THE $1.5 BILLION QUESTION
Aurora looks at a capital improvement plan for expanding and rebuilding police and
DAVE PERRY Editor
Aurora lawmakers and protesters: If you can’t beat’ em, then stop trying
The Aurora City Council desperately needs help.
For those who must or want to observe the too often unsavory live-and-on-camera process of governing the state’s third-largest city, you’ve witnessed the 11 people you elected to run the place get verbally and tactically pummeled each week.
At every city council meeting for the past year, the family and friends of Kilyn Lewis have appeared inside city council chambers to air their grievances linked to the fatal shooting of Lewis by police during his arrest in May 2023.
Lewis was being arrested in the parking lot of an Aurora apartment complex on a warrant linked to accusations that he shot a homeless man in the arm in Denver earlier that May. An Aurora SWAT team surveilled Lewis for days before rushing him with guns pulled as he was getting inside his car, according to police reports.
Clearly stunned by the police yelling and the pulled guns, he apparently turns around flustered, hands up and down, and reaches in his pocket, pulls out his cell phone and then raises both hands up to his head, as seen on police video. At that moment, one of the five SWAT cops, Michael Dieck, fires a single fatal shot. Lewis drops to the ground and died later.
transparently, running this city of 400,000 people.
But I can save city taxpayers a few thousand dollars in mediator fees by just suggesting what they will.
Dieck said he thought the phone in Lewis’ hand was a gun. Both the former Arapahoe County district attorney and Aurora police chief determined that the shooting was “justified.”
Since the shooting, the bi-monthly city council meetings have been dominated by Lewis’ supporters and city council members playing a cat-and-mouse game of Team Lewis virtually, and sometimes literally, taking over the meetings to lodge complaints about Dieck and Aurora police.
That’s prompted Team Council members to routinely change city council meeting rules and procedures in an effort to thwart Team Lewis’ weekly admonitions about the death of Kilyn.
Despite the eye-rolling and mewling from the larger half of the city council about making the bi-weekly council meetings longer and having to listen to repeated and often theatrical protests about not firing Dieck or having a public discourse between Team Lewis and Team City Council at the dais, the real victims here are the public involved in city government, and the city’s staff.
The public and the city workers are dragged through this bi-weekly War of the Poses and really do struggle to keep up with the usual business of a very, very busy city government.
As confusing, chaotic and annoying as this tit-for-tat hurley-burly has been for more than a year, it boiled over the top last week.
For the past few months, city lawmakers have given themselves a bye from having to actually sit inside city council chambers while the “public invited to be heard” portion of the meeting plays out. Generally, the council’s three liberals sit patiently through the Lewis routine, and, occasionally, one or two others might appear on the dais. Some, as the rules now allow for, appear to be listening from somewhere else via remote access. Some don’t bother.
After lawmakers last month moved the cheese again for Lewis protesters by saying only one person at a time can stand at the lectern to talk, Team Lewis matched the challenge by invoking the Americans With Disabilities Act exception.
Within minutes, city lawmakers and staff were storming in, out and away from the council chambers in a huff, retreating to a nearby room to reconvene the meeting, with some city lawmakers left behind.
Those holed up in a space closed to the public and the press then huffily agreed to end all public city council meetings from that day forward, until a pending wrongful death lawsuit filed by the Lewis family against the city is resolved, which could take years.
Guess you — Team Lewis and Team Council — showed them, huh?
My top recommendation here — given what appears to be a lack of grown ups involved — is for the city to hire a professional mediator to foster some agreement that both sides can adhere to. It has to be a pact that does not lock the public and press out of the very complicated and messy business of,
First, have a representative from each side meet and exchange “demands.”
I can promise you one demand from Team Lewis will be for city lawmakers to hear them in public.
Sorry if it sucks to listen to people you don’t like or agree with, city council members, but that’s what being a public official, and especially an elected official is all about. Get on those big-girl and big-boy political panties and suck it up for the city and your constituents.
As for Team Lewis, reasonable time limits and public meeting decorum aren’t an option. Assuming your right to behave any way you want supersedes the rights of others to participate in public meetings is seriously wrong. Keep the protests outside and bring your compelling messages inside the city council chambers.
There’s no doubt that the answers provided so far by the former district attorney, Aurora police and the 18th Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team are far less than satisfactory in examining Lewis’ death at the hands of police.
Beside the infinitely complicated analysis of the “shootdon’t-shoot” quagmire linked to the arrest itself, no one has satisfactorily answered the larger question about Lewis’ shooting death.
This wasn’t a handful of cops in a squad car rolling up hot on a crime scene amid that kind of chaos. Aurora police had days to plan Lewis’ arrest. Trained SWAT officers are sent to these types of confrontations to prevent shooting deaths, not inflict them. How could this have gone so wrong has yet to be satisfactorily answered.
But the answers can not and will not come from badgering Aurora city lawmakers, who by design have no power or influence over providing that badly needed information. Team Lewis’ weekly harassment of the city council has not and will not move the needle on providing for a settlement in this case, nor advancing the cause of police reform, which the Lewis family and supporters say is paramount.
Any city lawmaker who doesn’t understand it is just as, if not more, important to hear constituents rather than make constituents hear you, you should step aside now and let someone who understands how vital chore is take your place.
Neither side is completely at fault here nor blameless.
What all this has done, however, is lock the public out of what should be a very open and transparent part of government.
Quit the games. Un-cancel the canceled public meetings. Act like the grown-ups you are. Come to an agreement that makes sense and allows the public to be part of the public’s business.
Aurora City Council members conduct agenda business in the Aurora Room at city hall instead of inside council chambers in reaction to conduct of some members of the audience. (Sentinel Screen Grab)
Aurora lawmakers suspend in-person meetings amid Kilyn Lewis lawsuit
“THIS IS, ONCE AGAIN, AN ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS ATTEMPT TO SILENCE THE PUBLIC INSTEAD OF SIMPLY JUST LISTENING.” – ALISON COOMBS
BY CASSANDRA BALLARD, Sentinel Staff Writer
Aurora City Council last week suspended in-person public comment and move all future meetings to a virtual format until the civil court case involving the fatal police shooting of Kilyn Lewis is resolved.
“It’s in the court’s hands now, and I would like to suspend this to be virtual until we have an official ruling from a court as to whether or not the city is liable in any way, shape or form for the death of Kilyn Lewis,” Councilmember Danielle Jurisky said in her June 9 motion. “If that takes two years, it takes two years.”
The City Council approved Jurinsky’s motion to preclude in-person meetings and end the ability of the public to address the council on non-agenda items. The change was opposed by councilmembers Crystal Murillo, Ruben Medina, and Alison Coombs.
“This is, once again, an absolutely ridiculous attempt to silence the public instead of simply just listening,” Coombs said before opposing the vote.
The decision followed renewed pushbacks from Justice for Lewis activists during Monday’s council meeting, prompting the abrupt departure of most council members from the dais and council chambers.
Lewis was shot and killed by Aurora SWAT officer Michael Dieck on May 23, 2024, as police attempted to arrest him in connection with a Denver shooting. According to investigators, Lewis was raising his hands, holding a phone, when Dieck fired. The officer later claimed he mistook the phone for a firearm. Lewis’ family and their supporters have attended every city council meeting for more than a year, often bringing meetings to an end with boisterous and distracting protests inside council chambers.
City lawmakers have changed meeting rules on numerous occasions, creating a cat-andmouse scenario for months.
Lewis’ family filed a wrongful death lawsuit
in early June, just over a year after the shooting.
The shut-down follows a recent policy change that allows only one person at the lectern or in the city council well, unless there is an advance request for Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations is granted.
The situation escalated Monday when two of the more prominent activists, Auon’tai Anderson and MiDian Shofner, who regularly speak about the Lewis death, both requested ADA accommodations to have others stand with them at the lectern. Their requests prompted resistance from city staff, security and one outspoken member of the public, who accused Shofner of mocking people with disabilities.
After Shofner requested ADA accommodations by having people stand at the lectern with her, she was denied, and the people who walked up to stand with her moved out of the well but stood at the edge of the steps.
At the same time, the microphone at the lectern quit working. City officials later said the microphone malfunction was because of “technical difficulties.”
Although Shofner would not disclose what her disability is, she later told the Sentinel that it does require assistance from multiple people on occasions. She said she did not initially request accommodations. Still, when she saw the security presence for Anderson when he spoke at the lectern, she realized she would need assistance.
She said she can self-regulate her emotional anxiety and distress in certain situations with the support of other people, and that is why she requires multiple people for support.
“It’s based on the setting that was present that night,” she said. “They had heightened security right around the podium, where they had two security officials standing at the base of the podium. Once I watched how they interacted with Auon’tai and how the officer engaged with Auon’tai. That was where it was triggered. So it was based on the setting that they set.”
Shofner also said that this is one reason why she has had people with her at the lectern in
the past and why she does not always require it when she speaks publicly.
The microphone did not work for the remainder of the public-invited-to-be-heard session, despite the entire crowd in the chambers chanting to “let her speak.”
A cacophony of chants and yells included those opposed to the activists and people who came to partake in the city council meeting itself.
“This is not necessary,” Coombs said to the crowd. “It’s because they want to frame the folks coming to say the things they have to say, as a threat, all of the pageantry and all of the structure within which to reinforce the idea that people coming to say what they have to say is a threat.”
The confrontation culminated in the city council and staff moving the meeting privately in a virtual format and reconvening in a nearby room, where they typically meet for Study Sessions. Councilmembers Coombs, Crystal Murillo, and Ruben Medina stayed on the dais, listening to the public speak while also watching the actual meeting on their cell phones.
City Manager Jason Batchelor came into the chambers to move the remaining members of city staff into the new meeting room, one member of the crowd, Vrnda Noel, who was there separately from the activists for an agenda item, asked Batchelor if that she, too, might be called out when she spoke to the city council since her and her family members have disabilities and require accommodations.
When Noel said she was concerned about the city not allowing Shofner to speak, Batchelor walked to the clerk’s desk and was then able to get the microphone working again, allowing everyone who signed up to speak and have their two minutes, even though the mayor and seven of the 10 city council members were gone.
While public commenters continued speaking, the council began its meeting separately in the new, closed, meeting room, viewable on TV screens inside the chamber, leaving many members of the public confused and frustrated.
Another woman, Rebecca Johnson, who was not connected to the activists, said that this was her second council meeting since moving to Aurora two years ago. She told the Sentinel that she found the whole situation confusing and discouraging.
“Trying to rob someone of their voice will just fuel more disturbances,” Johnson said.
No clear instructions were given to the people in city council chambers on how to access the virtual meeting, and at least 10 residents who came to speak on agenda items said they were unaware that the meeting had been moved to online.
The lack of clear access to the meeting was deemed a potential violation of Colorado open meetings law, according to Jeff Roberts, executive director of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition.
“The open meetings law is very clear that their meetings must be open to the public,” Roberts said. “What that means is that the public needs to be able to watch and listen to the meeting in real time, and they need to also be notified of how that’s supposed to happen.”
Batchelor and Coombs went into the audience later during the meeting and spoke with each individual in the public, ensuring they left with the information and answers they needed. There were about six or seven more people who left before anyone could ask them why they attended the meeting.
“It’s in the court’s hands now, and I would like to suspend this to be virtual until we have an official ruling from a court as to whether or not the city is liable in any way, shape or form for the death of Kilyn Lewis,” Councilmember Danielle Jurisky said in her motion. “If that takes two years, it takes two years.”
The City Council approved the motion from Jurinsky, with all council members voting in favor, except councilmembers Murillo, Medina, and Coombs, who spent the entire meeting on the dais, watching their peers from their cell phones as the meeting was held in a separate room.
A group of supporters of Kilyn Lewis sits on the floor of the council chamber after disrupting the Aurora City Council’s June 24, 2024, meeting and forcing the group to take a recess.
File
Photo by Sentinel Colorado
AROUND AURORA
Aurora lawmakers clash with state over affordable-housing code changes
Decrying encroachment on local control, Aurora lawmakers killed a measure last week seeking to align city building codes with two state laws intended to increase affordable housing — despite city staff and affected groups endorsing the changes.
“This is an attack on our home rule authority by the state legislatures,” Councilmember Françoise Bergan said in a study session May 19.
State lawmakers and Gov. Jared Polis passed several measures in 2024 aimed at increasing the availability of affordable housing. Some of the changes focused on increasing home density in an effort to bring down rental and purchase housing prices. Many of the measures were opposed by a variety of Colorado municipalities, citing zoning matters as a uniquely local issue.
Despite complaints then about eroding local control of housing and zoning issues, the measures were signed into law last year.
Aurora has already joined a handful of Colorado cities in a lawsuit against the state and Gov. Jared Polis after he announced that the state would begin withholding grant monies for municipalities that don’t comply with recent affordable-housing oriented laws, according to reporting by CPR news..
The issue of local control has risen to the top of legislative concerns recently with Polis vetoing a handful of legislative endeavors, sometimes citing worry over a loss of local control.
As part of a regular city legislative process, city staff propose changes in city building ordinances to align Aurora building codes with those mandated by the state.
One ordinance, killed earlier this week, would have aligned city law with the requirement that cities eliminate minimum parking requirements for multifamily housing within a quarter-mile of light-rail transit stops, called Transit-Oriented Developments, or TODs.
The other ordinance killed would have aligned city building codes with new state requirements, expanding the ability to create Accessory Dwelling Units. So-called ADUs are living spaces either attached to existing homes or garages, built separately in yards or even inside an existing home. So-called ”mother-in-law” homes are an example of ADUs.
The new state laws, taking effect June 30, expand statewide the ability for homeowners to create ADUs on their properties by allowing for regulated construction, regardless of some local bans or restrictions.
City staff, the city’s Planning Commission, queried residents and even groups representing area builders and developers endorsed the effort to bring Aurora code into compliance with the new state laws.
“The proposal is supported by several policies and goals of the Aurora Places Comprehensive Plan,” city building officials said in statements endorsing the changes.
The other affordable housing realignment ordinance, accommodating HB 24-1304, prohibits local governments from imposing minimum parking requirements for multifamily buildings within one-quarter mile of transit-oriented housing development, according to city planning documents.
Currently, Aurora requires 1.2 offstreet parking spaces per apartment unit for multifamily developments, according to the packet.
Proponents of the bill said parking minimums drive up apartment complex costs by creating requirements to provide more parking than is actually needed. Critics, however, worry that without parking space minimums, parking lots will fill and nearby neighborhoods will be forced to deal with parking overflow.
The now-mandated parking-requirement changes would remove the minimums only in “Applicable Transit Service Areas,” allowing developers to set their own parking levels.
Public hearings and efforts to solicit comments from the public and builders netted no negative feedback about either of the proposed alignment changes, city officials said in background material.
Despite that, some city council members said the state should not dictate such building and zoning matters to municipalities, even if the changes align with existing city policies.
During a study session focusing on the realignment ordinances, city council members opposed to the state mandates discussed a strategy that could result in seeking court action to strike down the changes.
Advised by city attorneys, lawmakers agreed to move the measures to the city council floor and then strike the alignment ordinances down to facilitate a possible lawsuit.
During the June 9 meeting, that’s what the majority of city council did, voting 6-2 to turn back the alignment ordinances.
During the study session, City Attorney Pete Schulte explained that the city must abide by the new state mandates, whether they adopt the alignment ordinances or turn them back, unless courts back opposition to the measures.
Neither ordinance was approved June 9. There were two votes in favor, but it was unclear how each council member voted, as this information was not displayed during the virtual city council meeting recording, and the city clerk did not announce the voting results.
— Cassandra Ballard, Sentinel Staff Writer
Aurora lawmakers consider pitching voters changes to council pay, term limits and more
Aurora lawmakers are considering asking voters to approve a host of city charter amendments with proponents saying they would modernize outdated provisions, improve clarity and promote fairness.
If all are approved by city council, the measures would appear on the November ballot.
The proposed changes encompass a range of topics, from gender-neutral language to council vacancies and term limits.
City Attorney Pete Schulte and Deputy City Manager Jason Batchelor detailed each proposed referendum during a study session June 9.
One of the proposed measures would update city charter with gender-neutral language.
Schulte said that his staff carefully reviewed all 20 pages of the charter and identified each section containing gender-specific terms. These would be updated without altering the intent or meaning of any provision.
“The question is, should those articles, or several of them, hereby be amended to replace gender gender-specific language and gender neutral terms that promote clarity, equality, and consistency, without changing the meaning or intent of any charter provision,” Schulte said.
Another proposal would address how vacancies on city council are filled,
depending on the timing of the vacancy. The city council may appoint a qualified person to serve for up to two years, or call a special or regular election, which would add clarity to when appointments versus elections are used, Schulte said. This would influence when or if a councilmember will step down, and whether the rest of city council can reappoint.
Currently, the charter requires the city manager to live within city limits. A proposed amendment would eliminate that requirement, giving the city council discretion to decide residency conditions at the time of appointment. Schulte said this was intended to change what he said is an archaic rule, Schulte said.
“That would be a decision for council to make upon making the appointment, versus having a requirement in the charter,” Schulte said.
Another proposed amendment would remove a ban that prohibits elected city officials from holding another elected public office. It would allow voters to decide if a person can serve in more than one part-time elected position, Schulte said. This would not apply to full-time roles such as a county commissioner due to constitutional restrictions. “I don’t love the idea of people serving in the legislature and council or legislature and school board,” Councilmember Alison Coombs said.
One proposed referendum would change how future raises for city lawmakers and the mayor are pitched and approved. The proposal would eliminate the requirement for council members to vote on their own raises, instead tying
salaries to benchmarks such as those of state legislators or county commissioners, Schulte said. “In my 17 years, we’ve only gone to voters once or twice to update salaries,” Batchelor said.
He said that every year, the city council receives the lesser of inflation or the rate of raises employees receive, which operates almost as a ratchet effect, and over time, he found that the city is not keeping up with the needed raises for council members.
“It would be the people voting to make the changes,” Councilmember Alison Coombs said. Mayor Mike Coffman said he opposed the amendment.
The final roposal clarifies term limits for ward and at-large council members. Currently, the charter does not distinguish between the two as separate offices, requiring a councilmember to “take a break” between serving a term in a ward and serving one at-large after reaching term limits.
Councilmember Francois Bergan said it was simply “eliminating the break.”
This change would allow a councilmember who has served 12 years in a ward seat to immediately run for an at-large seat without a break, Schulte said. The mayor position is already set up in this way, allowing a ward or atlarge council member to run for mayor after serving 12 years in their previous position. If voters approve it, ward and at-large term limits would be considered separate. If not, the current charter remains, Schulte said.
“That would help us understand
moving forward, what the voters think,” Schulte said — Cassandra Ballard, Sentinel Staff Writer
Reduced grant funding in Aurora’s arts district despite increasing demand
Grant funding for organizations in the Aurora Cultural Arts District has been cut in half, while the number of grant requests is increasing. The $75,000 in grant funding allotted to boost economic vibrancy in the arts district of the Colfax Corridor is still contingent on city council approval.
“The purpose of these grants is to stimulate and foster economic activity and vibrancy within the cultural arts district along the Colfax corridor,” Director of Library Cultural Services, Ginger White Brunetti, said.
Brunetti presented to city council during the study session June 9, in part, on behalf of the Cultural Affairs Commission, which administers the grants in partnership with the Library and Cultural Services.
The funding comes from the Library and Cultural Services as part of the Spring Supplemental allocation within the Cultural Services General Fund. The fund has been cut in half from previous years, when it reached as high as $150,000, Brunetti said.
The grants were initially named as
part of the Fletcher Plaza Urban Renewal Authority back in 2002, Burnetti said. In 2017, the Library and Cultural Services assumed the administration of this grant program, which contributed to the city’s designation as a creative district through the Colorado Creative Industries division of the Office of Economic Development and International Trade.
This year, 28 organizations applied and only 13 were approved. In previous years, fewer organizations applied, allowing for the majority of organizations to be approved. In 2020, 26 organizations applied and only 16 were approved.
“We are back to achieving pre-pandemic numbers, as far as interest in these grants goes,” Brunetti said.
Looking for a fun, healthy, and positive summer activity for your child?
The grants are for organizations residing in the arts districts, while some are for projects or program grants for organizations that are not within the district but want to bring programming into the district and activate the existing venues, Brunetti said.
“The eligibility criteria have changed slightly year over year,” Brunetti said. “This is something that the Cultural Affairs Commission determines as part of its role, as it puts forward a new application process every year. This particular year, it decided to reserve some funds for operational grants.”
The organizations approved by the commission were:
• Downtown Aurora Visual Arts: $7,500 for general operating support.
• Colfax Canvas: $6,000 for artists’ commissions and supplies.
• Musician Daryl Leonard Gott: $6,000 for a jazz and storytelling series focused on Aurora’s history and cultural diversity with performances and educational sessions in the Aurora Cultural Arts District.
• Friends of the Aurora Fox: $6,000 to replace the screen and acquire a new projector for the FoxFlix program.
• PHAMALY Theatre Company for $6,000 to present Clare Barron’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated play, “Dance Nation,” at The People’s Building.
• Roshni: $6,000 to generate operating support.
• The Word, A Storytelling Sanctuary Inc.: $6,000 for Write to Empower, a series of writing workshops, storytelling
Consider Baton Twirling Camps, offered through CCSD Mile High Sports Camps! Morning sessions at Cherry Creek HS, afternoon sessions at Eaglecrest HS. For more information and to register:
events and a community anthology publication within the Aurora Cultural Arts District.
• Vintage Theatre Productions: $6,000 for general operating support.
• Insight Colab: $5,500 for a series of three new plays to be performed in the Aurora Cultural Arts District.
• Manos Sagrados: $5,000 for a new venue and arts space in the arts district; will conduct art workshops and exhibits within the Aurora Cultural Arts District.
• School of Breaking: $5,000 for an expansion of the “Breaking Boundaries” youth program, which focuses on dance instruction, mentoring and performances, in the Aurora Cultural Arts District.
• Urban League of Metro Denver: $5,000 for a Cultural Resilience and Empowerment Program focusing on youth and family engagement with workshops, community forums and cultural events in the arts district.
• Victory Project-Based Academics and Competency: $5,000 to fund several programs in the arts district, including performances, workshops and educational opportunities.
— Cassandra Ballard, Sentinel Staff Writer
Baumgarten a no-show for criminal nuisance charge involving Edge at Lowry apartments
Zev Baumgarten, of CBZ Management and a central figure in the ongoing controversy surrounding the shuttered Edge at Lowry apartments in Aurora, failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing Wednesday.
The missed motions hearing court date prompted Aurora Municipal Court Judge Brian Whitney to issue a $2,000 cash bench warrant for each of Baumgarten’s seven summonses.
If Baumgarten turns himself in, the warrant can be converted into PR bonds, Whitney said to Baumgarten’s lawyers.
The missed hearing followed a defense motion filed April 25 that alleged antisemitic bias in the city’s enforcement actions.
City officials have denied the accusations.
“We are asking the court to order all communications within the city regarding this prosecution and enforcement action based on the evidence that was cited of anti-semitic bias,” Stan Garnett, attorney for Baumgarten, said in an email to the Sentinel.
The Edge at Lowry Apartments has long been the center of controversy after a group of men were videotaped breaking into one of the units last summer while toting large guns.
New York-based CBZ Management owns three apartment buildings in Aurora that have drawn national attention, including that of President Donald Trump. The video and ensuing developments drew a faction of local lawmakers insisting the apartments were overrun by Venezuelan gang members. City and other government officials insist malfeasance and mismanagement by CBZ were to blame for squalid living conditions and increased crime.
In the previous motions hearing April 4, the CBZ attorneys brought new allegations of prejudice shown by city employees toward the corporation and Baumgarten because of their Jewish heritage.
“During a phone call with Breezy Maynes, the Supervisor of the Aurora Code Enforcement Officers for the City, (Zev) Baumgarten pointedly asked Ms. Maynes to explain why she was being so hard on him,” lawyers for the defendant, Baumgarten, said in a court motion filed Friday. “Ms. Maynes retorted, ‘because you are an Orthodox Jew,’ an alarming
and disturbing statement. Other City officials echoed these antisemitic sentiments.”
Lawyers for Baumgarten indicated they were seeking to prove the date of the phone conversation, but they did not indicate the conversation was recorded.
City officials denied the allegations and said evidence against CBZ is compelling.
“The city has compiled extensive documentation over the last several years to validate the numerous problems at the properties connected to CBZ Management and its principals, including Mr. Baumgarten,” Ryan Luby, Aurora spokesperson, said previously in a statement. “We have shared those records publicly. The city only learned of Mr. Baumgarten’s latest accusations against the city in the last 18 hours. Despite many interactions with Mr. Baumgarten and his teams of attorneys over the years, this is the first time the city has heard these new claims. We have no indication that any of them hold any merit.”
After months of controversy, protests, allegations of gangs, vermin and even allegations of torture, the Dallas buildings were shut down by the city Feb. 18.
The remaining five buildings at the Edge are still owned by CBZ, according to city officials. They are also still shut down until further adjudication of the civil case the city currently has going with the corporation that led to the complex being declared a criminal nuisance property.
During the previous Aurora criminal court code violation motions hearing, CBZ lawyers from Garnett Powell Maximon Barlow and Farbes argued that the reason the apartments fell into such disrepair was because of a conspiracy among city code enforcement officials and police to harass Baumgarten because he was “Orthodox Jewish.”
Lawyers said Baumgarten regularly wears a yarmulke, a long beard and a Jewish prayer shawl. Lawyers said the city has been subtly and outright antisemitic on multiple occasions, according to the original motions court filing.
Besides the unrecorded recollection of Mayne’s comment to Baumgarten, lawyers for CBZ said other city comments were striking as well.
During a July 8, 2024, settlement conference between defense lawyers and the city, an assistant district attorney suggested that a two-month jail sentence would be warranted in the case because Baumgarten “comes from East Coast money,” and a fine alone would not suffice as punishment, according to the lawyers’ motion.
“The thinly veiled allusion to Jewish East Coast wealth was not lost on Mr. Baumgarten’s counsel,” lawyers said in the motion.
Aurora City Attorney Pete Schulte told the Sentinel that the city pursues the person in charge of the property when it comes to issuing a summons. He said that Baumgarten told the city he was the “person in charge of the upkeep of the property.” Baumgarten was also listed as the registered agent on the Secretary of State for five of the Dallas buildings from 2020 to 2022.
Baumgarten’s lawyers alleged that, despite Baumgarten not being a property owner or, technically, the property manager, he was targeted by city officials as the apartments began to become increasingly problematic.
“Mr. Baumgarten’s religious affiliation has not gone unnoticed by the city and may even be the motivating factor behind its aggressive enforcement of municipal ordinances against Mr.
What a card
THE WORLD OF TAROT OFFERS A LOOK AT THE CARDS IN CENTENNIAL
BY ISABEL GUZMAN, CCM NEWS
In a softly lit room in Centennial, Lilly Cadillac Unger shuffles her tarot cards with practiced hands. The space, filled with gentle natural light, is the heart of her business, Altered Arcana. On the table, a classic three-card spread — past, present and future — unfolds a story. Among the cards drawn: Death, the Six of Cups and the Nine of Wands.
“I see here that there was some kind of huge transition,” Unger said, pointing to the Death card.
The card’s reputation, she said, is the most feared and is more Hollywood than reality — its real message is transformation and rebirth.
Unger’s journey with tarot began at age 12, sparked by curiosity and the little guidebook included with her first Rider-Waite deck — the most popular tarot deck, she notes, and one she’s misplaced more times than she can count.
For Unger, tarot isn’t about predicting the future.
“Tarot really should tell you about your present,” she said.
The Rider-Waite tarot card deck, first published in 1909, was created by artist Pamela Colman Smith under the direction of occultist A.E. Waite. The deck consists of 78 cards — 22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana — with each card featuring symbolic illustrations designed to evoke intuitive and emotional responses.
Distinctive for its fully illustrated Minor Arcana, the Rider-Waite deck’s imagery draws from esoteric traditions that embrace practices that involve secret or hidden knowledge, Christian mysticism and the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a secret society that studied occultism and metaphysics, according to the University of St. Thomas.
Kate Kettelkamp, who reads tarot cards from her Denver office, also starts with the three card spread that displays the past, present and fu-
ture. After she shuffles, she has the person receiving the reading pull three cards.
“I like people to choose their own cards,” Kettlekamp said. “Different tarot readers have different rules. I like people to select the cards because I feel like you bring your own energy to it.”
When the cards are pulled and laid out as reversals - meaning the card’s art is upside down - Kettlekamp said that can signify an energy blockage.
Looking towards the card that represents the past, Kettlekamp observed the Nine of Cups, reversed.
“Cups are water, so it has this emotional, imaginative quality to it,” she said. “With it reversed, it can (signify) wanting to move something forward but having some obstacle.”
When Kettlekamp moved from California to Denver almost 10 years ago, she said everyone she met in the new city knew their astrology signs and owned a tarot deck, inspiring her to dive into the metaphysical world. She currently studies consciousness in a graduate program at the California Institute of Integral Studies.
In the program, Kettlekamp studies culture, the human journey, the soul and the environment, which she said sets her up for inquisitive knowledge for reading tarot.
“I like to approach (tarot) from a place of inquiry. Some people ask, “should I break up with my partner?” But I find that the tarot doesn’t answer deterministically,” she said. “Then they’ll pull the Death card and I’ll say, “well, possibly, what do you think? It’s up to you.” That could just be their current energy that is creating a trajectory towards breaking up.”
Kettlekamp said the cards do not tell the future but can give insight into what struggles someone may be currently facing. She said it’s important for readers to uphold ethics when doing a reading.
“I’ve had people come into my office who have been disturbed from prior readings because they’ve been told things that make them anxious. So I do think that there’s some responsibility on the reader’s part to not induce anxiety by giving a deterministic prediction about someone’s life,” she said.
When the cards convey a negative message, Rachel Florentino from Bridge the Gap Tarot in Westminster said she views the cards as morphable.
“It’s not set in stone. (The cards) are something we can bring to the present and change if we want to,” she said.
Florentino reflected on the readings she’s done that the cards portray a potentially negative message, and how she communicated it to her client.
“There was a client that desperately wanted a baby ... When I looked at her present, the problem was, she worked 80 hours a week and she wasn’t listening to her doctors telling her, “no, you cannot sustain that type of lifestyle while you’re pregnant,”” she said. “It hurt me because she wasn’t going to do that. I had to tell her she has to listen to people.”
Something Florentino did not always do at the beginning of her reading journey - even when she met the woman who wanted a baby - was shielding. In an effort to protect herself from her clients’ energies, sometimes Florentino will imagine herself wearing a cloak that acts like a shield.
During another reading, Florentino pulled the Tower card in a past, present and future spread - with the Tower card in the future pile, she said it’s the harshest card of the deck.
“It’s because there’s things that you should be doing that you’re not doing and so the universe is going to make it happen. It can be harsh because it can no longer be in your control,” she said.
According to Florentino, the Tower card can show up when someone may be losing a job if they continue down their current trajectory.
“It’s definitely a warning of: what do we know we need to be doing but we haven’t done yet?” she said.
Regarding the seemingly worrisome card — the Death card — Florentino said the image of the card, which typically displays a grim reaper-esque skeleton with a sword, scares people, largely due to Western society’s perspective of death.
“I think Hollywood has done a great job in scaring us with (death). In the United States, we’re not open about death and don’t view it as a rebirth but as the end of something. In a lot of other cultures, death is looked at as a death-rebirth process,” she said.
Regarding the online popularity of tarot card readings — from mass-collective tarot readings on YouTube to online psychic chats — Kettlekamp and Unger suggest looking at reviews to avoid being scammed.
“I would recommend for people to find someone that has reviews because there are people who will take your money,” Kettlekamp said. “Anybody that has a physical location, not that that’s necessary, but it can indicate how much time they spend practicing.”
For Unger, reviews and having a connection with a reader are two ways to prevent scams.
“You just have to be honest with yourself about if it resonates, and I think you should be careful who you go to,” she said. “I think at the end of the day, getting reviews, and maybe just really asking yourself: “who am I being led to and why? Am I being led to this person because I saw something online that said: he’s thinking about you? And is that what I’m seeking?””
This story was made available via the Colorado News Collaborative.
While the most popular tarot card deck is the Rider-Waite deck, many readers use a multitude of decks with various art styles.
Photo by Isabel Guzman
Juneteenth
scene & herd
Aurora celebration
In Aurora, the main attraction is June 21 at the Town Center of Aurora Mall. Sponsored by the Aurora NAACP, the City of Aurora and the Town Center mall in the parking lot of the food court, on the mall’s east side. Planner say they’ve scheduled a free event that will offer live music, speakers, games for kids and families, local vendor booths and more.
IF YOU GO
Where: Town Center of Aurora mall, 14200 E Alameda Ave
When: June 21, 2 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Tickets: Free, not tickets necessary.
Details: towncenterataurora.com
Follies in Concert
Follies in Concert opens June 20 for only seven performances at Aurora’s Vintage Theatre. The show is billed as a dazzling, bittersweet world of one of Stephen Sondheim’s most celebrated musicals. Set in a crumbling Broadway theatre on the eve of demolition, Follies reunites former showgirls for one final night of memory, music, and reckoning. It’s a haunting, breathtaking tribute to the choices we make and the lives we leave behind as told through some of Sondheim’s most iconic songs.
IF YOU GO
Where: The Vintage Theatre, 1468 Dayton Street
Tickets: $20-$39
Dates: June 20 - June 29. Evening curtains at 7:30 p.m. Matinees at 2:30 p.m.
Details: www.vintagetheatre.org and 303-856-7830
Jazz meets Sinatra flair as Tony DeSare joins CJRO for one-night performance in Arvada
The Colorado Jazz Repertory Orchestra will welcome nationally acclaimed vocalist and pianist Tony DeSare for a one-night-only concert June
28, at the Arvada Center Amphitheatre.
The show, Blue Eyes & Beyond with Tony DeSare will feature DeSare performing alongside the CJRO big band in a program that honors the legacy of Frank Sinatra and other American music icons.
Known for his smooth vocals, polished piano work and dynamic stage presence, DeSare has earned praise for his interpretations of standards as well as pop and rock hits from artists including Nat King Cole, Prince, Carole King and New Order. His albums, including the Billboard-charting Last First Kiss, Radio Show and Lush Life, reflect his ability to bridge classic jazz with modern sensibilities.
“Tony and I have been working together for a few years now, and we enjoy a special musical relationship that we’re thrilled to bring to Colorado,” CJRO Artistic Director Drew Zaremba said in a statement.
The CJRO, under the direction of Zaremba and Executive Director Art Bouton, is recognized for its innovative approach to big band and small ensemble jazz. Drawing on a mix of traditional, Latin, soul and contemporary influences, the orchestra showcases many of Colorado’s top jazz musicians.
IF YOU GO
Date: 7:30 p.m. June 28
Tickets: $25-$32
Place: The Arvada Center Amphitheatre 6901 Wadsworth Blvd.
Details: coloradojazz.org and 720-898-7200
Tap-dancing spectacle ‘42nd Street’ on stage in Lakewood
The glitz and glamour of Broadway come to the Lakewood Cultural Center this month as Performance Now Theatre Company presents “42nd Street.”
The beloved backstage musical tells the story of Peggy Sawyer, a young dancer from Pennsylvania who gets her big break after the leading lady of a new Broadway show is sidelined by injury. Set during the Great Depression, 42nd Street is a tribute to determination, talent and the timeless magic of show business.
The score includes classic songs such as “We’re in the Money,” “Shuffle Off to Buffalo,” “Lullaby of Broadway,” and the iconic title number, “42nd Street.”
IF YOU GO
Date: Evening curtains at 7:30 p.m. and matinees at 2 p.m. through June 29.
Place: Lakewood Cultural Center, 470 S. Allison Parkway.
Tickets: $29 - $59
Details: performancenow.org or 303-987-7845
Check it out — Aurora library books farmer’s markets for the summer
Residents near the Hoffman Heights Library are getting a farmer’s market all summer.
“Libraries are more than just books—they’re hubs for healthy, thriving neighborhoods and this collaboration is a perfect example of how we’re re-imagining library grounds into a space for connection while serving our community,” said Ginger White Brunetti, director of Library and Cultural Services, in a statement.
Aurora Public Library is partnering with the mission-driven organization Rebel Marketplace to bring a monthly farmers market to Hoffman Heights Library through September, according to a statement from the city.
“The farmers market at Hoffman Library was created to be an authentic neighborhood marketplace run and operated by surrounding community businesses, with the library as the hub,” the statement said.
Rebel Marketplace is a local group of urban farmers in Aurora who started growing produce in their backyards and aims to build a “food sovereign neighborhood.” The Johnson family’s story of starting the Rebel Market was reported on last year by the Sentinel.
“The Rebel Marketplace believes that there is enough talent and businesses in a six-mile radius to fully supply and stand up a neighborhood marketplace,” the Rebel Marketplace website said. “By creating a singular, locally run access point for goods and services, we envision a vibrant, cooperative and healthy community.”
Each farmers market will host multiple programming events as well.
“We’re thrilled to launch this unique partnership with Rebel Marketplace to bring fresh, local food and community connections right to the doorstep of Hoffman Heights Library,” Brunetti said in the statement.
IF YOU GO
Where: Hoffman Heights Library, 1298 Peoria St.
When: Dates vary below. The library will also stay open late on those nights for its programs and additional services. The Hoffman Heights Library will also host storytimes at 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., a kids’ play area at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., and a teen game space from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The lineup:
• Succulent pot painting with plants and pots provided, 6 p.m., July 9
• Rainbow Scavenger Hunt for children eight and older, with prizes, 6 p.m., July 9
• Block-printed totes, customize your own tote, 6 p.m., Aug. 6
• Intro to pickling, by learning to make pickle brine with ingredients provided, 6 p.m., Sept. 10
City Park Jazz returns 10 free concerts on Sundays through August
City Park Jazz will launch its 39th annual summer concert series June 1, bringing 10 weeks of free Sunday evening performances to the City Park Pavilion through Aug. 3. The 2025 lineup celebrates the diversity of jazz and features an all-local roster, including returning favorites Chris Daniels and The Kings with Freddy Gowdy, ATOMGA, Dzirae Gold, and Buckner Funken Jazz. The series will also showcase internationally recognized Zimbabwean percussionist Blessing Bled Chimanga and a tribute to late Denver jazz pianist Neil Bridge featuring The Bridge 12 and his wife, Karen.
This year’s season finale on Aug. 3 will start at 5:30 p.m. and feature a three-hour “Brass Band Extravaganza” with performances by Colorado Youth Bands Brass Band, Rowdy Brass Band, Tivoli Club Brass Band and Guerilla Fanfare.
Concerts run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays and attract crowds of up to 12,000 people. The family-friendly events include a curated selection of vendors and food trucks. Attendees are encouraged to bring blankets, lawn chairs, and refillable containers for filtered water, while adhering to Denver park rules prohibiting glass.
IF YOU GO
Colorado Mambo Orchestra: June 29, Buckner Funken Jazz: July 6, Chris Daniels & The Kings w/Freddy Gowdy; July 13, Better Sensory Perception; July 20, Colorado Jazz Repertory Orchestra; July 27, Dzirae Gold; Aug. 3: Brass Band Extravaganza Featuring: Colorado Youth Bands Brass Band, Rowdy Brass Band Tivoli Club Brass Band and. Guerilla Fanfare Time: 6 p.m.
Where: Denver City Park Pavillion: 2001 Steele St, Details:: CityParkJazz.org
Prairie Pup Adventures offers Preschool Fun at Plains Conservation Center
Preschoolers can explore nature, science and history through hands-on activities at Prairie Pup Adventures, held at the Plains Conservation Center in southeast Aurora. Programs run from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and are designed for children ages 3–6 with a caregiver.
Upcoming topics include:
•Flower Power on June 24: Flowers are beautiful and serve an important role for the plants they grow on. Join us on the prairie to learn all about flowers from their parts to their pollinators through science and art.
Activities at all events include crafts, games, story time, and outdoor exploration.
IF YOU GO
Tickets: The fee is $8 per child; one adult per child is free. Additional adults and non-participating siblings over age 6 are $5. Infants under 18 months attend free.
Details: botanicgardens.org
Venue: Plains Conservation Center 21901 E. Hampden Ave.
Really, Really Rembrandt arrives at the Denver Art Museum: Masterpieces from National Gallery
Metro residents a rare opportunity to experience the work of one of history’s greatest painters up close. As part of a nationwide initiative marking the 250th anniversary of the United States, the Denver Art Museum is holding two Rembrandt-related masterpieces on loan from the National Gallery of Art.
The featured works — “A Woman Holding a Pink” and “Portrait of Rembrandt,” likely painted by his workshop —w ill be on display in the museum’s European Art Before 1800 galleries through Feb. 6, 2027. The exhibit is part of the National Gallery’s “Across the Nation” program, which brings significant pieces from the national collection to museums across the U.S.
“We are honored to be among the first museums in the country to participate in this initiative,” said Christoph Heinrich, DAM’s director. “It is an incredible moment to carry the talents of Rembrandt at the DAM and offer our visitors the opportunity to interact with his brilliance.”
The exhibition places the Dutch master’s portraits alongside works by Mary Beale, Peter Lely, and Anthony van Dyck, highlighting Rembrandt’s lasting influence on European art.
IF YOU GO
When: Through 2025
Tickets: General admission includes access to the exhibit, and youth under 18 can visit for free.
Details: www.denverartmuseum. org or call 720-865-5000.
Place: Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway
An exceptional season in the pool for Aurora area boys swimmers concluded over two days at the Veterans’ Memorial Aquatic Center.
When the final race of the Class 5A state meet finished, the composition of a loaded 2025 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Boys Swim Team — based on state performance — came into focus and features an array of talent from runner-up Regis Jesuit, seventh-place Grandview and ninthplace Cherokee Trail.
Swim Swam
Grandview’s best season in program history (which saw coach Dan Berve’s team finish seventh in the final standings despite a relay disqualification) was keyed primarily by the performances of two standouts — one established and one new — with a combined four state titles.
BY COURTNEY OAKES Sports Editor
Senior Oliver Schimberg had already established himself in program history as the only multiple state champion, a distinction he earned when broke a tie with John Martens (who was Colorado’s 200 yard freestyle state champion in 2011). The University of Minnesota signee further enhanced his resume with his performance in his final state meet, after which he was named 5A Colorado Swimmer of the Year.
Schimberg extended his reign of dominance in his favorite event — the 100 yard backstroke — to three seasons. He placed fifth in the event as a freshman in 2022, but couldn’t be beaten at the state meet for the remainder of his career. Schimberg had hoped to set the state record in the event in his final race, but the 2014 mark of former Regis Jesuit star Hennessey Stuart (46.81 seconds) remained intact as Schimberg finished in 47.32, which was nearly two full seconds faster than runner-up Joseph Sudermann of Columbine and the second fastest in the state behind the 46.54 of 4A state champion Gavin Keogh of Monarch. Schimberg also was the Centennial “A” League champion in the backstroke and set the league and Cherry Creek High School pool record of 48.68 May 3.
Earlier in the meet, Schimberg won his first career state crown in the 100 butterfly with a time of 47.52 seconds that was the fastest in the state regardless of classification and bettered his seed time coming into the meet by a second and a half. He was seventh in the event as a freshman, third as a sophomore and the runner-up as a junior. Grandview’s strength as a program took another step forward this season with the addition of senior Gherman Prudnikau, who chose to swim for his club team instead of his school until his final year, a decision he admitted that he regretted. Even so, it all worked out well for Prundikau, whose one full varsity season was an immense success. He earned a scholarship offer from his dream college — Ohio State University — and committed just a day before he won state titles in the 200 and 500 yard freestyles. In the prelims of the 200 freestyle, Prudnikau finished a half second behind Fossil Ridge’s Pierce Bickerton, but finished almost two full seconds in front of Bickerton — and just a little bit less in front of runner-up Carter Bradley of Columbine to win in 1:38.19. Only 4A state champion Keogh of Monarch (1:37.47) swam faster during the season than Prudnikau, who set the Cherry Creek High School and John Strain Memorial meet record of 1:40.02 April 19. Prudnikau also came into the championship finals as the No. 2 seed in the 500 freestyle as Cherry Creek’s Grant Pier had the top prelims time, but he torched the finals field with a time of 4:27.14 that was five seconds faster than Bradley, who was again runner-up, and easily the state’s top time at any level. Also on Prudnikau’s list of achievements for the season were Centennial “A” League championships in the 200 individual medley and 100 butterfly.
Two other individuals earned All-Aurora honors for Grandview in senior sprinter Evan Linnebur and sophomore diver Hunter Bull. No area swimmer made it to the championship finals in the 100 freestyle, but Linnebur was fastest among the five locals in the consolation heat as he earned 13th place with a season-best time of 46.66 seconds. Aurora’s presence as a whole on the diving board was very small this season with only two state qualifiers in Bull and Overland senior Chad Hamilton. Bull finished in 14th place with a score of 431.75
ALL-AURORA BOYS SWIMMING
Above, top: The Regis Jesuit 200 yard medley relay team of seniors Hugh Boris and Nolan Kohl, sophomore Greyson Connett and freshman Spencer Greene finished second at the Class 5A boys state swim meet to earn a spot on the 2025 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Boys Swim team. Above, middle: From left, senior Bronson Smothers, junior Tyson Walker and sophomore Anderson Hardin joined with senior Jason Mueller for a fourth-place finish in the 5A 200 yard freestyle relay that secured All-Aurora honors. Above, bottom: Grandview’s Gherman Prudnikau captured state championships in both the 200 and 500 yard freestyles in his one and only trip to the Class 5A state swim meet with Grandview. Top right: Grandview senior Oliver Schimberg won 5A Swimmer of the Year honors after he claimed two individual state titles at the 5A state swim meet, including a third consecutive victory in the 100 yard backstroke. PHOTOS BY COURTNEY OAKES/AURORA SENTINEL
TOP: Eaglecrest’s run to the Class 5A boys volleyball championship got quite a boost from the all-around contributions of senior Jackson Shaw (with trophy), who made the 2025 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Boys Volleyball Team along with fellow senior Matthew Dye (14). ABOVE: Grandview sophomore Alex Garcia led the state of Colorado with 397 kills and helped the Wolves to the 5A semifinals. BELOW: Vista PEAK Prep missed the boys volleyball postseason, but senior Tristan Rowley did his best to get the Bison there with a season in which he earned Class 5A/4A City League Player of the Year honors.
OAKES/AURORA SENTINEL
points, which was slightly off his season-best of 443.35 set in a runner-up performance at the Centennial “A” League Championships.
Regis Jesuit landed two individual spots on the All-Aurora team from seniors Reid Magner and Hugh Boris, while the 200 yard medley relay of Boris, fellow senior Nolan Kohl, sophomore Greyson Connett and freshman Spencer Greene also earned top honors.
Magner’s individual All-Aurora nod came in the 200 yard individual medley, in which the Army commit placed third. Eighth after prelims, Magner swam nearly two full seconds faster in the finals to finish in 1:50.37, which was just behind winner Brennen O’Neil of Fossil Ridge (1:49.60) and runner-up Camille Trinquesse of Cherry Creek (1:49.77).
Boris established himself as the area’s top 100 breaststroker and improved his status from before the meet to the end. He came into the state meet as the sixth-fastest swimmer in the field and moved up to No. 4 after the prelims (when he recorded a season-best time of 56.02 seconds). Boris — a Villanova University commitment — swam 56.46 in the finals to keep the fourth place position.
Regis Jesuit led locals in only one of the three relay events, but posted the best finish as it was runner-up to Cherry Creek in the 200 yard medley relay. The Raiders (who were faster than the Bruins and the entire field in prelims with a time of 1:30.64) posted a time of 1:30.40 in the finals to Cherry Creek’s 1:29.70.
Coach Kevin Chatham’s Cherokee Trail team appears on the All-Aurora team twice and both include senior Bronson Smothers, who finished the season as the area’s top sprint freestyler and swam on its top 200 freestyle relay team as well.
Smothers, a University of Nevada, Las Vegas recruit, was the lone local to make the championship final of the 50 freestyle from 10 state qualifiers and he bettered his seed time of 20.99 seconds in both state swims. Smothers swam 20.86 in the prelims and ended with a season-best of 20.81 in the finals, which landed him fourth place.
Later, Smothers teamed with fellow senior Jacob Mueller, junior Tyson Walker and sophomore Anderson Hardin on a team that qualified for the championship finals of the 200 freestyle relay with the fifth-fastest prelims time (1:25.38), then leapfrogged Fossil Ridge into fourth place with a finals time of 1:24.87.
Class 5A state champion Eaglecrest, semifinalist Grandview heavy on All-Aurora Boys Volleyball Team
The best overall season in Aurora boys volleyball since it first became sanctioned culminated with the first state championship for the area.
Eaglecrest — a qualifier for every state tournament since the sport’s debut in 2022 — won the title with an upset victory over top-seeded Littleton Public Schools with a lineup that included a lot of talent that appears on the 2025 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Boys Volleyball Team.
Semifinalist Grandview also has good representation among the area’s best, which is picked by the Sentinel in conjunction with balloting of Aurora city coaches.
Coach Chad Bond’s Raptors had a great mix of players with experience as well as those who accepted the roles that were needed of them. Senior outside hitter Jackson Shaw was a lynchpin of every face of play for a team that went
The Colorado High School Activities Association All-State first team selection piled up 360 kills, which were the second-most among Aurora area players and he attacked from all over the court, which taxed defenses. On a team that played exceptional defense itself, Shaw also loomed large as he ranked third among locals in total digs with a total of 277 that were most among any non-libero. The Centennial League first teamer is headed to Dominican University, where his older brother, Ayden, already plays.
Dye, who like Shaw was on Eaglecrest’s varsity roster for four seasons, played a key role as a middle hitter and was one of the Raptors’ most dangerous weapons. While Shaw and junior Ashton Bond were the primary targets for a slew of Eaglecrest setters, Dye racked up 185 putaways (down 14 from the previous season on 55 fewer attempts) and posted a career-best hitting percentage of .360. The CHSAA 5A All-State first teamer and All-Centennial League first team selection and Cumberland University signee ranked fifth among Aurora area players with 59 blocks. Junior Max Chen (a Smoky Hill student) had immense value for Eaglecrest as a libero.
Grandview very nearly took the next step towards playing for a state championship thanks to the high-powered offensive duo of sophomore hitters Alex Garcia and Connor Deickman along with junior setter Devan Hall.
In his second season as a starter, Hall was the only player in Colorado (regardless of classification) to amass 1,000 or more assists as he dished out 1,008 of them (with an average of 10.7 per set). Of those 1,008 assists, 73 percent of them came on kills from Garcia and Deickman, who were the only teammates in the state to record 300 or more kills.
Garcia paced the state with a whopping 397 (up nearly 50 from his impressive debut season and with a hitting percentage that rose significantly) and part of what earned him a spot on the CHSAA All-State first team and All-Centennial League first team. Garcia’s service game was incredible impactful as he racked up 58 aces (third in 5A) plus 165 digs and 35 blocks.
Deickman made the All-State second team as well as the All-Centennial League first team with a season that saw him take a big step forward from his impact freshman campaign. He racked up 341 kills (up 97 from 244 last season on 86 more opportunities), while he finished with a hitting percentage of .322. Deickman also led all Grandview players with 178 digs, while he added 53 blocks and 34 service aces.
Vista PEAK Prep could not make up for the losses to graduation from a 2024 season that saw the program win 19 matches and qualify for the regional postseason, but had one of the state’s top talents in senior Tristan Rowley. The 6-foot-6 outside hitter — a recruit of the University of Maryland Eastern-
PHOTOS BY COURTNEY
from 9
ALL-AURORA BOYS VOLLEYBALL
shore Division I program — earned 5A/4A City League Player of the Year honors and CHSAA All-State second team accolades. Rowley average of 5.3 kills per set easily led locals and he had 310 for the season (in just 58 sets) and gave him 902 for a four-year varsity career. Additionally, Rowley hit a state-best .420, while he racked up 66 blocks and 38 service aces.
In utility roles on the All-Aurora first team is Cherokee Trail senior Jaeden Barnes and Regis Jesuit senior Callen Wolf.
All Aurora programs represented on All-Aurora Girls Lacrosse Team
The 2025 AuroraSentinelAll-Aurora Girls Lacrosse Team includes a mix from all four area programs, Cherokee Trail, Eaglecrest, Grandview and Regis Jesuit.
The largest concentration of talent on the All-Aurora team — chosen by the Sentinelin conjunction with balloting of city coaches — is from Regis Jesuit, which posted its highest win total (14) since the 2019 season and made it to the Class 5A state semifinals.
Coach Crysti Foote’s Raiders had a fantastic season that ended with a heartbreaking one-goal loss to rival ThunderRidge (which went on to fall to Valor Christian in the final) and appear to have a bright future given how many upperclassmen took prime roles. But Regis Jesuit had a senior who helped the young talent immensely in Madisyn Jokerst, a four-year varsity player who has signed with Division I South Florida.
Jokerst helped Regis Jesuit to 47
victories over her career and averaged a little over 53 goals per season in the process. She finished with a career-high 67 as a senior, which put her third among Aurora area goal scorers and helped her to a total off 77 points, also a career best and second among locals. Jokerst made the All-5A South League first team as well as the All-Colorado High School Activities Association 5A AllState first team.
The Regis Jesuit midfield also proved exceptionally strong with the presence of junior Delaney Sitzmann, sophomore Natalie Chilton and freshman Addison Kindy, all first team all-conference perfomers.
Sitzmann paced all Aurora area players with 33 assists — by a margin of 11 — and her 54 points ranked her fifth among local players. The top highlight of Sitzmann’s season came in the playoffs, when she scored the overtime goal that lifted the Raiders to a victory over Colorado Academy, which hadn’t lost a playoff game since 2014. Chilton led Regis Jesuit in points in the semifinal defeat with four (three goals and an assist) and amassed 59 for the season on 38 goals and 11 assists, while Kindy wasn’t far behind with 40 points that came on 28 goals and 12 assists.
Defensively, the Raiders had plenty of talent in front of a rotating group of three goalies and yielded just an average of 6.9 goals per game. Sophomore Brette Snapp played a large role in that strength, as did junior Lainey Phillips.
Eaglecrest snapped a postseason drought that stretched back almost a quarter century. The Raptors got into the 4A postseason (stopping a streak that went back to 2001) with
swelling program numbers produced by combined additions of several freshmen as well as a number of players from nearby Rangeview, which was unable to field a program for the season.
A particuarly key newcomer for coach Amanda Sehres’ Eaglecrest program was senior Shylin Collins, who had scored had 155 goals over the past three seasons for Rangeview. Collins made an impact in a variety of ways, as she was an All-4A East League first team and All-CHSAA 4A All-State second team pick as a draw specialist, while she led Aurora area players in groundballs with 80. That’s in addition to an offensive output of 75 points, which included 70 goals — just shy of her career high of 77 in 2023 — and five assists.
After consecutive playoff appearances in 4A, Cherokee Trail moved up to 5A and found the going tougher in terms of wins and losses in the larger classification as it finished 4-11 after it was 12-5 in 2024.
Coach Blake Macklin’s Cougars
ABOVE: Regis Jesuit picked up 14 wins and made it to the Class 5A state semifinals with a big boost from senior Madisyn Jokerst (18), who tallied a career-high 77 points and earned a spot on the 2025 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Girls Lacrosse Team
LEFT: Cherokee Trail senior Lorelei Gearity (25) scored a cityhigh 73 goals and finished with 93 points in the 2025 season. BELOW: Senior Shylin Collins (15) joined Eaglecrest when the Rangeview team dissolved and contributed 75 points and secured a local-best 80 groundballs as she helped the Raptors make the Class 4A state playoffs.
(PHOTOS BY COURTNEY OAKES/AURORA SENTINEL)
needed to replace a lot of offensive production lost to graduation and got a lot of it from senior Lorelei Gearity in her fourth varsity season. Gearity —who does not plan on playing the sport in college — finished the season as the Aurora area’s leader in total points with a whopping 93. That included a city best 73 goals along with 17 assists, that was
less than just three other Aurora area players.
Grandview’s representation on the All-Aurora first team comes on defense in senior Amaya Costas, an All-5A East League first teamer and CHSAA All-State honorable mention selection. Costas racked up 74 groundballs and often matched up against opponents’ top threats.
Aurora lawmakers mull $1.5 billion requests for improving fire and police facilities over 25 years
BY CASSANDRA BALLARD, Sentinel Staff Writer
Aurora police and fire officials rolled out a 25-year framework designed to address the near-term and long-term building needs of the city’s public safety departments.
It isn’t cheap.
“Overarchingly, the plan totals $1.5 billion,” Deputy City Manager Laura Perry said during the city council meeting June 9. “This is an unconstrained financial plan. And again, 25 years.”
Likely to constrain the plan is where Aurora would get $1.5 billion, as the city heads into recent predictions of diminishing revenues and increasing needs across the city.
“This is the first of its kind in the city, and it plays a critical role in shaping our capital needs,” Perry said. “It serves as a strategic plan that not only assesses needs, but prioritizes them and outlines a financial framework for the next quarter century.”
The review evaluated more than 30 public safety facilities and is organized around three planning goals: short-term, or 10 years, midterm, or 15 years, and long-term, or 25 years. It includes assessments of current space usage, operational deficiencies and the physical condition of each facility.
Engineers have conducted detailed inspections, rating buildings on a scale from “critical” to “good” based on four key components, Perry said. There is architectural integrity, site layout, structural soundness and electrical systems.
Many of the city’s public safety buildings are 30 to 35 years old and in need of major upgrades, Perry said.
Key challenges outlined in the master plan include: aging infrastructure or buildings older that 30 years and showing signs of structural and operational deterioration, space and functional constraints
or limited room for training, specialized services and new technologies, operational impacts or infrastructure shortcomings are directly impacting service delivery for police, fire, and emergency services, and shared facility inefficiencies or multi-purpose buildings that require design optimization to better support overlapping departmental needs.
The planning process included multiple visioning sessions and workshops with stakeholders across various city departments. On-site facility tours, stakeholder interviews and reviews of historical planning documents added depth to the data collection.
Growth forecasting was also a significant focus, estimating future staffing and space needs in light of the city’s expected population growth.
The final plan will be a comprehensive financial roadmap totaling $1.5 billion over a 25-year period. This estimate includes everything from minor upgrades to full facility replacements for the city’s police and fire departments.
City council members and public safety leaders will present individual segments of the plan in the coming months, breaking down how each department, including police, fire and 911, will be affected.
“This is going to take some years,” Perry said, “but now we have defined needs, defined projects we can talk to the public about.”
The city plans to “nest” different funding sources, such as impact fees, grants and the capital projects fund.
“Going to voters and getting some kind of bonds to fund, or start funding these projects, is going to be critical,” City Manager Jason Batchelor said. “So we’re going to be doing this over the coming months.”
Aurora Police
Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain’s pitch for new and modernized police facilities described conditions as inadequate to meet the needs of the department of a rapidly growing city.
“We have 14 different facilities, all of them are, without question, aging and old,” Chamberlain said, talking about all of the buildings used by the Aurora Police Department. “Again, with the impact of the growth and the expectation of that growth in the City of Aurora, there definitely needs to be a modification.”
Among the changes Chamberlain hopes to see includes the creation and construction of a District Four facility in north Aurora, consolidation of special operations under one roof, renovation or reconstruction of existing stations, modernized headquarters with community-accessible lobbies, a secure and centralized property and evidence facility, separate and expanded training academies for police and fire, and an internal shooting range and dedicated parking structures.
“Out of the 305,000 calls for service,” Chamberlain said. “The Aurora Police Department handles approximately 255,000 of those calls for service. So again, a huge yoke of responsibility.”
The city is currently divided into three police districts, but there are significant gaps, Chamberlain said, particularly in the rapidly developing northeast end of Aurora. He said the department is recommending the construction and creation of a District Four patrol facility in the north. He said it is “not just a request, it’s a necessity.”
Chamberlain said he also plans to restructure districts based on geographic areas for more effective response times.
“As we look at this transforma-
tion of an organization, we look at the infrastructure to go with that,” Chamberlain said. “We are also going to look at how this map is set up. This map, the way the divisions are set up now, is going to be completely erased.”
Chamberlain said he also wanted to expand 911, so that police are not the ones taking on non-emergency calls involving mental health, and other forms of critical need that don’t require the police.
In an anecdote to underscore the dangers of coverage gaps, Chamberlain used the example of a fatal officer-involved shooting two weeks ago at the Parking Spot next to the airport, when an officer had to put out a help call after a struggle with a suspect, he said.
“He had to wrestle with a suspect for almost four minutes by himself,” Chamberlain said. “He was struggling for his life. The first officers to arrive to help came seven minutes later, and that was actually Denver Police officers.”
Chamberlain said that infrastructure also needed to be updated, and that the makeshift nature of existing stations is not sustainable.
“District One was built in 1950; it was refurbished in 2002,” Chamberlain said.
Both District One and District Two police stations were never intended to be police stations, but were instead set up and modified to serve as such. District Three, on the other hand, is not a standalone police station, but a combination of multiple assets, which include fire, 911 and a library, Chamberlian said.
“District Two was never meant to be a police station; it was modified to be a police station,” he said. “It was once a bank. It is not set up in any way to sustain it.”
The headquarters were once a jail, which was modified to become the police headquarters, Chamberlain said.
The decentralization of special operations and the risks associated with storing evidence in scattered locations are also unsustainable and require a secure and modern facility, he said. Units such as SWAT, canines and gang detectives are held in separate locations.
“If you have poor evidence management, that is the Achilles heel of many, many law enforcement agencies,” Chamberlain said.
There is one facility that holds all police equipment and logistics off-site at Nome Street venue, Chamberlain said. Five different facilities have all of the police’s property. If DNA, logistics and Niven information related to shootings and other incidents are misplaced, it can be costly to an organization that’s involved in litigation, he said.
Chamberlain also said he wants to separate the police and fire from sharing an academy, which was built and opened nine years ago at a cost of $29 million.
“We are bursting at the seams,” Chamberlain said. “We have two academy classes that are there. The fire just started another academy class. It is packed in there.”
While he said he is supportive of the city’s investment in a joint facility, he said he wants the infrastructure to be updated and the two departments’ academies to be separated.
“I know it sounds good to have this harmonious relationship with fire and all these joint things, but there are two very different businesses,” He said. “You have fire business and you have police business, and it is a very different occupation.”
Allowing the police force to operate sustainably enables the community to thrive, Chamberlain said.
The way a neighborhood is perceived and crime rates decipher housing costs and the comfort level of a community. Chamberlain said
that incidents like national news reports falsely painting the image that Aurora is overrun by gangs do not help the community thrive.
“Public safety, it is the backbone of community stability,” Chamberlain said. “Reputation matters.”
Aurora Fire
Aurora Fire and Rescue said their vision for infrastructure balances the need for much and the desire for only the best.
“We won’t settle for mediocrity,” Alec Oughton, Aurora fire chief, said, “We really are striving for perfection every day to try and serve this community, save lives and protect property.”
Aurora Fire currently has 17 stations in Aurora and city officials have said recently it’s already lacking two stations, one in northeast Aurora and one in southeast Aurora.But as the population continues to grow, updates and new stations will be needed to keep up.
“We’re a very capital infrastructure-heavy system, because we need to be both distributed and have the ability to concentrate our resources throughout the city,” Oughton said. “Over the project timeline, we have multiple projects,” within the 10-year window, 15-year window and the 25-year window, and they’re a combination of both new builds and remodels.”
Aurora is a large and sprawling city, encompassing three counties across 165 square miles. Denver is 153 square miles and has more than 40 fully staffed fire stations.
The average age of Aurora’s fire stations is 26 years, Oughton said, and some are already older than 50 years old.
“That ripe middle age for a fire station where they’re due for some major renovations,” Oughton said that five stations are either close to or already beyond that half-century mark.
Aurora Fire and Rescue’s response times are about eight minutes, all in the 90th percentile. It’s about the same as Denver.
“This is a process of both keeping up, not catching up,” Oughten said.
Within a 10-year review and build window, both remodels and replacement stations will occur. Some on the existing site and some potentially on new sites, as well as new additions to the Fire Rescue footprint within the city of Aurora.
The two new stations being built would make up stations 18 and 19.
Station 18 is located in Ward II and would cover Aurora Highlands and the Windler Development Block. Oughten said this could also “heal the rest of the system because of its proximity to E470,” and the accessibility to move North and South quickly.
‘We’re planning a 15,000-squarefoot fire station,” Oughten said. “We’re designing it so that it can house a double company, because we’re anticipating that future growth.”
The growth occurring out there is approximately 7% to 8% developed, and the fire department is already experiencing a demand for service.
“I’ve heard numbers as high as 60,000 population expected just in that community,” Oughten said. “So we will have an emerging demand.”
“Response times right now are anywhere from 12 to 18 minutes,” Oughton said.,” he said. “And so that’s a little bit of a challenge for us to get out there and take care of that.”
Also planned is Station 19, which is the South Shore/Blackstone Station, near Smokey Hill and Powhatan. Oughten said he anticipates that this one will have a little larger footprint, and it will also be for a double company with an anticipated four bays for emergency
vehicles.
The immediate need is to protect valuable equipment.
“We have about $7 to $10 million worth of capital assets sitting outside,” he said. “With all the hail warnings, it could be a little bit of a challenge.”
Stations 6 and 8 will also need major remodels, Oughten said. Station 6, which is at Hampden Avenue and Chambers Road, would need to be replaced, and Oughten said the department would need to build a 17,000-square-foot facility.
Station 8, across Chambers Road, was built in 1987 and is also due for an update.
“There’s new technology that can be integrated,” Oughten said. “We’re looking at population growth and operational needs. We had a consultant come in from the Center for Public Safety Excellence as we work through the last stages of our accreditation process, and he indicated that the only city he’s seen with a more diverse set of risks than the city of Aurora was Oakland, and that was because they had both an airport and a seaport.”
Police and Fire dispatchers
The 911 landscape is changing, and Aurora is working to adapt with it, city officials say. An increasing number of alerts come via text, not phone calls.
Aurora 911 Director Tina Buneta presented a roadmap for transforming how the city will continue to deliver emergency and non-emergency services.
The most significant requested expense for Aurora 911 is an $119.7 million Real-Time Operations Center, a centralized, tech-forward facility that would unite emergency communication systems, non-emergency service platforms and real-time data operations all under one roof.
“We understand that if we want to continue elevating the level of service we provide, we have to make some changes systemically,” Buneta said.
The facility would be a new hub for Aurora 911, the city’s planned 311 services, a Real-Time Crime Center, traffic operations and an Emergency Operations Center for major incidents, she said.
There is currently a shifting landscape in emergency communications, Buneta said. Aurora 911 handles more than 300,000 calls annually, with 98% of these calls coming from mobile devices and only 2% from landlines. This reflects national trends as well. Voice calls are plateauing, she said, while data-driven alerts, including text messages, app-based requests and multimedia transmissions, are on the rise.
Text-to-911 usage in Aurora increased from more than 500 texts in 2020 to more than 6,700 in 2024, with projections indicating steady growth.
The department is introducing new technology this year, including real-time streaming capabilities, live translation, and transcription services, which aim to provide the same level of responsiveness to non-English-speaking residents as the city provides to English speakers. Buneta said the city is also adopting AI tools and automation to improve response times for low-acuity, high-volume calls.
Since 2020, Aurora has been expanding alternative response models, enabling 911 to dispatch more than just police, fire, and EMS, Buneta said. This includes growing partnerships with services like 988 for mental health crises and planned expansion into a 311 system for all other city service needs.
“Our goal is to stand up a 311 program,” Buneta said. “So what we want is a situation where the mem-
bers of our community know 911, for emergencies, 311, for everything else, and we partner with 988, for mental health services that are not safety-threatening.”
To make this happen, Buneta said they will need to centralize communication pathways, unify data systems, and improve real-time collaboration between city departments, ranging from police and fire to housing and public works.
The proposed Real-Time Operations Center would be a 120,000-square-foot facility designed for scalability and shared use. Each participating entity would have dedicated space, along with shared training labs, collaboration zones and centralized data systems.
Phase Two of the project would include a dedicated Emergency Operations Center with a Joint Information System to coordinate responses and communications during citywide or regional emergencies.
Buneta also requested an IT Infrastructure Resiliency Plan, to move systems to a cloud, improving cybersecurity and ensuring continuous uptime, even during power failures or other disruptions.
While still in the planning and scoping phase, the estimated cost for Phase One is $119.7 million, not including land acquisition. The city is also working to determine costs for the IT Resiliency Plan.
OPPOSITE PAGE LEFT: The bunker gear of firemen hangs in a closet at Station 8.
OPPOSITE PAGE RIGHT: Police cars sit behind a locked security fence, only accessible by scan card.
ABOVE: A dispatch supervisor at the City of Aurora Public Safety Communications Center.
(Sentinel File Photos)
Baumgarten,” the motion said. “Numerous incidents give rise to this inference. In late 2022, the City started issuing code enforcement violations against Mr. Baumgarten personally, instead of the owners of the building – a tactic that is not only bereft of legal justification but odd.”
Lawyers in the brief also stated that city data shows that of some apartments in northwest Aurora near CBZ’s properties, other complexes were not cited as frequently as the CBZ complexes.
The data was limited and not substantiated by complete city records.
There is currently no date set for a jury trial.
—
Cassandra
Ballard, Sentinel Staff Writer
Federal funding concerns add uncertainty to Arapahoe County budget
Investing in Arapahoe County was the theme for this year’s Arapahoe County State of the County address, during which the county commissioners reflected on achievements from the past year and offered a vision forward for the county.
“When we asked residents what they wanted most from their local government, the message was clear — invest in the essential programs and services that make our community thrive,” said Leslie Summey, District 4 county commissioner.
More than 300 people attended the address at the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds Event Center in Aurora on June 10.
Commissioner Rhonda Fields of District 5 said the county has spent the past year working to make neighborhoods safe and strengthening infrastructure and services through the passage of 1A — the county’s ballot initiative to avoid spending limits imposed by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) — to invest in the community.
“We were blown away by the response. More than 70% of voters said yes and with that vote, our community chose to invest in some of the most important things in our community,” said Jessica Campbell, District 2 county commissioner. “The real work started this year and it couldn’t be happening at a more crucial time.”
This year’s address was notably different than last year’s, when the county discussed a steep budget shortfall as the American Rescue Plan Act funds from the COVID-19 pandemic were running out. During the 2024 address, the
commissioners said that the county was considering cutting services, raising taxes or voting to repeal spending caps that were implemented by TABOR.
Ultimately, the county put measure 1A on the ballot and it passed in November, which allowed Arapahoe County to hold on to the extra funds.
While the TABOR funds have helped the county, Commissioner Carrie Warren-Gully of District 1 said federal funding has become a major concern this year.
“Government funding is always tricky, but this year, it’s a moving target due to all the uncertainty at the federal and state level,” she said. “Federal funding is up in the air, making it a little difficult to determine which program could be at risk … It absolutely changes on a daily basis. This is important because almost 17% of the county’s budget is from the federal government. Add to that the fact that the state is also in a budget crisis and you can see why we’re a little bit worried.”
The State of Colorado has reported a $1.2 billion budget shortfall, according to the Colorado Financial Institute.
“Despite that doom and gloom, we believe the road ahead is both urgent and promising,” Warren-Gully said.
Commissioners pointed to the county’s progress, driven by the overwhelming public support for measure 1A and guided by the updated comprehensive Arapahoe Forward Strategic Plan.
Looking toward the future, commissioners discussed the Arapahoe Forward Strategic Plan, which is intended to guide decisions across county departments and includes four key areas: safety, economy, infrastructure and workforce.
Measure 1A funds will continue to aid the county in expanding emergency responses, affordable housing and mental health services.
Arapahoe County is also conducting infrastructure upgrades at the detention center to expand medical and behavioral health treatment areas, and has formed new regional partnerships such as the National Women’s Soccer League headquarters and Meadowood Village co-op support.To watch Arapahoe County’s State of the County 2025 address, visit the county’s YouTube page.
— Isabel Guzman, Colorado Community Media
$46 million Arapahoe County jail expansion yields kitchen, laundry so far
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office has completed the relocation and build of a new kitchen and laundry area
at the Detention Facility, which are part of its multi-phase $46 million expansion of the facility.
Anders Nelson, public information officer for the sheriff’s office, said the upgrades to the kitchen and laundry areas are designed to support the growing inmate population by improving daily operations and enhancing the standard of care within the facility.
“The current facility was built in 1986 to house fewer than 400 inmates. Currently, we house close to 1,000,” Nelson said. “This placed a significant strain on the capabilities of the old kitchen and laundry areas. The new construction of the kitchen and laundry provides a location that better accommodates the current population of the detention facility. This expansion enables us to serve those in our custody better while streamlining daily operations for our staff.”
These upgrades are part of an overall expansion for the facility.
“The “old” kitchen and laundry area provides us with space to expand our medical and behavioral health services,” Nelson said. “Those upgrades will include 43 additional medical and behavioral health beds, increasing the facility’s capacity to 64 beds. This expansion enhances the sheriff’s office’s ability to deliver essential care, aligning with its commitment to rehabilitation and overall well-being.”
Sheriff Tyler Brown said in a press release from the office that the completion of the kitchen and laundry was a critical first step in the expansion.
“But now our focus shifts to expanding medical and behavioral health services. Increasing the number of medical and behavioral health beds will allow our staff to better meet the growing mental health needs of individuals in our care,” Tyler Brown said.
Nelson said the expansion responds to a need for enhanced infrastructure and services brought on by population growth and increased demand for mental health support in correctional settings.
“The reality is that our detention facility is outdated, and in the coming years, we need to consider replacing it altogether,” Nelson said. “The new kitchen and laundry were designed to be integrated into a new facility.”
The project was funded through ARPA funds. Nelson said construction on the medical and behavioral health wing is expected to be completed by the end of April 2026.
— CCM News
COPS AND COURTS
Centennial nursing home employees face negligence charges in severe injury case
tor (Eric) Van Cleave that the victim’s injuries were not consistent with the injuries stated in the report by Orchard Park Health Care Center,” sheriff spokesperson Ginger Delgado said in a statement.
“That report noted that the victim was found sitting in her wheelchair, screaming for help in terrible pain, that no one had seen her fall, and they did not know what happened.”
Van Cleave reported that four weeks of investigation into the injury turned up evidence that Jackson and Namale being “untruthful” about how the woman suffered two broken bones.
Van Cleave said nursing home employees first reported that the injured woman was found screaming from pain in her wheelchair next to her bed. Subsequently, nursing home officials said that the two accused employees were helping the woman to her bed from her chair and she “planted” her feet, possibly causing the injury, according to an arrest affidavit. Hospital officials told investigators the nature of the bone breaks did not happen from that type of incident.
Nursing home staff then told investigators that it appeared the woman somehow got her leg caught in the electric bed and with a remote control in her hand, lowered it onto her leg, breaking her leg bones.
Van Cleave reported that the explanation was still unsatisfactory to hospital officials.
The report did not make a determination on what caused the woman’s injuries, only that staff stories were inconsistent and were coordinated.
“The investigator also believes both suspects were complicit in their actions to hide the truth of what happened to the victim,” Delgado said. “Van Cleave believes the victim’s injuries occurred on May 8 and were caused by criminal negligence, which is a crime against an at-risk person.”
Sheriff officials did not detail how the woman was injured nor how the two employees were responsible.
Jackson was arrested at her home and was released from the Arapahoe County jail in lieu of $2,500 bond. An arrest warrant has been issued for Namale.
— Sentinel Staff
Domestic disturbance leads to officer-involved shooting in Aurora
An unidentified Aurora man was shot and critically injured June 14 by police intervening in a domestic disturbance when the man pulled out a gun and pointed it at an officer, according to police.
Police were called to a house in the 15800 block of East Arkansas Drive at about 6 p.m. June 14 after reports of a domestic disturbance between a married couple at the home, Aurora police spokesperson Joe Moylan said in a statement.
The shooting will be investigated by Aurora police, a special Aurora police team and a Critical Incident Response Team composed of investigators from the 18th Judicial District and an outside police agency.
— Sentinel Staff
Boy, 3, shot inside his home
Police said a 3-year-old Aurora boy was shot and critically injured June 16 in his home while in a “back room” with his father and other children.
An urgent care center called police dispatchers at about 10:30 a.m. to report that a woman had brought her toddler son in suffering a gunshot wound.
“The child was transported to a children’s hospital where he remains with life-threatening injuries,” Aurora police spokesperson Agent Matt Longshore said in a statement.
Investigators said the 3-year-old boy was in a “back room” at an apartment on the 14800 block of East Centerpoint Drive when the mother heard what sounded like gunfire and discovered the boy had been injured.
“She quickly drove him to the urgent care,” Longshore said. “The father left the scene with another child of his, and has not yet been contacted to determine his exact involvement before and after the shooting.”
The father, who was not identified, was contacted by police in Colorado Springs and arrested there on unspecified outstanding warrants, Aurora police said.
“ The child that he left the scene with was located and is safe,” Longshore said. “The dad is not considered a suspect at this time, only a person of interest, and investigators will coordinate a time to interview him.”
The child’s grandmother came to the house after the shooting to watch a third child inside the home, and while there suffered a medical emergency and was taken to a hospital, accompanied by the other child.
“In total, there were two adults and three children in the apartment at the time of the shooting,” Longshore said. As of 5 p.m. June 16, there was no update on the injured boy’s condition.
— Sentinel Staff
Aurora police investigate Village East shooting after man found with gunshot wound
Police were called to a Village East neighborhood home June 13 after a man there was shot and injured, police said.
Police were called to a house on the 12000 block of East Arizona Avenue about 10:30 p.m., police said in a statement.
• Great Burgers
• GreatBurgers
• GreatBurgers
• GreatCheesesteaks
• Great Philly Cheesesteaks
• GreatCheesesteaks
• 20 TV’s
• 20 TV’s
• 20 TVs
• Open St age
• Open St age
EveryThursday
EveryThursday
• Watch All NFL & MLB Games
• Saturdays:11:30AM-3PM
• Saturdays:11:30AM-3PM
FreeDomesticBeeror
• Open Stage
Soda With SandwichOrder
FreeDomesticBeeror Soda With SandwichOrder
JUNE 20 8PM | GROOVETIME SITTERS Rock & Blues JUNE 21 8PM | GALEN CRADER Irish and Originals JUNE 27 8PM | TBD JUNE 28 8PM | JIM HYATT BAND Classic Rock,Country JULY 4 8PM BUCK SEAGEANT Country JULY 5 8PM | ETHYL & THE REGULARS Americana/Originals
2300 S. Chambers Rd,Aurora CO |SECorner of Chambers&Iliff 303-696-6131|www.sheabeenirishpub.com
Two nursing home employees face criminal charges after being accused of negligence that led to the severe injury of a 92-year-old woman in their care.
Centennial Orchard Park Health Care Center nursing assistant Patience Jackson, 33, and licensed practical nurse Zainab Namale, 34, both face charges of criminal negligence and crimes against an at-risk person in the incident from last month.
Medical personnel at Sky Ridge Medical Center called Arapahoe County Sheriff investigators May 9 and said that the elderly woman, who suffers severe dementia, was brought to their emergency room after suffering two separate broken bones in her lower leg, according to reports by Arapahoe County sheriff officials.
“Hospital employees told Investiga-
When patrol officers arrived at the house, the couple had already separated, and the husband, 58, was in the garage, police said.
“Officers were speaking with the husband about the disturbance when he produced a handgun from a toolbox,” Moylan said. “Officers gave the husband multiple directions to drop the weapon. The husband pointed the firearm at the officers and an officer-involved shooting occurred.”
He said one officer fired at the man. That officer was placed on paid administrative leave, which is APD policy.
The man was taken to a nearby hospital with a “life-threatening” injury, Moylan said.
As of press time, his condition was not made public.
“Upon arrival, officers located blood at the front door and screams for help coming from inside the home,” police said. “Officers entered the home and located a man with an apparent gunshot wound.”
Police provided first aid to the injured man until rescuers arrived. He was taken to a nearby hospital and is expected to survive, police said.
“The circumstances leading up to the shooting remain under investigation.,” Aurora police spokesperson Joe Moylan said in a statement. “There is no suspect information and no arrests have been made. “ Police said anyone with information can call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous and still be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000, police said. — Sentinel Staff
Don’t let Trump subvert Colorado justice, elections
To understand the stark danger behind the Trump administration’s latest scheme to inflict revenge on people, places and organizations that have held the president and his acolytes accountable for their corrupt and criminal actions, you have to return to the 2020 election.
While Trump racked up a catalog of charges for his legal, malfeasant and other dubious acts during his first four years in the Oval Office, his criminal pièce de résistance was his dogged attempt to undermine and overthrow the 2020 presidential election, which he lost.
Trump went on in January of 2021 to conspire with hundreds of insurrections and criminals who beat and injured police officers in an attempt to overtake the U.S. Capitol and overthrow the election. Colorado courts held Trump accountable for the crime, upholding Republican-led efforts to keep him off the 2024 ballot. That’s because as an insurrectionist, he was unqualified to run for commander in chief.
Along the way to 2024, however, former Mesa County Clerk and Trump disciple Tina Peters was dogged into criminal court. Her fate was sealed after investigators determined she had surreptitiously allowed election conspiracy theorists access to election equipment and systems in an overcooked scheme to prove non-existent election fraud — in a county that has thrice voted for Trump.
A darling of the Trump MAGA campaign and former guest at Mar-a-Lago, Peters’ scam, scheme and self-destructive testimony landed her in state prison for nine years.
Since re-election, Trump has made good on promises to free convicts who committed a wide range of crimes to support his efforts to retake the White House. He recently publicly instructed what is supposed to be the independent U.S. Department of Justice to find a way to free Peters from her felony bars as thanks for backing Trump’s corruption.
There’s no need to wait for historians years from now to hold these horrific acts to the light of ethics, morality and justice. They are already astonishingly corrupt as they role out live, daily, from the Trump White House.
But as corrupt as his “get out of jail free” scheme has been for his criminal toadies and sycophants, Trump has now surpassed even himself in government corruption.
At the end of May, the Trump Department of Justice, posing as guardians of the Voting Rights Act, sent a demand to Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold for all election records from the 2024 presidential and congressional contests, according to reporting by Colorado Public Radio.
Griswold was key to pursuing investigations and justice for Colorado residents to out Peters for the crimes she’d committed.
It’s not lost on Griswold, nor anyone, that the timing of the demand — so bizarre and outrageous that no one in Colorado has ever heard of anything like it — is hardly coincidence.
Trump, speaking through his social media posts, has demanded that his independent Department of Justice to find a way to free Peters from prison. She was convicted on state charges, beyond the reach of the presidential pardons he’s bestowed on a couple of thousand other convicted hoodlums, thugs and insurrectionists.
“A week later, we received the inquiry from the DOJ. We have also seen the DOJ try to intervene in her appeals. Ultimately, we don’t know if it’s that, but that’s where my mind instantly went,” Griswold told CPR in an interview last week.
Former GOP Arapahoe County Clerk Matt Crane, who now heads the state’s association of county clerks, also commented to CPR on the suspicious nature of the demand.
“In 25 years of working in elections in Colorado, I’ve never seen a request from the DOJ or heard of a request from the DOJ as expansive as what this is,” Crane said.
It’s not just more eye-rolling Trump theatrics. Crane and others say the demand affects massive amounts of data. Colorado taxpayers, in every one of the state’s 64 counties, will have to spend money to support Trump’s bogus snipe hunt on the backs of federal taxpayers supporting the Department of Justice.
There’s no doubt that the scheme is at best a petulant and insidiously mean move of revenge against a state and election officials who had the temerity to hold Peters accountable for her crimes. At worst, the stunt is a corrupt intrigue meant to actually find a way to get Peters off from her rightfully imposed prison sentence or even work some new election corruption into Colorado, and possibly other states.
The courts may have little power to stop this deceit and expose what and who’s behind the scheme. Residents from Colorado, and citizens from across the nation, of all political factions, must appeal to both Republicans and Democrats in Congress who can also clearly see the danger of Trump’s subterfuge.
Either the House or the Senate, or both, should open an immediate investigation into how and why the DOJ is working under the conceit of civil rights voting powers to press into national elections that Trump has provenly and repeatedly not only lied about but has been charged in trying to undermine for his own benefit.
If no one else, Colorado’s four Republican members of Congress have a duty to their own district constituents, and all state residents, to keep the administration from undermining and endangering the election, justice and democracy.
MIKE ROSEN, GUEST COLUMNIST
Left-leaning public media would survive without tax subsidies
President Trump’s recent executive order to cut off the federal subsidy for NPR and PBS generated a storm of outrage from the left. Predictably, the usual suspects staged demonstrations and NPR, PBS and Democrats have counterattacked with lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of Trump’s order.
NPR and PBS aren’t identical twins. So, let’s call them fraternal twins in their common political and cultural mentality and the leftist bias they spread on a daily basis on their political and cultural broadcast platforms.
They falsely claim this is a First Amendment issue about free speech. To borrow a Joe Bidenism, “that’s malarky.” If the twins are denied taxpayer dollars, they’d still be free to broadcast their progressive and woke propaganda over the airwaves, just without taxpayer dollars. For Democrats and the left, defending the twins isn’t a matter of principle or the law, it’s strictly a matter of political self-interest protecting their propaganda megaphones. And the government connection allows the twins to claim they are duty bound to be ideologically and politically balanced. Given their glaring liberal bias, they’re both guilty of dereliction of that duty.
NPR’s news, analysis and opinion programs are mostly unlistenable for conservatives, Republicans and open-minded independents on shows like “Morning Editon” and especially “All (leftist) Things Considered,” which NPR boasts is “the most listened to afternoon radio program in the country,” which Democrats savor. Uri Berliner a former business editor for NPR resigned last year after publicly criticizing the network’s news coverage as reflecting a “rigid progressive ideology,” with editorial positions in the D.C. area filled by 87 registered Democrats and 0 Republicans.
PBS’s programming is less political than NPR’s although still left-leaning. But most of its drama and entertainment offerings are excellent and enjoyed by conservatives and liberals alike, such as “Masterpiece Theater, ” with series like “Downton Abbey,” “Wolf Hall,” and “All Creatures Great and Small.”
The doomsday predictions about the death of NPR and PBS and the end of classical music broadcasting are laughable. Even if their federal subsidies ― which constitute a relatively small share of their revenues ― were eliminated, the twins would still exist. Contributions and membership fees from their faithful listeners would continue and likely increase. Any void would easily be filled by leftist foundations, corporations, activist groups, labor unions, Dem -
ocrats, or George Soros who value this broadcast platform far too much to let it die.
In 1961, FCC Chairman Newton Minow famously declared that TV programming was a “vast wasteland” of senseless violence, mindless comedy and offensive advertising. That ultimately provided an excuse for government to subsidize programming that people ought to watch through the Public Broadcasting Act passed by Congress in 1967 creating the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) which remains the banker of PBS and NPR, founded in 1970.
But 1970 was more than half a century ago. Back then your TV set had maybe ten channels, and Cable TV was just getting started. People didn’t have personal computers or smart phones, no iPads, no Internet, no podcasts, and no social media. (We did have libraries.) Today, with satellites and streaming, there are limitless outlets to hear or watch quality content; virtually anything from news, to opinion, to entertainment, classical music, etc. along with an even “vaster wasteland” of crap. There’s no need or justification for government to subsidize any of this or NPR, PBS and CPB.
Among Trump’s barrage of executive orders, those that pertain strictly to the executive branch have generally withstood challenges in court. This one, while objectively warranted as a public policy issue, may well be struck down by the courts since NPR, PBS and CPB were created by an act of Congress. In that event, Congress could defund all of those through legislation. Unfortunately, that’s unlikely. With a slim Republican majority in both houses, Democrats would likely kill the bill with a Senate filibuster, and Republicans lack the 60 votes required to overcome that. But as I’ve explained, even if Congress were to pass such legislation, NPR and PBS would still be on the air.
Based on the outcome of the last election, arguably a great part of the public recognizes and objects to the leftist bias of the news and opinion elements of NPR and PBS. On principle, a quote from Thomas Jefferson applies to this issue: “To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors, is sinful and tyrannical.” That justifies removing NPR, PBS and CPB from the taxpayers’ teat.
Longtime KOA radio talk host and columnist for the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Mike Rosen now writes for CompleteColorado.com.
Puzzles
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR300537
Estate of Paul Albert Volpi aka Paul A. Volpi, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 16, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Anna L. Burr Atty Reg. #: 42205 2851 S. Parker Road, Ste. 230 Aurora, CO 80014
First Publication: June 12, 2025
Final Publication: June 26, 2025
Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30147
Estate of Mary A. Kimball, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 19, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Kevin Schmidt
Personal Representative 8864 S. Hoyt Ct. Littleton, CO 80128
First Publication: June 19, 2025
Final Publication: July 3, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30214
Estate of George Renaud, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the personal representative or to District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado on or before October 6, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Cheryl Lynn Renaud-Denbow, Personal Representative 5311 Highway 73 Evergreen, CO 80439
First Publication: June 5, 2025
Final Publication: June 19, 2025
Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30226
Estate of Connie Greeno Harris aka Connie G. Harris aka Connie Harris aka Connie Ellen Greeno aka Connie E. Greeno, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Adams County, Colorado, on or before October 6, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Attorney for Personal Representative Heather J. Manolakas Peck Feigenbaum, PC 132 Midland Ave., Unit 4 Basalt, CO 81621
First Publication: June 5, 2025
Final Publication: June 19, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30331
Estate of Ronald Lee Scott aka Ronald Scott, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Adams County, Colorado, on or before October 7, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred.
Anna L. Burr, Esq. 2851 S. Parker Road, Ste. 230 Aurora, CO 80014
First Publication: June 5, 2025
Final Publication: June 19, 2025
Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30395
Estate of Shawn A. Larson, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Adams County, Colorado, on or before October 19, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Kristin Larson
Personal Representative 1165 Castle Rd. Indian Land, SC 29707
Attorney for Personal Representative Jack Connors
Atty Reg #: 60691 Spaeth & Doyle, LLP 501 S. Cherry St., Ste. 700 Glendale, CO 80246
Phone: 843-452-8946
First Publication: June 19, 2025
Final Publication: July 3, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30525
Estate of David Paul Andre aka Dave Andre aka Dave P. Andre aka David Andre aka David P. Andre, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 18, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred.
Michael R. Meaux Atty Reg #: 35658 PO BOX 22451 Denver, CO 80222
First Publication: June 19, 2025
Final Publication: July 3, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR183
Estate of David Michael McIsaac, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 15, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Evan McIsaac
Personal Representative 7196 S. Ukraine St. Aurora, CO 80016
First Publication: June 12, 2025
Final Publication: June 26, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30074
Estate of Martin Kyle Barry, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 6, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred.
Ralph A. Cantafio, Atty. Reg. #16280
CANTAFIO LAW P.C. 1927 Market St., Unit 1A Denver, Colorado 8020 Phone: 970- 819-2371
First Publication: June 5, 2025
Final Publication: June 19, 2025 Sentinel
NOTICE TO CREDITORS BY PUBLICATION
PURSUANT TO §15-12-801, C.R.S. Case No. 2025PR30556
Estate of Debra Sue Meyers, aka Debra S. Meyers, aka Debra Meyers, aka Debra Phelps, Deceased.
All persons having claims against the above-named estate are required to present them to the Personal Representative or to the District Court of Arapahoe County, Colorado, on or before October 19, 2025, or the claims may be forever barred. Natanha Hurja
Personal Representative
c/o Baker Law Group, LLC 8301 E. Prentice Ave., #405 Greenwood Village, CO 80111
First Publication: June
We’re different.
So are you.
The Sentinel not only cares deeply about bringing our readers accurate and critical news, we insist all of the crucial stories we provide are available for everyone — for free.
Like you, we know how critical accurate and dependable information and facts are in making the best decisions about, well, everything that matters. Factual, credible reporting is crucial to a sound democracy, a solid community and a satisfying life.
So there’s no paywall at SentinelColorado.com. Our print editions are free on stands across the region, and our daily email E-ditions are free just for signing up, to anyone. But we need your help to carry out this essential mission.
The cost of producing top-notch journalism is steep. We need readers like you to become partners and help us. Even if it’s a little, it means a lot.
Join our mission by providing even a few dollars a month, or more if you’re able. Whether you can or can’t give right now, go SentinelColorado.com to subscribe to our free daily email E-ditions. Click on the red bar on the top of the home page to contribute now.
The Sentinel is owned and operated by the non-profit, 501(C)(3) community-led group Aurora Sentinel Community Media. That means your donation may be tax deductible.
Donate one time or as an evergreen-sustaining member. Just choose “One Time or Monthly” and fill out our fast, easy and secure form.
Thank you for your generosity and support for local Sentinel reporting.
