Flawed by Design: Neenan-built schools under scrutiny

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Meeker Elementary School sits closed after housing students for only one year. Structural problems started showing up within months of its fall 2010 opening. Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post

School unsafe, unsound

Meeker Elementary, designed to standard used for sheds, shut down after its first year Bracing issues

By Eric Gorski and David Olinger The Denver Post

One of the problems at Meeker Elementary School was a lack of adequate braces that support a building against lateral forces such as wind. A bracing system helps resist horizontal loads from the floor or roof and transfers that weight to the next lower level.

meeker» The new grade school sits empty up Sulphur Creek Road. The doors are locked. A sign taped to the window tells delivery drivers to take their packages elsewhere. Children attended classes in the $18.9 million building for an entire school year before it was deemed unsafe to occupy — the result of mistakes by the company that designed and built it, a state agency that missed a glaring error and local school officials who kept the building open despite repeated warnings, The Denver Post has found. The first sign that something was wrong came in October 2010, when News tips dirt piled outside the gym caused a This story was a result wall to lean a few inches. of a tip to The Denver When Meeker School District RE-1 fiPost’s investigative nally brought in an outside firm to reteam. If you have a tip view the structural integrity of the about other problems school nine months later, much deeper with school construction problems became apparent: The school and inspections, or somehad been designed with a building-code thing else for The Post to standard used for storage sheds and was investigate, reach us at at risk of collapse in severe weather. 303-893-TIPS (8477) or The Neenan Co., the Fort Collins detoll-free at 866-748-TIPS, sign-and-build firm the district hired, or e-mail us at has acknowledged making mistakes TIPS@denverpost.com.

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Source: Luke Studer, Studer Engineering

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and pledged to pay for repairs. School district officials, meanwhile, say they are committed to safety and careful oversight. But already, reverberations are being felt well beyond this town of 2,500. Two state agencies are reviewing other Neenan school projects, including work in eight districts financed with $150 million in state money. Over little more than a decade, Neenan has built or upgraded nearly 100 schools in Colorado, most in rural districts. And the failures in Meeker invite questions about the state’s ability to spot whether other schools were designed to safety standards.

Building the Meeker school Meeker is in the White River Valley, at the gateway to the Flat Tops Wilderness in the northwest part of the state. Ranchers here gather before 6 a.m. at Go-Fer Foods for coffee, and bright orange banners welcome elk hunters in the fall. The town is subject to the boom-and-bust cycle of oil and gas, and things were booming in 2008 — prompting the school district to get serious about its aging, overcrowded elementary school built in the 1930s. The district sought bids for an assessment of its buildings, but the two that came back were too high, said Dan Evig, the superintendent at the time. Then, Evig said, one of his principals attended a Colorado Association of School Executives conference and met a representative of the Neenan Co. The Fort Collins-based business was founded in 1973 by David Neenan, a big thinker who survived a near-bankruptcy and reinvented his company with a term he trademarked — “archistruction” — that consolidates development, design and construction. Neenan branched into school projects in the late 1990s and soon found its niche: rural Colorado schools lacking the know-how to finance and build big-capital projects. In Meeker, Neenan’s traveling salesman for school projects, Don Weidinger, became a presence at meetings and functions — even a bull sale at the school board president’s cattle ranch. He made a convincing case. In April 2008, the district hired Neenan for an assessment of its school buildings and a schematic design, complete with guaranteed cost information so school officials could take concrete information to voters. The contract required the district to pay Neenan $9,500 for the study if it did not ultimately select the company as its school designer and builder. Seven months later, Meeker voters approved a $24 million bond issue for the new elementary school and fixes at the middle and high schools. The district first fielded bids to hire an owner’s representative to oversee the project. A divided board chose Jim West of Vanir Construction Management Inc., who had worked on two other Neenan school projects. The district signed a $218,360 contract for West’s services and expenses. West’s ties to Neenan bothered Ben Rogers, a school board member at the time. “As far as I was concerned, he was an insider,” Rogers said. West told The Post he has worked with many different contractors and does not think working with Neenan “prejudiced my opinion in any way.” Shortly after hiring West, the district handed the design and construction contract to Neenan — without putting it out to competitive bid. Meeker school Superintendent Susan Goettel said the district decided to hire a company that could offer both design and construction and then chose Neenan without a competitive bid — which it has discretion to do — because of limited options in the area. Rogers, however, said at least one other company expressed interest. And Neenan has faced competition for other school projects. Meeker school board president Mary Strang declined to respond to questions for this story, saying the district’s attorney recommended the superintendent alone do the talking. “We are part of the school district,” Strang said. “We stand together, and that’s where we are.” Calls to other school board members were not returned. “There are a lot of disappointed people who spent a lot of money, put a lot of faith in the school board,” said Michele Morgan, a Meeker parent and innkeeper. “The board has to take the heat.” Earlier this month, Strang was voted off the Meeker school board after more than two decades. Another incumbent, Ed Coryell, also was ousted. Voter turnout set a record.

Safety concerns surface Meeker Elementary School had been open seven weeks when roofers doing maintenance work on Oct. 4, 2010, found something amiss: dirt piled against the outside of a gym wall had caused the wall to shift. Roof-joist seats connected to the top of the precast wall had failed, according to a letter Neenan sent to the Colorado Department of Public Safety. The gym was closed for more than a month while Neenan made repairs and built a retaining wall to push soil away from the building. To make sure the repair was sound, the dis-

A retaining wall, left, was built along the gym at Meeker Elementary School to keep soil away from a wall that had leaned. Addressing that problem unraveled a series of structural issues that shuttered the school. At right, Hallie Blunt and her children, Cade, 5, and Connor, 6, right, arrive for class at the Meeker School District Administration building in October, where some grade-school students have been moved since the school closed. Below, Connor joins displaced first-graders in a classroom. Photos by Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post

trict hired a third-party structural engineer, Luke Studer of Steamboat Springs. Studer eventually signed off on the gym fix, which was covered under Neenan’s two-year warranty. But something else caught his attention, the engineer said in an interview with The Post. Studer noticed that details in the gym roof were similar to those in the rest of the building. And he couldn’t figure out how the design would resist “lateral loads” — forces from the side. High winds and earthquakes are the most likely forces. Heavy snow piling up on one side of a roof is another. In a well-designed building, the force from a lateral load is transferred from the point of pressure to the braces and beams, spreading the load through the building. “It looked wrong,” Studer said of the Neenan design. “Then ensued a long period of heavy discussion.” On Nov. 4, 2010, Studer wrote to Superintendent Goettel expressing concern and urging her to get more information from Neenan. Unsatisfied with the company’s response, Studer recommended Dec. 16 that the district hire a larger engineering firm to review the school’s design. Neenan’s structural engineer, Gary Howell, struck back. In a Jan. 17 letter, Howell accused Studer of “ungrounded assessments” and “unjustified recommendations.” He also accused Studer of straying beyond what he was asked to review and violating the Structural Engineers Association of Colorado’s code of ethics by impugning a fellow engineer’s work. Howell made clear that Neenan did not recommend a review of the building and would not pay for it. The two engineers continued their pointed back-and-forth into the spring. Studer went so far as to call one part of the building — a single brace in the middle of a long corridor — “a giant ‘teeter-totter.’ ” But Howell, in late May, continued to insist Neenan “asserts the building is stable and safe to occupy.” At a school board meeting in June, West, the district’s owner representative, questioned why Neenan did not have information readily available to answer Studer’s concerns. West told the board that in his past experiences with Neenan, the company had been responsive and willing to make changes and fixes. Finally, in mid-July, Meeker School District

RE-1 hired Structural Consultants Inc. of Denver to review the structural integrity of the grade school. The findings, laid out in an Aug. 2 report, were devastating: Neenan had designed the building to a seismic safety occupancy category of 1 instead of 3, the required standard for schools. A category 1 building presents “a low hazard to human life in the event of failure.” The school, in other words, was designed to seismic standards for structures such as barns and storage sheds. But the report’s criticisms did not stop there. SCI found girders that could bend under a maximum load, steel columns that were too slender and a roof connection one-fourth as strong as it needed to be. It also found basic information on snow, wind and earthquake resistance criteria was missing. The biggest problem, though, was the lack of bracing in the walls of the classroom wing to prevent a collapse in case of an earthquake or

Randy Myers, president

The Neenan Co. The Neenan Co. has its headquarters in Fort Collins in an airy building without interior doors where architects, designers and engineers work together as teams on construction projects. The company has built more than 1,000 buildings and expects revenues of about $150 million this year. Besides rural schools, its Colorado projects include the New Belgium Brewing Co. in Fort Collins, YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, the Peakview Tower in Englewood and an addition to the Grand Junction VA Medical Center.

fierce windstorm — an “immediate structural concern,” SCI said. By then, nine months had passed since Studer had first warned Meeker officials that their new school might not be safe. The school had been occupied by 350 children for an entire school year.

“We made a mistake” The school board decided to shutter the school until repairs were made and move students to other district schools and the administration building. In an interview, Goettel defended the district’s response to Studer’s red flags. “Please know we never had a concern for our students or staff’s safety in that building,” she said. “We were gathering information throughout that process. We were actively seeking answers.” Neenan president Randy Myers acknowledges, in retrospect, that the school was unsafe to occupy. “I guess considering the information we now know of, no, it wasn’t,” he said. “And that was not OK. I never want to put our clients in any type of position like that again.” Myers said Neenan still cannot explain why Howell, its structural engineer, designed the building improperly. Howell was hired in December 2007, in part because the company had run into issues with outside structural engineers who “caused us some losses,” Myers said. The company has done its own structural engineering on about 35 percent to 40 percent of its school projects in Colorado and used outside help on the rest, he said. Neenan hired a second structural engineer in the past year because of an uptick in business, but Howell was the only one working on Meeker, Myers said. Myers said Neenan has not taken disciplinary action against Howell “at this time,” saying the company is focused on fixing the school. He would not make Howell available for an interview. “We admit we made a mistake,” Myers said, “and we’re ready to fix it.” Neenan has found no problems in the design criteria of 21 other school projects in which it has done the structural engineering, Myers said. He said Howell worked on the majority of them. The company has requested records from the state to review other projects, he said.


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many significant design errors noticing these errors?” Online extras. See some of the key documents and correspondence used in the reporting of this story. »denverpost.com/extras

Meeker school board members, from left, Bill deVergie, Mindy Burke, Iris Franklin and president Mary Strang listen to John Mechling, a consultant with geotechnical engineering firm CTL Thompson, during a meeting in October. Earlier this month, Strang was voted off the board after two decades of service. Ed Coryell, not pictured, also was ousted. Photos by Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post

Projects under review Neenan Co. built six new schools and and made improvements to nine other schools with $150 million from a state school building fund. The Colorado Department of Education has now asked Neenan to conduct a third-party review of those projects.

Weldon Valley Elementary, Junior High School

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Sargent Senior High School

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Sargent Elementary School Monte Vista Senior High School

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Jim West of Vanir Construction Management Inc. listens at the Meeker school board meeting in October. The district hired West as an owner’s representative to oversee the construction of the elementary school. West had worked previously with Neenan on school projects, a tie that bothered at least one school board member at the time.

The Denver Post

Myers said the incorrect design documents for Meeker would not have been used on other projects because each is unique. “I don’t believe there are other comparable issues, but we will dig into the nitty-gritty,” he said. As a result of the problems in Meeker, Neenan school projects that have received money through the state’s Building Excellent Schools Today competitive grant program also are under scrutiny. Ted Hughes, who oversees the program for the Colorado Department of Education, told The Post he requested that Neenan conduct a third-party peer review of structural engineering for Neenan BEST projects in eight school districts. Records show $150 million in BEST money went to the projects, which included six new schools and improvements to nine existing school buildings. Neenan has agreed to the review and expects it to be finished by February, Myers said. The company has made other reforms in an attempt to avoid problems on future projects. Myers said Neenan has begun third-party reviews of its structural engineering, at a cost of about $15,000 per project. Neenan has a reputation for fixing problems, according to clients, and Myers said the company has never been to court. Yet Neenan is at the center of a pending lawsuit Larimer County commissioners filed against 11 businesses involved in a major building project at The Ranch, the county fairgrounds complex in Loveland. After a building sustained extensive damage during a 2006 winter storm, an insurance claim led to the discovery of alleged defects in the roof design and other work. Neenan did not design the buildings but was responsible as construction contractor to make sure the project met contract standards, according to the lawsuit. Myers said Neenan has taken responsibility and wants to make the fixes, and the parties are in mediation. In addition, at least two other rural Colorado schools designed and built by Neenan have experienced problems: B In Kremmling, a gymnasium roof on a new $11.5 million preschool through eighth-grade school lifted 3 or 4 inches during an April 2008 windstorm, the school district said. Neenan repaired the roof that summer at no

cost, and a settlement was reached after Neenan sued a subcontractor to recoup the cost, Neenan said. B While an $18 million elementary school in Craig was under construction in 2009, a Neenan supervisor noticed a deflection in a beam supporting a second floor. An independent review pinpointed a drawing error by a structural engineer hired as a subcontractor. Neenan paid for repairs. Peter Bergmann, superintendent of the Moffat County School District at the time of the Craig project, said the district was very happy with Neenan on the whole. “Whenever you have a construction project like we had going, with millions of dollars, there are going to be glitches you have to work through,” he said. Bergmann said he had no reason to believe the school has serious structural deficiencies. But, he added, “There is no way to really tell, from my standpoint.”

Errors and gaps in records The error in occupancy code on the Meeker school — visible in blueprints Neenan submitted to the state — should have been caught in the initial plan review, said Jon Weir, lead plans examiner for the Colorado Division of Fire Safety. The agency oversees school construction reviews and inspections. “How that happened, I don’t know,” Weir said. “We religiously check this information be-

cause it’s critical to the design of the building.” Plan reviewers are expected to make sure that permit applications are signed and complete, that snow-load designs for roofs are adequate, and that building exits are where they are supposed to be, among other things. Weir said plan reviewers are not engineers and are not expected to judge designs submitted by structural engineers. But he said reviewers are responsible for checking whether engineers submit correct occupancy codes — which range from 1 for agricultural and storage buildings to 4 for hospitals and jails. The plan reviewer on the Meeker school project, identified in public records as Benito Serrato, was working for the state Division of Oil and Public Safety at the time. The division was then responsible for enforcing building codes on school projects, while the Division of Fire Safety oversaw fire codes. Serrato moved to Fire Safety when that division took over all aspects of reviewing school projects. State records show Fire Safety Division director Kevin Klein tried to fire Serrato for reasons unrelated to the Meeker project. Klein sent a dismissal letter in October 2010 that accused Serrato of falsifying an inspection report and twice scheduling fictitious inspections. Serrato appealed, denied any official misconduct and asked to resign instead. Klein would only say the plan reviewer on the Meeker school resigned, citing a confidentiality agreeNeenan representative Bob Meserve, right, listens to consultant John Mechling of the engineering firm CTL Thompson during the October school board meeting in Meeker. Discussion focused on evaluating the soil around the elementary school that opened in fall 2010 and was then closed because of serious structural issues.

ment in a settlement. Serrato told The Post he doesn’t remember seeing anything indicating that the Meeker school had been designed to the standards of a low-occupancy building. Serrato said he relied on Howell’s stamp that the building was designed properly, and that the state agency does not employ anyone who could challenge the expertise of a licensed structural engineer. “They put their stamp on it saying everything’s fine,” he said. “The stamp shows a certain level of experience.” Klein said the division is reviewing other Neenan school projects. However, he said the division was able to obtain records for fewer than 20 of Neenan’s projects in Colorado because the state does not have complete records. He said if a pattern emerges, the division will seek records on additional projects from school districts. Bob Hunnes, a Boulder structural engineer whom Studer consulted before airing his concerns about the integrity of the Meeker school, said broader questions about oversight should be asked. “No one seems to be paying attention to the larger story behind the immediate issue of the school closure,” he said. “How did a school project with so many significant design errors get through the state’s plan review process without anyone noticing these errors?” As recently as 2007, just one person handled plan reviews and inspections for the entire state, and “it wasn’t getting done,” Klein said. A state audit that year faulted the Division of Oil and Public Safety’s oversight and identified items missed on school inspections, including building plans that lacked required sprinkler systems, fire walls or appropriate exits. At the time, about 150 construction plans a year were being submitted to the state. The state beefed up its oversight in response, first with temporary workers, then permanent employees. Since 2010, oversight of school construction has rested solely with Fire Safety, and 13 staffers conduct plan reviews and inspections, Klein said. The division does not have the workload to justify a full-time structural engineer, Klein said. But last month, it started using a consulting engineer for complex school construction projects to ensure code compliance, he said. “We take this very seriously,” Klein said. “The most important thing we are all about here is life safety. We have made a lot of improvements as a state about how we do inspection and construction.”

Meeker school fixes on hold The state has signed off on repairs that will allow the Meeker grade school to reopen. But the project is on hold while the district conducts a fourth geotechnical report about soils at the site. If the report raises additional alarms, it’s uncertain what that might mean for repairing the school — and who would pay for it. Neenan’s Myers said, “Soils issues are a different issue … . We agreed to build the building in accordance to the client’s soils report.” Others question how the community can trust Neenan and West — the owner’s representative — to finish the job. In agreeing to cover costs associated with its mistake, Neenan is now, in effect, paying West, whose contract was extended. So far, the company has reimbursed the district about $23,000 for West’s labor and expenses. “Let me get this straight,” said Thomas Kennedy, a father of three elementary school students. “We end up with the exact same team that screwed up the project the first time, right down to the person who is supposed to be overseeing the project, who is supposed to be watching out for the board but is being paid by Neenan. You’ve got to be kidding me, guys. This is a conflict, no matter how you cut it.” West said Neenan reimbursing the district for his work does not pose a conflict. “It’s important to recognize my agreement and, consequently, my allegiances are to the school district,” he said. Goettel praised West, crediting him for saving the district money. The district, she pointed out, has hired several outside firms to review work on the troubled school. “Hindsight is wonderful,” Goettel said. “It’s a luxury. I think it’s very unfortunate, the situation we’re in. But I’m confident we’re moving forward to get this rectified correctly with the safety of students and staff at the forefront. Our goal is to have a building that stands for 50 years.” Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski David Olinger: 303-954-1498 or dolinger@denverpost.com


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State probes Meeker project

FAIL.

The structural engineer, fired Monday, worked on drawings minus a license.

Egypt’s civilian Cabinet offered to resign during the third day of violent clashes in Tahrir Square. The crowds demanded an end to military rule in a demonstration reminiscent of the call for Hosni Mubarak’s ouster. »2A

By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

The state Department of Regulatory Agencies opened an investigation Monday into possible substandard engineering on Meeker’s troubled $18.9 million grade school, citing a Denver Post report documenting the project’s many problems. Angie Kinnaird Linn, a program director with the department, said the inquiry will focus on the work of Gary Howell, who until Monday was a structural engineer for The Neenan Co., which designed and built the northwestern Colorado school. Neenan fired Howell on Monday, said Andy Boian, a public-relations representative hired by the Fort Collins-based firm. Howell has twice before received letters of reprimand from DORA — in 2001 for a design issue involving an unspecified project and in 2009 for failing to renew his license, records show. In fact, Howell did not have a valid license when Neenan hired him in December

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BCS MESS With undefeated teams losing left and right — and some others going unnoticed — the reputation of the BCS system is in serious peril. But don’t tell that to one of its biggest supporters. »woody paige, 1C

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The Peace Statue, with the figures of Grief weeping over History, stands in front of the U.S. Capitol. Congress and economists lamented the collapse of the debt panel’s efforts to trim the federal deficit. Joshua Roberts, Bloomberg

Unable to forge an accord on deficit reduction, Congress’ “supercommittee” concedes defeat. Colorado and other states will feel the pain of coming federal funding cuts. By Allison Sherry The Denver Post

CITY GIVES 1st OK TO SALARY OF TOP COP The Denver City Council gave preliminary approval of the contract for the incoming police chief, Robert White. White, replacing police Chief Gerry Whitman, will earn an annual salary of $167,466. »1B

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PANEL’S FLOP IMPERILS COLO. JOBS, GROWTH By Ann Schrader and Margaret Jackson The Denver Post

“Uncertainty” was a word used repeatedly Monday by Colorado economists and industries in lamenting the failure of the congressional “supercommittee” to reach a budget-cut agreement. “For companies waiting to see if they get funded for year two or three of a defense contract, they don’t even know how many employees to have. The uncertainty is crippling,” said Bryan Blakely, president of Accelerate Colorado, a businessgovernment partnership. Defense-related positions at risk “are great-paying jobs, and they support a lot of secondary jobs in Colorado,” Blakely said. “There are millions, hundreds of millions of dollars in defense contracts ECONOMISTS » 7A

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washington» There will be fewer inspectors at Colorado’s meatpacking plants, fewer air-traffic controllers at Denver International Airport and fewer IRS agents to check tax scofflaws, thanks to the failure of the “supercommittee” to come to an accord on $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction by Monday. Now that the committee of six Democrats and six Republicans has officially disbanded, wishing one another a happy Thanksgiving and applauding their own hard work, agencies and local governments start planning for the fallout. “We don’t even have enough funds to maintain our current system adequately,” said Colorado Department of Transportation spokeswoman Stacey Stegman. “Cuts in funding would really put us to the point of having zero new projects. All our money would go to snow removal and maintenance.” An automatic $1.2 trillion will be axed from the budget in January 2013, save for Congress getting together next year and figuring out a solution. FALLOUT » 7A

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Angels boost city presence after attacks By Kieran Nicholson The Denver Post

The thugs preying on shoppers, diners and partyers along the 16th Street Mall have caught the attention of Denver’s Guardian Angels. Members of the crime-fighting group have stepped up patrols in downtown Denver in response to attacks that target solitary victims on the mall, said Sebastian Metz, the group’s regional director in Denver. “The recent attacks, we can’t ignore that,” Metz said. “We hope our visible presence will stop some stuff and reassure people as well.” Police said 15 attacks and robberies were reported downtown between Aug. 1 and Nov. 9, including six on the pedestrian mall and five on Market Street. Those follow a string of what appeared to be racially ANGELS » 9A

Guardian Angel Joe Hoschouer was patrolling the 16th Street Mall on Monday. John Leyba, The Denver Post

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ANGELS: Group

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ON

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FROM 1A

motivated muggings along the mall and nearby in 2009. Police investigators suspect that at least one individual has been involved in several of the most recent cases. The violent attacks have been carried out by groups of up to eight people. Denver police said they welcome the additional assistance from the Guardian Angels. “We’re pleased to have any citizen or citizen group help us, to be an extra set of eyes and ears,” said spokesman John White. He said police have worked with the Angels in the past with good results. “They’ve been a good partner,” White said. Jeremy Harold, who manages the Sportsfan store on the mall near Champa Street, also welcomes the peacekeeping group. “Any extra presence, police or otherwise, down here will be beneficial to the overall safety of people who frequent the mall,” Harold said. “The more security presence we can get down here the better.” The Guardian Angels, in their familiar red berets, patrol East Colfax Avenue and the 16th Street Mall regularly on weekends, but volunteers are now out on weeknights as well. “It’s important for people to feel safe,” Metz said. “Hopefully, we’ll be a friendly face when there is a need.”

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On his first day as a Guardian Angel, Chris Wyong, center, walks the 16th Street Mall with Joe Hoschouer on Monday. John Leyba, The Denver Post There are about 30 Guardian Angels in Denver, Metz said, and members’ backgrounds run the gamut from homemakers to Army veterans and schoolteachers to truck drivers. Most members are in their 30s and 40s, but the group would like to recruit a few more members in their 20s. “In part, to help give some younger people some direction,” Metz said. Guardian Angels do not carry weapons. They do take classes in self-defense and conflict resolution. The new weeknight patrols, started in the past couple of weeks, haven’t directly

stopped an attack or aided police in capturing a suspect, but a potential volunteer member has come forward after encountering the Angels on the mall. “We’ve had a great deal of feedback about it,” Metz said. “The message we want to send is: It’s still a safe place. You can count on Denverites coming to your aid.”

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On the money.

Staff writer Sara Burnett contributed to this report. Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com

SCHOOL: Howell insisted building was safe

«

FROM 1A

2007, and he worked on Meeker school drawings while his license was invalid, state officials said. Boian said Neenan had already been looking at Howell’s job status because of the Meeker project and decided to fire him after learning from The Post about the state investigation and his period with a lapsed license. Boian said the company is investigating how Howell was hired without a valid license and is taking steps to improve its quality control in hiring and in general. Howell said in an e-mail Monday night that he had signed a confidentiality agreement with Neenan because of his termination and could not comment. The Post on Sunday published a story detailing problems at the school, which was shuttered last summer by the school board after an independent structural review found it was built to the wrong safety codes and susceptible to collapse in extreme weather. Neenan has acknowledged mistakes and pledged to pay for repairs. A state plan reviewer also missed an error in the design that his superiors said should have been caught. An outside structural engineer hired by the school district urged a review of the entire building after a gym wall moved a few inches in October 2010. But Howell pushed back hard against that idea and continued to insist the school was stable and safe. About 350 students had attended classes for an entire year

Read more. Find The Post’s coverage of the Meeker school design. »denverpost.com/extras before the district ordered the review that led to the closure. Kinnaird Linn, program director for DORA’s business and technical section, said the report “was enough information for us to be concerned there was the possibility of substandard engineering.” She said she acted after getting input from members of the State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors, which falls under DORA. Howell has 30 days to respond. The board eventually could reprimand Howell, fine him or revoke his license, among other possibilities, Kinnaird Linn said. The board has jurisdiction over individual license-holders, not companies, she said. In 2001, the board gave Howell a letter of admonition after finding the engineer “more likely than not” had produced an “insufficient structural design” of a deck and failed to ensure that his direction and corrections were carried through on the project’s final drawings. More details were not imme-

diately available because the records are in state archives, Kinnaird Linn said. Howell received another reprimand April 6, 2009, for failing to renew his license, which is required every two years. In response, Howell explained that he had moved and did not receive notice of the renewal or lapse, state records show. “Have to plead ‘unaware,’ ” he wrote. Kinnaird Linn said it is not unusual for such licenses to expire because individuals forget to renew. She said the board did not consider Howell’s first reprimand in handing out the second letter because the behavior in each case was not comparable. Howell’s license was expired from Oct. 31, 2007, to Feb. 25, 2009, the state says. He acknowledged he had been practicing as an engineer in Colorado during that time. The State Division of Fire Safety, which oversees school construction plan reviews and inspections, has records of Howell drawings on the Meeker school dated January 2009,

spokesman Lance Clem said. The division is reviewing other Neenan school projects as a result of the Meeker problems. At the request of the Colorado Department of Education, Neenan has also agreed to an outside review of projects it has built in eight districts with $150 million in state money. Kinnaird Linn said that, for now, DORA is looking solely at Howell’s work on the Neenan project. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski

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We’ll highlight the best each month! Individual athletes or teams selected as the YES! top performer of the month will have their photo and a description of their feat in The Post sports section and at denverpost.com/yes. Winners will also have their pictures displayed at the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, located inside Sports Authority Field at Mile High. At the end of the year, an overall winner will be selected from the 12 monthly honorees.

SUBMIT YOUR NOMINATION TODAY It’s easy to make a YES! submission online. Go to denverpost.com/yes and complete the form. You may also fax a brief description of the achievement with the name of the athlete or team, age(s) and your phone number to 303-866-9004.


AS TEMPS DROP, BRONCOS BEGIN TO HEAT UP

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WORLD

N EEN A N C O .

IN EGYPT, A TRANQUIL ELECTION DAY

Design flaws at 2nd school

Millions of voters defied predictions of violence and cast ballots in Egypt’s first election since the ouster earlier this year of President Hosni Mubarak. Lines were long, but spirits were high. »2A

underground world. Scientists use a six-step process involving water, screens and a centrifuge to separate nematodes — microscopic worms — out of soil samples collected from all over the world. This soil came from a site in the Chihuahuan Desert in Las Cruces, N.M. Colorado State University scientist Diana Wall and her team are studying the “soil frontier,” trying to better understand the diverse ecosystems underground.

Unearthing secrets in soil

LIFESTYLE

FRIEND OR PEST? Families deal with social-media issues in several ways. Some parents insist on being “friended” so they can monitor their children. Others spend time online together and share tentative Facebook friendships. »1D

Neenan president Randy Myers will

attend a Monte Vista school board meeting as part of a goodwill tour. By Eric Gorski and David Olinger The Denver Post

DENVER & THE WEST

PLAN REVIVES REMAP BATTLE Weeks after the state Supreme Court rejected Democratic-drawn maps for legislative districts, the panel charged with redrawing the maps appeared poised to adopt lines even more favorable to Democrats. Republicans are complaining about “an absolute ambush.” »1B

dishing the dirt. Colorado State University lab supervisor Cecilia Tomasel looks at microscopic plectus worms in a soil sample at the Soil Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning Lab. Scientists are keeping their eyes to the ground, studying the microorganisms that affect soil health. Photos by Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post By Bruce Finley The Denver Post

Pepsi Center retailers» Restaurateurs, street vendors and sports merchandisers are eager to make up for six weeks of lost Nuggets-related revenue. »5B

fort collins» s scientist Diana Wall and her team peered at them through microscopes, the trapped tiny creatures feasted on morsels in dirt. A nematode’s innards bulged full of carbon and nitrogen. A water bear pulsed, devouring algae. Spiderlike mites and springtails jumped — the underground equivalents of zebras and giraffes. Exploits of these subsurface organisms are a growing preoccupation for scientists because the ecological oomph of soils that people depend on for food,

A

health and water is eroding. Understanding how the tiny creatures work may help restore soil fertility and stop deadly sicknesses. “There are huge quantities of organisms in soils that are working for us at no cost — to control pests and pathogens, cleanse water, aerate soils, store carbon, maintain soil fertility, prevent erosion, and maintain healthy soils,” Wall said at her lab at Colorado State University. Today, at least three United Nations agreements address soil health, pulling Wall and a global network of scientists together to solve the puzzle of how people can draw more benefits from the world’s

SCHOOL » 6A

Colo. second in opt-outs for vaccines

SOIL » 9A

Banks and Fed kept scope of bailout under wraps By Bob Ivry, Bradley Keoun and Phil Kuntz Bloomberg News

The Federal Reserve and the big banks fought for more than two years to keep details of the largest bailout in U.S. history a secret. Now the rest of the world can see what it was missing. The Fed didn’t tell anyone which banks were in trouble so deep they required emergency loans of a combined $1.2 trillion on Dec. 5, 2008, their single neediest day. Bankers didn’t mention that they took tens of billions of dollars at the same time they were assuring investors their firms were healthy. And no one calculated until now BANKS » 9A

Bailing out the banks The six biggest U.S. banks received a total of $160 billion in TARP funds and borrowed as much as $460 billion from the Federal Reserve. Government bailouts reached nearly $8 trillion in loans, guarantees and limits — according to Bloomberg — raising questions of how and why the amount remained under wraps for so long.

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Structural issues have emerged at another school being constructed by the Neenan Co., a major builder of rural Colorado schools that already has admitted making mistakes that closed an $18.9 million school in Meeker. Neenan has agreed to pay for repairs at Monte Vista High School in southern Colorado “to stiffen it up in case of a catastrophic event like an earthquake,” the district’s superintendent, Dwayne Newman, told The Denver Post on Monday. He said Neenan plans to strengthen the connections between columns and a large metal beam in the gym, as well as perform additional work on the foundation. The school district received a $27.6 million state grant to help pay for the new high school — which is scheduled to open in August — as well as an elementary-school renovation and addition. Neenan already has agreed to a Colorado Department of Education request that it hire an outside firm to review the structural engineering on 15 school projects that won $150 million in grants through the Building Excellent Schools Today program, or BEST. Issues with the school in Monte Vista, however, came to light in mid-September during a separate outside review, said Andy Boian, a spokesman

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By Michael Booth The Denver Post

A new survey puts Colorado second-highest in the nation for parents refusing vaccines for their schoolage kids, part of an anti-shot trend that increasingly troubles state health officials. Though some public-health officials said the Associated Press ranking exaggerates the vaccine-refusal rates in Colorado, most said there is worrisome sentiment building against immunization. They said Colorado’s education system makes it too easy to opt out of shots and that a highly educated population employs bad information to reject vaccines. Parents still cite a fraudulent autism study when refusing shots in Colorado and other states, said Dr. Simon VACCINE » 9A

Source: Bloomberg

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6

SCHOOL: Neenan disagrees with fix

«

FROM 1A

for Neenan. Newman said Neenan offered an outside review after problems surfaced at Meeker’s school, which was closed last summer when school officials learned it was built to the wrong safety codes and at risk of collapse in extreme weather. Newman said the Monte Vista high school was built to the correct occupancy code. Neenan did not agree with the proposed fix in Monte Vista but agreed to carry it out anyway, Boian said. He said that neither Neenan nor the outside reviewer — Computerized Structural Design — considered the situation a “life-safety issue.” “This revolves around a difference of opinion, and we opted to go with the recommendation of the peer review engineer firm,” Boian said. Neenan president Randy Myers is scheduled to appear Thursday at a Monte Vista

school board meeting, part of a week-long goodwill tour of 16 communities in which Neenan has done school and medical building business. One stop will be tonight in Meeker, where the school board will get an elementary-school update and possibly vote on repairs, which Neenan has agreed to pay for. Boian said he recommended Myers make the tour “to reassure these boards their schools are safe.” Boian said Neenan will expand the number of past school projects subject to independent peer review of structural engineering. He said other projects will get that scrutiny “on a case-by-case basis,” including those under construction. Neenan also said Monday that it will review and confirm the credentials of its licensed engineers and architects after the disclosure last week that it had hired a structural engineer with a lapsed license in 2007.

The state Department of Regulatory Agencies reprimanded the engineer, Gary Howell, and last week opened an investigation into his work on the Meeker school. Neenan fired Howell that same day. A different Neenan engineer worked on the Monte Vista project, Boian said. Because of the problems in Meeker, the company had previously announced other reforms — including third-party peer reviews of its structural engineering designs and drawings on new projects. “I am disappointed in the errors we made in constructing Meeker Elementary School, and I want to assure everyone that we will take any and all steps necessary to make it right,” Myers said in a statement. Neenan has become a major player in Colorado school construction in the past decade. In Conejos County, the Sanford School District has a planning agreement with Neenan

but has not chosen a builder for a major renovation that has won a BEST grant, said Superintendent Kevin Edgar. Edgar said “of course” he is concerned about problems at the Meeker school, but Neenan “has been great to work with through the master-planning process.” The district is among the stops on Myers’ tour this week. Neenan has done extensive work renovating and expanding a multi-grade school in the Primero Reorganized School District RE-2, in western Las Animas County. Superintendent Duane Denny said the district has not formally requested a more in-depth review, but “we probably will have them come do an inspection.” Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski

Dems press extension of cut in payroll tax By The Associated Press

washington» Senate Democrats are pressing ahead on President Barack Obama’s plan to cut in half every worker’s payroll taxes next year — paid for by a 3.25 percent tax surcharge on the very wealthy. The $248 billion plan would trim Social Security payroll taxes from 6.2 percent to 3.1 percent in hopes of propping up the still-weak economy. It also would cut in half the 6.2 percent tax paid by employers on the first $5 million of their payroll. A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Democrats would hold a test vote on the plan later this week. The 2 percent payroll-tax

holiday enacted a year ago expires on Dec. 31. Republicans are likely to oppose the plan because it would post a permanent surcharge on income exceeding $1 million, including income earned by many small businesses. Reid’s move is the latest political salvo by Democrats as the two parties spar over the best way to create more jobs. Monday’s move appears aimed at drawing a distinction between Democrats and Republicans on taxes, with Reid seeking to maneuver Republicans into opposing the payroll-tax cut. Indeed, the payroll-tax cut is unpopular with many Republicans who say the existing 2 percent cut hasn’t done much to create jobs.

On the money.

David Olinger: 303-954-1498 or dolinger@denverpost.com

OCC UP Y WA LL STR E ET MOVEMENT

L.A., Philly camps defiant; cops back off By Christina Hoag and Geoff Mulvihill The Associated Press

los angeles» Anti-Wall Street demonstrators in Los Angeles and Philadelphia defied orders to leave their months-old encampments, making it through the deadlines without the acrimony that marked earlier forced evictions in other cities. Protesters chanted “we won, we won” as Los Angeles police clad in riot gear left on Monday, though there were four arrests. Occupy L.A. supporters asked a federal judge to bar the city from tearing down their encampment. In Philadelphia, the camp was mostly quiet amid a heavy police presence, and on Monday morning a handful of people marched down one of the city’s main business corridors banging drums. When the camps would be cleared after officials in both cities ordered their removal was unclear. “There is no concrete deadline,” Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said after hundreds of officers withdrew without moving in on the camp. He said he wanted to make sure the removal would be safe for protesters and officers. “With as little drama as possible,” he told reporters. Police and protesters have

An anti-Wall Street demonstrator moves into a tree near City Hall in downtown Los Angeles on Monday. Despite a midnight Sunday deadline to evacuate, police turned back as more Occupy L.A. protesters arrived.

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Occupy Denver. City calculates cost of police overtime for protest. clashed in recent weeks, most notably in Oakland, Calif., as officers sometimes used pepper spray and tear gas to shutter camps that officials say have grown more dangerous for public health and safety. Some of those encampments had been in use almost since the movement against economic disparity and perceived corporate greed began with Occupy Wall Street in Manhattan two months ago. Elsewhere, nine people were arrested in Maine after protesters in the Occupy Augusta encampment in Capitol Park took down their tents and packed their camping gear after being told to get a permit or move

their shelters. In San Francisco, protesters shouted and chanted as they disrupted a University of California board meeting, forcing officials to move to another room. The meeting comes after video footage that captured a UC Davis police officer pepperspraying peaceful protesters drew outrage, not just at the school but around the world, and set off a debate about the appropriate use of force. In Los Angeles, about half of the 485 tents had been taken down as of Sunday night, leaving patches of the 1.7-acre park around City Hall barren of grass and littered with garbage.

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SIX NEW TAKES ON FAVORITE HOLIDAY COOKIES »food, 1D

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Bank-card cap backfires on small shops New credit- and debit-card fee limits have banks taking a bigger bite out of inexpensive purchases. By David Migoya The Denver Post

It took about five minutes and a dozen customers before a lunch patron handed Su-Lin Hsieh cash for an order. It used to be different. But in a world where plastic is now king, it’s also why small businesses are feeling the pinch. A new federal law intended to reduce costs for businesses that accept debit cards for inexpensive purchases

— coffee shops and convenience stores, among them — is affecting small operations such as Hsieh’s family-owned lunch counter in downtown Denver. Monthly processing costs on credit and debit charges are shooting up rather than down, an unintended consequence of legislation that capped the amount card companies could charge merchants. “If they keep raising the fees, then

we’ll have no choice but to raise our prices,” said Hsieh, whose Chinja business is probably the most popular counter at the food-court space beneath Republic Plaza along the 16th Street Mall. Last month, the business saw interchange fees eat up about 3.8 percent of revenue, Hsieh said. Next month, she said she’s expecting it to top 4 percent — or worse. “But without accepting credit and debit cards, we couldn’t stay in business,” a difficult thought after 17 years in the same location, she said.

NTSB seeks cellphone ban when car’s moving The effort cites increasing accident rates as a reason to bar even hands-free devices.

The National Transportation Safety Board recommended Tuesday that drivers be prohibited from using hand-held and portable electronic devices in automobiles, a ban that would include cellphone usage, even with hands-free devices. Citing increasing accident rates as the motivation, NTSB chairwoman Deborah A.P. Hersman said she realized the recommended ban might be unpopular with the public but added that “no call, no text, no update is worth a human life.” “This is a difficult recommendation, but it’s the right recommendation and it’s time,” she said. The NTSB said the only exceptions to the ban would be using a cellphone in emergency situations or GPS navigation devices.

Card companies are capped at charging 22 cents for each debit- or credit-card transaction; previously, it was an average of about 42 cents. They also used to charge a lower rate for smaller transactions — on average about 5 or 6 cents each — but now the charge is closer to 22 cents.

FEES » 15A

BACK ON A BOARD

DI ST R A CTE D D RIVE RS

By Anthony Cotton The Denver Post

Fee changes

On Dec. 31, 2009, snowboarder Kevin Pearce suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident during practice that left him in a coma. Now, nearly two years later and after extensive physical therapy at Craig Hospital in Englewood, he is back on a snowboard. Pearce and his friends hit the slopes in Breckenridge on Tuesday. And while the four-time X Games medalist will never ride competitively again, just being back on the board was “the ride of a lifetime.” »1C

R EV IEW O F N EEN A N W O R K

More school fixes on tap Buildings in Craig and Akron are the latest where structural problems have been found. By Eric Gorski and David Olinger The Denver Post

Structural deficiencies have been discovered at two more schools constructed by the Neenan Co., new evidence that inspections of the company’s work are unearthing a pattern of problems at schools built by the company statewide. In Moffat County in northwestern Colorado, a wing of 2-year-old Craig Middle School was closed to students this week after a structural analysis found it failed to meet building codes. The superintendent, Joe Petrone, wrote that he made the decision “to reduce the risk to all students,” even though the engineering firm that conducted the review does “not believe the structure is dangerous.” And on the other side of the state, in Akron, a school under construction with help from a $17 million state grant needs foundation work and other strengthening after a thirdparty review requested by the state. SCHOOLS » 14A

M ED IC A L M A R IJ U A N A

Another case against a doctor tossed in court

PHONE » 15A

By John Ingold The Denver Post

NATION

TIMEOUT CALLED ON $1 COIN OUTPUT More than a billion one-dollar coins are going unused and piling up in bank vaults, so the U.S. Mint will all but halt production of its special presidential dollar coins. »6A

At Breckenridge on Tuesday, professional snowboarder Kevin Pearce returns to the slopes for the first time since suffering a near-death injury while training for the Vancouver Olympics.

For the second time this year, a judge has tossed out a criminal case against a doctor accused of writing bad medical-marijuana recommendations to undercover police officers. Arapahoe County District Judge Carlos Samour dismissed the case against Dr. Manuel Aquino-Villaman following a hearing Friday. Samour said Aquino-Villaman’s actions were lawful under the Colorado Constitution, according to a court summary of the hearing. He also said the charges should be dropped because officials failed to preserve key evidence. Aquino-Villaman had been charged with felony conspiracy to distribute marijuana, in addition to forgery and

Photos by Jack Dempsey, The Associated Press

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wednesday, december 14, 2011 B the denver post B denverpost.com

SCHOOLS:

«

FROM 1A

In both cases, Fort Collinsbased Neenan has agreed to pay for repairs. Representatives for the firm appeared at school board meetings in both communities Tuesday. Andy Boian, a public-relations specialist hired by Neenan, emphasized that the issues discovered in Craig and Akron are not considered threats to life safety. Neither, he said, do they compare to the serious structural problems that caused the school board in Meeker to temporarily close an $18.9 million school in that rural northwestern Colorado town this fall.

Worst issues in Meeker Structural issues have been identified in at least six Neenan-built schools, but none on the scale of Meeker, which was found to be built to the wrong safety codes and susceptible to collapse in extreme weather. “Typically, when you have peer reviews, you’re going to come back with these sorts of things, when you have a tweak here or blemish here that needs correcting,” Boian said. After the problems in Meeker, the Colorado Department of Education requested that Neenan hire independent firms to conduct peer reviews of the structural engineering on 15 schools built with money from the state’s Building Excellent Schools Today grant program. So far, the department has received reports on the Akron school and a school in Monte Vista, said BEST program director Ted Hughes. He said he expects the rest to be completed by mid-January. Hughes said action plans prepared by Neenan in response to the reviews will go to the school districts; the state Division of Fire Safety, which oversees school plan reviews and in-

66

Neenan says reviews often find “blemish” spections; and the state Department of Regulatory Agencies for review. The Denver Post has previously reported on issues at Monte Vista High School. A memo from Neenan, which Hughes provided to The Post on Tuesday, shows the company has agreed to add piers to strengthen four concrete walls, modify beam connections and other repairs. Neenan has said it did not agree with the proposed fix but agreed to carry it out anyway. The school district received a $27.6 million BEST grant to help pay for the new high school — which is scheduled to open in August — as well as an elementary-school renovation and addition. At Craig Middle School, the locker rooms, band room, theater storage room and adjoining hallway areas are now offlimits to students. Students will be unable to change clothes for physical education classes or shower afterward. The band will practice in a gym room. The district hired KL&A, a Golden engineering firm, to review the school’s design after a Post investigation of the Meeker project last month. On Friday, KL&A’s principal engineer told the district a portion of the school did not meet code requirements. The engineers “recommend that the north addition roof structure be retrofitted with a code compliant lateral system in a timely manner,” Petrone wrote in a letter to the community posted on the district’s website. His decision to close the wing was first reported Tuesday by the Craig Daily Press. Petrone said he expects the entire school will be open to students after this month’s holiday break. Boian, the Neenan spokesman, said the company supports Petrone’s decision to

close part of the school. He said Neenan paid for the KL&A review and agreed to pay for repairs at the Monte Vista and Craig schools “out of an abundance of caution.” “Just like in any construction review process, there tends to be different opinions about how to potentially resolve an issue,” Boian said.

Other problems before This is not the first problem with a Neenan-built school in Moffat County. Two years ago, a Neenan supervisor noticed a deflection in a beam supporting the second floor on an $18 million elementary school then under construction in Craig. An independent review pinpointed a drawing error by a structural engineer hired as a subcontractor, and Neenan paid for repairs. Boian said Neenan hired an outside firm for the structural engineering on both Craig schools. In Akron, Neenan has agreed to add piers under the foundation and new bracing at the second floor and the roof “to enhance performance of the structure,” according to an action plan from the company. Superintendent Bryce Monasmith said the fixes will help protect the building against heavy winds or other forces. The school is expected to be completed by May. “I feel personally that things are being looked at and that we’ll have a safe school when we’re done,” Monasmith said.

The locker rooms, band room and adjoining areas at Craig Middle School have been closed as work is done to bring the Neenan-built structure up to code. Bridget Manley, Craig Daily Press

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Building review expands A state agency that oversees school construction will also do its homework on the safety of sites other than Neenan’s.

THE TOY TESTERS

By Eric Gorski and Jennifer Brown The Denver Post

A

bby Gabbard, 4, plays with Bristle Blocks in her classroom Thursday at the Goddard School in Thornton. This fall, Goddard preschoolers tested more than 100 submissions by major toy companies to get a fix on the best educational toys. »story, 3B | video of the toy testing, denverpost.com/extras Mahala Gaylord, The Denver Post

NATION & WORLD

The agency that oversees school construction in Colorado will expand its investigation of structural engineering on past projects beyond schools built by one company, the division’s head said Friday. Expansion of the inquiry comes as a potential construction problem was found at another school built by the Neenan Co., which is under scrutiny because of unsafe conditions that closed one of its schools and a growing list of more minor issues at others. Kevin Klein, director of the state Homeland Security Division, said he has no reason to believe problems will emerge beyond the Neenan projects. “While I do not have evidence that structural engineering problems exist in schools other than those identified in the Neenan review, I am not going to be comfortable until we have completed our review of other projects,” he said. In a statement, Neenan president Randy Myers said, “We would welcome a consistent, statewide review process that does what The Neenan Company’s current third-party peer review process does — assure everyone that their local schools are safe for students and educators.” The latest concern at a Neenan school was discovered at York International School, a renovated and expanded Mapleton Public Schools building that was dedicated just this week in Adams County. A preliminary structural review found “minor outstanding issues” that require additional study, but no life-safety concerns, said Whei Wong, SCHOOLS » 17A

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Mike McQueary’s testimony at a preliminary hearing for two Penn State officials accused of covering up the incident was the most detailed public account yet of the child sex abuse allegations. »2A

Senate leaders agreed on compromise legislation to extend Social Security payroll tax cuts and jobless benefits for two months while requiring President Barack Obama to accept demands for an accelerated decision on a controversial oil pipeline from Canada. A vote is expected today.

A spending bill approved by the House on Friday provides more than $900 billion for the Defense Department, Homeland Security, public works, foreign aid, veterans benefits and a wide range of health, education and labor programs. »story, 5A

JAPAN PLANT IS IN “COLD SHUTDOWN” The Japanese government declared Friday that the tsunami-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant had ceased to leak substantial amounts of radiation. »18A

BUSINESS

FILL GAS TANK WITH HOLIDAY CHEER Colorado motorists are enjoying an early holiday gift at the fuel pumps with gasoline priced below $3 a gallon at dozens of metro-area stations. Weak consumer demand is one reason. »5B

B Fraud charges against former CEOs of Fannie, Freddie. »5B B Bad financial news bashes Europe, hurts markets. »6B B Delta expands flights from N.Y., including to Denver. »7B

Jeffco schools grapple with scope of cuts By Electa Draper The Denver Post

DENVER & THE WEST

THOROUGH REVIEW PLANNED IN MAKING BID FOR ’22 GAMES The head of a committee named on Friday to explore a future Winter Olympics bid for Colorado plans an aggressive approach to examining the benefits and potential downsides of trying to land the 2022 Games. »1B

“We’re no longer going to be seeking to process uranium in Colorado.” John Hamrick, Cotter Corp.’s vice president for milling operations »denver & the west, 1B

INS I D E Business » 5-7B | Comics » 5-7D | Lottery » 2B | Markets » 6B | Movies » 4D | Obituaries » 7B | Puzzles » 5-6D

Jefferson County schools are getting their first look at what $68 million in potential budget cuts over the next two years might look like. The possible reductions include the elimination of 590 full-time-equivalent positions, including 175 posts at high schools, 65 at middle schools and 226 at elementary schools. The remaining 124 layoffs would affect administrators, business staff, custodians, technicians, coaches, aides and other instructional staff during school years 2012-14. Jefferson County Public Schools Superintendent Cindy Stevenson is in her 10th year of the budget process, she said, but she’s never faced anything on this scale. The projected shortfall could be as large as $70 million, on the heels of $60 million in cuts over the two previous years. “My first year, I thought the world would come to an end because the budget officer said we had to reduce JEFFERSON » 17A

MediaNews Group


the denver post B denverpost.com B saturday, december 17, 2011

6

SCHOOLS:

«

FROM 1A

a district spokeswoman. Any repairs would be done before students occupy the new addition after winter break, she said. Neenan, a major builder of Colorado schools, has been in the spotlight since its $18.9 million school in Meeker, in northwestern Colorado, was temporarily closed after a review found it was built to the wrong safety codes and susceptible to collapse in severe weather. Neenan agreed to a state Department of Education request for third-party reviews of Neenan-built projects financed through a state grant program. Other districts have asked Neenan for their own reviews, and at least one decided not to wait and conducted its own.

Emerging issues So far, issues have emerged at eight Neenan-built schools, including some known about before the problems that came to light in Meeker. The state Division of Fire Safety, which falls under Homeland Security and oversees school plan reviews and inspections, is reviewing 20 Neenan projects to determine whether a deeper look at the company’s projects is warranted. Klein said the priority is to review recently occupied schools, then projects under construction. The state is paying an engineer between $150 and $200 an hour to review school construction projects, Klein said. The expense of checking on projects already constructed is expected to reach about $20,000, then the state is likely

Other problems found in state review minor Issues with schools have been building up Structural issues have been found at eight Colorado schools built by the Neenan Co. of Fort Collins: Kremmling — A gymnasium roof on a new $11.5 million preschool through eighth-grade school lifted 3 or 4 inches during an April 2008 windstorm. Neenan repaired the roof at no cost. Craig (elementary school) — While the $18 million school was under construction in 2009, a deflection in a beam supporting the second floor was discovered. A review pinpointed a drawing error by a structural engineer hired as a subcontractor. Neenan made repairs. Meeker — An $18.9 million elementary school that opened in fall 2010 was closed a year later after a review found it was built to the wrong safety codes and susceptible to collapse in extreme weather. A repair plan is still in the works. Monte Vista — A review conducted after the problems in Meeker emerged found a new high school under construction needs repairs to strengthen the connections between columns, foundation work and other repairs. Neenan disagreed with the findings but agreed to pay for the repairs anyway. Craig (middle school) — A wing of the 2-year-old school was closed last week to students after a structural analysis found it failed to meet building codes. Locker rooms, the band room, the theater storage room and adjoining hallway areas are temporarily off-limits to students. Akron — Another recent review found a school under construction with help from a $17 million state grant needs foundation work and other strengthening. Grand Junction — Two minor issues were identified at Capstone Charter School, including issues with joist hangers attached to a plate on a wall. Repairs are planned. Adams County — “Minor outstanding issues” were identified in a preliminary review of a new addition at York International School in the Mapleton school district. Sources: School district officials; public records; Neenan Co.

to spend several more thousand dollars to “spot-check” structural engineers’ work for a yet-undetermined length of time, he said. “Until I am comfortable that I can trust engineers, I’m going to double-check their work,” Klein said. But ultimately, he said, “what I don’t want to do is spend additional taxpayer dollars on engineers reviewing other engineers reviewing oth-

er engineers.” The Fire Safety Division issued 604 school building permits last year. About 15 projects each year include high-level structural engineering.

FROM 1A

the budget by $14 million,” Stevenson said. “We already cut $40 million last year and $20 million the year before that. This is huge. It’s going to touch every part of our organization and everything we do.” About $10 million in savings could be gained through four furlough days, which are unpaid days off resulting in a 2 percent reduction in compensation across the district. But because a requirement of two furlough days already was in effect for 2011-12, it would mean an additional two furlough days, or another 1 percent pay cut, chief financial officer Lorie Gillis said. Budget work groups made up of a cross-section of hundreds of people — including district staff, parents, union representatives and other community members — met beginning in September to develop a list of proposed cuts. Earlier this month, they completed a $47.5 million package of cuts for the board of education and district officials to consider in January. Friday afternoon, a 20-member Citizens Budget Advisory Committee — which also included some staff and union officials — released an additional $20 million in proposed cuts. This group also prioritized all $68 million identified reductions, 82 items in all. “How far we go down the list will depend on state revenues and action,” Gillis said. “We won’t really know until early spring.” Additional furlough days are a last resort. But top on the list is a proposal that would have employees — rather than the employer — pay the mandated 0.9 percent annual increase in contributions to PERA, the pension plan for state employees. It would save the district $4.5 million. Another priority is to save $1 million by increasing student walking distances by a half-mile, eliminating some bus routes and stopping busing to option/choice schools. “Nothing has been finally determined,” district spokeswoman Lynn Setzer said. “This is a starting point. Everything must still be negotiated.”

Some of the last-resort cuts are the the deepest. These include: B At the 18 district high schools, nine assistant principals, nine counselors and 150 teachers could lose their jobs over two years. B At the 19 middle schools, all 20 teacher librarians could be eliminated, along with 33 teachers, eight counselors and four secretaries.

School districts must apply for a permit for any construction project from the Fire Safety Division. School districts are required

B At the 92 elementary schools, losses could include 12 teaching aides, 21 enrollment secretaries, 24 teacher librarians, two assistant principals, 19 (all) instrumental music teachers and 194 other teaching jobs. “As difficult as this is,” Gillis said, “we’re preparing and planning appropriately.” Electa Draper: 303-954-1276 or edraper@denverpost.com

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to hire one of the state’s 13 inspectors or a private inspector certified by the state to approve numerous stages of construction — foundation, concrete, plumbing, drywall, welding, framing and others. But those inspections are to determine whether design plans are being followed — for example, whether studs are placed every 16 inches as the blueprints say. They are not to determine whether the design is sound. A building does not receive a “certificate of occupancy” from the state unless it has met those requirements and passes a final inspection by a state inspector. That inspection is to make sure “there are no wires hanging from the ceiling and the ceiling tiles are put in place,” Klein said. Klein said that aside from the Meeker school, other problems discovered so far during the state review have been minor. When engineers look over one another’s work, they may disagree about the best way to design a building, he said. “It’s like getting two plastic surgeons in the room and saying, ‘I wouldn’t tie the knot that way,’ ” Klein said. Last month, the state Department of Regulatory Agencies opened an investigation into the work of Gary Howell, the structural engineer on the Meeker project. Howell had been reprimanded previously for letting his license lapse, and Neenan quickly fired him after learning

about the new state investigation. DORA has not determined whether the engineering work in other schools with problems should be investigated, said Angie Kinnaird Linn, a program director with the agency. “Absolutely, we want to make sure all (schools) are safe,” Kinnaird Linn said. “But I do think we need to go slow as to whether it’s a systemic issue or a matter, unfortunately, of finding issues with a major group of projects.”

Third-party reviews The state Department of Education, meanwhile, has no plans to subject other companies to the same scrutiny that Neenan has received. The department asked Neenan to conduct third-party structural reviews of work on 15 of its schools that received $150 million through the state’s Building Excellent Schools Today, or BEST, program. Janelle Albertson Asmus, an Education Department spokeswoman, said the department made that request because of “the significance of the issues” surrounding Meeker. She said any further reviews would fall to the Division of Fire Safety. Former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, who along with former state Treasurer Cary Kennedy was instrumental in starting BEST, encouraged state officials to give the construction problems serious attention. “It makes me very upset,” Ro-

manoff said Friday. “We worked awfully hard to get that money in those schools for those kids. I don’t want to see a dime wasted.” But double-checking every building project in the state would cost too much and isn’t necessary, said Marcia Neal, the State Board of Education vice chairman and a Grand Junction Republican. “I don’t want to oversimplify, but I think that would be a bit of overkill,” she said. Board of Education chairman Bob Schaffer, a Fort Collins Republican, said it is too early to judge whether additional scrutiny is needed, but he said Neenan has “a very good reputation for quality, reliability and so on.” But state school board member Angelika Schroeder, a Democrat from Boulder, said she believes state officials should re-examine the system for inspecting new school construction. She recalled intense scrutiny from local inspectors — to the point of “standing on your head” — during her own property-improvement project. “Is the kind of scrutiny a homeowner gets different from what a school gets? If that’s the case,” she said, “there may be changes necessary.” Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski Jennifer Brown: 303-954-1593 or jenbrown@denverpost.com

Stages of construction

JEFFERSON: Cuts on heels of others

«

NEWS «17A

johnatencio.com

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A Neenan roof latest risk By Eric Gorski and David Olinger The Denver Post

Part of the roof at a junior and senior high school in the San Luis Valley is at risk of collapse if bearing as little as 10 inches of snow and is in need of immediate repairs, officials said Tuesday. The problems at Sargent Junior-Senior High School, just northeast of Monte Vista, are the most serious to be found at a Neenan Co. project since structural flaws in Meeker triggered a series of reviews of the firm’s work on Colorado schools. Neenan has agreed to pay for new

bracing and supports to a beam supporting the roof above a physical-education and wrestling room at the 190student school, Sargent School Superintendent Philip Compton said. Neenan considered the problem serious enough to recommend that Compton bar students from the room “out of an abundance of caution” until repairs are made before students return to classes in January, said Andy Boian, a spokesman for Neenan. Compton said the school was out by the time Neenan reached him over the weekend and that there are no

Issues with schools continue to build Structural issues have been found at nine Colorado schools built by the Neenan Co. of Fort Collins: Kremmling — A gymnasium roof on a new school lifted slightly in an April 2008 windstorm. Repairs were made. Craig (elementary school) — Repairs were made to a beam during construction. Meeker — A repair plan is in the works for an elementary school that was closed after a review found serious problems. Monte Vista — A high school under construction will get work on columns and other repairs. Craig (middle school) — A wing is closed temporarily to students after analysis found it failed to meet building codes. Akron — A school under construction needs foundation work and strengthening. Grand Junction — Minor issues were identified at Capstone Charter School. Repairs are planned. Adams County — Issues termed minor were found in a review of a new addition at York International School. Rio Grande County — Repairs are planned to strengthen a beam supporting a roof at Sargent Junior-Senior High School. Sources: School district officials; public records; Neenan Co.

NEENAN » 15A

Many illegal immigrants who fit the noncriminal, longtime-resident profile are anxiously waiting for word on their fate from prosecutors.

NATION & WORLD

PUBLICATIONS ARE ASKED NOT TO PRINT INFO

Lives on hold

Federal officials ask scientific journals to not publish the details of certain biomedical experiments, for fear that the information could be used by terrorists to create havoc. »4A

SNOW DAYS

By David Espo The Associated Press

PAYROLL » 14A

As southeastern Colorado digs out from under as much as 15 inches of snow, other parts prepare for a holiday storm. »1B

M U N IT IO N S C O N TR O L S “ L A X ”

Supermax guard admits thefts from prison’s armory

BUSINESS Ready for takeoff. Fewer people will fly this holiday season, but flights will still be packed. »9B

By John Ingold The Denver Post By Nancy Lofholm The Denver Post

SPORTS

TEBOW’S WAY OF FINISHING IS CATCHING EYES

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ntil recently, Lizeth Amateco had never heard the term “prosecutorial discretion.” Now, her future depends on it. Amateco, 19, is one of the 7,800 illegal immigrants whose cases are being reviewed by federal prosecutors during a six-week pilot program being carried out to test the effectiveness of prosecutorial discretion in immigration court in Denver. Cases also are being reviewed in Baltimore. This review that has been underway for two weeks means that government attorneys are sifting through files and determining which cases should go on the “low priority” pile, effectively freezing proceedings, or on the “priority” stack. In the latter cases, the govern-

ment would move forward with prosecutions and deportations. While prosecutors huddle over the daunting stacks of files and Denver immigration attorneys stay busy trying to determine which of their cases might be set aside, the

The oldest of eight sisters, Lizeth Amateco, 19, is joined by Ashley, 3, at their home in Aurora. Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post

OFFICIAL ROLEX JEWELER OYSTER PERPETUAL AND DATEJUST ARE TRADEMARKS.

A federal prosecutor said Tuesday that lax munitions controls at the Supermax prison in Florence allowed a drug-addicted guard to steal as many as 15 “flash-bang” grenades from the prison armory. Christopher “Kit” Turner, who pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal weapons charge, admitted to taking 10 of the stun grenades and selling one of them. He said he ignited others to celebrate the Fourth of July. Turner’s former girlfriend told police that Turner also traded ammunition — possibly taken from Supermax — for prescription drugs, according to a police search-warrant affidavit. GUILTY » 15A

DISCRETION » 13A

INS I D E Business » 5-11B | Comics » 7-9D | Contact The Post » 2B | Lottery » 2B | Movies » 5D | Obituaries » 10B | Puzzles » 7-8D

ROLEX

House vote raises stakes and anxiety washington» Congress lurched toward Grinch-like gridlock Tuesday as the Republican-controlled House rejected a two-month extension of Social Security tax cuts that President Barack Obama said was “the only viable way” to prevent a drop in take-home pay for 160 million workers Jan. 1. “The clock is ticking; time is running out,” Obama said shortly after the House voted 229-193 to request negotiations with the Senate on renewing the payroll-tax cuts for a year. House Speaker John Boehner, told that Obama had sought his help, replied, “I need the president to help out.” His voice rose as he said it, and his words were cheered by dozens of Republican lawmakers who have

DENVER & THE WEST

Tim Tebow’s completion percentage ranks last among starting quarterbacks. But most would love to have his penchant for pulling out wins. »1C

P A Y R O L L - T A X C U T S T A L L ED

MediaNews Group


the denver post B denverpost.com B wednesday, december 21, 2011

666

NEENAN:

«

Company “nothing but forthright and honest” School roof at risk

FROM 1A

plans to use the room during the holiday break. Boian said Neenan notified the school after an independent structural review determined that the engineer on the project, Gary Howell, had not designed the beam to the proper building load. “Gary Howell was responsible for this,” Boian said. “It was a miscalculation by Gary Howell.” Boian added that the district’s contract is with Neenan and that the company is ultimately responsible for the work. Asked to respond, Howell wrote in an e-mail Tuesday that he had not been informed about the Sargent situation and would like to review the calculation about the beam before commenting. Howell also was Neenan’s structural engineer on the Meeker elementary school, which was closed this year after it was found to be built to the wrong safety codes and in danger of collapse in severe weather. Neenan initially stood behind Howell. But the company fired him last month after learning the state Department of

NEWS «15A

The roof over the P.E. and wrestling room at Sargent Junior-Senior High School, northeast of Monte Vista, is at risk of collapse. Repairs to the school, built in 2010 by the Neenan Co., should be complete by the time students return in next month. 17

CENTER 285

160

MOSCA

ALAMOSA

COUNTY Sargent Junior-Senior High School

MONTE VISTA RIO GRANDE COUNTY

10 miles

HOOPER

160

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ALAMOSA 285 The Denver Post

Regulatory Agencies had previously reprimanded him for letting his license lapse — and that it was launching an investigation based on a Denver Post report on Howell’s work in Meeker. As of late Tuesday afternoon, Howell had not replied to a DORA letter requesting a response, and he has until today to do so, said Angie Kinnaird Linn, a DORA program

director. She said she’s confident the state board that licenses engineers will look closely at all the school projects Howell has worked on. The Sargent school opened in the fall of 2010. It was financed through a $17.6 million grant from the state’s Building Excellent Schools Today program and $5 million from a district bond issue — a pool of money that also upgraded an elementary school. Neenan is paying for outside reviews of the engineering on 15 schools that received $150 million in BEST money at the request of the state Department of Education. The Sargent review, conducted by Jirsa Hedrick & Associates of Denver, is not complete, officials said. However, Compton and Boian said it has determined that the load bearing on the beam in question should have been 30 pounds per square foot but was built to 8 pounds per square foot. When Compton asked Neenan what that meant, the company told him the section of the roof as constructed could handle only about 10 to 12 inches of snow, he said. Earlier this month, classes in the district were canceled

when a blizzard dumped 8 to 10 inches of snow on the area, Compton said. But he said the building showed no signs of stress. Also, the roof is metal, sloped and south-facing, so it doesn’t accumulate large amounts of snow, Compton said. A check Monday found no more than a half-inch of snow on the roof above the wrestling room, he said. Boian, the spokesman for Neenan, said the company will send crews to clear snow off the roof if a big snowstorm hits before repairs are carried out. In an average season, about 30 inches of snow falls at a weather station 2 miles west of Monte Vista, according to the National Weather Service. Large snowstorms occasionally sweep across the valley, however. Last January, months before the new school opened, one storm dumped 12.7 inches at the station. “Was there an element of risk?” Compton said. “Sure, there was.” Compton said the problem is limited to the roof above the second-floor wrestling room, which also hosts P.E. , aerobics and yoga classes.

“This is all unfortunate, what has occurred,” Compton said. “I also have to compliment Neenan and how they’ve handled this. No one that runs a corporation wants this to happen, and it did, and they have been nothing but forthright and honest. I know some would say, ‘Well, they’d better because they messed up.’ ” The Sargent school district draws students from San Luis Valley farms as well as the towns of Monte Vista and Alamosa, where parents can opt for a rural school choice. School-board president Will Hathaway, a potato-andCoors-barley farmer, said the

new school “is a very nice facility” compared with the almost century-old building it replaced. But, he said, “you have to be disappointed when it wasn’t quite up to what you were led to believe it would be.” “It’s all very concerning,” he said. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971 or egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski David Olinger: 303-954-1498, dolinger@denverpost.com or twitter.com/dolingerDP

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Reinforcement planned for Mapleton school A new addition to a Mapleton Public School will be reinforced over the winter break, the result of an outside review by a structural engineer. An 8-inch plate will be added to better protect one section of the newly dedicated York International School against lateral forces such as earthquakes and high winds, said Paul Wember, the district’s owner’s representative on the project. The work will be done before students occupy the new

GUILTY:

addition after winter break, officials said. Wember and a representative of the Neenan Co., which designed and built the school, updated school-board members at a working dinner Monday night. Minor work on the foundation — to address a “modest” bend in a beam — will take place next summer. Superintendent Charlotte Cianco termed the additional work “reinforcements” rather

than repairs. She said that although the issue is considered minor, “I still think it’s important because we want to deliver the building we promised to our community.” By next month, the district expects results of another Neenan-financed review of major construction on its Skyview campus, where two new buildings will house four schools. The district received $34 million from the state’s Building

Grenades had expired

«

FROM 1A

Before pleading guilty, Turner tried to get the case against him thrown out for selective prosecution, arguing in a motion that it was common for officers on the elite Special Operations Response Team on which Turner served to take training flash-bang grenades home with them. “Many SORT officers treated these materials as personal property, taking the items with them when they left prison grounds,” the motion stated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Barrett agreed that other officers may have taken stun grenades, calling the prison’s munitions controls “very lax.” “It wasn’t a good inventory” system, Barrett said. Turner, when pressed by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Wiley Daniel on why he had taken the grenades, said the thefts came during a difficult time in his life. “I wish I had a good answer to that,” Turner told Daniel. “I was going through a crisis in my life. It doesn’t make it OK. I was dealing with a drug addiction. I’m sorry for it.” He declined to comment after the hearing. Turner began working at the Bureau of Prisons in 2008.

Court records describe him as a member of SORT at the Florence Federal Correctional Complex with access to the armory at Supermax — renowned as the most secure prison in America and home to scores of high-profile inmates. SORT is the prison equivalent of police SWAT units, and its officers are called in to break up prison riots or perform other dangerous tasks. Team members use flash-bang grenades — which produce a bright burst of light and a loud boom — to create a distraction that buys them time to act. According to the search-warrant affidavit, written by a Cañon City police detective, the stolen flash-bangs were past their expiration date and had been designated for training purposes. After that, prison officials said, the munitions stopped being tracked. The investigation began a year ago when police received a tip that a man in Florence was bragging about having a flashbang. Police followed the trail from that man back through two other men to Turner. Police also interviewed Turner’s former girlfriend, a Florence police dispatcher, who said Turner traded ammunition packaged in white boxes for drugs, according to the affi-

davit. The prison’s ammunition also is packaged in white boxes, the affidavit notes. Turner’s ex-girlfriend also told police she believed Turner and his roommate grew marijuana and that she had once overheard them talking about using police uniforms to commit a burglary, the affidavit states. Turner admitted Tuesday to having been addicted to Vicodin, which he said he was initially prescribed after he was injured at work. He admitted to selling one flash-bang for $100. When Daniel asked Turner whether it was worth it, Turner said no. “I wish I would have thought about it,” he said. Turner will be sentenced in March, and prosecutors are expected to ask for a reduced sentence because of Turner’s cooperation in the prosecution of a co-defendant — William Warren, who is accused of helping Turner sell a flash-bang. Barrett, the prosecutor, said Turner also has helped in other investigations. “He has made us aware of other criminal activity of which he was aware when he was doing what he was doing,” Barrett said. John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or jingold@denverpost.com

W I K I L EA K S CA SE

Hacker tells court why he turned in soldier By The New York Times

fort meade, md.» The government’s case against Pfc. Bradley Manning came to a dramatic close Tuesday, when the computer hacker who turned him in to authorities took the stand at Manning’s court-martial hearing to explain his role in the probe. The hacker, Adrian Lamo, revealed at one point that he was simultaneously trading computer messages with Manning while sharing that information

with the authorities. Lamo said he began exchanging instant messages and e-mails with Manning in May 2010 and decided to alert authorities right away because the soldier made claims of “acts so egregious, it required that response.” Manning, a 24-year-old former Army intelligence analyst, stands accused of the most significant leak of government secrets since the Pentagon Papers. He allegedly funneled tens of thousands of dip-

lomatic cables and intelligence reports to the WikiLeaks website, which shared them with news organizations and ignited international outrage. The defense attacked Lamo for betraying a troubled soldier who had gone to him for moral support. Lamo told Manning that he should consider him as a “minister or a journalist,” adding that their chats would be treated as “a confession or an interview, never to be published.”

Excellent Schools Today grant program for that project — the largest in the program’s history. Eric Gorski, The Denver Post

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december 23, 2011 B denverpost.com B the denver post

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DENVER & THE WEST Wall Street

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DOW JONES 61.91 12,169.65 NASDAQ 21.48 2,599.45 S&P 500 10.28 1,254.00

A SHOOTING STAR TDA Research of Wheat Ridge is working on the first phase of three projects for NASA that could be used on deep-space missions and for maneuvering satellites. TDA’s projects were among 300 proposals that NASA selected out of 2,000. »6B

State education wins Race to Top funds »2B

Coverage » 7B denverpost.com/business

Lawyer: Probe seeks scapegoat Investigation of Neenan engineer called “fishing expedition” By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

The attorney for a structural engineer under fire for his work on Colorado school buildings said Thursday that his client has been unfairly targeted and will be exonerated. Denver lawyer Bryan Kuhn, in a letter to a state agency, also attacked an ongoing investigation into the work of Gary Howell as “a fishing expedition.”

An official with the state Department of Regulatory Agencies defended the inquiry, which began last month in response to a Denver Post story examining structural problems at Meeker’s elementary school. Howell worked on at least 18 schools for the Neenan Co. from his hiring in December 2007 to his firing last month on the same day DORA launched its inquiry. The state Board of Licensure for Architects,

Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors — which falls under DORA — will hold a special meeting Tuesday to consider the Howell inquiry, said Angie Kinnaird Linn, a DORA program director. Among the board’s options are to reprimand Howell, fine him or revoke his license. In a response to DORA, Kuhn wrote that Howell has been provided no evidence showing he had failed to “meet the generally accepted standards

Online. Read the response to the state inquiry. »denverpost.com/extras of engineering practice” on the Meeker school. Also noting that the state gave the building certificates of occupancy, Kuhn wrote, “It would appear that this investigation is tantamount to a fishing expedition seeking to shift blame to my client for potential issues for which he is not ultimately responsible.” NEENAN » 3B

Aurora issues show stopper Mayor Hogan says explicitly the National Western is all Denver’s. By Carlos Illescas The Denver Post

aurora» Aurora is officially out of the stock show business. Thursday, at the first meeting between the Denver and Aurora city councils in almost a decade, Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan made it clear the city is not trying to take the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo away from Denver. “We’re not interested in the stock show,” Hogan said at the meeting. “That’s your issue. That’s not our issue. We are not going to be involved.” The stock show needs more space and had considered relocating to Aurora — next to a proposed 1,500-room hotel by Nashville, Tenn.-based Gaylord Entertainment. But some on the Denver City Council were concerned over possibly losing the stock show, and Denver last month pulled out of a joint application with Aurora for subsidies from the Regional Tourism Act, which would have helped pay for relocating the stock show. Denver was a co-applicant with Aurora for the sales-tax subsidies, with Aurora seeking $85.4 million for the Gaylord hotel and Denver seeking $6.1 million for the stock show. On Thursday, the stock show delivered its business plan to Denver, offering five alternative locations: four in Denver and one in Commerce City. At the meeting in Aurora, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said he never doubted Aurora’s intentions, blaming special-interest groups for fueling the supposed dissension. “The two governments never expected that Aurora was reaching for the National Western Stock Show,” Hancock said. Hogan had previously said the stock show was Denver’s issue, but his words Thursday were the clearest and strongest to date indicating Aurora has no interest in luring the major tourism draw within its borders. AURORA » 5B

Norka Lewis, a medical assistant at University of Colorado Hospital, gives Santa Claus a hug during his visit Thursday morning. Bruce Arnold, a.k.a. Santa, received a liver transplant at the hospital in March and returned Thursday to thank the staff who treated him, including Lewis. “He's always been Santa, but when he came as a patient, he was very nice, very sweet.” Lewis said. Mahala Gaylord, The Denver Post

New spring in Santa’s step Bedridden by liver disease last year, a grateful patient visits the hospital that treated him. Online. Watch a video of Santa saying thanks. »denverpost.com /mediacenter

L

ast holiday season, liver disease kept Bruce Arnold sick and in bed, away from his life as a professional Santa Claus. His wife, Margee — who regularly worked with him at public appearances throughout Denver and Boulder — had to go out as Mrs. Claus with a different jolly old elf. But Thursday, nine months after Arnold received a liver transplant, he and Margee returned to University of Colorado Hospital together — in costume — to say thanks the best way they know how. “We’ve been thinking about it for a while,” Bruce Arnold said. “We wanted to thank the doctors, nurses and other staff for getting me through my illness — for getting my life back.” Dr. Lisa Forman has been taking care of Arnold for nearly two years but had never seen him in costume.

“I know it hurt him so much to not be able to go out last year. So, to see him doing so well now, with rosy cheeks and even a pot belly, you just get a kick out of it,” she said. Christmas morning, Bruce and Margee Arnold will also get to step out together at a breakfast party at Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing for families of children being treated at area hospitals. Arnold, 63, first became Santa in 2004 when his full SANTA » 5B

Abortion foes closer to ballot The Title Board OKs the language for a 2012 personhood proposal. By Jessica Fender The Denver Post

Other options» National Western Stock Show & Rodeo’s choices for relocating. »1A

By Yesenia Robles The Denver Post

A proposed Colorado amendment that would extend legal rights to human embryos got a step closer to the 2012 ballot this week, but abortion-rights advocates have at least one more challenge in store for the

initiative. The secretary of state’s Title Board approved the language of the so-called personhood amendment, concluding it met guidelines that require ballot initiatives to pertain to a single subject. That nearly clears the way for supporters to gather signatures. Supporters, who have seen the personhood movement grow this year to encompass seven other states, celebrated the small step forward in Colorado.

But a coalition that includes Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains plans to ask the Title Board to reconsider its 3-0 vote, said Monica McCafferty, marketing director for the reproductive-rights group. “It touches on numerous, unrelated subjects that would be in conflict with the state constitution,” McCafferty said Thursday. “The new language doesn’t clear up any of the vagueness of previous years.” INITIATIVE » 5B

INSIDE

DISTRICT RIPE FOR RIVALRY Colorado’s newly aligned 6th Congressional District is demographically one of the most competitive regions nationwide. »3B

Kitty, it’s cold outside. A lost orange-and-white tabby from Florida is found wandering in Littleton. »2B


«3B

the denver post B denverpost.com B friday, december 23, 2011

6

Dems in redrawn district eye how to treat primary An expert says the hopefuls — with few policy differences — must run against not only Coffman but the entire Congress.

Meeker Elementary School opened in fall 2010 but was closed last summer because of structural problems. Investigators found that the school was susceptible to collapse in high winds or an earthquake. Craig F. Walker, Denver Post file

Soils are at issue after faulty classification

NEENAN: «

FROM 1B

Kinnaird Linn, however, said the board is investigating because “it appears that public safety has been compromised by an individual regulated by the board.” The state Division of Fire Safety oversees school construction in Colorado, including issuing certificates of occupancy. But officials there say their inspections determine whether design plans are being followed — not whether a design is sound. The division is investigating 20 Neenan projects. “It appears that Howell is trying to shift blame, and we will get to the bottom of this through our investigation,” said Kevin Klein, director of the state Homeland Security Division, which includes Fire Safety. The Meeker school was closed last summer after an independent review found it was designed to the safety code of a storage shed and susceptible to collapse in high winds or an earthquake. Howell had strongly opposed conducting the outside review, insisting the school was stable and safe. Howell did not have a valid license for a period while working on the Meeker project, but Neenan has said it was valid by the time he put his stamp on the designs. Howell’s license was expired from Oct. 31, 2007, to Feb. 25, 2009. DORA reprimanded him for the lapse. Kuhn, whom Howell hired in the past week, suggested Neenan is using Howell as a scapegoat. “I think that Mr. Howell has unfairly been the target of all the attention in this case,” Kuhn said. “I think the facts and evidence when it comes to light will exonerate him.” A Neenan representative declined to comment Thursday. Kuhn also said Howell’s case might be bolstered by a recent report that found soils at the Meeker site were classified incorrectly for design purposes. If Howell and others relied on those data to do their work, the responsibility falls to the firm that prepared the incorrect soils report, Kuhn said. Officials with that firm — Terracon Consultants Inc. — could not be reached for comment Thursday. Howell also was the engineer of record on the Sargent Junior-Senior High School in the San Luis Valley,

Neenan Co. representative Bob Meserve, right, listens as consultant John Mechling of CTL Thompson makes a point at a school-board meeting in Meeker in October. Meeker Elementary has been closed. Craig F. Walker, Denver Post file

Harlan Gary Howell Professional engineer EDUCATION: Bachelor of science, architectural engineering, University of Colorado WORK EXPERIENCE: 35 years’ experience. Licensed in Colorado; formerly licensed in Missouri and Oklahoma. Hired by the Neenan Co. of Fort Collins in December 2007 as staff structural engineer. NEENAN SCHOOL PROJECTS: Vanguard High School, Colorado Springs; Sterling High School addition, Sterling; Campbell Elementary School addition, Sterling; Ayers Elementary School addition, Sterling; Brush Elementary School, Brush; Brush Middle School addition, Brush; Weld Central Elementary School, Keenesburg; Fort Morgan High School addition, Fort Morgan;

which a review found needs repairs because a beam supporting the roof in one area cannot withstand snow loads.

Miami-Yoder High School addition, Rush; West Grand Elementary School, Kremmling; Fraser Valley Elementary School addition, Fraser; Granby Elementary School addition, Granby; Meeker Elementary School, Meeker; Sargent Junior-Senior High School, Monte Vista; Alamosa Elementary School K-2 Campus, Alamosa; Alamosa Elementary School 3-5 Campus, Alamosa; Mapleton Early College and Expeditionary School of the Arts, Thornton. QUOTE: “An in-depth knowledge of different structure types combined with a common sense approach gets optimal results.” Sources: 2009 Neenan proposal for school building project; Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies

With its rich mix of voters, Colorado’s newly aligned 6th Congressional District is demographically among the most competitive nationwide and, for now, the lone district in the state set to host a primary election as the new year arrives. The recent announcement by physician Perry Haney — who toyed with the idea of running in the state’s 3rd District — that he will join the race has Democrats forced to decide whether he or state Rep. Joe Miklosi will move on to challenge incumbent Republican Rep. Mike Coffman in the general election. Both Democratic candidates find themselves competing in a district that since its origin in the 1980s has been a GOP stronghold but is now divided in thirds between Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliated voters. Still, questions remain about how two Democrats should run against each other in a new district where no party has the upper hand. “There won’t be a great deal of policy differences between the primary candidates,” said Rick Ridder, a Democratic political consultant with RBI Strategies & Research. “In this district, with its political diversity, they need to run against the incumbent Coffman as well as the whole incumbent Congress, which receives far from stellar approval ratings.” Haney’s goal is to capitalize on calling himself a political outsider at a time when voters have grown weary of so-called career politicians. “Sending another career politician to Washington, D.C., will produce more of the nothing that’s already going on,” said Haney, taking a jab at both Miklosi, who has served two terms in the state legislature, and Coffman, a former state treasurer and secretary of state who served in both chambers of the Colorado legislature. Events from this week could foreshadow much of the primary. Both Miklosi and Haney hammered Coffman through news releases and social-media posts for his “no” vote on a two-month extension of the federal payroll-tax cut. “I’m going to continue to focus on job growth and highlight Mr. Coffman’s do-nothing record in Congress, and the payroll-tax cut is the latest example of that,” said Miklosi, who at times in a recent interview was hesitant to mention his primary challenger, instead wanting to remain on message about the district’s need for jobs and improving the economy. “Initially, Miklosi struggled

New battleground The newly configured 6th Congressional District is no longer a Republican stronghold — but it still presents challenges for Democrats. 6th Congressional District Map area COLORADO

WELD

ADAMS 25

JEFFERSON

By Kurtis Lee The Denver Post

76

E470

70

DENVER

ARAPAHOE 25

ELBERT

DOUGLAS Representative:

Mike Coffman (R)

2012 challengers:

Joe Miklosi (D) Perry Haney (D)

Voter affiliation: 33% 34% Democrat Republican

32% Unaffiliated

To find your congressional district, check our searchable map at: photos.denverpost.com/mediacenter/ projects/new_zones Sources: Denver District Court records; secretary of state The Denver Post

with being the legitimate candidate, and he’s survived that as there’s no substantial Democrats running against him in the primary,” said political analyst Floyd Ciruli. “So now he doesn’t dare give any legitimacy to Haney, who is truly an outsider.” By contrast, Ciruli said Haney, in positioning himself as the outsider, is banking that all incumbents — even two-term state legislators — will fall hard in defeat next year. “Money will be a tremendous factor, as it always is,” Ciruli said. “And if Haney wants to spend his, he can get that visibility on radio and TV and no doubt be competitive in a primary.” From the south Denver suburbs, spanning east, the 6th District now houses all of Aurora, which is among the most racially and socioeconomically diverse cities in Colorado. Even so, Ridder says this is a primary only the most active and politically engaged voters from the district will be engaged in when it arrives in June. “Who comes out victorious will have plenty of time to heal before moving toward the general election against Coffman, a seasoned campaigner,” Ridder said, noting the benefit from a primary is to get out and try different campaign tactics. “You have to win the pennant, then reassess and see what team you have for the World Series.” Kurtis Lee: 303-954-1655, klee@denverpost.com or twitter.com/kurtisalee

Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com, or twitter.com/egorski

Three Aurora firefighters knocked about by backdraft from blaze in home’s attic The trio, who got out on their own, did not suffer serious injuries. By Joey Bunch The Denver Post

Three Aurora firefighters were knocked off their feet by the backdraft of an attic fire Thursday evening, but all were able to escape the home and avoid serious injury, a spokesman said. The firefighters, who were not identified, were taken to a

hospital as a precaution and were treated and released. A resident who was home at the time was not injured. Fire crews had been on the scene at 1415 S. Biscay Way for a few minutes when the blast of hot air occurred at about 7 p.m. The crew was searching for the source of the fire in the attic. The fire had moved from a fireplace into a flue and the attic, said Fire Capt. Allen Robnett. A backdraft is a current of hot air that moves backward

down a chimney or pipe. “The force knocked them down, but they were able to pull themselves together and get out on their own power,” Robnett said at about 8:30 p.m. “We had them checked out as a precaution, and they’ve since been released.” The cause of the fire was a failure inside the fireplace, but Robnett did not know if the fireplace was wood-burning or gas. Two residents of the home, who were not named, were assisted with housing Thursday

night by the American Red Cross. The 30-year-old, single-story home is on a cul-de-sac south of Buckley Air Force Base and east of South Tower Road. Public records show the current owner is Oscar P. Hernandez. The home was last sold for $175,000 in January 2006.

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NEW ANTENNAS A GOOD CALL AT BRONCO GAMES »business, 6B

Air Force Academy sees rise in sex-assault reports. »1B

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Online» Get a weather forecast for the last days of this year and the start of 2012.

IN TER IM R A T E R EQ U ES T

NATION & WORLD Denver Mayor Michael Hancock

SYRIA SETS UP FALSE IMAGE, ACTIVISTS SAY

Vision check

Residents of the Syrian city of Homs said the government pulled some of its tanks from the streets shortly before Arab League observers arrived. »16A

BREAK OUT THE BUBBLY

Early in his tenure, the mayor has escaped big controversy, but 2012 promises decisions that will test how he leads. By Jeremy P. Meyer The Denver Post

Next year will make clear one thing: how Denver Mayor Michael Hancock leads. Is he a leader who reaches into his gut to pull out decisions based on his convictions? Or is he a leader who relies on consensus, committees and recommendations from task forces? So far, Hancock has not been forced to make many controversial decisions; after being sworn in July 18, he has spent most of the past five months filling out his administration. “We’re calling 2012 ‘The Year of Decisions,’ ” Hancock said in a recent interview. Matters on his plate for 2012 will be weighty, carrying with them political implications and possible controversy. He’ll be faced with choosing to impose a trash fee on Denver residents, deciding whether to ask voters in November to support a milllevy increase for city services, negotiating contracts with public-safety unions and figuring out what to do about a library system that has asked either to be given a dedicated revenue

The economy may be in a funk and consumer spending in a slump, but there’s one glass that seems to be more than half full — flutes of champagne.

HANCOCK » 10A

»FOOD, 1D

Some of 2012’s leadership-defining issues

Public safety

Stock show

Budget changes

The city must negotiate contracts with public-safety unions. Hancock has already made some tough decisions — including hiring Police Chief Robert White. White is transforming the department after a project that saves $8 million and increases officers in “line-of-duty functions.”

The future of the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo is an open question, with ideas ranging from doing nothing to expanding current facilities to building a new complex. The mayor has already decided to pull Denver out of a state Regional Tourism Act application with Aurora.

In late January, Hancock will be presented with a report recommending how the city can cut costs and raise revenues. Some recommendations already have been revealed: charging a fee for trash service, raising property taxes and cutting costs in the government.

(clockwise from top) Denver Post file photos by Craig F. Walker, Aaron Montoya, Joe Amon and Andy Cross

“They can stay connected to resources, like if they’re trying to get a bed for the night or a job interview.” Christina Mijares, who works at the Urban Peak shelter

Homeless teens dial into safety net with cellphones By Colleen O’Connor The Denver Post

A cellphone can provide a crucial safety net for teenagers who are homeless, according to a new study published in the Journal of Urban Health.

Critics say the utility needs to prove hardship for it to skip months of public hearings. By Mark Jaffe The Denver Post

Consumer advocates, some of Colorado’s biggest companies, senior citizens and utility regulators are opposing Xcel Energy’s bid for a no-hearing, interim $100 million electricity-rate hike. The challenges — in filings with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission — contend that Xcel has failed to prove the financial necessity of the increase and that the figure is too high. Xcel, with 1.3 million customers the state’s largest utility, is seeking a $142 million rate increase, a process that will take months. But citing a 2010 law, Xcel wants the utilities commission to rule in January on an interim hike without public hearings. “The interim increase just isn’t justified,” said Steve Merrill, an advocate for Colorado AARP, a senior-citizens organization. “This shouldn’t be put on the backs of ratepayers without a full review.” Xcel officials say the delay in awarding rate increases, known as regulatory lag, makes it difficult for the company to get the full return on its investments and impairs its financial standing.

N EEN A N P R O J EC TS

MOM KILLED IN McDONALD’S PARKING LOT

Adoption Alliance» A Denver-area adoption agency that specializes in placing special-needs children is closing after 22 years. »1B

Users unite against Xcel

XCEL » 13A

DENVER & THE WEST

A mother of three was shot to death outside of a McDonald’s in Parker as her children waited inside. »1B

» denverpost.com/weather

“I’m lost without it,” said Dakota Labarr, 19, during lunch hour at the Urban Peak shelter in Denver, which serves homeless youth. His smartphone was stolen last week, and with it much of his social network has vanished. PHONE » 13A

INS I D E Business » 6-8B | Comics » 7-9D | Contact The Post » 2B | Lottery » 2B | Movies » 6D | Obituaries » 4-5B | Puzzles » 7-8D

Like others at Urban Peak, Tamika Aumiller, 20, can use a cellphone to connect with family, caseworkers and jobs. Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post

Engineer’s license put on hold By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

Citing public-safety concerns, a state board took the unusual step Tuesday of suspending the engineering license of a former Neenan Co. employee who worked on school buildings across Colorado. The state Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors voted unanimously to suspend Gary Howell’s license until a hearing on his case. The board also will issue subpoenas today to Howell and Neenan seeking documents related to the troubled Meeker Elementary School construction project. “It was appropriate for the board to take action on this sooner rather than later,” said chairman William “Bud” Starker of Starker Construction in Wheat Ridge. “I think we acted in accordance to the rules and kept paramount the safety of the people of Colorado while providing due process for the respondent.” Howell’s lawyer, Bryan Kuhn, disagreed, saying he hasn’t even been informed of any accusations.

MediaNews Group

NEENAN » 13A


the denver post B denverpost.com B wednesday, december 28, 2011

6

PHONE:

“Flashy” can be costly

«

FROM 1A

“I have eight mental disorders, so I use it to talk to my doctors,” said Labarr, who worries that his doctors will have a harder time finding him. His smartphone also keeps him connected with his case managers, therapists and church, and the community college where he is enrolled. He also uses the calendar to keep track of appointments and class schedules. With Labarr homeless, and with his family in Pennsylvania, his phone is his lifeline. The study, conducted by professor Eric Rice of the School of Social Work at the University of Southern California, showed that 62 percent of homeless youth owned a cellphone, and 51 percent used it to stay connected to friends at home. Thirty-six percent used it to call a potential or current employer; 17 percent to call a case manager; and 41 percent to stay connected to parents. The study, “Cell Phone Use Among Homeless Youth: Potential for New Health Interventions and Research,” was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Because cellphones are nearly ubiquitous among American adolescents, the study said, this technology can give family, friends and providers new ways to keep connected to homeless youth, a population that is highly transient. Unlike adults who are homeless, teenagers have fewer mental-health and substance-abuse problems that can stop them from getting off the streets. Aaron Roth, 19, finds that his cellphone is critical to keeping in touch with places — restaurants and retailers — where he has applied for work. “You don’t want them calling a homeless shelter,” he said, “and if you’re not there when they call, it looks bad already.” But there is a potential downside witnessed by people such as Christina Mijares, who works at the Urban Peak shelter. “The only thing I worry about is the bills racking up,” she said. “If they don’t have steady employment, they

NEENAN:

Homeless teens and cellphones Data collected by USC researcher Eric Rice in 2009 of 169 homeless youth in Los Angeles showed: 62 percent of homeless teens had a cellphone 85 percent were using the Internet at least weekly 27 percent got a phone using money earned at a job 20 percent received a phone as a gift 15 percent purchased a phone by panhandling or street performing

should not be allowed to have the higher plans.” While some kids get the lower-budget prepaid monthly plans, others get the latest models and most elaborate plans. “It’s wrong when kids come in with flashy phones,” said Mijares, who worries that getting in over their heads will result in bill collectors and other financial headaches. Still, with prepaid plans, she sees a definite upside. “They can stay connected to resources, like if they’re trying to get a bed for the night or a job interview,” she said. “Sometimes friends and family are able to talk them down and help them not overreact to things.” Rice said smartphones aren’t cheap, “but they are more attainable than a car, jobs or a place to live, and they help them get all of the other things.” Also, he said, even if calling is disabled on a smartphone, the device functions as a Wi-Fi-enabled device, allowing the teens to access free hotspots and continue to maintain connections with family, caseworkers and potential employers. “It’s not a panacea,” Rice said, “but it is a new tool that helps them to make connections and access resources and be consistent in how they do these things.”

Data collected by University of Denver researcher Kimberly Bender in 2008 of 50 homeless youth ages 18-24 in Denver and 50 in Los Angeles showed: 92 percent used technology weekly 41 percent used technology daily 81 percent communicated primarily with friends 62 percent communicated with family 21 percent communicated with employers 4 percent communicated with service providers Rice’s initial data were collected in 2009, but anecdotally he sees cellphone use among homeless youth increasing. His ongoing research suggests that homeless youth who keep up with positive influences in their lives — even at a distance — have a better chance of getting off the streets. “They are doing better,” he said. “They are less likely to engage in prostitution and more likely to look for jobs. They have lower rates of mentalhealth issues and substance abuse. Things just go better if they are actively engaged in the process of connecting, using these devices.” Labarr said his cellphone is “a mood stabilizer” that helps him stay connected with others when he feels angry or sad. And for Daniel, an 18-yearold homeless teen who did not want to give his last name, it’s a way to set up meetings with his case manager and stay in touch with his brother and sister. “My sister is helping me,” he said. “She brought me here and wants to know how I’m doing. Before, I had to ask to use the phone here or ask to borrow from a friend, and sometimes they wouldn’t let me. It was hard to contact her, and she worried.” Colleen O’Connor: 303-954-1083 or coconnor@denverpost.com

Suspensions are rare

«

FROM 1A

“How can that be due process?” Kuhn asked. A representative for Fort Collins-based Neenan did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The board, which falls under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Regulatory Agencies, opened an inquiry into Howell’s work after a Denver Post report detailed a litany of problems with a Neenan school building in Meeker. According to public documents, Howell worked on at least 19 schools for Neenan from his hiring in December 2007 to his firing last month on the day DORA launched its inquiry. Neenan has declined to identify all the schools Howell worked on as a structural engineer, saying, “We do not put our clients’ names in the newspaper without their explicit permission.” Tuesday’s action requires Howell to stop practicing engineering until a hearing several weeks from now, said DORA program director Angie Kinnaird Linn. She said only once before in her 17 years on the job has the board suspended a license — involving a structural engineer on a collapsed building in the mid-1990s. The board did not accept outside remarks, and neither Howell nor his lawyer appeared at the emergency board meeting, which included a 1-hour, 40minute session that was closed to the public. During the open part of the meeting, board member Dan Donegon, a structural engineer with HCDA Engineering Inc. in Colorado Springs, said a review of the engineering on the Meeker project found “serious

Harlan Gary Howell EDUCATION: Bachelor of science, architectural engineering, University of Colorado. WORK EXPERIENCE: 35 years. Licensed in Colorado; formerly licensed in Missouri and Oklahoma. Hired by the Neenan Co. of Fort Collins in December 2007 as staff structural engineer. NEENAN SCHOOL PROJECTS: Vanguard High School, Colorado Springs; Sterling High School, Sterling; Campbell Elementary School, Sterling; Ayers Elementary School addition, Sterling; Brush Elementary School, Brush; Brush Middle School, Brush; Weld Central Elementary School, Keenesburg; Fort Morgan High School, Fort Morgan; Miami-Yoder High School, Rush; West Grand Elementary School, Kremmling; Fraser Valley Elementary School, Fraser; Granby Elementary School, Granby; Meeker Elementary School, Meeker; Sargent Junior-Senior High School, Monte Vista; Alamosa Elementary School K-2 Campus, Alamosa; Alamosa Elementary School 3-5 Campus, Alamosa; Mapleton Early College and Expeditionary School of the Arts, Thornton; York International School, Thornton. Sources: State of Colorado, the Neenan Co.

issues” that pointed to work “below the standard of practice.” The review by Structural Consultants Inc. found the $18.9 million school had been designed to a seismic category of 1 — typical for a storage shed — instead of the code 3 required for schools. The firm also concluded the building was susceptible to collapse in high winds or an earthquake. “I can’t understand why you’d be using category 1 for a school,” Donegon said. “It just doesn’t happen.” “It raises the question of whether he actually did the calculations or just wasn’t paying attention at all when these were done,” said board member Jeffrey Olson, with Denver’s Fentress Architects. Board member Billy Harris, of the Denver engineering and land-survey firm Harris Kocher Smith, asked whether there was pressing need to act or whether more documentation was needed.

“As far as this licensee is concerned, if we just look at one incident, it may not give us a big enough picture,” he said. “But I don’t want to go on a fishing expedition of everything he’s ever done, either.” Kinnaird Linn noted the board already had requested documents from Howell last month, and she said it was her understanding that he “had the ability to get the documents had he chosen to do so.” Howell did not have a valid license for a period while working on the Meeker project, but Neenan has said it was valid by the time he put his stamp on the designs. Howell also was the engineer of record on the Sargent Junior-Senior High School in the San Luis Valley, which a review found needs repairs because a beam supporting the roof in one area cannot withstand snow loads. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971 or egorski@denverpost.com or twitter.com/egorski

NEWS «13A

New law is cited in interim bid

XCEL: «

FROM 1A

The utility will respond to the critics in filings Jan. 5, Mark Stutz, an Xcel spokesman, said in a statement. There is a broad consensus among those opposing the increase — from consumer advocates to big businesses — that Xcel has failed to show that it would be hurt financially by waiting for a full ratecase hearing. There has to be “some demonstration of harm beyond the sheer fact of lagged recovery,” said the Colorado Energy Consumers, a coalition of businesses. “The company’s financial integrity is not remotely at risk.” Xcel said in its rate request that under the 2010 law, a section of the Clean Air-Clean Jobs Act, a utility had only to show it would be “adversely affected” to get an interim increase and that since this was a new law, there was no precedent. “These statements are incorrect and misleading,” said Francis Shafer, an analyst with the state Office of Consumer Counsel, in a filing. The counsel represents residential and small-business customers. The PUC always has had the power to grant interim rates and has done so — but only in cases of extreme financial need, such as in 1980 when the credit rating for Public Service Co. of Colorado was downgraded, Shafer said. If the commission feels it needs to give Xcel an interim

“The interim increase just isn’t justified. This shouldn’t be put on the backs of ratepayers without a full review.” Steve Merrill, an advocate for Colorado AARP, a senior-citizens organization increase, it should be the minimum amount necessary to give the company its allowed return, Shafer said. The major component of the overall rate request is $52.5 million to cover the cost of absorbing 300 megawatts of generation Xcel had been selling to Black Hills Energy, which serves Pueblo and southeastern Colorado. Xcel let the wholesale power contract lapse and planned to use the power for its customers. But it’s taking on the power generation at a time when it already has excess capacity. Xcel’s two largest customers — Rocky Mountain Steel and Climax Molybdenum Co. — in a joint filing questioned “whether retail customers should bear the full burden of what apparently turned out to be a bad decision.” “Because utilities are monopolies within their certificated service territories, the

Commission’s duty is to protect customers from excessive rates,” the two companies stated. While opposing the interim rate increase, the PUC staff also took issue with the $100 million price tag. Among the items that should be addressed in the full rate case are $16 million for pensions and $23 million in increased property taxes. The staff said the local tax bills are not due until April 2013. The staff said the commission should consider an interim rate increase of no more than $57.1 million. On average, the PUC has awarded about 46 percent of the amount requested in electricity-rate cases, and Xcel is seeking 70 percent of the total rate request in the latest case, the commission staff noted. Karen Hyde, vice president for rates in Xcel’s Colorado subsidiary, said in testimony to the commission that if the final rate increase was less than $100 million, the company would issue credits to ratepayers. A refund in the spring after struggling to pay bills through the winter “does not adequately protect consumers,” AARP argued in its filing. Xcel has one supporter for the interim rate increase: Black Hills Energy. Black Hills said that if the PUC approved the Xcel interim rate request, it too would file for interim rate hikes. Mark Jaffe: 303-954-1912 or mjaffe@denverpost.com


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Many may be excluded in new autism definition. »4A

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Review: Sentence disappoints victims Neenan school at risk “

“I didn’t take into account the disparity of power. … Am I a pig? Yes.” Myrl Serra, former 7th Judicial District attorney

After a structural engineering firm’s warning, the San Luis Valley building will be evacuated with 25-mph winds. By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

Myrl Serra, center, reacts to a judge’s ruling during his sentencing hearing in his sexual-abuse case Thursday in Montrose, while his attorneys, Peter Albani, left, and M. Colin Bresee, listen. Pool photo by Nate Wick, Montrose Daily Press

Former 7th District Attorney Myrl Serra gets 4 years of probation and 60 days in county jail instead of spending several years in prison.

CAMPAIGN 2012

By Nancy Lofholm The Denver Post

Newt Gingrich, with wife Callista on Thursday in South Carolina, has the momentum among the GOP field, recent polls show. Joe Raedle, Getty Images

Gingrich denies ex-wife’s claim; Romney loses Iowa, endorsement By David Espo The Associated Press

north charleston, s.c.» The race for the Republican presidential nomination is veering toward South Carolina surreal. Mitt Romney was stripped of his Iowa caucus victory Thursday, then was stung by Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s withdrawal and endorsement of Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker

who was stunningly accused in turn by an ex-wife of seeking an open marriage so he could keep his mistress. “Newt’s not perfect, but who among us is?” asked Perry, abruptly quitting the race shortly before an evening debate and less than 48 hours before the polls open in Saturday’s first-in-theSouth primary. His decision to end a once-promisGOP » 8A

A San Luis Valley school, already plagued with other structural issues, has crafted an evacuation plan after an outside engineer questioned the building’s ability to withstand winds common to the area. Students will not be allowed in Sargent Junior-High School near Monte Vista if winds exceed 25 mph before repairs are completed in the next week as scheduled, officials said. An independent review by Greenwood Village-based structural engineers Jirsa Hedrick found inadequate connections between the roof and walls in the gym and auditorium — endangering the entire building. “It’s frustrating,” said Philip Compton, the Sargent superintendent. “… There is a sense right now of, ‘Did we really get what you paid for?’ ” The Neenan Co., which designed and built the school, has agreed to pay for the repairs and carry them out using the outside firm’s designs. Escalating problems at Sargent are the latest blow to Fort Collins-based Neenan, which has been under scrutiny after similar reviews found SCHOOL » 10A

montrose» One victim sat in the back of the Montrose courtroom and sobbed when a judge handed former 7th Judicial District Attorney Myrl Serra a sentence of four years’ probation for what she had just testified was a three-year run of sexual abuse that caused her “pain and sickness that I have no words to express.” The probation, along with two months in the county jail, hewed to the wishes of defense attorneys and of Serra’s family and friends in the packed courtroom. It left others frustrated that Serra, who used his top prosecutor’s office as his sexual playground, received far less than the 15 years in prison he faced. Special prosecutor Robert Shapiro, who had asked for eight years in prison, put the best face on it following the sentencing. Serra’s sex-offender probation will be “rigorous, invasive and in-your-face,” he said. “He will be watched like a hawk.” Defense attorney Colin Bresee said the sentence was appropriate because Serra was treated like any other defendant in a misdemeanor sex-offense case. “Myrl didn’t ask for and he didn’t receive any special SERRA » 13A

LOGAN RESPONDS Fired Mullen High football coach Dave Logan says he isn’t accused of wrongdoing: “I had heard, but I did not know, that my name was not on the violation.’’ »6C

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Cantaloupe-farm owner fined for unclean motel Eric Jensen rented unsanitary rooms to migrants, federal authorities say. By Jennifer Brown The Denver Post

The owner of a Colorado cantaloupe farm linked to a listeria outbreak that caused 30 deaths is now in trouble with another federal agency, this time for allegedly housing migrant workers in a dirty and neglected motel. Eric Jensen, owner of Jensen Farms near Holly, was fined $4,250 by the U.S. Department of Labor after federal authorities found he rented unsanitary rooms to migrant workers. The rooms were overcrowded and had no beds and no windows that opened, the department said Thursday. Jensen owns the Gateway Motel, which is not open to the public, and rented rooms to migrant workers for about $25 a week. None of the workJENSEN » 12A


10A» NEWS

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U.S. targets drug trafficking via Canada Agencies create a strategy to harden border regions within remote Indian reservations. By Dan Freedman Hearst Newspapers

washington» The U.S. government is attempting to harden the U.S.­Canada border against drug trafficking, especial­ ly through remote Indian reservations, according to its new northern border drug strategy to be released today. A year in the making, the “National Northern Border Counternarcotics Strategy” pinpoints six tribal areas di­ rectly on the 4,000 miles of border be­ tween Washington and Maine, including

SCHOOL:

Embattled Neenan Co. to pay for its repairs

«

FROM 1A

serious structural defects at Meeker’s $17.9 million elemen­ tary school and more minor is­ sues at six other Colorado schools. “We stand behind the build­ ings we build, and when there are findings like this, where recommendations are prudent, we follow the recommendation out of an abundance of cau­ tion,” Andy Boian, a spokesman for Neenan, said Thursday. Neenan already has made fixes to a section of the roof that wasn’t designed to handle snow loads at the 190­student Sargent school and put in temporary supports in the library to shore up a beam, officials said. Compton said the problems are wearing on the community, which passed a bond for the project, as well as faculty and staff preparing for Colorado Stu­ dent Assessment Program tests. “Schools today are into some pretty high­stakes testing, and you all want student achieve­ ment at the top of your list,” he said. “And I’m spending an aw­ ful lot of time on construction right now.” The review found a long span of roof joists over the gym and auditorium lack adequate con­ nections where they bear on precast concrete wall panels, Jirsa Hedrick wrote in a letter to Neenan on Monday. “Effective immediately, until this repair is complete, the en­ tire school building should not be used if the winds are expect­ ed to exceed 25 miles per hour,” the letter stated. The full review is not com­ plete. The repair calls for the joists to be welded to plates in the panels. If winds hit 25 mph before that happens, school will be canceled in advance or students will be evacuated to an old gym across the street and their par­ ents will be contacted to pick them up, Compton said. Winds at an airport in Alamo­ sa, about 18 miles from Monte Vista, regularly exceed 25 mph, reaching as high as 54 mph sus­ tained and gusting up to 75 mph, according to the National Weather Service. “We have winds like the ocean has water,” Compton said. He said the building has shown no signs of stress be­ cause of high winds. The school opened in fall 2010 and was built with a $17.6 million grant from the state’s Building Excellent Schools Today pro­ gram, as well as a local match. After the problems in Meeker, a Colorado Department of Edu­ cation official said he requested Neenan contract with firms to carry out independent reviews of 15 schools it designed and built through the grant program — and Neenan agreed. The re­ views are ongoing. Eric Gorski: 303­954­1971 or egorski@denverpost.com

Free Time, Temperature & Weather.

303-337-2500

the St. Regis Mohawk reservation in up­ state New York, and 24 reservations on the Great Lakes or close to the border, including nine in Washington. “Drug smugglers have been known to seek out tribal jurisdictions in order to smuggle illegal drugs into the United States,” the report said. It singles out the St. Regis Mohawk reservation in far northern Franklin County, N.Y., as a border location “being used by a number of large­scale traffick­ ing organizations to facilitate smuggling activities.” Local authorities have tracked drug loads moving through Franklin County to 31 states. Overlapping federal, state, local and tribal jurisdictions and the rugged ter­

rain have created “unique challenges” for law enforcement countering smug­ glers who specialize in bringing across highly potent, indoor­grown marijuana. Although tribal communities employ their own police forces, resources to combat sophisticated traffickers often are “inadequate,” the strategy said. The strategy document commits the U.S. government to helping tribal police forces add personnel and upgraded equipment, as well as improving coordi­ nation with agents from U.S. law en­ forcement agencies such as the Drug En­ forcement Administration and Immigra­ tion and Customs Enforcement. The report praised increased levels of cooperation between Canadian and U.S.

law enforcement, and also called for: B Efforts to “deconflict” intelligence sharing so agencies avoid “miscommu­ nication.” B Enhanced inter­agency task forces and more outreach to border­region lo­ cals “who can serve as law enforce­ ment’s eyes and ears in remote areas.” B More high­tech monitoring systems and air­marine operations to help law enforcement, especially in winter months when traffickers move drugs on snowmobiles across frozen lakes. B Improved joint operations with Cana­ da to disrupt production of marijuana and the drug “ecstasy,” and improved cross­ border cooperation on undercover opera­ tions and electronic eavesdropping.

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In Aurora today, President Barack Obama will tout an “all of the above” energy approach that includes opening up public lands for private investments in clean energy, spurring the military to go green and doling out tax incentives to the clean-energy sector. » 2A

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6

Online today: Updates from President Barack Obama’s latest Colorado visit. »denverpost.com/extras ST ER L IN G B OY ’S D EAT H

Winter X Games | Jan. 26-29 | Aspen

Tribute and tears

Doubts haunt probe of case Juanita Kinzie faces a first-degree murder charge and is being held in the Logan County Detention Center. By Jordan Steffen The Denver Post

S

nowboard competitor Gretchen Bleiler, sitting beside Shaun White, wipes a tear as she remembers four-time Winter X gold medalist Sarah Burke during a news conference Wednesday before the opening today of the Winter X Games 2012 at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen. Burke died Jan. 19 from injuries she suffered during a training run 10 days earlier. She was 29. AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post

Sports. X Games athletes react to the death of skier Sarah Burke and reflect on what it means for extreme sports. »1C Business. Snow Show will be hoping to buoy a busted winter season, buying and selling gear for next season. »5B

By Sara Burnett The Denver Post

Last fall, Larimer County Clerk and Recorder Scott Doyle invited state lawmakers and a handful of other people to an eye-opening presentation. Flipping through a slide show, Doyle showed them how, because of the level of reporting required for Colorado elections, he could use publicly available logs and reports to locate which ballots that some of the lawmakers — and one legislator’s wife — cast in the 2010 election. Doyle didn’t go so far as to remove the ballots from their sealed boxes to see how each person voted, but his point was clear: If someone had all the pieces at their fingertips, that person could do so, at least for some voters in many counties. Doyle, then president of the Colorado County Clerks Association, intended the meeting as a warning about what could happen if voted ballots are public documents, as the state Court of

PACHECO » 9A

S A F ET Y C O N C ER N S

A N O N YM IT Y VS. ACCES S

Battle rages over tracing voted ballots

After Caleb Pacheco’s disappearance in January 2011, Yolanda KinzieGraber said, she called social services in three different counties more than 70 times, begging for help in finding her nephew. An investigation finally was opened last week, after someone called Logan County authorities about a “Where’s Caleb” Facebook page that Kinzie-Graber set up Jan. 17. As details have become public of how authorities found Caleb’s body Sunday wrapped in plastic and blankets and tucked under a Sterling mobile home, many troubling questions remain unanswered. Chief among them may be why it apparently took law enforcement and state officials a year to start looking for a boy who was in the county welfare system when he went missing. Police arrested Caleb’s mother, Juanita Kinzie, 24, Sunday night in Denver. She faces a first-degree murder charge and is being held in the Logan County Detention Center.

Hostages rescued in SEAL raid

Neenan school fixes extend to 15 buildings

By The New York Times

By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

“The United States will not tolerate the abduction of our people.” President Barack Obama

khartoum, sudan » About 2 a.m. Wednesday, elders in the Somali village of Galkayo said they began hearing an unusual sound: the whirl of helicopters. It was the culmination of a daring and risky mission by about two dozen U.S. Navy SEALs to rescue two hostages — a U.S. aid worker and her Danish colleague — who had been held by Somali pirates since October. The commandos had dropped down in parachutes under the cloak of darkness while 8,000 miles away, President Barack Obama was preparing to deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday night. The commandos hiked 2 miles from where they had landed, grabbed the hostages and flew them to safety. For the U.S. military, the mission was characterized by the same ruthless efficiency — and possibly good luck — as the May SOMALIA » 6A

Gulf of Aden DJIBOUTI Camp Lemonnier

SOMALIA Map area

ETHIOPIA

Navy SEALs dropped by parachute to carry out operation 100 miles

Adado

Indian Ocean

Mogadishu

Covert operation Two aid workers kidnapped in Somalia three months ago have been freed in a U.S. military raid. Overnight raid • About 2 a.m. local time, U.S. Navy SEALs parachuted from plane into area near compound. • Shots fired as they approached compound; no U.S. casualties; nine captors reportedly killed. • Rescue team on the ground for about an hour. • Freed hostages, SEALs left by helicopter for Djibouti; taken to Camp Lemonnier.

Sources: ESRI; The Associated Press; BBC

McClatchy Tribune

Photos released by the Danish Refugee Council show Poul Hagen Thisted, 60, left, and American Jessica Buchanan, 32, who were rescued by Navy SEALs. The Associated Press

VOTING » 8A

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Structural issues of varying degrees of seriousness have been identified in every Neenan Co. school project that has received money through a state grant program meant to make school buildings safer. “Corrective actions” are being carried out at each of the 15 school buildings at various stages of completion in eight districts across Colorado, officials said Wednesday at a meeting of the board that oversees the Building Excellent Schools Today program. Although several of the issues had previously been made public, others were newly disclosed — including a project at Mapleton Public Schools in Adams County involving the largest grant in BEST history. Neenan officials described the structural issues detailed Wednesday as ranging from “minor” to “moderate.” A state official, however, suggested Neenan was downplaying the seriousness of the situation of a school that faces evacuations if winds reach SCHOOLS » 9A


6

the denver post B denverpost.com B thursday, january 26, 2012

PACHECO:

SCHOOLS: Neenan has agreed to pay for fixes

Mom said « she made “mistake” «

FROM 1A

FROM 1A

Detention Center. Kinzie-Graber, 36, of Sterling, cared for Caleb for about a month before her sister, who she said is a longtime methamphetamine addict, demanded him back. During the months that followed, Kinzie-Graber said, she called social services in Logan, Douglas and Otero counties, but she got little help in locating the boy. She said authorities told her they could not do welfare checks without an address, and she didn’t know her sister had lived in the trailer. The Colorado Department of Human Services will complete a child fatality review to investigate any rule violations or problems with established practices in Caleb’s case, said spokeswoman Liz McDonough. Investigations are done when a child’s death is the result of abuse or neglect and there had been contact with the county child welfare system during the two years before the child’s death. “This case met each of those criteria,” McDonough said. Because the investigation is ongoing and a Logan County judge issued a gag order in the case, the department cannot release details about Caleb’s case and could not confirm whether the department received calls from the boy's family, McDonough said. The department completed 17 investigations in 2009 and 14 investigations in 2010, along with starting 21 investigations in 2011. The number for 2011 could change as they are completed. The outcomes and locations of those investigations were not immediately available. Before 2011, an investigation was done if the child had contact with the system five years before his or her death. The time frame was shortened after officials decided the three extra years did not dramatically affect the investigation, McDonough said. On Sunday, an officer from the Denver Police Department encountered Kinzie in connection with a disturbance, according to an arrest affidavit. She appeared to be under the influence of meth when she told paramedics that Caleb was dead. Kinzie was placed on a mental-health hold at a Denver hospital. Joshua Briggs, who is being held in the Logan County Detention Center on unrelated charges, dated and lived with Kinzie in the trailer where authorities found Caleb. Authorities interviewed Briggs on Sunday after his family contacted the Logan County Sheriff’s Office. Briggs said he met with Kinzie at a Castle Rock hotel near the end of summer 2011, and she told him that she made a mistake and Caleb “was with God.” Earlier that year, he had helped Kinzie move out of the mobile home, and she had asked him to check the pipes under the mobile home. Underneath the home, he saw a pile of blankets that he said “gave him a weird feeling.” He also said he smelled a horrible odor. But he did not report any of the information to authorities until Sunday. Inside the bundle, authorities found skeletal remains consistent with those of a small child. The Logan County coroner’s office completed an autopsy Monday, but the cause of death is still under investigation. Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794 or jsteffen@denverpost.com

NEWS «9A

just 25 mph. In all, schools designed and built by Neenan have received $150 million in money through BEST, which was created in 2008 to help school districts replace and repair worn-down buildings. “It’s very clear to me they are actively taking care of their customers and they’re going to continue to take care of the school districts,” said Ted Hughes, a Colorado Department of Education official who heads the BEST program. “They are stepping up and taking care of this.” Hughes has said he asked Neenan to arrange independent structural reviews on all of its BEST projects after a review found serious design defects that closed a non-BEST Neenan school in Meeker. Neenan agreed to arrange and pay for the additional reviews, which company representatives have emphasized they are not required to do. Neenan also has agreed to review non-BEST schools if requested. “The Neenan Co. is committed to making this right,” said Mike Daley, an architect with the Fort Collins-based firm, which has designed and constructed about 100 schools in Colorado. He said that some BEST projects were not carried out to the company’s standards, that Neenan operates with honesty and integrity, and the the company is taking responsibility because “it’s really the right thing to do.” Neenan has agreed to pay for fixes at the schools. Some repairs at the Neenan BEST schools are already complete, and the rest will be finished by August, Hughes said. One under-construction school requiring more work is the Mapleton Early CollegeMapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts building,

Neenan BEST schools Some of the issues that Neenan said were discovered during third-party reviews: B Akron — “Minor” issues on Pre K-12 building. “Minor” issues with a transportation building. B Alamosa — “Moderate” issues with columns at two elementary school buildings. B Buffalo — “Moderate” and “minor” issues with Merino High School, including lateral bracing for a wall.

At its meeting Wednesday, the Public School Capital Construction Assistance Board heard from the Neenan Co. on third-party structural reviews taking place at schools across the state. Mike Daley, left, an architect with Fort Collins-based Neenan, said his company “is committed to making this right.” The board oversees the Building Excellent Schools Today program. Cyrus McCrimmon, The Denver Post part of a construction project being paid for by a record $34 million BEST grant and $22 million local bond issue. Whei Wong, spokeswoman with the school district, said a third-party engineer found that a beam needs strengthening in the Skyview campus building. The review has yet to be completed. Wong said Neenan also agreed to the district’s request for a new engineer of record on the school, which will be “completely re-engineered.” The original engineer was Gary Howell, who also was responsible for the now-closed Meeker school. Neenan fired Howell in November, and a state regulatory board voted last month to suspend his engineering license. Howell has defended his work as sound. On Wednesday, Daley — the architect with Neenan — said Howell was not the only structural engineer working on BEST schools. He did not go into specifics. He also said Neenan is no

longer doing structural engineering in-house. In Alamosa, two elementary school buildings open since last fall have columns that need strengthening, Hughes said. The review said the buildings should not be occupied if it snows more than 12 inches. Snow will be removed from the roof until the repairs, scheduled to be complete by the weekend of Feb. 20, Hughes said. Neenan termed that structural issue “moderate.” Neenan also uses that term to describe problems with Sargent Junior-Senior High School near Monte Vista, which was questioned by Kevin Klein, head of the state Department of Homeland Security. “If we are taking kids out of school because the winds are blowing, I would consider that a serious problem,” Klein said. So far, that has not happened. The school did devise an evacuation plan after an outside en-

gineer found the building was unsafe to occupy if winds hit 25 mph. Repairs and an inspection are expected to be completed this week. The state Division of Fire Safety, which is part of Homeland Security and oversees school plan reviews and inspections, so far has found only minor issues in its own thirdparty structural reviews of Neenan and non-Neenan school building projects, Klein said. “We haven’t found anything that shows this is a widespread problem,” he said. “So far we haven’t found anything that suggests it is anything beyond the Neenan projects.” Mary Wickersham, chair of the board that oversees BEST grants, proposed Wednesday that Education Department staff conduct a “root-cause analysis” of what happened with the Neenan projects. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971 or egorski@denverpost.com

B Mapleton — “Moderate” issue with beam that needs strengthening at Mapleton Early CollegeMapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts. B Miami-Yoder — “Moderate” issues involving bracing on Pre K-12 school. B Monte Vista — Strengthening connections between columns, foundation work and other repairs at high school. “Minor” issues including wall bracing at elementary school. B Sargent — “Moderate” issues at Sargent Elementary requiring snow removal from roof; “moderate” and “minor” issues with Sargent Junior-Senior High School. B Weldon Valley — “Minor” issues involving elementary, middle and high school buildings. Sources: Ted Hughes, Colorado Department of Education; Neenan Co.

dp Online: Read the full Neenan school report. »denverpost.com


Saturday

66 section B

january 28, 2012 B denverpost.com B the denver post

DENVER & THE WEST Business » 5-7B

LAWMAKER PENALIZED

Opinion » 8-9B

REALITY SHOW

DOW JONES

74.17 12,660.46 NASDAQ

ESPN is splashing the spectacle of the Winter X Games in 3-D. “This is the biggest we’ve ever done,” said Paul DiPietro of ESPN. Sunday’s broadcast will be the network’s 204th using 3-D cameras, but it will be the first using all 3-D cameras. » 5B

Immunity claimed to avoid DUI charge. »4b

Wall Street

11.27 2,816.55 S&P 500

2.11 1,316.32 Story » B6

Schaffer backs Neenan

Board of Ed chief says embattled firm has come through for charter in past By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

Bob Schaffer also is principal of the lauded Fort Collins charter.

Faced with a series of damaging disclosures about its school-construction projects, the Neenan Co. is getting support from a successful Fort Collins charter school and its high-profile principal — State Board of Education chairman Bob Schaffer. Neenan is scheduled to break ground next week on the first phase of an expansion of Liberty Common High School , a project estimated to cost from $1.8 million to $2.1 million, school officials said.

The charter school and its affiliated building corporation and foundation, however, did not choose Neenan for the project. Neenan spokesman Andy Boian confirmed that Loveland-based developer McWhinney selected Neenan last fall — before reports about structural issues ranging from minor to major at about 20 Colorado schools designed and built by Fort Collins-based Neenan. McWhinney had been leasing the building to Liberty Common High, and last week, it sold the property to the charter school’s corporation.

Schaffer used the opportunity to publicly stand behind Neenan, which has longtime ties to the charter school. Earlier this week, Neenan disclosed that structural fixes were needed at every school it has built while using tens of millions of dollars from a state grant program. “We are first and foremost concerned about the safety of our kids and the value of our building,” said Schaffer, a former Republican congressman. “Our experience in the past with Neenan gives us every confidence this is going to be a partnership that serves all our needs.”

CHILLIN’ AT RED ROCKS

Schaffer said school officials received assurances that Neenan would take steps to ensure the expansion is designed and built correctly, including extra scrutiny of engineering plans. “They have taken extra steps and bent over backwards to make sure this project is of the highest quality and caliber and has an attractive cost associated with it as well,” Schaffer said. Liberty Common is a college preparatory school chartered by the Poudre School District and is in two buildings. The Center for NEENAN » 4B

2 arrested in holdup and fight with cop An off-duty Denver officer stepped in but was attacked when her gun misfired. By Kirk Mitchell The Denver Post

dp

The coroner’s office’s initial report detected marijuana in Ashley’s system, but a month ago, the office amended its report to include a detection of benzoylecgonine, which can be formed by the metabolism of cocaine. The coroner’s revised report said benzoylecgonine indicates that Ashley likely had used cocaine within the previous 24 hours and could explain why he exhibited behavior consistent with “excited delirium.” In a release, the manager of safety said it conducted an independent and broader investigation into the incident to determine whether DenZOO » 4B

ARREST » 4B

usic fans look to ward off the chill around a festive ball of flames Friday night at Red Rocks Amphitheater during its first winter concert. Three bands warmed up the crowd at the sold-out event before the main act, hiphop’s Atmosphere, took the stage. Denver’s official temperature at 9 p.m. was 19 degrees. Karl Gehring, The Denver Post

Winter songs. More photos from the inaugural Red Rocks event. »denverpost.com/mediacenter

8 Denver cops cleared in death of man at zoo By Jeremy P. Meyer The Denver Post

The eight Denver police officers involved in an incident at the Denver Zoo in July that left a 29-year-old man dead will not face any discipline charges, according to a manager of safety review released Friday. Alonzo Ashley, 29, died July 18 after a struggle with police that began after witnesses said he claimed to be a lion and tackled and beat a zoo guard before officers arrived. The district attorney’s office in October concluded no criminal charges would be filed against the officers, saying Ashley’s death met

no legal criteria for prosecution under Colorado homicide statutes. Witnesses say Ashley attacked police before they stunned him with a Taser. The coroner’s office report said Ashley was placed face down on the ground, hands cuffed behind his back and legs crossed and flexed and pressed toward his buttocks. Ashley began convulsing and stopped breathing before paramedics arrived. The coroner ruled the death a homicide — a medical term, indicating that subduing and restraining Ashley contributed to his death, but it did not suggest excessive force or an intent to harm him.

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Police have arrested two suspects allegedly involved in a pharmacy holdup, including a man who began beating a police officer and stole her gun after she fired at him. “I purposely shot at him. I went to shoot him again but it misfired,” said Sgt. Virginia Quiñones. “I can still feel him hitting me.” Police arrested two suspects wanted in the Thursday afternoon robbery at a Walgreens at Green Valley Ranch Boulevard and Tower Road. Joseph Farina, 56, and Nicholas Zentz, 25, have been arrested for investigation of aggravated robbery and assaulting a police officer. Quiñones, a 23-year police veteran and former spokeswoman for Denver police, was at the pharmacy picking up a prescription when two masked robbers entered the store and began yelling. “This is a ... stickup,” the two suspects yelled and then jumped over the counter. Three female employees began screaming and crying. Quiñones reached into her purse and grabbed her gun. “I leaped over the counter. My inner voice was yelling as loud as theirs was,” she said. She landed between the robbers and the three women. “I tried to use verbal judo,” Quiñones said. “I wanted them to think this crazy woman might shoot their ---.” Quiñones’ first thought was protecting the women, who could have quickly become hostages, she said. “They weren’t out there to steal a bag of M&Ms and a friggin’ Coca-Cola,” she said. She yelled that she is a police officer and ordered the two suspects to kneel on the floor and get their hands up in the air. The two men did as she said. One of the suspects appeared to be afraid


4B» DENVER & THE WEST

saturday, january 28, 2012 B denverpost.com B the denver post

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GOP penalizes lawmaker Denver police say she invoked legislative immunity in traffic stop By Yesenia Robles The Denver Post

Denver Police D e pa r t m e n t , said Bradford was pulled over in the Capitol Hill area just after 10 p.m. We d n e s d a y Laura Brad- when an officer ford “under- saw her making an illegal turn. stands” the The officer decision. smelled alcohol on Bradford’s breath, and she admitted to having been drinking, Jackson said. After Bradford failed some roadside sobriety tests, the officer called a supervisor for advice on the situation. It was then determined, as Bradford pointed out to police,

A Grand Junction-area lawmaker has been suspended from her committee chairmanship after a traffic stop in which she avoided a possible DUI charge thanks to the state constitution. House Republicans announced late Friday that state Rep. Laura Bradford of Collbran was suspended for “reasons related to a traffic citation.” According to Denver police, Bradford was pulled over Wednesday night on suspicion of driving under the influence, but used legislative immunity to get away with a minor traffic ticket. Sonny Jackson, spokesman for

that she could not be arrested because of Article Five, Section 16 of the state constitution, which says during the legislative session, lawmakers cannot be arrested while attending sessions, or while traveling to or from related events. The constitution only makes exceptions for cases of treason or felonies. “Her car was parked. She took a cab home and was ticketed for the illegal lane change,” Jackson said. Bradford released a statement to The Post addressing her suspension, and saying she looked forward to continuing her work. “I understand the speaker’s decision, and I look forward to having the facts

brought to light,” Bradford said. KDVR-TV (Fox 31) reported she gave them a statement denying she “invoked immunity.” The section of the constitution granting lawmakers immunity was last amended in 1975, and was intended to protect lawmakers from intimidation from other branches of government or other political parties, according to online information from the Legislative Legal Services agency. Rep. Libby Szabo, R-Arvada, will serve as chairwoman of the Local Government Committee, with Rep. David Balmer, R-Centennial, as the committee’s vice chair, the House Republicans said in a statement.

CBI testimony argues against trial defense By Erica Meltzer The Daily Camera

at Roach as the friends walked home early on the morning of March 18. They say Walker then grabbed for the gun, and in the struggle, it went off. Walker, 20, a native of Edwards and a football player at the University of New Hampshire, was visiting friends in Boulder during his spring break when he was fatally shot at the corner of 10th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue on University Hill. McGregor, 23, of Longmont, is charged with first-degree murder, felony murder and aggravated robbery. Prosecutors have tried to use forensic evidence to bolster Roach’s testimony and the case for aggravated robbery and first-degree murder.

boulder» The muzzle of the gun that killed Todd Walker was 5 to 6 feet from him when it was fired, a Colorado Bureau of Investigation firearms expert testified Friday at the murder trial of Kevin McGregor. The information is significant because McGregor disputes the story told by Elizabeth Roach, Walker’s friend, that he tried to rob her at gunpoint and shot Walker when he intervened. McGregor’s defense attorneys say he drew and fired the handgun in the air because he was scared of Walker after being confronted about whistling

FROM 1B

Spicer said the school intends to continue working with Neenan. Schaffer initially told The Post that the board of the school’s foundation had chosen Neenan over two competing bids. Schaffer cited factors including “the strength and soundness” of the proposal and the school’s long history with Neenan and its employees. But foundation chairman Peter Kast said McWhinney, as the building owner, chose Neenan. School officials helped with the floor plan, he said. McWhinney officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Education Reform named it National Charter School of the Year in 2007. The two-phase high school expansion is estimated to cost $6.1 million. Phase one will add 12,000 square feet to the 27,000square-foot building and is expected to be completed by the end of July. Schaffer said a foundation set up to support the school used bond debt to pay for the project, partnering with the Colorado Educational and Cultural Facilities Authority. The second phase will include a gym. Headmaster Russ

WILL TO WIN

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FROM 1B

while the other was “sizing” her up, she said. She ordered the three women to go call the police. Suddenly, one of the suspects lunged at Quiñones. She fired her gun at the man. The bullet hit the wall and did not hit anyone. The man began striking Quiñones with a milk crate, according to a police department news release. She fended him off with one arm and tried to fire her gun again, but it misfired. The suspects ran away with her gun. Her attacker ran from the store and carjacked a vehicle outside a Grease Monkey. The

second robber jumped in a 2005 black Chevy Suburban with temporary plates. Quiñones, whose left arm is now wrapped in medical tape, said she chased the robbers out of the store so that she could see their car or get their license plate number. “Yes. It’s just me against two men,” she said. “There might be people who question what I did. I did the best that I could do. The tactics I used were sound. The outcome to me was ideal. The women are OK.” Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or twitter.com/kmitchellDP or blogs.denverpost.com/ coldcases

of intent to sue Denver

«

FROM 1B

Detective Craig Beckjord holds a handgun Friday during Kevin McGregor’s trial. Mark Leffingwell, Daily Camera

Schaffer said Neenan Co. founder David Neenan is a longtime “champion of school choice” and an early financial contributor to Liberty Common. Neenan pitched in “quite a lot” to get the school started 16 years ago, along with parents who put their houses up for collateral, Schaffer said. The Neenan Co. designed and built the original Liberty Common elementary school, which involved the renovation of a former toothpaste and mouthwash factory, Schaffer said. David Neenan contributed a total of $3,500 to Schaffer’s runs for the U.S. House and Senate,

federal election records show. Neenan has donated to both Republicans and Democrats over the years. “It’s hard to find a business leader in Fort Collins who has not contributed to me in the past — especially those involved in education,” Schaffer said. Children of a number of Neenan employees attend the school as well.

$

19

ver Police policies were followed. The analysis was overseen by the Office of the Independent Monitor. “We conclude the officers did not violate the (police) department’s use of force policy or any other department rules or any laws with regard to the use of force,” Safety Manager Alex Martinez said in a statement. “Throughout their contact with Mr. Ashley, the officers used appropriate tactics and the least amount of force necessary in response to his actions. ... Mr. Ashley’s death is tragic but was unintended and not the probable consequence of the force used by the officers.” The incident occurred on the evening of the inauguration of new Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, who also released a statement. “I want to again extend my condolences to Mr. Ashley’s loved ones,” Hancock said. “His death was an unfortunate loss to our community and I

want to assure the public that the Department of Safety conducted a comprehensive, fair and accurate review as timely as possible. It is my expectation that the same attention and fairness will be applied to all use-of-force cases.” Ashley family members have filed a notice of intent to sue the city but have not filed a lawsuit, said City Attorney Douglas Friednash. “Up until now, the investigations have been open, so there hasn’t been anything that we can look at,” said Will Frankfurt, the attorney representing Ashley’s family. “We have done some initial investigation with people who were there. And I can tell you that those people had a different opinion of what happened than what the officers said. I am confident that we will show the officers’ actions were completely unreasonable.” Jeremy P. Meyer: 303-954-1367 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com

Staff writer David Olinger contributed to this report. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971 or egorski@denverpost.com

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Saturday

6 section B

february 11, 2012 B denverpost.com B the denver post

DENVER & THE WEST JACKPOT SWELLS

Powerball pot reaches $325 million mark. »2B

Business » 5-7B

Wall Street DOW JONES

DEBT-DEAL UNREST HITS THE STREETS Protests in Greece; Dow loses 89 points » 6B

89.23 | 0.7% 12,801.23 NASDAQ

23.35 | 0.8% 2,903.88 S&P 500

9.31 | 0.7% 1,342.64 Coverage » 6B

Meeker matter gets messier Three engineers who questioned the school’s structural integrity are being probed for failing to report it to a state board.

Colorado initiative clicks off

By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

Engineers who questioned the structural integrity of Meeker’s Elementary School now find themselves under investigation for failing to notify a state licensing board of their concerns, as required by law. The board filed complaints against an engineer hired by the rural school district and two others who conducted a third-party review that uncovered serious structural defects that led to the school’s closure. All three engineers defended themselves in written responses this week, saying they were not given enough information to determine whether the work was substandard. Under state law, licensed engineers are required to report peers who have failed to meet generally accepted standards of practice. The board filed complaints against Luke Studer of Steamboat Springs, who initially raised concerns about the school, and Frank Bumgarner and Wayne Muir of Structural Consultants Inc., who conducted an outside review of the design. Angie Kinnaird Linn, program director for the state Department of Regulatory Agencies, said because “this is such an

Hickenlooper’s TBD program begins with more than 100 civic leaders discussing state issues. By Tim Hoover The Denver Post

They came. They clicked. They picked. More than 100 civic leaders gathered Friday for a test drive of TBD Colorado, Gov. John Hickenlooper’s large-scale civic engagement effort to take Coloradans’ temperature on education, health care, transportation, the state workforce and the state budget. Those at Friday’s session at the History Colorado Center were designated as “advisers” to TBD Colorado, helping to guide the initiative, which promises to release a list of recommended fixes that now remain “to be determined.” “We really want people to have a real voice,” Hickenlooper, a Democrat, said, not just measuring the public’s sentiment “but to give it strength and muscle.” A privately funded nonprofit, TBD Colorado will hold 120 meetings in 40 locations around the state where participants can register their thoughts on issues by means of remote control-style clickers. The meetings will allow members of the public to participate, but those participating have to commit to three monthly meetings lasting three hours each and read background materials. The first meeting is set for March 5 in Douglas County. The initiative will produce a report at the end of the year showing the results from the meetings. Coloradans interested in participating can visit TBDColorado.org for more information. Greg Maffei, chief executive of Liberty Media and chairman of the TBD Colorado Inc. board, said no state has attempted an outreach effort as ambitious. In addition to Maffei and Starz/Liberty Media, donors to the effort, which is exINITIATIVE » 3B

REVIEW » 3B

Online: Previous Post coverage of the Neenan schools story and related documentation.»denverpost.com/neenan

EARLIER CALL IGNORED

Fire-response delay triggers new look at dispatch policy The Arapahoe High School Unified Cheer Squad performs a routine during halftime at a basketball game Thursday night. Two of the girls also played in the game. In its first year, the squad has gained rock-star status on campus. Karl Gehring, The Denver Post

By Kieran Nicholson The Denver Post

Firefighters put out a blaze in the basement of a northeast Denver home Friday morning, about 90 minutes after a neighbor called 911 to report a strong smell of smoke. Neighbor Torry Hughes said he stepped outside to take his dog for a walk about 5:30 a.m. when the smell of smoke “hit me in the face, like a brick.” Hughes said he immediately grabbed a flashlight and checked his property to make sure his house wasn’t on fire. He didn’t find fire, but the smell of smoke lingered. Hughes called 911, but he said the dispatcher was dismissive. Hughes said the dispatcher told him “no one else had called” and the smoke he was smelling must be a “controlled burn,” likely a fireplace. “If you see or hear anything, don’t hesitate to call back,” Hughes said the dispatcher told him. “Who am I to argue with the Fire Department?” Hughes was inside his home about 7 a.m. when fire engines responded to a structure fire at 2634 Ivanhoe St., just down the block.

Uplifting moves, champion spirit By Anthony Cotton The Denver Post

KLONDIKE, SNOW GO SEPARATE WAYS Polar bear Snow frolics in her habitat in SeaWorld Orlando before she was moved to a zoo in Arizona because of her chronic struggles with allergies. »2B Photo courtesy of SeaWorld Orlando

centennial» If one is interested, there’s no shortage of important, scholarly work devoted to analyzing the benefits of inclusion theory in schools — reams of highbrow research arguing that children with special needs can thrive through interaction with general-education kids. Or, one can merely spend some time at the home of Caley Elliot.

Any day, any hour would likely suffice, because chances are the Arapahoe High School junior will either be engaged in her passion — cheerleading — or dreaming about going to school and getting the chance to cheer there. “If it starts to snow, she asks if it’s going to be a snow day,” said her brother Spencer, a sophomore. “And she’ll scream out, ‘No! I want to go to school!’ just so she can cheer.” CHEERLEADERS » 4B

Video: See the team’s performance in the Flip and Shout competition at the Denver Coliseum.»denverpost.com/multimedia

DELAY » 4B

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the denver post B denverpost.com B saturday, february 11, 2012

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Engineers defended their work

DENVER & THE WEST «3B

Critics call plan political cover for tax increase

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FROM 1B

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egregious situation,” board members are concerned the engineers did not notify the board of their concerns about the work of Gary Howell, who engineered the school for the Neenan Co. “We are just asking for the respondents’ side of the story,” she said. Studer was hired by the Meeker school board after the first small signs of problems at the school. He repeatedly pressed for a full outside review, which Howell opposed. SCI’s report found the building at risk of collapse in a fierce windstorm, among other serious problems. In a written response to DORA, Studer noted that he did not have enough information to report Howell, in part because Howell did not provide adequate information to him. He said he assumed SCI would make any required notifications to the board. “I felt that I was providing my services in an ‘ethical’ manner during my engagement with the school district and had great hopes of a good result,” Studer wrote. Bumgarner and Muir cited Neenan’s protracted delays in providing information as a factor in their conclusion that they did not have enough information to notify the board. “We gave the matter appropriate consideration and professional respect continuously throughout the duration of our engagement,” they wrote. Jim West, the project manager for the Meeker district, praised the two firms. “Had it not been for Mr. Studer, we would have never been alerted that we had problems,” he said. “And if it wasn’t for SCI, we never would have had those problems validated.” Andy Boian, a spokesman for Neenan, said the company turned over all documents as it obtained information and that SCI never asked for documents before issuing its review of the school. The licensing board also has opened an investigation into Thomas Nevin and Andrew Garner, Terracon Consultants engineers who conducted a soils report at Meeker. Nevin had an expired license at the time, the complaint says. An outside review found the report had misclassified soil characteristics. The state has not received responses from the engineers, and Terracon did not respond to requests for comment. Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971 or egorski@denverpost.com

pected to cost about $1.2 million, include the Chambers Family Fund; Comcast; Delta Dental; the El Pomar Foundation; Encana; Joseph Henry Edmondson; the History Colorado Center; Microsoft; The Denver Foundation; Ken and Debbie Tuchman; and Xerox. “This isn’t an attempt to push a Democratic agenda or a Republican agenda. It’s about a Colorado agenda,” Maffei said. “This also isn’t about raising taxes or cutting taxes.” Critics on the right have discounted that talk, saying TBD Colorado is political cover for a public-information campaign to push the public toward approving a tax increase. There were no tax increase proposals floated before the 100-plus gathered Friday, but those in attendance did weigh in on some spending priorities. Asked to prioritize Colorado’s funding needs, 77 percent ranked K-12 education No. 1, with health care coming in at a distant second at 8 percent, transportation at 7 percent and higher education at 6 percent. Only 1 percent chose corrections as the top funding priority. As the audience split into discussion groups, some tables reported back later that they wanted to see more concrete solutions proposed. Another table was even more frank, telling organizers not to be so shy in talking about taxes. “As much as humanly possible, I think we want to stay away from some of the really divisive issues — more taxes or less taxes or this is too conservative or too liberal,” Hickenlooper said. “But in the end, we are hoping we’ll end up with priorities.”

Real Kids Preschool students, from left, Sedik Mote, 4, Dawenise Burks, 3, and Nyimah Bryant, 2, each pick out a book to take home at the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library in Denver on Friday as part of a celebration of Black History Month. Denver singer Hazel Miller joined the local preschool and kindergarten children to read several books and sing a few songs. Clifford the Big Red Dog and Winnie the Pooh were also there to entertain the kids. Photos by Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post Saniah Spears, 4, right, Sedik, center, and Dawenise give Hazel Miller a thank-you hug after the reading at the BlairCaldwell library Friday morning. The Volunteers of America sponsored the “I Love to Read” event at the library Friday.

Online: Watch a video and see a slide show of the readings. »denverpost.com

Tim Hoover: 303-954-1626 or thoover@denverpost.com

Three in Douglas murder-for-hire case plead not guilty By Jordan Steffen The Denver Post

castle rock » Christopher Wells, the man accused of hiring a man to kill his estranged wife, pleaded not guilty Friday in a Douglas County court, along with two other defendants in the case. Wells, 49, who appeared in court unrestrained and dressed in khakis and a black sports jacket, is accused of hiring former associates at a Colorado Springs car dealership to kill his wife — 39-

year-old Amara Wells — while he was incarcerated for domestic violence-related charges. The bodies of Amara Wells and Bob Rafferty, 49, were found in the Rafferty family home Feb. 23, 2011. Wells and her daughter had been staying at the Rafferty home southwest of Castle Rock. Matthew Plake, 27, wearing an orange jail jumpsuit, and Micah Woody, 30, dressed in a yellow jumpsuit, were in restraints as they entered their not-

guilty pleas. The three are charged with murder and numerous other charges in the case. Wells was the only defendant who did not look at the victims’ family members who were in attendance. On Jan. 31, the Douglas County District Attorney’s office announced that prosecutors will seek the death penalty against Josiah Sher, 27, the fourth man involved in the alleged murder-for-hire plot. Authorities played videotaped con-

fessions of Plake, Woody and Sher at a preliminary hearing. Sher said he was offered $20,000 — $5,000 each for killing Rafferty and his wife, Tamara Rafferty, and $10,000 for killing Amara Wells. Sher never received the money. Tamara Rafferty, who is Christopher Wells’ sister, was out of the state when the killings happened. Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794 or jsteffen@denverpost.com

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Online: Check out the best photos of the day from Colorado and around the world. »denverpost.com/mediacenter

Building checkups

GRAMMY AWARDS

ADELE TAKES PRIZE

BA ILO U T D EM A N D S M ET

Hospital built by embroiled Neenan reviewed by outside design firm

Adele, who had been forced to not sing for months, took home six awards Sunday at the Grammys, including album and song of the year. The Foo Fighters won five Grammys. »2A

Greece passes drastic cuts Amid widespread riots, leaders pass austerity measures to clear a path to $170 billion in aid. By The Associated Press

Adele accepts the award for record of the year Sunday at the Grammys. Matt

tained by The Denver Post. Middle Park Medical Center remained open to patients based on the outside firm’s view that it was safe to occupy as long as heavy snow was removed from the roof until the columns were strengthened.

athens, greece» Greek lawmakers today approved harsh new austerity measures demanded by bailout creditors to save the debt-crippled nation from bankruptcy, after riots in Athens and other cities left stores looted and burned and more than 120 people hurt. The historic vote paves the way for Greece’s European partners and the International Monetary Fund to release $170 billion in new rescue loans, without which Greece would default on its mountain of debt next month and likely leave the eurozone — a scenario that would further roil global markets. Lawmakers voted 199-74 in favor of the cutbacks, despite strong dissent among the two main coalition members. In response, the Socialists and conservatives expelled 22 and 21 lawmakers, respectively, reducing their majority in the 300-seat parliament from 236 to 193. Violence was also reported in six other cities, the worst in central Volos where the town hall and a tax office

NEENAN » 18A

GREECE » 18A

Robin Renfroe, a scrub technician, stands in the dedicated surgery room in the new medical center in Granby last week. A structural review of the center, built by Neenan Co., revealed some problems. Joe Amon, The Denver Post

Sayles, Associated Press

By Eric Gorski The Denver Post

“Fallen sister” From Grammy galas in L.A. to church services in Jersey, people mourn Whitney Houston.»4A

O

n Jan. 5 , the chief financial officer of Kremmling Memorial Hospital District stood in the lobby of a just-opened medical center in Granby and spoke of the benefits of the $26.2 million project.

Cole White talked about providing better health care to more people, a new and improved electronic medical-records system, and a CT scanner as good as any in Denver. “Welcome to our new facility,” White told visitors from the Granby Chamber of Commerce. “We hope to

Photo galleries: Grammy winners and performers. »denverpost.com/ mediacenter

see you here as little as possible.” A few days later, Neenan Co. workers were cutting through drywall in a closet to reach one of two overstressed columns that an independent structural review called a “major” issue in need of immediate attention, according to public documents ob-

HOA house may get put in order Horror stories prompt an industry group to push for state regulation of managers. By Aldo Svaldi The Denver Post

Ask Val Ford whether a homeowners association can do harm, and he will respond that his destroyed his health and wealth. Ford, 72, and his wife, Ann, are on the verge of losing their home after the Master HOA for the Southcreek Townhomes in Englewood foreclosed on them. The HOA, which charges dues of $240 a year, has amassed $9,000 in fines and late fees against the ailing couple in a nine-year battle that start-

ed with a misplaced trash can that Ford used to collect debris from a nearby community mailbox. An attorney for the HOA says it’s still willing to work with the Fords. “We have taken it, taken it and taken it,” Ford said. “There is no recourse as far as I can see.” Conflicts and complaints, and a request from the industry trade group representing homeowners associations, have prompted Colorado to consider regulating HOA managers. Criminal-background checks, training and licensing are under consideration. “We are trying to establish a level of professionalism and performance in the industry,” said Chris Pacetti, cochair of the licensing task force at the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Com-

munity Associations Institute. Colorado legislators received so many complaints about HOAs that in 2010, they voted to create an HOA Information Office and Resource Center to gather complaints and help homeowners. Through Dec. 1, the center had collected 478 complaints, a third of which named managers. Many of the rest centered on poor management practices — from a lack of transparency to ignoring homeowners’ concerns. About 2 million people in Colorado live under more than 8,000 HOAs, according to state estimates. At the CAI’s request, the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies is conducting a “sunrise review” to deHOA » 14A

Val Ford and his wife, Ann, have had escalating problems with their HOA. Now the organization has foreclosed on their home because of $9,000 in unpaid fines and penalties. Joe Amon, The Denver Post

1202_KSDNA

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monday, february 13, 2012 B denverpost.com B the denver post

6

GREECE: One in five

civil jobs to be cut; minimum wage falls « FROM 1A

The Neenan-built Granby medical center was reviewed by an outside firm for structural problems. The most serious concerns discovered were two overstressed columns in the building, which Neenan paid to fix. Photos by Joe Amon, The Denver Post

NEENAN: Firm stands by its buildings

«

FROM 1A

Officials with the state Department of Public Health and Environment say they took the unusual step of requesting an outside review in mid-December because the engineer of record, Gary Howell , also worked on Neenan-designed and -built schools found to have structural defects. Despite the outside review’s alarming language, a local building official and a structural engineer with no connection to the Granby project described the column issue as relatively minor. Still, scrutiny from another state agency and the hasty repairs pose another challenge for Fort Collins-based Neenan, which is standing behind its work and reviewing dozens of building designs as it seeks to restore an image tarnished by its school-construction problems. The design-build firm says it has completed health-care buildings totaling more than 2 million square feet in the past 20 years, including at least eight projects in Colorado. Kremmling Memorial spokesman Eric Murray declined to make district chief executive Bill Widener available for an interview. “It’s remedied. It’s done,” Murray said. “There is nothing to talk about, that’s all. We have been deemed absolutely safe.” The Granby project is the result of a more than decade-old effort to expand health care for Grand County’s 15,000 residents. The hospital district financed it with between $23 million and $24 million in revenue bonds and $1.5 million in state grants. At a Nov. 12, 2010, groundbreaking, hospital-district board president Kent Whitmer called it “a total win-win.” A little more than a year later, Robert Sontag, life-safety code manager with the state health department, contacted the district’s project manager to ask

questions about the structural engineering. Department officials had been following a series of Denver Post articles and noticed that Howell, the project engineer, had designed a Meeker school that had serious flaws, Sontag said. Sontag said the owner’s representative, Todd Ficken, explained that he already had made changes to design assumptions after discovering issues that bore similarities to those in Neenan schools. Sontag said he pressed for a full outside review. “We said as long as there is an arm’s-length review ... and the local building department is willing to sign off on it, then we can move forward,” Sontag said. Andy Boian, a spokesman for Neenan, said a review already had been scheduled because all of Howell’s work at Neenan is being scrutinized. Boian declined to say how many other health-care projects Howell had engineered. Howell was hired in late 2007 and fired in November after state regulators opened an investigation into his work. On Dec. 28, Denver structural engineer Martino & Luth delivered its findings. Most items

were minor, but the most serious concerns centered on two columns the review found were overstressed by 8 percent and 12 percent, respectively. “We are classifying this structural issue as major and it should be remedied as soon as possible,” it said. Howell disagrees with some aspects of the review and described the suggested fixes as very minor, said the engineer’s lawyer, Bryan Kuhn. Harold Howland, building official with the town of Winter Park, which oversees construction in Granby, said his department did not find problems with the columns. “Some engineers are more conservative than others and over-engineer things,” he said. “I don’t think the building was ever in trouble at all.” Bob Hunnes, past president of the Structural Engineers Association of Colorado, said it’s reasonable to call the repair a minor reinforcement. “These are really minor issues in the context of the larger design deficiencies that have been reported on other Neenan projects,” he said. Neither the hospital district nor Neenan, however, challenged the findings. Neenan

Dr. Meghan Mont looks at Julie Broady at the Granby medical center last week. Some experts disagree on whether the issue found at the facility was a “major” structural problem.

agreed to pay for the fixes. The health department did not require the review as a condition for licensure or require repairs before the grand opening Jan. 1, said Nancy McDonald, director of the Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division. She said local building officials and the third-party engineer had declared the building safe, and the repair timeline was “rigorous.” By then, the building already had passed the department’s health code and life-safety inspections, which cover items such as corridor width and fire alarms. The health department’s duties include plan review. But McDonald said that would not have caught the issues flagged in the third-party review. “We authenticate that a licensed engineer has signed off on design calculations and assumptions, but we don’t repeat the work,” she said. The repair job, which included installing steel plates, wrapped up in about 10 days, Boian said. He said it never snowed, so the snow-removal plan was never put into action. After the columns were strengthened, another engineering firm was brought in to inspect the fix — all on Neenan’s dime. In a Dec. 21 letter, Neenan president Randy Myers assured Widener the company “has weathered much tougher financial situations.” He repeated the message he has shared with clients across Colorado and the country: Neenan is taking responsibility for its mistakes and taking steps to prevent future ones. Myers wrote: “It it gratifying to see that so many of our clients, partners and fellow community members recognize that we are working hard to be accountable and transparent during these difficult times.” Eric Gorski: 303-954-1971, egorski@denverpost.com

were damaged by fire, police said. Sunday’s clashes erupted after more than 100,000 protesters marched to the parliament to rally against the drastic cuts, which will ax one in five civil-service jobs and slash the minimum wage by more than a fifth. At least 45 businesses were damaged by fire, including several historic buildings, movie theaters, banks and a cafeteria, in the worst riot damage in Athens in years. Fifty police officers were injured, and at least 70 protesters were hospitalized. Sixtyseven suspected rioters were arrested and another 70 detained. Prime Minister Lucas Papademos urged calm. “Vandalism and destruction have no place in a democracy and will not be tolerated,” Papademos told Parliament just before the vote. Since May 2010, Greece has survived on a $145 billion bailout from its European partners and the International Monetary Fund. When that proved insufficient, the new rescue package was approved. The deal, which has not yet been finalized, will be combined with a massive bondswap deal to write off half the country’s privately held debt. But for both deals to materialize, Greece had to convince its deeply skeptical creditors that it has the will to implement spending cuts and public-sector reforms that will end years of fiscal excess and tame gaping budget deficits. As protests raged Sunday, demonstrators set bonfires in front of parliament, and dozens of riot police formed lines to keep them from making a run on the building. Security forces fired dozens of tear-gas volleys at rioters, who attacked them with firebombs and chunks of marble broken off the fronts of luxury hotels, banks and department stores. Clouds of tear gas drifted across the square, and many in the crowd wore gas masks or had their faces covered, while others carried Greek flags and banners. Masked rioters also attacked a police station with gasoline bombs and stones.

Today’s Notices Gassman, Phyllis L. Graham, Mary C.

Horan Archdiocese

GASSMAN ASSMAN, PHYLLIS L., 85, of Denver. Preceded in death by her husband Fritz Gassman. Mother of Greg (Lisa) Gassman. Grandmother of Chris, Matt & Trisha. Rosary Monday 7pm, Horan & McConaty Family Chapel, 3101 S. Wadsworth Blvd. Funeral Mass Tuesday 10am, Notre Dame Catholic Church, 2190 S. Sheridan Blvd. Interment, Mount Olivet Cemetery. Please share condolences at HoranCares.com.

G

MURPHY: Police turn up no leads in theft of crawler Vern Thornton died in Illinois four years ago at age 73 when a tractor (not the Case) rolled over on him. He left the Case to Steve, now 55, in his will. It took a couple of years before Thornton put together the money and the time to fetch the loader from Thornton Heights. He and a son took a truck there, hitched up the 10,000-pound machine and trailer and started the drive back. It was not as easy as it sounds. “We had quite a whiteknuckle trip back,” Thornton said. “Peeled the tread off the trailer tires at one point. Had to stop a couple of times.” But they made it, and Thornton finally got his turn at the controls. “I drove it off the trailer at

the house and drove it around there just a very, very little before the city said, ‘Uh-uh, you can’t do that in your neighborhood,’ ” Thornton said. “So I drove it back on the trailer, and that was it.” The Case needed work — and he needed a nonresidential spot to park it — so Thornton took the machine to a hose-repair company where a friend works in the 5100 block of East 48th Avenue. It never really occurred to him that someone might steal it, so he left it on the trailer. For a year, there it sat. Until New Year’s Day. That day, the crawler, and the trailer, disappeared. Denver Police Lt. Matt Murray said the investigation has turned up no leads. A second dozer was taken at about the same time from the same part of the city, but it was abandoned in Adams County a

short time later and is not thought related. “The investigation is now considered inactive,” Murray said. “We don’t have any information on it.” Thornton works in the upholstery shop at the Regional Transportation District’s facility off 31st Street in Denver. He wears a work shirt with his father’s name above the pocket and sews new covers for the seats on buses and light-rail cars — a skill he learned from his grandmother back in Illinois. Thornton has passed out fliers throughout RTD with photos of the loader. “I’m just hoping that maybe one of the drivers will see it while they are out,” Thornton said. So far, nothing. He had hoped to clean the Case up and eventually use it to develop a little property on his own after he retires from

RTD in a few years. But after he was first offered $6,000 and then $12,000 for it and turned the money down, he realized he really just wanted to keep the loader around, even if he never used it. Thornton mostly blames himself for the loss. “If I had just taken it off the trailer, it would never have gone anywhere,” he said. And if he got a chance to say one thing to the thief, it would be: “I’d sure love to have it back. I don’t think I can replace it in any way.” If you have information on the missing crawler loader, please call Denver police at 720-9137867.

2 Plots Chapel Hill Masonic Gardens. Make an offer. (303)795-9877 2 Plots, loc. Olinger Chapel Hill, loc S. Colo. Blvd. Value $3995 ea. Sell 2 for $7000 + transfer fee. 303-470-6617. 2 PRIME LOTS IN CROWN HILL CEMETARY. Make offer. (719)372-9315 CROWN HILL 2 side x side plots, loc on front row near Wadsworth & office, blk 3, lot 25, sec. 3 & 4. $1700 ea. or both for $3000. (720)220-1140 Crown Hill, Block 69, Lot 69, Unit A, Section 1. $4450/ obo. 970-213-2081 Zion at Chapel Hill Cemetery Lot 25C, Spaces 3 & 4. $7500 (303)472-1615

Golden Cemetery, 4 plots, City section, blk 93, lot 4. $1000 ea. Buyer pays Perpetual care fee. (970)484-0031 Highland Cemetaries, Garden of Atonement, 2 side x side plots w/1 vault, selling for $4500. Will pay transfer fee. Call Ann, 303-534-5100 OLINGER CHAPEL HILL MEMORIAL GARDENS 2 side-byside, lot #365-A #3 &#4, Garden of the Masonic, Littleton, Co. $3595/ea (928)474-2584 Sunset Memorial Gardens in Greeley, 4 lots, lot #343, sect. B, Christus Gardens, can be sold group of 2 or 4, $500 per lot. Call (303) 600-8778 after 4pm.

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Chuck Murphy: 303-954-1829, cmurphy@denverpost.com, Twitter.com/cmurphydenpost or Facebook.com/cmurphydenpost

GRAHAM RAHAM, MARY C.,90, of Denver. Wife of the late Gene Graham. Mother of John (Margaret) Graham, Mark (Nobuko) Graham, Chris (Tim) Henry and Gloria (Jim) Wright. Sister of Mike Smaldone. Grandmother of Paul, David, Erin, Colin, Stephen, Ben, Julie, Vincent and Crystal. Also survived by twelve great-grandchildren. Recitation of the Rosary Monday, 7:00 PM., at the Archdiocese of Denver Mortuary. Mass of Christian Burial Tuesday, 10:00 AM., at Shrine of St. Anne Catholic Church (58th & Webster Sts.) Arvada. Entombment, Mount Olivet Cemetery.

G

OBITUARY INFORMATION

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08384866

«

FROM 15A

A three-story building was consumed by flames as firefighters struggled to douse the blaze. Streets were strewn with stones, smashed glass and burnt wreckage, while terrified passers-by sought refuge in hotel lounges and cafeterias. Scores of bat-wielding youths smashed property at will for several hours, leaving broken traffic lights hanging from poles, and chairs and tables from looted coffee shops dumped on the street. Ambulances weaved through narrow backstreets to ferry the injured to hospitals, dodging burning trash bins and the running battles between rioters and police. “I’ve had it! I can’t take it anymore. There’s no point in living in this country anymore,” said a distraught shop owner walking through his smashed and looted optician store. Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis said rioters tried to storm the city-hall building but were repelled. “Once again, the city is being used as a lever to try to destabilize the country,” he said. In parliament, Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said the new austerity measures were vital to the country’s economic survival. “The question is not whether some salaries and pensions will be curtailed but whether we will be able to pay even these reduced wages and pensions,” he told lawmakers before the vote. “When you have to choose between bad and worse, you will pick what is bad to avoid what is worse.” The new cutbacks, which follow two years of harsh income losses and tax hikes amid a deep recession and record-high unemployment, have been demanded by Greece’s bailout creditors in return for a new batch of vital rescue loans. Greece’s eurozone partners, meanwhile, kept up the pressure for real reform. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble was quoted as telling the Welt am Sonntag newspaper Sunday that Greece “cannot be a bottomless pit.”

Visit www.denverpost.com/ placeanobit to place an obituary or memorial. You may also call 303-9542312 or e-mail funerals@ denverpost.com. If sending by fax, the fax number is 303-954-2833. Deadlines: 3 pm Monday – Friday, for next day publication 12 noon Saturday for Sunday or Monday.

Holidays are subject to earlier deadlines. The obituary department is closed Thanksgiving Day & Christmas Day. To advertise cemetery lots, please call 303-825-2525.


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