As online school enrollment grows in Aurora and across the state, some want more accountability
You’ve seen their endless commercials. You’ve hid from them when they’ve knocked on your front door. You’ve read their pricey mailers stuffed into your mailbox as they slid from your hands into the recycle bin.
But for all of this year’s claim that you think you know more than you ever wanted to about the herd of politicians fighting to be your elected official, The Sentinel has some tidbits I’ll bet you didn’t know.
Sure, a lot of it you don’t want to read through, and we’re sure you’re pleased that we did all that for you. But for all the political posturing, sound bites and muffin chokers, your next governor, commissioner, state senator and county assessor have unleashed during the past several months, they’re — mostly — funny and amusing people, when you can turn off the campaign promises.
Each election cycle, The Sentinel queries candidates about plenty of party planks and positions, but we also ask personal questions to give you a sense of who they are when you’re not watching.
The full collection is embedded in each race in our voter guide, online at SentinelColorado.com. Here are a few highlights gleaned from the big races.
Looking for some crazy fun or solid hedonism? Stay clear of the state’s next attorney general, no matter who it is. GOP challenger — he’s a veteran — John Kellner’s go-to TV show? Band of Brothers. So serious. His wild fun fact you’d never guess? OK, I might have guessed about his being in the reserves, but not considering it a fun fact. Somebody needs to help Kellner have some fun. His big household chore to hate? Grocery shopping. He got a puppy and some ski boots. Promising. But the superpower he covets? “Mind reading.” I’m guessing Kellner has been surprised by how different people have reacted to him than what he expected. Even more sad on the wild-and-crazy scale is his challenger, incumbent Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser, whose favorite restaurant is: Panera. “I’m known as a regular there, and the staff all know that my favorite order is my signature iced tea.” One can only guess about the signature. Splash of Dr. Pepper? What a rebel. He’s kind of a sad rebel with a serious taste for baseball rather than top eats. If he could have any super power? Like anything? “Baseball trivia knowledge.” So sad. Probably to impress strangers at Panera. He hates unloading the dishwasher at home. However, in a purely partisan move, he likes grocery shopping. Look for that tidbit in an ad soon.
Moving on to Congress, things get only slightly more exciting. Democrat Congressman Jason Crow just loves hitting up Noodles & Co. (I’m a parent of two young children active in sports…) Lucky kids, who just might like a soft and warm El Salvadoran tamal instead of more beige food at Noodles. Just saying. Crow does have an imagination, kind of. His missing superpower? He wishes he could fly or be invisible. That’s better. He loathes folding laundry and could watch Game of Thrones until the end of time or when Nancy Pelosi steps down, whichever. Ask him about amphibians, and he’ll impress you. His opponent, GOP challenger Steve Monahan, who has drawn praise from regional rags tabbed “liberal,” saw Elton John
in Pompeii, his most recent concert. Monahan was recently active duty. It explains why his most recent book read was, “The Second World Wars.” Zowie. Sounds like he hates everything but yard work at his house. And few might know that he was the lead singer in a Navy band. That could be the point of a country western song.
At least hanging with secretary of state types would be a little more interesting. Republican hopeful Pam Anderson loves the vibe and food at Clancy’s in Wheat Ridge. Sweet. Anyone who haunts the place can attest to stellar fish and chips as well as the shepherd’s pie. Just as great, if you’re wondering, are the Smithwicks “pints” and tons of live music. She got to take in Lyle Lovett and the Nitty Gritty Dirt band at Red Rocks as a recent show. She loves murder mysteries and science fiction, hates cleaning the bathroom, and a while back, she was a competitive runner, powering through a national heptathlon. If you have to ask… Democrat Jena Griswold, the incumbent, last went concerting to a Tito Nieves show. Que Rico! A clear taste for things way south, her favorite dinner haunt is La Diabla. And if she could super-power up? “Extendable arms, to always reach the kitchen top shelf.” Huh. T-Rex complex. Who doesn’t want to fly? She hates on doing the dishes, and, surprise, she loves salsa music.
The surprises get more interesting when you move toward Colorado’s top Senate candidates, Democrat Incumbent Michael Bennet and GOP challenger Joe O’Dea.
Bennet’s last concert? Phish. Seriously. Who knew? He loves El Taco De Mexico in Denver, a standby no matter how much heat you can take on your plate or on the Senate floor. His wish for superpower? “Ending child poverty in America.” Ahhhh. Now we’re back to posturing. He disdains gardening. A recent campaign video made on his front porch kinda gave that away. Please water your planters, Senator. And fix the front door knob. He’s a total Trekkie. Bennet thinks his family’s deep Polish roots are his most surprising fun fact. Dude. You go to Phish concerts. Fly fishing didn’t come up anywhere. For those who watch and listen to O’Dea, there are few surprises. He last saw the
Eagles in Las Vegas, loves John Wayne movies and had a great time recently taking a horseback ride through Wetmore. That’s called a pattern. He wishes, more than any other amazing thing he could do, he could “predict the future.”
I’ve seen the polling, Joe. You might not want to know. He doesn’t like taking out the trash. Is that telling for someone who wants to be a politician? During the pandemic, he really missed just stopping off at a bar for a beer. We recently found out he drinks Michelob Ultra on ice. Perhaps he just likes the company.
Anyone who follows Democratic Gov. Jared Polis’ social media accounts or listens to him ad lib in public knows he has a deep-seated nerdy attraction to eye-rolling puns and layered wit. The most “Colorado thing” he’s done recently?
“Roasted (and subsequently tasted) chiles at the Pueblo Chile Fest!” Truly a Coloradan, and speaker of Spanish, he used the correct “chile” before subsequently roasting and tasting said chiles. He hangs most often at his son’s “playtime” cafe, where the lattes rock. Odder only than coveting a superpower allowing for knowing the future, like Bennet’s political opponent, Polis envies anyone who has “infinite wisdom.”
Huh. Listening to him talk, sometimes, I’d say he feels he’s pretty close to that. He’s a total Trekkie, too, and over the years he’s milked and mixed those metaphors and cliches like a pro. He hates washing the dishes but is all about cooking. Next time, we’ll reach out to friends and family to see whether the “doers” are also the “mess makers.” Finally, now you know Colorado’s governor regularly burns up broadband hours as a regular League of Legends player. Note to self to ask state staff about his Summoner skills. His Republican opponent, Heidi Ganahl, didn’t respond to several requests for campaign information and all the juicy details of her personal life. Creator of Camp Bow Wow, and a critically self-inflicted wound over seeing imaginary “furries” across the state, I’m guessing she doesn’t identify as Catwoman.
Follow @EditorDavePerry on Twitter and Facebook or reach him at 303-750-7555 or dperry@SentinelColorado.com
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Of all the Colorado elected official choices voters must decide this year, the race most demanding clarity is that of state attorney general.
For months, Republicans have erroneously tried to make an incongruous election case in the race between incumbent Democrat Phil Weiser and GOP challenger, John Kellner, the nascent district attorney for the Arapahoe County region.
Republicans argue that electing Kellner will reduce car thefts, shootings and drug overdoses across the state.
Given that seems to be Kellner’s priority, and how little the state office of attorney general can or should directly impact that, both Kellner and voters would end up being wildly disappointed and frustrated with Kellner at the helm.
That’s only the chief reason to re-elect Weiser for another term.
It was a surprise last year when Kellner announced his intent to run for the attorney general’s job. He’s less than two years into his first term of district attorney and unexpectedly wanted to change jobs.
Oddly, Kellner’s race seems driven by his Arapahoe County predecessor, DA George Brauchler, now a right-wing talk-radio host. Brauchler lost to Weiser four years ago.
On the air and in social media, Brauchler pounds on Weiser for not doing more to stop car thieves and fentanyl overdoses. Kellner has joined that misleading refrain in his bid to unseat the first-term Democrat.
If Brauchler and Kellner are confused about the job of attorney general, it speaks poorly of their campaign. If they’re being disingenuous about what Kellner can actually do as attorney general — as opposed to what they’re promising voters — that’s reprehensible.
The attorney general is the state’s and people’s lawyer, not a criminal prosecutor. The office first and foremost advises the governor and state agencies on a vast array of legal matters.
It’s something Weiser has done admirably and impressively during his first term. He came well-qualified for the job after his tenure in the U.S. Department of Justice and as dean of the University of Colorado School of Law.
The AG’s charge is to defend the interests of residents against corporations, governments and individuals illegally or unethically usurping our rights, our property and our lives.
Weiser has done an outstanding job as a watchdog of issues threatening our health and environment, created by oil and gas companies and opioid manufacturers. Weiser has successfully worked to protect the rights and opportunities of Colorado residents and businesses against national interests and conglomerates.
Kellner wrongly intimates that the attorney general should be involved in reforming parole, sentencing or local bail requirements, which is the role of lawmakers and the Department of Corrections.
The only tool there is the bully pulpit during the general assembly. The state AG is one voice among hundreds during lawmaking sessions. Past attorneys general can apprise Kellner, and others, that expecting the Legislature to yield to the counsel of the AG is hopeful best.
It doesn’t mean the attorney general’s office can’t work to route out large-scale drug and theft operations, and Weiser’s office has.
By design, the attorney general’s office is composed of lawyers, not police officers.
There is, however, a place for the state AG’s office to further reduce the most prevalent crime in the nation: fraud. Fraud and so-called “white collar” crime by far affects the most people, and often the most vulnerable.
For decades, national crime and safety experts agree that fraud is the nation’s most pervasive and underreported crime in the country, including in Colorado. Estimates blame fraud for between $426 billion to $1.7 trillion each year, according to the Department of Justice.
Weiser’s office points to a long list of efforts made to prevent people from becoming victims of fraud and prosecuting those who commit it.
The efforts, however, pale in comparison to the need. That’s a problem more of funding than priority.
Another relatively new and critical role of the attorney general is policing local police departments, an issue crucial to Aurora.
Kellner said he’s willing to pursue the role and tenor of Weiser’s job as arbiter of the consent decree with Aurora to mandate a wide range of police reforms. Weiser, however, has shown solid leadership already
RICHARDSON,The midterm election is quickly approaching, and this is our call to show up. Show up to get the government we deserve.
French philosopher, Joesph de Maistre, once said, “every country has the government it deserves,” but Black and Brown voters in Colorado believe they deserve more from their government; they are right, and we have the power to fight for it this November.
The power of the vote is a privilege and grave responsibility of those who are citizens in our democracy. Black and Brown voters deserve elected officials who represent their interests and advocate for policies that affect change for the better.
In August 2022, ACLU of Colorado commissioned the African American Research Collaborative (AARC) to survey Coloradans. The survey polled 95% registered voters, to evaluate the issues of greatest concern to them and assess how they feel about their government and the perceived impact of the vote. With respect to democracy and the vote, the survey revealed that most of the respondents believe voting is essential to bring about positive change.
However, an ACLU of Colorado analysis showed that only 30% of Black and 44% of Latinx eligible voters in Colorado voted in 2018. Should this rate reoccur this November, more than 110,000 Black and 410,000 Latinx eligible voters will fail to exercise their voting privilege — despite the widely held belief that voting is still the best means to bring about the changes they desire.
According to survey respondents, Black and Brown communities are most concerned about inflation and the economy followed by gun violence, affordable housing, and houselessness. Eighty percent of Coloradans consider housing affordability, and especially rent costs, a major issue or a crisis in our state.
This November let’s vote for the change you seek. There is a statewide affordable housing initiative that would expand access to affordable housing in the state. The survey found most respondents support that initiative.
In Denver, there is an initiated ordinance on the ballot to provide renters in the city legal representation to navigate the eviction process. If these are
issues you want to address, turn out this November and vote!
When it comes to the people they trust most, the survey shows Black voters only have high trust for elected officials who are also Black and Latinx voters only have high trust for elected officials who are also Latinx. Most respondents had higher trust in state elected officials to represent their interests and to serve as a hedge against federal government policies that do not represent their interest.
Ironically, Black and Brown voters are more likely to turn out for presidential elections than midterm and municipal elections. It is on the municipal and state level where our elected officials create policies for issues such as affordable housing and gun violence.
Accordingly, they believe that elected officials need to do more to address racism and discrimination on a community level but are not turning out to elect those who have the most impact on community level issues.
More than 500,000 voters will make the difference this November – make your voice heard! Choose to remain silent, and more than 500,000 non-voters will fail to get the democracy we all deserve.
I urge you to vote to get the government we deserve.
If you are eligible, register, and VOTE!
— Deborah Richardson is the executive director of ACLU Colorado
in pursuing critically needed changes.
Then there’s the matter of doing what the AG’s office actually does as a litigator. The attorney general represents the interest of the people in issues made urgent by other courts, such as abortion rights.
Kellner has said that his personal beliefs in favor of restricting women’s reproductive rights would not affect his ability to defend the conflicting rights and views of the vast majority state residents, who disagree with him.
However, Kellner’s legal prowess tumbled after he touted the U.S. Supreme Court Dobbs ruling, ending decades of abortion rights under Roe vs Wade that is not suddenly the matter of states.
Weiser immediately rebuked the Dobbs ruling for what it was: political, tortured logic of judicial activists.
Kellner might prove to be a successful Arapahoe County prosecutor as his term plays out. He’s shown promise by working with other district attorneys across the state in providing web-based data and accountability, in what he calls a “dash-board” program. Such vetted and compelling data could be critical to state and local lawmakers working to find ways to protect everyone from street crimes while providing justice — and equity.
Weiser has already proved to be well-suited as Colorado’s lawyer in handling the job for what it really is, not a politically expedient ploy to rook voters into thinking it should be. His ability to garner praise and endorsements even from Republicans comes from his solid record as a pragmatic attorney and unwavering defender of individual rights. Voters should re-elect Weiser to another term.
While the bulk of election-year attention and money points to top-line statewide and legislative races, those “down ballot” questions and candidates probably affect your everyday life more immediately and directly.
With that in mind, The Sentinel Editorial Board offers these endorsements. Each race is considered separately and choices are based primarily on a qualified candidate’s agenda and goals aligning with that of the Sentinel Editorial Board.
This year’s considerations look toward local governments that are foremost transparent and accountable with officials who look solely to vetted, reliable data and study.
Here are The Sentinel suggestions for local offices up for election this year.
Adams County Commissioner District 4: Steve O’Dorisio.
Incumbent Democratic Adams County Commissioner Steve O’Dorisio has for nearly eight years been a steady force for change and accountability in a county government that for far longer has often been lacking in those qualities.
In working with Aurora and other Adams County municipalities, O’Dorisio has shown himself open to ways to provide services in a county seat far from the bulk of residents, and still ensure equity for everyone in the county.
Most importantly, he’s shown he can support local businesses and industries, but also demand that the interests of people who make their home in Adams County are paramount.
O’Dorisio regularly seeks to ensure that county commission actions are transparent to the community, a commendable and important standard.
The Sentinel readily recommends O’Dorisio for another term.
Adams County Commissioner District 2: Emma Pinter
Commissioner
thoughtful approach to governing the county.
Pinter, a former Westminster City Council member, offers the board of commissioners a community government sensibility too often overlooked by urban county leaders.
Forest offers a deeply introspective approach to running the county.
But Adams County, run by a professional county manager, is already equipped to direct staff to tease out directions and decisions from officials overseeing a county that is both as rural as Leader, Colorado, and as city gritty as East Colfax Avenue and Beeler Street.
The Sentinel recommends returning Pinter to the board of commissioners because, as a former city councilperson, she has shown deep appreciation for the relationship between Adams County and its municipalities. But she also keeps a watchful eye over the myriad neighborhoods that often have many community needs but no city infrastructure to provide them.
The Sentinel Editorial Board strongly recommends sending Republican Stan Martin to lead the county treasurer’s office and restore credibility, transparency and trust.
The office became the subject of investigations and audits after incumbent Lisa Culpepper lost the faith of the county commission and voters. She lost her Democratic primary election in June to Democrat Alexander Villagran.
Controversy over whether and how Culpepper handled bank reconciliation and other record-keeping issues drew fire from county officials and, ultimately, voters alike.
Martin, formerly the Adams County Clerk and Recorder, has always shown a deep appreciation for public accountability, and how county officials in the past have abused their offices.
“Unfortunately, Adams County has a history of nepotism,” Martin told the Sentinel. “I firmly believe Adams County citizens should have the final say in who they want to represent them, not some other partisan elected officials.”
Villagran is a savvy manager with financial experience, but this term calls for someone who understands the pitfalls of Adams County government and is equipped from Day One to restore credibility.
Martin, having formerly run elections for Adams County, made clear that he will not tolerate election deniers nor conspiracy theories rampant among his party.
Not only do county residents get a trusted official to restore credibility to the office, but Republicans can see that pushing against The Big Lie is a winning strategy.
Josh Zygielbaum’s proven dedication to election transparency and credibility makes him the clear choice for Adams County Clerk and Recorder.
The first-term Democrat was successful in ensuring elections and all county clerk services continued during the extreme and unique challenges of the pandemic.
At a time when some county clerks in Colorado have drawn themselves into controversies surrounding conspiracy theories and disinformation, Zygielbaum has remained far above the fray.
Republican challenger Karen Hoopes brings no practical experience to the table and in responding to Sentinel queries makes clear she’s pleased to entertain talk about repteadly debunked fraud allegations and other dangerous conspiracy theories.
The Sentinel fervently recommends Zygielbaum for county clerk and just as fervently advises against voting for Hoopes.
Like the Adams County commission, the sheriff’s department has seen more than its fair share of malfeasance and controversy over the past few decades.
Both sheriff candidates Gene Claps and Mike McIntosh would bring needed integrity and stability to this large but shaken department.
McIntosh, a Republican, was county sheriff until being
defeated by incumbent Democrat Sheriff Rick Reigenborn in 2018.
While McIntosh’s tenure was for the most part marked by stability and a focus on addressing crime in unincorporated parts of the county, problems with jail crowding and bumpy relations with city police department officials revealed a lessthan collaborative environment.
Returning McIntosh as sheriff would essentially bring back the high and low points of his administration.
The Sentinel Editorial Board recommends voters put Democrat Gene Claps in charge of the office and department, creating a new start for the county and regional police departments associated with the office.
Claps was previously the county’s top jail administrator as a deputy in the department.
His experience in handling one of the county’s most complex and challenging institutions is a valuable asset at a time when jails undergo close and critical review.
Claps shows a keen appreciation not just for department morale and recruitment, but for ensuring law enforcement officers provably treat the community with respect and fairness.
Arapahoe County Coroner: Kelly Lear
Voters have an easy choice to make for county coroner, incumbent Dr. Kelly Lear.
For almost two decades, Lear has instilled trust and accountability as the agency’s chief medical examiner and administrator.
Lear has ensured the office’s work is compassionate and respectful to families of the dead, but just as critically, the work is accountable and transparent to the public.
Under her leadership, the office has been above reproach for the past four years and The Sentinel strongly urges voters to return Lear to continue leading the office, and the profession.
Both candidates for Arapahoe County Commissioner District 2 bring experience and several ideas to the debate.
Former Centennial City Councilmember Mark Gotto offers a hopeful mix of plans to leverage transparency and communication as the county slogs through issues surrounding a new health department, sustained growth, limited water and a bevy of environmental challenges.
Campbell-Swanson, a lawyer and political strategist, brings a solid, detailed plan to the table, setting an agenda for the commission The Sentinel and most residents would like to see materialize.
Regarding the demise of Tri-County Health and the imminent creation of the Arapahoe Health Department, Campbell-Swanson insists that new board of health members offer not just experience, but a dedication to making decisions on sound, vetted data and science.
The Tri-County Health Department board imploded during the pandemic when some appointees from Douglas County abandoned decisions based on science and health, pushing for a political committee following conspiracy theories instead of public safety.
The chaos is far from over, as the county must now create a new department while decommissioning Tri-County, along with several thorny employee and retirement issues.
Campbell-Swanson also sees that growth and a regional effort to salvage RTD are battles everyone has a stake in and engaging in them creates benefits for every metro resident.
Her visionary approach to one of the state’s largest and most complex counties makes Campbell-Swanson the right choice.
Commissioner: Leslie Summey
Navy veteran, small-business owner and mother of five, Leslie Summey is the right choice for Arapahoe County Commission District 4.
Summey brings an impressive roster of goals for the
county.
She is an energetic leader that sees the need for quickly building a strong health department to replace the continuing loss of the Tri-County Health Department. We share her goal of pushing the new department further to include ways to deliver more mental health services to residents.
Summey, a Democrat, is also eager to push the county toward more cooperative and collaborative ways to improve RTD and other regional transportation enhancements.
She makes an impressive case for the county commission to ensure all county residents are considered as the region deals with growth, water and air quality issues.
She’s opposed for the vacant seat by former GOP Aurora City Councilmember Bob Roth.
Roth’s most remarkable achievement during his tenure on the council was an egregious ethics scandal. Roth ran his own development-construction consulting business and touted his connections to city, state and regional lawmakers as a marketable asset of his position on the city council.
“Open doors – With a vast network in the public and private sector, in vertical and horizontal development, we can open doors that have not been available previously; Legislative assistance – Engage civic executives and elected officials on behalf of clients for development projects,” Roth touted on his company’s website in 2018.
“Promising legislative assistance by tapping ‘elected officials’ whom Roth works with in his official capacity as a city councilman and official in the Denver Regional Council of Governments is expressly forbidden, even for two years after Roth leaves office,” The Sentinel said in an editorial on the clear ethics lapse. “An elected official offering to sell influence over another elected official is anathema to honest, ethical government.”
Roth was protected by fellow Republicans at the time, which failed to create any meaningful mechanism for oversight for such conflicts of interest.
A position on the county commission, with even less scrutiny than that focused on the Aurora City Council, would be unwise.
Summey is the clear choice for voters.
Voters have two good choices for county assessor. Both Republican challenger Bob Andrews and incumbent Democrat PK Kaiser show a strong grasp of the office’s seemingly obscure but important mission. Andrews has appraised properties professionally. Kaiser has led an office that admirably kept pace with substantial real estate volatility, even during the pandemic.
But Andrews steps ahead with his strong demand for customer service, his priority as custodian of valuation for taxation.
County residents and businesses will be well served by either candidate, but better served by Andrews.
The race for Arapahoe County treasurer is another case of two apt candidates seeking the office of treasurer, a job that requires people management skills more than investment savvy.
The office is staffed with professional market and investment experts, safeguarding taxpayer funds in investments and holdings. Much of the work is regulated by a variety of laws and guidelines.
The treasurer oversees that staff and all of the employees needed to bill and collect tax levies across the county.
Former City Councilmember Marsha Berzins clearly understands the role of the office and touts a long tenure as a city lawmaker.
But Westerberg has real experience with managing larger staffs and has made intriguing promises to find ways to boost the investments of tens of millions of property tax collections. He brings an impressive resume to the position with a law degree specializing in taxation, making him ready to not only take charge of the office, but innovate.
We recommend Westerberg for the job.
Four years ago, the Sentinel endorsed Democrat Joan Lopez’s Republican opponent for the clerk’s job.
The reason was simple. Matt Crane was an above-board public servant who had helped make voting easy for residents and provided uncompromising election security and efficiency.
We can strongly encourage voters to choose Lopez this time for those same reasons.
Lopez has shown in each election cycle that she takes seriously the job of ensuring voters can easily cast ballots, and that the results of the election can come fast, efficiently and without question.
At a time when debunked conspiracy theories and unreasonable criticism is a pervasive issue, elections under Lopez’ watch are absolutely certain to be free of malfeasance.
Like every large county, elections haven’t come without technical mistakes, but Lopez’s quick efforts to correct problems is what’s demanded.
Republican challenger Caroline Cornell talks worrisomely about the need to reel back “ballot harvesting” which is not a problem.
Both candidates show a keen awareness that elections are just part of the job of the county clerk, and that customer service for license plates and driver licenses is important.
But we agree with Lopez that kiosks and automation are far better alternatives than focusing resources on in-person centers that are notorious black holes for time and tax dollars.
The Sentinel recommends Lopez for a second term.
The Arapahoe County sheriff’s race is another instance where The Sentinel in 2018 backed the Republican candidate over the Democratic challenger, Tyler Brown, to ensure an experienced hand at the wheel.
Brown is now that experienced and well-reasoned top law official, deserving of a second term.
Brown has shown a steady hand as a law enforcer for one of the largest police departments in the state, as well as the chief custodian for one of the state’s largest jail systems.
During the pandemic, when jails were challenged in unimaginable ways, Brown led the county steadily and reliably through near-forced releases of inmates.
The first-term sheriff’s greatest asset not only to county residents but all of Colorado is his push for increasing mental health and other services to address the crisis of addiction and mental illness, plaguing jails across the state.
Republican challenger Kevin Edling brings impressive credentials to the race as a former 27-year-veteran of the Denver Police Department.
He, too, shows a keen awareness of the growing crisis in local jails created by drug addiction and mental illness.
We disagree with his allegation that the current department lacks transparency or communication. We’ve found the department forthcoming and compliant with a wide range of requests for information on specific cases, department policy and department data and statistics.
We recommend Brown for a second term as sheriff.
U.S. Senator: Michael Bennet
6th Congressional District Representative: Jason Crow
Governor: Jared Polis
Attorney General: Phil Weiser
Secretary of State: Jena Griswold
The following is a list of those candidates endorsed last week, and the House District 61 contest, inadvertently omitted from last week’s edition.
House District 32: Dafna Michaelson Jenet
House District 36: Mike Weissman
House District 37: Ruby Dickson
House District 40: Naquetta Ricks
House District 41: Iman Jodeh
House District 42: Mandy Lindsay
House District 56: Kathleen Conway
Senate District 27: Tom Sullivan
House District 61: Eliza Hamrick
Two educators bring an academic eye to the needs of the state and how the Legislature can make changes to solve statewide problems.
Retired high-school teacher Eliza Hamrick, a Democrat, is competing with Johnson and Wales instructor Dave Woolever, a Republican, for the House seat redrawn to include Centennial and south Aurora.
Both candidates see the need for the General Assembly to focus on public schools and public safety.
Hamrick offers the most pragmatic and practical ways to address those problems.
Hamrick lauded changes made almost two years ago by Senate Bill 20-217, reforming police agencies after decades of ignoring problems with police behavior. She said the state now needs to provide resources to police for training, hiring and support in an effort to address increasing crime, a logical move.
Woolever agrees that parts of the now-famous state Senate bill were valuable, but he is critical of the measure for “defunding police.” The measure did nothing of the sort. That term is essentially a right-wing dog whistle to those who see police reform as anti-police.
On education, both candidates see the need to focus on public schools. Hamrick wants to increase teacher pay and focus on gun reform to ensure schools are safe from shootings.
Both candidates say they want more resources in schools and other areas of the state to provide increases in mental health services.
Woolever said he would support measures to increase career-based programs in schools, an important part of education in Aurora schools.
But he also said he would support increasing parent participation by “making more details about school curriculum public.”
That’s another far-right conspiracy flag to parents who believe schools secretly teach anti-white, pro-LGTBQ and pro-liberal agendas buried deep in school district materials. It’s proven nonsense and nothing more than a dangerous distraction to real problems public schools face.
Schools districts in Aurora and across the state have long been open about curricula and materials used.
Cataloging materials online for the sake of perusal would be an unmanageable and Herculean task even for small districts, breaking budgets and spending huge resources on a project that would undermine student learning, not enhance it.
It seems Woolever may have his heart in the right place, but he’s listening to the wrong people about state issues. Hamrick offers solid ideas based on data and reality and warrants a term in the state House.
Allegations that Aurora Councilmember Steve Sundberg made sexually suggestive comments around city staff were investigated and confirmed but kept from the public under a Colorado law that gives cities broad discretion to withhold records related to sexual harassment.
BY MAX LEVY, Sentinel Staff WriterA group of three other council members decided not to discipline Sundberg, with Sundberg saying the allegations were “minor,” and because Sundberg had reportedly apologized. No recordings were made or minutes taken of the group’s meetings.
A confidential source reported the allegations against Sundberg to TheSentinel, which requested relevant records from the City of Aurora, including an email sent to council members that contained a third-party report on the matter.
The city refused to turn over those records and initially refused to provide a specific legal reason for doing so. Senior assistant city attorney Dave Lathers eventually acknowledged that records were withheld under a portion of Colorado’s Open Records Act allowing local governments to block the release of records having to do with sexual harassment allegations.
The Sentinel obtained a copy of the April 20 report from a confidential source and confirmed the document’s authenticity with multiple council members.
Open government advocates say that, while the state’s public records laws were written to protect the privacy of victims, by allowing cities to withhold “any records of sexual harassment complaints and investigations,” the law also allows cities to hide the results of those investigations from the public, which may have the secondary effect of shielding perpetrators from scrutiny.
“There’s a strong public interest in knowing the outcome of these investigations,” Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition president Steve Zansberg said of the law. “Allowing those who have been accused of sex harassment to go unidentified for years on end is not consistent with the general view that this workplace conduct is unacceptable and should be eradicated.”
In the report on the allegations against Sundberg, investigators describe comments made by the first-term city lawmaker in the presence of city employees, two of whom complained to city officials.
Sundberg later alluded to the situation at the conclusion of a City Council meeting and described some details of the incidents to TheSentinel. On May 9, Sundberg told the council that, in December 2021, he was in “a nervous and challenging situation in which I blurted out a joke or a story which was about a prank.”
“Upon completing that I realized it was an inappropriate thing to say,” he said. “I do genuinely
care about other people and how I treat them, so I am meeting with a couple of staff tomorrow to apologize, have a crucial conversation about that and move on with important city business.”
Sundberg later said that, during a December meeting which included city staff members, attendees had commented on a mask that he was wearing. He said he replied with a “joke or story” about wearing a mask over his genitals.
“I related a prank that was played on a really good friend of mine where I wore a large mask as a loincloth and gave it to my friend,” he said. “As the last word came out of my mouth, I knew it wasn’t fitting. I wasn’t trying to be lewd or offensive.”
Sundberg’s account was consistent with the information included in the report, which concluded that the council member “made an inappropriate comment about the size of his mask in relation to his genitals.”
The source who contacted The Sentinel also referenced comments made by Sundberg about a strip club; Sundberg declined to provide details about the incident, except to say that a second complainant made that allegation and that he regretted what he had said.
“I was answering sarcasm with sarcasm,” he said. “I made a regrettable joke in a moment of nervousness. I apologize to those two people.”
house race and omitted a county commissioner race from a “substantial” number of ballots sent to Pueblo voters.
The mishaps “resulted in voter confusion and the need to distribute replacement ballots to thousands of Pueblo voters,” the Secretary of State’s Office said in a news release.
Griswold appointed Teak Simonton, whom she described as a professional election administrator, to monitor Ortiz’s office for the 2022 general election.
“Every eligible Coloradan — Republican, Democrat, and Unaffiliated alike — has the right to cast a ballot in accessible and secure elections. That’s why I am taking action to appoint an Election Supervisor in Pueblo County,” said Griswold in a news release.
Last year, Griswold appointed Simonton as election supervisor in Mesa County after alleging that Republican County Clerk Tina Peters “compromised her county’s voting equipment.”
Another supervisor was placed in Elbert County after the clerk violated Colorado election rules during the 2022 primary, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Joe Biden designated the first national monument of his administration at Camp Hale, a World War II-era training site in this state, as he called for protecting “treasured lands” that tell the story of America.
The announcement is a boost to Colorado’s senior Democratic senator, Michael Bennet, who has for years advocated for the designation and is in a competitive re-election bid this November. The location is an alpine training site where U.S. soldiers prepared for battles in the Italian Alps during World War II.
“We’re doing it not just for today, but for all the ages,” Biden said, standing amid the rugged, sun-drenched backdrop flanked by mountains as far as the eye could see. The remote site was located off a winding road past an abandoned mine and an old mountain home. “It’s for the people of Colorado, but it also goes well beyond the people of Colorado. It’s for all the people across America and the world.”
The proclamation formally establishes the Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument, spanning more than 53,800 acres that will be protected and managed by the U.S. Forest Service. Many members of the 10th Mountain Division who trained at Camp Hale returned to Colorado after the war and helped create the state’s lucra-
tive ski industry, and the site is now used for outdoor activities such as hiking and camping, and is home to rare wildlife.
“Soldiers in Camp Hale learned to scale rock, ski and survive, preparing for the war they were about to fight,” said Biden, who for Wednesday’s announcement was joined by two veterans from the 10th Mountain Division. He praised the troops’ “skill, strength and stamina that could’ve been only gained in a place like this.”
While most national monuments protect extraordinary natural landscapes, there are at least 12 other military sites designated as national monuments by other presidents.
Biden on Wednesday called his designation a permanent one that none of his future successors can overturn, although previous presidents have reduced the size of national monuments. The issue of whether a president can eliminate a national monument has not been resolved in court.
Donald Trump shrank two national monuments in southern Utah, a decision that tribes and environmental groups challenged in court. Those cases had been pending when Biden restored full protections for the monuments and expanded one of its boundaries. Biden also restored protections for an area off the New England coast that Trump had opened to commercial fishing.
— COLLEEN LONG and SEUNG MIN KIM,Associated Press
A Bailey man who in March allegedly attacked a group of Community College of Aurora film students while using racially-charged language pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and harassment last week.
When one of the students’ cars got stuck on the icy road near his home in rural Bailey, Jon Spencer, 29, reportedly confronted and attacked the group, after calling the driver a “dumb, Black b---h.” He was charged with two counts of third-degree assault and five counts of harassment. All charges are misdemeanors.
On Oct. 11, Spencer remotely attended a hearing overseen by Park County Court Judge Brian Green, who along with one of the students, Malarie Stafford-Mustacchio, expressed frustration about the lack of progress in the case. Green said he was reluctant to further postpone Spencer entering a plea.
“If we do it again, it just starts to feel like this doesn’t even matter to the court or anybody else involved,” Stafford-Mustacchio said.
Defense attorney Ehren Penix said attorneys involved in the cases needed additional time to comply with the state’s Crime Victim Rights Act, which requires that victims of certain crimes be informed and
permitted to be present during critical stages of the criminal justice process.
“They still need some additional time to do VRA and to contact those individuals prior to us coming to a resolution here,” Penix said. “We believe a resolution is forthcoming.”
Regardless, he entered a plea of not guilty on Spencer’s behalf after Green insisted on him submitting a plea. Green said the plea would not “prohibit the parties from negotiating.”
Green tentatively scheduled the jury trial on the matter to begin Feb. 2.
— MAX LEVY, Sentinel Staff Writer
A judge has postponed a Republican-backed recall campaign against Kevin Priola, a Colorado state senator who recently switched parties to Democrat, ruling the effort should be conducted after Priola is sworn in in January to represent a new district created by redistricting.
The ruling temporarily enhances Democrats’ prospects of retaining a majority in the state Senate, where they hold a 21-14 advantage, after the Nov. 8 midterm elections. The party holds a larger majority in the House as well as all top statewide offices, including the governorship.
Recall leaders vowed Tuesday to appeal the ruling, which would like-
ly force them to discard more than 15,000 voter signatures they say they’ve collected to force a recall in the new suburban Denver district that’s more favorable to Republicans.
Denver District Court Judge Marie Avery Moses ruled Monday that recall supporters must wait until Jan. 9, when Colorado’s 2023 Legislature convenes and Priola is sworn in, to collect signatures in the district, The Colorado Sun reports.
Moses ruled the secretary of state’s office erred in approving the recall campaign beforehand. Petitioners had until Nov. 8 to collect enough signatures to force an eventual recall vote, possibly in January.
Priola infuriated Republicans when he announced his party switch in August, saying he was disgusted by the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and what he called his party’s refusal to repudiate assertions that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Those assertions have repeatedly been proven false.
Priola also rebuked what he called the GOP’s refusal to take climate change seriously.
A Democrat-backed committee
created to fight the recall sued to challenge the secretary of state’s ruling.
The secretary of state’s office said Tuesday it was reviewing Moses’ ruling.
But Michael Fields, who heads the recall committee and is president of the conservative group Advance Colorado Institute, vowed to appeal and said the current effort will continue to collect at least 18,000 valid signatures needed to force a recall.
“Coloradans have a constitutional right to recall our elected officials,” Fields said in a statement.
Senate President Steve Fenberg said that allowing the recall campaign to continue “would have created a cascade of ridiculous recall efforts every redistricting cycle.”
Priola is in his second term as a state senator and is not up for reelection in November. The campaign needs signatures equal to at least 25% of the number of votes cast in the district in the last election to force a vote.
— THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Oct. 20 Highlights: Panel discussion on social equity for our youth; intergenerational discussion on repopulating the social equity bench and preparing the next generation; we need a shared social equity agenda - a conversation with black community organizations & faith leaders; CRBT roundtable discussion on equity and the November election; memorial remembrance reception for Gloria Tanner, Dr. Sharon Brown Bailey, Cleo Breeze and Gerie Grimes
Oct. 21 Highlights: Fireside leadership conversation and CRBT recognition for a legacy of service with Mayor Michael Hancock; social equity updates from Denver and Colorado officials; Social equity discussion on the Black community & energy and Black business opportunity; statewide Black leadership conversation on equity in Colorado; State elected officials & candidates reception
Oct. 22 Breakout discussions on: Social equity and education, public safety, housing, marijuana, sports, media. Special CBRT recognition for Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen.
Oct. 23 Operation Black Vote: CBRT “Operation Black Vote” Kick-Off
Supporting events:
• Catering by Two Sistah’s EAT’S
• Art exhibit by the “The Beauty of Blackness” Fine Art Show
• “Taste of the Past” book signing by author Theo Galloway
For information contact 720-629-0964 or johnbailey062@gmail.com
For full schedule of events, go to http://ow.ly/lMLr50L2cRS
Proud Sponsor
Aurorans will be asked this fall whether they support replacing the city’s ban on people with any felony convictions running for City Council with a ban targeting convictions for crimes related to corruption, after a court ruled the existing ban is unconstitutional.
The proposed change to Aurora’s home-rule charter is more or less a formality, as the city is unable to enforce its existing ban, and the state’s constitution already disqualifies candidates who have been convicted of the crimes enumerated in the new ban.
George Koumantakis, an attorney for the city, told the City Council during a meeting in June that the item had to go on the fall ballot regardless in order for the city to comply with a district court order.
Aurora’s charter states in part that “a person who has been convicted of a felony shall not become a candidate for nor hold elective office.” Candice Bailey — an Aurora activist leader who in 1999 was convicted of second-degree assault and sentenced to two years in prison — challenged the charter rule last year with the backing of the American Civil Liberties Union.
In March, 18th Judicial District Judge John Scipione sided with Bailey and the ACLU, saying that generally disqualifying felons from holding office violated the state’s constitution.
The proposed charter change, coming before voters this fall as City of Aurora Ballot Question 3A, would disqualify candidates who have been convicted of embezzlement of public money, bribery, perjury, solicitation of bribery or subornation of perjury, rather than all felons.
The item will appear on the general election ballots of Aurora voters. Colorado’s general election is scheduled to take place Nov. 8.
During the pandemic, the ability to order a couple to-go margaritas with your takeout dinner helped boost Colorado restaurant’s revenues at a time when restrictions on in-person dining devastated local eateries and their staff. That ends in July 2025.
Proposition 126 would keep it going. It would also let third-party delivery services, like DoorDash and Instacart, deliver alcohol to customers on behalf of grocers, liquor stores and other alcohol-licensed businesses.
Pretty much anywhere that sells beer, wine or liquor to consumers would be able to offer delivery through a third-party delivery service, including grocery stores, liquor stores, wineries, bars and restaurants.
Many restaurants and alcohol retailers already are delivering alcohol to customers. But they must use their own staff.
Proposition 126 would change two pieces of Colorado’s alcohol laws to permanently allow restaurants and bars to offer alcohol to go and for delivery, and to let licensed alcohol retailers use third-party services to deliver beer, wine and liquor to customers starting March 1, 2023.
The measure would add some guidelines. The third-party services would be required to get a delivery permit. They would also have to submit proof of liability insurance and their drivers would have to complete a certification program. Delivery drivers would also have to be at least 21 years old.
Liquor and grocery stores would also no longer be limited to how much revenue could come from alcohol delivery, currently limited to 50% of annual revenues. Restaurants and bars, however, would still be allowed to sell only two bottles of wine, 12 cans of beer and 1 liter of spirits per delivery or takeout order.
According to the Department of Revenue, if Proposition 126 passes, the state would need to hire 1.2 fulltime employees and it would cost the state $120,000 a year to process applications and conduct compliance checks. But those expenses would likely be paid for from delivery permit fees. Local governments may have to invest in additional enforcement if the measure passes.
The arguments for
Convenience is the leading reason proponents cite in advocating for the passage of Proposition 126.
But it’s not just convenience for consumers, who won’t need to leave their home for a six-pack. It’s also about convenience for retailers, who can tap third-party delivery services to make alcohol deliveries instead of having to use their employees.
Proponents of the measure say it will especially benefit small liquor stores who may not have enough workers to offer deliveries. Current law also requires stores to provide company-owned or leased vehicles, and not all stores can afford that, let alone have the staff to make deliveries.
“In a few weeks, Coloradans will have an opportunity to vote to help 6,000 small liquor stores and momand-pop restaurants that can’t use delivery now due to challenging regulations grow their businesses with the help of third-party delivery,” said Michelle Lyng, a spokeswoman for proponents, which include Instacart and King Soopers.
Offering to-go alcohol did wonders for the state’s restaurants, which were permitted to sell takeout and delivery booze during the pandemic. The industry anticipates this will buoy restaurants statewide
as they continue to recover from pandemic-era restrictions and closures.
Restaurants and third-party delivery services have not mixed well, especially in the pandemic. High fees for delivery and third-party delivery companies taking orders without a restaurant’s permission often had customers blaming the restaurants for a poor experience. In Colorado, the state legislature passed a law last year to prevent third-party services from taking orders without the restaurant’s consent.
But there’s enough benefit here that the Colorado Restaurant Association threw its support behind the measure, said Denise Mickelsen, CRA’s communication director.
“While third-party delivery companies are known for charging high commission rates on restaurant orders, operators that utilize their services stand to benefit from the additional revenue generated by adding to-go alcohol to an order of food,” Mickelsen said. “Proposition 126 adds another revenue option for restaurants through third-party delivery, and we support any measure that adds to Colorado restaurants’ financial sustainability.”
“If third-party delivery companies can deliver alcohol with our food, that helps us continue providing deeper hospitality to our customers who wish to have their food delivered,” said Daniel Ramirez, co-CEO of Los Dos Potrillos, a Denver-area Mexican restaurant, and a board member of the restaurant association.
Los Dos Potrillos felt the pain of the pandemic disruptions and, like other restaurants, began offering curbside pickup for the first time. Being allowed to sell to-go margaritas and other drinks to go helped the local chain not just survive COVID, but thrive. It plans to open two more locations next year, including a fast-casual restaurant in Northglenn with a drive-through pickup window.
“It’s not just about the sales,” Ramirez said. “It’s the fact that people actually enjoyed having the experience of margaritas with their food in the comfort of their home. That was the number one thing: How can we continue offering that experience for our customers?”
The arguments against Opponents of Proposition 126 worry there won’t be enough safeguards and that minors could have easier access to alcohol.
Right now, liquor stores have all sorts of rules to follow to keep their liquor license. That onus would be on third-party delivery services if the measure passes. They’ll be responsible for ensuring their drivers refuse delivery to intoxicated customers or anyone who won’t show proof of being at least 21.
But will they? That’s a challenge for a large national company to handle local enforcement, said Chris Fine, executive director of the Colorado Licensed Beverage Association, which represents small liquor retailers and opposes Proposition 126.
“There are huge consequences to that liquor store, to Argonaut, to
Morgan’s or whomever (for violations),” Fine said. “They’ll have either a loss of license, a suspension of license and a gargantuan fine or all three. That is a death knell to a small business. Do you think that Instacart or DoorDash is going to lose any type of license? Sure, they might fire the gig worker, but they’ve got more of them. Big deal.”
Currently, stores that use their employees for deliveries are liable if there is a violation. Under Proposition 126, stores aren’t liable once the alcohol leaves their premises. A handful of other states have allowed DoorDash and other third-party services to deliver alcohol. New Jersey began permitting services this month.
Whether Proposition 126 passes or not, Coloradans will still be able to get alcohol delivered at home.
Liquor stores have been permitted to deliver alcohol since 1994 and wineries since 1997. Grocery stores and convenience stores began delivery in 2019.
You should also know that Proposition 126 isn’t the only measure on the November ballot that would change Colorado’s alcohol laws.
Proposition 124 would let liquor retailers open more locations in the state.
Proposition 125 would allow retailers who have a license to sell beer, such as grocery and convenience stores, to also sell wine starting on March 1.
There are only three Total Wine & More stores in Colorado, when in other states, like Florida and California, there are dozens.
That’s because Colorado’s liquor laws allow retailers have only three locations in the state. Starting in 2027, that number jumps to four stores under existing statutes.
Proposition 124 would rewrite Colorado’s liquor laws to eventually let retailers open an unlimited number of liquor stores in the state.
What it would do
Proposition 124 would immediately increase the number of stores in Colorado that liquor retailers are allowed to operate to eight from three.
Starting in 2027, the number would increase to 13 stores. In 2032, the number would increase again to 20 stores.
Starting in 2037, liquor retailers would be allowed to operate an unlimited number of stores in Colorado.
The arguments for
The proponents of Proposition 124 see the measure as solving a
free-market issue.
Colorado grocery stores are currently only allowed to sell beer at all of their locations. (Until 2019, it had to be limited to 3.2% alcohol by volume.) Grocers can sell wine and spirits at a limited number of stores.
Starting in 2037, however, grocers will be able to sell wine and spirits, too, at all of their locations under a law passed in 2018.
“Our state liquor laws are outdated and need modernized,” said Dominic DelPapa, a spokesman for Coloradans for Liquor Fairness, an issue committee pushing for the passage of Proposition 124. “Supporting this ballot measure is about correcting a gross imbalance in current law.”
The arguments against
Small liquor retailers argue that Proposition 124 will push them out of business by letting national chains, like Total Wine & More, expand across the state.
Colorado’s current law is written to protect smaller operators against facing that kind of competition.
The Colorado Licensed Beverage Association, a trade group representing smaller, independent liquor stores across the state, is opposed to Proposition 124. The organization’s leader, Chris Fine, said the measure would put his members out of business since bigger competitors like Total Wine, which has a store in Denver, Lakewood and Centennial, has greater buying power and therefore can sell its products for cheaper.
Fine went so far as to call the measure “catastrophic” for independent liquor retailers in Colorado. One big thing you should know
Proposition 124 is one of three alcohol-related measures on the November ballot, all of which are opposed by the Colorado Licensed Beverage Association.
Proposition 125 would allow retailers who have a license to sell beer, such as grocery and convenience stores, to also sell wine starting on March 1. Proposition 126, which would let third-party services deliver alcohol, whereas right now stores and restaurants have to deliver alcohol to customers themselves. It would also let restaurants to sell to-go alcohol in perpetuity, whereas right now they can only do so until July 2025.
Each of the policy changes may seem individually small, but if all three measures pass they would represent a sea change in Colorado’s alcohol policy.
We’ve mentioned Total Wine & More a lot in this explainer because they are the main group pushing for the passage of Proposition 124.
Colorado Fine Wines & Spirits LLC, a subsidiary of Total Wine, has given $5.3 million to Coloradans for Liquor Fairness. Democratic U.S. Rep. David Trone, of Maryland, and his brother, Robert, who own Total Wine, each have given about $1 million to Coloradans for Liquor Fairness.
The committee has spent about $4 million on advertising so far.
Keeping Colorado Local, the issue committee formed by the Colorado Licensed Beverage Association to fight propositions 124, 125 and 126, has raised about $500,000 this year.
Proposition 123 is an effort to tackle Colorado’s affordable housing crisis by allocating nearly $300 million each year in existing tax revenue to help local governments and nonprofits work on the issue.
The measure on the November ballot comes as affordable housing has become one of the state’s most pressing problems. A local survey recently estimated that metro Denver’s homeless population grew 12.8% in the last two years. And a gap between Black and white homeowners in Colorado has continued to widen since 1970. A Colorado Health Foundation poll also recently found that 86% of Coloradans think the cost of housing is an “extremely serious” problem.
The
taxes,
budget in some years and in other years would reduce Coloradans’ Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds. What
Proposition 123 would set aside up to 0.1% of taxable income each year for affordable housing. That’s estimated to be $145 million in the current fiscal year — which ends June 30, 2023 — and $290 million in 2023-24 and subsequent fiscal years.
The measure would give grants and loans to local governments and nonprofits to acquire and preserve land for affordable housing development. Funds from Proposition 123 would help develop affordable multifamily rental units, increase homeownership rates in the state and provide down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers. It would also address homelessness by providing rental assistance and eviction defense programs, proponents said.
But for projects to qualify for funding, local governments where projects are located must commit to increasing affordable housing by 3% each year and create a fasttrack approval process for such projects. If a local government chooses not to meet these requirements, or if it fails to achieve its affordable housing goals, projects in that municipality or county will be temporarily ineligible for funding.
The measure requires that the funding add to, and not replace, existing state money spent on affordable housing.
The measure defines affordable housing based on two factors: household income and housing costs. For a housing unit or project to qualify as affordable housing under the measure, housing costs such as rent or mortgage payments must not exceed 30% of the household’s income.
The affordable housing programs developed under Proposition 123 would be administered by the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority and the Division of Housing within the Colorado Department of Local Affairs.
The arguments for
Proponents of the measure say it would create a new source of funds to tackle housing issues without raising tax rates. It also would give local communities flexibility to respond to their specific needs.
Housing prices in Colorado are making it too hard for many households to afford rent or buy their own home. The new programs proposed under Proposition 123 could help Coloradans participate in the housing market now and in the future. Creating more homes will allow residents and essential workers to remain in their communities.
The new proposal could help ensure that teachers, nurses, firefighters and other critical workers could afford to live in the communities they’re serving and it could help address a full continuum of housing needs by serving people who are homeless as well as first-time homeowners, said Mike Johnston,
a former state senator now leading Gary Community Ventures, the philanthropic organization bankrolling the committee working to pass Proposition 123.
“The ability to be able to put $300 million a year into affordable housing without raising taxes is, we think, the most critical opportunity
to take on our most significant crisis,” Johnston said. “The state can’t go forward if people can’t afford to live here.”
Anna Stout, the mayor of Grand Junction, said Proposition 123 is specifically designed to keep affordable housing funding in Colo-
See PROPOSITIONS, 14
rado neighborhoods and gives local leaders control when trying to address housing challenges facing their residents. In Mesa County, the average cost of buying a home has increased 30% percent in the last two years, she said. Simultaneously, Grand Junction has an apartment vacancy rate of about 2%, meaning people looking for an apartment have few options for housing in town.
If Proposition 123 passes, local governments like Grand Junction could apply for funding to ensure more affordable housing developments are created and that they stay affordable, Stout said. An affordable housing equity program outlined in Proposition 123 would also give renters a path to homeownership while they’re still renting and could help them build equity and generational wealth, Stout added.
“Housing is by far the most important issue in the state right now to voters and they’re most concerned about it and yet it’s dramatically underfunded,” Johnston said. “Only about one-third of 1% of the state budget goes to housing right now. So this is a solution that actually relieves pressure on the general fund because it finds a way to fund the state’s most urgent priority right now by funding it out of refunds and not funding it out of the general fund.”
The arguments against
Opponents of the measure say it wouldn’t address the underlying causes of high housing costs and that pumping money into the housing market could distort it further State budget writers, both Democrats and Republicans, have also expressed concerns about the measure potentially diverting money from the state’s budget in years when the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights cap on government growth and spending, which is calculated based on inflation and population growth rates, isn’t exceeded. The legislature would still be on the hook to find $290 million in its budget to allocate to affordable housing.
“There’s no free lunch,” said state Sen. Chris Hansen, a Denver Democrat and the incoming chair of the Joint Budget Committee, which drafts the state budget. “K-12 and higher education (are) where the marginal dollar is in our state budget. So $1 less means $1 less for education.”
In the years where state revenue is below the TABOR limit, the measure could reduce the amount of money available for the state budget.
In years where state revenue exceeds the TABOR limit, the measure reduces money returned to taxpayers. If Proposition 123 passes, it’s expected to decrease the amount of money returned to each taxpayer by $43 in tax year 2023, according to nonpartisan legislative staff, and $86 per taxpayer in tax year 2024.
In its 2022 voter guide, the libertarian-leaning Independence Institute, a political nonprofit, recommends a “no” vote on Proposition 123. Rather than using taxpayer money to address the affordable
housing shortage, the group says, politicians should focus on reducing government regulations that create barriers to new housing supply, including local zoning regulations and strict building codes.
One big thing you should know
Proposition 123 isn’t the only measure on the ballot in November affecting the state’s finances.
Proposition 121 would cut Colorado’s income tax rate to 4.4% from 4.55%, reducing the state’s tax revenue by an estimated $412.6 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2023.
If both Propositions 123 and 121 pass in November, state tax revenue would be reduced by roughly $700 million each year, heightening the likelihood that lawmakers would have to shrink the budget, where education dollars are typically the first to be cut.
Johnston says the legislature could simply forgo the affordable housing allocations prescribed in Proposition 123 in non-TABOR surplus years since the measure only represents a statutory change. But state budget writers are anxious about asking members of the General Assembly to take such a vote.
“If this is voter-approved, there really is a mandate from the people,” said state Sen. Rachel Zeninger, an Arvada Democrat who sits on the Joint Budget Committee. “And so we’re going to be on the hook having to backfill that money.”
Proposition 121 could not be reversed by the legislature. Voters must approve any increase in the income tax rate under TABOR.
The players and the money Coloradans for Affordable Housing Now, also known as Yes on Prop 123, is the issue committee supporting the ballot initiative.
The group includes more than 180 organizations, advocates and elected officials who feel the affordable housing crisis needs to be addressed promptly, Johnston said. (The Colorado Democratic Party is among the groups that have endorsed the measure.)
Gary Ventures has contributed $2 million to the committee. Habitat For Humanity Metro Denver gave the committee $250,000 and Action Now, a nonpartisan human service organization in Houston, has given $500,000 to support the ballot measure.
The Association of Realtors also donated $276,000 to support the measure in July, according to campaign finance records. The conservative political nonprofit Advance Colorado Action is against the measure, senior advisor Michael Fields has said, and the group may spend money on ads to oppose it. But, so far, it appears there hasn’t been any organized, well-funded opposition.
voters for the second time in two years to decide whether to reduce the state’s individual and corporate income tax rate.
In 2020, voters approved a ballot measure slashing the rate to 4.55% from 4.63%. Proposition 121 would go even further, reducing the rate to 4.4% from 4.55%.
It’s pretty simple: Colorado’s individual and corporate income tax rate would be reduced under Proposition 121 to 4.4% from 4.55% starting in tax year 2022, which mirrors the calendar year.
The rate reduction is projected by nonpartisan legislative staff to lower state tax revenue by $412.6 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2023. That would represent roughly a 2.4% cut to the General Assembly’s general fund.
The general fund hit is likely to go up in future fiscal years as wages increase.
Colorado has had a flat income tax — meaning the rate doesn’t change based on people’s income — since 1987. That means higher earners will save more money if Proposition 121 passes.
In the 2023-24 fiscal year, Colorado taxpayers are forecast to save an average of $119 under Proposition 121. Those savings would drop to an average of $7 for people making $14,999 or less and go up to an average of $6,647 for people making $1 million or more, who represent less than 1% of taxpayers.
Nonpartisan legislative staff estimate that about 75% of Colorado taxpayers would receive a tax cut of less than $63 a year.
The arguments for Proponents of Proposition 121 say it would let Coloradans keep more of their money as they contend with rising consumer costs. They also like how it would reduce the size of state government.
“As costs skyrocket for everyone, Proposition 121 is simply a great first step in giving some money back to the people who deserve it most — the hardworking people of this state,” Michael Fields, a conservative fiscal activist, wrote in a Complete Colorado opinion piece in support of the measure.
The arguments against Opponents of Proposition 121 are first and foremost concerned about how it would affect state government’s ability to fund programs and services.
In years where tax revenue exceeds the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights cap on government growth and spending, which is calculated using inflation and population growth rates, there wouldn’t be an effect on the budget. But in years without TABOR surplus, the passage of Proposition 121 would mean state lawmakers have less money to spend.
Secondly, opponents of the measure criticize how reducing the income-tax rate would benefit the wealthy more than the lower-income Coloradans. They’d prefer a progressive tax policy code, where how much people pay is tied to how much they earn.
One big thing you should know Proposition 121 doesn’t exist on the November ballot in a vacuum.
Proposition 123 is another measure going before voters in November that would affect the state budget.
It would set aside up to 0.1% of taxable income each year for affordable housing, which is estimated to be $145 million in the current fiscal year — which ends June 30, 2023 — and $290 million in the 2023-24 and subsequent fiscal years.
If Propositions 121 and 123 pass, state lawmakers will be forced to make some tough budgeting decisions in years where there isn’t TABOR surplus, or in years where the surplus isn’t more than about $700 million.
When cuts are made to the state budget, they’re often made to education funding. Some Democratic state lawmakers have expressed anxiety about the prospect of both measures passing.
In years where there is TABOR surplus, both Propositions 121 and 123 would cut into the amount of money available to be refunded to taxpayers — remember those checks you got from the state this year? — though supporters of Proposition 121 would say it’s better not to have to pay the money up front than to have it refunded at a later date.
Proposition 123 is statutory, meaning the legislature could make changes to it and decide not to honor the $290 million affordable housing set aside should they face a tough budget yet. Proposition 121, however, could not be changed by the legislature because under TABOR tax increases require voter approval.
The push to get Proposition 121 on the ballot was led by Jon Caldara, who leads the Independence Institute, a conservative political nonprofit, and state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, a Sterling Republican.
Colorado Character was the issue committee initially formed to support Proposition 121. It raised and spent about $550,000 to collect the roughly 125,000 voter signatures needed to get the measure on the ballot.
Defend Colorado, a conservative dark-money group, gave Colorado Character $250,000 on Aug. 3, 2021. Colorado Rising Action, another conservative dark-money group, gave Colorado Character another $250,000 on Sept. 16, 2021.
(The Colorado Sun refers to political nonprofits as dark-money groups because they don’t have to disclose their donors.)
Colorado Character, however, is no longer the primary committee backing the passage of Proposition 121. A new group, named Path to Zero, has been formed to campaign for the measure’s passage in November.
Proposition GG is a ballot measure about ballot measures.
It represents Colorado’s latest battleground over the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights as Democrats seek to work around the 1992 constitutional amendment, known as TABOR, and Republicans battle to prevent any changes. The initiative, if passed, would require the state to more prominently display detailed information about how citizen-initiated ballot measures changing the income tax rate would affect Coloradans.
Proposition GG was referred to the ballot by Democrats in the Colorado legislature this year through the passage of Senate Bill 222, a measure that Republicans universally opposed
When an initiative changing Colorado’s income tax rate makes the statewide ballot, a table outlining how the change would affect people at different income levels is shared in the state ballot information booklet — also known as the blue book — that’s sent to every voter.
The table includes the average income tax owed by people at different income levels, as well as how much higher or lower their taxes would be if the rate were changed.
Proposition 121 on the November ballot is a great example of this. It would change Colorado’s income tax rate to 4.4% from 4.55%, and on page 24 of your (English-language) blue book this year you can see a table explaining how it would affect people at different income levels.
Proposition GG would require that the table — with some slight modifications — also be included in petitions used to gather signatures to get income tax changes on the ballot, as well as on ballots.
The slight modifications include only specifying eight income tax categories and more specific information about how income tax changes would affect individual taxpayers.
Note: Proposition GG only applies to citizen-initiated ballot measures. If the legislature were to refer a measure changing the income tax rate to the ballot it wouldn’t apply.
The proponents of Proposition GG say it is a tax-transparency measure aimed at ensuring Coloradans have a full picture of how changes to the state’s income tax rate would affect them.
Some people do not open the blue book, people who support the measure say, so Proposition GG is a way to ensure they can’t miss information about potential changes to the state’s income tax.
“I honestly think it’s pretty simple,” said state Rep. Chris Kennedy, a Lakewood Democrat and prime sponsor of Senate Bill 222. “It’s
See
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Elected in 2016, Rebecca McClellan is an advocate and mother of two who has dedicated her life to improving public education and fostering a supportive environment for our kids. In the last six years on the State Board of Education, Rebecca McClellan has been a champion for improving education and supporting the health and wellness of our students. When re-elected we can count on Rebecca to:
As a mom who sends her kids to our local public schools, Rebecca is running for State Board of Education to support excellent schools for all of our kids. As Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Centennial, and as City Council Liaison to local schools, she worked with State Legislators and local stakeholders to develop and pass measures to increase school funding.
• Improve academic performance while supporting the whole child
• Increase academic opportunities for our kids, from preschool to high school and beyond
• Ensure quality implementation of reforms that provide teachers with the tools and resources they need to help our kids succeed
In her own kids’ schools, she worked on Safe Routes to Schools programs, and has been volunteering for over a decade – fundraising for the classroom and fighting to ensure that kids have access to arts and music programs. And Rebecca will fight to make sure every school has the resources and quality teachers they need to help all students succeed.
about giving voters more information about how income tax changes affect them personally.”
Kennedy said the current information on the ballot isn’t sufficient. The arguments against
Conservatives argue Proposition GG is unnecessary since detailed information on how income tax rate changes would affect Coloradans is already in the blue book. Adding more information to the ballot would also increase printing costs.
“I hear from a lot of people that our ballot language is already way too long and too complicated,” said Michael Fields, a conservative fiscal policy activist. “This legislature should spend more time on increasing public safety and lowering the cost of living — and less on meddling in the citizens’ initiative process.”
Jesse Mallory, who leads the Colorado branch of Americans For Prosperity, an organization that fiercely defends TABOR, said “nothing screams ‘our friends have a tax increase coming’ quite like (this bill).”
One big thing you should know
Since Proposition GG asks voters to approve a statutory change, state lawmakers could have tried to make the alterations on their own by passing a bill and asking the governor to sign it into law.
But the Democratic proponents of the policy had a major roadblock in Democratic Gov. Jared Polis, who was wary of the change and appeared poised to veto any legislation aiming to alter ballot language.
“Gov. Polis believes that voters should decide how issues are presented on the people’s ballot because it is their ballot, not the state legislature’s ballot,” Kara Powell, a spokeswoman for the governor, told The Colorado Sun earlier this year. “That includes whether or not to approve requiring a table in the fiscal summary for any ballot initiative that would increase or decrease the tax rate.”
That’s why lawmakers went around the governor and referred Proposition GG to the November ballot through Senate Bill 222. (The governor’s signature isn’t required on bills referring questions to the ballot.)
One more thing you should know: Proposition GG comes as Colorado Democrats are trying to find ways to work on tax policy within the confines of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.
Proposition GG is an extension of legislation passed by Democratic lawmakers in 2021 requiring that ballot measures cutting taxes include an explanation of how much revenue would be slashed and what programs would be most affected. The 2021 bill also now requires that ballot initiatives raising taxes explain how the new revenue would be spent.
In fact, the 2021 bill is the reason why there is a table in the blue book explaining how people in different income brackets would be affected by income tax rate changes.
The players and the money
Coloradans for Ballot Transparency is the issue committee supporting Proposition GG.
Denverite Merle Chambers, a longtime Democratic donor and former oil and gas executive, gave $100,000 to the group in May.
The committee raised $600,000 in August, $500,000 of which came from the national nonprofit Sixteen Thirty Fund, which is aligned with Democrats. The Sun refers to the nonprofit as a dark-money group because it is a political group that does not have to disclose its donors.
The Rose Community Foundation donated $50,000 to the committee Sept. 12. And the National Education Association gave Coloradans for Ballot Transparency $250,000 on Sept. 21.
Coloradans for Ballot Transparency spent $400,000 in mid-September to advertise about the ballot measure.
So far, no organized opposition to the measure has emerged.
Proposition FF is a measure on the November ballot that aims to guarantee free school meals for all Colorado public school students, regardless of their household income.
It comes after the end of a federal initiative that provided free meals to all kids through the first two years of the pandemic.
In the current school year, free lunches in Colorado are limited to students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a federal indicator of poverty.
The measure, if approved by voters, would create a new school meals program funded by increasing taxes for households that earn more than $300,000 in federal adjusted gross income by reducing the amount they can claim in state income tax deductions. The measure would also require school meal providers to tap into federal funding programs and recoup as much in federal reimbursements as possible so fewer state funds are needed to feed students.
Proposition FF was referred to the ballot by Democrats in the Colorado legislature this year through the passage of House Bill 1414. It requires a simple majority vote to pass.
The measure would establish the Healthy School Meals for All program to reimburse school meal providers for making free breakfasts and lunches available to all kids. Any school meal provider could benefit from the program, whether they serve one or more school districts or charter schools.
The program would be funded
by restricting the amount of money that households earning at least $300,000 could deduct from their Colorado taxable income starting in tax year 2023. Those taxpayers would be able to deduct no more than $12,000 for single filers and no more than $16,000 for joint filers.
Currently, taxpayers who earn more than $400,000 can claim a maximum of $60,000 in state income tax deductions for a joint filer and a maximum of $30,000 for a single filer, caps that were passed under House Bill 1311. Taxpayers whose income is between $300,000 and $400,000 are not limited in how much they can deduct from their state taxable income.
The provision would impact an estimated 113,988 tax returns, or 5% of all Colorado returns.
The restriction would affect a taxpayer’s standard deduction or itemized deductions, which include charitable contributions, state and local taxes, and mortgage interest.
The proposition would mandate that the state education department complete a report every two years beginning in 2024 for the state legislature assessing the new program. The department would also be required to work with an independent auditor to produce a financial and performance audit of the program.
Currently, 183 school meal providers feed students throughout Colorado and cover the costs of providing free and reduced-price lunches by tapping into state and federal funds and charging families whose income exceeds federal poverty levels. Students might qualify for free or reduced-price meals, depending on their household income, but Colorado students who can receive reduced-price meals get free meals instead because the state pays for their portion of the meal cost.
Without the federal universal free school meals initiative during the past two school years, when all students could secure free meals, 40% of Colorado K-12 students would have qualified for free school meals based on their family’s income — about 355,000 students.
Advocates of Proposition FF say that meeting kids’ basic needs, including making sure they are fed, is critical for their success in school and will help more families at a time many are struggling with the state’s rising cost of living. With food insecurity on the rise during the pandemic and inflation now affecting the cost of food, Proposition FF is designed to make sure all public school students across the state — including kids in early childhood education — can access food just like they had been able to for the first few years of the pandemic.
The current school meal program that subsidizes breakfasts and lunches for students doesn’t reach all the kids who qualify, said Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, a Denver Democrat and prime sponsor of House Bill 1414. That’s because some families may be too
embarrassed to fill out the necessary paperwork while immigrant families may hesitate to provide identification information on school forms for fear of deportation. And while some families may not qualify for free or reduced-price school meals because their income level exceeds program thresholds, they may still struggle to feed their kids without help.
Gonzales-Gutierrez wants to remove the stigma kids often face when they can’t pay for meals at school by opening up free meals to everyone.
“If that means we’re going to feed a kid who comes from a family that can afford food for them, I don’t see any issue with that,” Gonzales-Gutierrez said. “They’re all kids, and at any moment at this time in this world we live in, most people are one paycheck away from not having those means to meet those basic needs.”
She doesn’t view the restrictions placed on state income tax deductions as a tax increase and said the measure still allows taxpayers the ability to claim deductions.
“We’re not completely taking that away, and we’re investing in our kids,” Gonzales-Gutierrez said.
She prioritizes kids’ well-being above all else.
“It’s going to benefit our schools,” Gonzales-Gutierrez said. “It’s going to benefit our students and their education, and so I think it is a great investment no matter how you look at it.”
The arguments against
Opponents of Proposition FF argue that revenue from a tax increase shouldn’t be spent on students whose families don’t need financial assistance and that the dollars would have more of an impact if districts could decide how to spend the extra money based on their specific students’ needs.
Conservative fiscal activist Michael Fields would rather spend a tax increase on other pressing education issues, such as teacher pay.
“I’m not going to say that it’s a waste to provide lunches for students,” Fields said. “I just think the money might be able to be better spent somewhere else.”
Those against the measure are also quick to point out that a jump in taxes will make it harder for families to save or invest, particularly at a time inflation and a high cost of living is already straining households. Fields also has concerns that the funding projections related to the ballot measure could be off, particularly with food being a significant driver of inflation right now, and the potential for restrictions on state income tax deductions to discourage people from donating to charities.
Fields wants to see a study conducted looking at the potential impact of the ballot measure on charitable giving.
It’s a “trade-off” Fields worries could hurt philanthropic organizations throughout the state.
Democratic Gov. Jared Polis also isn’t a big fan of the measure. He told Colorado Public Radio that he’s not sure he will vote for it. “I don’t
have an objection to the funding mechanism but at the same time I sort of ask myself, if we had this would it be better just to be able to pay teachers better, reduce class size? Or is the best use of it lunches for upper- middle-income families?” he said to CPR.
One big thing you should know
Proposition FF would increase income tax revenue to Colorado by an estimated $100.7 million during the first full year of the tax change, fiscal year 2023-24, which begins on July 1, 2023. The funds wouldn’t be subject to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights camp on government growth and spending.
The new program that would be created by the measure would also be supported by federal dollars. The proposition would require Colorado to take part in a federal initiative that ensures students enrolled in Medicaid automatically qualify for free school meals subsidized by the federal government.
Additionally, school meal providers would be obligated to participate in the federal Community Eligibility Provision program, if they qualified. That program provides extra federal reimbursements to schools with a high population of students whose household income makes them eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Schools with a high concentration of kids living in poverty are able to offer free meals to all students.
The players and the money Healthy School Meals for All Colorado Students is the issue committee pushing for passage of Proposition FF.
Nonprofit Hunger Free Colorado is the top donor to the committee, giving half of the $1 million the group has raised. The Community First Foundation donated $250,000, while Gary Advocacy gave $100,000.
Much of Healthy School Meals for All Colorado Students’ spending thus far has gone to consultants, but the group was slated to start airing TV ads Oct. 11.
There isn’t organized, well-funded opposition to the measure.
From the 50/50 raffles at Colorado Rockies games to bingo at the Elks Lodge, raffles and bingo brought in more than $121 million for Colorado charities in 2021.
But nonprofit employees can’t be paid for their time spent working to call a bingo game or sell raffle tickets. And a nonprofit must exist for five years before it can qualify to run such games. The Secretary of State’s Office regulates the chari-
According to the report, Sundberg was responding to a city employee who told him that council members must submit itemized receipts along with purchases, and that alcohol could not be expensed.
“Council Member Sundberg responded by asking if … that meant he could not submit receipts from a strip club,” the report says. “Witness 1 said that she believed the comment was misconstrued, but she recognized that some people are ‘more sensitive’ than others. Witness 2 … said she believed Council Member Sundberg made the comment in jest and did not notice that the comment bothered Complainant 1.”
Sundberg told investigators that he thought the employee was being sarcastic with her comment about alcohol because that information was made “abundantly clear” during his orientation.
A third allegation was included in the report — that Sundberg “leered” at the complainant after making the strip club comment and looked at her “from head to toe … and back up again” on at least one other occasion — but was not substantiated because others who were present did not recall that happening.
Sundberg later said a group of council members reviewed the findings of the report and found
the allegations to be “minor” and “politically motivated.”
Harassment allegations against council members are handled by an “evaluation committee,” which council rules say should be composed of the mayor, currently Mike Coffman; the mayor pro tem, currently Francoise Bergan; and the chairperson of the Management & Finance Policy Committee, currently Curtis Gardner.
Bergan said that, because she witnessed the “strip club” comment, she recused herself from the committee and was replaced by Councilmember Angela Lawson. Bergan characterized the remark as a joke that had gone over poorly.
“It was nothing. It was like a bad joke,” she said. “It was silly, honestly. And as a woman, if it had been something serious, I would have required something be done.”
Notices of potential quorum for two meetings of a council evaluation committee were published in February and March. The subject of one of the meetings was the “selection of an investigator,” but the city later said in response to a records request that no minutes or recordings were kept of either meeting.
Colorado law requires city councils to keep meeting minutes when “the adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation or formal action occurs or could occur.”
Jeff Roberts, executive director of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, said that, if the group of three council members made the decision not to discipline Sundberg, the city put itself in a questionable position by not keeping records of their meetings.
“It seems to me there should be a record of this,” he said.
Gardner said the committee decided not to discipline Sundberg in part because not all of the allegations against Sundberg were substantiated, and because Sundberg had reportedly apologized to his accuser.
“My understanding was that council member had apologized, and as far as we were concerned, that was as far as we thought it needed to go,” Gardner said.
It is unclear whether the committee communicated with or interviewed the employees who complained about Sundberg’s behavior.
Councilmember Ruben Medina, who along with Alison Coombs confirmed the authenticity of the report received by The Sentinel, said he was told by evaluation committee members that no action would be taken against Sundberg after he apologized and completed workplace behavior training.
“When something like that happens, it taints us all,” Medina said.
Medina also shared an email that he sent to council members
in May, in which he blasts Sundberg for his conduct toward city employees.
“It shows disregard for others and no respect or moral fortitude. Especially, someone in a power position telling subordinates,” Medina’s email reads in part. “You are a grown man, not a child who did not know. To me this shows a pattern because you not only did this once but twice.”
Since the 1990s, cities like Aurora have been broadly empowered to withhold records related to sexual harassment allegations. Zansberg said the law was meant to protect government workers from the stigma and retaliation that sometimes results from reporting sexual harassment as well as to protect officials from false accusations.
“But it is ironic that when people have been identified as having been the subject of a complaint that the public is not entitled to know the outcome,” he said. “If it’s possible to disclose the records and at a minimum the findings of the investigation without identifying the accusers, that would be a far better regime.”
In one high-profile case decided last year, reporters from the Denver Post and Denver North Star were blocked from obtaining an unredacted copy of a report on sexual harassment allegations facing Denver Public Schools Board of Education member Tay Anderson.
Judge J. Eric Elliff acknowledged in his ruling that “due to Mr. Anderson’s position as an elected official, and particularly as one in the context of school administration, the contents of this report are of the utmost concern to the public.”
He also wrote that the broad exemption under CORA was “somewhat unusual,” as other states allow courts to weigh the value of such documents to the public when deciding whether to compel their release.
But in Colorado, what voters are allowed to know about their representatives’ alleged sexual misbehavior is left largely up to local governments.
“When you’re talking about an elected official who’s accountable to the voters, how do the voters get to see information that’s important for them to evaluate if CORA says you can’t release anything?,” asked Roberts. “There’s not really a mechanism for that in the law right now.”
While Roberts said he and others have approached state legislators about rewriting the exemption to CORA, there has yet to be visible progress toward changing the law.
Sundberg said he has since reconciled with his accusers and that he is “wiser now.”
“I think it was a simple thing that was blown out of proportion, and I want to move forward,” he said.
Eduard Tsaturyan put his finger to his lips in silence after winning the Class 5A No. 1 singles state championship Oct. 15, but his performance rang loud at City Park.
Tsaturyan — in his one and only Colorado high school season — rallied from a set down against 2021 state champion Aram Izmirian of vaunted Cherry Creek and roared to a 5-7, 6-3, 6-2 victory that gave the Grandview program its first-ever state championship.
coach Ryan his first win in any match against powerhouse Cherry Creek. The two were slated to play each other again in the quarterfinals of the team state tournament, but Tsaturyan forfeited the match and the Wolves lost 7-0.
He won two of his first three matches at the individual state tournament without losing a single game and the four he surrendered in one set to Ponderosa’s Matthew Hossack in the quarterfinals matched the most he gave up all year, but Izmirian found the resolve to deal him his first set loss with a 7-5 victory in the opener.
Born in the United States, but trained on the courts in Russia, he arrived just six months ago, joined the Wolves and went undefeated in matches played during the regular season (winning every one of the matches he played in with just one loss that was by forfeit). He capped it off with a rousing victory in front of a throng of fans, including a number of his teammates.
“I was just happy, I don’t know how to explain,” Tsaturyan said.
Tsaturyan’s win put the finishing touches on the best-ever season for coach Jeff Ryan’s program, which qualified for the first 5A state team tournament and then had six of seven lines earn their way into the 5A individual state tournament. The No. 3 doubles team of senior Caleb Hodges and Mark Yan also placed third.
The main event was the final between Tsaturyan and Izmirian, which was a rematch from a Centennial League dual a few weeks earlier that Tsaturyan dominated to give veteran
Tsaturyan got back into the match with a 6-3 victory in the second set that hinged on a break that allowed him to serve out the set, which he finished with a leaping backhand that went for a winner.
Izmirian responded by winning the first two games of the third set, but he would get broken three times the rest of the way. Tsaturyan made clutch shot after clutch shot, turning to pump his first in the direction of his teammates outside the fence several times. He sealed the championship with an ace.
“The first set I lost and I don’t know what happened with me,” Tsaturyan said. “The second set I won and I’m like ‘keep going.’ The third set was hard. I was losing 2-0, then I won, it was 2-2. It was hard and I won and I’m happy. It’s the first time for Grandview.”
Ryan hadn’t seen his star player tested much during the course of the season, so he enjoyed seeing the response.
“I think it made it all that much better,” Ryan said of the rally. “It was just so cool to see
him face that adversity down a set for the first time. I don’t think he’s give up more than three or four games before, so to lose a full set and then have to come back is just awesome.”
Tsaturyan’s arrival sparked Grandview’s program to new heights.
The Wolves — a middle of the pack Centennial League team for quite some time — had only one doubles team qualify for state in 2021, but had six of seven lines make it this time.
Hodges and Yan (a first-time state qualifier) played five matches and won four of them to earn third place — capped by a 7-5, 6-2 win over Arapahoe’s Thomas Stewart and Ryan Souther, who they lost to earlier in the season — while freshman No. 3 singles player Justin Son went 2-2 and finished a win shy of making the third-place match.
“I think Eddie was a big morale boost to the guys,” Hodges said. “On top of the fact that we add Eddie to the roster and that helps us have a lot of depth, I think being around him and him being somebody who is a winner. Being Grandview that is usually above average, a decent team, Eddie really helped us change that mentality.”
Hodges made a big jump from the previous season, when he and then-partner Alex Eckley lost their one and only match in the opening round. He and Yan played well from start to finish with their only loss coming in the semifinals to Valor Christian’s Jack Moheler and Harrison Wentworth.
“It feels great to go 4-1 and the whole experience of getting to play all three days was super cool,” Hodges said. “Getting to see Eddie cruise through the bracket as well was big. It was a great year for all of us and a great year to graduate.”
Added Yan: “Every time we stepped on the court this year, we always felt like we had a chance. Being the third-best No. 3 doubles team in the state in 5A feels really good.”
Ryan saw the level of play on his team rise all season in large part due to the arrive of Tsaturyan and he expects the benefits to continue for those that return.
“I was telling the kids all season long, if he doesn’t motivate you do better next year,” Ryan said. “He’s given everybody a level to play up to and you can see what’s possible if you really try hard in practice. He’s given us something to shoot for. He’s elevated everybody’s play from top to bottom and you can see that. We got almost everybody here to the state tournament and it’s been a good pick-me-up the entire season.”
Jenkins finishes as runnerup, Regis Jesuit places three doubles teams
Coming off a semifinal appearance in the Class 5A state team tournament, Regis Jesuit came into the 5A individual tournament in fine form.
The two teams that have gone a round further in the team tournament — Cherry Creek and Valor Christian, who will meet for the crown Oct. 18 — were a bit better as they combined to win six of the seven individual championships, but coach Laura Jones’ Raiders clearly displayed the benefits from the extra top competition late in the season.
When three days of play at City Park concluded Saturday, Regis Jesuit had a state runner-up in junior No. 3 singles player Brady Jenkins, the third-place No. 1 doubles team of senior Liam McDonnell and sophomore KC Eckenhausen and fourth-place teams at Nos. 2 and 4 doubles in senior Aidan Sobolevsky and sophomore Carl Siegel and senior Devin McCausland and freshman Adam Rydel, respectively.
“We had four out of seven positions place at state, so that’s a success,” Jones said.
Jenkins lost in the quarterfinals at No. 2 doubles at the 2021 5A state tournament, but progressed two steps further while playing in the No. 3 bracket. He won his first two matches in
strong fashion, then came back from a set deficit in the semifinals to earn a matchup with Cherry Creek’s Kristian Kostadinov.
Kostanidov came out firing and took the opening set before Jenkins began to make adjustments and got his serve going. The result was a second set in which he had some set points, but couldn’t close. Kostadinov prevailed 11-9 in a tiebreaker to end the match and deal Jenkins only his second loss of the season.
“It’s a tough loss, especially when you have a couple of set points in the second set,” Jenkins said. “I thought I could have done a few things a little bit better and played a little bit smarter, but we both played pretty well. The outcome is what it is and I’m just going to move on from it.”
Jones said she appreciated the leadership and positivity
Jenkins provided throughout the season and it was gratifying to her to see him perform so well at the state tournament.
“Brady played his best tennis here and really gave Kristian a run for his money,” she said.
McDonnell and Eckenhausen won the state championship at No. 3 doubles in 2021 and reunited again this season in the No. 1 position. They stepped up their game to the higher level of competition and made it all the way to the state semifinals, where they were stopped by Cherry Creek’s Jack Eikelberner and Charles Stern, the eventual state champions.
The Regis Jesuit duo responded with an exceptional performance in the third-place match, in which they fired on all cylinders in a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Fossil Ridge’s Grant Samuelson and Jeffery Yao.
“We just wanted to enjoy our last match, so it was a great way to end it,” McDonnell said.
Added Eckenhausen: “We both served a lot better and we played lights out in the second set.”
Sobolevsky played in the state tournament for a third straight season with a third different partner, this time in first-time qualifier Siegel in the No. 2 position.
The duo took a set from Cherry Creek’s Trevor Robinson and Matthew Hu in the semifinals before falling in the third set to drop into the consolation bracket, where they won a threeset match to made the thirdplace match. Fossil Ridge’s Alex Van Thuyne and Jack Houldsworth took the key games in each set, however, as Sobolevsky and Siegel fell 6-4, 6-4.
“I’m proud of myself and him, we did great together,” said Sobolevsky, who placed fourth
at No. 1 doubles in 2021 and fourth at No. 3 doubles in 2020.
McCausland was a semifinalist last season at No. 4 doubles along with Agustin Azcui (who played at No. 2 singles this season) and he made it back to the same round with Rydel. The Regis Jesuit duo fell to eventual state champions Tate Hutchins and Drew Kaprielian of Cherry Creek in three sets in that round, but won a dominating consolation semifinal to play for third The Raiders watched a set lead disappear in a three-set loss to Fossil Ridge’s Zane Webb and Gavin
Azcui lost to eventual state champion Jace Nakamura of Valor Christian in the No. 2 singles semifinals, then dropped a three-set consolation semifinal to fall a win short of placing. He, Jenkins and freshman Clay Dickey (who lost in the first round at No. 1 singles) all return.
The conclusion of the softball season takes place in Aurora, as 16 qualifiers in three classifications come to the Aurora Sports Park Oct. 21-22 to decide state titles.
The Class 5A tournament includes a pair of Aurora qualifiers in Grandview and Cherokee Trail, which ended up on opposite sides of the bracket as the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds, respectively.
The Cougars (17-8) take the field in the first set of games scheduled for 10 a.m. Oct. 21 against ninth-seeded Ponderosa (21-5) with the winner going against the winner between No. 1 Columbine (24-1) and No. 16 Lakewood (10-16) at 2:30 p.m.
Four more first round games are scheduled for 12:15 p.m. with the Wolves (18-7) taking on 10th-seeded Broomfield in one of them. The winner of that contests plays again at 2:30 p.m. against either No. 2 Douglas County (23-2) or No. 15 Legacy (15-11).
Semifinals begin at 10 a.m. Oct. 22 with the 5A state championship game scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
Makayla Valle and Peytann Weiland met at the mound Oct. 14 with one big out between their Grandview softball team and a trip to the Class 5A state tournament.
Weiland, the Wolves’ junior catcher, had calming words for Valle, her batterymate for the past three years, then returned to her spot behind the plate for the crucial finishing sequence.
The two were reunited again jubilantly at home plate a few pitches later after Valle powered the ball past the final Ponderosa batter for her 10th strikeout of the game in a three-hit, 3-0 shutout that secured Grandview’s first trip to the 5A state softball tournament since 2015. The Wolves became one of the first set of 16 teams to gain entry in the 5A state tournament Oct. 21-22 at the Aurora Sports Park.
“I told Peytann before that last batter that I felt a lot of pressure, so she had to calm me down,” Valle said. “My emotions were everywhere, but I knew I had to keep my composure. ...It felt like a moment of trust and success when it was over. It’s built all season long and to have that in a game that put us into the state tournament was awesome.”
Added Weiland: “I definitely had to call time because I knew she was feeling a little overwhlemed. I just had to say ‘Hey, we know what’s going to happen after this, but we still have to play calm and collected. She did incredible.”
Coach Liz Carter’s Grandview team came off an eight-win sea-
son in 2021 in which it missed the postseason entirely with a 2022 campaign that included winning the Centennial League championship and the No. 11 overall seed in regionals. The Wolves have 10 more wins than last season and counting.
In regional play, the Wolves used the same recipe that had been so successful in the regular season, hitting the cover off the ball and playing good defense with the hard-throwing Valle on the hill.
Grandview pounded out 18 hits against No. 22 Loveland in its opening game on the turf at Metzler
Ranch Community Park, a game the Wolves ended in the sixth inning with a seven-run rally to invoke the 10-run mercy rule.
Valle, Weiland and senior Carmela Tejada each had three hits in the contest, junior Kristin Gallego homered twice and drove in three runs and Valle, junior Zoe Vondruska and freshman Sasha Kennedy each knocked in a pair as Grandview matched its season-high in runs. On the mound, Valle struck out nine hitters and allowed five earns runs in the victory.
The Wolves then moved on to a
matchup with host and sixth-seeded Ponderosa — which they had lost to 5-4 in tournament play earlier in the season — and proceeded to snap the Mustangs’ eight-game winning streak and earn the first state berth.
Valle allowed just three hits in the game and ended up with 10 strikeouts on her way to her fifth shutout of the season and fourth in her last five games. The shutout means Carter is on the hook for donuts, as she has all season.
“We love donuts,” she joked.
The zero cut the pressure off
Grandview’s offense, which had just three hits itself. The Wolves had a single run in the third inning and two more in the fourth as Kennedy picked up an RBI and scored a run, as did Vondruska and sophomore Brooklyn Heil.
“Our seniors made regionals their freshman year and the last two years we missed it,” Carter said. “We knew we needed to win two games. We felt really good going into this and we were all going the same direction.”
What began as the worst case scenario for the Cherokee Trail softball team ended up with the best final result Oct. 15 at the Aurora Sports Park.
The Cougars faced a nine-run deficit against Fruita Monument in the opening inning of their Class 5A Region 5 opener and found themselves down 11 runs just a few innings later in a situation they had very rarely experienced during the regular season.
But true to the team’s motto for the season — Undivided — Cherokee Trail banded together and fought back. All the way back.
Coach Caley Mitchell’s 14th-seeded Cougars rallied against No. 19 Fruita Monument and won an 18-16 walk-off on a home run by senior Haylie Wenke, then rode the momentum offensively and a clutch pitching performance from junior Cayman Lightner to an 11-8 victory over host and third-seeded Valor Christian to gain entry into the 5A state tournament.
“We’re losing 9-0, then go down 14-3 and we just clawed our way back,” Mitchell said. “We just didn’t give up. We got an emotional high from that and then I was worried we would crash a little bit in the next game, but we just didn’t.”
Wenke had hit just one home run in her career previously, but she came with the clinching bomb to cap a marathon comeback.
She homered again early in the top of the second inning — which would be followed one batter later by another solo shot from junior Chiara Pryor, who had been robbed of a leadoff homer — to get Cherokee Trail off to a strong start against a Valor Christian team it lost to 4-0 in its first game of the season.
Junior Addi Krei had five hits and Jocelyn Steiner and Kennedy Brian had big two-run base hits as the Cougars kept the offensive going.
“I think that’s the best we’ve hit all season,” Wenke said.
That support took some pressure off Lightner, who had to come into the first game and got hit in the finger with a ball on her glove hand.
“I wasn’t worried because of how we were barreling the ball up all day long,” Lightner said.
She battled the entire way through the game against the Eagles — and threw out a runner at home plate to help blunt a fourth-inning rally — and finished it off by allowing just one run in the final two innings to keep the lead.
“I’m so proud,” Lightner said. “I didn’t think we would be regional champions after the way that first game started, but it was insane to watch us come all the way back. Once we got to the next game, we wanted to show that maybe we were the underdog, but that the underdog can be something special.
“Making state has been every single persons’ goal since we showed up for the first day of camp this year. Now that we’re here, it feels so good.”
Right: Hailey Wenke, center, is greeted by her Cherokee Trail softball teammates as she crosses home plate after hitting a solo home run in the Cougars’ 5A Region 5 win over Valor Christian Oct. 15. Below left: Gateway’s Andre Romain (2) skies to bring in a ball he takes for a touchdown in the Olys’ 46-6 win at Hinkley Oct. 14. Below right: Hinkley’s Jeffrey Piech (62) raises his hands to celebrate teammate Tatum Starks’ touchdown Oct. 14. Bottom: Abunu Asfaw heads through the heart of the Prairie View defense in Rangeview’s 29-15 football win over Prairie View Oct. 14 (Photos by Courtney Oakes/Sentinel Colorado)
The cherry on top of the day came at the end when the team learned that the victory over Valor Christian was the 200th in the coaching career of Mitchell, who has coached for just over a decade and led Cherokee Trail to the 5A state championship in 2016.
In celebration, she had a bag of ice dumped on her and also a bottle of water poured on her as she addressed the team.
The Eaglecrest softball team’s season came to an end with two agonizing one-run losses to the same Arvada West team Oct. 14-15.
The 23rd-seeded Raptors had the 10th-seeded Wildcats on the ropes in the opening game of 5A Region 7 tournament at Chatfield H.S. with a lead as large as 9-2 after 2 1/2 innings, but gave up the last eight runs of the game in a 10-9 loss.
Coach Yvette Hendrian’s team bounced back to rout Mountain Vista to earn a chance to win the region’s second state berth, but the Raptors suffered a 4-3 loss to Arvada West as a late rally saw the tying run thrown out at home. Eaglecrest finished 14-12 overall.
Aurora programs surpassed their combined record of the past two weeks with one more victory in Week 8 of the prep football season, which saw a 4-7 overall mark.
Grandview regained a share of the most wins of any local program with six after a 42-20 victory over Smoky Hill Oct. 14 Legacy Stadium. Xay Neto returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown to ignite the Wolves (6-2 overall, 2-1 in 5A League 4 , who got two rushing touchdowns apiece from Liam Szarka and Donavon Vernon, who rolled up 134 yards on the ground. Tyliq Bowers passed for a touchdown and threw a TD pass to Jamahll Humphrey for Smoky Hill (1-7, 0-3).
Regis Jesuit took top scoring honors among local programs with its 56-28 victory over Chaparral Oct. 13 at EchoPark Stadium. Exander Carroll threw touchdown passes to three different receivers (Dylan McCollough, Andrew Metzger and
D’Andre Barnes) and rushed for a touchdown, while Anthony Medina had three rushing scores and Adin Chase also got into the end zone for the Raiders, who are 5-3 overall and 3-0 in 5A League 6.
Rangeview rode a 187-yard rushing performance (plus a touchdown) from Armani Patterson in a 29-15 win over Prairie View Oct. 13 at APS Stadium. Abunu Asfaw and Jah Alexander connected for another touchdown and the defense scored on a Greg Brooks’ fumble return for the Raiders (3-4 overall, 1-2 in 5A League 2).
Gateway earned its first official victory with a 46-6 win over Hinkley Oct. 14 at APS Stadium. Knyle Serrell had a massive outing with more than 300 yards of total offense (182 yards rushing, 125 passing) and accounted for seven touchdowns for the Olys (1-7 overall, 1-3 in 4A League 8), who also got two receiving touchdowns from Andre Romain. Tatum Starks reached the end zone for Hinkley (0-8, 0-5).
Eaglecrest squared off with topranked Cherry Creek Oct. 14 at Stutler Bowl and took a 42-7 5A League 4 loss. Diego Cearns had a 70-yard touchdown as part of a 107-yard game for the Raptors (6-2, 1-2).
Cherokee Trail (3-5, 0-3) got touchdown passes from Eliot Ming and Tyson Smith to Alex Guthrie and Noah Greer, respectively, but fell short of Arapahoe in a 16-12 5A Legaue 4 loss Oct. 13.
Overland saw its three-game winning streak come to an end with a 27-10 loss to Denver East Oct. 13 at Stutler Bowl. The Trailblazers (4-4, 2-1 in 5A League 7) had a 10-6 lead at half on a Prince Joiner fumble return touchdown and Connor Bass field goal, but were held off the scoreboard in the second half.
Cai’Reis Curby had two rushing touchdowns for Aurora Central in a 41-14 road loss at Fruita Monument Oct. 13, the same day Cortlen Johnson Jr. had one of the touchdowns in Vista PEAK’s 45-14 loss at Denver South.
MONDAY, OCT. 17: The Vista PEAK girls volleyball team got a 20-kill effort from Joy Aburto to defeat Denver North 25-17, 25-23, 25-13. ... SATURDAY, OCT. 15: Two Eaglecrest teams and one from Smoky Hill competed in the first girls flag football state championship tournament at the Dove Valley headquarters of the Denver Broncos. ...FRIDAY, OCT. 14: Elyse Bailey scored both goals as the Smoky Hill field hockey team topped Boulder Valley School District 2-0. ...THURSDAY, OCT. 13: Hunter Strand put more than 30 seconds between himself and the rest of the field in the Centennial League Championship varsity boys cross country race at Arapahoe County Fairgrounds. His Cougars scored 21 points to run away with the team title, while Cherokee Trail also good top honors in the girls standings as it came in third
place. Mckenna Mazeski placed fourth to pace the Cougars. ...Leona Ferguson of Gateway won the Colorado League Championship varsity girls cross country race by more than two minutes at Aurora Sports Park, while Aurora Central’s Anayeli Munoz finished fifth. William Equiha of Gateway led locals in fourth place in the boys race. ...The Centennial League Challenge girls volleyball tournament opened with wins for Cherokee Trail (vs. Smoky Hill), Cherry Creek (vs. Overland), Eaglecrest (vs. Arapahoe) and Grandview (vs. Mullen). ...WEDNESDAY, OCT. 12: Rangeview’s Jose Lopez finished
11th in the boys race to lead Aurora competitors in the City League championship cross country race at Central Park in Denver, while Rangeview’s Kyra Vuong edged Vista PEAK’s Anastasia Smith for 30th place in the girls race. ...TUES-
DAY, OCT. 11: Valor Christian knocked Regis Jesuit out of the 5A boys tennis state team tournament with a 5-2 dual victory. ..Joy Aburto piled up 22 kills and Ayden West had 15 as the Vista PEAK girls volleyball team rallied for a 24-26, 2522, 25-20, 25-23 win at Rangeview. Elisha Davis had 11 kills and seven blocks for the Raiders. ...Mohammed Haidara scored his second goal of the game on a penalty kick to
lift the Overland boys soccer team over Grandview 3-2 in double overtime at Stutler Bowl. ...Alexis Cerna scored twice and Alexis and Yaziel Salas also had goals as the Rangeview boys soccer team came back to beat Vista PEAK 4-2.
The week ahead in Aurora prep sports
THURSDAY, OCT. 20: Cherokee Trail, Grandview, Overland, Rangeview, Regis Jesuit, Smoky Hill and Vista PEAK compete in the 5A Region 1 boys and girls races at the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds (boys race 11 a.m., girls 11:45 a.m.).
...Week 9 of the football season opens with Vista PEAK at Hinkley at 6:30 p.m., while Eaglecrest and Smoky Hill meet at 7 p.m. at Stutgler Bowl. ...FRIDAY, OCT. 21: Regis Jesuit plays host to Legend at 6:30 p.m., while Cherokee Trail and Grandview square off at 7 p.m. at Legacy Stadium in Friday Night Lights. Aurora Central is at APS Stadium at 6:30 p.m. against Heritage. ...MONDAY, OCT. 24: The state field hockey playoffs begin with first round games with winners playing again Oct. 26. ...TUESDAY, OCT. 25: The Centennial League Challenge girls volleyball tournament resumes plus Vista
at Northfield at 7 p.m.
When the pandemic first sent students across the state home from school, Rachael Sheetz worried about the chaos of remote learning, but as the caretaker for her elderly grandmother, she also worried about COVID.
In her search for options for her two teenagers, she landed on Colorado Connections Academy, an online school. She figured they’d been doing online learning for a while and would be better prepared than traditional schools had been.
Today, 2½ years later, her son has returned to brick-and-mortar schooling at a popular local charter with high vaccination rates. But her daughter has stayed online, where she’s getting lots of teacher support and doing work that to Sheetz seems several grade levels ahead.
“I found that kids excel better when they can achieve academics at a pace that is comfortable for them,” Sheetz said. “My daughter has always been a decent student, but giving her more flexibility has helped her excel even more.”
Enrollment in online schools in Colorado grew steadily before the pandemic, then surged as schools shut down in spring 2020, despite overall enrollment in public schools dropping.
In fall 2021, the most recent complete data available, Colorado enrolled 30,803 students in online schools, 50% more than the 20,603 enrolled in fall 2018. Online students now represent about 3.5% of public school enrollment.
Although online enrollment declined slightly from 2020-21 to 2021-22, officials expect more steady growth over time.
School districts, aware of families’ interest, are opening their own new online schools to meet the demand.
Yet much remains unknown about how online schools perform and how they’re managed.
One small district, Byers 32J, has increased its enrollment tenfold in the last decade by opening online charters. It now runs eight of them. That has increased its budget because the district keeps a portion of the state’s per student funds. Some of Byers’ schools posted the state’s biggest surges in enrollment and are the least transparent in data.
Statewide, seven in 10 online schools did not have enough data for the state to issue them a 2022 performance rating.
“It absolutely should be a concern,” said Van Schoales, senior policy director for the Keystone Policy Center. “The unfortunate irony is that online schools claim to be more connected to folks, and yet a measure of connectedness is test participation, and so it would suggest and reinforce a lot of the national research that online schools aren’t living up to advertising around personalizing instruction for kids.”
This fall, online school leaders say preliminary enrollment figures seem to show a slight dip again, but numbers still will be well above pre-pandemic levels.
Jeffco set up an online program last school year for families who weren’t ready to return to in-person classrooms, creating flexibility so that students could switch back and forth between remote learning during the year. This year, that program has converted into its own online school, here to stay.
Unlike the district’s Jeffco Virtual Academy, which has long existed, the new Jeffco Remote Learning Program school serves elementary age students too, and requires students to log in to receive live, real-time instruction from about 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
At its peak last school year, the remote school had more than 1,300 students. This year, Principal Kala Munguia expects to have around 700 students. She said last year approximately 60% of students were enrolled because of pandemic health concerns, but this year students are more likely to prefer the learning model. Students who choose her school still want the live interactions every day.
“Our students tend to need or want that collaboration amongst other students,” Munguia said. She thinks more families will be interested in the model, once they learn it’s an option.
Adams 12 also set up a districtwide online program during the pandemic that now has turned into a new school, Five Star Online Academy.
Principal Adria Moersen said that the school was started in real time, or what’s called synchronous, but has since shifted to have more flexibility. Students can choose to be fully synchronous just for the mornings, or for certain days of the week, and now have more in-person opportunities for tutoring and other activities.
The school has about 520 students in grades 2 to 12, down from about 700 last year.
“This year these are students who are choosing online because it works for them,” Moersen said.
The district’s other online option is through Pathways, an alternative education school for older students off track to graduate. Before the pandemic, Pathways was a blended learning program that required most students to attend a few hours in person.
During the pandemic, the school tried allowing all students to be fully online, but found that it didn’t work for most students.
“Ours are students who really need that extra support,” said Principal Matt Schmidt. Still, this year, about 15% of students have been allowed to choose to stay fully online. The school’s model of six-week courses allows the students to opt to be online or in person for each six-week period.
District staff tout that flexibility as they try to reengage students who have left school. Moersen and Schmidt said that for some of their students, having to work or take care of family members means the online options work best.
When Sheetz chose an online school for her kids, she wasn’t sure it was going to work, but being a stay-at-home mom, she knew she’d be around to help them.
Sheetz was thrilled at the flexibility of being able to let her kids wake up later or take a break in the middle of the day to spend time together or run an errand. Still, she encouraged them to participate in some live classes at least once a
week.
These are some of the same reasons families for years have chosen online learning. Bernie Zercher’s daughter’s social anxiety made it hard for her to participate in even the limited in-person programming that her siblings used as part of their home-schooling course. The biggest draw from GOAL Academy was more flexibility for her to participate live only as much as she wanted to, and that counselors and other available services could help her through her anxiety.
In four years in high school at GOAL, she’s
become more comfortable with in-person activities and interactions, and now takes concurrent college classes in person, has an internship at the school’s multimedia department, and participates in a school music group.
“The GOAL setting was just so much more accommodating for her,” Zercher said. “I don’t know that that’s typical of online schools. I think it’s kind of unique to GOAL. They really were meant as a safety net for a lot of kids that had experienced childhood traumas or other issues.”
National data shows that online schools in general have lower student outcomes, including test scores and graduation rates, than do traditional in-person models. Studies of online learning during the pandemic also show students falling behind when they were learning virtually.
Of Colorado schools that tested enough students to report composite SAT scores publicly this year, online schools tested on average 25 points lower than brick-and-mortar schools, out of a 1,600-point maximum.
Of schools that tested enough students to report state CMAS scores publicly this year, online schools tested on average 5 points lower than brick-and-mortar schools on English and 21 points lower on mathematics, out of a 850-point maximum.
Advocates for online schools say that many students who seek an online education weren’t doing well in traditional settings, and may already be starting behind or facing other challenges.
But there also have been questions about the quality of education and how engaged online students are. Back in 2016, an Education Week investigation of GOAL Academy, which at the time was the largest online school in the state, cited internal school data that nearly half of students didn’t log in at all during a typical week.
Zercher isn’t just a parent. As a local business owner, he was tapped to serve on the board of GOAL as the school made much-needed reforms. He agrees with the need for more oversight.
“The whole charter school world is the wild, Wild West of education,” Zercher said. “I have seen some crazy stuff, and crazy disregard for regulations.”
Renee Martinez, supervisor for the state Education Department’s office of online and blended learning, says the state does its best to provide oversight, but has been limited by multiple changes in the law. Some issues are just relayed back to authorizers.
As it does for all schools, the Education Department audits student course loads and credits to ensure districts receive the right amount of money for students, and to ensure that students aren’t being counted as enrolled in more than one school.
There’s never been reason to believe that any school is falsely inflating their enrollment counts, she said.
But, “of course we operate on best intentions, thinking they wouldn’t do that,” she said.
Martinez said her department was also disappointed in how little data on performance there was for online schools this year. This year, online schools were more likely than brick-andmortar schools to have insufficient data to earn a state performance rating — a growing problem among online schools.
Zercher agrees schools can do something about this and should be held accountable for it.
For example, he thinks that test participation reflects on the relationship of the school with its students.
In his daughter’s case, he said, she was willing to be at the state fairgrounds at 7:30 a.m. for testing because of the relationship with her counselor.
“She loves her counselor and doesn’t want to disappoint them,” Zercher said.
The elementary school affiliated with Colorado Preparatory Academy, an online school run by K12, a for-profit national provider, this year fell to the state’s lowest rating, known as turnaround status. Before the pandemic it had received the highest rating. But the principal cautioned that this year’s rating was based on 18% of students testing.
“This was the lowest participation I’ve seen,” said Nicole Tiley, executive director for Colorado Preparatory Academy.
She surveyed families who opted out and found the main reason families cited for not testing was concern about health and safety. “We are very proactively thinking about how to improve that,” she said.
The schools that have grown the most are the ones we know the least about
The school with the biggest enrollment increase since 2018, Astravo Online Academy High School, is one of eight schools under three brands, all under the umbrella of Colorado Education Solutions and authorized by the Byers 32J school district.
The Eastern Plains school district has made a business of authorizing online charter schools. Less than 10% of its 5,352 student enrollment attend its brick-and-mortar schools, while the other 90% attend one of its online charters. The district keeps 3% of state per-pupil money before passing on the rest to the schools.
Back in 2014, when the Education Department questioned Byers’ capacity to effectively manage so many online charter schools, Superintendent Tom Turrell wrote in a letter that his district was experienced, and that breaking up big K-12 schools into multiple schools would better help them evaluate how the schools were doing.
Years later, Turrell continues to defend the schools and deny that the large information gaps are problems.
The schools and their operator have existed under several names and brands since they first opened in the fall of 2012. The schools that have websites don’t list their principals or other staff or provide much information about the educational models. There’s just a phone number for a call center and a place to enter your email for more information.
According to a 2016 law, when schools change names, if they aren’t changing authorizers, meaning the district that oversees them, then they aren’t required to seek new state approval, even if they’re making significant changes to their management or learning model.
Since 2019, enrollment in Byers-authorized online schools has nearly tripled and those students now account for 16% of all the online students in the state.
In response to a public records request for the charter application and agreement between Byers and Astravo, Turrell initially said there was no contract. When the contract was provided by the state, Turrell said it had been a miscommunication. When asked again about the original charter applications, Turrell said he believed the application and the contract were one and the same. His school board did vote to approve the schools, he said.
Turrell said as an authorizer of eight multidistrict online schools, he’s not worried about the low participation rates on state tests and doesn’t feel there’s a lack of performance data.
Of the eight online schools authorized in Byers, none had enough data for state performance ratings this year, up from five of nine that didn’t have ratings in 2018. Colorado law requires state education officials to intervene in schools that have low ratings for five years or more, but the state cannot take any action when schools have insufficient data for years on end.
The district’s Astravo Online Academy High School, which experienced the state’s largest increase in enrollment among online schools from 2018 to 2021, hasn’t been issued a performance rating since 2016, in part because of low test participation. The school now has about 1,600 students.
“My kiddos are going to college, they are taking the SAT and PSAT very seriously,” Turrell said.
In fact, only 29% of Byers students pursued postsecondary education or the military after high school in 2021, compared with 55% statewide. Byers has lower-than-average test participation even among other online schools. Each of its online high schools had fewer than 10% of its eligible students take the SAT this year. Turrell said that he’s frustrated that students aren’t allowed to take state tests online.
“It really comes back to that opportunity to utilize an online platform,” he said.
Officials for Colorado’s Department of Education said that they’ve noticed that more schools overall this year had insufficient data to receive a performance rating, but officials haven’t looked into why online schools may struggle most with this, although they may in the coming months as ratings are finalized.
Turrell also doesn’t worry about Astravo Online Academy High School’s high withdrawal rate of 48.3%. In 2019-20, it was the highest in the state. These are students who leave school after the October count day. The school district still collects the money for these students but no longer has the expense of educating them.
The same state report shows that Astravo Online Academy High School also enrolls a lot of students after the state’s count day, even if the school doesn’t receive funding for them. In 2019-20, the school had 231 students withdraw and 622 enroll after count day.
“The data throughout the CDE mobility report are informed by the impact of those late-enrolling students,” Turrell said. “A thorough review of these facts is essential to consider when drawing conclusions.”
The Astravo schools in particular have high enrollment after count day, but most online schools, according to the report, also show enrollment after count day, and it’s also common among other schools.
Colorado Education Solutions has a limited public profile. A lawyer and a consultant for the group answered some questions, but could not point to where the charter network’s school board agendas, members, or meeting dates are posted online for the public.
The group, a charter network, is registered by attorney Brad Miller as a state nonprofit in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State’s office. The charter network is not a federal nonprofit and doesn’t have to file a Form 990 that would disclose more information about its structure and finances, according to
Mary Gifford, a consultant advising the charter network.
Open questions about online schools prompted lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 129 in 2019. The law aims to increase accountability for online schools by requiring that performance ratings follow a school even if it closes and reopens with a new name. It also requires the state to submit annual reports on how often students leave a school after count day, when enrollment for funding purposes is made official.
Martinez said the reports ensure State Board of Education members are more informed about online schools, but they haven’t led to much change.
“We implement the legislation and sometimes when there’s certain things like [Senate Bill] 129, it seemed like it was going to be maybe a game changer,” Martinez said. “In reality the impact wasn’t as significant.”
— YeseniaRoblesisareporterforChalkbeat ColoradocoveringK-12schooldistrictsand multilingualeducation.
Both Aurora Public Schools and the Cherry Creek School District have some form of online school for students, though it’s less comprehensive than what it offered at the height of the pandemic. Cherry Creek Elevation, CCSD’s online school, serves students in grades six through 12. An online program for kindergarteners through fifth graders was started during the pandemic and closed at the end of last year.
Aurora Public Schools currently has an online learning option for students in seventh through twelfth grade in APS Avenues, the district’s alternative school. It also has an online program for grades three through eight. According to district data, 267 students are enrolled in APS Avenue and 147 in the 3-8 program this school year, for a total of just 414 in the district of over 30,000 students.
That’s about the same number of students
who were enrolled in an online learning option during the 2018-2019 school year, before the pandemic began. In 2019-2020 the number rose to 785 and reached its peak last school year at 1,024, when the district expanded online learning to include kindergarten through second grade as well.
More students are taking advantage of online learning in Cherry Creek. Cherry Creek Elevation opened in the 2019-2020 school year, where it originally served students in just grades nine through 12. The first year, 121 students were enrolled. The second year, 2020-2021 originally only 131 students were expected to enroll but due to the pandemic that number ballooned to over 13,000, according to district data. Last school year, 655 students were enrolled. The school has continuous enrollment and often ends the school year with more students than it began with, so how many students have chosen online learning for the current school year is not yet known.
Elevation is open to district students in grades six through 12. During the pandemic Cherry Creek opened up a separate online program for students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade, which ran for the 20202021 and 2021-2022 school year. The program was always intended to be temporary and closed at the end of last school year, but became so popular with some families that a group lobbied the district to make it permanent.
“The K-5 program has changed the way our child views school. It has made a huge positive impact on his education,” parent Sarah Hoskinson said at a February school board meeting where many parents and teachers spoke in favor of the K-5 program. Her son has ADHD and sensory processing disorder, and said that the online program allowed him to grow academically in ways he couldn’t in a traditional classroom.
The demographics of students who choose Elevation are similar to the district as a whole, according to data shared with The Sentinel. Along with the pandemic, Elevation principal Kristy Hart said that students are drawn to the school for a number of reasons, including because they work part time or are high level athletes, because their families struggle with housing insecurity or because they have physical or mental health issues that restricts their ability to attend a brick-and-mortar school.
In an email, Hart said that Elevation allows students to pursue their education in the way that works best for them and helps them to hone their time management and self advocacy skills.
“Now, more than ever, students value learning in different ways,” she said.
—CarinaJulig,
Sentinel Colorado Staff Writer
If you’re among the masses in the Aurora region looking out your window at the lush fall colors and seeing only the death of your beloved yard and garden, we’ve got some hopeful news here.
There’s plenty you can do to look ahead and work ahead when the last of the fallen leaves are gone and the green sprouts toward the sun as it works its way back to the zenith.
Except for the jumping worms. Those are part of next year’s garden plan, too.
Read on garden lovers for tips, hints tricks and warnings from like-minded garden experts.
I was surprised to learn recently that, according to Google Trends data gathered by AllAboutGardening.com, the most popular fall-planted crop in the United States is.... garlic.
My guess would have been kale. Possibly beets. Maybe Brussels sprouts. But garlic?
Inspired, I conducted my own deep dive into Google’s search trends, comparing Americans’ interest in growing garlic with interest in growing other fall-planted bulbs, like tulips, daffodils, hyacinths and crocus. Surely, colorful blooms would trump the spicy, pungent vegetable.
No. When people used the search term “how
to grow...,” garlic was again the frontrunner when compared with those spring bulb plants. I was so gobsmacked that for the first time in my life, I used the word “gobsmacked.”
Could it be that Americans have a previously undisclosed obsession with garlic? Or are we collectively perplexed about how to grow it? I love garlic as much as the next girl, but I suspect it’s the latter, which would explain all the “how to” queries.
Growing garlic, however, is every bit as easy as growing daffodils. There are just a few things to know before you plant it:
There are two types of garlic — hardnecks and softnecks. Plant the type best suited for your climate.
Hardneck varieties are recommended for northern regions, where they should be planted 6-8 weeks before a hard frost. Their heads are comprised of a single row of large cloves formed around an underground stem. They are more flavorful than softnecks but don’t store as long.
Softneck varieties are better suited for growing in warmer climates, and their heads contain several stacked rows of smaller cloves. Due to their longer shelf life, softnecks are typically sold in supermarkets.
Garlic plants are heavy feeders, so incorporate a generous amount of compost into the top 3-4 inches of soil to increase its fertility. Include a helping of mycorrhizae fungus to boost bulb formation.
Plant only seed garlic purchased from a reputable supplier – or cloves from the largest, healthiest heads saved from last year’s harvest.
Supermarket garlic should not be planted because it is often treated with growth inhibitors to prevent sprouting at the store and in your refrigerator. It also may not be the type best suited for your growing conditions.
Separate the head into individual cloves without removing their papery skins. Plant the cloves, pointy end up, about 2 inches deep and 6 inches apart in rows spaced 12 inches apart.
Cover with soil, tamp it down and water well.
In regions where winter temperatures drop below 40 degrees, mulch the bed heavily with seed-free straw. Avoid using hay, which contains grass or grain seeds and is likely to turn your bed into a weedy mess. Water the straw to settle it into place.
It’s normal for plants to sprout during autumn and early winter, even in northern climates; leave them be.
Remove the mulch in spring, after the danger of frost has passed, and sprinkle a line of pelleted fertilizer or blood meal alongside each row, a few inches from stems. Keep the bed free of weeds, which may outcompete your crop for soil nutrients.
Hardneck varieties will send up tall, leafless stems called scapes in late spring. Remove them to allow the plant to focus its energy on under-
ground bulb formation. The mildly garlic-flavored scapes are a seasonal delicacy that can be added to salads, cooked in soups or sautéed with other vegetables.
Softneck garlic varieties do not produce scapes.
Your garlic will be ready to harvest in mid-to-late summer when at least 50% of the plant has turned yellow. Rather than pull the bulbs, which would risk damaging them, carefully dig them out and brush off the soil, but don’t rinse them.
Set hardneck varieties with their stems attached on a drying rack or screen, then place in a well-ventilated, cool, dry spot for two weeks. Stems of softneck varieties can be braided and hung to dry. The cured garlic’s papery skin will help extend its shelf life.
Store bulbs in a cool, dry spot. Hardnecks will remain fresh for at least 3-6 months; softnecks will last up to 9 months.
If you love the flowers in your garden but don’t love the idea of spending money on new ones, why not save their seeds to plant next year?
To maximize the odds that new plants will grow true to their parent, only collect seeds from those labeled “heirloom” or “heritage.” Seeds from hybrid cultivars, which result from breeding two or more varieties, will produce plants that resemble only one of the plant’s parents, so you have no way of knowing what you’ll end up with.
Still, there are no guarantees. Accidental hybridization can occur in your garden when wind or insects transfer pollen between varieties. To help avoid this, plant only one variety of the plant from which you plan to collect seeds.
But if you don’t mind surprises, go ahead and experiment -you might create a beautiful new plant!
As with much of gardening, timing is everything. It’s best to collect seeds on a dry, sunny day. And regardless of the seeds you’re harvesting, let them mature and dry completely on the plant. Oth-
erwise, they might not germinate. Wait too long, however, and you could miss out.
After harvesting and separating out non-seed material like petals and husks, spread seeds on a screen or newspaper in a single layer and allow to dry for about a week.
Then place them in a paper envelope or sealed glass jar (I put the envelope in the jar) and store in a cool, dry spot. A refrigerator is ideal, as long as seeds can be kept away from fruit, which exudes ethylene gas that can affect their germination. Adding a silica gel pack for the first day or two of storage will help prevent mold growth.
Label your envelopes or jars because regardless of how sure you are that you’ll remember what they are in spring, you probably won’t.
Collected seeds can remain viable for several years when stored properly, but their overall germination rate will diminish. For the best results, plant harvested seeds the following year.
Also, be sure to leave some seedheads standing to feed birds over winter. They’ll reward you with free pest control in your garden next year.
More on collecting seeds from different kinds of plants:
Although many plants naturally drop their dry seeds, some, like California poppies, cleome, impatiens and Texas bluebonnets, produce pods that burst open when mature, spewing seeds as far as 20 feet away. Since it’s hard to know exactly when that will happen, you’ll have to keep a watchful eye on the pods and harvest when they look like they’re about to split. But be careful; many types of pods will burst open with the slightest touch, and good luck finding the scattered seeds if that happens.
Instead, tie a small paper bag or specially made mesh seed-collection bag over the pod when it’s nearly mature. If the explosion happens when your back is turned, the bag will contain the seeds.
Other plants, like Mexican sunflowers and coneflowers, produce prickly seed heads. To avoid nip-
you can’t regrow a beetroot indoors from a cutting, you can certainly generate more leafy greens: Cut off the top 1 1/2 inches from a beetroot and place it cut-side down in a dish that contains just enough water to keep the sliced end submerged. New leaves will sprout from the top within a few days, and you can start harvesting them in a couple of weeks. (This method also works with parsnips and turnips).
CELERY
Cut 3 inches off the bottom of a head of celery, then slice a sliver off the very bottom of the 3-inch segment. Place it right-side up in a shallow container and pour in 2 inches of water. New growth will sprout from the center in just a few days.
SCALLIONS AND LEEKS
in potted plants. But their existence went largely unnoticed — or perhaps underreported — until the past decade, when ecologists flagged them as problematic, according to Dr. Timothy McCay, a biology and environmental studies professor at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York.
Since then, the worms’ presence has been confirmed in 35 states across the country.
Although their annual life cycle ends in winter, Asian jumping worm cocoons survive to spawn a new generation in spring. Their tiny eggs are nearly impossible to notice in soil or mulch, but adult worms, which range from 3 to 8 inches long, are easy to spot close to the soil surface and can often be seen moving under mulch or leaf litter, McCay said.
ping your fingers, cut the entire mature head off and drop it in a paper bag, then give it a shake to loosen and separate the seeds.
In general, seeds of daisy-like flowers like sunflowers, coneflowers and, well, daisies have relatively low germination rates. Pick the plumpest for planting or sow extra for insurance.
Some flowers, like marigolds, produce seeds attached to rodlike structures on the innermost portion of their tightly clustered petals. To expose them, remove all the dry petals and open the seed head to release the rods within. Then dry, store and plant the entire structure.
Gardening naturally lends itself to reusing and recycling -just think about compost and last year’s seed trays. So if there’s a way to reduce trash while saving money on produce, you can count me in. And one of my favorite ways to do both is to regrow vegetables from kitchen scraps.
Instead of throwing away or composting the bottoms (or tops) of vegetables when preparing them, you can grow them into leafy greens and other tasty tidbits right on your windowsill.
Before I go any further, it’s important to point out that these methods aren’t likely to produce plants that will grow well in your garden, so I don’t recommend replacing your seedlings in this manner. But they are likely to yield a side dish or two, and you can never underestimate the value of a fun project.
General tips: Scraps will grow best in a sunny spot. Use lukewarm water, and replace it every day or two to avoid the growth of bacteria. Don’t worry if the submerged portion of your cuttings becomes a bit slimy, but if the whole thing starts to turn brown, toss it in the compost pile and start over.
BEETS
My favorite thing about beets is that one plant provides two sides dishes – the tuberous root and the tasty greens. Although
Trim the entire white portion off the bottom of a leek or scallion stalk, then place it root-side-down in a jar or glass holding an inch of water. If the stalk outgrows the jar, move it to a larger one. New growth will be harvestable in a couple of weeks.
ROMAINE LETTUCE
Cut 3 inches off the bottom of a head of romaine lettuce, then remove its outermost leaves. Place the 3-inch “heart” in a shallow container to which you’ve added one-half inch of water. Within a week, a sprout will emerge from its center. As it grows, it’s normal for some of the heart’s outer leaves to turn brown. Remove them. When the center growth is large enough for a salad (or sandwich), trim it off and enjoy – then wait for more to grow.
The next invasive garden threat? A slithering, jumping worm
Just when you think you’ve become accustomed to the spotted lanternfly invasion, along comes another menace to the ecosystem: the Asian jumping worm.
Allow me to introduce you to Amynthas agrestis, also known as “Alabama jumper,” “Jersey wriggler” and the rude-but-accurate “crazy worm.” Unlike garden-variety earthworms, these flipping, thrashing, invasive miscreants are ravenous consumers of humus, the rich, organic, essential top layer of soil formed by dead and decaying small animals, insects and leaf litter in places like forests, plant nurseries and your garden.
Plants, fungi and other soil life cannot survive without humus, and “Asian jumping worms can eat all of it,” Sarah Farmer of the U.S. Forest Service wrote in a USDA Southern Research Center blog post published in May.
A decline in humus would also threaten birds and other wildlife that depend on soil-dwelling insects for food.
The insatiable invertebrates, native to east-central Asia, are believed to have been introduced to the United States in the late 1800s, likely as hitchhikers
As they devour their way through the soil, the worms leave two things behind: cocoons and castings. The cocoons are tiny and soil-colored, so they are easy to miss. However, the castings, or excrement, have a granular, coffee-ground texture that will alert you to their presence.
The glossy worms can be either gray or brown, with a smooth cream or white collar that wraps entirely around part of their bodies. When touched, they thrash from side to side, jump, and may even slither back and forth like a snake. That behavior, coupled with their ability to reproduce rapidly without a mate, gives them an advantage over predators, McCay said.
“Robins and other birds, shrews, garter snakes, and amphibians like toads may not be able to effectively suppress their populations,” he said.
McCay, whose research focuses on understanding how the worms invade intact forests, and their effect on forest biodiversity, cautions that “gardeners should do what they can to avoid spreading jumping worms to new areas.” Because the worms typically move into forests from nearby gardens, he said, control in home and community gardens is necessary to slow their invasion into natural habitats.
So during this season of plant dividing and swapping, gardeners must be vigilant. Keep an eye out for the worms’ castings, a tell-tale sign of their presence. Inspect the soil clinging to plant roots and in the ground surrounding them. In addition, McCay advises, do not dispose of waste from infected gardens into nearby forests, and share only plants that have been repotted after their roots have been cleaned of clinging soil.
Unfortunately, there are no good control measures available for established populations of jumping worms. But McCay said picking them out by hand and dropping them into containers of vinegar will reduce their numbers. He knows of one gardener in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, who removed 51,000 worms that way in 2021.
Oct. 21-Jan. 29 with ticketing times varying. 2501 Dallas St. Aurora, CO 80010. Visit www.thelumecolorado.com for more information.
The Immersive Art experience is returning to Aurora for a second year with the work of another renowned artist, Salvador Dalí. The Dalí Alive exhibit will provide the fullest extent of immersive experiences of large displays of classic works through projecting animated canvases on the walls and floors of the gallery created inside of The Hangar.
Beyond that, you will be able to hear the voice of the master himself through a specially produced Lobster Phone, plus experience a variety of aromas and a specially curated soundtrack both sure to tickle all of your senses, giving the guest what is referred to as a 360-degree experience.
Ticket prices vary depending on dates, with certain price breaks for mid-week visits, groups and families.
Oct. 22 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 6155 S Main St Suite 260, Aurora, CO 80016. Visit www.shopsouthlands. com for more information.
It’s all fall, all spooky, until the end of the month, and Southlands Shopping Center is throwing their hat in the ring by offering their own Fall festival this Saturday.
The shopping center is laying out a Trick or Treat Trail that will run from 10 a.m. to noon, where children dressed in their finest spooky garb can go up and down Main Street and get all the goodies they can from retailers and restaurants.
During that same time there will be a Howl-O-Ween Dog Costume Contest, with all proceeds going to the Aurora Police Foundation K-9 Unit.
And it wouldn’t be a fall festival without a pumpkin patch where guests are able to pick out the perfect pumpkin for carving, and not a moment too soon. Halloween is less than two weeks away!
Nov. 1 Beginning at 5:30 p.m. 2501 Dallas St, Aurora, CO 80010. Visit stanleymarketplace.com/ events/dia-de-los-muertos-at-stanley-marketplace-november-1 for more information.
Aurora’s community is rich with diverse cultures and traditions and Stanley Marketplace is showing it off this season with its Dia De Los Muertos celebration. The creator and artist behind Colorado’s largest Dia De Los Muertos altar, Norberto “Beto” Mojardīn, is lending his talents to create a unique and oneof-a-kind altar for our own city-wide community.
The event will also feature crafting opportunities like decorating tote bags, and demonstrations of traditional dance performances.
Oct. 22 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. 25690 E Quincy Ave, Aurora, CO 80016. For more information visit Arapahoecountyeventcenter.com/p/ signature-events/treat-street.
Catered to be a perfect family event, Treat Street returns to the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds, and it will be a day filled with tons of events for all ages. Highlights include a bounce house, live bluegrass, a petting farm, pumpkin painting, food trucks, a beer garden and most importantly, Trick or Treating booths from more than 20 local businesses.
Here’s the best part though… There will be Hallo-Weenie races! That’s gonna be a race among Dachshunds in costume, for those who aren’t familiar with Hallo-Weenie.
Entry is free if you’re in costume. But if you decide to be a wet blanket for Halloween and not dress up, it’s gonna cost you $10. And your costume won’t go to waste, since there will be a costume contest.
Nov. 3, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m 2001 Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO 80205. Visit www.dmns.org/visit/events-and-activities/ for more information.
Let’s catch a Buzz (Aldrin) and walk around the Denver Museum of Nature and Science together gawking at some new exhibits. Martini’s on the Moon will be an adults-only event where museum goers will have an opportunity to sip on Moon Martinis and crush some light apps while also being able to check out the new “Apollo: When We Went to the Moon” exhibit. The best part is that it is pretty interactive. You will have the opportunity to make footprints on a virtual moon or climb aboard a lunar rover — all with a spacey cocktail in tow.
Admission is $20 for members and $30 for non-members.
Oct. 22-23 11 a.m. to 5p.m. 3900 E-470 Beltway, Aurora, CO 80019. Visit theaurorahighlands.com/fallfestival/ for more information.
Aurora’s newest master planned community is hosting its Fall Festival! The Aurora Highlands is offering a fun-filled weekend, full of activities, snacks and drinks, and even face painting and a hay ride throughout the neighborhood.
While you’re celebrating the best season of the year, be sure to get a family portrait made at the photo booth, enjoy some adult beverages while the kiddos navigate the giant inflatable obstacle course or have their faces painted.
There will be a bevy of food trucks as well as tours of open houses in the new neighborhood.
Admission is free and the event will take place on The Aurora Highlands Event Lawn on the northeast corner of 38th Place and Main Street.
Sept. 16 - Oct. 30 Fri-Sun from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 8500 W Deer Creek Canyon Rd. Littleton, CO 80128. Visit www.botanicgardens.org/events/ special-events/corn-maze for more information.
A favorite Autumnal pastime has returned to Chatfield Farms. Yep, the corn maze is back! This year’s maze spans seven acres and takes an estimated one hour to complete. The theme is described as a “dino-mite exploration of a prehistoric time” so… ya know, not to spoil anything but it might be in that descriptor. There’s more than just the maze at Chatfield if you pop in on the weekends. There’s a mini-maze for the youth, escape room, for an additional fee, barrel train rides for the kiddos (included with the purchase of mini-maze tickets). Food vendors will be on site and picnic tables available on a first come first served basis.
Tickets run $15 for adults, $13 for seniors 65 and over, $11 for children between 3-11 and children under 2 get free entry.
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0409-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 2, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Chalana Sims
Original Beneficiary(ies) UNIVERSAL LENDING CORPORATION
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
June 20, 2008 County of Recording
Arapahoe Recording Date of Deed of Trust
July 01, 2008
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
B8075475
Original Principal Amount
$143,318.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$96,828.40 Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE
A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 2, BLOCK 1, HUTCHINSON HEIGHTS SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 4, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Also known by street and number as: 3109 South Pagosa Street, Aurora, CO 80013.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/30/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/6/2022
Last Publication 11/3/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED; DATE: 08/02/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0445-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 19, 2022, the undersigned
Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Carlos L. Collier and Tiffany M. Collier
Original Beneficiary(ies)
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as Beneficiary, as nominee for CMG Mortgage, Inc dba CMG Financial, #1820, its successors and assigns
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
Freedom Mortgage Corporation
Date of Deed of Trust
October 07, 2015
County of Recording
Arapahoe Recording Date of Deed of Trust
October 13, 2015
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D5116468
Original Principal Amount
$393,609.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$340,828.96
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
Lot 7, Block 2, Serenity Ridge Subdivision
Filing No. 2, County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado.
Also known by street and number as: 7137 S Patsburg Way, Aurora, CO 80016. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/14/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/20/2022
Last Publication 11/17/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103 FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0464-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 30, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Amanda Warren
Original Beneficiary(ies) MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR GUILD MORTGAGE COMPANY, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
January 18, 2019
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
January 22, 2019
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D9006063
Original Principal Amount
$201,286.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$197,381.32
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 113, BLOCK 2, SUNSTONE SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Also known by street and number as: 1602 South Idalia Circle Unit J, Aurora, CO 80017.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/14/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/20/2022
Last Publication 11/17/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/30/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592 Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-027799
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICEMAILING CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0442-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On August 19, 2022, the undersigned
Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s) Julie Caldera Bershas
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR AMERICAN FINANCING CORPORATION, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
May 09, 2017 County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
June 13, 2017
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D7066376
June 14, 2017
Re-Recording Information (Reception No. and/or Book/Page No.)
D7066500
Re-Recording Date of Deed of Trust
Original Principal Amount
$383,426.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$387,369.54
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 72, BLOCK 4, MISSION VIEJO, FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Also known by street and number as: 3665
SOUTH JASPER STREET, AURORA, CO 80013.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/14/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/20/2022
Last Publication 11/17/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel NOTICE OF RIGHTS YOU MAY HAVE AN INTEREST IN THE REAL PROPERTY BEING FORECLOSED, OR HAVE CERTAIN RIGHTS OR SUFFER CERTAIN LIABILITIES PURSUANT TO COLORADO STATUTES AS A RESULT OF SAID FORECLOSURE. YOU MAY HAVE THE RIGHT TO REDEEM SAID REAL PROPERTY OR YOU MAY HAVE THE RIGHT TO CURE A DEFAULT UNDER THE DEED OF TRUST BEING FORECLOSED. A COPY OF SAID STATUTES, AS SUCH STATUTES ARE PRESENTLY CONSTITUTED, WHICH MAY AFFECT YOUR RIGHTS SHALL BE SENT WITH ALL MAILED COPIES OF THIS NOTICE. HOWEVER, YOUR RIGHTS MAY BE DETERMINED BY PREVIOUS STATUTES.
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE FILED PURSUANT TO SECTION 38-38-104 SHALL BE FILED WITH THE PUBLIC TRUSTEE AT LEAST FIFTEEN (15) CALENDAR DAYS PRIOR TO THE FIRST SCHEDULED SALE DATE OR ANY DATE TO WHICH THE SALE IS CONTINUED;
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO REDEEM FILED PURSUANT TO SECTION 38-38302 SHALL BE FILED WITH THE PUBLIC TRUSTEE NO LATER THAN EIGHT (8) BUSINESS DAYS AFTER THE SALE;
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
IF THE BORROWER BELIEVES THAT A LENDER OR SERVICER HAS VIOLATED
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT IN SECTION 3838-103.1 OR THE PROHIBITION ON DUAL TRACKING IN SECTION 38-38103.2, THE BORROWER MAY FILE A COMPLAINT WITH THE COLORADO ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE FEDERAL CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU (CFPB), OR BOTH. THE FILING OF A COMPLAINT WILL NOT STOP THE FORECLOSURE PROCESS. Colorado Attorney General 1300 Broadway, 10th Floor
Denver, Colorado 80203 (800) 222-4444
www.coloradoattorneygeneral.gov
Federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau P.O. Box 4503
Iowa City, Iowa 52244 (855) 411-2372
www.consumerfinance.gov
DATE: 08/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 18-017762
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0404-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On July 29, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Rickey B. Reed Sr. and Christine L. Reed
Original Beneficiary(ies)
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as Beneficiary, as nominee for Denver Mortgage Company, its successors and assigns
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
U.S. Bank National Association
Date of Deed of Trust
June 06, 2005
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
December 15, 2005
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
B5188102
Original Principal Amount
$240,601.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$408,623.29
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 13, BLOCK 1, CHADDSFORD VILLAGE SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Also known by street and number as: 1404 South Vaughn Circle, Aurora, CO 80012.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/30/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/6/2022
Last Publication 11/3/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Amanda Ferguson #44893
Heather Deere #28597
Toni M. Owan #30580
Halliday, Watkins & Mann, PC 355 Union Blvd., Ste. 250, Lakewood, CO 80228 (303) 274-0155
Attorney File # CO11876
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0413-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 2, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Juan Ricardo Chavez
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR PANORAMA MORTGAGE GROUP, LLC
DBA ALTERRA HOME LOANS, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
May 29, 2020
County of Recording
Arapahoe Recording Date of Deed of Trust
June 01, 2020
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
E0064148
Original Principal Amount
$274,928.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$269,203.71
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT TWENTY FOUR (24), BLOCK
TWENTY THREE (23), BURNS AURORA, THIRD FILING, ACCORDING TO THE RECORDED PLAT THEREOF, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
APN #: 031087414
Also known by street and number as: 930 Macon Street, Aurora, CO 80010.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST. NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/30/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/6/2022
Last Publication 11/3/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/02/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-028023
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0373-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On July 19, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Washington
Specialized Loan Servicing LLC
Date of Deed of Trust
March 27, 2017 County of Recording Arapahoe Recording Date of Deed of Trust
hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
SEE ATTACHED LEGAL DESCRIPTION.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION CONDOMINIUM UNIT 11-D, BUILDING 11, GARAGE 11-D, REDBUCK AT SORREL RANCH CONDOMINIUMS, SORREL RANCH SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 4, AS DEFINED AND DESCRIBED IN THE CONDOMINIUM DECLARATION RECORDED MARCH 23, 2004 AT RECEPTION NUMBER B4051428 AND AMENDED AND RESTATED NOVEMBER 23, 2004 AT RECEPTION NUMBER B4203688 AND AS DEFINED IN THE CONDOMINIUM MAP RECORDED APRIL 17, 2008 AT RECEPTION NUMBER B8044719, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO PARCEL ID NUMBER: 2071-18-3-23-141 Also known by street and number as: 23535 E. PLATTE DRIVE UNIT D, AURORA, CO 80016.
80017. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/16/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 9/22/2022
Last Publication 10/20/2022
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO
A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE
MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 07/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-027986
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay prinicipa and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 44, BLOCK 9, MEADOWOOD FILING NO. 3, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Also known by street and number as: 16807 E. Linvale Pl., Aurora, CO 80013.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/16/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 9/22/2022
Last Publication 10/20/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 07/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Marcello G. Rojas #46396
Susan Hendrick #33196
Nigel G Tibbles #43177
Sandra J. Nettleton #42411
THE SAYER LAW GROUP, P.C. 3600 South Beeler Street, Suite 330, Denver, CO 80237 (303) 353-2965
Attorney File # CO220041
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0376-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On July 19, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
NADINE HUGHES
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR FAIRWAY INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE CORPORATION, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/16/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 9/22/2022
Last Publication 10/20/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 07/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592 Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 19-021577
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0379-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On July 19, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Evelyn A. Curtis AND Herman K. Moss
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR FAIRWAY INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE CORPORATION, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
January 15, 2019
County of Recording
Arapahoe Recording Date of Deed of Trust
January 15, 2019
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D9004418
Original Principal Amount
$317,149.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$308,767.18
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 18, BLOCK 9, KINGSBOROUGH SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 8, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. PARCEL ID NUMBER: 1975-22-2-14-018
Name of Publication Sentinel IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 07/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-027963
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0382-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On July 19, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Cattena Fontenot
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR ACADEMY MORTGAGE CORPORATION, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
October 28, 2016
County of Recording Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
November 01, 2016
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D6125154
Original Principal Amount $201,286.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$185,807.27 Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN. LOT 23, BLOCK 1, THE SHORES - FILING NO. 5, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. APN #: 1973-35-2-07104 Also known by street and number as: 11136 E Linvale Drive, Aurora, CO 80014. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/16/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0383-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On July 19, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Marina Pervanic AND Sakib Pervanic
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR ENVOY MORTGAGE, LTD, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
July 24, 2017
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
July 26, 2017
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D7084345
Original Principal Amount
$341,696.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$322,894.03
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 4, BLOCK 3, CRESTRIDGE SUBDIVISION, FILING NO. ONE, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. Also known by street and number as: 14634 E Harvard Ave, Aurora, CO 80014.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 11/16/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 9/22/2022
Last Publication 10/20/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO
A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE
MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 07/19/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-027982
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0419-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On August 5, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Nicole Rasberry
Original Beneficiary(ies)
Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as Beneficiary, as nominee for Stonecreek Funding Corporation, a Colorado Corporation, its successors and assigns
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
CSMC 2021-JR1 Trust
Date of Deed of Trust
February 09, 2005
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
February 11, 2005
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
B5020128
Original Principal Amount
$22,700.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$17,181.24
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows:
Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE
A FIRST LIEN.
Condominium Unit No. 302, Building No.
A5, Spinnaker Run II Condominiums, in accordance with the Declaration recorded on May 15, 1981 in Book 3414 at Page 741, and Condominium Map recorded on May 15, 1981 in Book 50 at Page 62 of the Arapahoe County Records, County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado.
Also known by street and number as: 3061 South Ursula Circle, #302, Aurora, CO 80014. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/07/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/13/2022
Last Publication 11/10/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED; DATE: 08/05/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Amanda Ferguson #44893
Heather Deere #28597
Toni M. Owan #30580
Halliday, Watkins & Mann, PC 355 Union Blvd., Ste. 250, Lakewood, CO 80228 (303) 274-0155
Attorney File # CO11634
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0421-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On August 5, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Inge A. Borg-Guzman AND Robert B. Guzman
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR CITYWIDE HOME LOANS A UTAH CORPORATION, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A.
Date of Deed of Trust
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D3085484
Original Principal Amount
$229,400.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$175,085.25
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof. THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 29, BLOCK 4, TIERRA ILIFF SUBDIVISION, FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. Also known by street and number as: 2057 South Evanston Court, Aurora, CO 80014. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST. NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/07/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/13/2022
Last Publication 11/10/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/05/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-028140
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0423-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 9, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Carla Valdez
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR PRIMARY RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE, INC, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
February 21, 2020
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
February 25, 2020
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
E0023450
Original Principal Amount
$168,884.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$163,318.62
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows:
Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN. LOT 94, BLOCK 1, AMERICANA SUBDIVISION FILING NO.1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. Also known by street and number as: 396 S Memphis Way A, Aurora, CO 80017. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
said Deed of Trust. THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/07/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/13/2022
Last Publication 11/10/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/09/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592 Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990 Attorney File # 22-028079
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICE -
PUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0425-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 9, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
Christopher S Quintana
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR VECTRA BANK, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
COLORADO HOUSING AND FINANCE
AUTHORITY
Date of Deed of Trust
October 06, 2014
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
October 10, 2014
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D4095161
Original Principal Amount
$52,910.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$47,197.69
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the evidence of debt secured by the deed of trust and other violations thereof.
THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
SEE ATTACHED LEGAL DESCRIPTION Exhibit “A” Condominium Unit 102, Building 11, Telegraph Hill II Condominiums, in accordance with and subject to the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions of Telegraph Hill II Condominiums recorded on February 13, 1981 in Book 3365 at Page 140. Amended July 20, 1981 in Book 3453 at Page 324 and restated February 24, 1982 in Book 3583 at Page 175, and Map recorded on February 12, 1981 in Book 49 at Page 14 and Amended Phase I recorded February 23, 1982 in Book 54 at Page 77, and Second Amended Phase I recorded April 16, 1982 in Book 55 at Page 72, and Amended Phase II recorded February 24, 1981 in Book 54 at Page 80, and Second Amended Phase 11 recorded April 16, 1982 in Book 55 at Page 73, Together with the exclusive use of Parking Space No 101, and Garage Space No 39,County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
Also known by street and number as: 11995 E Harvard Ave #102, Aurora, CO 80014.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/07/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns
therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/13/2022
Last Publication 11/10/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO
A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE
MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED;
DATE: 08/09/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Alison L Berry #34531
N. April Norton #34861
David R. Doughty #40042
Nicholas H. Santarelli #46592
Lynn M. Janeway #15592
Janeway Law Firm, P.C. 9800 S. Meridian Blvd., Suite 400, Englewood, CO 80112 (303) 706-9990
Attorney File # 22-028162
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0426-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described Deed of Trust:
On August 12, 2022, the undersigned
Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s)
CARRIE F SCHAFFER
Original Beneficiary(ies)
MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. AS NOMINEE FOR CROSSCOUNTRY MORTGAGE, INC.
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC
Date of Deed of Trust
June 27, 2017
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
June 29, 2017
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D7073199
Original Principal Amount
$270,019.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$267,599.70
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations of the terms thereof THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
SEE ATTACHED LEGAL DESCRIPTION
LEGAL DESCRIPTION
PARCEL A: LOT 13, BLOCK 1, AND ALL IMPROVEMENTS THEREON, SUNRIDGE SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 2, ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO, AND DECLARATION OF COVENANTS AND RESTRICTIONS RECORDED IN BOOK 2757 AT PAGE 768, ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO AND ANY AMENDMENTS THERETO; TOGETHER WITH: PARCEL B: (1) A NONEXCLUSIVE RIGHT AND EASEMENT OF ENJOYMENT IN AND TO THE COMMON AREA IN COMMON WITH OTHER OWNERS OF PATIO HOMES IN SUNRIDGE; (2) A NONEXCLUSIVE EASEMENT IN, ON AND THROUGH THE COMMON AREA FOR INGRESS TO AND EGRESS FROM THE LOT DESCRIBED ABOVE. COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. Also known by street and number as: 91 S EAGLE CIRCLE, AURORA, CO 80012. THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/14/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
DATE: 08/12/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Anna Johnston #51978
Ryan Bourgeois #51088
Joseph D. DeGiorgio #45557
Randall Chin #31149
Barrett, Frappier & Weisserman, LLP 1391 Speer Boulevard, Suite 700, Denver, CO 80204 (303) 350-3711
Attorney File # 00000009557877
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
COMBINED NOTICEPUBLICATION CRS §38-38-103
FORECLOSURE SALE NO. 0427-2022
To Whom It May Concern: This Notice is given with regard to the following described
Deed of Trust:
On August 12, 2022, the undersigned Public Trustee caused the Notice of Election and Demand relating to the Deed of Trust described below to be recorded in the County of Arapahoe records.
Original Grantor(s) ROZETTA TURNER AND JACQUES
TURNER
Original Beneficiary(ies) MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC. ACTING SOLELY AS NOMINEE FOR QUICKEN LOANS INC.
Current Holder of Evidence of Debt
ROCKET MORTGAGE, LLC
F/K/A QUICKEN LOANS, LLC F/K/A QUICKEN LOANS INC.
Date of Deed of Trust
April 12, 2013
County of Recording
Arapahoe
Recording Date of Deed of Trust
April 22, 2013
Recording Information (Reception No. and/ or Book/Page No.)
D3049229
Original Principal Amount
$98,809.00
Outstanding Principal Balance
$84,885.12
Pursuant to CRS §38-38-101(4)(i), you are hereby notified that the covenants of the deed of trust have been violated as follows: Failure to pay principal and interest when due together with all other payments provided for in the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust and other violations of the terms thereof THE LIEN FORECLOSED MAY NOT BE A FIRST LIEN.
LOT 24, BLOCK 2, VICTORIA PLACE SUBDIVISION FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. Also known by street and number as: 17668 E. LOYOLA DRIVE, C, AURORA, CO 80013.
THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN IS ALL OF THE PROPERTY CURRENTLY ENCUMBERED BY THE LIEN OF THE DEED OF TRUST.
NOTICE OF SALE
The current holder of the Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, described herein, has filed Notice of Election and Demand for sale as provided by law and in said Deed of Trust.
THEREFORE, Notice Is Hereby Given that I will at public auction, at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, 12/14/2022, at The East Hearing Room, County Administration Building, 5334 South Prince Street, Littleton, Colorado, 80120, sell to the highest and best bidder for cash, the said real property and all interest of the said Grantor(s), Grantor(s)’ heirs and assigns therein, for the purpose of paying the indebtedness provided in said Evidence of Debt secured by the Deed of Trust, plus attorneys’ fees, the expenses of sale and other items allowed by law, and will issue to the purchaser a Certificate of Purchase, all as provided by law.
First Publication 10/20/2022
Last Publication 11/17/2022
Name of Publication Sentinel
IF THE SALE DATE IS CONTINUED TO A LATER DATE, THE DEADLINE TO FILE
A NOTICE OF INTENT TO CURE BY THOSE PARTIES ENTITLED TO CURE MAY ALSO BE EXTENDED; DATE: 08/12/2022
Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee in and for the County of Arapahoe, State of Colorado
By: /s/ Susan Sandstrom, Public Trustee
The name, address, business telephone number and bar registration number of the attorney(s) representing the legal holder of the indebtedness is:
Anna Johnston #51978
Ryan Bourgeois #51088
Joseph D. DeGiorgio #45557
Randall Chin #31149
Barrett, Frappier & Weisserman, LLP 1391
Speer Boulevard, Suite 700, Denver, CO 80204 (303) 350-3711
Attorney File # 00000009566233
The Attorney above is acting as a debt collector and is attempting to collect a debt. Any information provided may be used for that purpose.
©Public Trustees’ Association of Colorado
Revised 1/2015
cess have committed funds, incurred costs or undertaken activities not authorized by 24 CFR Part 58 before approval of a release of funds by HUD; or (d) another Federal agency acting pursuant to 40 CFR Part 1504 has submitted a written finding that the project is unsatisfactory from the standpoint of environmental quality. Objections must be prepared and submitted via email in accordance with the required procedures (24 CFR Part 58, Sec. 58.76) and shall be addressed to Noemi Ghirghi, CPD Region VIII Director, at CPD_COVID19OEE-DEN@hud.gov. Potential objectors should contact CPD_COVID-19OEEDEN@hud.gov to verify the actual last day of the objection period.
Alicia Montoya, Community Development Division Manager
Publication: October 20, 2022
Sentinel
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
You are hereby notified that a public hearing will be held to approve the Aurora One Neighborhood Park Master Plan. The site is located in the Aurora One development which straddles Stephen D. Hogan Parkway between Picadilly Road and E-470. This public hearing will be held at a special Parks & Recreation Advisory Board meeting at 5:00PM, Wednesday, November 2, 2022, via WebEx.
For information to join the meeting go to the Boards and Commissions Calendar at Auroragov.org and click the meeting link or visit Auroragov.org/prospdc and find the project by clicking Current Projects. Any individual with questions, please email cbish@auroragov.org.
First Publication: October 20, 2022
Final Publication: October 27, 2022
Sentinel NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE
Unclaimed, confiscated, and recovered property will be auctioned to the highest and best bidder at 9:00 a.m. on November 15, 2022 at 7500 York Street, Denver, Colorado.
22-24014270296-1 Bag w/Misc. Hand
IES GAME 37 2000
19-4812819532-13LV Purse
19-4812819532-15LV Coin Purse
19-11734162820-19 CHICAGO ELECTRIC 6” DUAL ACTION POLISHER
19-11734162820-2010” POLISHER/BUF-
FER
19-11734162820 -30 UNKNOWN BRAND
BUFFER/POLISHER
19-11734162820 -12 DURALAST 900
PEAK AMP JUMP STARTER
19-11734162820 -13 RED TOOL BAG WITH MISC TOOLS
19-11734162820 -1 5PORTER CABLE
BAG WITH SANDING DISC
19-11734162820 -26 BLACK AND DECK-
ER BATTERY CHARGER
19-11734162820 -28 SIREN SNOW-
BOARD
19-11734162820 -29 PORTER CABLE
WET/DRY SHOP VAC
19-11734162820 -33 NINTENDO WII
BALANCE BOARD
19-11734162820-2 CRAFTSMAN SPACE
HEATER
19-11734162820-3 SAMSUNG STAIN-
LESS STEEL MICROWAVE
19-11734162820-5 SMITTYBILT SRC
CLAASIC SIDES W/STEP
19-11734162820-6 RIDGID TOOLBOX
WITH MISC TOOLS
19-11734162820-7 SMITH SIGNATURE
WATER HEATER
19-11734162820-8 THREE IN ONE
FLOOR TILE CUTTER
19-11734162820-9 POULAN PRO 18”,
42CC CHAINSAW
19-11734162820-10 KOBALT LK3197 AIR
COMPRESSOR
19-11734162820-16 BOX WITH AIR
COMPRESSOR AND FORM SETS
19-11734162820-17 PIPE BENDER
19-11734162820-18 HILTI NAIL GUN
19-11734162820-14 CHICAGO ELECTRIC 6” DUAL ACTION POLISHER
19-11734162820-24 BICYCLE STAND FOR REPAIRING BIKES
19-11734162820-25 BOLENS BL110
WEED WHACKER
19-11734162820-31 MILWAUKEE DRILL
HOLE HAWG
19-11734162820-32 MISC BIKE RACK
2022-29401AP274574 -1 BISSELL LIT-
TLE GREEN PRO PORTABLE DEEP
2022-29536AP274714-6 FLUTE
2022-33316AP277566-1 PAINT SPRAYER
2022-32153AP276608-1 LIV MOUNTAIN BIKE BLACK
These items may be inspected at 7500 York Street, Denver, Colorado, between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. the day before the sale, then between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on the day of the auction. A complete list of all items will be available for review in the City Clerk’s Office, 15151 E. Alameda Parkway, Room 1400 (1st floor), Aurora, Colorado.
Terms of the sale will be cash, certified check, Visa, American Express, or Mastercard at the conclusion of the sale. The successful bidder will be required to remove all items after the close of the sale. All sales are final WITH NO WARRANTY. Any and all bids can be rejected at the discretion of the City of Aurora.
/s/ Kadee Rodriguez, City Clerk
First Publication: October 6, 2022
Final Publication: October 20, 2022 Sentinel
treTech Metropolitan District; and that copies of the proposed Amended 2022 Budget and 2023 Budget have been filed at the District’s offices, 141 Union Boulevard, Suite 150, Lakewood, Colorado, where the same is open for public inspection; and that adoption of Resolutions Amending the 2022 Budget and Adopting the 2023 will be considered at a public meeting of the Board of Directors of the District on Friday, November 18, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. This District Board meeting will be held by Zoom Meeting and can be joined through the directions below:
Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83272106592 ?pwd=WllyakREU1ZJY1dsVnpIYnZ3dFh
4QT09
Meeting ID: 832 7210 6592
Passcode: 414176 One tap mobile +17193594580,,83272106592# US +12532158782,,83272106592# US (Tacoma)
Any elector within the District may, at any time prior to the final adoption of the Resolutions to Amend the 2022 Budget and adopt the 2023 Budget, inspect and file or register any objections thereto.
AURORA CENTRETECH
METROPOLITAN DISTRICT By
/s/Steve Beck SecretaryPublication: October 20, 2022
Sentinel DISTRICT COURT, ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO SUMMONS BY PUBLICATION Case No. 2021PR30323
Plaintiff:
Holly Nelson, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Maureen M. Elliot, Deceased v.
Defendants:
The unknown trustees and beneficiaries of the Maureen M. Elliot Loving Trust dated October 1, 1990; The Heather Gardens Association; and Any and All Unknown Persons with an Interest in the Subject Matter of this Action
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF COLORADO TO THE ABOVE-NAMED
DEFENDANT(S):
You are hereby summoned and required to appear and defend against the claims of the complaint filed with the court in this action, by filing with the clerk of this court an answer or other response. You are required to file your answer or other response within 35 days after the service of this summons upon you. Service of this summons shall be complete on the day of the last publication. A copy of the complaint may be obtained from the clerk of the court.
If you fail to file your answer or other response to the complaint in writing within 35 days after the date of the last publication, judgment by default may be rendered against you by the court for the relief demanded in the complaint without further notice.
This is an action: to quiet title of Plaintiff Holly Nelson, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Maureen M. Elliot, along with other relief, related in and to the property situated in Arapahoe County, Colorado, to wit:
LOT 6, BLOCK 1, HEATHER GARDENS
1BLACK & DECKER 7
RIGID POWER
22-2708AP254623-5 DEWALT ELECTRIC
GRINDER 22-2708AP254623-6 RIGID JIGSAW
22-2708AP254623-7v CRAFTSMAN
CORDLESS SMALL BLOWER
22-2708AP254623-8 MAKITA CORDLESS
DRILL
22-2708AP254623-9 MAKITA CIRCULAR
SAW CORDED
22-2708AP254623-10 MAKITA CIRCU-
LAR SAW CORDED
22-2708AP254623-11 PORTER CABLE
ELECTRIC SANDER
22-2708AP254623-12 CHIC OSCILLAT-
ING TOOL
22-2708AP254623-13 MAKITA CORD-
LESS DRILL
22-2708AP254623-14 MAKITA PLANER
POWER TOOL
22-2708AP254623-15 MAKITA POWER
SANDER
22-2708AP254623-16 NAIL GUN
22-24014AP270296-1 MISCELLANEOUS
HAND TOOLS
22-24014AP270296-2 WHITE MICHAEL
KORS PURSE
22-24014AP270296-3 MICHAEL KORS
PURSE
22-24014AP270296-4 MILWUAKEE
SAWZALL
22-24014AP270296-5 SAWZALL
22-24014AP270296-6 DEWALT XR
CORDLESS DRILL
22-24014AP270300-1 KENWOOD EXCE-
LON REFERENCE SPEAKER
15-4845532316-10 TABLET
15-4845532316-11 TABLET
22-25890271803-1S UPER BOWL X
TICKET
22-25890271803-2 MLB TICKET ROCK-
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to all interested parties that the necessity has arisen to amend the ACC Metropolitan District 2022 Budget and that a proposed 2023 Budget has been submitted to the Board of Directors of the ACC Metropolitan District; and that copies of the Amended 2022 Budget and Proposed 2023 Budget have been filed at the District’s offices, 141 Union Boulevard, Suite 150, Lakewood, Colorado, where the same is open for public inspection; and that adoption of Resolutions Amending the 2022 Budget and Resolution Adopting the 2023 Budget will be considered at a public meeting of the Board of Directors of the District on Wednesday, November 2, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. This District Board meeting will be held by conference call at 1-669-900-6833, the meeting ID number is 5469119353 and when prompted, dial in the passcode of 912873. Any elector within the District may, at any time prior to the final adoption of the Resolutions to Amend the 2022 Budget and adopt the 2023 Budget, inspect and file or register any objections thereto.
ACC METROPOLITAN DISTRICT By /s/Jim
Publication: October 20, 2022
FILING NO. 1, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO, TO-WIT:
PARCEL 1 – AN UNDIVIDED 1/72ND INTEREST IN AND TO SAID LOT, SUBJECT TO EASEMENTS OF RECORD, INCLUDING SUCH EASEMENTS AS MAY BE SET OUT IN THE DECLARATION OF CONDOMINIUM OF HEATHER GARDENS AS FILED OF RECORD IN THE OFFICE OF THE CLERK AND RECORDER OF ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO IN BOOK 205 AT PAGE 436, AND ANY AMENDMENTS THERETO, EXCLUDING ANY INTEREST IN THE BUILDINGS AND EQUIPMENT SITUATE ON SAID LOT AND BLOCK ABOVE DESCRIBED IN WHICH APARTMENT BUILDING AND EQUIPMENT HEREIN CONVEYED.
ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO. TOGETHER WITH:
(1) THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE THE PATIOS AND BALCONIES, AIR CONDITIONS OR OTHER APPLIANCES WHICH PROJECT BEYOND THE SPACE OR AREA ABOVE DESCRIBED AND CONTIGUOUS THERETO.
(2) A RIGHT OF WAY, IN COMMON WITH OTHERS, FOR INGRESS AND EGRESS TO AND FROM THE PROPERTY ABOVE DESCRIBED.
(3) THE RIGHT TO USE STAIRS, HALLS, PASSAGE WAYS AND OTHER COMMON AREAS IN THE BUILDING DESCRIBED IN PARCEL 2 ABOVE IN COMMON WITH OTHER OWNERS OF SUCH BUILDING, INCLUDING THEIR AGENTS, SERVANTS, EMPLOYEES AND INVITEES.
(4) THE RIGHT TO USE COMMON AREAS IN SAID LOT IN COMMON WITH OTHER OWNERS OF SPACE OR AREAS IN BUILDINGS NOW OR HEREAFTER CONSTRUCTED IN SAID LOT, EXCEPT THE USE OF THE COMMON AREAS LOCATED IN BUILDINGS OTHER THAN THAT DESCRIBED IN PARCEL 2 ABOVE, INCLUDING THEIR AGENTS, SERVANTS, EMPLOYEES AND INVITEES.
(5) THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE AND OCCUPY PARKING STALL NO. 38 IN PARKING LOT NO. 236 LOCATED SUBSTANTIALLY AS SHOWN ON THE PROPOSED AREA PLAT PLAN FILED OF RECORD IN THE OFFICE OF THE CLERK RECORDER OF ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO, SHOWING THE LOCATION OF THE ABOVE NUMBERED STALL, COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO.
Commonly known and numbered as: 13800 E. Marina Dr., Apt. 201, Aurora, CO 80014 And assessor’s schedule or parcel no.: 1975-31-2-22-087
Dated: October 11, 2022
Attorney for Plaintiff: Russell J. Sprague, Atty. Reg. 40558 CLINE WILLIAMS WRIGHT JOHNSON & OLDFATHER, L.L.P. 215 Mathews Street, Suite 300 Fort Collins, CO 80524
Phone: (970) 221-2637
Facsimile: (970) 221-2638
E-mail: rsprague@clinewilliams.com
First Publication: October 20, 2022
Final Publication: November 17, 2022
Sentinel
EASTPARK70 METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
NOTICE CONCERNING 2022 BUDGET AMENDMENT AND PROPOSED 2023 BUDGET
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to all interested parties that the necessity has arisen to amend the Eastpark70 Metropolitan District 2022 Budget and that a proposed 2023 Budget has been submitted to the Board of Directors of the Eastpark70 Metropolitan District; and that copies of the proposed Amended 2022 Budget and 2023 Budget have been filed at the District’s offices, 141 Union Boulevard, Suite 150, Lakewood, Colorado, where the same is open for public inspection; and that adoption of Resolutions Amending the 2022 Budget and Adopting the 2023 Budget will be considered at a public meeting of the Board of Directors of the District to be held on Friday, November 4, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. This District Board meeting will be held by Zoom Meeting and can be joined through the directions below:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84409700709?
pwd=MzFUTUp3SGRoK0RXTjdreWxSM
GpZUT09
Phone: 1 (719) 359-4580 Meeting ID: 844 0970 0709
Password: 124197
EASTPARK70 METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
By: /s/ Steve Beck SecretaryPublication: October 20, 2022
Sentinel
Instruction to Respondent documents may be obtained from the CMaR Contractor, JHL Constructors, Inc. on or after Thursday October 6th, 2022. Please contact AuroraHighlandsInfo@jhlconstructors.com for access to the Instruction to Respondent documents. Upon inquiry from interested parties, RFQ documents will be made available electronically through BuildingConnected only. JHL Constructors will accept proposals from respondents that represent best capabilities to perform contracting services. JHL reserves the right to waive irregularities in any proposals. Performance and Payment bonds and proper insurance coverage will be required.
First Publication: October 6, 2022
Final Publication: October 20, 2022 Sentinel
The 64th Ave ARI Authority (hereinafter called the “Owner”) will receive sealed Bids for the 64th Ave Extension Median Island Landscaping Project (the “Project”) at 18591 E 64th Ave, Denver CO, 80249 until 10:00 am. November 3, 2022. At such time, Bids received will be publicly opened and read aloud.
A description of the Work to be performed is: Landscaping of median islands on 64th Ave from Gun Club Road to Jackson Gap Street.
Bid packages will be available for pickup after 10:00 am. on October 17, 2022. Send request for bid documents to Randy Ficklin II @ randy@silverbluffcompanies.com . Include company name, contact name, and contact information.
Bids shall be made on the forms furnished by the Owner and shall be enclosed in a sealed envelope and endorsed with the name of the Bidder. A Bid Bond in an amount equal to ten percent (10%) of the total Bid amount will be required. The Bid Bond will be retained by Owner as liquidated damages should the Successful Bidder fail to enter into a Contract with the Owner in accordance with the Bid. Bidders must supply a list of Subcontractors providing $10,000 or more in labor and/or materials to the Project.
Attention is called to the fact that Bidders offer to assume the obligations and liabilities imposed by the Contract Documents. The Successful Bidder for the Project will be required to furnish a Performance Bond and a Labor and Materials Payment Bond in the full amount of the Contract Price, in conformity with the requirements of the Contract Documents.
Bidders are hereby advised that the Owner reserves the right to not award a Contract until sixty (60) days from the date of the opening of Bids, and Bidders expressly agree to keep their Bids open for the sixty (60) day time period. Owner reserves the right to reject any and all Bids, to waive any informality, technicality or irregularity in any Bid, to disregard all non-conforming, non-responsive, conditional or alternate Bids, to negotiate contract terms with the Successful Bidder, to require statements or evidence of Bidders’ qualifications, including financial statements, and to accept the proposal that is in the opinion of the Owner in its best interest. Owner also reserves the right to extend the Bidding period by Addendum if it appears in its interest to do so.
Any questions concerning this bid shall be directed in writing to: Randy Ficklin @ randy@silverbluffcompanies.com no later than November 1, 2022.
Publication: October 20, 2022 Sentinel
NOTICE AS TO PROPOSED 2022 AMENDED BUDGETS AND THE 2023 BUDGETS
Ruthven SecretaryPARCEL 2 – ALL OF THAT SPACE OR AREA WHICH LIES BETWEEN THE CEILING AND THE FLOOR, AND THE WALLS OF THE APARTMENT AT 13800 EAST MARINA DRIVE #210, (FOR CONVENIENT REFERENCE NUMBERED AS UNIT 27128 IN BUILDING NO. 236), NOW OR HEREAFTER CONSTRUCTED ON SAID LOT, SAID BUILDING BEING LOCATE SUBSTANTIALLY AS SHOWN ON THE AREA PLAT PLAN FILED OF RECORD IN THE OFFICE OF THE CLERK AND RECORDER OF THE COUNTY OF ARAPAHOE, STATE OF COLORADO, IN BOOK 69 AT PAGE 27-32.
PARCEL 3 – AND UNDIVIDED 1/72ND INTEREST IN AND TO THE BUILDING AND EQUIPMENT THEREIN INSTALLED AND APPURTENANT THERETO WITHIN WHICH THE ABOVE DESCRIBED SPACE OR AREA IS LOCATED.
PARCEL 4 – AND UNDIVIDED 1/432ND INTEREST IN AND TO LOT 7, BLOCK 1, FILING #1, HEATHER GARDENS SEVILLE SUBDIVISION, COUNTY OF
INVITATION TO BID
THE AURORA HIGHLANDS FILING-9 ROADWAYS AND DRAINAGE CHANNEL
JHL Constructors on behalf of the Aerotropolis Area Coordinating District (AACMD), a quasi-municipal corporation and political subdivision of the State of Colorado, notifies all qualified persons/companies that proposals will be received for contracting work and services in connection with the Filing 9 Roadways and Drainage Channel improvements at The Aurora Highlands in Aurora, CO. This request for proposal includes work associated with roadways and drainage channel as follows: Asphalt pavement, sidewalks, curb & gutter, edge drain, signage & striping, storm drainpipe, rip rap, trickle channel, forebays, outlet structures, pond maintenance paths, box culverts, electrical. JHL will be the representative for the metro district for the work. Electronic submission of proposals must be submitted and received by JHL at AuroraHighlandsInfo@jhlconstructors.com on or before 2:00 p.m. MST on October 27th, 2022.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that amended 2022 and proposed 2023 budgets have been submitted to Pioneer Hills Metropolitan District. A copy of such proposed budgets have been filed at the office of Pinnacle Consulting Group, Inc., 550 West Eisenhower Blvd., Loveland, Colorado 80537, where the same is open for public inspection. The Board of Directors will consider the adoption of the proposed budgets of the District at a Special Meeting of Pioneer Hills Metropolitan District to be held via teleconference on Monday, November 14, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. Any interested elector of Pioneer Hills Metropolitan District may inspect the proposed budgets at the offices of Pinnacle Consulting Group, Inc., 550 West Eisenhower Blvd., Loveland, CO 80537 and file or register any objections at any time prior to the final adoption of the budget.
BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS: PIONEER HILLS METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
By: /s/ Jordan Wood, AdministratorPublication: October 20, 2022 Sentinel
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
the particular proceeding.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
SORREL RANCH METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
the particular proceeding.
NOTICE CONCERNING 2022 BUDGET AMENDMENT AND PROPOSED 2023 BUDGET
Docket No. CD23-1-000
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to all interested parties that the necessity has arisen to amend the Sorrel Ranch Metropolitan District 2022 Budget and that a proposed 2023 Budget has been submitted to the Board of Directors of the Sorrel Ranch Metropolitan District; and that copies of the proposed Amended 2022 Budget and 2023 Budget have been filed at the District’s offices, 141 Union Boulevard, Suite 150, Lakewood, Colorado, where the same is open for public inspection; and that adoption of Resolutions Amending the 2022 Budget and Adopting the 2023 will be considered at a public meeting of the Board of Directors of the District on Tuesday, November 1, 2022 at 6:30 p.m. This District Board meeting will be held via Zoom:
NOTICE OF PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF A QUALIFYING CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY AND SOLICITING COMMENTS AND MOTIONS TO INTERVENE (October 6, 2022)
On October 3, 2022, the City of Aurora, Colorado, filed a notice of intent to construct a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, pursuant to section 30 of the Federal Power Act (FPA). The proposed Gun Club Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project would have an installed capacity of 56 kilowatts (kW), and would be located along a municipal water supply pipeline in Aurora, Arapahoe County, Colorado.
Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84973097188?
pwd=bnhEZW5taUk2KzdDVTBlS0xGNU
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Meeting ID: 849 7309 7188
Applicant Contact: Gregg Semler, InPipe Energy, 920 SW 6th Ave., 12th Floor, Portland, OR 97204, 503-341-0004, gregg@ inpipeenergy.com .
Passcode: 973827
Dial:1-719-359-4580
FERC Contact: Christopher Chaney, 202502-6778, christopher.chaney@ferc.gov.
Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility
Any elector within the District may, at any time prior to the final adoption of the Resolutions to Amend the 2022 Budget and adopt the 2023 Budget, inspect and file or register any objections thereto.
SORREL RANCH METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
By /s/James Ruthven District ManagerDescription: The project would consist of: (1) a 56-kW turbine generating unit within an existing 15-foot by 32-foot vault, (2) intake and discharge pipes connecting to the existing water supply line, and (3) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project would have an estimated annual generation of approximately 255,000 kilowatt-hours.
Publication: October 20, 2022
A qualifying conduit hydropower facility is one that is determined or deemed to meet all the criteria shown in the table below.
Sentinel
THE COMMONS AT EASTCREEK METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
NOTICE CONCERNING 2022 BUDGET
AMENDMENT
AND PROPOSED 2023 BUDGET
Table 1: Criteria for Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility (Y/N) FPA 30(a)(3)(A) The conduit the facility uses is a tunnel, canal, pipeline, aqueduct, flume, ditch, or similar manmade water conveyance that is operated for the distribution of water for agricultural, municipal, or industrial consumption and not primarily for the generation of electricity. Y
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(i)
The facility is constructed, operated, or maintained for the generation of electric power and uses for such generation only the hydroelectric potential of a non-federally owned conduit.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to all interested parties that the necessity has arisen to amend The Commons at East Creek Metropolitan District 2022 Budget and that proposed 2023 Budget have been submitted to the Board of Directors of The Commons at East Creek Metropolitan District; and that copies of the proposed Amended 2022 Budget and 2023 Budget have been filed at the District’s offices, 141 Union Boulevard, Suite 150, Lakewood, Colorado, where the same is open for public inspection; and that adoption of Resolutions
Y FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(ii) The facility has an installed capacity that does not exceed 40 megawatts. Y FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(iii) On or before August 9, 2013, the facility is not licensed, or exempted from the licensing requirements of Part I of the FPA.
Y
Amending the 2022 Budget and Adopting the 2023 Budget will be considered at a public hearing of the Board of Directors of the District to be held on Monday, October 31, 2022, at 10:00 A.M. This District Board meeting will be held via Zoom without any individuals (neither Board Representatives nor the general public) attending in person.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86267550643?
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Meeting ID: 862 6755 0643
Passcode: 987572
Preliminary Determination: The proposed Gun Club Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project will not alter the primary purpose of the conduit, which is to transport water for municipal consumption. Therefore, based upon the above criteria, Commission staff preliminarily determines that the operation of the project described above satisfies the requirements for a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, which is not required to be licensed or exempted from licensing.
Call In Number: 1-719-359-4580
Any elector within the District may, at any time prior to the final adoption of the Resolutions to Amend the 2022 Budget and adopt the 2023 Budget, inspect and file or register any objections thereto.
Comments and Motions to Intervene: Deadline for filing comments contesting whether the facility meets the qualifying criteria is 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
THE COMMONS AT EAST CREEK METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
Deadline for filing motions to intervene is 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
By /s/Peggy Ripko SecretaryPublication: October 20, 2022
Sentinel
Anyone may submit comments or a motion to intervene in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.210 and 385.214. Any motions to intervene must be received on or before the specified deadline date for
City of Aurora, Colorado
Docket No. CD23-1-000
Filing and Service of Responsive Documents: All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the “COMMENTS CONTESTING QUALIFICATION FOR A CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY” or “MOTION
NOTICE OF PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF A QUALIFYING CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY AND SOLICITING COMMENTS AND MOTIONS TO INTERVENE (October 6, 2022)
On October 3, 2022, the City of Aurora, Colorado, filed a notice of intent to construct a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, pursuant to section 30 of the Federal Power Act (FPA). The proposed Gun Club Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project would have an installed capacity of 56 kilowatts (kW), and would be located along a municipal water supply pipeline in Aurora, Arapahoe County, Colorado.
Applicant Contact: Gregg Semler, InPipe Energy, 920 SW 6th Ave., 12th Floor, Portland, OR 97204, 503-341-0004, gregg@ inpipeenergy.com .
FERC Contact: Christopher Chaney, 202502-6778, christopher.chaney@ferc.gov.
Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility
Description: The project would consist of:
(1) a 56-kW turbine generating unit within an existing 15-foot by 32-foot vault, (2) intake and discharge pipes connecting to the existing water supply line, and (3) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project would have an estimated annual generation of approximately 255,000 kilowatt-hours.
A qualifying conduit hydropower facility is one that is determined or deemed to meet all the criteria shown in the table below.
TO INTERVENE,” as applicable; (2) state in the heading the name of the applicant and the project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) state the name, address, and telephone number of the person filing; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements of sections 385.2001 through 385.2005 of the Commission’s regulations. All comments contesting Commission staff’s preliminary determination that the facility meets the qualifying criteria must set forth their evidentiary basis. The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file motions to intervene and comments using the Commission’s eFiling system at http://www.ferc. gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at http://www. ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 5028659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, you may send a paper copy. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. A copy of all other filings in reference to this application must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 385.2010.
Table 1: Criteria for Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility (Y/N) FPA 30(a)(3)(A) The conduit the facility uses is a tunnel, canal, pipeline, aqueduct, flume, ditch, or similar manmade water conveyance that is operated for the distribution of water for agricultural, municipal, or industrial consumption and not primarily for the generation of electricity. Y FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(i)
Filing and Service of Responsive Documents: All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the “COMMENTS CONTESTING QUALIFICATION FOR A CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY” or “MOTION TO INTERVENE,” as applicable; (2) state in the heading the name of the applicant and the project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) state the name, address, and telephone number of the person filing; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements of sections 385.2001 through 385.2005 of the Commission’s regulations. All comments contesting Commission staff’s preliminary determination that the facility meets the qualifying criteria must set forth their evidentiary basis.
The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file motions to intervene and comments using the Commission’s eFiling system at http://www.ferc. gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at http://www. ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 5028659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, you may send a paper copy. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. A copy of all other filings in reference to this application must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 385.2010.
Locations of Notice of Intent: The Commission provides all interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the Internet through the Commission’s website at http://www. ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number (i.e., CD23-1) in the docket number field to access the document. You may also register online at http://www.ferc. gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. Copies of the notice of intent can be obtained directly from the applicant. For assistance, call toll-free 1-866-208-3676 or e-mail FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. For TTY, call (202) 502-8659.
The facility is constructed, operated, or maintained for the generation of electric power and uses for such generation only the hydroelectric potential of a non-federally owned conduit.
Y FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(ii) The facility has an installed capacity that does not exceed 40 megawatts. Y FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(iii) On or before August 9, 2013, the facility is not licensed, or exempted from the licensing requirements of Part I of the FPA.
Y
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary
October 20, 2022
Preliminary Determination: The proposed Gun Club Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project will not alter the primary purpose of the conduit, which is to transport water for municipal consumption. Therefore, based upon the above criteria, Commission staff preliminarily determines that the operation of the project described above satisfies the requirements for a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, which is not required to be licensed or exempted from licensing.
Comments and Motions to Intervene:
Deadline for filing comments contesting whether the facility meets the qualifying criteria is 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
Deadline for filing motions to intervene is 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
Anyone may submit comments or a motion to intervene in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.210 and 385.214.
Any motions to intervene must be received on or before the specified deadline date for
Locations of Notice of Intent: The Commission provides all interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the Internet through the Commission’s website at http://www. ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number (i.e., CD23-1) in the docket number field to access the document. You may also register online at http://www.ferc. gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be no tified via email of new filings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. Copies of the notice of intent can be ob tained directly from the applicant. For as sistance, call toll-free 1-866-208-3676 or e-mail FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. For TTY, call (202) 502-8659.
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary
First Publication: October 20, 2022
Final Publication: November 10, 2022 Sentinel VEHICLES FOR SALE
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table games and the organizations that run them.
That’s because the Colorado constitution tightly governs charitable bingo and raffles through a 1958 provision.
Advocates for such games are seeking to modernize that provision and give the legislature more regulatory control over bingo games and raffles. The effort comes after several years of declining licenses and revenues.
The measure would change the Colorado constitution to loosen requirements on nonprofits that run bingo games or raffles for charities. It would allow nonprofits, the only organizations authorized to run pay-to-play bingo games and raffles with significant prizes, to qualify for a license after three years instead of five. And in 2025, the legislature could change that regulation.
It also would allow bingo and raffle workers to be paid up to the minimum wage, with the minimum-wage restriction being repealed July 1, 2024. There would be no mandate, however, that raffle or bingo workers be paid.
Amendment F
The current prohibition on paying nonprofit employees to operate bingo games or raffles means charitable groups must either depend on volunteers or hire outside groups to manage such wagering. Dropping the prohibition, supporters of Amendment F hope, would make it easier for them to find people to run the games.
Lowering the number of years for a nonprofit to be established could mean more organizations participate in charitable raffles or bingo, meaning they would be able to secure more revenue for their missions.
Amendment F
Relaxing the rules would allow groups to host games of chance before they have established “a reputation for integrity and legitimacy,” the Independence Institute said in recommending a “no” vote on the measure.
The Libertarian group’s voter guide also says “the whole matter seems like an oddly specific thing to be dealt with in the state constitution in the first place.”
One thing you should know
Constitutional measures must receive at least 55% of the vote to be enacted. A similar measure in 2020 received only 52.4%.
The Charitable Gaming Issue Committee, run by Kyle, hasn’t reported raising or spending any money, and no group is registered to oppose Amendment F.
Amendment E:
Colorado’s homestead property tax exemption
Amendment E would extend a property tax break to Gold Star spouses, who are the survivors of U.S. service members who died in the line of duty or of veterans who died as a result of a service-related injury or disease.
Colorado’s homestead exemption, which reduces the amount of property tax a homeowner owes, currently is available to people 65 years and older who have lived in their home for 10 years or longer. It is also available to veterans with a service-related permanent disability.
Last year, more than 266,000 older Coloradans and over 9,000 veterans claimed homestead exemptions.
Amendment E would simply extend the benefit to Gold Star spouses, too.
Here’s what you need to know about Amendment E: What it would do
Amendment E was referred to the ballot this year by the Legislature through the unanimous passage of House Resolution 1003.
The homestead exemption is in the state constitution. It exempts 50% of the first $200,000 of a home’s value from taxation. The state Legislature can adjust the $200,000 amount to either increase or decrease the homestead exemption.
This table, compiled by nonpartisan legislative staff, shows the benefit of the homestead property tax exemption.
Around 490 Gold Star spouses who do not otherwise qualify for the exemption would be eligible under the amendment, the legislature’s Legislative Council estimates. They would save on average between $480 to $630 each year under the expanded exemption.
The amendment would increase state spending by approximately $288,000 in fiscal year 2023-24 — which begins on July 1, 2023 — to cover reimbursements under the expanded benefit.
Proponents say the amendment would help Gold Star families meet their financial needs, which can be particularly difficult after losing a spouse.
State Rep. Mark Baisley, R-Woodland Park, who co-sponsored the resolution that put Amendment E on the ballot, said the measure represents an important opportunity to help military families throughout the state.
“This is something that we can do as a thank you to those Gold Star spouses who surrendered so much for the rest of us, for our freedoms, and to make life a little bit more comfortable for them in their retirement years when they don’t have their partner anymore to share in in the cost of living for their homes,” Baisley said.
There is no organized opposition to the amendment. Some critics have said the amendment only provides support for spouses who have the financial capacity to own homes.
The homestead exemption for permanently disabled veterans is meant to financially assist them with the employment and income barriers they may face as a result of their disability. Some say the spouses may not face the same employment challenges, according to the state ballot information booklet.
When a permanently disabled veteran dies, their spouse can keep the tax break under current homestead exemption law. However, the same does not apply to the spouse of an individual killed while serving in the military. This amendment would include the latter situation to qualify for the exemption.
Also, passing a constitutional amendment requires 55% of voters’ support to pass.
There is no organized support for or opposition to the amendment, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Colorado could become the second state after Oregon to allow the use of certain psychedelic substances that are illegal under federal law.
But while Oregon voters in 2020 approved the supervised use of psychedelic mushrooms, the citizen initiative on the Colorado ballot in November goes further. Proposition 122 would allow the personal use of psilocybin mushrooms and certain plant-based psychedelic substances by adults 21 and over but would ban sales except in licensed “healing centers,” where people could ingest them under the supervision of trained facilitators.
The psychedelic substances, which can alter a person’s perception and cause hallucinations, are Schedule I controlled substances, which is the federal classification given to drugs deemed to have a high potential for abuse and serve no legitimate medical purpose. However, a still-developing body of research has found that psychedelic mushrooms may have health benefits, such as treating depression.
As of June, 15 cities and other local U.S. jurisdictions have decriminalized possession of psilocybin or deprioritized the policing, prosecution, or arrest of users. Denver’s 2019 voter-approved initiative made the adult possession and use of psilocybin mushrooms the city’s lowest law enforcement priority, and it prohibited the spending of
resources on enforcing related penalties.
Here are five key things to absorb about the initiative in Colorado:
ONE: What does the Colorado initiative do?
Proposition 122 is one of 11 statewide ballot measures that Colorado voters will decide in the Nov. 8 general election. The measure would allow adults to grow, possess, and use mushrooms containing the chemicals psilocybin and psilocin, and decriminalize three plant-based psychedelics: mescaline (though it specifically excludes the peyote cactus), ibogaine (from the root bark of the iboga tree), and dimethyltryptamine (a compound in ayahuasca brew). It also would require the state to create regulations for facilities where adults 21 and older can buy and take the psychedelics under supervision. Selling the drugs outside of those facilities would remain illegal.
The measure sets a timeline for the regulatory process and facilities to be operational by late 2024 for psilocybin, and the state could expand the list of psychedelic substances to include mescaline, ibogaine, and dimethyltryptamine in those facilities starting in 2026. If voters approve the initiative, people who use those psychedelics would be protected from professional discipline or losing public benefits, and criminal records of past convictions for offenses made legal under the measure could be sealed.
The measure goes beyond the Oregon law voters approved in 2020 allowing people to be treated with one variety of psilocybin, called psilocybe cubensis, in supervised facilities. In Oregon, no facilities have opened yet and state health officials are still finalizing regulations.
TWO: What are the potential health benefits?
Supporters’ primary argument for the measure’s passage is that psychedelic mushrooms and plants have potential mental health benefits. Emerging research and clinical trials are studying the substances’ effectiveness as an alternative treatment for conditions such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Proponents of the measure say regulation would increase access for people struggling to find effective mental health care. They also say psychedelic mushrooms are not addictive and pose no public safety risk.
THREE: What are the risks and unknowns?
Opponents caution that the measure is too far ahead of the science, and that the still-developing research should not be used to legitimize the legalization of psychedelic mushrooms and plants for medical or recreational use. They also point out that much of the research conducted has involved psychedelic mushrooms, and that relatively little is known about the effects of mescaline, ibogaine, and dimethyltryptamine.
According to officials at the Justice Department’s National Drug Intelligence Center, ingesting psilo-
cybin can produce negative physical effects, such as vomiting, weakness, and lack of coordination, along with negative psychological effects, such as being unable to distinguish fantasy from reality. Psilocybin can trigger episodes of psychosis, so people with a personal or family history of psychosis are generally excluded from studies. Psilocybin can also exacerbate heart conditions.
Many people claim that because psilocybin is derived from plants (technically, fungi) it is safer than pharmaceutical drugs created in a lab. This distinction has no basis. Many plants are poisonous, and many pharmaceutical drugs are derived from natural substances.
FOUR: What does the science say?
Initial studies have found that psilocybin can help treatment-resistant depression or anxiety and depression in patients with terminal illnesses. While the findings are promising, researchers caution that larger sample sizes and additional research are needed to understand psilocybin’s neurobiological factors and long-term effects. In 2019, the FDA called psilocybin a “breakthrough therapy,” a designation meant to speed up development of promising drugs. No psychedelics have been approved for medical use so far.
Of the drugs being considered in the Colorado initiative, psilocybin is the most studied. Clinical trials have tested psilocybin in combination with therapy. Unlike antidepressants, which must be taken regularly, psilocybin has been shown to have durable treatment effects after just one, two, or three doses. It is unclear whether psilocybin has any health benefits outside the psilocybin-assisted therapy protocols used in clinical studies.
Some research findings show that psilocybin-assisted therapy can be useful in treating substance use disorders, including nicotine and alcohol addiction. Clinical trials for mescaline, ibogaine, and dimethyltryptamine are still in preliminary stages.
FIVE: Will this sprout another industry like marijuana?
Because psilocybin is naturally occurring, people tend to assume its path to legalization will follow that of cannabis. However, the compounds have key differences in the way they affect people. Psilocybin is unlikely to win approval as easily as marijuana, which is legal for medical use in 39 states and the District of Columbia. Nineteen of those states and D.C. also allow recreational use.
The Colorado measure expressly forbids the sale of psychedelics outside of licensed facilities. However, the potential for legalization in the state and elsewhere in the U.S. has spurred the launch of dozens of companies eager to commercialize the sale and treatment of psilocybin. Some are organizing retreats to Jamaica, Peru, or Mexico, where they conduct ceremonies that reflect the traditional use of psilocybin and other natural psychedelics that date back centuries.
1) Opening for an anchor cable
6) Cheater's sound at test time
10) Witchy crones
14) Enlightened Buddhist
15) Animal's abode
16) Parting notice, briefly 17) Two light chasers 20) Settled on a sofa
42) Suffix for extremists
43) Part of a sacrifice, sometimes
44) Swiss border lake 45) Less acute
48) _-bodied
49) Amos or Spelling
51) Titled peer of the realm
53) Does an IRS job 55) !tty-bitty bit 56) Be remorseful 59) Three light chasers 62) Black, in poetry 63) Utilized a doorbell 64) Bit of color 65) "Stop!" 66) "Cut bait" alternative 67) War horse
1) Makes hesitant sounds
2) Length x width, for a rectangle
3) James Cagney film classic
4) Succumb to gravity
5) Alcohol type
6) River to the Mississippi
7) It's wrapped in India
8) Be in session
9) Excursion
10) Classic literary detective
11) Crosswise, on a ship
12) Encircles or fortifies
13) Eyelid affliction
18) Eye drop
19) Act of political backscratching
24) Signaled an actor
26) Shrek, e.g.
27) "Iliad" warrior god
29) Coastal cities 30) In the manner of
31) Due east on a grandfather clock
33) Make unwanted comments (var.)
35) Whom all contenders are chasing 36) And others, for short 37) Fraction of a newton 39) Cashew,
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