Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

Local

Denver’s large building electrification rules updated
No Comments
Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Denver’s large building electrification rules updated

By Scott Weiser | Denver Gazette Deadline extensions are among changes to help ease the burden of switch from natural gas Denver’s regulations requiring electrification of all buildings larger than 25,000 square feet has drawn controversy since they were implemented in 2021, especially from businesses and building owners. But relief may be on the horizon as city officials are re-writing the rules after soliciting public input and pushing compliance deadlines farther into the future. While the Energize Denver Building Performance Policy sets energy-saving targets for buildings 25,000 square feet and larger, building owners and industry representatives say the policies are forcing a switch from natural gas to full electrification in violation of federal law. According to the c...
Read More
GJ City Council considers impact-fee consequences
No Comments
Approved, Local, The Business Times

GJ City Council considers impact-fee consequences

By The Business Times The Grand Junction City Council convened March 5 to participate in a second reading of proposed impact-fee increases, a topic that has sparked significant debate among council members, city staff and community stakeholders. The meeting included public comments from a variety of  residents, city advisory board members and industry representatives. Community Development director Tamara Allen, provided an overview of the study and of some recently proposed concessions, including increasing the rollout timeline to three years and changing the calculations for transportation fees to represent the costs per mile prior to the new Transportation Engineering Design Standards completed in 2023. READ MORE AT THEBUSINESSTIMES.COM
Read More
Colorado crime and Aurora’s experience with auto theft  
No Comments
Approved, Common Sense Institute, Local

Colorado crime and Aurora’s experience with auto theft  

By Common Sense Institute Colorado’s crime rate is not back to its pre-pandemic level. Both local and state authorities are currently attempting to find policy solutions.  Some localities have created policies and procedures that go beyond state guidelines in an effort to control crime. The City of Aurora implemented mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines for auto theft in 2022, for example, the year that Colorado’s and Aurora’s auto theft rates were highest. This policy led to a decrease in the auto theft rate in the city beyond what was seen statewide. In 2023, state lawmakers tried to address auto theft with passage of SB23-097. This bill did not implement mandatory minimum sentences, but instead made it a felony to commit auto theft regardless of the value of the vehicle. T...
Read More
Rio Blanco County hires deputy trained to investigate livestock depredation
No Comments
Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Rio Blanco County hires deputy trained to investigate livestock depredation

By Lindy Browning | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Responding to concerns of livestock growers and community members, and to assist in investigating livestock depredations that occur in Rio Blanco County, commissioners have authorized the sheriff’s office to hire their first Animal and Livestock Conflict Investigator. Some have voiced concerns that, to receive compensation for livestock killed by wolves, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) must confirm the kill was caused by a wolf. When a rancher finds a dead animal, they are instructed to call CPW to investigate. Sometimes CPW could not come out to the ranch or grazing allotment for a day or two. In the meantime, other wild animals and birds were coming to the carcass and changing the “scene of the crime,” making it mor...
Read More
More than 50 seniors need help after explosion in Denver
No Comments
Approved, Denverite, Local

More than 50 seniors need help after explosion in Denver

By Haylee May | Denverite Ten people were injured and at least 50 more were displaced by an explosion at Eastern Star Masonic Retirement Campus. Dozens of residents were displaced from their homes after a construction crew dug into a power line at the Eastern Star Masonic Retirement Campus Wednesday, apparently triggering an explosion and fire.  No one has died as a result of their injuries from the explosion, the Denver Office of the Medical Examiner told Denverite on Thursday. Denver Fire Department Capt. Luis Cedillo said 10 people were transported with injuries to various hospitals, but did not have an update on anyone’s identity or condition as of Thursday afternoon. Fire officials previously said eight people were transported, but that number grew on Wednes...
Read More
Woman pleads guilty in Colorado Springs hate crime hoax
No Comments
American Faith, Approved, Local

Woman pleads guilty in Colorado Springs hate crime hoax

ByTamira Musgrave | American Faith A Colorado woman has pleaded guilty to a federal charge related to a 2023 hate crime hoax involving a burning cross and a defaced campaign sign. Deanna West, 38, admitted to maliciously conveying false information with a threat, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado. The incident, which took place on April 23, 2023, targeted a mayoral campaign sign for then-candidate Yemi Mobolade in Colorado Springs. West conspired with two others, Derrick Bernard Jr. and Ashley Blackcloud, both of whom have been indicted and are awaiting trial. Prosecutors say the three orchestrated the hoax by burning a cross near Mobolade’s campaign sign and later spreading false information about the event. Mobolade, originally f...
Read More
Denver Arrest Warrant Raises Stakes for Controversial Aurora Property Manager
No Comments
Approved, Local, Westword

Denver Arrest Warrant Raises Stakes for Controversial Aurora Property Manager

By Bennito L. Kelty | Westword Called "out-of-state slumlords" by Aurora's mayor, the owners of CBZ Management are now wanted in Denver months after entering the public spotlight. The owners of CBZ Management, a controversial property management firm, have a warrant out for their arrests for failing to appear in Denver court on March 10, to resolve fines for property code violations. An arrest warrant issued by a Denver County judge raises the stakes for the Brooklyn-based property owners, who triggered a media storm in Aurora after they blamed the abysmal conditions at their apartment complexes on a violent Venezuelan gang takeover. The warrant was issued for Zev and Shmaryahu Baumgarten after the two failed to appear for a deposition hearing as the owners of CBZ Man...
Read More
Taxed and voiceless: How a debt trap turned Meadows Metro District residents into an ATM for bondholders
No Comments
Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Taxed and voiceless: How a debt trap turned Meadows Metro District residents into an ATM for bondholders

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Imagine paying a $200 tax each month for a community infrastructure project that was completed decades ago. To add insult to injury, consider being told that you’ll continue doing so for 100 years.  That’s the reality for approximately 20,000 property owners who reside in Meadows Metro District (MMD), Castle Rock's largest neighborhood in Douglas County. The MMD ‘limited tax’ general obligation bonds were issued in 1989 to finance infrastructure, including roads and sewer systems. The project’s initial price tag was $57 million. But residents have paid approximately $400 million, with a remaining debt of $600 million due to a negative amortization structure.  How did a ‘limited tax’ bond turn into a debt that...
Read More
Mesa County Commissioner advocates for fair share of transportation dollars
No Comments
Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Mesa County Commissioner advocates for fair share of transportation dollars

By Lindy Browning | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice With an ever shrinking budget, and an ever increasing demand for state money for road repairs and construction due to increasing population and use on the Western Slope, Mesa County Commissioner, Bobbie Daniels went to the state legislature to put a spotlight on the needs of western Colorado. Her testimony highlighted the growing disparity between urban and rural infrastructure funding and the critical need for investment in the roads that keep Colorado moving. Rural communities, which already face resource limitations, are disproportionately affected. Large-scale infrastructure projects in these areas rely heavily on state and federal funding. Yet, much of the transportation budget is allocated to specialized urban pro...
Read More
New team tackles ‘crime and cleanliness’ near Coors Field with $1M budget ‘funded by a fee on property owners and private money’
No Comments
Approved, Denverite, Local

New team tackles ‘crime and cleanliness’ near Coors Field with $1M budget ‘funded by a fee on property owners and private money’

By Kyle Harris, Denverite A team of 18 unarmed ambassadors is starting all-day patrols of the neighborhood around Coors Field today. It’s part of an effort by a new community group to deter crime, offer services and clean up an area where baseball stadium crowds and thousands of residents mingle among many of the city's homeless facilities. The ambassadors will patrol dozens of blocks near the stadium from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week. The project is funded by the Ballpark District, a community organization that recently activated a seven-figure budget for services like this. “The focus is … crime prevention and trying to stay on top of the issues down here,” said Jamie Giellis, who works with Ballpark and other communities around the country as they organize and f...
Read More