14 minute read
SEE TESTING
wait times. The city urged people to consider testing at other nearby locations. On Dec. 27, Sky Ridge Medical Center requested that the state close its testing site on the campus for the afternoon as traffic interfered with access to the facility, Spencer said.
“In partnership, we mapped a safe and suitable traffic flow to ensure those who seek testing have access while guaranteeing access to the emergency room for any Coloradan who may need emergency services,” Spencer said.
City of Lone Tree spokesman Austin Good deferred to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment when asked about traffic management on the site. The City of Lone Tree is helping to handle overflow onto RidgeGate Parkway and clear access for emergency vehicles coming and going from the hospital, he said.
Sky Ridge spokeswoman Linda Watson in a statement thanked the Lone Tree Police Department for helping manage traffic at the testing site, which sits on the south lot of Sky Ridge’s campus. She said signage will “ensure that our patients and EMS partners can easily access our Emergency Department.”
Daily totals provided by the Joint Information Center generally show a steady increase in the number of tests provided at the state’s two drive-through locations in Douglas County — the one at Sky Ridge and a second at the Douglas County Justice Center in Castle Rock — leading up to New Year’s Eve.
At Sky Ridge, the testing site logged 398 tests on Dec. 19. On Dec. 26, the site conducted 836 tests, 998 on Dec. 27, 1,117 on Dec. 28 and 1,042 on Dec. 29. The justice center’s numbers peaked on Dec. 29 at 734 tests, up from 107 on Dec. 19.
The drive-through locations at Sky Ridge and the Douglas County Justice Center do not require pre-registration, although it is strongly encouraged.
Spencer said a third testing site at EchoPark Stadium in Parker completed 552 tests the week ending Dec. 15 and 1,550 in the week ending on Dec. 22. The EchoPark Stadium testing site requires pre-registration.
Testing is critical to slowing the spread of COVID-19 and the state is “encouraged to see so many people getting tested as a way to keep themselves, loved ones, and communities safe” from the virus, he said.
He urged anyone with symptoms to get tested, regardless of their vaccination status. Instructions are available on the state website for how to report at-home COVID-19 test results.
A representative of MAKO Medical, which operates the drive-through locations at Sky Ridge and the justice center, said pre-registration makes a significant difference in wait times and traffic clogs at testing facilities.
“The longer it takes us to register the parties on site, the longer it’s going to take folks to get through the site,” MAKO representative Scott Ross said.
Ross said staff at the MAKO facilities have high spirits and are braced to handle whatever level of demand they face in coming days.
“We’re doing our best. We’re out there servicing the community every day, and it’s almost 25 degrees in the morning when we start,” Ross said.
2
EARN .00% APY*
ON YOUR FIRST $2,000
THE ARTISANS OF BANKING
6355 PROMENADE PARKWAY CASTLE ROCK, CO 80108 HELLOCASTLEROCK.COM
Thu 1/06
Belly Dance for Fun & Fitness
Creative Clay Thursday
Featured
Greybeard: Antero Hall of HipHop @ 7pm Antero Hall @ Eck's Saloon, 9890 W Girton Dr, Lakewood
ARTS: Ceramics & Pottery @ La Familia
ARTS: Piano Lessons: Beginning/ Intermediate @ Southwest
@ 11:45pm Jan 6th - Mar 10th Denver Parks and Recreation (SOU), 9200 W Saratoga Pl., Denver. 720-913-0654
Featured
Purple Reign - The Prince Tribute Show @ 1pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, Englewood
Quilting- Morning
Featured
Twenty Hands High @ 8pm Studio@Mainstreet, 19604 Main‐street, Parker
ARTS: Ceramics & Pottery @ La Familia
Sat 1/08
Featured
No Half-time Presents: 4Eva Mackin Tour feat. Nay Renee, AP, Trev Rich, Ray Reed @ 1:30pm Gothic Theatre, 3263 S Broadway, Englewood
Featured
Ryan Hutchens at Dry Dock Brewing @ 6pm Dry Dock Brewing Co - South Dock, 15120 E Hampden Ave, Au‐rora
Lacrosse: Youth-Boys Box-Ages 68 - Winter 2022
Featured
Marty NIghtengale @ 7pm Behind The Scenes Tap House, 10488 W Centennial Rd Suite 600, Littleton
Featured
Ryan Chrys & The Rough Cuts @ 7pm Pindustry, 7939 E Arapahoe Rd, Centennial
Featured
Sun 1/09
Sunny Downpour: Telluride Mountain Village Plaza
@ 2pm Telluride Mountain Village, Main Plaza, Green Mountain Village
powered by
Tue 1/11
Culinary: Cuisine of India
@ 1am Jan 11th - Jan 10th PACE Center, 20000 Pikes Peak Avenue, Parker
Inline Hockey: Adult - Mens A/B Winter FREE AGENTS - Mon
@ 1am Jan 11th - Mar 21st Parker Fieldhouse, 18700 E Plaza Dr, Parker
Casino - Bally's
Wed 1/12
Featured
DJ Rockstar Aaron: Forbidden Bingo at 'Bout Time Pub & Grub @ 8pm Bout Time Pub & Grub, 3580 S Platte River Dr A, Sheridan
ARTS: Urban Homestead @ Harvard Gulch
@ 11:30pm Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave., Denver. 720-913-0654
Thu 1/13
AOA: Trip: Celestial Seasonings Tour @ Platt Park
@ 6pm Denver Parks and Recreation (PPS), 1500 S Grant St., Denver. 720-913-0654
Featured
We can’t stop until we start
You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start to be great.” — Joe Saba.
Here we go, the fi rst week of the year begins and we are back at it, whatever “it” may be for each of us. Whether we claim 2021 as a huge success, a miserable failure, or anywhere in between, the good news is that we get to either build upon the successes, grow from the failures, or jump-start our way out of our comfort zone.
Heading into the new year, we get to choose what it is we want to start doing. For many of us, we thought about what it is that we want to stop doing instead of what we want to start doing. When we think of what we are trying to stop, it means we see that as something that is negative, maybe it’s a bad habit that we know we need to break. Having this awareness is so powerful when it comes to making positive changes in our life.
The best way to stop or break a bad habit is to start a new, good, healthy and productive habit. What I have noticed in life is that people who get stuck, knowing they want to stop doing something that could be destructive or disruptive to their life, but don’t stop, is because they didn’t come up with a better alternative. We may argue that this should be common sense, but keep in mind that common sense is not always common practice. Many of us miss our own “aha” moments because we are so close to a problem or situation that we can’t visualize our way out of it. We need someone else to come alongside of us and point out what might be obvious.
As I thought about the column that I would write to begin the year, I knew that I wanted to begin the year with a one-word theme. I outlined several drafts of what the column could be about and had plenty of positive, motivating and encouraging words to choose from. Before I knew it, I was stuck. Then it hit me, “Start” would be the word and all I had to do was “Start” writing and the story would almost write itself.
“People who never take step one, can never possibly take step two.” - Zig Ziglar
Why don’t we take the fi rst step? It comes down to one of two things: Fear of failure and no time. Fear of failure can be crippling if not paralyzing, but it is also the common language of negative or destructive self-talk. A kind of negative self-talk that when we eliminate it propels us forward toward the accomplishment of our goals and dreams. If we can start fi lling our head and heart with good, strong, and positive encouraging words, we will stop feeding our minds with negativity.
No time? What we are really telling ourselves is that everything and everyone else is more important than our own health and peace of mind. No time is the easiest copout of all. Sorry, but it’s true. What we need to do before we stop doing anything is start prioritizing what we are doing. What will have the greatest positive impact on our lives so we in turn can have an even greater impact on those around us? Change the talk-track in our head with what to start doing, and what we need to stop doing will become obvious.
Are you ready to start the new year? Are you ready to start the year by deciding to get past the fear, the excuses of no time, stopping all that is dragging you down or holding you back, so that you can enjoy all that 2022 has in store for you? I would love to hear your story at mnorton@tramazing.com, and when we can overcome our fears and make time to start doing more of the good, pure, powerful, and positive actions and stop doing those detrimental, negative, and destructive things, it really will be a better than good year.
WINNING WORDS
Michael Norton
Michael Norton is the grateful CEO of Tramazing.com, a personal and professional coach, and a consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator to
Time to come together to address county’s water future
To be clear, investing in water infrastructure and securing our county’s long-term water needs is, in fact, a responsibility of your county government.
Douglas County Policy states: “There is no higher priority for the Douglas County Commissioners than partnering with our water providers to secure dependable and sustainable water supply — our focus for more than a decade to make sure there’s water today and for generations to come.” Just Google “Douglas County Colorado Water,” those are the fi rst words you will read on the County’s Water Resources page.
And our county residents agree; they consistently put “water” as a top-two agenda item in our community surveys and I am committed to doing the work to that end.
Your commissioners recently held an open house to discuss the allocation of $68 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds and were very pleased by the outpouring of support in addressing the county’s long-term water requirements while also investing in muchneeded renewable infrastructure and continued conservation efforts.
And your county leadership has been wisely focused on our water needs for years. But we are overreliant on the non-renewable Denver aquifer and every water expert, including the State Water Engineer, has encouraged us and every municipal government to seek other sources. By coming together now, and with the right approach for all of Douglas County, we can develop a guaranteed water solution that will serve our county now and for decades to come.
So, as we begin this conversation, I expect us all to avoid thoughtless hyperbole and rise above unverifi ed and knee-jerk tropes, political dog whistles and tired talking points. This issue is complex, and we all deserve facts, not fear.
To that point: one very intriguing public/private partnership has been proposed to the county by Renewable Water Resources (RWR), a company comprised of respected state leaders and water experts, including several Douglas County residents, our own neighbors, who live here and work here.
Simply put, the project proposes to acquire a signifi cant amount of renewable, high-quality water to meet our county’s needs for decades to come. The county would be a partner by locking-in a purchase price at less than half of the current rate, per acre-foot, of water. Our investment secures the water rights and our profi t would be the reduced rate (in perpetuity) for that water.
The vital resource would come from exporting just 2.5% of the water that recharges (or refi lls) into the San Luis Valley. That’s a huge contrast to the non-renewable Denver aquifer we rely on today and would provide us with a reliable and predictable primary water source for our future.
And though this is just one of the proposals that was submitted for ARPA funding consideration, it has unfairly become the target for some political attacks aimed at preventing the county from fairly considering its merits.
Here are the facts:
Water experts throughout the state report there is more than 1 million acre-feet that can be re-appropriated in the San Luis Valley. The RWR proposal is focused on just 2.5% of that amount.
The RWR plan would allow us to purchase Primary Water Rights; not Junior Water Rights that could be interrupted during dry years, when we need that water the most.
And Douglas County wouldn’t “take water”. In fact, the RWR plan is based on using water provided to us by willing sellers, not speculators or middlemen. In Colorado, we don’t “take” water. But it absolutely can be bought and sold via the constitutional and state-protected water rights of private property owners. The proof of that is fl owing from your faucets today.
As commissioner, it’s my job to get the facts and report those truths to the people of Douglas County, whom I am honored and privileged to represent.
I am interested in a robust, factbased conversation about our water future, to include innovation, conservation, and out-of-the-box thinking. I will listen to any idea that offers a path forward while protecting our Western way of life and fulfi lling our commitment to our families and community, while also supporting our job-creating economy.
I’m confi dent, working with our partners and neighbors, we will secure a reliable water future we can all count on.
GUEST COLUMN George Teal
George Teal is a Douglas County commissioner representing District 2.
A publication of
Call fi rst: 9233 Park Meadows Dr., Lone Tree, CO 80124 Mailing Address: 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225 Englewood, CO 80110 Phone: 303-566-4100 Web: DouglasCountyNewsPress.net CastlePinesNewsPress.net CastleRockNewsPress.net
To subscribe call 303-566-4100 LINDA SHAPLEY
Publisher
lshapley@coloradocommunitymedia.com
THELMA GRIMES
South Metro Editor
tgrimes@coloradocommunitymedia.com
ERIN ADDENBROOKE
Marketing Consultant
eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com
AUDREY BROOKS
Business Manager
abrooks@coloradocommunitymedia.com
ERIN FRANKS
Production Manager
Columnists & Guest Commentaries
Columnist opinions are not necessarily those of the News Press. We welcome letters to the editor. Please include your full name, address and the best number to reach you by telephone.
Email letters to
letters@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Deadline
Wed. for the following week’s paper. To opt in or out of delivery please email us at circulation@ coloradocommunitymedia.com
Douglas County News-Press (ISSN 1067-425X)(USPS 567-060)
A legal newspaper of general circulation in Douglas County, Colorado, the NewsPress is published weekly on Thursday by Colorado Community Media, 9233 Park Meadows Dr., Lone Tree, CO 80124. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT LONE TREE, COLORADO and additional mailing o ces. POSTMASTER: Send address change to: Douglas County News Press, 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225, Englewood, CO 80110
