Listen:
-
![cover]()
play_arrow
03_10_25_am_headlines Gabrielle Mendoza
Boulder Housing Limits
The Boulder City Council has repealed an ordinance that limited how many unrelated people can live together in a single home.
The ruling to repeal the ordinance came last week, according to Boulder Reporting Lab, and was unanimous.
The new ordinance goes into effect next month. It removes all references to “family,” which critics of the old ordinance said restricted those with nontraditional households, and couples who are not married. Those old restrictions dated back to the 1950s.
Building and fire regulations, among other health and safety codes that restrict how many people can live in one home, will remain in effect under the new legislation.
Debate over housing limits has gone on for years, and council members say they hope the new ordinance will end the debate.
CU Walkout
Hundreds of people gathered outside of CU Boulder this past Friday to stand up for science.
Participants gathered behind the University Memorial Center (UMC) and marched together to Broadway.
The demonstration was part of a nationwide walkout against the federal funding cuts and firings of science workers under the Trump administration. It was organized by Stand Up for Science, a volunteer-based organization that aims to restore federal science funding and “wrongfully terminated” employees, and end the federal government’s interference with science.
According to the Stand Up for Science policy page, they’re also fighting for officials to restore all scientific data, reports, and resources on federal websites to pre-January 31st, 2025 status.”
CO, Seven Others Sue Trump Admin
At the same time, Colorado is one of eight states suing the Trump administration after its abrupt decision to stop funding teacher training grants.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts last week. It names the U.S. Department of Education, Education Secretary Linda McMahon, and Chief Operating Officer of federal student aid Denise Carter, according to The Colorado Sun. The plaintiffs are asking for a temporary restraining order that would allow funding to teacher training programs to continue.
The Department of Education stopped $600 million dollars in funding to two programs last month: the Teacher Quality Partnership, and the Supporting Effective Education Development, both of which help to train new teachers.
Colorado Attorney General Weiser said that abruptly ending the two programs violates the Administrative Procedure Act, which prevents arbitrary decisions.
And in a related story, Colorado Democrat John Hickenlooper last week joined nearly two dozen other U.S. senators in demanding that the Trump administration reinstate some five thousand military veterans who were fired as part of the administration’s effort to reduce government spending.
Veterans make up 50% of the Department of Defense’s workforce, and 30% of the Department of Veteran Affairs, according to a letter from the senators to Trump.
Hickenlooper and the other Senators said the firings are damaging the economic security and morale of the military and their families, according to Colorado Politics. Senator Hickenlooper said there are over 400,000 veterans living in Colorado.
SBA Leaves Denver, Other Cities
The Small Business Administration is moving its regional offices out of Denver and five other so-called “sanctuary cities,”after alleging that the cities aren’t cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
The federal agency confirmed the moves last week, according to The Denver Post, and in addition to Denver, includes moving regional SBA offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, New York City, and Seattle.
The announcement came the day after Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and several other mayors testified to Congress about their cooperation with Trump administration deportation efforts.
Denver has been home to the SBA’s Region Eight office since 1953.
The feds have yet to announce where the Denver office will be relocated to.
Rocky Flats Trail Project
Boulder County Commissioners are weighing a request to withdraw support for a project that would create a multi-use trail through the site of the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant.
The Daily Camera says the commissioners heard from a citizens group who urged them to withdraw support for the Rocky Mountain Greenway, which would be routed through the old Rocky Flats site south of Boulder on Highway 128. The trail’s opponents say Rocky Flats remains extremely contaminated by the plutonium used to make nuclear weapons at the facility until the late 90s.
The Rocky Flats site is now a National Wildlife Refuge. The trail project would connect it to two other Front Range National Wildlife Refuges, and continue to Rocky Mountain National Park.
The Boulder County Commissioners have not yet made a decision on removing their support from the Greenway. The project has already begun, and funds have already been committed to the project, according to The Denver Post.
Humane Colorado
A Denver-based animal welfare group has rebranded itself as Humane Colorado.
The 115-year old organization was formerly known as the Denver Dumb Friends League, a term that reflected the inability of animals to speak. They said in an announcement that the term is now outdated and insensitive.
The organization says the new name “reflects who they are today,” as leaders in animal welfare.
The group said in a statement that while they’ve got a new name, their commitment to ending suffering and homelessness in animals is unchanged.