1-Color
June 12, 2014
75 cents Arapahoe County, Colorado | Volume 125, Issue 46 A publication of
littletonindependent.net
Greatest Generation gathers to remember Stories of D-Day abound on the 70th anniversary By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com Seventy years ago, Doug Watts was a 16-year-old kid with a gun. “It was tough,” said the Littleton resident. “But you can hang on by your thumbs and get used to it.” Watts signed up for World War II, with his parents’ blessings, partly because it’s just what guys did back then, but also to help out his single mom financially. “It was the thing to do in those days,” he said. “Everybody was joining the military because they wanted to do their part.” Today, he’s one of the less than a million WWII veterans left alive to tell its tales.
He and others visited the Littleton WWII Memorial June 7 to do just that during the city’s observance of the 70th anniversary of D-Day, when American troops poured out of planes onto the beaches of Normandy on their way to liberate Europe from the Nazis. A handful of veterans in attendance lived through that day, though 10 Coloradans left their lives on that beach, said Rick Crandall, a KEZW deejay and president of the Colorado Freedom Memorial Foundation. “These were teenagers,” said Crandall. “You were all young, seeing and doing and being what people who are 16 shouldn’t and wouldn’t normally be a part of.” From 1941-46, 16 million Americans served in uniform. Of those, 407,000 were lost, 3,600 of them from Colorado. D-Day continues on Page 13
Members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars salute the flag during D-Day observances at the Littleton World War II Memorial on June 7. Photo by Jennifer Smith
Retail pot ban gains initial OK Final action, public hearing set for July 1 By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Capt. Mark Gorman struggles with a crotchety leather clutch to back a 1914 Federal into the entry way of Town Hall Arts Center on June 4. Photo by Jennifer Smith
Of fires and old flames LFR’s first truck turns 100 thanks to TLC By Jennifer Smith
jsmith@coloradocommunitymedia.com She leaks and rattles a lot, but she still gets around pretty well, and she proved it June 4 by visiting her childhood home to celebrate her 100th birthday. The journey did, however, require a lot of backbreaking work on the part of Capt. Mark Gorman, with Littleton Fire Rescue. “She’s as cold as a mother-in-law’s kiss,” he said, tossing a glare at her over his shoulder. Regardless, theirs is a 36-year-long love story like no other. “She” is the fire department’s 1914 Federal chemical truck, the city’s first POSTAL ADDRESS
fire truck. The department, then allvolunteer and known as Littleton Hose Company, bought her brand-new. They brought her home to Town Hall, 2450 W. Main St., or rather the old version of it. The current building wasn’t built until 1920, and the fire department was where the lobby is now. The Federal lived there until 1977, when Littleton Center was built and Station 11 moved in. She remains there today, though mostly as window dressing. She gets out only for the annual fire muster, on June 14 this year, and the Western Welcome Week Grand Parade, Aug. 16. Gorman will be with her at each event, and will tell anyone who asks every detail about his pride and joy. “I like the history,” he said. “It’s been around for a long time, and there are people who served this city and district on this truck. This is a fine remembrance
of their dedication and sacrifice.” The visit to Town Hall was a special outing to re-create a historic photo of the Federal sitting outside the westernmost archway. Members of the Historic Downtown Littleton Merchants helped her celebrate, snapping selfies with the local celebrity and enjoying rides around the block. But to accomplish it all, Gorman had to get her cranked up — literally. He said the first time he takes her out each year, it takes about an hour and a half of hard physical labor, with his thumb and collarbone at risk of severe injury the whole time. The second time, he said, it’s only about an hour. “I’ll be sore for a week or so,” he said. “You have to do it just a certain way. It’s a
LITTLETON INDEPENDENT
Fire Truck continues on Page 14
(ISSN 1058-7837) (USPS 315-780)
OFFICE: 7315 S. Revere Pkwy., Ste. 603, Centennial, CO 80112 PHONE: 303-566-4100 A legal newspaper of general circulation in Englewood, Colorado, the Littleton Independent is published weekly on Thursday by Colorado Community Media. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO. POSTMASTER: Send address change to: Littleton Independent, 7315 S. Revere Pkwy., Ste. 603, Centennial, CO 80112 DEADLINES: Display: Fri. 11 a.m. | Legal: Fri. 11 a.m. | Classified: Tues. 12 p.m.
The public’s last chance to weigh in on whether Littleton City Council should approve retail marijuana sales in the city is set for July 1, now that the body has narrowly passed an ordinance on first reading to ban the practice. On June 3, staff presented council with a choice of two ordinances to move forward, one banning sales and one permitting them. Councilmember Randy Stein made a motion to approve the former, and Mayor Pro Tem Bruce Beckman and Councilmembers Bruce Stahlman and Debbie Brinkman agreed. That sends it on to second and final reading, prior to which there will be a public hearing. Councilmembers Peggy Cole and Jerry Valdes have been fairly upfront throughout the months-long discussion that they support retail sales, and voted against the ordinance. Mayor Phil Cernanec, who has remained mostly silent on the topic, joined them, making the final vote 4-3. Waiting in the wings for the outcome are the owners of CannaMart, who are threatening to get the issue in front of the voters if council passes the ban. “My client’s position is that the city should adopt some sort of recreational Pot continues on Page 14
Inside: For in-depth coverage of all GOP gubernatorial candidates, see pages 5-6.
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