Highlands Ranch Herald 121621

December 16, 2021

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DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO

A publication of

HighlandsRanchHerald.net

INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 17 | SPORTS: PAGE 22

SPECIAL REPORT

‘We used to never have anything like this’ In Douglas County, signs of homelessness are on the rise

BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Often, Dan Makelky, the human resources director for Douglas County, looks out his office window in Castle Rock and sees someone get released from the nearby county jail and wander down the road with nowhere to go.

Central Castle Rock is outside the Regional Transportation District.

Without public transportation connecting the town to other areas, some newly-released people can’t afford a taxi and don’t have anyone to call for a ride.

“I wonder where they go, honestly, that’s the first thing,” Makelky said. “Or where they’re heading to.”

Makelky and others, like county Sheriff Tony Spurlock, say this is just one of many factors that may contribute to what appears to be a growing number of people experi-

BY MICHAEL BOOTH THE COLORADO SUN

Big Colorado water diversion projects itching to get going on

School board drops mask requirement Divided board votes 4-3 in hours-long meeting

BY JESSICA GIBBS JGIBBS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Officer Ricky Stegmaier with the Lone Tree Police Department shines his flashlight over an urban encampment used by people experiencing homelessness. Items left behind at the site — located behind a trash compactor at a local store — included PHOTO BY ELLIOTT WENZLER cooking supplies and tent components.

encing homelessness in the county.

“What happens is, they have no place to go, so they just try to find a place to stay,” Spurlock told Colorado Community Media.

Multiple law enforcement agencies, nonprofits and local governments across the county say they are seeing a surge in the number

of unhoused people in the area.

Reports from these agencies include new urban encampments, higher demands for services and — though it doesn’t always indicate homelessness — more panhandling.

SEE HOMELESS, P10

2 big water projects want to tap Dougco stimulus funds County seeks ideas on spending $68M from American Rescue Plan

VOLUME 35 | ISSUE 2

long-sought dam and pipeline dreams are rushing to get first in line for thirsty Douglas County’s $68.2 million in federal stimulus money.

Drinking water dams and pipelines have joined smaller-scale local water treatment and sewage projects, for proposals totaling $247 million of the $280 million in overall stimulus requests in Douglas County so far, a county spokes-

woman said.

The other categories making up the remainder of the $280 million in proposals include broadband, economic recovery and mental health delivery.

Some of the biggest requests for Douglas County’s share of American Rescue Plan Act spending come from drinking water SEE PROJECTS, P23

Masks are again optional in the Douglas County School District after a new board majority in the wee hours of Dec. 8 narrowly passed a resolution that prohibits the district from instating universal masking or COVID-19 vaccination policies.

The resolution, adopted after the board’s special meeting on Dec. 7 ran past midnight, took effect immediately. Implementation will be up to each school, which is also tasked with making individual accommodations for people who might be vulnerable to COVID-19.

The resolution said the district would comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, which could require individual classrooms or activities to have mask-wearing rules around people at-risk of the virus.

Federal, state and local mandates would supersede the policy, district officials said.

Board President Mike Peterson — among four board members elected last month as part of a slate challenging some previous district policies — said the goal of the rule change is to provide students with a consistent, predictable masking policy and move to a system where individual accommodations are SEE MASKS, P13

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2 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

Doctors urge: Don’t neglect other issues during pandemic Local physicians’ panel focuses on whole-body health

BY MOLLY ARMBRISTER SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA

Three Holiday fireworks shows Dec. 18 Welcome the holiday season and celebrate the resilience and positive spirit of our community by watching high-in-the-sky fireworks shows Saturday, Dec. 18 at 7 p.m. The 30-minute displays will launch from locations in Castle Rock, Parker and Highlands Ranch, and will be livestreamed on the County’s website and YouTube page. For more information visit douglas.co.us/fireworks

Live Town Hall meetings Did you know Douglas County offers Live Town Hall meetings, inviting you to engage in the local issues of importance to you and your neighbors? Register at douglas.co.us/townhall to ensure you are contacted about all future Live Town Halls – it’s always your choice whether or not to participate. Registering will also allow you to receive surveys so that you may share what topics YOU want to hear more about.

Funds available to veterans Emergency assistance is available for veterans struggling with housing (mortgage/rent), transportation, employment, healthcare or other emergency needs. To apply for the veteran assistance funds visit douglasveterans.org or call 303-663-6200.

Let’s Talk...

Our mental and emotional health is just as important as our physical health and now, more than ever, it’s important for us to connect with others. Simply talking with someone can make you, and them, feel better. Learn how to start the conversation today by visiting letstalkco.org or hablemosco.org

Christmas tree recycling For drop-off locations, times and dates, as well as instructions on how to prepare a tree for recycling, visit douglas.co.us and search for Christmas tree recycling.

County Offices Christmas Holiday closures Douglas County offices will be closing at noon on Friday, Dec. 24 and closed Monday, Dec. 27 in observance of the Christmas Holiday.

Many services are available at DoItOnlineDouglas.com

Visit douglas.co.us

While COVID-19 continues to sweep Colorado, now with the added threat of the omicron variant, Douglas County doctors urged the importance of balancing COVID prevention and vaccination with overall health and wellness during a virtual panel hosted by the Castle Pines Chamber of Commerce on Dec. 8.

“Your Health and You in 2022,” a panel discussion held in conjunction with Centura Health’s Castle Rock Adventist Hospital, marks the second annual health-centric panel hosted by the chamber, with the first held in November 2020 as the number of COVID-19 cases experienced its most dramatic ramp-up since the pandemic began.

This year, with the proliferation of vaccines and the emergence of new variants playing tug-of-war over the state’s case count, the panel focused on the intersection of COVID-19 and the general wellbeing of the population.

According to Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment data presented during the panel, 1,419 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Colorado. Of those, 84% were unvaccinated.

Daily hospital admission rates are lower than they were around this time last year, but Colorado hospitals have been busy, said Dr. Devin Bateman, chief medical officer for Castle Rock Adventist and Parker Adventists hospitals and the panel’s moderator. Rather than a sharp spike in new cases, the data reflect a more sustained rate of hospitalizations.

“Patients are really consistently being admitted with this wave that began several months ago,” Bateman said.

And COVID patients stack up day after day, the rest of the hospital feels the impact, he said.

But COVID-19 is only part of the picture for health care providers and patients alike, with more than 20 months of strain on health systems and postponed preventative and maintenance care coalescing to reach even those who have remained physically untouched by COVID, according to the panelists.

Beginning in the spring of 2020 with the first wave of COVID, many people put off regular medical care like screenings that can detect cancer, high blood pressure or diabetes, and vaccinations against things like influenza, shingles and tetanus, said Dr. Widian Jubair, a primary care physician at Castle Rock Internal

Medicine.

In the very early days of the pandemic, non-emergent medical facilities were closed in most cases, which meant that patients had to postpone these kinds of procedures, but even after these clinics were allowed to reopen and patients could visit relatively safely with precautions, patients hesitated, Jubair said.

More than a year later, this trend has resulted in an increase in the number of preventative and manageable conditions Jubair and her partners see in their practice.

The tertiary impacts of COVID-19 aren’t limited to primary care clinics.

Dr. Jesse Loar, an emergency room physician at Castle Rock Adventist, sees the effects as well.

In the two weeks preceding the panel, Loar estimated that COVID patients made up 15 to 20% of daily volumes in the emergency department at his facility. Some come in at the beginning of their illness, experiencing symptoms and needing a test to confirm their suspicions. Others have been sick for seven to 10 days and seek more serious treatment. And still a third group come into the emergency department for another reason, like an injury, and happen to have COVID as well.

Regardless of what brings these patients to the hospital, Loar said, the supportive care they require, including intravenous fluids, medications, and breathing therapies, creates a trickledown effect for the rest of the emergency department.

“There are indirect effects on our ability to take care of the community the way we’d like to because of the severity of this disease,” Loar said.

The pandemic’s impact on mental health is another indirect, if better documented, effect, as people across the world deal with increased levels of anxiety, depression and attention disorders stemming from isolation, uncertainty, life changes and even sickness and death of a loved one.

“Mental health is a huge, huge concern for our population,” said Anna Jones, an obstetrician and gynecologist at Centura Health Physician Group and Castle Rock Adventist.

Pregnancy always adds a layer of wariness about the world, and carrying a baby through a pandemic is particularly stressful, Jones said. At first, uncertainty swirled about the safety of COVID vaccines for pregnant women, as they are not generally included in clinical testing groups. Some women chose to be inoculated, while others resisted.

“The pregnant population continues to be the least-vaccinated group of people in our nation,” Jones said.

SEE URGE, P5

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December 16, 2021

County, school district partner on youth mental health Aim is to help at-risk students without disrupting their education

BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

In 2019, when STEM School Highlands Ranch faced tragedy after two student gunmen ran into the school, killing one fellow student, it rocked the community.

For Douglas County Commissioner Lora Thomas, it was a call to get more involved with helping youths who struggle with mental illness.

In 2014, the county commissioners directed staff to develop a program aimed at helping adults in need of mental health care. After years of planning, the Mental Health Initiative (MHI) started taking a hands-on approach to helping adults in 2016.

MHI Director Laura Ciancone said even before the 2019 shooting, data was showing a gap. It was becoming clear that not just adults needed the services developed through MHI, but youths, teenagers and young adults under 25 needed assistance, she said.

In 2017, MHI saw success in taking a different approach in answering calls for help for people in crisis. Instead of just having a police officer head to the scene and put the person in jail or a hospital bed,

Mental Health Initiative Director Laura Ciancone.

the county took a more interactive approach.

Through a pilot program with the Castle Rock Police Department, MHI started using a Community Response Team (CRT), which consisted of a police officer, certified clinician and EMT. Seeing the CRT program’s suc-

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Douglas County Deputy Manager Barbara Drake has been with the Mental Health Initiative since the concept was estabCOURTESY OF DOUGLAS COUNTY lished in 2014.

cess for adults, Ciancone said MHI started a Youth Community Response Team (YCRT) in 2019.

This team’s sole purpose is to coordinate with local schools and youth organizations to reach young people in full crisis, or in need of extra mental health support.

Stephanie Crawford-Goetz, director of mental health for the Douglas County School District, said the services provided through MHI are an added resource to the team of counselors and psychologists on hand to deal with students in need of support.

In 2019, Douglas County School District started working with MHI on a small scale, doing a pilot program with schools in Highlands Ranch. Crawford-Goetz said the YCRT can be called for a variety of reasons — a student expressing suicidal thoughts, dealing with a recent trauma, having an individual crisis, experiencing uneven feelings or wanting to hurt others are among a few reasons the county program may get involved.

“What the county has provided is both positive and welcome,” Crawford-Goetz said. “Now, with the (YCRT), these students get to stay in school and get the help they need instead of being sent to an ER. They keep a consistent routine that does not disrupt their lives because of some struggles.”

Like the adult CRT program, after students are connected with the youth team, they are consistently monitored, checked on and evaluated by an assigned case manager.

Sid Rundle, a student support specialist with Douglas County School District, said the services offered through MHI are continually helping vulnerable and at-risk students. After 13 years with the district, Rundle said it would be misguided to think the schools have all the answers.

“That is not true; we do not have all the answers,” he said. “That is v why we rely on these important r community partnerships. Back in A my day, it was all about math and a reading. Now, it is about social o well-being, too.” r Mental health was already a con- n cern for educators before 2020, but s Rundle said once the pandemic hit, f s the crisis brewing among young people was brought to the surface a and became more prevalent.

J “Too often, the mistake being made is saying this is just a pan- i a demic moment,” Rundle said. s “But we do not want to lose the marathon. We had more anxiety and students struggling before the h pandemic. The pandemic exposed p n it.”

In Douglas County, when the pan-r demic exposed a growing problem o with students struggling beyond t physical health, Rundle said the de-t velopment of MHI years before has s helped put the school district and t s youth in Douglas County ahead.

“We have not been starting from c i zero,” Rundle said. “In Douglas County, we have tremendously s talented people facing this head t on. We are working to be more conscious as educators. Children f are social, emotional, intellectual a human beings. They can’t be just m learning. We want to elevate their social and emotional knowledge.” e Rundle said MHI has also done k a good job in working to eliminate o the stigma around mental health issues. Too often youths and teenagers are afraid to come forward and ask for help, he said. Through education and informational programs hosted by MHI, Rundle said there has been success in removing the stigma.

National events have also helped students see that it is OK to come forward and ask for help. Looking at the Olympics, Rundle said wellknown gymnast Simone Biles did a lot to clear the path for vulnerable and at-risk students to admit they are not OK. During the 2021 Olympics, Biles pulled out of team and individual competition, citing mental health concerns.

Douglas County Deputy Manager Barbara Drake said from the start, a major MHI goal has been to remove the stigma surrounding mental illness and to encourage adults and youth to come forward when they need help without judgment.

PART 3 IN A SERIES This story is the third part of a threepart series on the Douglas County Mental Health Initiative. Parts 1 and 2 appeared over the last two weeks in this newspaper, and you can read the series online at ColoradoCommunityMedia. com.

In 2018, Colorado Community Media published “Time to Talk,” an extensive series on mental health issues in Douglas County and elsewhere. To read that report, go online to coloradocommunitymedia.com/ timetotalk.

Highlands Ranch Herald 5

December 16, 2021

URGE FROM PAGE 2

But in the months since the vaccine rollout began in the U.S., respected groups such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine have recommended the vaccine for pregnant women, with studies demonstrating its safety and effectiveness for mother and child alike, Jones said.

But mental health struggles aren’t limited to pregnant women, Jones said. Overall, she has seen increasing rates of depressions or anxiety, which in turn can lead to substance abuse.

She noted one silver lining, however. Many patients in her practice have taken the opportunity presented by the pandemic to reinvent themselves in ways they otherwise wouldn’t have. Whether that means taking steps to improve their health, leaving bad relationships or making a career change that better aligns with their values, some women are making significant changes for the better, according to Jones.

But while this is hopeful news for some women, the pandemic continues to generate uncertainty and fear for children, some of whom are so young that they don’t remember life before the pandemic.

Children are struggling with emotional balance, socialization, keeping up in school and an array of other challenges as the pandem-

ic drags on, said Dr. Ann Engel, a physician at Centura’s Healthfit Family Medicine.

“You could go on and on about the effects this pandemic has had on our kids,” Engel said. But she hopes that broadening vaccineeligible populations will help reign in the virus, easing these effects.

“The more people we can vaccinate and protect, the less disease we’ll see in the community at large” Engel said.

Both Engel and Jones encouraged the use of things like therapy and counseling when possible, even if that means virtual visits or other online resources. Primarycare doctors can sometimes offer services that their patients may not have known about.

Jubair pressed the importance of keeping up with regular health care tasks, including physicals, screenings and vaccinations, including an annual flu vaccine.

Colorado’s flu season was incredibly mild last winter, according to Loar, the result of COVID-related masking, sanitizing and isolation, but the medical community in Colorado does not expect a repeat this winter.

The doctors agreed: It will be as important as ever to take care of oneself this cold and flu season and beyond.

“Preventative medicine and primary care are not elective, they’re essential. To fight any infection, we have to have a healthy immune system,” Jubair said. “Getting your shots, getting your screenings, they’re the first steps toward staying healthy.”

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County Commissioner Thomas running for sheriff If elected, she would have to leave her county office two years early

BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

In a move that could shake up Douglas County’s political leadership, county Commissioner Lora Thomas announced Dec. 10 that she will run for sheriff in 2022.

If the Republican’s bid is successful, she would be required to resign from her position as commissioner about two years before the end of her term, and her replacement would be chosen by a committee of the same party.

Thomas was elected to a second term as commissioner in 2020; her term is set to end in January 2025.

“I love being a county commissioner but I don’t see any candi-

dates in the race as qualified as I am,” Thomas said in an interview with Colorado Community Media ahead of the announcement.

Thomas was a Colorado state trooper from 1984 to 2003 and in 1998, she became the first female major for the State Patrol. In 2010, she was elected as the county coroner.

“It has always been in my heart to be sheriff of this county,” Thomas said. “Being in law enforcement has always been the best job I ever had.”

So far, there are already three other declared candidates for sheriff in the 2022 election, all Republicans.

They are Holly Nicholson-Kluth, a former undersheriff; John Anderson, a former Castle Rock police commander; and Darren Weekly, the captain of investigations for the sheriff’s office.

According to the latest data from the Colorado secretary of state’s online database, Nicholson-Kluth has raised about $35,000 in cam-

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Weekly has not raised or used any funds.

Thomas and Anderson both ran against Tony Spurlock, the current sheriff, in 2014. Neither received enough votes during the Republican Party’s state assembly that year to make it onto the primary ballot.

In the past, Anderson has directly criticized Thomas, saying during public comment in an April commissioner meeting that he has considered getting a restraining order

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Thomas announced her candidacy at a monthly Highlands Ranch Republican Breakfast.

After Commissioner George Teal was elected last November, Thomas has been on the losing side of several 2-1 votes from the board. In April, Thomas was stripped of her board chair position by Teal and Commissioner Abe Laydon following a bout of infighting among the members.

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HOMELESS FROM PAGE 1

Castle Rock and Lone Tree are two of the main areas seeing these increases, local leaders say. But the reports have spanned the entire county, Makelky said.

This year, the county formed a Homeless Initiative to research how many unhoused people are here and how they came to be in their situation — and to formulate a plan to address it.

Some in the county say the time is coming for additional local services to help people find shelter or food.

Others say that will only invite more transient populations. Still others are considering sweeping camping bans and other regulations for these groups.

In work sessions in October and December, Douglas County’s elected commissioners directed staff to begin considerations for a countywide camping-permit requirement and have said they’re not interested in creating homeless shelters for the community.

Camping bans already exist in Parker and Lone Tree and at least one councilmember in Castle Pines — Roger Hudson — has said he wants to see one implemented there.

Castle Rock’s town council also voted Nov. 16 to begin discussions on addressing local homelessness.

Homelessness rising So far, much of the evidence around the growing number of unhoused people in Douglas County is anecdotal. Data from the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative shows a mostly small, steady count of these populations in the county from their local “point in time” survey.

But that doesn’t align with what county entities watching homelessness are seeing.

That’s why one of the first things the county’s new Homeless Initiative wants to do is improve the way they count the community. The initiative also wants to better define local homelessness and understand if it’s mostly people couch surfing, camping, sleeping in cars or something else.

Many of the anecdotal reports of increased homelessness have come from law enforcement, including the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Lone Tree police.

“I’ve been here 40 years, and we used to never have anything like this, and now we have it and it’s progressively getting more and more,” Spurlock said.

This is in a county with the highest median household income in metro Denver -- $119,730 -- and the lowest percentage of people in poverty -- 2.7% -- according to U.S. Census Bureau data for 2019.

The county, like most of metro Denver, has also seen sharp increases in housing costs in recent years.

Median home sales values jumped 25% over the year ending in October, according to real-estate tracking company Zillow. And average rents in the county were up 5.2% in the first three months of this year from late 2020, the largest quarterly rise since early 2019, according to county data.

Local officials say they are still working to understand the causes of any rise in homelessness in the

Lone Tree police officers speak with a man who was seen panhandling in Lone Tree Dec. 2. Law enforcement was responding to PHOTOS BY ELLIOTT WENZLER calls that the man appeared to be preparing to fight with another man panhandling there.

‘I’ve been here 40 years, and we used to never have anything like this, and now we have it and it’s progressively getting i more and more.’ it

a

Tony Spurlock, a

t

Douglas County sheriff t

d p

An abandoned urban camping site beneath a highway in Lone Tree.

county but have not yet pointed to high housing costs as a factor.

Kirk Wilson, Lone Tree’s chief of police, said his office is definitely seeing more calls related to people experiencing homelessness lately.

County Commissioner Abe Laydon, who helps lead the county homeless initiative, first noticed the increase when he saw multiple “really significant encampments” in Lone Tree in 2020, he said.

“It seemed like the more I shared this with other people in Highlands Ranch and Parker, they had similar stories of more and more folks and people experiencing homelessness and panhandling,” he said.

The Douglas County School District’s total numbers of students experiencing homelessness has remained mostly steady and in some categories decreased. But the district has seen a continuous increase over the past decade in students in shelters, transitional housing or awaiting foster care, according to data from the Colorado Department

of Education.

In the 2010 to 2011 school year, there were 37 DCSD students in this category. The school year that began in 2019 had 240.

It’s not just Douglas County, though. the region as a whole is seeing “more people experiencing homelessness than ever before,” said Cathy Alderman, chief communications and public policy officer for the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.

A myriad of theories Representatives from multiple county entities, including the county government and law enforcement agencies, have said they believe the people experiencing homelessness in the community have traveled from both Denver and Colorado Springs. None so far has said they’ve seen people who once had a home in the county but recently became unhoused, but all possible reasons are still being researched.

If so, why are more unhoused peo-

ple migrating to Douglas County? Is I it because, as some have suggested, I they’re being pushed out of Denver s and other areas by camping bans? Iso it because of transportation challenges stemming from the jail and h h RTD? Among Douglas County’s leaders, t there are a myriad of theories float- s ing around as to why this increase a is happening but not yet any agreed-a i upon or verified explanations. i In Lone Tree, law enforcement officials say they began to notice the uptick once several RTD light rail w t stations opened in 2019.

“Especially in the last two years r t there’s been a very big uptick in transients,” said Officer Ricky Steg- D S maier with the Lone Tree police.

“We ask how they got here and a majority of the time it’s light rail.” T Stegamier said his office uses the t t term “transient” to include more people than just those experiencing C v explicit homelessness.

Wilson, the Lone Tree police chief,h also said he thinks the increase in s the north Douglas County city is due to people riding the train down p i from Denver.

C At the end of all light rail lines, t SEE HOMELESS, P11

Highlands Ranch Herald 11

December 16, 2021

‘The more I shared this with other people in Highlands Ranch and Parker, they had similar stories of more and more folks and people experiencing homelessness and panhandling.’

Abe Laydon, Douglas County commissioner

Officer Ricky Stegmaier poses for a portrait in a Lone Tree tunnel sometimes used as PHOTO BY ELLIOTT WENZLER shelter for those experiencing homelessness.

HOMELESS FROM PAGE 10

including the Ridgegate station in Lone Tree, riders are required to exit the train while it’s turned around. RTD does allow folks who accidentally went too far on the line to get back on and ride to their intended exit, said Steve Martingano, deputy chief of the agency’s transit police.

“Ridgegate has nothing there and I think that’s a little bit of the issue I think that we find,” Martingano said. “There’s nothing at that end of the line.”

Martingano said that RTD doesn’t have a specific policy related to homelessness because as long as the person pays their fare, they are simply considered a customer. The agency is in the process of hiring a homeless outreach coordinator in an effort to address the growing issue, he said.

Another theory for why people without a steady home may travel to Douglas County is that it may represent a safer environment than densely populated areas like Denver, said both Makelky and Stegmaier.

County Commissioner George Teal suggested in one meeting on the topic that people who “choose to be homeless” come to Douglas County because the terrain and vegetation make it a “good place to hide.”

Laydon, another commissioner, said he believes it’s because those panhandling are more successful in the county. “People in Douglas County are generous and kind and I think there’s an awareness of that,”

he said.

Makelky said sorting through all these ideas is an important part of what the new homeless initiative is hoping to do.

“Everything right now is theory and anecdotes,” he said. “And that’s what we’re trying to get past.”

What’s being done While county agencies may not agree on why the increase is happening, they do seem to agree on one thing: Douglas County does not have many resources available to help people in this situation.

Some law enforcement agencies — such as Lone Tree — hand out pamphlets with lists of services to those experiencing homelessness, but virtually all the resources included are in Denver or other areas.

Stegmaier said that’s because Douglas County doesn’t have a consistently open homeless shelter and has limited options for food banks.

While there is a shelter network of churches, it only operates in the winter and only allows women and children. He’s started to wonder if more services should be added, he said.

“What’s the community going to look like if that’s here? And I can see why we’d be hesitant on that, but do we need that? And I’m starting to think we do,” he said.

The county’s human resources department and other local nonprofits such as the Help and Hope Center, the Parker Task Force and SECOR Cares (SECOR stands for Southeast Community Outreach), also provide some services to vulnerable members of the community.

In an Oct. 5 work session, the county commissioners directed staff to begin looking into a camp-

ing permit system in the county, which would require anyone seeking to sleep outdoors to first obtain a permit.

Teal and Laydon both indicated they would be interested in such a measure, but the third commissioner, Lora Thomas, said she was opposed.

“I would like to address homelessness as a choice in terms of our enforcement,” Teal said.

Teal also said he’s interested in a resolution that would provide assistance “for those experiencing homelessness by happenstance and it’s temporary.”

In the same meeting, Kelley Dunnaway, a deputy county attorney, said some in the community don’t want to see a local homeless shelter because it could invite more people in that situation to come to the county.

Laydon also said in an interview that he doesn’t want to “make the problem worse” by providing what he called “an endless well of support.” Instead, he said, the county should help individuals become self-sufficient.

“We want to be compassionate but we don’t want to be victims of our own compassion where we’re allowing communities and businesses to suffer or go out of business or struggle and property values go down because of people experiencing homelessness,” he said.

‘A vagabond lifestyle’ In a Dec. 6 county commissioners work session, Terence Quinn, the director of community development for the county, asked the commissioners if they would consider pursuing new facilities and shelters for the homeless in addition to their other approaches.

“I would suggest we make the pie a little bit bigger and start talking about other avenues,” he said. “There may need to be some bigger discussions or bigger solutions down the road and potentially we can take a leadership role in that.”

The commissioners responded that they were not interested in that type of response, with Teal stating he would like to see faithbased rescue missions helping instead.

“I probably need to work on my compassion level,” Teal said, adding: “I have no interest in doing anything with county services

that assists with a vagabond lifestyle, which I believe there is a prevalence of evidence that that’s what we’re seeing, it’s a vagabond lifestyle and I don’t think we should have any business facilitating that,” he said.

He added that he would like to help those who are “willing to work their way back” or are just traveling through the county to get to their destination.

“I’m hesitant to set up the refugee camps here in Douglas County under the idea that we can pay for it with our tax dollars,” Teal said. “I don’t have enough compassion in my model to see that as a viable use of public resources.”

The county will also likely soon amend their ordinance banning panhandling because similar laws have not held up to constitutional scrutiny, said county attorney Lance Ingalls. The county currently is not enforcing that oridinance, he said. Some courts across the country have found that outright bans on panhandling violate First Amendment rights to free speech.

Spurlock said he doesn’t view homelessness as a “law enforcement issue” and that he hopes the county will address it in a way that doesn’t involve passing more laws and ordinances to outlaw the behavior.

“We can’t just lock homeless people up in the jail. It’s not against the law to be homeless,” he said. “It’s not a good idea to use that as your remedy because that’s costly in the long term.”

DOUGLAS COUNTY RESOURCES For those interested in donating time or money, here are some Douglas County nonprofits helping those in the community who are struggling or experiencing homelessness: -Parker Task Force - 303-841-3460, www.ParkerTaskForce.org -Manna Connect - 720-515-8814, www.MannaConnect.org -SECORCares - 720-842-5621, www.

SecorCares.com -Help and Hope Center - 303-688-1114, www.HelpandHopeCenter.org -The ROCK Food Bank -303-688-0777, www.TheRock.org/foodbank -Winter Shelter Network - 720-2953116, www.WinterShelterNetwork.org -Catholic Charities - 720-215-4521, www.ccharitiescc.org/castle-rock-office

12 Highlands Ranch Herald

I

LOCAL

December 16, 2021

VOICES

It’s goodbye, again, and I have a favor to ask

’m not exactly sure what you’re supposed to do when you retire.

I hear that often it involves hikes and beers with friends and reading the great books and binge-watching Marvel movies. Those all sound rewarding. But I’m not sure that’s going to hold me for long.

So for now at least, I’m staying away from using the word “retire” in referring to what’s happening to me this week. I’ll just call it a transition from one state of being to another.

After Dec.16, I am stepping down as editor of Colorado Community Media, the publisher of 24 weekly newspapers, of which this is one, across eight counties.

I’m a lucky guy to have been working full time for newspapers for almost all of the last 40 years.

Every stop on my professional train ride has been fulfilling and, for the most part, big fun. And I feel like I’ve played a small role in a great endeavor serving a vital public need: Providing honest news and information.

Actually, I first exited this job last fall – I called it “semi-retiring” at the time — as I approached 65. I settled into freelance writing and reporting for various outlets along with contract editing for The Colorado Sun.

Then, early this year, The Sun became co-owner of Colorado Community Media as a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy.

Not long after that, Larry Ryckman, editor and co-founder of The Sun, asked if I would step back in for a few months Mark Harden while the hunt was underway for a new CCM publisher and permanent editor.

I’m grateful to Larry for the chance to work once again with our talented and enthusiastic crew of journalists. I’m also thankful that our new owners hired Linda Shapley, my former Denver Post colleague, as our publisher. She has worked tirelessly to bolster our business and to steer our company toward quality journalism and community service.

And come January, my role as CCM editor will be filled by Lisa Schlichtman, a veteran Colorado editor and a resourceful newsroom leader. I wish her great success.

The talented Thelma Grimes, who has been helping us cover Douglas County communities, has already as-

FROM THE EDITOR

sumed my other role, as the regional editor overseeing our weekly newspapers in Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas and Elbert counties, with help from copy editor Scott Gilbert. Thelma joins our regional editing team of Kristen Fiore (Jefferson and Clear Creek counties), Scott Taylor (Adams and Weld counties) and Christy Steadman (Denver neighborhood monthlies). Thanks to all of them for their efforts.

As you know, it’s been a tumultuous year amid the pandemic, with debates over masks, schools grappling with COVID-19 and race education, packed hospitals, contentious elections and businesses struggling to thrive again. Our reporters have shown dedication, creativity and courage in keeping you informed, in many cases covering stories that no one else is covering.

As I step away, I have a favor to ask.

It’s expensive to bring you the news you need. So I’m hoping you will help CCM continue as an honest, independent, locally-focused information source with a contribution.

Consider it an investment in democracy.

Through an initiative called #newsCOneeds, in collaboration with the Colorado Media Project,

if you contribute to CCM from now until Dec. 31, your money will be doubled, up to $1,000, for a total of $5,000 in matching funds.

For information on how to support us, go online to coloradocommunitymedia.com/readers-care, or call 303-566-4100.

If you’re a business, you can help underwrite our community journalism by advertising. Visit ccmengage. com for information. If you’re a reader, please patronize businesses that advertise in this newspaper and thank them for their support.

CCM is headed to a bright future under Linda and Lisa’s leadership and with ownership committed to the best in community news. I will be watching closely from the sidelines and cheering on CCM’s successes.

And I will be unfolding my hometown Centennial Citizen each week and clicking on ColoradoCommunityMedia.com to keep current.

It’s been a pleasure helping to bring you news. Thank you for reading, now and always. I wish you joyful holidays and a happy, healthy and prosperous new year.

After Dec. 16, reach Mark at mhardenpro@gmail.com.

On Twitter: @MarkHardenNews

BAAMING our way into 2022

T

here was no one else in the hotel gym that morning. The music playing in her earbuds was upbeat, fast-paced and loud. Almost loud enough to drown out her heavy breathing as she neared the end of a high-intensity workout.

There was no one else around, she was spent, and she could have easily ended her workout in that moment without anyone else knowing it. But she would know it, and that’s all that mattered.

Not only did she complete her last few sets, but she also added another minute of cardio and one extra set of push-ups, BAAM. The workday was coming to an end.

It had been a brutal day of calling prospects and customers. He was coming up on the end of his sales year and he needed at least three more sales to reach his annual quota.

His colleagues were getting ready to pack it in for the day. Laptops were closing, headsets being laid on desks, and plans being made to meet up for a drink after work.

Instead of shutting down, he resolved to make at least 10 more calls

A publication of

Call first: 9233 Park Meadows Dr., Lone Tree, CO 80124 Mailing Address: 750 W. Hampden Ave., Suite 225 Englewood, CO 80110 Phone: 303-566-4100 Web: HighlandsRanchHerald.net To subscribe call 303-566-4100

WINNING WORDS

before he left. Those 10 calls went fast as no one answered.

As he was about to stand up and go join his teammates, he dialed one more number. The person answered. The call took 45 minutes, and he made the sale, Michael Norton BAAM. Christmas was coming up quickly.

Ever since they were married, they were a dual-income household, raising three children.

This past year had been rough as they both had to find new employment opportunities. Although it wasn’t ideal, they were also both working second jobs to cover their bills, including a tuition payment that was due, and provide a decent Christmas for the family.

They were tired, exhausted really, and although they knew they just needed to stick it out for another few weeks, for their own personal health and well-being they were going to quit

their part-time jobs.

Over coffee the next morning they rallied and encouraged one another to make it through one more week. They did, and then one more week, and then the final week too, BAAM. So, what is this whole BAAM thing anyway? BAAM stands for “Block and a Mailbox.”

When the great motivational speaker Zig Ziglar set a goal to get into better shape, he needed to start running. The first day he ran only a block. The second day, he ran a block and a mailbox. The third day he ran a block and two mailboxes.

Each day he just went a little further than he did the day before. Each day he gave just a little more, worked a little harder, and didn’t give in. That became one of the hallmarks of his life, BAAM. Known as one of the greatest motivational speakers and encouragers in the last century, not only did Ziglar follow his own BAAM guidance in everything that he did, but he also taught all of us who studied his works and heard him speak how to do the same thing. Do a little more, reach a

little higher, go further than you think you can, live more, love harder, laugh often, and learn as much as we possibly can.

To this day, when I feel like I have had enough or reached my limit, I ask myself if I can get to the next “mailbox” in front of me, and I BAAM it.

It has been a tiring past 21 months. There is so much going on and on many different fronts. Until now, it could have been easy to fall into the trap of giving up and giving in. But now we know better, and you may love me or hate me for this, because now all we have to do is look at what is just a little further ahead of us and go for it.

I would love to hear your BAAM story at mnorton@tramazing. com, and when we do just a little bit more to reach our goals and dreams, it really will be a better than good year.

Michael Norton is the grateful CEO of Tramazing.com, a personal and professional coach, and a consultant, trainer, encourager and motivator to businesses of all sizes.

LINDA SHAPLEY Publisher

ERIN ADDENBROOKE Marketing Consultant

lshapley@coloradocommunitymedia.com

eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

MARK HARDEN Interim Editor

AUDREY BROOKS Business Manager

mharden@coloradocommunitymedia.com

abrooks@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Columnist opinions are not necessarily those of the Herald. We welcome letters to the editor. Please include your full name, address and the best number to reach you by telephone.

THELMA GRIMES Community Editor

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Highlands Ranch Herald A legal newspaper of general circulation in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, the Herald is published weekly on Thursday

by Colorado Community Media, 9233 Park Meadows Dr., Lone Tree, CO 80124.

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Highlands Ranch Herald 13

December 16, 2021

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MASKS FROM PAGE 1

made instead of broad masking mandates.

He also urged respect for district staff as they shift to the new system and for people who will still need masking around them.

“Man, there better not be bullying around this thing,” Peterson said. “If you are a parent, you need to not bully.”

The 4-3 vote was no surprise.

The four new directors — Peterson, Becky Myers, Christy Williams and Kaylee Winegar — had vowed while campaigning to make masking a personal choice.

The new conservative board majority was sworn in on Nov. 29 and called a special board meeting for Dec. 7 in part to begin fulfilling campaign promises.

Winegar said her vote came down to masking efficacy.

“There just is not strong evidence” that masks prevent spread among children, she said.

There is evidence, she said, that they can be a detriment.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a Nov. 5 advisory, said: “Due to the circulating and highly contagious delta variant, CDC recommends universal indoor masking by all students (age 2 and older), staff, teachers, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.”

Williams says she empathizes with children who are immunocompromised, but also cited students who have mental health struggles amid the pandemic, and young students trying to learn phonetics while masking.

“I think that we can do that.

I think that we can make this compromise,” she said.

The school board meeting was the latest of many in which masking policy took center stage.

Dozens of speakers turned out to address the resolution, many calling for an end to the district’s masking mandate while others pleaded for the board to uphold universal masking.

Aadithya, a high school student who asked to be identified by his first name only, told directors he was begging them to uphold universal masking and to respect students’ safety.

The new Douglas County Health Department, which opposes general mask mandates, was established for political reasons, he said, and he worried that the resolution did not follow Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment guidance.

“I think that’s a reckless decision,” he said.

People cited Bible verses both in favor and in opposition to masking mandates. One man prayed for God to give the board wisdom after asking for a maskchoice policy, to an “amen” from anti-mask mandate attendees.

Mother of three Katy Lute told directors who were not masking

that she was glad to see their smiling faces. She came to fight on behalf of her daughters, she said, who feel safer when they can see their teachers’ faces.

Masks mute children, she said.

“To those who want mask mandates, why do some of you seem to want a permanent mask mandate?” Lute said. “Why is the goal zero COVID? This is just unrealistic.”

Directors Elizabeth Hanson, Susan Meek and David Ray, who continued in their seats from the previous board that supported mask rules, indicated at the meeting that they strongly opposed removing the district’s ability to mandate universal masking, calling it reckless and dangerous.

Ray has said he worried about implementing an optionalmask policy before conducting a feasibility study and without giving staff time to prepare to implement the resolution before it takes effect.

He felt significant angst, he said, that taking the approach of making individual accommodations will place a target on students who are vulnerable to COVID-19.

“If this drives segregation of our kids that are medically fragile, I’ll tell you I will just have such issue,” he said.

Meek unsuccessfully lobbied to have the resolution take effect no sooner than January, so schools could prepare to make individual accommodations for those who need them.

“I don’t want to insert chaos into the system,” she said.

Divisions among the board were visible beyond their 4-3 vote. The three directors who voted no sat through the hourslong meeting wearing masks.

The other four did not.

As public comment rounded its third hour, about half of the room — from the audience to district staff to directors — wore masks.

Peterson also instated new decorum rules for public comment, which had become a point of contention in recent weeks as the former board president Ray struggled to keep people from outbursts or reaction to speakers.

Before the new board was seated, board directors prohibited outbursts or reaction by attendees to public comment. Security asked people not to bring in items like handheld flags, or posters attached to handles.

Peterson now says reaction in between speakers is fine, so long at people do not interrupt a speaker. Those who do will be removed, he said.

Throughout the night, people cheered and applauded those who they agreed with. On a couple instances, someone booed a speaker or laughed at remarks.

People also waived small flags.

Those who wanted the mandate lifted held American flags.

People who supported masking mandates, and occasionally spoke in favor of the district’s equity policy, waved rainbow flags.

Mike Peterson is the new president of the Douglas County School Board.

COURTESY PHOTO

Memory In Loving

Place an Obituary for Your Loved One. 303-566-4100 obituaries@coloradocommunitymedia.com Self placement available online at HighlandsRanchHerald.net

14 Highlands Ranch Herald

LOCAL

December 16, 2021

LIFE

The New York Broadway costume shop Parsons-Meares, Ltd. paid special attention to the details in the new Colorado Ballet “Nutcracker” costumes they made, like these compass buttons that are sewn on the vest of the Drosselmeyer character.

A new military hat rests on storage bins that contain elements of “Nutcracker” costumes in the costume department at the Colorado Ballet Academy building in Denver on Nov. 16.

Colorado Ballet wardrobe manager Shirin Lankarani hangs part of a brand new costume at the Colorado Ballet Academy building in Denver on Nov. 16, where work was underway on the wardrobe for the 2021 production of “The PHOTOS BY KATHRYN SCOTT Nutcracker.”

The pandemic posed both a challenge and an opportunity

BY MARK JAFFE SPECIAL TO THE COLORADO SUN

When Holly Hynes, the internationally renowned costume designer, sat in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House watching the Colorado Ballet’s “Nutcracker” she thought that it looked “pretty gorgeous” – then she got a closer look at the wardrobe backstage.

The 33-year-old costumes – hand-me-downs from the San Francisco Ballet – were definitely showing their age. “They were worn … patched,” Hynes said. “The capes were so heavy.”

It was time for new “Nutcracker” duds and Hynes, who has created tutus and tights for the New York City Ballet, the Bolshoi Ballet, London’s Royal Ballet and La Scala in Milan, was commissioned to design them.

It was part of a $1.5 million revamp of the company’s production with all new sets and 177 new costumes. But not long after Hynes saw “The Nutcracker” in Denver, the plans were almost upended, as were so many things, by the pandemic.

As theaters closed and new productions were postponed, all the shops that depend on supporting plays and dance saw their work evaporate.

“I had 17 projects that came to a screeching halt,” Hynes said. “It was great that the Colorado Ballet decided to go ahead. It made a huge difference to 18 shops in this project. Many of them would have folded if they hadn’t had the Colorado Ballet.”

A member of the wardrobe staff, Kathy Scoggins, places finishing touches on one of the new “Nutcracker” costumes inside the costume department at the Colorado Ballet Academy building in Denver on Nov. 16.

In effect, the Colorado Ballet created its own stimulus package for costume designers and makers in the depths of the pandemic.

“We started talking to the shops in New York and here in Colorado and they were very anxious to do the work, because they had none,” Gil Boggs, the Colorado Ballet’s artistic director, said. “We got some benefit on price and we weren’t rushed.”

And the shops poured more effort into the project, Hynes said. “The work that came out of them was three times what we would have gotten if they had other projects.”

One of the workshops that was thrown a lifeline was Parson-Meares, in Long Island City, New York. In its four decades, the shop has made the costumes for a legion of Broadway shows, including “Phantom of the Opera,” “The Lion King,” “Cats” and “Hamilton.”

But in early 2020 it had no work and its 58 employees were furloughed. Then the Colorado Ballet came knocking.

“The Colorado Ballet gave us work at a time when we would have had none,” said Sally Ann Parsons, owner of the workshop. The contract enabled Parsons to bring back 35 employees, split up into three shifts so there would never be too many people in the studio.

Among the costumes Parsons-Meares was asked to make were the tutu for the Sugar Plum Fairy, the mice – very important in the “Nutcracker,” for those not versed in it – the toy soldiers and the jester-like polichinelles, who spill from under Mother Ginger’s huge skirt.

Then the difficult part of crafting and fitting the costumes began. Normally the designer is very hands-on with the workshops and the ballet company and the costumes are fit to the dancers who will wear them.

But now everyone was isolated. Hynes’ assistant drove into New York City and came back with loads of swatches and trim and over five days she selected the fabrics while sitting on her back porch. “There was a sense of urgency because we were worried whether we’d be able to get everything, whether there would be supplychain issues,” she said.

Designs and cloth were distributed to the workshops and they began sewing. But the dancers who would be wearing them were back in Colorado. Measurements for each dancer had been sent along.

“We did fittings on dancers we knew, or Holly knew” that were about the same size, Parsons said. Hynes borrowed neighborhood kids for the children’s costumes. Her assistant had a camera so she could view the fittings remotely. “Holly didn’t see costumes close up until last spring,” Parsons said.

SEE NUTCRACKER, P17

Highlands Ranch Herald 15

December 16, 2021

The Zoo Lights attraction at the Denver Zoo is among holiday lighting treats scattered throughout the Denver metro area.

COURTESY OF DENVER ZOO

Holiday lights make holidays bright

F

amilies with kids can ooooh and aaahh over holiday lights, but so can older adults!

Magic is in the air these days SONYA’S as one drives SAMPLER down Littleton’s Main Street or heads out to the Trail of Lights at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield Farms, 8500 W. Deer Creek Canyon Road, or drives north to Sonya Ellingboe see “Zoo Lights” at the Denver Zoo or “Blossoms of Light” at Denver Botanic Gardens, York Street. Or simply drive through the neighborhoods that outdo themselves. I thank all these sources this year in particular!

Englewood Arts Presents The delightful Saturday afternoon concert series has resumed in Hampden Hall, 1000 Englewood Parkway.

Englewood Arts Presents “Silver Ainomae and Friends” at 2 p.m. on Dec. 18. Tickets: adults/$30; seniors (60+) $25; students under 18/$10. Purchase at door a half-hour prior to the concert or online at englewoodarts. org or 303-806-8196.

NUTCRACKER FROM PAGE 16

And while the new costumes may not last another three decades, they were built to stand up to time.

“The costumes in a ballet like ‘Nutcracker’ are used for years and years, so you need to think about how you can make them adjustable,” Parsons said. There is extra material in the side seams and extra material in the bodices.

“Stretch is our friend so we want to incorporate it into jackets, bodices,” Hynes said. “The good thing about ‘The Nutcracker’ is that it fills the seats. The bad thing is it always needs to be continually upgraded and refurbished. It is never-ending.”

Boggs wanted to keep the ballet in its Victorian setting, as it was in the original production – no modern adaptation, he said. “I am a little

Lone Tree Arts Center “Home for the Holidays” runs Dec. 16-23 at the Lone Tree Arts Center, 10075 Commons St., Lone Tree.

Tickets cost $28-$42. 720-509-1000, LoneTreeArtsCenter.org. Also: limited availability for the “Doo Wop Project Christmas” on Dec. 28 at 7:30 p.m.

Masks required.

Performance Now “Nunsense” is scheduled by Highlands Ranch-based Performance Now Theatre Company from Jan. 7-23 at Lakewood Cultural Center, 470 S. Allison Parkway, Lakewood.

Fridays 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays 2 and 7:30 p.m.; Sundays 2 p.m. 303-987-7845.

Great Christmas gift idea, as are any theater or concert tickets here, at littleton Town Hall, at the Aurora Fox, Vintage Theatre, Denver Center for Performing Arts ... See lakewood. showare.com.

verCenter.org/CampChristmas, 303-893-4100.

Stories on Stage “Making Merry” is the annual holiday event, playing Dec. 19 at the King Center, 855 Lawrence Way, Denver. In January “High School Confidential,” in collaboration with Buntport Theater, will play at Su Teatro Theater, 721 Santa Fe Drive, Denver on Jan 21.

Single Tickets $22. 303-494-0523, storiesonstage.org. Gift idea here!

Own an Original The 56th “Own an Original” exhibit continues at the Littleton Museum, 6028 S. Gallup St., Littleton, through December. While you can’t take an item home until the exhibit is over, this is another spot to shop for gifts of art for a home or apartment ...

Closed Mondays. Admission free.

Camp Christmas Installation artist Lonnie Hanzon has moved his unique “Camp Christmas” outside to Heritage Lakewood Belmar Park, 801 S. Yarrow St., Lakewood. Look for Pun Trees on the grounds, as well as sweet and savory snacks, hundreds of lights, Santa at times (check schedule-at times he’ll speak Spanish). Tickets: Adult $15; Youth 5-15, $10; 0-4 free. Den-

New Year’s Eve The Littleton Symphony Orchestra, littletonsymphony.org, and the Colorado Symphony, coloradosymphony.org, both offer New Year’s Eve Concerts this year, with the theme of “A Night in Vienna.” Another gift idea!

While the COVID-19 pandemic continues, public events frequently are canceled or rescheduled. Check with organizers before you go.

anxious to see the audience’s reaction to changing something that was working well.”

For Hynes the costumes are, in the spirit of ballet, an exercise of theme and variation. “The first act is a period piece and in the second act you can let your imagination go wild,” she said.

“We try to carry something from the party scene that has stuck in Clara’s brain that carries over to the Land of Sweets,” Hynes said. One of those is her mother’s plum-colored dress transformed into the Sugar Plum Fairy’s tutu.

Another is a fabric print on a couch in the party scene that becomes the massive tent-like dress of Mother Ginger in the second act.

“I don’t know if the audience will catch it, but it is fun for us,” Hynes said.

One ballet tradition is that the dancer who first dances in a costume has his or her name sewn

into it. When the Colorado Ballet would rent costumes from a big company, like American Ballet Theater, Ramos said he’d sometimes find the names of great dancers, like Mikhail Baryshnikov or Angel Corella, in his costume.

“It is very rare to have a costume made on you,” Ramos said. “It is so special to have your name in a costume. We are the first.”

Colorado Ballet’s “Nutcracker” runs through Dec. 24 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House in the Denver Performing Arts Complex. For information and tickets, visit coloradoballet.org/The-Nutcracker. You’ll also find special COVID safety rules.

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

The Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.

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16 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

‘This is Colorado’ returns to college gallery Exhibit of 63 paintings is hosted by Heritage Fine Arts Guild

BY SONYA ELLINGBOE SELLINGBOE@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

The 45th annual “This is Colorado” exhibit opened Nov. 30 at the Colorado Gallery of the Arts at Arapahoe Community College, Littleton campus. Hosted by the local Heritage Fine Arts Guild, the exhibit runs through Dec. 21 — and admission is free to this really colorful and varied selection of paintings in many styles and techniques.

There are 63 works, chosen from 95 submissions by Colorado artists, according to gallery director Trish Sangelo.

The 2021 juror was well-known Denver area painter and teacher Victoria Kwasinski, who has taught workshops on technique for this guild and other area arts organizations over the years, as well as exhibiting her own artwork locally and nationally. She presented awards to winners at a Dec. 2 reception in the gallery.

The Best of Show, announced on Dec. 2, is Suszanne Bernat Droney’s sunny portrait, “Arturo,” depicting an intense-looking man with a long black braid, brightly colored shirt and confident air. Perhaps the scene is Santa Fe? The viewer is inclined to speculate about possible stories as

Arturo squints into the sun. Is he an artist? Storyteller? Some other sort of performer? Or he could operate a local business or teach...

It’s fun to make up stories about images that speak to one.

What is not in question is Droney’s skill as a painter. In addition to this sunny Best of Show winner, she has a second painting in the show called “Where to Now on the Ponte Vecchio?” The tired man pictured is feeling the sort of visual and emotional overload that hits a first-time visitor to Florence, Italy — or some other multi-storied place in this world. Happy, stimulated and dealing with weary legs and a head overflowing with images.

Sina March’s oil painting, “Bus Stop,” is the Second Place winner, and, by contrast, takes a visitor to a sunny corner across the street from a park or ball field in a town that could be nearby. We see a bench, street planting in blocky containers, leafy trees with sunlight filtering through ... calm and quiet.

Lee Wasilik’s “Mr. Chaplin’s Closeup” won Third Place and the show offered a number of Honorable Mentions, some funded by artists’ vendors.

Area teacher and painter Robert Gray’s “Downstream,” a flowing mountain brook one can almost hear, Suzanne Connors’ “The White Vase” and Aicha Jacob’s “Celebration!” are included, plus Vendor Awards. Guirys include: “Guanella Mist,” by Janice Wright; “Mingle,”

by Bon Stahlin and Janet Ford’s

“Arturo,” an oil painting by Suszanne Bernat Droney, was judged Best of Show in the 2021 “This is Colorado” exhibit at Colorado Gallery of the Arts. COURTESY OF TRISH SANGELO

humorous “The Hereford Family.”

A Blick Vendor’s Award went to Barbara Williams for her acrylic painting, “Sunshine in the Garden,” and a Holbein Award was given to Celeste Hodges for her watercolor, “Daniels Park.”

Colorado Gallery of the Arts is on the east side of ACC’s Littleton campus at Church Street and Santa

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While the COVID-19 pandemic continues, public events frequently are canceled or rescheduled. Check with organizers before you go.

Highlands Ranch Herald 17

December 16, 2021

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18 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Health board endorses selfishness I am a parent of two children attending Douglas County schools, and I am a practicing physician. I support continued layered COVID mitigation measures, including universal pre-K through 12 mask wearing, to keep our schools safe for our students, teachers, staff, and the surrounding community. Universal K-12 mask wearing is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and Tri-County Health Department. The newly formed Douglas County “board of health” has no actual public health expertise.

The one physician on the board of health is a diagnostic radiologist, not a clinician, and without public health expertise to contribute.

Reviewing the Tri-County Health COVID-19 dashboard on December 6, 2021, Douglas County ICU beds are at 100% of capacity. Douglas County inpatient beds are at 99% of capacity. Health care system capacity is limited. Healthcare caregivers are a limited resource. This is not the time to be pulling back COVID mitigation measures and allowing COVID to spread like wildfire through our community. Listen to the experts at Tri-County Health, not the ideologues at the Douglas County “board of health.”

Having an environment with the lowest possible level of COVID transmission benefits student, teacher, and staff safety. Having the lowest possible level of COVID transmis-

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sion promotes continued in-person learning. In public education, these are goals we should all support.

We could be conservative in terms of protecting student and staff safety, by enhancing layered COVID mitigation measures, including universal mask wearing. Instead, this board is choosing radical libertarianism and endorses extreme selfishness.

Eiko Browning, M.D. Highlands Ranch What have you sacrificed?

Brave patriots have made sacrifices for America all through America’s history. From the Revolutionary War through to the present, they have answered the call. My Grandpa Moore fought in WWI and was gassed in the trenches. My parents and many uncles served in WWII. Other Americans have served in the Korean War, Vietnam War, Iraq War and the Afghanistan War. All have made sacrifices for America.

Now America is fighting a war against COVID and many turn their backs on America. They say

it’s against their rights to wear a mask or take a vaccine. They claim it’s against their Christian values to wear a mask or take a vaccine.

They shout masks do not work. So, just ignore the virus and go about your business like nothing is wrong.

These excuses are pathetic and selfish. You do not show any compassion for your fellow human beings.

As for Christian values, please show where Jesus taught the message of everyone for themselves.

Please stay in the New Testament since that is where Christ taught His message. As for the usefulness of masks, next time you go into surgery, you can have the medical staff not wear masks since they do not prevent the spread of airborne pathogens and please do not tell me that a mask can tell the difference between the COVID virus and any other airborne pathogens.

Now take a good look in the mirror and ask what sacrifices you have made for America?

Ed Moore Highlands Ranch

TURN TO THE COLORADO SUN FOR NEWS ACROSS THE STATE The Colorado Sun is a journalist-owned, award-winning news outlet that strives to cover all of Colorado so that our state — our community — can better understand itself.

In this way, The Sun contributes to a more vibrant, informed and whole Colorado.

The Sun, launched in 2018, is committed to fact-based, in-depth and nonpartisan journalism. It covers everything

from politics and culture to the outdoor industry and education.

Now, The Colorado Sun co-owns this and other Colorado Community Media newspapers as a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy. The Sun is CCM’s partner for statewide news.

For Colorado Sun stories, opinions and more, and to support The Sun’s misssion as a member or subscriber, visit coloradosun.com.

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20 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

ACC will require COVID vaccination or testing Most on campuses are fully vaccinated, officials say

BY ROBERT TANN RTANN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Students, faculty and staff at Arapahoe Community College will have to show proof of vaccination or begin to undergo weekly testing for COVID-19 by Jan. 3 in order to remain on the college’s campuses in Littleton, Castle Rock and Parker.

The decision came amid a surge in COVID cases throughout the state. Colorado Community College System Chancellor Joe Garcia issued a letter to college leaders on Oct. 7 instructing they take further steps to ensure their schools’ populations are protected against the virus.

“Employees and students who work on campus, attend in-person classes, access support services, or participate in other activities at our colleges or system office will have the choice to provide results from regular COVID-19 testing or, alternatively, provide evidence that they are fully vaccinated,” Garcia wrote in his letter.

Arapahoe Community College, with campuses in Littleton, Parker and Castle Rock, is anticpating around 5,000 students to be on campus for in-person classes come January.

Stephanie Fujii, ACC’s president, said the vaccination-or-testing protocol is necessary to avoid an outbreak, which could force the college’s campus to shut down.

“I’m hoping that scenario doesn’t happen,” she said, adding that she is confident that her community will follow the new testing rules.

As of mid-November, 68% of students and 88% of faculty and staff have shown proof of full vaccination, according to Fujii.

“My hope is that more will go ahead,” she said. “I don’t want people to get sick.”

For students who attend classes fully online, they will not have to participate in COVID testing or show that they have been fully vaccinated. However, if they intend to come to one of ACC’s campuses,

Arapahoe Community College’s Littleton campus.

they will need to show proof of a negative test three days before arriving.

The testing protocol also has no effect on ACC’s mask-wearing mandate, with students, faculty and staff required to wear masks when on campus regardless of vaccination status or testing, though students and employees can request an exemption from mask wearing for medical reasons.

The college will still offer virtual classes and other academic services for those who do not want to undergo testing or vaccination.

The new guidelines have led to some grumbling among students, faculty and staff, said Lisa Matye Edwards, vice president for student affairs, with some students even threatening to drop their classes in protest of the new protocol.

“We recognize that there’s a variety of reasons that people may not choose to be vaccinated or cannot be vaccinated,” Matye Edwards said, adding that the testing option was given to avoid a vaccine

FILE PHOTO BY ROBERT TANN

mandate.

Matye Edwards said that for those who violate the protocal by showing up on campus either unvaccinated or without proof of testing, they may face consequences ranging from a warning to suspension.

But with the vast majority of the community fully vaccinated and already following mask requirements, college leaders believe the new guidelines will see a mostly smooth rollout.

“ACC is a college that cares,” Fujii said. “I’m very confident that while folks may not like it they will be willing to comply because they care more about the community.”

Students can go to tinyurl.com/ studentvaccineform to upload their vaccination record. Faculty and staff can go to tinyurl.com/ employeevaccinerecord to upload their vaccine record.

Anyone who does not upload a vaccine record by Jan. 3 will have to test when the semester starts on Jan. 18.

ACC President Stephanie Fujii

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22 Highlands Ranch Herald

LOCAL

December 16, 2021

SPORTS

Late surge puts Highlands Ranch over Creek Hovasse helps Falcons overcome near-tie

BY JIM BENTON JBENTON@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Cherry Creek and Highlands Ranch High locked up in a close girls basketball game for three quarters on Dec. 8 but then Emily Hovasse took charge for the Ranch Falcons.

Hovasse, a 5-foot-7 senior, scored seven of the next 13 points for Highlands Ranch after Creek pulled to within a point at 47-46 with 5:06 remaining in the game.

The Falcons, helped by Hovasse’s scoring, went on a 14-2 run and wound up winning the game, 6452, in the Falcons’ gym.

“She is really stepping up this year,” Ranch coach Caryn Jarocki said about Hovasse.

“She’s matured as a senior to become a go-to player and she can shoot the ball.”

Both Highlands Ranch and Cherry Creek went 2-2 in an out-of-state tournament in La Jolla, California, so the Falcons improved to 3-2 and Creek fell to a 2-3 record.

Hovasse hit for 15 points in the game, two points behind Ranch’s scoring leader Katie Johanning. Alex Pirog

added 10 points to the Falcons’ offense.

Highlands Ranch had a bunch of turnovers, the same as Creek, but the Falcons shot the ball well in the second half and finished the game with five 3-point baskets plus two old-fashioned 3-point plays.

The good shooting was evident in a couple of the Falcons’ runs. Ranch went on a 7-0 run early in the third quarter and finished the game by outscoring the Bruins 17-10.

“We shot much better in the second half,” said Jarocki. “We’re definitely growing, trying to learn and get better.

If we can just cut down some of our turnovers in the game. It’s a long season and you want to make progress as you go.”

Freshman Tianna Chambers paced Creek with 16 points.

“We ran out of gas and threw the ball away,” said Creek coach Clint Evans. “We couldn’t finish. Give Ranch credit, they played really well.

We lost to a good team.

They shot the ball really well, they couldn’t miss from three.

“We’re mixing so many young kids with veterans and I think this team is just going to get better, better and better. I don’t think you’ll see the best from us until probably the playoffs.”

Cherry Creek’s Kinsey Christianson is surrounded by Highlands Ranch players during the Dec. 8 girls basketPHOTOS BY JIM BENTON ball game. Highlands Ranch pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 64-52 win.

Katie Johanning (3) of Highlands Ranch had 17 points to help the Falcons down Cherry Creek, 64-52, in a Dec. 8 girls basketball game.

Highlands Ranch senior Emily Hovasse looks to inbound a pass during the Dec. 8 game against Cherry Creek. Hovasse sparked a fourth quarter surge as the Falcons pulled away to win 64-52.

New coach thrilled with Castle View hockey win Highlands Ranch team handed 1st loss in 3 games

BY JIM BENTON JBENTON@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Michael Dubus is the new ice hockey coach for the Castle View High co-op team and he couldn’t help but feel a little excited after the Sabercats notched a 4-3 win over Mountain View in a Dec. 10 game at the South Suburban Sports Complex.

Dubus and assistant coaches Bryan Heft and Ryan Hubbart spent time on the bench at the conclusion of the Castle Rock school’s game congratulating each other.

The win gave the Sabercats a 2-2 overall record and

2-0 in the 5A South League while Mountain Vista of Highlands Ranch lost for the first time in three games.

A break-even overall record doesn’t sound like much to get excited over, but Castle View is a hockey program that has gone 12-38-3 over the past three seasons.

“We obviously want to get better every single day but with the team we have I really don’t see a ceiling for us,” said Dubus. “I think we can go all the way. We have a long way to go but we’re making progress and that’s the goal.

“We’ve spent some time in the fall and even at the beginning of this season being close and we finally got over the hump and got that big win we’ve been looking for.”

Rock Canyon and Douglas County high schools also take part in the Castle View

Sabercats team.

Castle View jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first period.

Mason Hoff was credited with the first goal that Mountain Vista tried to clear out of the corner but it hit a player and went into the net.

Brent Baugh got a power play tally to make it 2-0 but Jayen Juan’s power play tally for Vista made it a 2-1 game after the first period.

The first of two goals by the Golden Eagle’ Kristopher Apple Duncan tied the team early in the second period, but Owen Dickinson poked the puck into the net from in front to push Castle View back in front.

Jack Chandler put the Sabercats up 4-2 with a goal at the 52-second mark of the third period and Apple Duncan scored for Vista with 3:27 remaining in the game.

Goalie Brayden Johnson (1) of Castle View stops a shot by Mountain Vista’s Jaden Montoya (11) during the Dec. 10 hockey game at the South Suburban Sports Complex. Johnson made 24 saves and PHOTO BY JIM BENTON the Sabercats won, 4-3.

Chandler had an assist to go along with his goal. Austin Hall and Zac Northrup also had assists for the Sabercats.

Reid Watson and Mason Anderson each had two assists for Vista.

“This was a building

block,” said Dubus. “It’s been the message that we can’t get too high or low.

We just have to continue to get better every day. It is a long season even though it goes quick. We’ve just been trying to weather the storm.”

Highlands Ranch Herald 23

December 16, 2021

PROJECTS FROM PAGE 1

developers looking to jumpstart projects that can take decades to complete.

An $828 million, two-reservoir, 125-miles-of-pipeline project led

by Parker’s water department wants $20 to 30 million of Douglas County’s stimulus to jumpstart the engineering and environmental work. The project would pull junior water rights off the South Platte River near Sterling in high runoff years, fill the new reservoirs, and pipe drinking water down to highgrowth cities such as Parker, Castle Rock and others.

The big water diversion projects are certain to stir up political and environmental controversy for seeking funds committed by a Democratic Biden administration to support ideas some conservation groups find ecologically unsound.

A second big request on Douglas County’s plate is a $20 million bid from Renewable Water Resources, which has raised near-unanimous opposition to its proposal to buy up San Luis Valley groundwater, pipe it over the Front Range, and sell it to drinking water providers in Douglas County and other growing communities.

“Rivers are sacrifice zones for Colorado’s unsustainable growthobsessed economy and culture,” said Gary Wockner, who has fought other big diversions like the Northern Integrated Supply Project and the expansion of Gross Reservoir on behalf of Save the Poudre and Save the Colorado.

“The Colorado Water Plan codified the concept of trying to drain every drop of legally allowed water out of every river before it reaches the state line,” Wockner said. “The South Platte is already a low-flowing polluted mess,” he added, and the latest diversion proposal “would only make it worse.”

Douglas County held the first of a planned series of live and streamed town halls discussing the American Rescue Plan requests Thursday night, with staff providing information on each of the $280 million in proposals so far.

More town halls are planned for early 2022, county spokeswoman Wendy Manitta Holmes said. County commissioners have months of deliberations to go before they allocate the $68.2 million.

A view of housing in Lone Tree on Dec. 23, 2020. Douglas County’s population grows by 24 people per day and is projected to reach more than 460,000 by 2031, including additional development in communities such as Lone Tree. PHOTO BY KATHRYN SCOTT

The ambitious, multi-county water projects could be in for disappointment. County officials are not sure yet what restrictions the U.S. Treasury could put on stimulus spending, Holmes said. County staff has asked the Treasury department to provide more guidance on, for example, whether DougCo’s share of the stimulus could be spent in other counties for sprawling projects like the water diversions.

Other, simpler water projects making up the bulk of the $247 million in category requests include water treatment, reservoir and pipeline capacity, and sewage disposal, from Highlands Ranch to Sedalia.

Seeking citizen input on the biggest priorities is exactly the reason for the extended town halls, Holmes said.

“These decisions have not been made,” she said. “That’s why this public process is occurring.”

Leaders of the water diversion projects say an award from Douglas County would help Front Range community leaders begin to solve their burgeoning growth problems.

Many Douglas County communities rely on tapping the depleting Denver Basin aquifer for drinking water supplies that are not renewable, and most have sought renewable sources from mountain rivers filled by melting snowpack.

Parker’s proposal, a joint project with the Lower South Platte Water Conservancy District and Castle Rock’s water department, notes that population growth in Parker alone will balloon the city from 60,000 residents to 160,000 in coming years.

The South Platte diversions would fill two new reservoirs to be built in

farm and ranch country straddling Interstate 76, one called Iliff and the other, in a Phase 2, called Fremont Butte.

Parker has bought up agricultural land and water rights around the South Platte, and also filed for recent junior water rights for river flows that run in high-water years.

Despite drought on the Western Slope, relatively high runoff in the South Platte basin meant that if the reservoirs existed, the junior rights could have substantially filled them this summer, said Parker Water and Sanitation District Manager Ron Redd.

Agreements with the Lower South Platte district would supply agricultural water back to local farmers in dry years, Redd added, saying the project is not the much-maligned “buy and dry” of farmland.

Revenue from the water could even be used to pay back Douglas County for the stimulus money, if federal rules allow it, and create a revolving fund for future water-related projects, Redd said. An initial infusion from Douglas County would be used to buy up property for the reservoirs, complete engineering, and continue environmental studies.

Preliminary reports from consultants say the project might not need Army Corps of Engineers permits that can take years to procure, because they would not destroy wetlands and would place reservoirs in stream basins that are often dry, the Parker proposal says.

As for competition from the San Luis Valley pipeline, Redd said, “We’re not real fans of the project.” There are too many political

hurdles to the proposal, and the valley is already suffering from water depletion, Redd said.

It will take more than that level of shade-throwing to deter Renewable Water Resources, which has been looking to sign paying customers for its proposed pipeline out of the valley and into expanding Front Range communities.

An agreement using stimulus money would give Douglas County access to needed water at less than half the rate of $40,000 to $50,000 per acre-foot being asked of many municipal water buyers, said RWR spokesman Sean Duffy.

“There’s that opportunity to invest very low for a very high quality water product,” Duffy said.

“And those numbers are not going to stay put forever.” Drawing on the San Luis Valley supply, which RWR claims would not diminish groundwater there, “largely solves the need at a significant below-market rate,” he said.

Former Gov. Bill Owens is part of the RWR partnership. Some Douglas County officials, Duffy said, have been receptive to a proposal that’s “been designed very, very intentionally by people who’ve been in Colorado for a long time and understand water, and why people get worked up about it, and rightfully so.”

This story is from The Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support The Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun. com. The Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.

. t n e d i Conf Raising a family as a single father, Michael wanted his kids to have a stable home and great schools in a safe community. With help from people like you, they are now living a life filled with love, hope, and purpose.

Help us, help each other. Visit CCharitiesCC.Org

Give hope. Rise.

24 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

Celebrate His birthday with us!

Christmas Eve (Dec. 24): • 4 p.m.: Family service • 7 p.m.: Lessons and Carols with Holy Communion

H O L I D AY WORSHIP JOIN US IN PERSON (SIGN UP*) OR ONLINE to Experience CHRISTMAS EVE with St. Luke’s UMC! CHRISTMAS EVE DEC. 24 CHILDREN’S* 1:00 & 3:00pm

Christmas Day (Dec. 25): • 10 a.m.: Holy Communion

TRADITIONAL* 5:00 & 7:00pm COMMUNION* 9:00pm 6653 W. Chatfield Ave. Littleton Saintgregs.org

St. Luke’s

United Methodist Church

8817 S. Broadway, Highlands Ranch 80129

stlukeshr.com

*These services will require an online reservation to attend in person, and all 5 services will be live streamed.

Reservations will open on Monday, Dec. 20 at 10:00am.

UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

Christmas Eve Worship

­

You are invited! We are having a special family service at 2 pm and family friendly services at 4 & 6 pm, plus a special condensed outdoor service at 8 pm. All services will have candlelight!

At 3pm check out the Christmas workshop in the Fellowship Hall.

It’s full of crafts and is a place for kids to be kids.

Highlands Ranch Herald 25

December 16, 2021

2022 Beautiful Paws calendar C R O S S W O R D P U Z Z L E available for purchase Calendar sales benefit pets at Denver shelter

BY CHRISTY STEADMAN CSTEADMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Not only is Bandit the “biggest cuddle bug in the world,” according to his owner Kaylee Riggi of Washington Park, the 3-year-old border collie is a calendar model.

Bandit is one of 13 metro-area pets featured in the Denver Animal Shelter’s 2022 Beautiful Paws calendar, a fundraiser for the Denver Animal Shelter.

Shelter pets are sometimes undervalued, Riggi said. But they’re lovable and “cute, and deserving of being in a calendar.”

Between July 31 and Aug. 28 this summer, people voted on their favorite pet photo, which were submitted by local pet ownersfor a contest fee.

A total of 83 pets were entered into the contest — many of them were adopted from a shelter, like Bandit, and are now in loving homes.

Each vote cost $1, and the contest garnered 10,504 votes. Combining

the proceeds from the votes and contest entry fees, $8,658.78 went to supporting the Denver Animal Shelter.

“This calendar goes a long way to raising dollars that help us care for the more than 12,000 animals that find their way to our shelter each year,” said Tammy Vigil, spokesperson for the Denver Animal Shelter.

“Without these additional dollars, we could not provide the extra care and attention that these oftenfrightened and homeless animals deserve.”

The 13 pets with the highest number of votes won a professional photo shoot with Gaelle Pet Photography, to be featured in the 2022 calendar.

The calendar is now available for purchase. Cost is $20 or $26, depending on the wall calendar size preferred. Proceeds from the calendar sales also benefit the Denver Animal Shelter.

“There’s hundreds and hundreds of homeless animals in Denver,” Riggi said, who formerly worked and volunteered at the shelter. She SEE PETS, P30

Weekly Carrier Routes Available

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Ask about our sign on bonus!

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email us at:

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© 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.

Solution THANKS for

PLAYING!

CLASSIFIEDS

26 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

COLORADO COMMUNIT Y MEDIA

Career Training

Help Wanted

TRAIN ONLINE TO DO MEDICAL BILLING! Become a Medical Office Professional at CTI! Get trained & certified to work in months!

888-572-6790.

The Mission, Program Information and Tuition is located at CareerTechnical.edu/consumer-information (M-F 8-6 ET)

Help Wanted Driver CDL HAZMAT DRIVER WANTED

by Spring Valley Gas, Inc., family owned; 20 year old company, seeking local propane delivery driver with customer service experience.

Join our team! Salary based on certification and experience. Class A or B with hazmat endorsements. Full time position. Propane experience preferred but not required. Clean MVR with no DUI or drug history. On call pay, holiday pay, paid industrial training, and paid time off. Call for interview: 303-660-8810.

LEGITIMATE WORK AT HOME No Sales, no Investment, No Risk, Free training, Free website. Contact Susan at 303-646-4171 or fill out form at www.wisechoice4u.com Land & Water Conservation Director Mountain Area Land Trust Evergreen CO Seeking a director with 3-5+ years experience negotiating, writing and closing Conservation Easements.

Apply: https://savetheland.org/jobopportunities/ Contact info: lindab@savetheland. org Software Developer Code & oversee SDLC for specific proj./tasks. Enforce their execution & timely delivery. Participate & able to animate parts of AGILE ceremonies (daily standup, sprint retro, backlog grooming w/ product mgmt./QA team & stakeholders). Take on & maint. existing key pieces of conferencing audio & video apps. Participate in improvement of internal devel. processes. Participate in design, creation & building of new products/ features in conferencing field. Req. Master’s deg. 4 yrs.+ java or .NET devel. / preferably both req’d. 4 yrs.+ DB exp. incl. AWS good knowl. req’d. Exp. in Web audio & video conf & mobile video sys. (Android preferred) req’d. w/ orientation towards Customer Management Systems. Familiar w/ cloud providers offerings & APIs for AWS EC2, S3, RDS & VPC. Knowl. of ColdFusion & exp. in migrations to Java webpages & Web Services using SOAP, WSDL req’d. Exp. w/ VOIP / SIP &/or some telecomm. knowl. is a plus. Knowl. of software design patterns incl. MVC variations & N-Tier Architecture.

Send resume: MeetingOne.com Corp., 501 S. Cherry St., Ste. 500, Denver, CO 80246.

C AREERS CLASSIFIED AD SALES

303-566-4100 classifieds@coloradocommunitymedia.com

SERVICE DIRECTORY ADS

Contact Erin, 303-566-4074 eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

DEADLINES CLASSIFIED LINE ADS: MONDAY, 5 P.M. SERVICE DIRECTORY: THURSDAY, 5 P.M. LEGALS: THURSDAY, 3 P.M.

Help Wanted

Certified Nurse Aide

is hiring!

We’re looking for compassionate health care professionals to join our amazing care team serving the mountain communities of Clear Creek, Gilpin, Jefferson, and Park Counties.

Clinical Supervisor of Nursing Services IT Services Manager Licensed Practical Nurse Registered Nurse Social Worker/ Bereavement Coordinator Speech-Language Pathologist

Join the arc thrift Store Team!

Find out more about these positions at: mtevans.org/careers

All Retail positions join our team!

Merchandising & retail is a plus!

Help Wanted

Hiring for Production, Cashiers and Supervisors!

LEGAL ASSISTANT Centennial Law firm seeks P/T legal assistant. No prior legal experience necessary, Good communication/ typing skills req. Flexible hours work from home or office. $22-30 p/hr Contact info: Tom Arckey 303-9288546 tja@arlaw.us

Bioinformatics Applications Scientist II

Support life sciences applications in biomechanics including movement analysis for use in clinical & research settings. Req’d BA degree + 24 mos exp. Resumes to L. Lyle, Vicon Motion Systems, Inc., 7388 S. Revere Parkway, Ste 901, Centennial, Colorado 80112.

Must reference job title & job code: VICON2021

Need to get the word out?

Advertise with us to find your next great hire!

TO ADVERTISE CALL 303-566-4100

Hiring Locations: Bowles arc Thrift store: 8996 w. Bowles Littleton, CO 80123

SHOP LOCAL THIS HOLIDAY SEASON CCM

Holidays

Showcase your LOCAL holiday products, services and events in Colorado Community Media publications to reach potential customers for the holiday season!

Call us to today

Call us at

303.566.4100

303-566-4100

CLASSIFIEDS

Highlands Ranch Herald 27

December 16, 2021

COLORADO COMMUNIT Y MEDIA

Misc. Notices

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous

WIDOWED MEN AND WOMEN OF AMERICA. A social club offering many exciting activities and life long friendships.

Social hours for all areas of Metro Denver. Reopening Activities May 1st, 2021 Visit Widowedamerica.org for details In your area!

BATH & SHOWER UPDATES in as little as ONE DAY! Affordable prices - No payments for 18 months!

Lifetime warranty & professional installs. Senior & Military Discounts available. Call: 855-761-1725

PROFESSIONAL WATER JET BACK MASSAGE TABLE: Reconditioned. Chiropractors and therapists use Sidmar tables to loosen patients’ muscles and ease pain. $1250 obo 303 688-9171

The Generac PWRcell solar plus battery storage system. Save money, reduce reliance on grid, prepare for outages & power your home. Full installation services. $0 down financing option. Request free no obligation quote. 1-855-270-3785

Eliminate gutter cleaning forever!

LeafFilter, the most advanced debris-blocking protection. Schedule free LeafFilter estimate today. 15% off Entire Purchase. 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1-855-9952490

NEW AUTHORS WANTED! Page Publishing will help you self-publish your book. Free author submission kit! Limited offer! 866-951-7214

Looking for assisted living, memory care, or independent living? A Place for Mom simplifies the process of finding senior living at no cost to your family. Call 1-833-386-1995 today!

Merchandise Antiques & Collectibles Set of Beer Steines before Berlin wall came down. Pewter. Art pieces from 1883 signed and dated. Few Chinese artwork from before WWII. Serious inquiries and by appointment only.

Call 303-979-6164

Firewood

Split & Delivered $350 a cord Delivery $50. Stacking $50 Call 303-647-2475 or 720-323-2173

Health & Beauty VIAGRA and CIALIS USERS! 50 Generic Pills SPECIAL $99.00 FREE Shipping! 100% guaranteed.

24/7 CALL NOW! 888-445-5928 Hablamos Espanol Stroke & Cardiovascular disease are leading causes of death according to the AHA. Screenings can provide peace of mind or early detection! Call Life Line Screening to schedule a screening. Special offer 5 screenings for $149. 1-833-549-4540

Medical Attention oxygen therapy users!

Inogen One G4 is capable of full 24/7 oxygen delivery. Only 2.8 pounds.

Free info kit. Call 877-929-9587 Enhanced Vision Merlin Magnifier, 20” screen and all cables. Practically new since it was only used one month. Private party in Centennial. $1,200. Email Fred at jafb1948@ comcast.net

DENTAL INSURANCE - Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Covers 350 procedures.

Real insurance - not a discount plan. Get your free dental info kit!

1-888-623-3036 www.dental50plus.com/58 #6258.

Scrap Metal, Batteries, Appliances, Wiring, Scrap Plumbing/Heating, Cars/Parts, Clean out Garages/Yards, Rake, Yard work done w/chainsaw, Certified Auto Mechanical / Body Work & paint available Also can do inside or outside cleaning 303-647-2475 / 720-323-2173

Stop worrying! SilverBills eliminates the stress & hassle of bill pmts.

Household bills guaranteed to be paid on time as long as appropriate funds are available. No computer necessary. Free tri-al/custom quote 1-855-703-0555 HughesNet – Finally, super-fast internet no matter where you live. 25 Mbps just $59.99/mo!

Unlimited Data is Here. Stream Video. Bundle TV & Internet. Free Installation. Call 866-499-0141

GENERAC Standby Generators provide backup power during power outages, so your home & family stay safe & comfortable. Prepare now.

Free 7-yr extended warranty $695 value! Request a free quote today!

Call for terms & conditions. 1-844334-8353 Update your home with beautiful new blinds & shades. Free in-home estimates make it convenient to shop from home. Professional installation.

Top quality - Made in the USA. Free consultation: 877-212-7578. Ask about our specials!

CLASSIFIEDS COLORADO COMMUNIT Y MEDIA

MARKETPL ACE CLASSIFIED AD SALES

303-566-4100 classifieds@coloradocommunitymedia.com

SERVICE DIRECTORY ADS

Contact Erin, 303-566-4074 eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Colorado Statewide Network

To place a 25-word COSCAN Network ad in 91 Colorado newspapers for only $300, contact your local newspaper or email Colorado Press Association Network at rtoledo@colopress.net LIFE INSURANCE

DIRECTV DIRECTV for $69.99/mo for 12 months with CHOICE Package. Watch your favorite live sports, news & entertainment anywhere. One Year of HBO Max FREE. Directv is #1 Customer Satisfaction (JD Power & Assoc.) (some restrictions aplly) Call for more details! 1-888-725-0897

Never Pay for Covered Home Repairs Again!

Complete Care Home Warranty COVERS ALL MAJOR SYSTEMS AND APPLIANCES. 30 DAY RISK FREE! $200 OFF! 2 FREE MONTHS! 1-877-374-4287

HAPPY JACK INC. Happy Jack ® LiquiVict® is recognized safe & effective against hook & round worms in dogs by USCVM. At Tractor Supply® www.fleabeacon.com

DISH TV $64.99 190 Channels + $14.95 High Speed Internet.

Free Installation, Smart HD DVR included, Free Voice remote. Some Restrictions apply. Promo Expires 1/21/22. 1-833-872-2545.

DENTAL INSURANCE Dental Insurance from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 350 plus procedures. Real Dental Insurance - NOT just a discount plan. Do NOT WAIT! Call Now! Get your FREE Dental information kit with all the details! Call - 1-855-781-1668 AT&T WIRELESS PHONE SERVICE

Two great new offers from AT&T Wireless!

Ask how to get the new iPhone 11 or Next Generation Samsung Galaxy S10e ON US with AT&T Buy One, Give One Offer.

While Supplies last!

Call: 1-877-384-5339

Pets

Transportation

Dogs

Autos for Sale 2010 Honda Accord Tan 2010 Honda Accord 4-door Sedan with just under 72,400 miles.

Asking price is $8,500. Please call 720-641-5701 for more information.

DIRECTV NOW. No Satellite. $40/ mo. 65 Channels. Stream news, life events, sports & on demand titles.

No contract/commitment. CALL 1-866-825-6523

Doodle Puppies

Golden Doodles and Bernedoodles Home-Raised Heath Tested and Guaranteed Standard and Mini Size available Schedule a visit today!

(970)215-6860 www.puppylovedoodles.com

AT&T Internet. Starting at $40/month w/12-mo agreement. 1 TB of data/ month. Ask how to bundle & SAVE! Geo & service restrictions apply.

1-888-796-8850

Wanted to Buy

Wanted

Donate Your Car to Veterans Today! Help and Support our Veterans. Fast - FREE pick up.

100% tax deductible. Call 1-800245-0398

Cash for all Vehicles!

Wants to purchase minerals and other oil and gas interests. Send details to P.O. Box 13557 Denver, Co. 80201

Cars, Trucks, Vans, SUV’s Any condition • Running or not No title OK • Free towing

(303)741-0762

Gorgeous AKC mini longhair Dachshunds due in December, ready around Valentines Day. Accepting adoption applications now. Visit www.kirstenawitherell.com Dachshund page or text 720-495-9261.

Cell: (303)918-2185 for texting

Bestcashforcarsco.com

TO ADVERTISE CALL 303-566-4100 Home for Sale

REAL ES TATE

2495 SELL YOUR HOME ½ %

$

OR

over 500k

up to 500k

If Buying a home in Denver Metro & I’m Agent

SELLING only?

1%*

TO ADVERTISE CALL 303-566-4100

Up to $15,000.00 of GUARANTEED Life Insurance! No Medical exam or health questions. Cash to help pay funeral and other final expenses. Call Physicians Life Insurance Company at 855-595-2161 or visit: www.life55plus.info/copa

COMPLETE CARE HOME WARRANTY

Long distance moving: Call for a free quote from America’s Most Trusted Interstate Movers. Let us take the stress out of moving! Speak to a relocation specialist 888-721-2194

I BUY OLD/VINTAGE CHRISTMAS DECOR! If you are purging I am buying.

Happy to dig in closets, sheds, basements Call or text Lisa B. 720-838-4549

DEADLINES CLASSIFIED LINE ADS: MONDAY, 5 P.M. SERVICE DIRECTORY: THURSDAY, 5 P.M. LEGALS: THURSDAY, 3 P.M.

**listing commissions fees **+buyer agent co-ops

BUYING only?

Up to 1% credit of sale base price* *equal to 33% of my commission paid *applied to Buyer closing costs

Full Service Saving THOUSANDS $$$

Charles Paeplow Cornerstone Homes Realty

720-560-1999 • charlespaeplow@yahoo.com

*Commissions subject to change

CLASSIFIEDS

28 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

COLORADO COMMUNIT Y MEDIA

SERVICE DIRECTORY CLASSIFIED AD SALES

DEADLINES CLASSIFIED LINE ADS: MONDAY, 5 P.M. SERVICE DIRECTORY: THURSDAY, 5 P.M. LEGALS: THURSDAY, 3 P.M.

303-566-4100 classifieds@coloradocommunitymedia.com

SERVICE DIRECTORY ADS

Contact Erin, 303-566-4074 eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Bathrooms

Drywall

• Elder Care/Home Health Care/Personal Assistant • Housecleaning /Organizing /Meal Prep • Errands/Shopping /Downsizing /Companion Work • Pet/House Sitting /Childcare • Gardening

I Care About All Your Family’s Needs Call For An Estimate • No Job Too Big or Too Small

303-875-7271 • allisonfultoncares@yahoo.com

A PATCH TO MATCH Drywall Repair Specialist

• Home Renovation and Remodel • 30 years Experience • Insured • Satisfaction Guaranteed Highly rated & screened contractor by Home Advisor & Angies list

Bathroom Remodeling Made Easy!

Call us today, for a free design consultation.

303-997-4763 www.BuildABath.net

Call Ed 720-328-5039

Automotive

Fence Services

For all your diesel repair needs

Heating/Air Conditioning

Time To the Check Furnaces & Boilers Serving Front Range since 1955 Serving the Front Range sinceHeaters 1955 Furnaces • Boilers • Water Rooftop • Mobile Water HeatersHVAC • Rooftop HVAC •Furnaces Commercial Commercial • Residential Residential • Install • Repair • Replace Install Inspections • Repair • Replace Free Furnace & A/C Startups

Offering a full service fuel shop specializing in:

Turbos • Injection pumps • Injector testing/rebuild & Drive-in repair shop specializing in:

Light to medium duty trucks and equipment Call or come by to speak to one of our friendly Diesel Experts

6301 Broadway Denver 80216 • 303-428-3611

Cowboy Fencing is a full service fence & gate company installing fences in Colorado for 23 6 years.

Residential/Commercial/ Farm & Ranch Fencing

Free Estimates Estimates ••720-327-9214 Free 720-327-9214

Low rates, Free estimates

Scott, Owner - 720-364-5270

Handyman

Junk Removal

We look forward to speaking with you!

Handyman Carpet/Flooring

Concrete/Paving

TLLC Concrete Ty Barrett

303-646-2355 Specialize in barn floors, Driveways, Remove and replacement Any job over 400 SF give us a call!

Carpet

’s DeSpain HOME SOLUTIONS

Solving All your Remodeling & Repair Problems – Just Ask!

DEPENDABLE, RELIABLE SERVICE Over 30 Years Experience Licensed & Insured

Eric DeSpain 303-840-1874

Deck/Patio

n: Call Ke

720-244-3623

Concrete/Paving

30+ years experience Clem: 303-973-6991

FREE ESTIMATES UTDOOR

All of Flat Work by by AllPhases Phases of Flat Work

• Decks • Fences • Stairs • Overhangs •

T.M. T.M.CONCRETE CONCRETE

Driveways, Sidewalks, Patios Driveways, Sidewalks, Patios Tear-outs, stamped & colored Tear-outs, stamped & colored concrete.

Quality work, Lic./Ins. concrete. Quality Reasonable rates work, Lic./Ins. "Small Jobs OK!" Reasonable rates 303-514-7364 "Small Jobs OK!" tmconcrete.net 303-514-7364

tmconcrete.net

HOME REPAIRS & REMODELING

• Drywall • Painting • Tile • Trim • Doors • Painting • Decks • Bath Remodel • Kitchen Remodels • Basements & Much More!

We Never Mark Up Materials Saving you 25%-35% All Work Guaranteed • A+ BBB Rated

Call Today for a FREE ESTIMATE 303-427-2955

303-471-2323

Quality*Integrity*Honesty

303-883-2461 Hauling Service

Trash / Rubbish / Debris and Junk Removal Professional and Reliable Year Round Service Rubin (720)434-8042 Kerwin (720) 519-5559 Health and Well-Being

A Better You at Any Age!

Greska’s Carbon-60

ESIGNS, INC

“Specializing in Composite Redwood and Cedar Construction for Over 30 Years”

Serving Castle Rock and surrounding areas

Cut Rate Hauling TM

BEST PRICES

Framing-Finish Carpentry-Plumbing Doors-Windows-Drywall Decks-Tile-Paint

JUNK REMOVAL 303-589-0789 Landscaping/Nurseries

Landscape & Concrete

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS THAT WORK FOR YOUR BUSINESS.

Solutions

• CARPET REPAIRS •RE-STRETCHING • PET DAMAGE

Robert Pencak

General Construction Handyman

!

INSURED

JIM 303.818.6319

“HONEY-DO’S DONE… THAT YOUR HONEY DON’T DO.” — SMALL JOBS INSIDE AND OUT —

TO ADVERTISE CALL 303-566-4100

Health Energy Vitality www.C-60.com 720-600-6040 Oral & Topical Supplement

Landscaping • Yard Cleanup • Sod Concrete • Sprinklers • Fertilization Tree Trimming/Cutting • Planting Retaining Walls • Flagstone Fencing • Gutter Cleaning Power Raking • Aerating

720-436-6158 technology

Lawn/Garden Services

Personal Garden Service. Yard & garden maintenance, preparation, cleanup (weeding, bush trimming, etc). Year-round service. Joe Marino 303-621-1121

Colorado Lawn Care Fall & Winter

Landscaping, Fall Aeration, Overseed, Fertilizer, Gutter Cleaning, Lawn/Leaf Cleanup, Fence & Deck Install/Repair, Tree & Shrub Trimming/Removal, Snow Removal Residential/Commercial

scottcindy4242@gmail.com 720-202-9975 Licensed/Insured

CLASSIFIEDS

Highlands Ranch Herald 29

December 16, 2021

COLORADO COMMUNIT Y MEDIA

SERVICE DIRECTORY CLASSIFIED AD SALES

303-566-4100 classifieds@coloradocommunitymedia.com

SERVICE DIRECTORY ADS

Contact Erin, 303-566-4074 eaddenbrooke@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Painting

PEREZ PAINTING LLC

Interior / Exterior Paint Specialist Front Door Refinishing Specialist Interior Painting Winter Specials FULLY INSURED

720-298-3496

M4 ROOFING

L.S. PAINTING, Inc. 303-948-9287

• Stain and Renew Custom Handrails • Custom Interior & Exterior • Residential & Commercial Painting • Paint Kitchen Cabinets • Free Estimates - Insured • 30 Years Serving Metro Denver • Satisfaction Guaranteed

A+

We live in the neighborhood!

A+ Accredited rating with the BBB 18th year in business Great Google reviews

303-797-8600 www.M4Roofing.com

Rating BBB

LS@LSPaintinginc.com www.lspaintinginc.com

Painting Mountain Skyline Painting is a family owned Residential and Commercial Painting company which specializes in exterior and interior painting as well as kitchen cabinet refinishing.

Our core values are honesty, integrity, service, quality and beauty and our focus is on delivering an outstanding customer experience.

We currently include a full color consult, test quarts and a detailed walkthrough with all of our paint jobs.

• Family Owned • Free Upgrades Included Give us a call to set up a free estimate!

• Color Consulting • Sherwin Williams/ Benjamin Moore Paints • Full Warranty

Roofing

Painting

Littleton Based & Family Owned

mountainskylinepainting.com

(720) 432-6125

DEADLINES CLASSIFIED LINE ADS: MONDAY, 5 P.M. SERVICE DIRECTORY: THURSDAY, 5 P.M. LEGALS: THURSDAY, 3 P.M.

Roofing

Plumbing

ANCHOR PLUMBING

Residential: Hot Water Heat • Forced Air Water Heaters • Kitchens • Baths Service Repair • Sprinkler Repair

(303) 961-3485 Licenced & Insured

Dirty Jobs

970-286-3014

Licensed & Insured • Insurance Claim Experts 34 Years Local Roofing Experience Residential & Commercial

schultzroofingcompany.com schultzroofing@icloud.com

Done Dirt Cheap

Lawn/Garden Services

Painting

PROFESSIONAL OUTDOOR SERVICES TREES/ SHRUBS TRIMMED Planted, Trimmed & Removal • Sod Work • Rock & Block Walls • Sprinklers • Aeration • Stumps Ground • Mulch

Licensed / Insured

DICK 303-783-9000 RON’S LANDSCAPING Yard Clean-up, Raking, Weeding, Flower Bed Maintenance, Shrubbery Trimming Soil Prep - Sod Work Trees & Shrub Replacement also Small Tree & Bush Removal Bark, Rock Walls & Flagstone Work FREE Estimates Family owned business with over 35 yrs. exp.

Call or email Ron 303-758-5473

Residential Experts

Drain Cleaning + Plumbing Can do repair work on Everything in your home!

7 Days a week No extra charge for weekends 35 yrs experience

CALL Anytime 720-308-6696

Residential Experts We paint over 800 Homes Per Year No Deposit Ever Satisfaction Guaranteed 5 year, 7 year and 9 year Exterior Warranties 2 Yr. Interior Warranty Licensed & Insured up to $2 Million Locally Owned and Operated In business for 29 years Free Color Consulting & Samples

35% Off

All Int. & Ext.

Plumb-Crazy, LLC.

“We’re Crazy About Plumbing” CUSTOM HOMES • REMODEL FINISHED BASEMENTS SERVICE AND REPAIR Licensed • Insured ALAN ATTWOOD, Master Plumber

PH: 303-472-8217 FX: 303-688-8821

CALL TODAY FOR YOUR FREE QUOTE

720-328-2572

www.innovativepaintingllc.com

vandergang@comcast.net PLUMBING & SPRINKLERS

To advertise your business here, call us at303-566-4100

Free Instant Phone Quote Repair or Replace: Faucets, Sprinklers, Toilets, Sinks, Disposals, Water Heaters, Gas Lines, Broken Pipes, Spigots/ Hosebibs, Water Pressure Regulator, Ice Maker, Drain Cleaning, Dishwasher Instl., for coupons go to vertecservices.com CALL Vertec 303-371-3828

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30 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

PETS

The Denver Animal Shelter is an arm of Denver Animal Protection, which is a division of the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment. It is an open-admission shelter, meaning no animal will be turned away, and is dedicated to reuniting lost pets with their owners and adopt-

FROM PAGE 25

heard about the contest through a friend and decided to enter Bandit. “The Denver Animal Shelter does so much good for these animals.”

Calico is one of the 13 local pets featured in the Denver Animal Shelter’s 2022 Beautiful Paws calendar.

ing pets to loving homes, among other services to serve as a community resource.

“Every single calendar that someone buys means they are giving an abandoned animal a chance to find a home, a chance to know love and a chance to live a life of meaning and security

Smokey is featured in the Denver Animal Shelter’s 2022 Beautiful Paws calendar.

Proceeds from calendar sales benefit the Denver Animal Shelter.

CLASSIFIEDS COURTESY OF GAELLE PET PHOTOGRAPHY

— some for the first time ever,” Vigil said.

To purchase the Denver Animal Shelter’s 2022 Beautiful Paws calendar, visit tinyurl. com/2022BeautifulPaws. It is recommended to order the calendar

by Dec. 17 for it to arrive by Dec. 24 with standard shipping.

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Highlands Ranch Herald 31

December 16, 2021

www.ColoradoCommunityMedia.com/Notices

PUBLIC NOTICES

Public Notices call Sheree 303.566.4088 Legals Public Trustees PUBLIC NOTICE Highlands Ranch NOTICE OF SALE Public Trustee Sale No. 2021-0034 To Whom It May Concern: On 10/18/2021 12:42:00 PM the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in Douglas County.

Original Grantor: MATTHEW R. ESSIG Original Beneficiary: CJZ CAPITAL, INC. Current Holder of Evidence of Debt: CJZ CAPITAL, INC. Date of Deed of Trust (DOT): 5/16/2019 Recording Date of DOT: 5/20/2019 Reception No. of DOT: 2019027353 DOT Recorded in Douglas County.

Original Principal Amount of Evidence of Debt: $115,000.00 Outstanding Principal Amount as of the date hereof: $115,000.00 Pursuant to C.R.S. §38-38-101 (4) (i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: failure to make payments as required by the terms of the Promissory Note and Deed of Trust.

THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN. The property described herein is all of the property encumbered by the lien of the deed of trust.

Legal Description of Real Property: LOT 273, HIGHLANDS RANCH- FILING NO. 122-V, COUNTY OF DOUGLAS, STATE OF COLORADO. Which has the address of: 10474 Applebrook Circle, Highlands Ranch, CO 80130 NOTICE OF SALE The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust described herein, has filed written election and demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.

THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that on the first possible sale date (unless the sale is continued*) at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, February 9, 2022, at the Public Trustee’s office, Philip S Miller Building Hearing Room, 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, I will sell at public auction to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will deliver to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law. If the sale date is continued to a later date, the deadline to file a notice of intent to cure by those parties entitled to cure may also be extended.

First Publication: 12/16/2021 Last Publication: 1/13/2022 Publisher: Douglas County News Press Dated: 10/18/2021 DAVID GILL DOUGLAS COUNTY Public Trustee The name, address and telephone numbers of

the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is: JOSEPH A. MURR Colorado Registration #: 14427 410 17TH STREET, SUITE 2400, DENVER, COLORADO 80202 Phone #: 303.534.2277 X 17 Fax #: 303.534.1313 Attorney File #: 8635.007 *YOU MAY TRACK FORECLOSURE SALE DATES on the Public Trustee website: http://www. douglas.co.us/publictrustee/ Legal Notice No. 2021-0034 First Publication: 12/16/2021 Last Publication: 1/13/2022 Publisher: Douglas County News Press

legals@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will deliver to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law. If the sale date is continued to a later date, the deadline to file a notice of intent to cure by those parties entitled to cure may also be extended.

First Publication: 11/25/2021 Last Publication: 12/23/2021 Publisher: Douglas County News Press Dated: 10/1/2021 DAVID GILL DOUGLAS COUNTY Public Trustee The name, address and telephone numbers of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:

PUBLIC NOTICE Littleton NOTICE OF SALE Public Trustee Sale No. 2021-0031 To Whom It May Concern: On 9/30/2021 3:23:00 PM the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in Douglas County.

Original Grantor: Mary B. Yust and Marvin Jay Yust Original Beneficiary: Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as nominee for One Reverse Mortgage, LLC Current Holder of Evidence of Debt: Reverse Mortgage Solutions, Inc. Date of Deed of Trust (DOT): 3/11/2015 Recording Date of DOT: 3/17/2015 Reception No. of DOT: 2015016372 DOT Recorded in Douglas County.

Original Principal Amount of Evidence of Debt: $938,250.00 Outstanding Principal Amount as of the date hereof: $474,061.80 Pursuant to C.R.S. §38-38-101 (4) (i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: the failure to pay property charges, including but not limited to property taxes and/or hazard insurance, as required under said Deed of Trust and The Evidence of Debt secured thereby.

THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN. The property described herein is all of the property encumbered by the lien of the deed of trust.

Legal Description of Real Property: LAND SITUATED IN THE COUNTY OF DOUGLAS IN THE STATE OF CO LOT 39, ROXBOROUGH PARK NORTH, COUNTY OF DOUGLAS, STATE OF COLORADO. Which has the address of: 11164 W Yucca, Littleton, CO 80125 NOTICE OF SALE The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust described herein, has filed written election and demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.

THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that on the first possible sale date (unless the sale is continued*) at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, January 19, 2022, at the Public Trustee’s office, Philip S Miller Building Hearing Room, 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, I will sell at public auction to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of

ILENE DELL'ACQUA Colorado Registration #: 31755 7700 E. ARAPAHOE ROAD, SUITE 230, CENTENNIAL, COLORADO 80112 Phone #: (877) 369-6122 Fax #: Attorney File #: CO-21-894775-LL *YOU MAY TRACK FORECLOSURE SALE DATES on the Public Trustee website: http://www. douglas.co.us/publictrustee/ Legal Notice No. 2021-0031 First Publication: 11/25/2021 Last Publication: 12/23/2021 Publisher: Douglas County News Press

City and County PUBLIC NOTICE PURSUANT TO THE LIQUOR LAW OF THE STATE OF COLORADO, Prom Discount Liquor Lazy Dog Colorado Ops, LLC d/b/a Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar/Jolene’s Beer & Wings, has requested the Licensing Officials of Douglas County to grant a Liquor License for a Hotel & Restaurant liquor license at the location of 43 W Centennial Park in Highlands Ranch, CO 80129. The Public Hearing on this application is to be held by the Douglas County Local Liquor Licensing Authority at 100 Third Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, 80104 on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 at 1:30 p.m.

Date of Application: October 4, 2021 Officers: LDR Colorado Holdings, LLC – Owner, Christopher Simms – Manager, Robert Linder – Manager Legal Notice No. 941130 First Publication: December 16, 2021 Last Publication: December 16, 2021 Publisher: Douglas County News-Press

Bids and Settlements Public Notice REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) #049-21 NURSING, NUTRITION AND COMMUNITY HEALTH PROMOTION SERVICES Douglas County Government on behalf of the Douglas County Health Department, hereinafter referred to as the County, respectfully requests information from responsible, qualified firms for the provision of nursing, nutrition and community health promotion services as specified herein. It is the intention of the County to review all RFI responses, and post a subsequent Request for Proposal (RFP).

For additional information please refer to a summary of services found on Tri-County Health Department’s website by navigating to www.tchd. org; under “About” scroll down the right column to “Planning”; under the header “Assessment and Planning”, click on “2021 Department Overview”.

The RFI document may be reviewed and/or printed from the Rocky Mountain E-Purchasing System website at www.rockymountainbidsystem.com. While the RFI document is available electronically, Douglas County cannot accept electronic RFI responses.

Please submit one (1) original paper copy (no less than 11 point font) and one (1) identical version of the paper copy on a new flash drive (not password protected) of your RFI response in a sealed envelope that is clearly marked with the Request for Information (RFI) information described above. Electronic and/or faxed responses will not be accepted. RFI responses will be received until 4:00pm on Monday, January 31, 2022 by the Douglas County Finance Department, Purchasing Division, 100 Third Street, Suite 130, Castle Rock, Colorado 80104. Responses will not be considered which are received after the time stated, and any responses so received will be returned unopened.

Douglas County Government reserves the right to reject any and all responses, to waive formalities, informalities, or irregularities contained in a said response and furthermore, to award a contract for items herein, either in whole or in part, if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the County to do so.

Please direct any questions concerning this RFI to Carolyn Riggs, Purchasing Supervisor, 303-6607434, criggs@douglas.co.us, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

Legal Notice No. 941155 First Publication: December 16, 2021 Last Publication: December 16, 2021 Publisher: Douglas County News-Press Public Notice INVITATION FOR BID (IFB) #048-21 ALARM MONITORING SERVICES for DOUGLAS COUNTY FACILITIES The Facilities, Fleet & Emergency Support Services Department of Douglas County Government, hereinafter referred to as the County, respectfully requests bids from responsible qualified firms to provide alarm monitoring services (fire, burglar, and panic systems) for designated Douglas County facilities The IFB documents may be reviewed and/or printed from the Rocky Mountain E-Purchasing System website at www.rockymountainbidsystem.com.

IFB documents are not available for purchase from Douglas County Government and can only be accessed from the above-mentioned website.

While the IFB documents are available electronically, Douglas County cannot accept electronic bid responses.

Bid responses shall be submitted in a sealed envelope plainly marked “IFB No. 048-21, Alarm Monitoring Services” and mailed or hand-carried to the address shown below prior to the due date and time. Electronic and/or faxed bid responses will not be accepted. Bids will be received until 1:00pm on Monday, January 10, 2022 by the Douglas County Finance Department, Purchasing Division, 100 Third Street, Suite 130, Castle Rock, Colorado 80104. Bids will not be considered which are received after the time stated, and any bids so received will be returned unopened.

Douglas County Government reserves the right to reject any and all bids, to waive formalities,

informalities, or irregularities contained in a said bid and furthermore, to award a contract for items herein, either in whole or in part, if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the County to do so.

Additionally, we reserve the right to negotiate optional items/services with the successful bidder.

Please direct any questions concerning this IFB to Carolyn Riggs, Purchasing Supervisor, 303-6607434, criggs@douglas.co.us, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

Legal Notice No. 941158 First Publication: December 16, 2021 Last Publication: December 16, 2021 Publisher: Douglas County News-Press

Public Notice PUBLIC INVITATION TO BID Separate sealed bids for POSTON PARKWAY RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT, CI 2020-033 will be received by the Owner, Douglas County Government, Department of Public Works Engineering, Philip S. Miller Building, 100 Third Street, Suite 220, Castle Rock, CO 80104, until Tuesday, January 11, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. This project consists of the removal and replacement of Poston Parkway between Wildcat Reserve Parkway and Grigs Road in Douglas County. Bid items includes 9-inch concrete pavement, concrete curb and gutter, aggregate base course, pavement markings, storm sewer inlets, sprinklers, and erosion control.

The Contract Documents will be available after 10:00 a.m. on Monday, December 20, 2021, through Rocky Mountain E-Purchasing System Website (www.rockymountainbidsystem.com) or they may be obtained at the above address.

Electronic versions of the Plans obtained by any other means than as described above may not be complete or accurate, and it is the Bidder’s responsibility to obtain a complete set of the Project Plans and Specifications. Douglas County will not be held responsible for misinformation received from private plan rooms.

A PRE-BID CONFERENCE will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 29, 2021, at the Department of Public Works Engineering, Philip S. Miller Building, 100 Third Street, Suite 220, Castle Rock, CO 80104. All questions are due to Dan Roberts, Project Engineer by 12:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 4, 2022. The Bid Opening will be conducted at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 11, 2022 at the same address.

The Project includes the following major items and approximate quantities: • 28,451 square yards of 9-inch concrete pavement • 12,738 linear feet of concrete curb and gutter • 9,423 tons of aggregate base course Prior to submitting a Bid Proposal, Bidders shall have received prequalification status (active status) with the Colorado Department of Transportation to bid on individual projects of the size and kind of work as set forth herein.

Any questions on the bidding process shall be directed to Dan Roberts, Project Engineer at 303.660.7490.

Plan holder information, can be found on the Rocky Mountain E-Purchasing System Website.

Legal Notice No. 941146 First Publication: December 16, 2021 Second Publication: December 16, 2021 Publisher: Douglas County News Press Account Number: 2734

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Without public notices, the government wouldn’t have to say anything else.

Public notices are a community’s window into the government. From zoning regulations to local budgets, governments have used local newspapers to inform citizens of its actions as an essential part of your right to know. You know where to look, when to look and what to look for to be involved as a citizen. Local newspapers provide you with the information you need to get involved.

Notices are meant to be noticed. Read your public notices and get involved!

Highland Ranch Legals 12.16.21 * 1

32 Highlands Ranch Herald

December 16, 2021

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