October 7, 2021
FREE
DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
LoneTreeVoice.net
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 24
Free community college proposal excites students, educators Legislation faces obstacles, but brings hope for accessible education BY ROBERT TANN RTANN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
After graduating from high school, Jake Smith didn’t think he’d make it in college. He struggled academically and he didn’t have the money to afford more education until he joined the Army. For nine years Smith served as an active member, seeing military subsidies as his only path to affording tuition. At the age of 28, Smith finally enrolled at Arapahoe Community College (ACC) and used the GI Bill to cover the cost. But he wished there could have been a different way. “To ask people to go through some of the things that I had to go through just to get a GI Bill, I don’t think that’s fair,” Smith said. “We were in bad situations and we
Arapahoe Community College could be one of hundreds of schools across the country that begins offering a tuition-free education under a proposed government bill.
SEE COLLEGE, P3
PHOTO BY ROBERT TANN
New county Board of Health has 1st meeting Leadership is chosen; director process begins BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Douglas County’s new Board of Health met for the first time Sept. 30 and discussed its leadership positions, the upcoming search for an executive director and the county’s
new arrangement with Tri-County Health Department. It was the latest step in a longrunning process of Douglas County distancing itself from Tri-County Health in the wake of disagreements over COVID-safety rules. The new Douglas County Board of Health is made up of two county commissioners — Lora Thomas and George Teal — as well as Dr. Linda Fielding, Doug Benevento and Kim Muramoto.
Fielding and Muramoto previously represented Douglas County on Tri-County’s Board of Health and Benevento serves on the county’s public health advisory committee. Muramoto was not able to attend the meeting, so Kevin Bracken, a Castle Rock Town Council member and briefly a brief member of the Tri-County Board of Health, stood in for her. SEE BOARD, P20
A LONG WALK AHEAD
Denver’s 5280 Trail may take a decade to complete P16
VOLUME 20 | ISSUE 33
Election 2021: Candidates answer questions
In the election that ends Nov. 2, Lone Tree voters will elect four members of the Douglas County School District’s Board of Education, a majority of the sevenmember panel. Ballots go into the mail starting Oct. 8. Amid contentious debates over COVID safety rules and equity in education, two slates of school board candidates have emerged, one in line with the direction set by the current board majority and the other saying it’s time to follow a new path. The school board members represent different parts of the county but they are elected “at large” by all county residents. The Voice sent questions to each candidate to help voters learn more about them. We asked why they’re running, what qualifies them for office, and what their priorities would be if elected. Turn to Pages 6-9 for our candidate Q&As. And for more coverage of candidates and issues in Election 2021 here and in neighboring communities, visit lonetreevoice.net. Lone Tree voters also will decide Ballot Issue 2E, a tax increase proposal. Watch for more coverage of the measure in coming weeks.
POWERHOUSES FACE NEW COMPETITION Other schools on the rise in field hockey
P24