Castle Pines News-Press 1231

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December 31, 2015 VOLUME 3 | ISSUE 21 | FREE

CastlePinesNewsPress.net D O U G L A S C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O

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Proposal for new school debated

A YEAR TO REMEMBER

Academy would serve students in grades K-8 with emotional and behavioral needs By Mike DiFerdinando mdiferdinando@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Rock Canyon players celebrate their first baseball championship in May at All City Field in Denver. South metro-area high schools won 11 state championships in various sports in 2015. For more on this and other of the area’s top stories of the year, turn to Page 5. File photo

Motorsport regulations fuel differing views

The Douglas County School District has proposed a new K-8 school that will be modeled after Plum Creek Academy — which caters to high school students with significant emotional and behavorial needs — to service the same population of children at the elementary and middleschool levels. The proposed school is expected to have a maximum enrollment of about 120 students, depending on the size and space of the facility. District officials said they would like to find a location near the I-25 corridor, but a potential site has not yet been found. Plum Creek Academy, in Highlands Ranch, serves about 50 high school students from throughout the district with severe emotional and behavioral needs. But for younger students, the district purchases services from outside of the Education continues on Page 11

Motocross community concerned about rules; other residents want to preserve quiet

WHAT’S INSIDE Spirituality: Millennials strike their own path to approaching faith. See Page 12

By Shanna Fortier sfortier@coloradocommunitymedia.com Temporary regulations on motorsport uses on rural residential land in Douglas County have spurred a collision of competing values between county residents who want the freedom to use their land the way they want to for motorsport activities and those who want to protect the quiet, rural living environment they enjoy. “The noise can become unbearable,” Bob Spenser, a non-motorsport user, said at a recent public workshop on the issue. “Those of us that place a premium on quiet in a rural neighborhood do have some concerns.” But professional motocross racer Todd Bannister, a former Douglas County resident, talked of the importance of having a home track to practice on when he was growing up — along with the sport’s family aspect. “It has always been the greatest thing of my life,” he said.

Douglas County is in the early stages of establishing regulations for motorsport uses on rural properties. Courtesy photo Debate on the issue has ensued since the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 27 placed temporary regulations on motorsport uses, while directing staff to establish perma-

nent zoning regulations. County staff faces the challenge of preserving the visions of both sides through possible regulatory changes that clarify

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Motocross continues on Page 8

Hockey: Castle View’s new team hits the ice. See Page 17

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