Week of July 14, 2022
FREE
DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
ParkerChronicle.net
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | LIFE: PAGE 12 | CALENDAR: PAGE 15
VOLUME 20 | ISSUE 33
Douglas County looks toward general election Three countywide elections will be contested BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
As the final steps for the primary election process draw to a close, Douglas County residents are pre-
paring for the general election in November. In countywide races, there will be contested elections in the races for clerk and recorder, sheriff and one commissioner seat. The elections for assessor, coroner, surveyor and treasurer are uncontested. In the race for sheriff, Darren Weekly declared victory in the
Republican primary against three other candidates. In November he will be up against Libertarian Darren Hill and possibly Michael Phibbs, an unaffiliated candidate. As an unaffiliated candidate, Phibbs will need to file a nomination petition by July 14 and will receive a notice of sufficiency from the clerk by Aug. 4. The county’s next clerk and
Homeless camping ban policies differ widely across Denver metro area Other laws can affect where unhoused people may be forced to move BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
The sight of a person pushing a shopping cart full of belongings, begging for money on major streets or sleeping outdoors is common in many places around the Denver metro area, and the laws that dictate where unhoused people can’t rest differ across the many cities and towns in the region. At least several jurisdictions have no formal camping ban on the books, and Aurora’s new camping ban, which could push people into other areas, illustrates the complexity of laws that affect the unhoused: Whether a person gets moved doesn’t just come down to whether a city has a formal ban or not. Meanwhile, several cities in the Denver suburbs continue to take steps to address homelessness while SEE BAN, P7
recorder will be either Republican Sheri Davis or Democrat Karen Jefferson. Davis won the Republican primary against Kory Nelson by about an 8-point margin. Commissioner Abe Laydon, a Republican, will be defending his current seat against Democrat Kari Solberg. SEE ELECTION, P5
Former Douglas County assistant principal sues district, claiming religious bias ‘The Laramie Project’ spurred educator to send email BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Finn Todalen, left, and Danielle Schneider sit with a dog in late March at an encampment near the Aurora-Centennial border. Several tents and other encampment materiPHOTO BY ELLIS ARNOLD als lie in the area.
Evergreen Jazz Festival July 29, 30 & 31
Big Talent! Small Venues! Great Setting!
A former Ponderosa High School assistant principal is suing the Douglas County School District, alleging he was fired for expressing his Christian beliefs. Corey McNellis, a Ponderosa employee from 2007 to 2020, claims school officials terminated him after he objected to the school’s theater company planning to put on a play about the aftermath of the murder of Matthew Shepard in Laramie, Wyoming, according to a lawsuit filed in the United States SEE LAWSUIT, P5
Dancers Welcome! Free Parking! EvergreenJazz.org
303-697-5467