Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Homelessness

Hall: A $250K farewell tour for Grand Junction city council’s ‘feckless foursome’
Approved, Local, The Business Times

Hall: A $250K farewell tour for Grand Junction city council’s ‘feckless foursome’

By Craig Hall, Publisher/Owner | Commentary, The Business Times Oops, they did it again. That’s right, after being rejected outright in the latest, ill-timed, usually-low-voter-turnout-to-benefit-progressives, springtime elections, our city council once again generously served up another slice of cake while completely ignoring the voice of the people who screamed loudly on April 8, “We don’t want your ideas, follies or leadership anymore!” I’d say they have deaf ears, but that would imply they are at least attempting to listen to the people. Instead, in their alternative Grand Junction universe our Feckless Foursome of “Abe the Sausage King of Grand Junction (and if you don’t get the joke, this column won’t hit your reality either) Herman,” “Anna the Stout, confident progressiv...
‘A revolving door’: Does cite-and-release system in Colorado Springs trap homeless in an endless court cycle?
Approved, Colorado Springs Gazette, Local

‘A revolving door’: Does cite-and-release system in Colorado Springs trap homeless in an endless court cycle?

By DEBBIE KELLEY | The Gazette The defendant who tops the “failure to appear” list for mandatory Colorado Springs Municipal Court hearings has 25 open cases and 300 instances of not showing up, a situation that makes the presiding administrator, Judge HayDen W. Kane II, shake his head and heave a deep sigh. Another 20 defendants each have racked up more than 100 failures to appear in court, he said. And the blatantly delinquent behavior is increasing. “It’s a revolving door that is nothing but work for anybody, including the defendant,” Kane said. “We don’t get anything accomplished.” Many offenders are ticketed for activities related to living in a state of ongoing homelessness. READ FULL ARTICLE ON THE GAZETTE
New team tackles ‘crime and cleanliness’ near Coors Field with $1M budget ‘funded by a fee on property owners and private money’
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...
Montrose City Council to hear second reading of camping ban
Approved, KKCO-TV Grand Junction, Local

Montrose City Council to hear second reading of camping ban

By Kyran Nigro | WesternSlopeNow.com Montrose City Council is currently working on an ordinance to ban overnight camping in their public spaces and parks. The city council already had its first reading of the ordinance last week, and the second will take place Tuesday, Oct. 29 before taking a vote to make it an official policy. READ THE FULL STORY AT WESTERNSLOPENOW.COM
Douglas County bucks trend on handouts – and homeless population craters
Approved, Fox News, Local

Douglas County bucks trend on handouts – and homeless population craters

By Christina Coulter  | Fox News Due south of Denver's homelessness crisis, a  Colorado county has nearly eradicated its own unhoused population with a simple message to its citizens: "Handouts Don't Help." Throughout Douglas County, there are about 70 signs with the message at intersections and roadways that were once popular hangouts for area panhandlers. Each sign directs citizens to DouglasHasHeart.org, where they can redirect their donations to the Douglas County Community Foundation. The county took to print media and advertisements online to spread the message through the community. "The thought dawned on me from a common sense standpoint – I saw a lot of people like my daughter feeling conflicted at an intersection," Republican Douglas County Commissioner Ab...