1-Color
February 21, 2014 Arapahoe County, Colorado | Volume 13, Issue 14 A publication of
centennialcitizen.net
City moves toward retail pot ban Attorney updates council on Centennial’s regulatory options on marijuana By George Lurie
glurie@coloradocommunitymedia.com Don’t make any plans to purchase a joint in Centennial. After a Feb. 18 city council study session during which City Attorney Bob Widner presented a “regulatory update” concerning recreational marijuana options open
to the city, the nine-member council was unanimous in their opposition to giving the green light to recreational pot shops. In May 2013, after Colorado voters had passed Amendment 64, which legalized recreational marijuana, the city council imposed a temporary moratorium on the operation of marijuana-related businesses in the city. That moratorium is set to expire on Sept. 30. In 2011, the city council had passed an ordinance prohibiting the establishment of medical marijuana businesses in Centennial.
“The City is without authority to completely ban or prohibit the personal growing, possession, or use of marijuana within a residential dwelling unit when the marijuana is intended for personal use,” said a staff report from the city attorney’s office. Amendment 64 does allow local governments to regulate or ban the operation of recreational marijuana businesses. Options open to the city council at the Feb. 18 study session included: • Making permanent an outright ban on recreational sales; • Developing a regulatory program that would allow the businesses to operate in
Centennial; • Leaving the current moratorium in place and revisiting the issue before Sept. 30; • Extending the moratorium beyond Sept. 30; • Referring to voters in the November 2014 elections the question of permitting or prohibiting adult-use marijuana businesses in Centennial. Widner said a number of community leaders, including new Arapahoe County Sheriff David Walcher, have recommended Marijuana continues on Page 4
School projects to begin Work will begin at The Village, other locales this summer By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Greenwood Village is home to one of the first three Trader Joe’s to open in Colorado. All three opened on Valentine’s Day. Photos by George Lurie
Trader Joe’s comes to area Opening of popular, Polynesian-themed grocery store attracts thousands By George Lurie
glurie@coloradocommunitymedia.com More than 3,000 people shopped and gawked at the new Trader Joe’s in Greenwood Village on Feb. 14, the store’s first day in operation. Rhonda MacDonald made the drive from Castle Rock to check out the new store. “We moved here from San Jose (California) a couple of years ago and the thing I missed most, except for maybe the ocean, was Trader Joe’s,” she said. “None of the other grocery stores around here are quite like them.” Centennial resident and Colorado native Tim Hunter and his daughter Julie spent more than three hours — and several hundred dollars — shopping at the new store on Feb. 14. “I’d heard a lot about Trader Joe’s but had never been to one until today,” said Hunter. “It’s cool. I like the vibe here. And the prices are really good, especially on things like nuts and dried fruit. We’ll be back.”
Check-out lines were long but moved quickly at the Feb. 14 opening of Trader Joe’s in Greenwood Village.
Littleton Public Schools is wasting no time spending the money voters authorized last November to whip the district’s aging buildings back into shape. “A key element of what we look at is doing what’s best for the safety of the students,” said Mark Crisman, senior engineer with Jacobs Project Management Company, the lead contractor on the projects, while outlining the plan for the LPS Board of Education during its Feb. 13 meeting. LPS residents passed the $80 million bond issue by about 60 percent of the vote last November, and the revenue can legally only be used for capital improvements like building maintenance and infrastructure. The district estimates the actual need at about $102 million, but asking for that much would have raised taxes. Some of the easier work will start this summer and planning and design is under way on larger projects — in particular the failing roof at Damon Runyon Elementary School. Crisman said it will take up to a year to get ready for that, and work should start in the summer of 2015. Diane Doney, LPS chief operating officer, said she hopes to be able to replace all the wood trusses, many of which are now being propped up, with steel. “The current condition of that roof is safe,” said Terry Davis, director of operations and management for LPS. In the meantime, a much-anticipated replacement of Littleton High School’s ancient and minivan-size boiler will happen this summer. Goddard Middle School will get a new one too, and Arapahoe High School will get a chiller. Roof repairs will happen at Goddard, Heritage High School, LHS and the Education Services Center. Restrooms at the Ames facility will be updated and the preschool area will be expanded. The Village will also get a lot of work this summer, with upgrades to lighting, fire systems, mechanical/HVAC, carpets and roofing. The Transportation Services Center will too, including the replacement of an Projects continues on Page 4
Store manager Dan Guarjardo, whose business card lists his job title as “captain,” said his staff “wasn’t sure what to expect” on opening day. “We’re prepared for a brisk turnout but honestly, I don’t know how many people will show up,” Guarjardo said. “Hopefully,
we’re ready for everything and everybody.” Three hours after the doors opened, crowd control was the biggest challenge. The parking lot was full and checkout lines snaked the length of the store as employees, Joe’s continues on Page 9
Printed on recycled newsprint. Please recycle this copy.