1-Color
February 14, 2014 Douglas County, Colorado | Volume 12, Issue 16 A publication of
parkerchronicle.net
School safety: It takes a team Mental health training one key, say former counselor, school district officials By Jane Reuter
jreuter@ coloradocommunitymedia.com
A worker places a slab of plywood over a gaping hole in the front of Parker’s DMV office in Cottonwood, where a 10-year-old put her mother’s car into gear and drove into the waiting room.The girl may be facing charges. Age 10 is the youngest a child can be charged with a crime in Colorado. Photo by Chris Michlewicz
Girl, 10, crashes into Parker DMV Mother left kids unattended By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ coloradocommunitymedia.com A 10-year-old girl is facing a careless driving charge after allegedly crashing her mother’s car into a Department of
Motor Vehicles office. The girl, who was not identified because of her age, was left in the vehicle with her 12-year-old sister while their mother went inside to conduct business. The 10-year-old apparently started the ignition and put the GMC Envoy into gear before it slowly rolled through a large window at the front of the DMV of-
fice near Cottonwood Drive and South Parker Road. A “few dozen” people were inside when the car entered around 1:20 p.m. Feb. 10, but there were no injuries, said Sgt. Andy Coleman, public information officer for the Parker Police Department.
News of the Dec. 13 Arapahoe High School shooting hit former Rock Canyon High School guidance counselor Susan Young hard. “The second I heard it, I just sat down in my living room and started crying,” she said. Young didn’t know Highlands Ranch resident and shooter Karl Pierson or his victim, Claire Davis. But as a 15-year high school guidance counselor, she knows the pressures unique to teens, and the counselors who serve them. “Every one of us has had students we worked with that have taken their lives,” said Young, who retired last year and now runs an independent counseling business. “It’s devastating when that happens.” Young is equally certain the team at Rock Canyon prevented tragedies. Post-Columbine, the Douglas County School District developed “an extensive protocol” for threat assessments that included counselors, social workers, psychologists, security staff and teachers, among others, she
Girl continues on Page 13 Safety continues on Page 12
Mainstreet Center to go through rehab Town of Parker planning $1 million in upgrades By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ coloradocommunitymedia.com
dated. The boiler system needs replacing. The electrical system desperately needs an upgrade. The main sewer line, which collapsed and frequently causes flooding, requires repair. Enter the latest era, its leaders, and their creative arts-centered line of thinking. Town officials approved more than $1 million for a “rehabilitation” project needed to get the facility up to code and up to par over the next two to three years, said Elaine Mariner, Parker’s arts and culture director. She sums up the extent of the antiquation in a few words. “It’s usable for the low-level community uses that it’s been asked to do, but the electrical… if you have two crockpots plugged in during a potluck, it trips the breaker,” she said. Phase one includes facade improvements and restoration of the entrance. The work is expected to commence in July, with
For nearly 100 years, the Mainstreet Center has stood while the scenery around it drastically changed. The building itself has undergone a few changes and additions, but the historic charm and character it possesses hasn’t diminished — at least to regular users. Some residents who pass the Mainstreet Center daily have never walked through its doors. Plans are in the works to change that. The facility has quietly remained through different eras of the town’s history and accommodated countless groups, theater productions and classes. Now that it’s nearing its centennial year, the place known to local historians as Parker Con6x1.75_BringAppetite_Layout 1 2/3/14 11:15 AM Page 1 solidated School K-12 has become out-
Center continues on Page 13
The Town of Parker is planning a rehabilitation project for the Mainstreet Center, which served as Parker’s first schoolhouse. Photo by Chris Michlewicz
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