Week of March 31, 2022
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DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
CastlePinesNewsPress.net
VOLUME 9 | ISSUE 32
How thirsty is Douglas County? Water providers work to transition to renewable sources BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
On an average day, 25 people move to Douglas County. Each one needs to
drink, shower, water their lawn and wash their dishes. The full impact of that growth is difficult to see, but it’s easy to understand: more people need more wa-
ter. And in a county where thousands of homes rely on a limited supply of underground aquifers, water providers are constantly working to shift to more sustainable resources before they run out. Some aquifers buried under Douglas County have lost two to six feet in depth
of water. Local water providers have noticed their supply wells aren’t producing like they once did. “It’s like sucking water out of the bathtub with a straw,” said Rick McLoud, water resources manager for Centennial Water & Sanitation. “There’s only so much water in the bathtub and the
sooner you suck it out with a straw, the sooner it will be gone.” Centennial Water, which provides water to about 100,000 customers in Highlands Ranch and Mirabel metro districts, is one of the county’s providers that has SEE WATER, P6
Douglas County School Board hires more legal counsel Majority directors said they want to bolster legal team in lawsuit fight BY JESSICA GIBBS JGIBBS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
venue. Caste Rock Band President Buddy Rich said the bandstand was built in partnership with the library and is a reproduction of the gazebo where Castle Rock’s original 1880s town band played. Rich said the band was notified at the beginning of the year that
The Douglas County School Board has retained a second law firm in its defense against a lawsuit alleging the four board majority members violated open meetings laws. The board’s debate about whether to bring on more counsel also broached the majority’s desire to appeal a judge’s order that prohibits serial meetings, as the four directors maintain they followed Colorado law to the letter. The engagement letter for the Greenwood Village based firm Gessler Blue Law, run by Geoff Blue and Scott Gessler, says its fees are normally $425 an hour but that it will charge DCSD $225 an hour for attorneys’ time and $150 to $175 for
SEE BANDSTAND, P5
SEE SCHOOLS, P8
The Castle Rock Band performs at the bandstand gazebo at the Castle Rock library in 2004, when the bandstand was first built. Almost 20 years later, the bandstand will be relocated to CALF Lowell Ranch to make room for an expanded library. PHOTO COURTESY OF DOUGLAS COUNTY LIBRARIES
Castle Rock Band seeks new home as bandstand is relocated Library construction results in move for gazebo BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
In preparation for the construction of a new library in Castle Rock, the town band successfully
found a way to preserve the iconic bandstand gazebo structure, though it continues to look for a new performance venue. Established in 1999, the Castle Rock Band is a group of volunteers who play live music for free on holidays or during events. Since 2004, the band has mostly performed at the library bandstand, which was dedicated to the group as a free
Dream Big Dreams...
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 26
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