Santa Rides with the Edgewater Fire
Our Stand of Elders
12 Months of Smart Savings Tips
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PRSRT STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID EVERGREEN, CO PERMIT NO. 36
Gazette NEIGHBORHOOD
EDGEWATER
| SLOAN’S LAKE | WEST COLFAX | TWO CREEKS
December 13, 2016 – January 16, 2017 • ngazette.com • FREE
Edgewater Spending Shifts From Streets to Civic Center in 2017 n By
J. Patrick O’Leary
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dgewater approved its 2017 budget on Dec. 1 and ushered in a new chapter in infrastructure projects, as well as gave its police force a needed raise. “The most significant change is the completion of the street paving and sidewalk project that we have been spending over $1 million per year on and adding the initial costs of constructing the Civic Center,” City Manager H.J. Stalf told the Neighborhood Gazette. Four out of five Edgewater voters approved a November ballot measure that allows the city to go up to $9.9 million in debt to finance a new civic center on a portion of Walker Branch Park, housing a new library, fitness center, city offices and police station. Public hearings on the project will begin in January. In recent years, funding has not been a problem for the city. Edgewater’s long-overdue street maintenance program was substantially completed in 2016, paid almost entirely by sales tax revenue from retail marijuana sales, according to a Nov. 10 budget letter to the mayor and city council. Although sales and use tax revenues have been growing – 17 percent from 2014 to 2015, and an estimated 15 percent this year – the document identified that marijuana revenues could be reduced if neighboring Denver allowed its cannabis vendors to increase retail hours, or if the Federal government (under a new administration) moves to curtail sales activity. n
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WHO’S GOT THE BEST HOLIDAY LIGHTS in Edgewater? Parks and Recreation will deck the winners with gift cards on Dec. 22 when they judge the annual decorating contest. PHOTO: JOEL NEWTON
An Oasis in the Local Food Desert n By
D
Sally Griffin
o you live in a food desert? A food desert is defined as “an urban area in which it is difficult to buy affordable or good quality fresh food.” Many poor people live in food deserts – where they have plenty of food, but none of it healthy. According to a policy study done by the University of Denver’s Institute for Public Studies, the Denver metro area has a number of neighborhoods with limited access to full-service grocery stores or supermarkets. Residents have little or no opportunity to get fruits and vegetables, but lots of access to processed and fast foods. The results for families who live in these areas are higher rates of obesity, diabetes and heart problems. West Colfax, the area between Federal and Sheridan, reaching from 17th Avenue to Lakewood Gulch (approximately 12th Avenue), is one of several areas in the Denver area considered to be a food desert. It is, in part, because it is a very old business district and there is not enough parking to interest big-brand grocery stores. For those in the community who must depend on public transportation or their own feet, going over four miles round-trip to get fresh food is difficult, especially in bad weather or during busy times on the buses. What do you need in a desert? You need an oasis. Dan Shah, West Colfax BID executive director, and other leaders from the community came together to try to determine the best way to address this issue. What they found is that there is an active
and involved community that would back a community-owned grocery store with a goal to provide easy access to fresh foods. The solution they came up with is the West Colfax Food Cooperative that will reflect the demographics of the community; offer affordable, fresh food from local sources; be accessible to pedestrians and those who use public transportation; offer recipes and cooking classes; and, finally, serve as a community gathering hub.
However, consultant Caroline Savery, who has been helping the group identify best practices and issues for food co-ops, has indicated that people often perceive food co-ops as a natural, organic, expensive grocer, but food co-ops don’t have to be that. What will this oasis be like? Because a food co-op is owned by its members, what this food co-op will be to the community is largely determined by the community. This is why the current board of directors asked
the community, through a survey and focus groups, about the need for the co-op, and what things should be emphasized to get it started. Although the site for the co-op has not been picked yet, the group is in the process of hiring a manager who will help locate and equip an appropriate site. They have talked to two local farmers’ unions about supplying Continued on page 2
N E I G H B O R H O O D F E AT U R E
Get Involved: Severe Weather Shelter Network n By
Joel Newton
T VOLUNTEERS FROM FAITH BIBLE CHAPEL help prepare Sloan’s Lake Community Church for the night’s homeless guests; the church participates in the Severe Weather Shelter Network. PHOTO: JOEL NEWTON
hroughout history, churches have been known for their involvement in education, medical care and caring for the oppressed. In the midst of a booming economy in the metro Denver area, churches are quietly caring for those who are homeless and needing a warm place to stay at night. The Severe Weather Shelter Network grew out of Jefferson County’s Heading Home initiative with a desire to offer shelter to the homeless during cold nights. The idea was birthed in a Heading Home subcommittee to have faith communities open their doors as severe weather shelters. Continued on page 2