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Aurora, Adams County, Westminster select new leadership
denvergazette.com, Local

Aurora, Adams County, Westminster select new leadership

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette The Aurora City Council picked the city's current chief of public safety to fill its open city attorney position following the former city attorney's retirement in June.  Pete Schulte, whose selection will go to a formal vote at Monday's council meeting, follows former City Attorney Dan Brotzman, who retired earlier this year. Schulte has worked for the city of Aurora since September of 2021. He is a licensed attorney in Colorado, Texas and Wyoming. He will be sworn into office at the following regular council meeting on Oct. 14. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
First gentleman Marlon Reis sought to ‘craft legislation’ related to wolves, emails show
denvergazette.com, State

First gentleman Marlon Reis sought to ‘craft legislation’ related to wolves, emails show

By Aaron Adelson | Denver Gazette, via 9News In emails obtained by Denver Gazette news partner 9News, Colorado's first gentleman Marlon Reis was in contact with a group that included the governor's wildlife adviser. He wanted to meet to "craft legislation" related to wolves, and the adviser replied they would not meet without him. This week, lawmakers pressed Colorado Parks and Wildlife's leaders about how the governor's office has affected their decisions. The CPW director conceded he was not directly answering the questions. “That’s a very big concern because, in my opinion, that’s how it’s happening," Grand County Commissioner Merrit Linke told 9NEWS, "It doesn’t seem like CPW is making decisions based on science, based on evidence, based on what’s happening in other state...
Denver to consider $197M contract for Colfax transit project; total project cost is $280.5M
denvergazette.com, Local

Denver to consider $197M contract for Colfax transit project; total project cost is $280.5M

By Noah Festenstein | Denver Gazette After postponing the matter last week, the Denver City Council on Monday will consider a $197.3 million contract for construction of a bus rapid transit system that would dramatically reshape the “longest commercial street in the country.” The contract with Kraemer North America would be for the East Colfax Avenue Bus Route Transportation (BRT) project, which will cost a total of $280.5 million, according to city estimates. Of that total, $150 million is funded by federal grants, $28.5 million from the Denver Regional Council of Governments, $14 million from the City of Aurora, $65 million from the Elevate Denver bond and $22.5 million from other sources. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Denver council OKs $6 million contract to Haven of Hope to aid immigrants
denvergazette.com, Local

Denver council OKs $6 million contract to Haven of Hope to aid immigrants

By Alexander Edwards | Denver Gazette The Denver City Council on Monday approved a $6 million contract for a group to manage the distribution of food and provide services for immigrants participating in the city's work program. The vote on the $6 million contract with Haven of Hope was postponed in late August and again last week after councilmembers grilled the Johnston administration and one member said it resulted in more questions than answers.  Those questions seemed to have been answered on Monday, when 12 councilmembers voted in favor of the contract, though Councilmember Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez pressed about the program’s sustainability.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Colorado mother avoids jail after lawyer argues reunification therapist has history of deadly consequence
denvergazette.com, Local, State

Colorado mother avoids jail after lawyer argues reunification therapist has history of deadly consequence

By Chris Osher | Denver Gazette A Colorado mother avoided further time in jail after her lawyer argued that the court-ordered reunification therapy the mother opposes between her youngest sons and her criminally charged ex-husband was being conducted by a therapist who had a history of tragic, deadly consequences for another mother whose two children were murdered. After a contentious, two-hour hearing, Larimer County District Court Judge Daniel McDonald on Thursday ruled that Rachel Pickrel-Hawkins would not have to spend five additional weekends in the Larimer County Jail and suspended her sentence. The judge also halted any additional reunification therapy sessions between her children, aged 10 and 13, and their father until the resolution of the criminal case pending against t...
King Soopers trial: Alleged shooter yelled “This is Fun!”
denvergazette.com, Local

King Soopers trial: Alleged shooter yelled “This is Fun!”

By Carol McKinley | Denver Gazette As gunshots peppered the grocery store, a pharmacist heard the alleged Boulder mass shooter shout: “This is fun! This is such fun!” Sarah Chen, her voice shaking from nerves, told a rapt jury on Thursday that the defendant repeated the shocking statement at least four times. “I grabbed a chair because I didn’t want to die not doing everything I could,” she said during the murder trial in Boulder County. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Aurora officials admit knowing about Venezuelan gang’s activities months ago
denvergazette.com, State

Aurora officials admit knowing about Venezuelan gang’s activities months ago

By Denver Gazette Aurora officials on Wednesday admitted they had been arresting people suspected — though not yet confirmed at the time of their apprehensions — of being members of a Venezuelan gang operating in the metro Denver long before the media spotlight on the city. The gang's activities also "significantly affected" apartment complexes in the city, officials acknowledged. To date, authorities have linked 10 people to the gang and arrested eight, the city said in a news release sent a day after the gang situation in Aurora took center stage at last night's first presidential debate between Republican Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. READ THE FULL STORY AT DENVER GAZETTE
Denver City Council postpones vote on $6 million immigration aid contract
denvergazette.com, Local

Denver City Council postpones vote on $6 million immigration aid contract

By Alexander Edwards | Denver Gazette Denver City's councilmembers on Monday grilled the Johnston administration and postponed voting on a $6 million contract for a group to manage the distribution of food and provide services for immigrants.  More questions than answers had emerged at the council's meeting. The contract would have allocated approve money for Haven of Hope, which would use it to manage distributing food and personal items and provide other services for immigrants enrolled in Denver's Asylum Seekers Program (DASP).  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
‘This is troubling’: Aurora officials heavily redact landlord eviction records, citing ‘work product’
denvergazette.com, Local

‘This is troubling’: Aurora officials heavily redact landlord eviction records, citing ‘work product’

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette Aurora officials heavily redacted public documents related to the eviction of 300 people at the Aspen Grove apartment complex last month, claiming the emails — to and from the city and the landlord’s lawyer — represented “attorney work product.” Under the Colorado Open Records Act or CORA, government agencies can assert certain privileges to withhold information. Examples include proprietary information, personnel issues, for a law enforcement investigation, or "work product," such as drafts. Will Trachman, general counsel for Mountain States Legal Foundation, doesn’t see how Aurora can claim a “work product” exemption on behalf of the landlord’s attorney. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Republican Lauren Boebert, Democrat Trisha Calvarese to meet today in lunchtime business-focused debate
denvergazette.com, State

Republican Lauren Boebert, Democrat Trisha Calvarese to meet today in lunchtime business-focused debate

By Ernest Luning | Denver Gazette Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert and her Democratic challenger Trisha Calvarese are set to face off in a debate on business and economic issues on Sept. 3 in Roxborough Park. The lunchtime debate is so far the only meet-up scheduled between the two major party candidates running in Colorado's 4th Congressional District, which covers Douglas County, parts of Larimer and Weld Counties, and the Eastern Plains. Boebert and Calvarese both emerged from crowded primaries for the seat formerly represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who resigned in March. Republican Greg Lopez defeated Calvarese in a June special election to serve out the remainder of Buck's term. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE