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Simple Backyard Upgrade Leads To Costly Zoning Battle in Denver
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Simple Backyard Upgrade Leads To Costly Zoning Battle in Denver

By Chierstin Roth | CBS Colorado Denver homeowner EJ Braquet built a pergola over his back patio for his aging mother back in 2023. She can no longer make it to the nearby park, so he wanted to give her a shaded spot in the backyard to get outside. However, he could never have imagined what happened next.  "I basically said I don't want to cut any corners," said Braquet. "I want to build it right and build it nice." Little did he know that his backyard project would spark a multi-year battle with the city. "Didn't have anything to hide, didn't realize I needed a permit at the time, I thought this was very similar to what you could buy at Costco and assemble yourself," Braquet said. Braquet says he was contacted by city zoning after a neighbor reported th...
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Former Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen Enters City Council Race in Southwest Denver
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CBS Colorado, Approved, Local

Former Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen Enters City Council Race in Southwest Denver

By Brian Maass | CBS Colorado Former Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen, who retired as chief in 2022, plans to announce next week that he is running for a seat on Denver City Council. Pazen confirmed his intentions Tuesday night, telling CBS Colorado, "I'm running for Denver City Council District 2 because southwest Denver deserves leadership that listens, shows up, and will work tirelessly for the people who live and work here." READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT CBS COLORADO
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Critics Say City Resources Misused in Denver’s $1 Billion Bond Campaign
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Colorado Politics, Approved, Local

Critics Say City Resources Misused in Denver’s $1 Billion Bond Campaign

By Deborah Smith | Colorado Politics A group that is seeking to push back on government debt argued that big dollars are rolling in from funders supporting Mayor Mike Johnston’s $1 billion debt package and alleged some of those contributions may be legally prohibited. The group said the contributors included entities that receive taxpayer funding, questioning whether public money is going to the campaign that seeks to persuade voters to support the borrowing package. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is asking residents to let the city take on nearly $1 billion in new debt as part of his “Vibrant Denver” bond initiative on the Nov. 4 ballot. City officials have framed the bond as a “much-needed” investment in the city’s future, aimed at repairing and improving infrastructure and commu...
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Denver’s first citywide furlough day: Here’s what’s open and closed
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kdvr.com, Approved, Local

Denver’s first citywide furlough day: Here’s what’s open and closed

By Heather Willard | Fox31 DENVER (KDVR) — The city of Denver’s budget hole will impact residents on Friday during the first of two citywide furlough days. The city will close its libraries, recreation centers, courts and the majority of its offices on both Friday and Monday. Monday’s closures are due to the Labor Day holiday, while Friday’s are due to the citywide furlough day spurred by the city’s budget, which faced a $200 million gap. The furlough days come after the city and county laid off 169 employees and cut another 665 unfilled positions, while also implementing tiered furlough day schedules based on pay grade. A second citywide furlough day is scheduled for Nov. 28 — Black Friday. These Denver offices will be open Aug. 29, Sept. 1 The Denver Animal ...
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Denver Eliminates Jobs but Preserves Core Public Safety Services
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Denver Eliminates Jobs but Preserves Core Public Safety Services

By Deborah Grigsby and Dan Boniface | The Denver Gazette Denver's Office of Transportation and Infrastructure lost the most employees with 31 layoffs. The specifics of Denver's staffing layoffs became clearer on Wednesday, when Mayor Mike Johnston revealed the positions that have been eliminated within city agencies this week. Some agencies took a heavy hit, where the Johnston administration cut as much as a third of their budgeted workforce. The public safety agencies saw nearly 100 vacant positions eliminated, though no officer was laid off.   The mayor sought to guarantee no impact to several services, but he hinted that the cuts will affect programs. Even his own initiative on homelessness — he had promised to end the crisis in his first term as may...
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Denver Cuts Costs With Targeted Staff Reductions Amid Budget Crisis
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Local, Approved, kdvr.com

Denver Cuts Costs With Targeted Staff Reductions Amid Budget Crisis

By Parker Gordon | KDVR Fox 31 DENVER (KDVR) — The city and county of Denver announced it has completed layoff notifications to 169 employees “as part of a larger effort to balance the 2026 budget.” In a press release on Wednesday, the Denver mayor’s office said the 169 city employees were notified and that there will be no additional layoffs or furloughs for the agencies impacted this year. This comes after city workers waited for information on the layoffs when Denver Mayor Mike Johnston sent a letter to city and county employees in July that layoffs would begin on Monday. On Monday, the mayor’s office announced that the city would be eliminating 928 positions as a result of the $200 million budget shortfall. The layoffs were reportedly announced by the mayor’s office to ...
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Homeless Crisis Deepens in Colorado Springs With 52 Percent Jump
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Local, Approved, The Gazette

Homeless Crisis Deepens in Colorado Springs With 52 Percent Jump

By Debbie Kelley | The Gazette A record-high spike of people living on the streets and in homeless shelters and supported housing programs in El Paso County is reflected in data released Monday from this year’s federally required Point-in-Time and Housing Inventory Count. The number of people countywide who described themselves as homeless on the night of Jan. 26 ballooned from 1,146 in 2024, to 1,745 people this year, according to the statistics presented by the survey administrator, Pikes Peak Continuum of Care, a group of service providers and other members. That’s a 52% increase year-over-year and tops the county’s 2018 record of 1,551. “This data should be interpreted with context and caution,” Becky Treece, chair of the governing board of the continuum of care said at a p...
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Three finalists picked from pool of 34 for Aurora’s open seat on City Council
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, Local

Three finalists picked from pool of 34 for Aurora’s open seat on City Council

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette, via Colorado Politics Aurora councilmembers on Monday picked three candidates to interview for the open at-large position on the council. The interviews will happen in early December. Dustin Zvonek, the city's previous mayor pro tem, announced his early departure from his position from the council in October, opening up a seat on the 11-person body. The council received a total of 34 applications for the position. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Aurora City Council goes virtual, making changes to rules for public comment
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Aurora City Council goes virtual, making changes to rules for public comment

By Tori Mason | CBS Colorado The Aurora City Council voted to move forward with a resolution that would change the rules for public comment after recent meetings have been interrupted by protesters supporting the family of Kilyn Lewis, an unarmed Black man shot and killed by Aurora police.  On Monday, community members demanded justice for Lewis at the great lawn outside the Aurora Municipal Center. The rally took place ahead of a virtual city council meeting that many feel was strategically shifted to avoid public confrontation. Due to recent disruptions, the city made this week's meeting virtual. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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In Aquilar, city attorney resigns, clerk placed on administrative leave over mounting financial concerns
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Approved, Local, World Journal

In Aquilar, city attorney resigns, clerk placed on administrative leave over mounting financial concerns

By Ruth Stodghill | The World Journal The financial problems looming over the Town of Aguilar in recent months turned into a full blown Chernobyl-style meltdown at the July 25 meeting of the Board of Trustees, with allegations of overspending that had completely drained the town’s general fund and delinquent payments that triggered threats of litigation against the town. And just like any nuclear meltdown, the fallout was catastrophic: staffing shake ups included the resignation of the town attorney and the placement of the town clerk on administrative leave. The first financial bomb to drop occurred as the board was preparing to enter into an executive session to discuss the town’s newly constructed augmentation pond.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE WORLD JOURNAL
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