November 19, 2015
LIFE
VOLUME 92 | ISSUE 14
LOCAL
No gluten? Darn tootin’
Gluten intolerance is not a new concept; there’s just a lot more awareness of it. See PAGE 12
LakewoodSentinel.com J E F F E R S O N C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
A publication of
FESTIVAL OF TREES RETURNS
Applewood Golf Course closer to PRPD sale Purchase agreement, rezoning application dropped By Clarke Reader creader@coloradocommunitymedia.com
An artist’s rendering of the building at 6300 W. Colfax Ave., where the Festival of Trees will make its new home. The exhibit is back for the first time in 10 years. Read about the return of the Christmas tree decorating event on PAGE 13. Courtesy image
Protesters block BLM entrance Group speaks against public lease program By Clarke Reader creader@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Protesters in Lakewood demonstrate against public lands leasing for drilling for oil and gas. Photo by Clarke Reader
More than 50 protesters gathered outside of the Bureau of Land Management’s office in Lakewood with a direct message for the government — keep it in the ground. On Nov. 12, the BLM was holding auctions for leases of underground mineral rights on public land in Weld County’s Pawnee National Grasslands, something that the organization does several times a year. To ensure they had the attention of the agency and those looking to buy the land for fracking, members of a variety of organizations, including Coloradans Against Fracking, Friends of the Earth, WildEarth Guardians and concerned citizens blocked the main automotive entrance to the building. “We’re here in response to the sale of publicly owned fossil fuels being sold
in the western states at low prices to be mined,” said Michael Saul, with the Center for Biological Diversity. “We want a stop to the business of giving away our natural resources and lands.” Protesters held up signs with phrases like “Don’t’ Auction Our Climate” and “End Fracking Now,” others sang songs about protecting nature. One even dressed up as a polar bear. “It’s going to be a challenge in a world where the richest countries are all based on oil,” said Boulder resident Karen Kreutzer. “It’s better to have a shift in economic policy than to help along the end of the world.” Not all in attendance were against fracking and this kind of land use. “There is a report from the forest service and BLM that said these kinds of leases keep the environmental impact down,” said Aaron Johnson, with the Western Energy Alliance, a representative group for the Western Oil and natural gas industry. “There are fewer wells drilled in these situations, and it is BLM continues on Page 5
School board turnover has wider implications Conservative changes may not recede entirely By Crystal Anderson canderson@coloradocommunitymedia.com Earlier this month, Jefferson County voters rejected a two-year stretch of a conservative school-board agenda, a trend stretching throughout electorates elsewhere in the state and in parts of the nation. “I think the big general message is in part a rejection of a swift move to conservative methods to school reform,” said Jeffco parent Robert Preuhs, an associate professor of political science Board continues on Page 5
‘Reformers were given a clear message in several local school board elections that we don’t like private and corporate interests trying to buy elections so they can tear down our public school system and forcefully implement their agenda. It’s clear these outside interests want to privatize our public schools, and organized, informed, hopeful and engaged parents, students, teachers and community members will stand up against such efforts.’ Tina Gurdikian, Jeffco United for Action organizer
The agreement to purchase Applewood Golf Course between Developer Applewood West Holdings and the Coors Brewing Company has been terminated, which means the course could soon be in the hands of the Prospect Recreation and Park District. The announcement was made just days after the passage of ballot measures 5B and 5C, which provided the district with more funds to purchase the course. In addition, the rezoning application with the county, to designate the Applewood Golf Course as residential land, will be dropped. “We felt immensely relieved but we were confident all along that this would be the outcome based on all the hard work by the various groups working to save the property from development,” wrote Melanie Martin in an email interview, on behalf of the Save the Applewood Golf Course organization. When contacted for comment, developer Scott Carlson confirmed the contract had been terminated, and gave no other comment. Measure 5B, adds a one-mill levy increase for operating costs and ongoing maintenance of all Prospect Recreation Sale continues on Page 5
APPLEWOOD GOLF COURSE REZONING •Residents of Applewood were informed on Feb. 6 about a housing development proposed by Molson-Coors on the Applewood Golf Course. The application was for the mixed-use development, which would include 454 homes and duplexes. •The first public meeting about the development of Applewood Golf Course was held on March 3, and called off after less than an hour because the more than 500 people in attendance filled the auditorium at the Manning School to a “dangerous level of over-capacity.” •Rescheduled public meeting held at the Marriott Denver West on April 6. At the meeting, residents were told Prospect Recreation and Park District could purchase the course if they could raise the necessary funds. The proposal was also changed from 454 proposed homes to 400. The homes will cost between $500,00 to $1.2 million each. •In August, Save the Applewood Coalition asked the state district court to stop the housing development, citing the Minerals Preservation Act, which bars rezoning land for any use that would prevent removal of commercial mineral deposits. •In October, PRPD added measures 5B and 5C to the ballot, to support the purchase and upkeep of the course.