Voters select Grosh, Hald to lead Hyland Hills

Hyland Hills Park and Recreation District voters selected candidates Danielle Grosh and Mike Hald for the Board of Directors in a Districtwide election May 2, according to the unofficial results.

The final count is expected after May 8, when the final mail-in and military ballots were due, possibly changing the results.

Those elected will be sworn in on May 16 at the next public Board Meeting and will be seated in the two open seats being vacated by Board members Jennifer Flaum and Christopher Dittman.

Grosh and Hald will serve fouryear terms on the five-person Board of Directors, which includes Board Members Warren Blair, Margaret Gutierrez, and Donald trict resident who has operated a local business since 2005. She has a son who enjoyed Hyland Hills facilities growing up and now has a granddaughter who is also doing the same. Having experienced the benefits of being a resident herself, she says she ran for the board to

Ciancio, II.

Grosh also serves as Board Secretary for the Ranch Filing #1 Neighborhood Homeowners Association.

Mike Hald has lived in Westminster for 18 years and has been part of corporate finance teams leading financial reporting, accounting, business insurance and internal controls departments for several large public companies. He says his goal as a board member will be to work with the district’s staff leadership team to ensure that families can enjoy the facilities offered by Hyland Hills, and that they are well maintained. Hald currently serves as the president of his neighborhood’s special tax district, where he led the refinancing of the district’s debt to save over $1 million in interest costs.

The election was a mail-ballot election with 72,000 ballots mailed to eligible electors. The District’s 24-square mile boundary includes the City of Federal Heights and parts of Westminster, Thornton, Northglenn, Arvada and unincorporated Adams County.

Spring avalanche danger looms as record-high deaths in Colorado approach

BY PAOLO ZIALCITA COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO

Conditions across the state are warming, and in the mountains, that means more avalanche hazards. e chance of “wet avalanches” increases when snowpack melts in the springtime. ose types of avalanches occur when layers of snow beneath the surface become unstable due to increased moisture. Colorado’s snowpack is 38 percentage points higher than the median for this time of year, according to the National Water and Climate Center. at means there’s even more potential runo than normal.

Brian Lazar, deputy director of the Colorado Avalanche Informa- tion Center, said the high amount of snow that’s fallen this winter has contributed to the high risk of wet avalanches. e state’s high-elevation areas have received snowfall as recently as the nal week of April.

“As that cold snow warms up and sees sun after the storm leaves, it will tend to sheet o the underlying crust and produce kind of long-running wet avalanche activity, which is also what we saw over the last couple days,” Lazar said.

Lazar said wet avalanche activity will likely drop o once higher temperatures become more consistent and snowpack melts, but there will still be plenty of risk for backcountry skiers and other outdoor recreators in the coming weeks. He said anyone going out into the snow should be extra careful.

“Outside of checking your forecast, you want to make sure you’re still carrying your minimum required rescue gear, which includes an avalanche transceiver, a shovel, and a probe,” Lazar said.

A man died near Breckinridge over the weekend after he was caught in a slide, becoming Colorado’s 11th avalanche fatality this snow season. One more recreational fatality will tie the state’s all-time record, set in 1993. is story via Colorado Public Radio, a Colorado Community Media content partner.