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AM headlines John Kelin
Boulder County Affordable Units May Be Sold
The Boulder County agency that manages about nine hundred affordable housing units may sell more than thirty below-market-rate apartments, in order to address budget shortfalls in the county’s affordable housing program.
The move by the Boulder County Housing Authority could force affected residents to find a new place to live, in an already-tight and expensive housing market.
Boulder Reporting Lab says that thirty-two units in Lafayette and Longmont have been identified for possible sale, and more than a dozen people have already been given ninety days to move out. They’re getting up to five thousand dollars to help pay moving expenses, as well as help finding a new home.
The Boulder County Housing Authority is facing a budget gap caused by rising maintenance costs and administrative salaries. Boulder Reporting Lab says that in addition to selling some properties, the agency plans to increase rents and cut costs associated with property management.
Homeless Shelter Rebrand
The Boulder Shelter for the Homeless has a new name.
The organization is now known as All Roads, with the new slogan, “Leading the Way Home.” Its various branches will include the All Roads Shelter and the All Roads Permanent Supportive Housing program.
Boulder Shelter for the Homeless has had the same name for the more than 40 years it’s been in operation. The organization has grown since its inception, and expanded into offering many services beyond just sheltering.
According to a news release, the organization now provides services like case management, clinical services, street outreach, and programs aimed at getting people into housing.
All Roads feels that the new name describes who their clients are, how they get to them, and how they get into permanent housing.
The changes are related in that day services is also about finding people housing and getting them out of emergency sheltering.
CO Voter Intimidation Trial
Arguments in a voter intimidation lawsuit stemming from the 2020 presidential election began in Denver yesterday.
The lawsuit, brought by the Colorado NAACP, the League of Women Voters of Colorado, and Mi Familia Vota, alleges the defendants violated their civil rights by organizing bogus, so-called “voter verification canvassing” efforts after Donald Trump’s loss in 2020.
It says the effort was an attempt to support discredited claims that the election was stolen from Trump. Colorado Newsline reports that the scheme’s organizers presented an official-looking front that included badges and legitimate-sounding group names, and went door-to-door in Colorado and several other states, in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Enforcement Act of 1871.
The three defendants are Ashe App, Holly Kasun, and Shawn Smith. Colorado Newsline says that Smith was part of a mob that clashed with police in Washington, during the January 6th insurrection.
Competing meetings to remove Williams
The first of two meetings to decide the fate of controversial state Republican Party leader Dave Williams is set for this Friday.
The two meetings are at odds with each other. This Friday’s meeting was scheduled by a Republican party faction that supports Dave Williams. But according to Colorado Politics that meeting, scheduled to take place in a small town in southwestern Colorado, has no agenda, and members have been told they don’t have to bother attending.
The second meeting is by a state party faction that is opposed to Dave Williams. They’ll meet in Brighton on July 27th, with the objective of removing Williams from his post as state party chair. They could also vote to remove his loyalists from positions of power.
Dave Williams has been under fire since he refused to step down as state party chair, after deciding to run for the U.S. congressional seat held by retiring congressman Doug Lamborn. Williams lost decisively in last month’s Republican primary. Calls to remove him escalated last month, after he sent out emails and social media posts attacking the LGBTQ community and Pride month.
Denver Non-Citizen First Responders
The Denver city council has approved a new ballot measure that will allow voters to decide whether non-citizens can serve as police or firefighters.
If voters approve it in November, the measure would allow Denver’s police and fire departments to drop the requirement that applicants be a U.S. citizen.
Voter approval is necessary, because such a law would require changing the city charter.
Gun Law Opt-Out
Only weeks after it went into effect, at least one Colorado county is exempting people from a state law that prohibits them from carrying a firearm into places like city or county buildings, including schools and child care centers.
Douglas County became the first local government to exempt itself from the new law, which went into effect on July 1st. County officials passed a resolution in May allowing firearms in government facilities, even before Gov. Jared Polis signed the new gun safety measure into law.
That new law “prohibits a person from knowingly carrying a firearm, both openly and concealed,” in courthouses, polling places, city or county buildings, and public and private schools, among other places. But it includes a provision that lets local governments exempt themselves.
Weld County followed Douglas County with an exemption last week, according to the Denver Post. They join about a dozen cities and counties statewide to exercise the exemption provision.
Westminster is expected to consider exempting itself from the law at its city council meeting next week.
The city of Aurora is also weighing a possible exemption.
Supporters say “Every local government has unique needs, and our security practices shouldn’t be the purview of the state legislature.”
Opponents argue that protecting people is a job for the police, and that in a politically volatile climate, allowing firearms in City Hall is dangerous.
Temporary Stearns Lake Trailhead Closing
Starting next Monday, the Stearns Lake Trailhead at Carolyn Holmberg Preserve will be closed for about three months.
The trails themselves will be open, according to a Boulder County press release, but the parking lot, restroom, kiosk, and picnic shelter will be closed for improvements. They’ll reopen on October 15th.
During this time, only limited parking will be available along S. 104th Street. Hikers, cyclists, and equestrians can access trails just south of the trailhead.
The project includes parking lot expansion, and the addition of a concrete sidewalk.
The post BoCo affordable housing, shelter rebrand, voter intimidation trial, Dave Williams update, non-citizen cops, gun law opt-out, Stearns Lake Trailhead closing appeared first on KGNU Community Radio.