Northglenn Thornton Sentinel 0917

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September 17, 2020

ADAMS COUNTY, COLORADO

A publication of

Northglenn-ThorntonSentinel.com

VOLUME 57 | ISSUE 6

‘COVID claim Water rates prompt recall push misinterprets Mayor, three Westminster Councilors targeted for data’, health high summer water bills experts argue BY SCOTT TAYLOR STAYLOR@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Local health official addresses misinformation circulated on social media BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

The notion widely shared on social media that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reduced the U.S. COVID-19 death count by 94% — from nearly 154,000 down to just over 9,000 — is a misinterpretation of the data, a Denver metro epidemiologist explains. Fact-checking reports from late August and early September focused on social media posts that used a misreading of a CDC data table to claim the agency had “admitted” its numbers were inaccurate. President Donald Trump was among those who tweeted the inaccuracy, which appeared to gain traction in late August. “CDC just backpedaled (quietly) and adjusted the U.S. COVID deaths from 153,504 to 9,210. Admitting that their numbers are so (expletive) that they are off by a whopping 94%,” said a post that was shared on Facebook, the Associated Press reported. The CDC data table in question — located on the agency’s site at tinyurl. com/COVIDdeathcount — is based on an analysis of death certificates that mention COVID-19 as a cause. For 6% of the deaths, COVID-19 was the only cause mentioned, the CDC notes. The table showed 174,470 total COVID-19 deaths recorded as of its Sept. 9 update. That regularly updated data table shows other health conditions that SEE COVID, P19

Saying they are fed up with high water bills, a group of residents kicked of a recall of three City Councilors and Mayor Herb Atchison Aug. 31. Residents Jessica True, Gary Shea and Deb Teter filed four separate petitions aimed at unseating Atchison and City Councilors Anita Seitz, Kathryn Skulley and Jon Voelz. “We’ve seen the water bills and some of them have just been so outrageous,” Shea said. “A lot of the people that are upset with this are just disappointed that the Councilors that voted for this increase just were not listening to their citizens’ concerns.” The group has been behind two August water rate protests at Westminster City Hall, Aug. 24 and 31, that drew residents in their cars to honk their horns and flash their lights during City Council meetings to demonstrate that they were fed up. “We saw the concern building on social media,” Shea said. “People were pretty upset at their water bills, and some were pretty outrageous. That frustration just built, to the point that we decided to seek a recall.” The recall targets all voted to increase water and sewer rates for 2020. The three remaining Councilors — David DeMott, Rich Seymour and Lindsey Smith all voted against the increase. Before COVID-19, councilors were discussing a rate increase for 2021 and beyond. The council voted to postpone discussions about that increase until next year, due to the pandemic. Westminster’s 2020 water residential water rates increased roughly 10 percent per 1,000 gallons compared to 2019 while commercial rates increased between 6 and 10 percent depending on how much is used. Currently, Westminster charges its lowest rate for residential customers

INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | SPORTS: PAGE 22

Westminster resident Nancy Bohac signs one of four petitions seeking to recall three sitting Westminster City Councilors and Mayor Herb Atchison Sept. 10 in a corner of the King Soopers parking lot at 104th and Federal Boulevard while volunteer Diana Loeck watches. Bohac said her monthly water bill rose from an average of $65 per month to $165 per month this summer, convincing her to join the recall effort. PHOTO BY SCOTT TAYLOR

that use less than 6,000 gallons per month. That rate increased from $3.57 per 1,000 gallons in 2019 to $3.96 in 2020. Residential customers that use between 6,001 and 20,000 gallons per month now pay $8.15 per 1,000 gallons — up from $7.35 in 2019. “My other concern is the supply we have,” Shea said. “I have heard city staff say that we just do not have enough water resources to get us to the complete build-out for what we have in the Comprehensive Plan, that there is no new water for us to purchase in the Denver Metro area. This is a fixed resource and we need to do a better job managing it.” Customers that use more than 20,000 gallons per month pay the most, $12.88 per 1,000 gallons. That’s a $1.26 increase from the 2019 rate of $11.26 per 1,000 gallons. Councilors are expected to schedule

a series of meetings to discuss the water and sewer utilities later this year, including needs for repairs and new equipment, the water supply and water rates. Seitz defends system In a written statement, Councilor Seitz said she is frustrated by the recall because she is doing her duty and trying to stay within the rules set by the city’s charter and state law. “Many have said they want to protect the safety and reliability of our system, but they don’t want to raise rates,” she wrote. “That would be my top choice too, however, we don’t have a magic wand.” The city’s water utility is an enterprise find that can’t have more than 10% of its revenue from outside of water rates, meaning that the city SEE RECALL, P2

TOUCHING HISTORY

Effort aims to collect archives for Center for the Blind

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