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December 31, 2020
ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
LittletonIndependent.net
VOLUME 76 | ISSUE 10
Council chambers renovated for $1.4M Project is being paid for by federal CARES Act funds BY DAVID GILBERT DGILBERT@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Crews are putting finishing touches on Littleton’s newly renovated city council chambers, a project that city officials say will better accommodate COVID-era safety protocols — and that also tackles a longtime wish list for the space. At a cost of $1.4 million, the project represents nearly a third of Littleton’s expenditures under its $4.4 million allocation from the federal CARES Act, meant to help cities and counties address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project represents a total overhaul of the chamber, which was largely unchanged since Littleton’s City Center building opened in 1977. In the most notable change, “the pit,” the terraced below-floor-level amphitheater facing the council dais, has been filled in, placing the entire room on one level. The pit, with its tightly packed and immobile seating, was a barrier to social distancing, said public works director Keith Reester. The new seating capacity is 175, up from 80 in the old arrangement. The level floor also improves access for people with disabilities, SEE COUNCIL, P11
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | CALENDAR: PAGE 15
Hank Binder returns from the rendezvous point with a fresh load of wreaths.
PHOTOS BY DAVID GILBERT
‘Hard to put into words’ Volunteers remember veterans at Fort Logan for Wreaths Across America BY DAVID GILBERT DGILBERT@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
The hallowed marble rows of headstones at Fort Logan National Cemetery were brightened the week before Christmas, as volunteers with Wreaths Across America honored the dead with bowfestooned balsam pine wreaths. SEE WREATHS, P11
Marble headstones are adorned with Christmas wreaths at Fort Logan National Cemetery.
TAKING A SECOND LOOK
Images to remember from the past year
PAGES 6 AND 7