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May 14, 2020
FARMING THE CITY Urban homesteaders get back to the land P12
ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
July 4 celebration canceled COVID-19 restrictions mean iconic fireworks show won’t occur BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
The Tri-County Health Department, which covers Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas counties, finally lifted its stay-at-home order on May 8, paving the way for Englewood businesses to go back to work. Arapahoe and Adams counties shifted to a safer-at-home order on May 9 while Douglas County phased to a safer-athome order on April 27. Under the safer-at-home order nonessential businesses like personal care services and retail stores can allow customers to come inside for in-person services and shopping. But
The smell of hot dogs and burgers being grilled, and the sight of hundreds of people dressed in red, white and blue will not be at Cornerstone and Belleview parks this Fourth of July. Englewood City Council reached a consensus at a May 4 meeting to cancel the annual Fourth of July celebration that takes place on the city’s southern border with Littleton. The Englewood event is hosted in conjunction with the cities of Littleton and Sheridan, and the South Suburban Parks and Recreation District. Area residents annually flock to the parks to watch fireworks, interact with neighbors, grab food from food trucks and more. But the idea of hosting a gathering of more than 10 people in the COVID-19 era is not feasible, officials said. “This one stings,” said Englewood City Councilmember Dave Cuesta. He added that he hated to cancel the event, but said the celebration “doesn’t seem like the prudent thing to do in the interest of public safety right now, to proceed with the uncertainty of our partners.” The Tri-County Health Department, which covers Arapahoe, Douglas and Adams counties, told Englewood the
SEE BUSINESS, P11
SEE JULY, P9
Derick Cruz, owner of Game 7 Barbershop in Englewood, sits inside his barbershop on May 8. Non-essential businesses in Englewood were allowed to reopen again on May 9.
JOSEPH RIOS
Non-essential Englewood businesses reopen Arapahoe County makes transition to safer-at-home order BY JOSEPH RIOS JRIOS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Derick Cruz said his Game 7 Barbershop in Englewood was a place for people to go to hang out and let loose after work. But now with social distancing restrictions being heavily emphasized for non-essential businesses, Game
7 Barbershop feels different to Cruz. Rather than having customers in his lobby to interact with everybody else in the barbershop, they have to wait outside. “It’s not even the barbershop anymore. You’ll have that one-on-one contact with your barber but coming in and shaking everyone’s hands is a zero,” Cruz said. While the social aspect of Cruz’s barbershop isn’t the same as it was two months ago, Game 7 Barbershop and other non-essential Englewood businesses took a step toward recovery last week — opening their doors to the public.
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DID YOU KNOW INSIDE
In some cases, workers who refuse to go back to their jobs continue to collect unemployment benefits. P6
VOICES: PAGE 10 | LIFE: PAGE 12
EnglewoodHerald.net
VOLUME 100 | ISSUE 12