Transcript Wheat Ridge
Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 30, Issue 16
October 10, 2013
50 cents
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwheatridgenews.com
Election: Wheat Ridge candidates respond to questions. See Page 16
DANCING THE DAY AWAY
School eyed for training ground Wheat Ridge police, Jeffco school district exploring possibility By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com
Fire dancer Kali Fisher, from Wheat Ridge, performs her routine during the Orchard Festival on Sept. 28 in Historic Westminster. Fisher’s been dancing with fire for seven years and performs at a variety of venues. Photo by Ashley Reimers
A shuttered Wheat Ridge school could end up getting new life as a police training facility. The campus of the defunct Martensen Elementary School, 6625 West 45th Place, is being discussed as a possible site for a regional law enforcement and school safety training center. The former school could be used to host police tactical and force-simulator training, as well as other areas of law enforcement training, including training involving situations of classroom violence. Whether the training facility becomes a reality is too soon to tell. The first step School continues on Page 26
Mixed signals given on road diet Council candidates share views at forum By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com Candidates involved in Wheat Ridge municipal races tried to distinguish themselves from other hopefuls at a City Hall forum on Oct. 2, an event that was held just a little over a month before voters’ ballots are tallied in five citywide contests. The forum, which was sponsored by Wheat Ridge United Neighborhoods, provided the only opportunity for voters to hear from all 13 candidates who are competing in the city contests, under one roof. The November municipal ballot will feature an open-seat mayoral contest and four council races. Candidates fielded several different questions on a variety of city issues; chief among them was the city’s implementation of the 38th Avenue road diet — a topic
that garnered quite a diverse reaction from the candidates. The temporary lane reduction project on 38th Avenue, located between Sheridan and Wadsworth Boulevards, was implemented last year as an effort by the city to promote the Ridge at 38 as the city’s “main street” district. The road diet is a pilot project that will be evaluated at the end of the 18-24 month trial period. The project received both praise and criticism from the candidates. District III Councilman Mike Stites, who is running for mayor, said he supports the revitalization of 38th avenue, but blasted the road diet a “ridiculous concept” that has hurt businesses in the area has caused motorists to divert on to neighboring streets, especially those who are among the city’s elderly population. “It has created a lot of problems,” Stites said “I think, quite honestly, with some senior citizens we’re holding them hostage in their homes because they’re
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Joyce Jay, right, listens as Mike Stites speaks during a Wheat Ridge candidate forum at City Hall on Oct. 2. The two are opponents in the mayoral race. Photo by Vic Vela afraid to drive it.” District II Councilwoman Joyce Jay, who is also running for mayor, believes that the road diet has been a success, as evidenced by the fact that more businesses are opening up in the area, bringing with them more sales tax revenue to the city. “Thirty-eighth (avenue) was formerly a dated corridor with more ‘for rent’ signs versus ‘open for business’ signs,” Jay said. Jay and Stites also disagreed on whether Wheat Ridge is in need of a sales or property tax increase that would bring more revenue into the city. The council recently passed an ordinance that would have put a sale and use tax hike on the November ballot, but that measure was vetoed by current Mayor Jerry DiTullio, who is term-limit-
ed and who is now running for a council seat. Both Jay and Stites voted to move the ordinance forward during a first-reading council vote, before ultimately voting against the proposal. But Jay told the forum audience that she would support another version of the tax effort because the city is behind in its vehicle replacement schedule and said that there isn’t enough money in the budget for basic street repairs. “We need a financial boost,” Jay said. But Stites said he would not support another sale tax hike effort, arguing that the city is in “somewhat of a fragile business economy right now” and that there needs to be more belt-tightening on the part of the council,
before it seeks more money from the citizenry. “I think we really, really need, once and for all, to look into our budget,” Stites said. The mayoral race also features a write-in candidate, Jeffrey “Park” Worthington, a local landscaping businessman. Worthington also opposes a sales tax increase effort, arguing that increased commerce could bring more money to the city, without raising taxes. “The more commerce sales tax (we have) would buffer any type of personal sales tax,” he said. “The more commerce we have the more revenue we will have.” The forum also featured separate question-and-answer sessions involving the 10 candidates who are competing in four council races. The District I race is a fourway affair, pitting the incumbent Davis Reinhart against DiTullio, Monica Duran, Karen Thaler. DiTullio fired back at criticism he has received from council members who think that, after 18 years as a member of the Wheat Ridge city government, it might be time for him to do something
Road continues on Page 26
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