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When “blight” becomes a tool: How redevelopment labels unlock subsidies and eminent domain
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, Local

When “blight” becomes a tool: How redevelopment labels unlock subsidies and eminent domain

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project It’s all blight … if you’re clever enough I had a friend (a Catholic) who once quipped that you can do anything you want in the Catholic church as long as you can find the right priest. I’ve thought about that quote in a variety of contexts because it’s pretty applicable. It certainly is in the Denverite article linked first below. That article details how the Denver Urban Renewal Authority (DURA) will be investigating the potential new location of the new Bronco’s stadium for evidence of blight. Why you ask? A quote from the article details the reason: “The study could mark another significant step in the area’s redevelopment. It could eventually lead to the establishment of an urban re...
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Violent Crime Spree Allegations Follow Release Of High Risk Colorado Parolee
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Fox News, Approved, Local

Violent Crime Spree Allegations Follow Release Of High Risk Colorado Parolee

By Stepheny Price | Fox News Ricky Lee Roybal-Smith faces four murder charges, including three deaths in 2025 and one from 2022. A Colorado parolee once classified as a "very high" risk of reoffending is now charged in four separate killings across three counties — including three counts of first-degree murder tied to an alleged 2025 crime spree. Ricky Lee Roybal-Smith, 38, faces two counts of first-degree murder in Adams County, one count of first-degree murder in Denver and a newly filed second-degree murder charge in Arapahoe County connected to a 2022 death. He is being held without bond in the Denver jail, prosecutors confirmed. In 2022, Roybal-Smith was accused of threatening customers at a retail store. One day later, a woman named...
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DPS Board Hears Divided Testimony On Proposed Immigration Safe Zone Policy
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

DPS Board Hears Divided Testimony On Proposed Immigration Safe Zone Policy

By Tyler Melito | Denver7 The proposed policy aims to make schools, bus stops and school events 'safe zones' from ICE. DENVER, Colo. - As tensions rise between ICE agents and communities across the country, Colorado's largest school district is considering a new policy that they say will protect students. The board is proposing a policy that would create safe zones at all district-managed and charter school properties — including school buildings, grounds, bus stops, school transportation and school-sponsored events — for students families and employees. On Thursday, the community had the chance to weigh in. "Protect and defend our immigrant students, parents, families, community members and employees, ensuring they are safe, valued, respected and ...
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Denver Declines To Release Completed Probe Into Police Division Chief After 14 Months and $110K
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Denver Declines To Release Completed Probe Into Police Division Chief After 14 Months and $110K

By Brian Maass | CBS Colorado A CBS Colorado investigation has learned the City of Denver has spent $110,000 on a 14-month investigation of Denver Police Division Chief Magen Dodge, but is refusing to release the completed investigation, which was finalized three months ago. "I have determined based upon a balancing of the factors... that the potential harm in disclosing the investigation report prior to the completion of the disciplinary process significantly weighs against the public interest at this time," wrote Andrea Webber, Records Administrator for Denver's Department of Public Safety, which oversees the Denver Police Department.  Webber said a disciplinary process is underway, justifying the city's refusal to release the outside investigation report. ...
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Denver Public Schools Considers Safe Zone Policy Limiting ICE Access Without Warrants
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Denver Public Schools Considers Safe Zone Policy Limiting ICE Access Without Warrants

By: Allie Jennerjahn | Denver7 DENVER — A Denver Public Schools (DPS) hearing is scheduled Thursday to discuss labeling all school property as "safe zones" for students, families and staff. This includes bus stops, transportation and school-sponsored events. The proposed policy would require United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE )agents and other federal officials to present a warrant before any student can be questioned or detained. Students at DPS have been contacted by ICE during lunch and dismissal, according to Denver-based advocacy group Movimiento Poder said. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT DENVER7
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Denver Bans Masked Officers During Arrests DHS Signals It Won’t Comply
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Denver Bans Masked Officers During Arrests DHS Signals It Won’t Comply

By Chierstin Roth | CBS Colorado Denver city leaders unanimously passed a ban on all officers, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, from wearing face coverings while detaining or arresting people. That law also requires officers to wear visible identification. It's the second sweeping ordinance against federal officers in Denver in just a few days. Last Thursday, Mayor Mike Johnston signed an executive order banning federal immigration agents from operating on city property without a judicial warrant.  It also directs Denver police, deputies and fire personnel to investigate reports of violence and criminal behavior. The Department of Homeland Security responded calling the executive order "legally illiterate," adding, "...
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Denver Named Finalist To Host 2028 Democratic National Convention
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Denver Named Finalist To Host 2028 Democratic National Convention

By Micah Smith | Denver7 Denver is one of five cities in the running to host the next Democratic National Convention in 2028. DENVER — Denver is one of five cities in the running to host the next Democratic National Convention in 2028, where Democrats will decide who will represent their party as the Democratic nominee for president. The other cities under consideration include Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia and Boston, The Democratic National Committee has announced. “Denver really has, like, a town square feel to it. You know, you can turn a corner, and we have the most venues per capita in the country, and so you have a great opportunity to see your favorite elected officials, your favorite activists, your favorite musicians," Colorado Democratic Party Chai...
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Why we started Mesa County Compass
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, Local, Top Stories

Why we started Mesa County Compass

By Ruth Kinnett and Lisa Fry | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In June 2023, we were sitting at a kitchen table watching headlines move faster than facts. A recall effort was underway against District 51 School Board member Andrea Haitz, and something didn’t sit right. We kept hearing fragments — social media posts, clipped quotes, secondhand outrage — but we couldn’t find the full conversation. So we decided to start one. Mesa County Compass began on June 10, 2023, during that recall effort. At the time, we believed the full truth had not been properly revealed and that Haitz was being unfairly accused of something she had not done. What started as a response to that moment grew into something larger — a platform dedicated to conversation, clarity, and giving p...
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ICE Operation In Lakewood Turns Violent As Suspect Rams Vehicles and Flees Into Apartment Building
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

ICE Operation In Lakewood Turns Violent As Suspect Rams Vehicles and Flees Into Apartment Building

By Christa Swanson | CBS Colorado A man has been accused of a hit-and-run in the Denver metro area involving two U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement vehicles. Around 9:58 a.m., Lakewood police were called to the 200 block of S. Ingalls Street. ICE agents reported that they were attempting to detain a suspect when that person rammed two of their vehicles with his car, injuring one of the agents. That suspect then left his car and entered a nearby apartment, according to a Lakewood PD spokesman. A crowd of people began gathering near the scene. According to LPD, officers set up a perimeter around the area due to concerns for community safety, but said the officers didn't engage with the suspect or the ICE operation. After federal agents obtained a warrant and additi...
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Denver Opens Door To Energy Code Changes That Could Reach Single Family Homes
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Denver Opens Door To Energy Code Changes That Could Reach Single Family Homes

By Scott Weiser | The Denver Gazette Denver launched a public process on Feb. 26 to update its energy code for new and renovated small buildings, including single-family homes and duplexes, that would extend efficiency and electrification-readiness standards that began with energy compliance goals for large commercial and multifamily buildings in 2023. Denver’s 2021 Energize Denver ordinance required energy benchmarking and reductions for structures with 25,000 square feet or more. As early as 2022, builders predicted the rules would raise housing costs and eventually reach single-family homes and duplexes. In 2023, Laura Schwartz, spokesperson for Denver Community Planning and Development, told The Denver Gazette that “residential single-family homeowners ...
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