January 22, 2015 VOLU M E 1 49 | I S S UE 7 | 5 0 ¢
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Szabo selected to serve as Jeffco commissioner Plans pending for swearing-in ceremony By Amy Woodward awoodward@colorado communitymedia.com Colorado Rep. Libby Szabo from District 27 was selected as Jefferson County com-
missioner for District 1. Szabo, who successfully ran for a third term in November, will be filling the vacancy left behind by former county commissioner Faye Griffin Griffin was elected to a Szabo four-year term in 2012 , but left her post early after winning the 2014 election for Jeffco clerk and recorder.
Out of 11 people who applied for the vacancy, the list was narrowed down to five finalists with the Jefferson County Commissioner Vacancy Committee voting unanimously for Szabo, said E.V. Leyendecker, chairman for the Jeffco GOP. Her knowledge of governments and business helped to set her apart, Leyendecker said. “We liked her experience in election positions and her ability to work with others,”
he said. Plans to swear in Szabo are still pending. Szabo’s move creates a new vacancy for District 27 in the state legislature, which a GOP vacancy committee will also have to appoint someone to. As of press time Reps. Clarice Navarro of Pueblo and Polly Lawrence of Douglas County have expressed their interest.
Hickenlooper hones in on economy Workforce development, funding education key to supporting middle class, he says By Amy Woodward
awoodward@colorado communitymedia.com Gov. John Hickenlooper delivered his annual State of the State address Jan. 15 during a joint session of the General Assembly, commending the state’s booming business sector and encouraging bipartisanship. “The state of our state is
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strong,” Hickenlooper said. “According to almost every national ranking, Colorado is now one of the top states for business climate and job growth.” Hickenlooper credits the state’s economic success to collaboration between state and local economic development developers. Pointing to the state’s economic development strategy to recruit talents and lure companies to Colorado from across the nation, Hickenlooper highlighted companies such as Panasonic, Cool Planet Energy Systems and Arrow Electronics as prime contributors to the state’s economic successes through job creation. Helping companies like Lockheed Martin, Charles Schwab and Woodward to grow has also added to the state’s growing job market, Hickenlooper said. Supporting the middle class and Colorado’s rural areas, where unemployment remains high, through workforce development will be met with an effort to jumpstart Hickenlooper’s economic plan in what he called Colorado Blueprint 2.0 from the Office of Economic Development and International Trade. “The team will again be visiting all 14 regions of the state soliciting a vision for economic development starting with the counties where employment is most lagging. Counties like Otero, Costilla, San Miguel, and Huerfano,” Hickenlooper said. “Our challenge is to make sure economic prosperity reaches every household in all 64 counties.” The governor spoke briefly about his frustrations with TABOR but gave little guidance as to how the Legislature should navigate taxing and spending conflicts. “Amendment 23 demands more new money than we can possibly expect to have two years from now,” Hickenlooper said. “If we do nothing, if we pretend the future will take care of itself, and we’re back here in two years
Gov. John Hickenlooper delivers the annual State of the State address Jan. 15. Photo by Amy Woodward facing what was clearly an avoidable crisis, history will show that we failed future generations of Coloradans.” While the state must continue to support workforce development, funding education must part be part of business growth, the governor said. Hickenlooper’s budget proposal includes a $200 million addition to the state education fund as a one-time increase for school districts. He supports continued assessments in English and math for high school students but said that easing testing demands on seniors in social studies and science “might be among the right answers.” “Beyond questions of funding, we need to confront the truth about whether Colorado’s kids are getting the education they need to compete and succeed in the job market,” Hickenlooper said. The governor said he looks
where there seems to be strong bipartisan support there,” Sen. Holbert said. The governor encouraged bipartisanship in a split Legislature that hasn’t been seen in 10 years. “Now is when we must come together to address these issues,” Hickenlooper said. “We don’t need to throw knives, just the political courage to face the facts and do some real math.” It’s a message the governor routinely gives, said Sen. Cheri Jahn, D-Wheat Ridge. “In his speech, what I heard is what I we’ve heard so many times from him — it’s a lot of collaboration and people working together,” Jahn said. “He hit on the big things that really are important to everyone in the state. “People can say he kicks the can down the road, I don’t see it that way.”
Enrollment numbers raise expansion pressure Jeffco school board debating new construction By Crystal Anderson
canderson@colorado communitymedia.com
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forward to the recommendations from the oil and gas task force appointed last year. But he did not speak on construction-defects laws, one of the more publically anticipated reactions from the General Assembly this year. “I was surprised that construction-defects reforms was not mentioned, that is a real problem with Colorado and it has been discussed for several years here in the legislature,” said Rep. Kevin Van Winkle, R-Highlands Ranch. “I was hoping he would become a champion on the issue.” Bills related to constructiondefects laws remain to be seen this session but Sen. Chris Holbert, R-Parker, said he expects measures regarding the issue to come from Sen. Jessie Ulibarri, D-Westminster, and Sen. Mark Scheffel, R-Parker. “I am very confident that is going to get through the Senate,
During a heated discussion, the Jefferson County Board of Education voted for a third time, 3-2, to table a decision about financing future facilities amid growing enrollment concerns. “Let’s not overrun our $99 million dollar budget, let’s honor the budget, operate within
it and make the hard choices just like every parent does with their checkbook every month,” said Board President Ken Witt. The discussion, centering around the district’s pressing needs to accommodate an influx of students, began at the beginning of the school year. Since that time, Steve Bell, Jeffco’s chief facilities operator and his team have asked the board to examine the district’s growth and possibly finance the creation of two schools and completion of an existing expansion project. This growth, stemming from the increased amount of community and housing developments, is spiking area enrollments in north Arvada and Lakewood, prompting the need for an
additional 4,500 seats. “What I’m trying to do is figure out how we’re going to educate 5,000 children ... In two years, we may be in a different spot and you guys are going to be sitting there again, and we’re going to have the same conversation,” said board member Jill Fellman. “We need to look longterm. To solve the growing issue, Bell suggested applying for $80 million in Certificates of Participation (COPs), a way to fund the projects immediately and repay the amount over the Pressure continues on Page 6