Arrest a davit: Georgetown man confesses in death of Paul Peavey
BY CHRIS KOEBERL CKOEBERL@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
During multiple interviews with investigators, Sergio Ferrer of Georgetown admitted he shot Idaho Springs resident Paul Peavey to death. And, Ferrer used Peavey’s 9mm handgun, according to court documents obtained by the Clear Creek Courant. In a convoluted arrest a davit, Frerrer told Clear Creek County Sheri ’s O ce investigators a variation of stories, but all ended with him shooting Peavey to death.
Ferrer is being held on·charges of rst-degree murder, felony murder
We’d like to know about events or activities of interest to the community. Visit www.clearcreekcourant. com/calendar/ and post your event online for free. Email ckoeberl@coloradocommunitymedia.com to get items in the newspaper. Items will appear in
UPCOMING
Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation District: 3:30-5:30 p.m. Wednesdays in September at Georgetown Community School, After School Cooking Class. Ages 5 years old and up. Register at www. clearcreekrecreation.com
and aggravated robbery in connection with Peavey’s death, according to the Clear Creek County Sheri ’s O ce.
Peavey was well known for breeding Dobermans, according to locals, who said he had a real passion for his puppies, which were missing when his body was found.
“ ose dogs were his life, I mean, his entire world revolved around those dogs of his and those puppies,” Idaho Springs resident Gary Burke said.
Friends of Peavey led a missing person report on Aug. 21 after he had been missing for days.
Annual Floyd Hill Neighborhood Picnic: 12-3 p.m. Sept. 14 at Evergreen Park 333 Beaver Brook Canyon Road in Evergreen. Sandwiches, snacks and drinks provided by Neighbors of Floyd Hill.
Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation District: Tuesdays Sept. 17Oct 29 Idaho Springs Ghost Tours “A trip through the darker parts of Idaho Springs history. Ages 13 years old and up. For times and tickets contact Jessi at jsteele@ccmrd.com
Clear Creek County Commission: Regularly scheduled meeting of the county commission at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 17 at the County Building at 405 Argentine St. in Georgetown.
Devils’ Gate History Club: “Georgetown’s John Tomay Memo-
rial Library: 100 years,” presented by District Library Director Libby Caplan and Archives Research Librarian Sean Babbs. 7 p.m. Friday Sept. 20 Georgetown Community Center, 6th St. and Argentine. Admission is free, but donations are welcome.
Clear Creek Democrats:Democratic candidate night:6 p.m. Sept 25 at the Unity Center in Idaho Springs.
Georgetown BigHorn Sheep Festival: 10 a.m. Nov. 9. 600 6th St. in Georgetown. Gateway Visitor Center o ers trained volunteers with binoculars and spotting scopes to help viewers locate bighorn sheep and offer a brief lesson on the animals.
ONGOING
CASA of the Continental Divide seeks volunteers:CASACD promotes and protects the best interests of abused and neglected children involved in court proceedings through the advocacy e orts of trained CASA volunteers. Be the di erence and advocate for the youth in our community. e o ce can be reached at 970-513-9390.
Test sirens scheduled: In an effort to notify people in the town of Georgetown of potential ooding due to the unlikely event of a dam failure at Xcel Energy’s Cabin Creek or Georgetown hydroelectric plants, sirens will be tested the rst Wednes-
day of every month.
Clear Creek EMS/Evergreen Fire Rescue Launch Mugs for Rugs Campaign: Bring an old throw rug and you’ll leave with a bright green mug! You can bring them to Station 1A in Dumont, 3400 Stanley Road, or you can email captains@ clearcreekems.com and CCEMS will come to you to make the trade. Clear Creek EMS also o ers fall-risk assessments by bringing someone from the re department to make sure smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working properly. To request a visit, ll out the form at clearcreekcounty.us/1388/Community-Outreach.
Clear Creek Democrats: e Clear Creek Democrats meet from 5-7 p.m. the third ursday of the month at the Vintage Moose in Idaho Springs. Join them for conversation and social time.
cines are available from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesdays at the Clear Creek Health and Wellness Center, 1969 Miner St., Idaho Springs. No appointments required for the vaccines, though you can pre-register by calling 303-670-7528.
Resilience1220 counseling: Young people 12 to 20 can get free counseling through an Evergreenbased organization called Resilience1220. Composed of licensed therapists, Resilience1220 serves individuals and groups in the foothills including Clear Creek County. ey also facilitate school and community groups to build life skills in wellness and resilience among youth. For more information or to schedule a counseling session, visit R1220.org, email Resilience1220@gmail.com or call 720-282-1164.
Blue Spruce Habitat volunteers needed: Blue Spruce Habitat for Humanity is looking for volunteers. A variety of opportunities and exible schedules are available on new construction sites as well as for exterior minor home repairs. No previous construction experience needed. Contact volunteer@bluesprucehabitat.org for information.
Walk-in vaccine clinics: Walk-in vaccine clinics for adults and children needing u and other vac-
Dental clinics: Cleanings, X-rays, dentures, tooth extractions and more. Most insurances are accepted including Medicaid. Sliding scale/ low-cost options are also available. No appointment necessary. is is a mobile dentist that comes once a month. Call program manager Lauralee at 720-205-4449 for questions.
Clear Creek Rotary 2000 meetings: Clear Creek Rotary 2000 meets at 7:30 a.m. Wednesdays at Marion’s of the Rockies. 2805 Colorado Blvd., Idaho Springs. For more informa-
Paul Peavey with his prize winning Doberman at the Colorado Kennel Club.
PEAVEY
More than a dozen locals and friends of Peavey organized and executed a search Aug. 24 after what Burke called “inaction” from the sheri ’s department.
“We found his (Peavey’s) body within the rst ve minutes of searching,” he said. He said the body was found about 75 yards from his camper/home and about 25 yards down a hill. e body, Burke said, was partially covered by brush.
On Aug. 25, sheri ’s deputies, the Summit County Sheri ’s O ce and Colorado Bureau of Investigation searched Ferrer’s home in Georgetown with a warrant.
Inside Ferrer’s home, investigators found a black bag containing jewelry that belonged to Peavey, a Sig Sauer
CURRENTS
tion, email loe er806@comcast. net.
Support after suicide loss: A safe place to share and learn after losing a loved one to suicide. is group meets every fourth Wednesday of the month from 5:30-7:30 p.m. via Zoom or in person at the Resilience1220 o ce. For ages 14 and up. Suggested donation for this group is $15. Register at resilience1220.org/groups.
9mm handgun, four metal detectors that belonged to Peavey and a cellphone with Paul Peavey’s name on it, according to the a davit.
Several items of clothing with “possible blood” were also seized, according to the a davit. Investigators told Ferrer the 9mm handgun matched the weapon used to kill Peavey. Ferrer responded, “ en I took the wrong fu**ing 9mm and I’m really fu**ed,” according to the a davit.
In his changing stories in the afdavit, Ferrer claimed to investigators that Peavey shot at him rst in a dispute over drugs. Ferrer also told investigators Peavey kept “18 keys (kilos),” a reference to illegal drugs, on the property for a “cartel,” but the drugs were missing. Ferrer claimed Peavey accused him of stealing the drugs, adding that Peavey told him he had “orders” and pulled out a Derringer pistol and red a single
Storytime with Miss Honeybun: Storytime with Miss Honeybun is at 11:15 a.m. Tuesdays at the Idaho Springs Public Library and at 11:15 a.m. ursdays at the John Tomay Memorial Library in Georgetown.
Sensitive collection: Resilience1220 strives to inform and support highly sensitive people to live healthy and empowered lives. It meets the third Wednesday of each month from 6-7 p.m. and is o ered via Zoom or in person at the Resilience1220 o ce. Register at resilience1220.org/groups.
shot at him. A “Derringer pistol” has not been recovered by investigators, according to documents.
Ferrer then told investigators he pulled out Peavey’s 9mm handgun and said he shot Peavey but he “did not know how many times he shot.”
When asked about the Doberman puppies raised by Peavey that were missing when his body was discovered and if they had been taken and sold, Ferrer told investigators, “I didn’t sell nobody a pup.”
Ferrer then told investigators “he covered up Peavey’s body and that he did it ‘out of respect,’” according to documents.
Concern over Peavey prompted concern locally and led to a meaculpa statement from Clear Creek County Sheri Matt Harris, who apologized for his o ce’s initial response to the missing person report nearly a week before Peavey’s body was found.
Harris said the sheri ’s department failed to take key steps in the case.
“ ese steps include a more thorough search of Mr. Peavey’s property, sharing his information on our social media sites, and participating in the organized search for Mr. Peavey,” he said.
Harris added: “Unfortunately, during our initial assessment upon the report of a missing person… our response failed to meet our professional standards. How we handled the initial call is not acceptable.” e investigation into Peavey’s death and the missing puppies continues.
More: e Clear Creek County Sheri ’s O ce is seeking information about the case at its tip line at 303-670-7567 and via email at crime_tips@clearcreeksheri .us or anonymously at https://bit.ly/CCSOCrimeTips
Je erson Center for Mental Health councilors visit Clear Creek County following Idaho Springs homicide
BY CHRIS KOEBERL CKOEBERL@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Trained mental health counselors invited Idaho Springs residents affected by the recent death of local Paul Peavey to talk about feelings and anxiety surrounding the murder.
The Jefferson Center for Mental Health, in Jefferson County, routinely assists Clear Creek County EMS and other local services with mental health issues and traumatic events, according to Adult Intensive Services Manager Erin Hart.
“He was very much a part of this community and that loss is going to be really felt, people who are used to seeing him, he’s just not going to be there and it’s shocking
CommonSpirit
too, it’s not something that anyone thought they would ever hear.” Hart said.
Friends of Paul Peavey filed a missing person report with the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office Aug. 21 after they said he had been missing for days.
A locally organized search of Peavey’s Idaho Springs property found his body Aug. 24.
The man suspected in the death of Peavey has been in custody since Aug. 24 on an unrelated charge and warrant out of Nebraska, according to the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office.
Sergio Ferrer is being held on charges of first-degree murder, felony murder and aggravated robbery in connection with Peavey’s death, according to a press release
from CCSO.
Peavey was well-liked and respected by many Idaho Springs locals and his sudden death came as a shock to many locals who reached out to the Courant.
Dealing with loss and the grief that follows, especially in a sudden and violent death, Hart says can take an emotional toll that manifests in several ways.
“For some of the people that were directly involved they may be having trauma responses, so they may be re-experiencing an event or part of the event,” Hart said. “They may be having intrusive thoughts or memories, they may be having nightmares, irritability, difficulty sleeping, eating or they may just feel off and not really know what that’s about.”
One of the most difficult challenges for anyone dealing with loss, anxiety or depression is recognizing the signs that they may need to reach out for help and destigmatizing making that call, according to Hart.
“If you find that you’re struggling to get back into your routine, you’re really irritable, if you find you’re just not yourself, your motivation is off, you don’t want to go to work, you don’t want to get out of bed in the morning,” Hart said. “Those are good signs there’s something going on and you might want to talk to someone.”
Jefferson Center for Mental Health appointments can be made by calling 303-425-0300 or on-line at https://www.jcmh.org/gettingstarted/request-appointment/.
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Sayler & Sons Excavating
Coldwell Banker
ROI Fire & Ballistics Equipment, Inc.
Asphalt Artistry
Clear Creek Cidery
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Evergreen National Bank
First Bank, Evergreen Branch
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Tommy Knocker Brewery/Coors
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Foothills Auto & Truck Parts/NAPA
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Keller Williams Foothills Realty
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Big Chili would like to thank all of the sponsors for their support at this year’s Big Chili!! thank you!
Rocky Mountain Bottled Water
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Ciderfest returns to Morrison
Annual event draws thousands but maintains small-town feeling
BY JANE REUTER JREUTER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Morrison’s biggest event of the year returns Sept. 28. Ciderfest typically draws up to 4,000 people for live music, cider press demonstrations, hayrides, food and beer, but it began as a one-woman e ort to create a bit of community.
irty-three years ago, longtime resident Jamee Chambers took her cider press to the front lawn of Prestige Care Center.
“It’s the biggest gathering space we have,” Chambers said of the nursing home’s grassy expanse. “My idea was to have people in town bring their apples to the cider press. Partly it was seeing apples fall o the trees; I didn’t want them to go to waste.
“And I just thought it was a good excuse for us to have a community thing,” she continued. “ e people in the nursing home get to meet the town people, and vice versa. What a great fall thing to do.”
Year by year, the event grew. Chambers asked local residents to bring their tractors and line them up on the lawn,
drawing more attendees.
“It became the tractor show and cider fest,” she said. “Most of the people in the nursing home had roots in rural areas and were thrilled.”
In 2006, the town lent its support and Ciderfest became a large annual festival. Today, it’s led by a committee and has a long list of sponsors. e day-long event, which runs from 10 a.m. til dark, includes kids’ activities, 25 arts and crafts booths, a silent auction, hay rides, four bands, food trucks and beer tents and hard cider tastings.
It also still includes Chambers, who goes by the name Apple Annie during the event and does cider press demonstrations and tastings.
“I just stood back and let it happen and it took o ,” Chambers said. “ ere are thousands who attend now. It isn’t just a townie thing anymore, but it still has that small-town feel to it.”
is year’s lineup of bands includes the Morrison Town Band at 10 a.m., Pennies on the Track at noon, at Damn Sasquatch at 2 p.m. and Vamos Pest at 4 p.m.
Admission to the event at 100 Summer Street is free, with vendors selling food and beer and ticketed hard-cider tastings available.
For more information, visit morrisonciderfest. org.
Morrison resident Jamee Chambers, who started Ciderfest 33 years ago, plays the role of Apple Annie during the annual event as she conducts cider press demonstrations.
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Creek
(USPS 52610) A legal newspaper of general circulation in Idaho Springs, Colorado, the Clear Creek Courant is published
PHOTO COURTESY OF MORRISON CIDERFEST
VOICES
Town Hall Arts Center Starts New Season with ‘Jersey Boys’
Music is such a fast-moving artform, always celebrating the new thing, that it can be easy to forget that musical history is built on the artists and genres that came before.
So, that means that while many young people don’t know it today, Frankie Valli and e Four Seasons had hits. And those hits mattered when they were being made and they still matter now. e stories behind songs like “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” and “Can’t Take My Eyes O of You,” are explored on Littleton Town Hall Arts Center’s stage by the musical “Jersey Boys.”
“I want to get audiences as close to the story as possible,” said director Matthew Dailey. “ e bene t of a space like Town Hall is you can put the audience right there in the booth with the musicians and make them part of this incredible rags to riches story.”
“Jersey Boys” runs at the theater, 2450 Main St., through Sunday, Oct. 6. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. ursday through Friday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Told in a docu-musical format, the show follows Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Nick Massi and Tommy DeVito as they make their way from New Jersey to the peak of the music world. Each band member gets the opportunity to tell their side of the story, providing a window into what it takes to make it
TCOMING ATTRACTIONS
as a musician.
e show is one Dailey, a Colorado native, is very familiar with — he played DeVito in the Broadway National Tour for three years and as such, understands just how to tell the
“It’s really a show about sound. It’s about four guys struggling to nd their sound and what they’re willing to sacri ce to hold onto the sound when nd it,” he said. “ e group we’ve put together is great and it’s an almost out-of-body experience to work on a show I’m so close to.”
While the songs that made Franki Valli and e Four Seasons superstars may be decades old, that doesn’t lessen the impact of their story, nor does it mean that “Jersey Boys” will only appeal to older audiences. e show has everything, from a history of pop music and dancing to great characters and elements of a mob story.
“Younger people know this music, even if they don’t know they know it,” Dailey said. “It’s a real experience that will give younger people an appreciation of a time gone by, and for older generations, it’s an opportunity to sit back and analyze the soundtrack of their life.”
Information and tickets are available at https://townhallartscenter. org/event/jersey-boys/.
High West Oyster Fest returns to Jax Fish House
Colorado might be the last place you’d think of to hold an oyster festival, but Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar has been hosting the High West Oyster Fest for years. is year’s festival, which is held at Town Hall, 1535 Spruce St. in Boulder, on ursday, Sept. 19, marks the restaurant’s 30th anniversary and will support local charity ere With Care. e festival includes unlimited oysters, curated beverage stations, live oyster shucking and eating competitions, live music and entertainment and more.
Find all the details at https://www. jax shhouse.com/hwof/.
JAAMM Festival hosts Ari Melber e Neustadt Jewish Arts, Authors, Movies and Music Festival (JAAMM Festival) at the Mizel Arts and Culture Center, 350 S. Dahlia St. in Denver, kicked o on Sept. 2 and is bringing all kinds of fascinating events to the metro area throughout the fall.
One of the most exciting is also the perfect pair for the autumn of an election year: MSNBC journalist and author Ari Melber will be at the center at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 14. Melber is an Emmy-winning journalist,
news anchor, writer and attorney and will be discussing the election, current events and more.
Find information on the whole festival and tickets for Melber athttps:// www.jccdenver.org/arts-culture/festivals/jaamm-festival/.
Clarke’s Concert of the Week — Kacey Musgraves at Fiddler’s Green ere’s a lot to love about Kacey Musgraves, beyond just her stunning discography. ere’s her sense of humor (check her social media for that), her willingness to go against the grain of country music and embrace diversity and the LGBTQ+ community, and her ability to add ourishes of other genres to country. Her latest album, this year’s’ “Deeper Well,” is lovely and searching, and blends all of the above into a wonderful listen.
In support of the record, Musgraves is coming to Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre, 6350 Greenwood Plaza Blvd., at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15. As a testament to the many musical genres Musgraves embraces, she has two killer openers – folk/bluegrass legends Nickel Creek and dynamic songwriter Father John Misty. Get tickets at www.ticketmaster. com.
Clarke Reader’s column on culture appears on a weekly basis. He can be reached at Clarke.Reader@hotmail. com.
September could be turning point
his could be a pivotal month for our economy. Will the rst interest rate cut since the COVID-19 pandemic be announced this month?¹ Turning to October, what will third-quarter earnings look like? What about projections for the last quarter of the year? Whatever happens in the next few weeks may paint the picture for the history books for all of 2024. Investors may be wondering how to navigate all the economic news
that is likely to ood our eyes and ears in the coming months. Oh, and don’t forget, there is also an election.
We may have forgotten that many thought the rst interest rate increase in March 2022 after the pandemic would throw the economy
into recession. Remember that the 10 rate hikes that followed were designed to curb in ation, much of which was caused by clogged supply chains and other shortages that sent prices up. Headlines over the last two and a half years have often been about a “soft landing.” In other words, could the Federal Reserve pull o interest rate hikes without dampening economic growth to the point of recession? Well, so far we have made it all the way through the interest rate
hiking cycle with no recession. Now Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is talking about beginning to lower interest rates now that in ation is under control. He may also see indications that the housing market and the job market have cooled o a bit.
I caution investors to be prepared for stock market volatility when rates do start to go back down, even though we should think that would fuel the
Clarke Reader
KUMMER
economy in a positive way. e reverse psychology that often plagues the stock market could be based on the theory that if we need to cut rates, the economy must be worse o than we think.
Do not base long-term decisions on the mindset of less-educated investors or try to follow the herd. You and your advisor can rise above the noise and look at the fundamentals to make a good strategy going forward.
Fixed income investors who have been enjoying nicer interest rates recently will also be in for a change as
ABOUT LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
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• Email your letter to kfiore@coloradocommunitymedia.com. Do not send via postal mail. Put the words “letter to the editor” in the email subject line.
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interest rates decline. While your income may be reduced, it is most likely that your bond values will increase. Work with your advisor in determining what term is best for you during this pivot on rates by the Fed. ere may be a good reason why the 10-year Treasury is paying less than a twoyear bond. is is giving us a peek into the future of where rates are expected to be. So, beware when you try to reinvest that shorter-term bond in two years. You need patience with both the equity and the xed income side of your portfolio during these exciting times.
1. Forbes: Federal Funds rate history
Patricia Kummer is managing director for Mariner Wealth Advisors.
Colorado Community Media and should not submitted to other outlets or previously posted on websites or social media. Submitted letters become the property of CCM and should not be republished elsewhere.
• Letters advocating for a political candidate should focus on that candidate’s qualifications for o ce. We cannot publish letters that contain unverified negative information about a candidate’s opponent. Letters advocating for or against a political candidate or ballot issue will not be published within 12 days of an election.
Short-term rental owners, advocates work to combat ‘heavy-handed regulation’
BY JASON BLEVINS THE COLORADO SUN
tourism economies to thrive, we need short-term rentals in places where the world wants to be.”
Colorado is the birthplace of shortterm rentals. And the state is groundzero for local regulation of the booming industry.
After several years of reactive, defensive responses to increased regulation and taxation legislation, the state’s short-term rental owners and managers are organizing with an educational campaign and lawmaker lobbying plans. Colorado House Speaker Rep. Julie McCluskie, a Democrat from Dillon, earlier this month warned that short-term rental legislation “is highly likely” in either the special session or next year’s session.
“We know that short-term rentals have become a signi cant part of the guest experience,” she said at a rally of short-term rental owners, managers and representatives from Vrbo in Silverthorne last week. “In order for our
With no short-term rental legislation during the special session where lawmakers hammered out a plan for property tax relief, “it does feel like we dodged a bullet,” said Julie Koster, the executive director of the Colorado Lodging and Resort Alliance and the Summit Alliance of Vacation Rental Managers.
Property owners and short-term rental advocates are planning to lobby and court policymakers heading into next year’s legislative session, hoping to sti e increased limitations on vacation rentals. Earlier this year, as the legislature debated Senate Bill 33 — legislation that would have quadrupled property taxes on vacation rental homes — McCluskie elded more than 2,000 emails from constituents
IT’S PATIO FURNITURE REPAIR SEASON
RENTALS
in one week. e third-term representative said she has never received so many emails.
She urged the short-term rental advocates gathered inside the Silverthorne Pavilion earlier this month to reach out now to lawmakers and share data — not just anecdotes — about vacation homes that rent to visitors.
“Short-term rentals are the new frontier for how we experience life. People are letting go of buying things and they are embracing ‘What happened to me yesterday,’” she said. “How do we ensure that there are short-term rentals available? How do we nd balance?”
Balance is the top talking point for owners and managers who rely on vacationers renting private homes. e
owners on Tuesday discussed the need for all owners to pay lodging taxes and comply with local regulations as they lobby local and state lawmakers to steer clear of what they call “heavyhanded regulation.”
Senate Bill 33, which was voted down in by the Senate Finance Committee, posed “an existential crisis” for the short-term rental industry in Colorado, said Tim Rosolio, who heads up vacation rental partnerships for Vrbo parent the Expedia Group.
“In Colorado, we kind of got to the brink there,” he said.
e crackdown on short-term rentals in cities like New York, Chicago and San Francisco is spilling into resort markets and it’s important that owners and managers organize to help build rules that protect the industry while alleviating concerns from neighbors
Colorado Community Media’s newsroom has already used the results of the Voter Voices surveys we have received so far.
In recent months, we asked readers to take surveys asking what they think candidates for political o ces should focus on as they compete for their votes. e top answer from Colorado Community Media readers across the metro area sounded like something from a civics class: “democracy and good government.”
Our readers said they want the candidates to focus on solutions, even if it means compromises.
As Lisa Anne Bresko, a self-described moderate and business owner from Evergreen, told us, democracy and good government are foundational if our leaders are going to solve the many pressing problems facing our communities.
“I feel there’s very little respect and no more compromise,” Bresko said. “It’s ‘My way or no way’ on a lot of topics. at’s not the way to run a country or get anything done. I feel all of the name calling, the pointing of ngers, the disin-
formation about the people you’re supposed to be working with toward common goals is hurting the ability to get things done.”
More than 400 (and counting) Colorado Community Media readers have lled out our Voter Voices surveys using links in our newsletters and stories or QR codes from newspapers and yers. Our reporters and editors have been using the results to help form the questions we ask politicians in the two dozen Denver-area cities, towns and suburbs we cover. We are partnering with 60 newsrooms across the state in this endeavor. Overall, there are some 6,000 responses. In the surveys, voters are asked to rank their top three issues among 13 categories, revealing their importance. e surveys also allow voters to elaborate in their own words on what they think candidates should focus on.
Additionally, our Colorado Community Media reporters reached out di-
rectly to many survey respondents of all political persuasions to speak to them about their surveys and more. We also went into the community to connect with younger voters, an underrepresented category in the data.
More than 37% of our readers who took the survey cited democracy and good government as their top issue. More moderates and liberals cited it as a top issue than conservatives, but the surveys revealed that it is an important issue regardless of political inclination. Readers’ other top issue was the economy and cost of living, which was cited more by conservatives as their No. 1 issue, yet readers across the political spectrum said it was a top issue.
Phillip McCart, a liberal from Littleton, told us that candidates should focus on ways to help people who are struggling. One way candidates can do that, McCart said, is to work to reduce housing costs by creating more housing density.
During the primaries, we incorporated readers’ concerns about democracy and good government and the economy into questions we asked Republican and Democratic candidates for Congress in our primary forums for Colorado’s 4th District. e forums were co-sponsored with the League of Women Voters Colorado and KUNC public radio.
We plan to do the same for more forums we’re co-sponsoring this fall.
And, our Question and Answer surveys of candidates, which are widely read in print and online ahead of the November elections, will include Voter Voices-inspired questions and themes.
We also got to speak directly to voters and our reporters were met with appreciation in their e orts. is is just the start. We intend to keep the conversations with you going and we’re looking for ways to localize our connections with survey respondents. Watch for that.
Readers also told us they appreciated the opportunity to elaborate on their views and see our journalists as advocates for getting their voices into the process, given our unique access to leaders and candidates. We have more work to do in terms of outreach, especially when it comes to younger voters and another category underrepresented in our results – people of color. Watch this space for future stories about them as we consider Voter Voices a starting point.
A big next step for us will be to work with groups of survey respondents to create a Voter Voices Citizens Agenda for our newsroom that helps guide our every interaction with public o cials and candidates for political o ce.
BY THE COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA NEWSROOM
VOTER VOICES
“Housing costs are destroying the hopes and dreams of everyone,” McCart said. at view was echoed many times in the surveys we gathered. For instance, one moderate Je erson County voter – who wished to remain anonymous – wrote in her survey, “We have a severe lack of a ordable and workforce housing in the metro area, and it is not improving.”
Evergreen resident Norm Sherbert, a conservative on scal issues and moderate on others, told us that everyone, regardless of income, should be concerned that many people across the metro area are struggling.
“I think it a ects us all,” he said. “I see it in my utility bills, the price of gas, grocery bills — and it just keeps climbing.”
Sherbert worries that the Social Security system might not be intact for future generations and believes strong, bipartisan leadership is needed to tackle such problems. He is not impressed
by President Biden or the Democratic and Republican nominees for president, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
“I’m not a Trump fan, and I’m surely not a Biden or Harris fan,” Sherbert said. “It’s a shame we do not have the candidates out there that can really make something happen in the country. I hope we come back to the center and realize it’s not the candidates that are going to drive this country, it’s the issues and how they’re solved.”
Similar views were espoused around our coverage area, which spans from Fort Lupton, Brighton and Commerce City in the north to Je erson County in the west, Idaho Springs in the mountains, Arapahoe and Douglas counties in the south, and Parker and Elbert County in the east.
About half of the readers who responded to our survey consider themselves moderate. About a quarter identify as conservative and another quarter as liberal. About 60% of respondents are women and 40% are men.
Many readers told us that
partisanship has become a never-ending soap opera – with sides squaring o against each other leaving compromises, and the potential solutions to longstanding problems, in the dust. Many shared a feeling that the country has an urgent, almost desperate need for candidates who will talk about issues, especially divisive ones, calmly instead of attacking and dismissing each other.
e stakes, readers say, are just too high given a long list of concerns, from crime to climate change to in ation to immigration to national security. One of the most eye-opening insights from readers is their disdain for grandstanding by candidates, bitter attacks and empty promises.
Michael Wilson, a 65-yearold conservative in Je erson County, said he would like political candidates to talk about what they will do if they are elected.
“I don’t need to hear them try to run down their opponent,” Wilson said.
omas Gibbons, a moderate who lives in the High-
lands Ranch area, said property taxes, local crime and reducing gun violence are important to him, but the problems associated with them can’t be solved if elected leaders are not focused on good governance.
“Elected o cials must nd a way to work together in bipartisan cooperation,” said Gibbons.
Littleton resident Porter Lansing, who identi es as liberal, said he would like to see candidates address the wealth gap between the metro area’s richest and poorest residents, citing concerns about unemployment and in ation. Lansing, who is 70 and disabled, said he lives mainly on his Social Security income.
“Everything’s so expensive, and everything’s going up,” he said. “I don’t want politicians to forget people way down here just because we don’t have money to contribute to their campaigns.”
It’s not just Coloradans who feel the government must improve.
VOTER VOICES
Across the country, positive views of political and governmental institutions are at historic lows, according to the nonpartisan Pew Research Center. Many Americans say they are underwhelmed by candidates and 28% of Americans express unfavorable views of both the Democratic and Republican parties, the highest share in three decades of polling, with a comparable share adding that neither party represents their interests well.
In Voter Voices surveys, newsrooms across Colorado received strikingly similar ndings to ours, with good government and the economy coming out as top issues, closely mirroring the results of our readers. Other important issues cited by survey respondents included the environment, climate and natural resources, immigration and abortion. e vast majority of respondents identi ed as older than 45. at prompted Colorado Community Media to reach out to younger people directly. A reporter and our summer reporting intern used social media to promote the Voter Voices survey on Instagram, tweeting on X and even texting friends and colleagues for help reaching more voters in their 20s and 30s online and in person.
Many of the younger voters shared the same concerns as older voters, particularly regarding good government and the economy.
Ben Warzel, 25, of Littleton, was at
a Denver restaurant as he expressed frustration over how candidates attack each other.
“(Candidates) can have their little pageantry, but we know that they’re not really doing anything,” Warzel said. “It’s just becoming dangerous, the people that we’re having to choose between.”
Some young people spoke about the intersection that the high costs of college and wages play out in their lives.
“I would like to see candidates talk about pay wages, especially with degrees and the cost of college,” a 24-year-old Voter Voices respondent from Arapahoe County who wished to remain anonymous wrote. “I think the cost of college is becoming una ordable even for people who are more well o .”
“Cost of living has not gone down at all over the years,” a 24-year-old respondent to our survey wrote.
Joshua Glenn, 28, of Aurora, said he hopes candidates will focus on a raft of issues – from the economy to the safety of all Americans.
“I would like candidates to focus on climate issues, economic future, abuse of power and the environment,” Glenn said. “Social justice is very important to me as well. As an African-American, and a contributing member of society, I want to feel safe in all parts of the country.”
Kamara Maxie, 24 of Denver, said the cost of living and abortion are the most important issues she wants candidates to address this election. Maxie also said gun safety is an issue that candidates should address.
“I believe having legal guns is important for protection reasons, however, I don’t think we should have weapons of war,” Maxie said. ere were also familiar divisions among conservatives and liberals. For instance, many conservative readers, like Eric Tyrell, who lives in Douglas County, cited immigration and tax policy as important issues. He would like to see candidates close the southern border and cut government spending.
“Government is too big and is still getting bigger every year,” he said. Meanwhile, many liberals, like Kathy Mendt in Adams County, said abortion policy is important.
“Politicians need to keep their laws
o women’s bodies,” Mendt said. She also wants to see candidates who care about the environment.
“How willing are they to address climate change?” Mendt said.
Mary Wylie, an Arvada voter who identi es as a liberal, said climate change is a pressing problem.
“I think climate change is essentially the ballot, depending on who ends up winning the presidency and has control of the government,” Wylie said.
Many survey respondents have similar litmus tests for candidates. For instance, they want to know: Does a candidate support the overturning of Roe v. Wade? Does a candidate support U.S. funding for Israel? Does a candidate believe that Donald Trump won the 2020 election?
Our readers also listed a hodgepodge of local issues. ey included inadequate roads and cell phone “dead zones” in Je erson County, a desire to see more conversation around local control issues, the e ects crime has on businesses and how safe people feel in certain parts of the metro area, among other issues.
And, some said perceptions of communities as conservative or liberal doesn’t provide an accurate reection of reality.
“Douglas County is a red county, but it’s growing a little more blue, especially where I live in northern Highlands Ranch,” Alex Miller, a 60-year-old Highlands Ranch man who identi es as a liberal, told us. “Based on the yard signs in the last election, my neighborhood had as many Biden signs as Trump signs. I think it’s a mistake to write o the county as lost to Republicans.”
Candidates can improve by focusing on the issues instead of attacking each other, many survey respondents said.
“ e negativity and the bashing, I think, is just very divisive and drives us further apart,” Wylie said.
Jane Dvorak, a moderate from Jefferson County who listed democracy and good government as top concerns, said, “ e lack of respect for di ering opinions/ideas is scary.”
“It’s time to take a hard look at how we talk to each other, make decisions and what is best for the whole, not
one person/group,” Dvorak wrote.
To voters like C. Michael Litzau, a 65-year-old moderate Adams County voter, the integrity and ethics of political candidates matters as much as their stance on issues.
“What has their experience been like working with groups during dicult circumstances, and how do they resolve con icts?” Litzau said. “A priority for my evaluation of candidates for elected o ce is their ability to act civilly, even in a time of disagreement.”
RESULTS
Until then, tell us what we’re missing by adding your voice to our Voter Voices survey. Here’s the link: https://tinyurl.com/mv6jxw7w or scan our QR code below with your phone.
Our door is always open. Michael de Yoanna, editor-in-chief
LIFESTYLES
AN ADVERTISING SECTION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY
The 23rd Annual Open Door Studios Tour:
A Glimpse into Artists’ Creativity and the Opportunity to Acquire Tangible Pieces of ‘Forever’ Treasures
FEATURE OF THE MONTH
By Jo Ann M. Colton Special to Lifestyles
On September 21 and 22, 2024 participating artists of the 23rd Annual Open Door Studios (ODS) Tour look forward to welcoming you into their working studios from 10:00 am-5:00pm on Saturday and Sunday to share with you their world, their processes, and their inspirations. e fun- lled Evergreen, Colorado weekend launches with a 6:00-8:00pm reception on Friday, September 20 in the Community Room at Center of the Arts Evergreen at 31880 Rocky Village Drive. e ODS Tour, which is always held on the third weekend in September, is a well-advertised/well-attended free-to-the-public two-day art event that greets people from all over Colorado and nearby states such as Texas, Utah, Wyoming, and New Mexico.
Evergreen’s Open Door Studios Tour, a juried event, requires interested artists to apply in order to be able to participate. ese artists (painters, sculptors, photographers, ceramicists, painted furniture artists, glass blowers, jewelers, etc.) bring their visions to life in oil, pastel, watercolor, acrylic, gouache, bronze, glass, wood, clay, stone, steel, aluminum, found objects, silver, copper, gold and more.
Open Door Studios Tour sponsors for 2024 include: primary sponsor Evergreen Glass (www. EvergreenGlassInc.com), Center for the Arts Evergreen (www.EvergreenArts.org), Evergreen National Bank (www.ENBColorado.com), and Daniel Diamonds (https:// danieldiamonds.com/).
“On behalf of all the artists involved in this year’s tour,” said Jeannette Stutzman who has been the ODS Tour Coordinator since 2011, “we express our heartfelt gratitude to the people/businesses who have given their
Robyn
support to our event as sponsors, advertisers, and volunteers.” For a list of participating artists and their mediums, tour sponsors, and advertisers, visit the ODS Tour website (www. EvergreenOpenDoorStudios.com).
Located just 35 minutes from the Denver area, Evergreen boasts many services and places of interest within its community boundaries including local hotel/lodging options, restaurants, shops, and art galleries that will make your visit an exciting and memorable experience. As you drive from studio to studio, you can also enjoy a scenic tour of the Evergreen mountain area during the fall color season. Get ready for a weekend lled with hours
of colorful visions. Get set to embark upon a self-guided tour using your GPS and a free ODS Tour Book that will lead you to the Evergreen home studios or designated studio locations of this year’s twenty-seven local and incredibly talented participating artists. en go and celebrate the uniquely di erent experience of being able to participate in one-on-one interaction with these artists in order to get answers to your most perplexing art-related questions and help you better understand what motivates these artists and fuels their passion to bring their visions to life. A full-color tour book is available at Evergreen Glass on Industrial Way, many local area shops, and the ODS Tour website (www.EvergreenOpenDoorStudios. com). e free tour book o ers a tour location
Gia Nold #12
Delicious Meals, Delightful Drinks, Decadent Deserts and Beautiful Mountain Sunsets are on the Fall Menu at Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge
By Jo Ann M. Colton Special to Lifestyles
Centrally located in Evergreen’s Bergen Village Shopping Center at 1260 Bergen Parkway (second oor) and boasting ample parking, Evergreen Cocktail & Bread Lounge o ers breakfast favorites and delicious meal selections including hot/cold sandwiches, soups, salads, breads and pastries made daily onsite in its openview bakery, specialty co ees, teas, and beer/wine/cocktails. is delightful food and bakeshop features indoor community room seating where people can come together at two large banquet-style tables with friends and others and a dog-friendly patio area where you can enjoy Evergreen’s skyline, including the
‘Our ‘Alcohol to Go’ Program not only includes bottled wines but also cocktails, which can be purchased to go in sealed plastic containers.’
beautiful mountain sunsets of fall.
Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge is closed on Mondays, but its friendly sta serves customers from 8:00am-6:00pm Tuesday-through-Saturday (Sunday 8:00am-3:00pm).
If you have not already visited
Tyler Butler. General Manager
Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge, you will surely want to put this mouth-watering eatery on the top of your September to-do list. Start your morning o with one of their many breakfast choices (served 8am-2pm) including egg dishes or sour dough French toast baked fresh in-house served with fresh fruit, powdered sugar, house whipped cream and real maple syrup.
A variety of sour dough toast menu items, grain bowls, soups, salads and hot and cold sandwiches (French dip, spicy Italian, chicken salad on a croissant, and others) are served all day.
Manager Tyler Butler. “Our ‘Alcohol to Go’ Program not only includes bottled wines but also cocktails, which can be purchased to go in sealed plastic containers.”
All food (meals, European breads, pastries, and desserts) created and served at Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge are made from scratch using select ours, the freshest locally sourced micro-greens and produce, and only the nest ingredients.
While the restaurant o ers food catering for home parties and o site business events, its private room can be rented for parties (up to thirty people), or the entire restaurant can be rented (120 people maximum) for family gatherings or corporate/company meetings.
HOTTEST SPOT FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH & HAPPY HOUR IN THE FOOTHILLS.
e restaurant also celebrates Happy Hour Tuesday-through-Saturday from 2:00-6:00pm and all-day Sunday from 8:00am-3:00pm with a special menu featuring charcuterie boards, small plate items, scratch-made pastas/house-made sauces, Detroit-style Pizza with a thicker crust and several topping options—and decadent desserts (Fruit Pavlova, Mango Cheesecake, Raspberry Chocolate Torte, and seasonal tarts). Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge (303-862-7993) o ers take-out and online ordering. Visit the website (https://evergreenbreadlounge. com/) for the full menu—and more.
“We have recently added some new white (prosecco, sauvignon Blanc, chardonnay) and red wine selections to our wine portfolio and for a limited time we are featuring a $30/per bottle dine-in or to-go wine special,” stated General
“We are also o ering discounts to local Evergreen businesses that place larger catering orders from breakfast favorites and/or sandwich platters to large banquet orders (homemade Chicken Marsala, pasta with Bolognese sauce…),” said Butler who stated that with only a 48-hour notice the restaurant can cater a variety of breakfast and/or sandwich items and even customize a special menu that is just right for your speci c event. Interested businesses can contact Tyler Butler at the restaurant for more information.
Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge (https://evergreenbreadlounge.com) changes its menu about three times per year so check the website for new seasonal selections. Also, because holiday times are rapidly approaching, you will want to place your catering orders and/or book your event space sooner rather than later. Evergreen Bread & Cocktail Lounge can take pre-orders for holiday breads and pies and ordering forms, as well as catering/wholesale bakery information, can be found on its website. Gi cards can also be easily purchased in-store or online for birthdays, holidays, and all gi -giving occasions with options to deliver the gi in person or via email.
Act NOW To Save Thousands!
Some things are simply timeless, like the sensational experience of throwing a log on a crackling re. And some things get even better with time! Today’s wood burning appliances are the most e cient they have ever been, meaning you get more heat from each log added to the re. Now, there’s even more reason to switch to wood burning, with the added incentive of a government tax credit. You can receive up to $2000 back on your entire project cost with a qualifying appliance! Additionally, we have many woodburning appliances in stock now that qualify for the tax credit and come with in stock savings!
Only the most e cient, clean burning wood-fueled appliances in history can qualify for this tax credit. is is a huge win for your wallet in several ways. You’ll be heating your home more e ectively while burning less wood. You’ll also increase your home’s attractiveness, safety,
energy independence, and environmental sustainability. ere is no better option than good ol’ wood burning!
Now that you know why this is such a hot trend, let’s talk about how it can be done in your home- it is simpler than it sounds! Your outdated replace and chimney is completely removed and replaced. Add some new nishing material, and you have just transformed the look of your living room and the way you heat your whole home.
If you have a large replace and want to take advantage of the tax credit but avoid any demo, we can install a tax credit qualifying insert into your existing replace opening. It is also possible to add a wood burning replace or stove where there wasn’t one before. No more chilly addition or den in your home!
New wood burning hearth appliances are also safer for your home. ey are installed as a complete UL listed system
that is designed and tested to be safe at the high temperatures of a wood-fueled re. Additionally, if you have an older replace system, the years of use or improper care can be degrading the safety of the unit itself and putting you at risk of a chimney or structure re. With the high e ciency of newer wood burning replaces comes a cleaner burn. is means less creosote is accumulating in your chimney, which is what burns in a hostile chimney re.
If you already have a replace in your home that you love, now is a great time for your annual service! Sweeping away the accumulated creosote and soot every year is necessary for the optimal performance and safety of your solid fuel appliance. Our annual service appointments also include a complete inspection, which evaluates the rebox, damper, and chimney system; we also get on your roof to clean and inspect your cap,
and we evaluate the exterior portions of your chimney. At the end of the service, we write everything up so you have documentation of safety, or if there’s something we recommend repairs on.
You’re invited to see our variety of wood burning appliances in our showroom at 7001 Highway 73 in Marshdale. We have a large assortment of sizes, shapes, and styles for your home; many of which are in stock at our warehouse now and come with additional savings! We have more qualifying replaces, stoves, and inserts on display than any other replace store in the entire Denver Metro area. Come visit us from 9am-5pm Monday through Friday, and 8am-4pm Saturdays. You can also see our products and portfolio of work on our website at www.MtnHP.com or reach us by phone at 303-679-1601, and email at O ce@ MtnHP.com.
Call us today to upgrade your woodburning stove, insert, or replace. Ultra high-e ciency appliances qualify for the IRS Biomass tax credit, up to $2000 back on your project cost! And there’s bonus savings on our qualifying appliances in stock now! 303-679-1601 www.mtnhp.com 7001 Highway 73
From Page 2
map, artists’ bios, and photos of their work so visitors can then choose which studios they want to visit.
“All studio locations are within a 10-mile radius of downtown Evergreen so all who attend can be sure that they will be able to visit each and every artist’s studio within the allotted two days of the event,” stated Jeannette Stutzman.
Art lovers frequently wonder why artists create what they create, what powers their inspiration, and what process guides them to achieve their creations. e answers can be complex based not only upon factors like the relationships between artists and their processes and/or artists and the art they create, but also upon an entirely separate/ di erent relationship between the artist and the viewer and the viewer and the art. Nonetheless, the 23rd Annual Open Door Studios Tour o ers attendees a rare opportunity not only to see these local artists at work in their own studio environment (through time-permitting demonstrations), but also to ask questions about the artists’ preferred medium, style/techniques, talent, passion, and their time and commitment to their artistic endeavors.
e artist’s existence is a lifelong pursuit of learning, studying, evolving, and growing. Visual artists sometimes convert a 2D object into a 3D object and vice versa. Most o en, artistic pursuits involve physics, mathematics, understanding mechanics and how things function, color theory, and more.
Because people o en wonder how artists arrive at the monetary value or worth that they place upon their artwork, they frequently ask each artist how long it takes to produce their speci c piece of art. But su ce it to say that the value of any art piece is determined not only by its production time but also by many other factors, including but not limited to the overall investment of the artist as it relates to the cost of materials (which are usually of archival quality), the size of the art piece, the artist’s education, notoriety/reputation, and so forth.
OPEN DOOR STUDIOS
From Page 6
While the purpose of décor is to adorn a room or space, a ne art piece usually provokes an emotional or intellectual reaction and o en brings people together (the connection), which is something that AI art simply cannot do. erefore, in order to better understand the human elements and emotions that drive artists’ creativity, those who attend Evergreen’s 23rd Annual Open Door Studios Tour might ask themselves the following questions, the answers of which can lead to more meaningful dialogue between you and the participating ODS artists:
1) What do I see? (beauty, grandeur, balance, discord…); 2) How do I feel? (tranquil, energized, enlightened…); and 3) What do I think about when I see the artist’s work? (a memory, love, togetherness…).
Whether you are an impassioned art a cionado or simply someone looking
to nd an extraordinarily enjoyable weekend activity to pursue, mark your calendars for the 23rd Annual Open Door Studios Tour on Saturday and Sunday, September 21 and 22 (10:00am5:00pm). If you are moved by innovative expressions of the imagination, enjoy the visual vibe experience of viewing and appreciating artful beauty in all forms, and nd yourself eager to understand the workings of artistic minds in relationship to their journeys through their individual creative processes, then you will certainly want to be part of this “art and soul” celebration of creativity. No purchase is necessary to enjoy this fabulous two-day art- lled extravaganza. However, ODS artists will o er pieces for sale within a range of prices so there is an abundance of art for everyone should you be so inclined to take something home for yourself and/or to give as gi s. You may even score a sale item or win a drawing for a giveaway art piece! If you have questions about the tour, you can call or text ODS Tour Coordinator
Jeannette Stutzman (720-320-3929) for additional information.
Remember, when you support community artists, you are also supporting local small business owners. Further, the reality of the matter is that for less than the price of various electronic products that eventually wear out and need to be replaced, or even the cost of a good meal at a fancy restaurant that o ers no tangi-
ble investment return, you can purchase a variety of original art pieces that will hold and even increase their value in subsequent years. ese heirloom-quality pieces can be passed through families and enjoyed from generation to generation. So, if a particular work of art “calls your name” and tells you that you would like to “take it home,” listen to your inner voice.
Susan Wechsler #14
Margo Carter #15
Paul isted #2
and contributing revenue to housing challenges.
“ e answer is not ‘no regulation,’ Rosolio said. “It’s important for us to land on something that is balanced … while making sure that we understand what a big economic driver short-term rentals and tourism are for the community.”
Tourism slowdown in 2024
Colorado overnight visitors spent $6.3 billion on lodging in 2023, generating $1.8 billion in local and state tax revenue and supporting 9,450 jobs. Visitors spent $28.2 billion in total in 2023 and vacationers who rented privately owned homes spent $4.1 billion.
In nine Western Slope mountain counties anchored by ski areas, visitors in short-term rental homes and condos — not hotels and motels — spent $1.2 billion in 2023, up from $1.1 billion in 2022 and 2021. at compares to $2.3 billion spent on traditional hotels and motels in 2023 and 2022.
Since 2019, the number of vacationers renting private homes has increased by 27%. e taxes generated by tourism in
Colorado equate to about $308 per resident. But in places like Summit County, the $96.3 million in state and local taxes paid by tourists in 2023 equals more than $3,150 per resident. e Colorado Tourism O ce collects annual spending gures and shares that data far and wide. at is part of the o ce’s mission to empower local communities so they can share their own plans for balancing the quality of life for local residents with tourist-based economies.
“What is the value of tourism? Where are you on the tourism cycle in your communities” said Colorado Tourism O ce boss Tim Wolfe, who says the revival of international tourism is a key component for sustainable visitation in high-pro le destinations like metro Denver and Summit County. He’s seeing more
communities backing away from intense regulation of short-term rental properties as visitation and lodging tax collections ebb in the rst half of 2024.
Proposition 123, passed by voters in 2022, last year directed $80 million toward a ordable housing across the state. at river of revenue is owing again this year as more housing plans unfold, Wolfe said.
“Are we giving this a chance to take root or are we going to pass three more things before this actually has a chance to take root and start generating housing,” Wolfe told the vacation rental advocates, urging a wariness of statewide regulation that could slow the ow of tourists into Colorado. “We have to be careful. If we make dramatic changes this (slowdown in visitation) could continue to acceler-
ate.”
Hundreds of property owners and managers have united as part of the Colorado Lodging Resort Alliance, which rallied dozens of advocates to urge opposition to Senate Bill 33 earlier this year.
e group is again rallying its troops to thwart legislation that could impact vacation rentals. e Colorado Association of Ski Towns advocating for legislation that would enable local communities to ask voters to approve a tax on vacant homes that could include properties that are rented to vacationers. Another proposal by Colorado Counties Inc. would raise the cap on lodging taxes levied by counties to 6% from 2%, just like Colorado municipalities.
“ is could give counties the opportunity to increase revenue for advertising and marketing local tourism, housing, childcare services, and facilitating and enhancing visitor experiences bene ting their county residents,” reads a legislative position statement from Colorado Counties Inc.
“ ere are some scary things out there looming around on the horizon,” Koster said.
is story was printed through a news sharing agreement with e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned nonpro t based in Denver that covers the state.
SPORTS
Hurricanes in the forecast for Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation Center
CCMRD launches competitive swim team, swim lessons
BY CHRIS KOEBERL
e Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation Center invites both novice and competitive swimmers to its indoor pool in Idaho Springs as it launches a swim team and swim lessons.
e Clear Creek Hurricanes is a competitive swim team accredited by USA Swim and is open to local kids who can swim at least one lap in the rec center pool.
“It’s a great program, swimming is
one of the best things for your body, it’s the only full-body workout there is,” Director of Aquatics at CCMRD Jesse Peros said.
e goal of the swim team, Peros said, is building the young athlete by understanding teamwork, where kids push each other to do better as individual swimmers and in a relay race when teammates know each other’s strengths and weaknesses in order to create a balanced team that will compete and win.
Currently, the Hurricanes practice on Tuesdays and ursdays at the rec center in Idaho Springs. For more information, contact Jesse Peros at jesse@ccmrd.com.
Before the Hurricanes’ swim prac-
tice, CCMRD o ers swim lessons for infants or kids as young as one year old.
e “Little Fins” parent and baby aquatics class is designed for children ages 1 to 3 years old to experience the water with their parents and trained instructors, according to CCMRD lesson plans.
According to CCRMD, the bene ts of early childhood swimming include:
• Reduced risk of childhood drowning by introducing water safety skills early
• Foster a love for water activities that can last a lifetime
• Enhance motor development and coordination through exercises
• Create memories of bonding with
your baby
e next step in aquatic training for youth is graduation into swimming lessons. Here children ages 3 years old and up can take part in four levels of swim training over nine weeks to become competent and con dent in their swimming ability, according to CCMRD trainers and lifeguards.
CCMRD Lifeguard Ivy Nelson reinforced the idea of getting kids in the water early, dispelling fears and gaining con dence in any part of the pool.
As a lifeguard, Nelson said she recognizes a child who has taken swim lessons when she sees kids enjoying the freedom to play and splash and who are comfortable in their surroundings at the pool.
Director of Aquatics at CCMRD Jesse Peros (left) and CCMRD Lifeguard Ivy Nelson. PHOTOS BY CHRIS KOEBERL
Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation District in Idaho Springs.
State
Bumper crop of ‘hoppers plague state
is experiencing one of its worst grasshopper infestations in recent history
BY JENNIFER BROWN THE COLORADO SUN
It was as if Doug Bay’s wish had come true, the day the doves landed. Bay, who grows alfalfa and a bit of corn and sorghum in Otero County, had been eyeing the 3 acres of fresh green shoots for days, worrying they were about to be destroyed by the swarms of crop-munching grasshoppers that were bouncing all over his farm.
He was holding out hope that he wouldn’t have to spray pesticide to save his alfalfa crop from the destructive insects, which are vexing farmers and gardeners from Denver to the plains this summer. Bay almost called the local crop duster, but he put it o . en came the doves. About 200 of the tan birds swooped down from the sky and feasted on the grasshoppers, demolishing pretty much the whole lot.
“It was kinda neat,” recalled Bay, whose family has been farming in Cheraw since 1950. “A couple hundred of them, eating those grasshoppers. ey must have told their friends this was a good place to eat.”
For farmers, the best way to deal with grasshoppers is to let birds handle it. But this year, when the grasshopper infestation is one of the worst in recent history, farmers can’t rely on
having to spray pesticides or losing yields to the bugs, while others have had few issues.
For gardeners, experts suggest adding some plants that repel grasshoppers — garlic or chives — or using garlic to make a natural spray. Another idea is to cover the garden with netting to keep the insects from jumping into it. Get some chickens. Or put up a bird feeder.
While grasshopper eggs are more likely to survive the winter in dry soil, undisturbed by tillage or irrigation, the insects often live longer and grow bigger in irrigated land where there is plenty of foliage.
just the birds. e bounty of grasshoppers is on par with last summer’s Mormon cricket invasion on the Western Slope. Bay said he had to hire the crop duster to spray his other, larger eld of alfalfa, costing him about $15 for each of the 120 acres. He’s also got 15 chickens that spend their days pecking his yard and keeping the grasshoppers at a more manageable level, at least near his house.
Scientists say the grasshoppers are having a banner year in Colorado because the conditions for hatching eggs and growing big insects were ideal. Grasshoppers lay their eggs in dirt, and the pods or “egg beds” remain underground through the winter. e eggs hatch in the spring, and the tiny
“nymphs” crawl out of the ground in search of food, according to Colorado State University’s extension services. If weather conditions are good, and there is plenty to eat, grasshoppers grow for several weeks until they reach adult size — and this summer they are quite large. e insects likely hatched earlier this year because of a mild, warmer spring, and then did not face the kind of cold, wet weather that can kill o newly hatched grasshoppers.
In Denver, gardeners are reporting extra-large grasshoppers and in extra large numbers, popping around yards and chewing holes in the leaves of their lettuce and tomato plants. On the Eastern Plains, their destruction has been spotty — some farms are
Farmers, including Bay in Otero County, are on their third out of four cuts of alfalfa for the season, and still keeping an eye on the grasshoppers. Alfalfa is most vulnerable to grasshoppers when it’s just beginning to grow and “they can mow it right down,” Bay said. When the plants are taller, grasshoppers can’t destroy it but can decrease its yield, he said.
At Bay’s son-in-law’s ranch, in the southeastern corner of the state, the grasshoppers hatched early and died o when they were small because there wasn’t enough moisture for them to survive. But Bay has had to deal with two grasshopper hatches, and the second one produced especially big grasshoppers.
He and others were forced to spray, he said, and Bay hired a pilot because the alfalfa was too thick to drive a sprayer through it. “Once you spray them, it pretty well kills them,” he said. “You have to watch it real close — you can spray one batch and another
On July 1, a grasshopper sits atop the Clear Creek trail’s handrail underneath the U.S. Highway 6 bridge.
PHOTO BY CORINNE WESTEMAN
TRIVIA
1. MOVIES: What is the name of the ctional country in “ e Princess Diaries”?
2. GEOGRAPHY: What is the highest mountain in Africa?
3. HISTORY: Which ancient civilization built Machu Picchu in Peru?
4. TELEVISION: Which city is the setting for the TV drama “ e Wire”?
5. U.S. CITIES: Which city’s nickname is “City of Roses”?
6. MATH: When is Pi Day celebrated each year?
7. LITERATURE: During what historical period is the graphic novel “Persepolis” set?
8. CHEMISTRY: Which element is also known as quicksilver?
9. SCIENCE: How much of the Earth’s water is held by oceans?
10. MUSIC: Who performed the hit song “Never Gonna Give You Up” in 1987?
Answers
1. Genovia.
2. Mount Kilimanjaro.
3. e Inca civilization.
4. Baltimore, Maryland.
5. Portland, Oregon.
6. March 14 (3.14).
7. e 1979 Iranian Revolution.
8. Mercury.
9. 96.5%
10. Rick Astley. (c) 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.
FLASHBACK
1. Which duo released “Islands in the Stream”?
2. Who released “ e Way We Were”?
3. Name the artist who wrote and released “Rock Me Gently.”
4. Who wrote and released “Long Tall Sally”?
5. Name the song that contains this lyric: “Now I’ve heard there was a secret chord, at David played, and it pleased the Lord.”
Answers
1. Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in 1983. e song was
written by the Bee Gees, who didn’t release their own version until 1998.
2. Barbra Streisand, in 1973 in the lm and on her album of the same name. e song won a long list of awards, including Song of the Year.
3. Andy Kim (born Androwis Youakim), in 1974. A proli c songwriter, Kim penned hits for several others, including the Archies and the Monkees.
4. Little Richard, in 1956. e song nally made it into the
Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
5. “Hallelujah,” by Leonard Cohen in 1984 on his “Various Positions” album. Initially rejected by the record company, it was a version that appeared in the animated lm “Shrek” in 2001 that brought the song much attention. Legend says it took Cohen 10 years to write the song, which included 180 verses at one point.
(c) 2024 King Features Syndicate
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GRASSHOPPERS
batch could hatch.”
Farmers also can scatter an insecticide called EcoBran, which grasshoppers will eat and die. en other grasshoppers, which are cannibals, will eat the dead grasshoppers and die, too. But this is “hit or miss,” Bay said, because if the grasshoppers have other things to eat — say, alfalfa or lettuce — they likely won’t eat the wheat bran laced with the chemical carbaryl, which is toxic to insects.
Ranchers have little recourse, since their grazing land is so vast. eir cattle just get less to eat when grasshoppers are rampant.
It’s just all part of the season for farmers and ranchers, Bay said. “I gamble every day,” he said. “You gamble with
the weather. You gamble with the bugs. So I don’t much like to go to Cripple Creek.”
On the bright side for hunters: e doves are thick this year thanks to grasshopper abundance, and dove hunting season starts this month.
Bay is optimistic lately, as he nishes the latest cut of alfalfa and moves on to cutting the sorghum, that the grasshoppers will run out of things to eat and fade out. e Arkansas River, which supplies his irrigation water, is getting low now at the end of summer. And it hasn’t rained much lately on the plains.
Bay will also keep hoping for black birds or more doves, the “most awesome” natural control for insects.
“But you can’t order a ock of birds to come in,” he said. “It’s a luck thing.” is story was printed through a news sharing agreement with e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned nonpro t based in Denver that covers the state.
Obtaining the Bidding Documents
Information and Bidding Documents for the Project can be found at the following designated website: https://www.clearcreekcounty.us/bids.aspx
The RFB may be downloaded from the designated website. The designated
Prospective Bidders who register
Two grasshoppers navigate through insect-damaged leaves of a lilac bush on Aug. 29.
PHOTO BY DANA COFFIELD THE COLORADO SUN
With the Market Shifting in Buyers’ Favor, Selecting the Right Listing Agent Is Key
Last week, I wrote about what skills and knowledge you should expect your real estate agent to possess. This week, with the shift from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market, I want to write about the importance of selecting the right listing agent.
You’ll probably want to know their level of experience, competence and success in selling homes similar to your own, hopefully within your city or neighborhood.
agents to list their homes? Many, I suspect are friends and family every agent’s biggest “competitor.”
Like you, I monitor the real estate activity where I live. The best way to do that is to ask an MLS member like my broker associates or me to set up a “neighborhood alert,” whereby you receive an automated email from the MLS whenever a home in your area is either coming soon, newly active, price reduced, newly under contract, newly sold, or even newly withdrawn or expired without selling. Send an email to info@GoldenRealEstate.com and I’ll make sure the most appropriate broker associate (or me) responds to set up an alert like that for you.
In my own neighborhood, I’m always astonished how many homes are listed by agents I’ve never heard of. As I write, there are 36 active or coming soon listings within 2 miles of my home, represented by 33 different agents from 27 different brokerages! No agent has more than two listings. And despite practicing real estate here for 22 years, I only recognize the names of 10 of them.
This is typical of every city. Where did the sellers find all those different
In some cases, the seller had already gone under contract for their replacement home elsewhere and was convinced by the listing agent of that home to list their current home. If that agent is on the other side of the metro area, that is not the best decision, because that agent will be unfamiliar with your neighborhood, lives far away, and is unable to show the home on short notice, answer questions from buyers, or keep your brochure box well stocked.
Every homeowner, it seems, gets letters or finds a note taped to their door from a broker claiming to have a buyer for their home. That tactic may earn him or her an interview in your home, but I’d bet dollars to donuts that the broker then says, “That buyer found another home, but I’m sure I can find you another buyer if you list with me. Sign here.”
Let’s say, however, that you want to interview listing agents and make a rational hiring decision. Good idea! Let me suggest some questions you might want to ask, some of which might not be obvious or that you know you could ask.
First, however, you need to choose the agents to interview. I suggest basing your search on their location and experience in your neighborhood or city. Second, study their active/sold listings to see (1) their geographic distribution and (2) how well their listings are presented on the MLS.
Since this column is printed in 24
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weekly newspapers around the metro area, my broker associates and I may not be the best choice based on that first question, but, with my access to the MLS, I can identify the best candidates to interview. Full disclosure: that costs you nothing, but I will get a referral fee if you choose an agent I recommend.
You can also do this on your own by visiting www.Nestfully.com, the consumer-facing website of Denver’s MLS, where you can search for active listings in your area. Click on one or more of them to see how well the listing agent described the home on the MLS. Did they list all the rooms, not just bedrooms and bathrooms, and did they provide dimensions and descriptions of each, or just enter the mandatory fields?
Always keep in mind that the best indicator of how a listing agent will serve you is how they have served previous sellers.
Looking at those listings will answer the most important questions which you’d ask in person, but you won’t have to take their word the truth is there in front of you. You’ll learn, for example, whether they did point-and-shoot pictures or had a professional photographer shoot magazine quality photographs, and whether they created a narrated video tour or just a slide show with music.
Having chosen who to interview that way, ask these questions of those you invite into your home for an interview:
What commission percentage do you charge? Keep in mind, there is no standard commission. It’s totally negotiable, and the industry average is in the mid -5’s, not 6%. It used to be that that commission included the co-op commission paid to a buyer’s broker. As I explained in a previous column (which you can read at JimSmithColumns.com), that has been reworked so that the seller offers whatever buyer agent compensation he or she wants, and that amount, if paid, is deducted from the listing com-
mission same net effect, just reworked to comply with the NAR Settlement prohibiting shared listing commissions.
See whether the agent volunteers that they reduce their commission when the seller doesn’t have to pay the offered compensation to a buyer’s agent. That’s standard with my broker associates and me. If you have to ask for that provision, consider it a red flag. They hoped you wouldn’t ask.
Ask the agent whether he or she will discount their commission if you hire them to represent you in the purchase of your replacement home. That, too, is standard with my broker associates and me.
Hopefully the brokers you interview will have researched the market and will make a well-supported recommendation of listing price. Beware of agents who inflate their suggested listing price so you will list with them.
When setting the appointment, ask the agent to bring a spreadsheet of their sold listings with dates, days on market, listing price and sold price. They can produce that spreadsheet quickly on the MLS. (If they don’t know how, that’s a big red flag!) Here’s an example (mine):
That’s to show you what it looks like. If you want to read it, it is bigger at http://RealEstateToday.substack.com
