghan Raynes Matthews, director of government affairs for the Colorado Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, testified Tuesday night. “Senate Bill 33 closes a loophole.”

Even Gov. Jared Polis has expressed support for taxing residential properties used as short-term rentals at the same rate as hotels, though he didn’t specifically endorse Senate Bill 33 as the way to do that.

The short-term rental taxation conversation isn’t over at the Capitol this year.

House Bill 1299, introduced by Rep. Shannon Bird, D-Westminster, as a gentler alternative to Senate Bill 33, is still pending. It would impose the commercial property

tax rate on properties offered as short-term rentals but only when they belong to a person or business that owns at least two other homes.

House Bill 1299 is awaiting its first committee hearing in the House, scheduled next week. It’s unclear if that measure will move forward given that Senate Bill 33 has failed.

The legislature is expected to debate broader changes to the state’s property tax code. That may include a provision or provisions charging higher taxes on people’s second or subsequent homes.

This story was printed through a news sharing agreement with The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned nonprofit based in Denver that covers the state.

LOOPHOLES

need for community education and vigilance, advocating for a cautious approach toward permitting new technologies given the legacy of pollution left by past industrial activities.

Tafoya concluded by emphasizing the multifaceted bene ts of trees for communities, in stormwater management, heat reduction and air puri cation.

He highlighted the potential of densely planted evergreen trees to e ectively clean the air around pollution sources and disperse emissions. However, he acknowledged the com-

plexity of determining the precise number of trees needed to o set the pollution legacy. Tafoya stressed the importance of a holistic approach that combines tree-planting e orts with pollution reduction measures, cautioning against merely “greenwashing” the issue.

Despite communities’ tireless efforts to advocate for cleaner air and stricter regulations, Tafoya lamented the systemic setbacks that often sabotage their progress. He underscored the critical role of grassroots advocacy in holding polluters accountable and safeguarding public health,

HB-1339 was advanced by the House Energy and Environment Committee on ursday and approved by the full House on Monday, April 22.

ENERGY

FROM PAGE 6

Google.org’s fellows spent six months on the pro bono e ort to build the Colorado calculator, said Bhavna Chhabra, senior director of software engineering. Generative arti cial intelligence was used to help speed up gathering incentive and other information, she said.

Educating homeowners and contractors is a key to success for the electri cation e orts, which are backed by billions of dollars in spending from federal infrastructure, stimulus and clean energy laws promoted by the Biden administration. Many homeowners say they’ve had

to search for contractors who are familiar with all the incentives and can explain how they are claimed.

“ ere’s pent-up demand,” Matusiak agreed. More than 800,000 homeowners have already used the Rewiring America sites, without general advertising, he said. Promoters are counting on state and local governments, contractors, nonpro ts and others to get the word out about the calculator.

“It’s a public service,” he said. “Fast forward to tax time next year, and it will all be very di erent.”

is story was printed through a news sharing agreement with e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned nonpro t based in Denver that covers the state.

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PUBLIC NOTICES

Notice is hereby given that this public hearing will be conducted on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. at the Commerce City Civic Center, 7887 East 60th Avenue. The Planning Commission will consider:

CUP24-0001: Brad Lucero, on behalf of Stout Street Foundation, is requesting a Conditional Use Permit to allow an Inpatient Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Facility located at 7251 E. 49th Avenue and 7201 E. 49th Avenue, zoned I-1S (Industrial Park Storage District), consisting of approximately 4.0 acres.

Advance registration for virtual testimony/ public input is required. Additional information and instructions to register for testimony can be found in the published agenda at https://commerce.legistar. com and at https://www.c3gov.com/PC or by contacting staff at 303-289-8137 or nberry@c3gov.com. Notificatcion de un Proyecto de Desarrollo potencial cerca de su propiedad. Para servicios de traduccion en espanol, llame a Kimberly Adame 303-227-8818.

The application is on file with the Department of Community Development.

Planning Commission Chairman

Legal Notice No. CCX1323

First Publication: April 25, 2024

Last Publication: April 25, 2024

Publisher: Commerce City Sentinel Express

Public Notice

In compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) on destruction of data collected, maintained or used in the provision of a free and appropriate public education of students with disabilities, School District 27J will be purging archived special education records. Records to be destroyed on May 23, 2024 will include all students who were born in the year 2001. If you would like to claim your records, please contact the SPED Records Department at 303-655-2920 before that date. Legal

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to all interested persons that a Petition for Inclusion of additional real property into the South Adams County Water and Sanitation District (“District”) has been filed with the Board of Directors of the District. The Board of Directors shall hold a hearing on the Petition at a public meeting to be held on May 8, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., at the District’s Administration Building located at 6595 E. 70th Avenue, Commerce City, Colorado 80022.

The name and address of the Petitioner are:

Pete’s Properties, LLC 14072 Jersey Circle Thornton, CO 80602

The property to be included into the District is located in Adams County, Colorado and generally described as follows:

Lot 4, Block 2, Mountain View Industrial Park, also known as Davis Industrial Park, as set forth in the dedication of said plat recorded October 22, 1998 as Map File 17 at Page 950, County of Adams, State of Colorado also known as 9622 Hanover Court W, Commerce City, CO 80640-8470.

All interested parties may appear at such hearing to show cause in writing why such Petition should not be granted.

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE SOUTH ADAMS COUNTY WATER AND SANITATION DISTRICT.

SOUTH ADAMS COUNTY WATER AND SANITATION DISTRICT

Copies of the Bidding Documents may be requested from the Windler Public Improvement Authority, at the email of the Authority Engineer, barney.fix@ merrick.com, beginning April 11, 2024. NO PAYMENT REQUIRED.

Bidders must be licensed Contractors in the State of Colorado.

Bids will be received providing unit price for items; however, the price given will be on a maximum not-to-exceed amount, as described in the Bidding Documents.

The Work is expected to be commenced within thirty (30) days after the Date of Contract.

Bid Security in the amount of five percent (5%) of the total Bid Price must accompany each Bid in the form specified in the Instructions to Bidders.

The Successful Bidder will be required to furnish a Performance Bond, Labor and Material Payment Bond guaranteeing faithful performance and warranty bond for two-years after Substantial Completion, and the payment of all bills and obligations arising from the performance of the Contract.

The OWNER reserves the right to award the contract by sections, to reject any or all Bids, and to waive any informalities and irregularities therein.

For further information, please contact Barney Fix at Merrick & Company at 303-751-0741.

80111, until 10:00 AM local time on May 10, 2024 for:

For new North Suburban CEO, reliability is key

BY MONTE WHALEY MWHALEY@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

As HealthONE’s North Suburban Medical Center’s new president and CEO, Ryan ornton vows to keep the hospital’s status as the most reliable healthcare resource for its diverse community of patients.

“I think here in ornton we have multiple and di erent social and economic backgrounds among the patients we serve,” ornton said this week. “And we try to take great care of the communities surrounding the hospital.”

at includes hosting a mobile food bank for residents once a month.

Thornton so-

“Some don’t have the resources to go elsewhere for help,” ornton added. “Some don’t have access to primary care, and we try to utilize our emergency room as part of that solution.”

e goal, ornton said, is to get people safely back home as quickly as possible. “We know our patients want to get back to their loving homes,” ornton said. “We just want to make sure our community’s needs are met in any way we can.”

Moving from HealthONE ornton, 50, joins the hospital, the

only Level II Trauma center in Adams County from HCA Healthcare’s Continental Division. At HealthONE, he served as chief operating executive for the last three years, according to a HealthONE news release.

As the chief nursing executive at HealthONE, his leadership was pivotal in delivering award-winning quality. During his tenure HealthONE was named the number two large health system in the nation by PINC AI™. ornton helped expand academic partnerships to further enhance a new graduate pipeline for registered nurses and lead an e ort to create virtual technologies to enhance the delivery of patient

care at the bedside, according to the news release.

ornton worked with HealthONE for ten years in several of the health systems’ hospitals, including as the chief nursing o cer at Swedish Medical Cente and associate chief nursing o cer at Rose Medical Center. He joined HealthONE after serving eight years in the United States Air Force as both an enlisted member and an o cer. ornton separated from the service as a Captain, earning several awards and honors, the news release states.

ornton also worked as an EMT in Greeley while studying at the University of Northern Colorado.