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MorningMagazine_2024-07-03 Philip Armour
Proposed changes to Iris Avenue
Boulder city leaders are considering four unique designs to change traffic patterns on Iris Avenue in North Boulder. The busy corridor saw 345 crashes from 2016 to 2023. According to Denver7 News, 22 of the accidents involved pedestrians and bicycles.
One of the designs would reduce the street’s four lanes to only two, one in each direction, with a center turn lane used by traffic in both directions. Some residents told Denver7 they’re worried that too much disruption of the current layout will increase traffic on side streets.
Boulder leaders want to achieve what they call “Vision Zero,” a plan to eliminate traffic-related serious injuries and fatalities along Iris Avenue from Broadway to 28th St. A final design decision is expected by this fall.
Boulder Chamber opposes plan to close Boulder Municipal Airport
The Chamber’s senior director of policy programs said that decommissioning the airport could end up being a costly mistake. Jonathan Singer told BizWest that it could end up costing the city tens of millions of dollars over many years.
The Boulder City Clerk’s office has verified that a pair of separate but complementary petitions to close Boulder Municipal Airport have received enough signatures to appear on the November ballot.
Singer said that the Chamber is specifically opposed to the measure known as Repurpose Our Runways. Should that measure pass, the Chamber would support the second ballot measure, Runways to Neighborhoods, which would require the city to build affordable housing on the site.
The 180-acre Boulder Municipal Airport supports 299 jobs and generates nearly $100 million in total economic impact for the city, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation’s 2020 Colorado Aviation Economic Impact Study.
RTD Ballot measure
A fall ballot measure will ask voters to help further fund RTD. The measure would allow the agency to keep the tax revenue it collects indefinitely, instead of providing refunds required under Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights.
RTD’s current exemption from TABOR is set to expire in November. According to the Daily Camera, more than $600 million dollars in tax revenues that RTD has collected would be subject to TABOR requirements in 2025. However, if the ballot measure is passed, taxpayers wouldn’t see any of those millions.
RTD officials have said the funds will help maintain and operate the transit system for voters. If the ballot measure fails, RTD could be forced to cut about 20% of bus and train service within two years.
Outbreak of Bird flu among dairy cattle
More recorded cases of bird flu in dairy cattle have been found in northern Colorado, making the outbreak the worst in the country.
Colorado has identified 26 herds with cases of avian influenza, 22 of those being discovered within the past month.
The rapid spread has officials concerned. While chances of the disease spreading to humans is generally low, experts worry that the longer the virus spreads unchecked through cattle, the greater the chances that it will mutate and become more dangerous to people.
According to the Colorado Sun, state agriculture and health officials are working with dairies to identify cases of the virus and prevent the spread.
Breckenridge bans single use plastic
This week, Breckenridge started to implement their town ban of single-use plastic items. They’re following the lead of Frisco, another mountain town which similarly banned those items last year.
Breckenridge businesses are expected to stop selling plastic water bottles, plastic cutlery, and plastic containers for things like ice cream. This is the second phase of the ban, so additional plasticware will be cut out later down the road.
The town of Breckenridge will be issuing citations for businesses that don’t comply.
Some service businesses around Breckenridge and other mountain towns have found alternatives to plastic cups, including giving discounts to consumers that bring in reusable containers.
Colorado as a whole banned single-use plastic bags at the beginning of this year – but have yet to enforce such a widespread ban as these mountain towns.
Federal grant for Colorado’s quantum technology sector
Colorado was awarded roughly $41 million dollars in federal money on Tuesday in order to advance and commercialize quantum technology.
Colorado was one of just 31 applicants selected from 400 in 2023 in the first phase of the federal tech hubs program.
The Post says the funding could make Colorado the “Silicon Valley” of quantum.
This isn’t the first time Colorado has received funding for quantum development. Back May, the U.S. National Science Foundation announced a $20 million dollar grant for CU-Boulder to build a facility called the National Quantum Nanofab.
Democratic congressional candidate Adam Frisch calls on Biden to drop out of the presidential race
A Colorado Democratic candidate for Congress has called for Biden to drop out of the presidential race.
Democratic Candidate Adam Frisch called President Biden over the phone Tuesday, urging him to drop out of the presidential race. Frisch’s concern over the president’s well-being led him to make the call.
Biden plans to meet with Democratic governors today to solidify support after his debate performance last week.
The post Changes to Iris Avenue, RTD Ballot measure, Bird flu outbreak appeared first on KGNU Community Radio.