All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
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Boulder Housing Partners is now free to close a real estate deal to buy a property for an affordable housing project in Gunbarrel. But concerns about the development were centered more on the process of the land use change, rather than whether it's a good site for affordable housing. Last spring, Boulder City Council allowed the city planning staff to move forward with a proposed land use change after the deadline had passed. At the council meeting last week, citizens and some council members...
Those hit hardest by the pandemic are not often the most vocal, the most visible. A group of eleven people from disproportionately affected communities are sharing their experiences to bring awareness and invite solutions to help the most vulnerable get through these hard times. The COVID-19 Community Task Force was formed in August as a way for Boulder County government and local nonprofits to better understand the daily realities of those who were being most impacted. The group gets together...
A 40-acre property west of Niwot has been eyed by Boulder County for years, prized for its views along the Diagonal Highway and for its agricultural use. This week, it is being recommended for purchase as open space, pending approval by the Boulder County Commissioners. The Parks and Open Space Advisory Committee (POSAC) earlier recommended the purchase. The land is west of the Diagonal Highway, south of Oxford Road. Some of it abuts the highway directly and a portion is west of the Kilt Farm on...
It is hard to find such a wide variety of interests and talents in one person, let alone see them all come together in one book. But Niwot resident Sandi Siegel has combined her love of yoga, mythology, modeling, and the Sanskrit language to create a new coffee table book, "Sanctuary Song." It's based on a poem written between the years 700 and 750 A.D. and features the Hindu goddess Tripurasundari. "This particular story is set to the three stages of a woman's life. The daughter, mother, crone...
Chances of getting COVID-19 are as high, or higher, than they've ever been during the pandemic, but there are simple steps people can take to be prepared if the virus strikes. Research suggests that Vitamin D may play a role in the severity of COVID-19 cases. "I've read a couple of studies that specifically show that morbidity goes up directly with COVID with low levels of Vitamin D," said Dr. Janine Malcolm, a naturopathic doctor and licenced acupuncturist at Niwot Natural Medicine. "Most...
Pvt. Joe Pacheco was a WWII soldier, a father, an American Indian and much more. His son, who shares his name, wanted to honor him for all those things, so he and his brothers got him a banner as part of the Niwot Veteran's Banner Project. "You don't see a lot of praise for those American Indians, no matter what tribe you're in, that had joined the service and fought for their country," Joe Pacheco said. "He, like everyone else, wanted to serve their country." Pvt. Pacheco didn't talk much...
When Karen Quinn took her grandson to look at the veteran's banners in Niwot, she didn't know how he would respond. Her grandpa, and her grandson's great, great grandfather was an Army Corporal in WWI. Cpl. Ivan Henry "Bill" Dart was based in France, where he helped wounded soldiers as a part of the Medical Corps. "I showed him my grandpa's banner and, oh, he just loved it," said Quinn, who lives in Niwot. The two strolled around Cottonwood Square and looked at some of the others, talking about...
A recycled crayon looks more like candy to a child at a demonstration at Inkberry Books in Niwot on Saturday. Most regular crayons are petroleum-based and don't break down well in landfills, said children's book author Pat Kittelson, who wrote "Bixley Baines and the Recycled Crayons." She led the event that featured a simple technique for recycling crayons. "Kids don't have to be Elon Musk to make a difference. There are lots of things you can do right in front of you," she s...
His mom cries every time he heads toward the flames of a wildfire. "She acts like I'm going off to war," said Mountain View Fire Protection District Lt. Chris Queen, who has been a firefighter for 34 years. He recently returned from the Cameron Peak Fire, northwest of Longmont. But his mom may soon be worried again. Queen thinks he'll be back on that fire or another one until Colorado gets multiple snowstorms to help put an end to a devastating string of fires. Queen and other local...
History can be learned from books and films and lectures, but a deeper layer of understanding comes from being in the place where things happened. That belief was what led me to visit Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site in southeastern Colorado earlier this month. I had planned to join dozens of people who signed up to take a bus from Niwot to the site this fall. The trip, organized by the Niwot United Methodist Church in cooperation with several other community organizations, has been...
The spike in COVID-19 cases tied to the University of Colorado last month is troubling, but those who have recovered have the opportunity to play a critical role in saving lives, improving health outcomes, and understanding immune response to the novel coronavirus. Vitalant Blood Donation, formerly the Bonfils Blood Center, is collecting plasma from people who've recovered from the virus. It's being used for a number of scientific studies and medical uses, including convalescent plasma for patie...
Locals seem to be heeding the fervent advice of health experts to get a flu shot this year. The King Soopers pharmacy in Gunbarrel went through three batches of flu vaccines by the end of August, according to a pharmacy employee. That doesn't usually happen until early October. Public health experts are advocating flu shots more than usual, worried that the normal seasonal flu hospitalizations combined with COVID-19 patients could overburden the health system's ability to handle both...
Things will look different when St. Vrain Valley School District students step into the classroom next week for the first time since March. Everyone will be wearing masks, there will be arrows on the hallway floors, desks too far apart to steal a glance at someone else's answers. And there will be plenty of new rules and protocols to follow. The first day of school is a mix of excitement and anxiety in normal times. That's ramped up during the pandemic, leading experts at the Colorado...
The first snowflakes of the season fell like confetti for skiers and other winter sport lovers; a signal that it's time to get gear and bodies in shape. As ski season approaches, a Niwot business wants to make outdoor experiences better from the ground up. Boulder Orthotics does custom boot fitting for downhill and backcountry skiing, helping to solve the problem of ski boots that hurt or don't fit right. "An out of the box ski boot kind of fits like the box it came in," said Bob Egeland,...
The sorghum crop at the Diagonal and Niwot Road looks like someone having a bad hair day. Some of it is standing up, some sticks out sideways and the rest is flattened. Heavy wet snow combined with wind drove the stalks to the ground during the storm on September 9. As days passed, some of the grain has sprung back to life in varying degrees. The crop is causing farmer John Schlagel fits as he harvests the 130 acres this week. "It's a mess," Schlagel said. "It's awful." He expects to lose about...
Spontaneity is so 2019. In 2020, you have to plan ahead, especially if you want to visit Rocky Mountain National Park this fall to see aspen trees shimmering with gold coins or listen to the primal bugle of bull elk during mating season, which begins now and continues until about mid-October. Because of the pandemic, reservations are required and can be hard to get if you suddenly decide to spend a weekend day in the park or want to enter in the morning so that you can enjoy a full day. When...
Complaints are down and mask use is up on trails and Open Space properties, according to Boulder County Ranger Erin Hartnett. "We were getting a lot of calls from the public, like people from at-risk populations, maybe older people, people with underlying health conditions, who really wanted to be out on the trails and weren't comfortable with the lack of masks being worn," Hartnett said. That led to some "unfriendly behavior," according to Boulder County Public Health spokesperson, Chana...
Local restaurants are hanging on thanks to an outpouring of support from the community, Boulder County grants, loans from the federal government and creative offerings. But the first yellow leaves of fall are creating fear for eateries that now depend on outdoor dining. "This is the really important piece; the community has kept us in business," said Michael Tomich, co-owner of Old Oak Coffeehouse in Old Town Niwot. "They have been incredibly supportive." "We have had an outpouring of support,"...
Once a week I help my brother by supervising his eight and 10-year old boys during remote school. Once a week I am reminded how incredibly hard it is. I get almost no work done, but it is satisfying to help, and it can be quite amusing, like when the third grade teacher admonished a student for messing with his virtual Zoom background. "Cool background, but not right now. I love raccoons as much as the next person." I can't imagine what it's like to engage 25 squirming online boxes. My...
These aren't the kind of records that anyone is proud of: Denver hit a new high mark for 25 days over 90 degrees in August, Boulder had 18; the active Pine Gulch Fire is the largest wildfire in Colorado history. Last week, ozone levels were "extraordinary," according to Boulder County Public Health, a mix of pollution from fossil fuels and smoke from wildfires. And, as of last week, more than 93% of the state was in severe, extreme or exceptional drought. Climate change is getting personal....
The Boulder County Sheriff's Office is trying to figure out who vandalized two Boulder County Open Space properties last week where an estimated $100,000 of damage was done to utility vehicles, trailers and prairie dog traps. "I can't recall anything on any open space property to that level," said Carrie Haverfield, public information specialist for the Boulder County Sheriff's Office. "Unfortunately, we do see vandalism, but it's of the criminal mischief variety, graffiti, that sort of stuff....
Thieves made off with a van and food cart from Sancho's in Gunbarrel and then drove it to Safeway in Longmont and shoplifted, according to owner Shawn Camden. He said the vehicle was parked behind the restaurant in the Gunbarrel Shopping Center when it happened early Saturday morning, Aug. 15. "Our infamous food trailer goes around the community selling food. Now that we don't have that, we can no longer operate that business. It's a fairly big tragedy for us," Camden said. The restaurant also...
True or false? Will CU students, faculty and staff successfully avoid widespread transmission of the coronavirus when classes begin next week? The answer will be revealed over the next several weeks as the University of Colorado welcomes back students for a mix of remote and in-person learning. The campus has been crawling with white trucks and vans emblazoned with company names and tasks like engineering, events, electrical, CU Facilities Management. Contractors and CU employees are scrambling...
Editor's Note: An earlier version of this article titled "Local prairie dogs on the move," originally appeared in the PDF version of the Aug. 19, 2020 edition. Vandals smashed prairie dog traps being set by Boulder County to reduce the population of the animals living on the north side of Hwy. 52, near the Somerset development. Boulder County Agricultural Specialist, Amy Schwartz, doesn't recall that ever happening in the county. Schwartz said that the Boulder County Sheriff is investigating....
Admirers left flowers, notes and appreciative comments on social media for the artist who brought Native American images to life from the stumps of massive willow trees along Niwot Road. Artist Eddie Running Wolf died Aug. 5 at age 62. "He put his heart and soul into that project," said his sister Margie Albert. "He knew all the history of what he was putting in there. And knew it as if it was his own history, as if he was that Indian warrior. He put himself into it." Starting in 2007, Running...
Thank goodness for the dog. Throughout the whole coronavirus lockdown, school closing and restrictions, kids in the 4-H Dog Project had something positive to focus on. Leaders got creative with online teaching so that the kids could continue learning how to train and care for their dogs. This weekend, they'll get to show off what they learned at the Boulder County Fair, even if it won't be the event they envisioned when the year started. "She can go super fast, like a torpedo," said 10-year-old...
Editor's note: On Aug. 4, as this issue was about to go to press, St. Vrain Valley Schools announced that the 2020-21 school year will begin with "a 100 percent online-learning model for all students" at least through the end of September. When the bell rings and students settle into their desks in a couple of weeks, teachers will find themselves face-to-face with a lot of unknowns. The invisible threat of the coronavirus puts them in a tenuous position of trying to keep themselves, their...
About now, Clarence Kneebone would be setting up the last metal corral panels, straw bales and exhibit tables at the Boulder County Fairgrounds. For more than 25 years, he's been the man behind the scenes, making sure the grounds are set up so the 4H kids, animals and fairgoers can have a great experience. But the 87-year-old volunteer got his work done a week early this year. There just wasn't much to it with the fair curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic. "It's going to be a whole different...
St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) is leaning heavily on science and medical experts as it finalizes back-to-school plans during the coronavirus pandemic. Health guidance and community input led the district to scale back in-person learning that was presented as a draft in June. The district’s initial plan had elementary school students, sixth graders and ninth graders going back full time, but guidance from Boulder County Public Health and other sources influenced the district’s decision to have all grades start the year with a hyb...
Shirley Olson walks out of the Hover Community Assisted Living Resident, a vision in blue. The 93-year-old is wearing a vest that matches the sky. Dark blue mountains and yellow stars decorate the bandana that covers her hair. A gray curl slips free. Her opulent blue eyes light up at the sight of her sons, John and Paul, sitting in opposite corners beneath a white canopy on the front lawn. Today they are free of the windows and walls that have separated them for most of the past four months of...
Sunny skies and friendly faces were the order of the day at the town-wide sidewalk sale held by Niwot merchants on Saturday, July 11, 2020....
The market for personal protective equipment, or PPE, operates like the Wild West, as Niwot entrepreneur Dave Rechberger explains it. He leveraged his contacts in the medical business and got into the chaotic market early this year when there became a critical need for PPE for medical providers who couldn't get masks and other equipment due to major shortages, supply chain disruptions, fierce competition and unscrupulous actors working under the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic. The owner of...
Food is being served again on the patio of Boulder Country Club. The club's restaurant closed for about 11 days at the end of June when four of its kitchen staff tested positive for the coronavirus. All four employees had mild cases of COVID-19, according to General Manager Mike Larson. At least two are recovered and back at work. The club initially had two cases and, by law, had to report them to Boulder County Public Health. "The health department has been really good," Larson said. BCPH gave...
Everyone should have the same starting point in life. That's what Oliver Fowler believes, and he's taking action to help make it happen. The 14-year-old Niwot resident is organizing a fundraising dinner to benefit the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, an organization that works for racial equality. "I'm just a kid and can't directly help," Fowler said. "But I think it would be cool if the funds I make from this event do go to people who can move our community, our country and our state forward." The...
It's not the school year that parents and students would like, but at least it's better than last spring. That's how several families in the Saint Vrain Valley School District feel about new plans for the upcoming school year. Basic information was released by the district last week, though there are still plenty of questions. Details may be revealed in a couple of weeks when the final plan will be released. "It's school, with only the worst parts," said Ben Goff who will be a senior at Niwot Hi...
Counting votes is a careful process to start with, but in a pandemic there is more than politics at stake. Health concerns over the coronavirus changed the look and procedures of in-person voting and behind-the-scenes processing during the primary election. New safety protocols and robust voter participation have added to the workload of approximately 100 people who work on elections for the Boulder County Clerk and Recorder. The county made changes to its main office in Boulder where ballots ar...
Cyclists don't have to stop and open gates anymore on a section of the LoBo Trail in Niwot. Boulder County is installing cattle guards and re-doing the gates at two places on the stretch of trail between Highway 52 and Monarch Road, west of 79th Street. The arched, metal slats allow cyclists, or people with big enough feet, to pass through without bothering with a gate or touching a public surface. They are next to the regular gates for pedestrians and vehicles, which are still in place for peop...
A significant spike in COVID-19 cases sent Boulder County Public Health looking for reinforcements to help contain the spread. On June 10th, the county's graph started climbing in the wrong direction, with over 175 new cases in just over a week and more since. BCPH has about 25 people on staff who do contact tracing, a critical step in shutting down an outbreak. That wasn't enough, so the health department reached out to the state for more investigators so they could reach all the positive...
Dawn Walton sensed that something was going on. She noticed that some of her neighbors in Niwot and Boulder County were averting their eyes when they saw her. She figured it had something to do with the protests that were dominating the news. People spilling into the streets to express outrage over the death of George Floyd under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer. So she spoke up on the social media site, Nextdoor. "I walk around Niwot often, with or without my husband and children, who...
The fireplace in the great room is cold. The chatter of afternoon cheese and crackers get-togethers has been silenced. "It's just different now," said Cornelia Sawle, owner of the Niwot Inn. Business came to a halt in March when the coronavirus pandemic forced the state to issue stay-at-home orders. More than two months later, things aren't looking up much, even as the economy slowly opens. "We watched every weekend in April cancelled, all the way into October," Sawle said. "We have lost all...
The swings at Lefthand Valley Grange Park in Niwot remain still except for the occasional gust of wind. Yellow caution tape prevents little feet from reaching to the sky, a stark reminder of the concerns still present during the coronavirus pandemic. Technically, playgrounds are now allowed to open, according to state of Colorado guidelines. But the reality of following the recommendations and keeping everyone safe is daunting. They include sanitizing the equipment as often as feasible, limiting...
Budding O'Keeffes and Monets will soon have paint brushes in hand at Sunflower Art Studio in Gunbarrel, though there will be fewer campers than in year's past. Owner Lika Gitis has cut the number of campers in half. She'll take seven kids a week when she opens June 15. She hopes to slowly increase her numbers as the summer unfolds. Colorado allowed summer camps to open this month with limited numbers and lots of rules. Camps that are primarily indoors can have no more than 10 children at a time...
The future of the fields south of Twin Lakes in Gunbarrel is still up in the air. TLAG, Twin Lakes Action Group, had requested a land use designation change to open space to protect the fields from being developed as a site for affordable apartments. The Boulder Planning Board refused to consider the request as part of the mid-term update of the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan, which determines future land use and development. "I think it's extremely disappointing that the board didn't...
The fur is about to fly. One place to see the faux June snow is the Cottonwood Trail, just south of Jay Road and east of the Diagonal. The trail is only 1.2 miles long, but its name carries the legacy of the tree that has been a towering presence in the life of people and wildlife throughout the Boulder Valley and beyond. Cottonwoods touched every aspect of life for Native American people, providing shelter, materials, sustenance, gathering places and spiritual inspiration. In the 1800s a new...
Dozens of great horned owls have made Gunbarrel's Twin Lakes their home for years. See Patricia Logan's video of the owlets from 2018, then read more about the collapse of a prime nesting tree in the area....
The fields south of Twin Lakes Open Space are quietly doing their thing; growing green grass, hosting nests for meadowlarks, supporting voles and mice and the things that eat them, such as raptors and foxes. Kids are racing over mounds and dips at the mini BMX track, people are walking their dogs and admiring the view of the Flatirons. Nothing has changed on the surface, but the long-term fate of the fields is still unsettled and the fight over the status of the land is bubbling back to life. Th...
They were the unofficial, fuzzy, wide-eyed mascots of the fight to preserve the fields south of the Twin Lakes Open Space. But the hollow cottonwood that hosted great horned owls nearly every spring, collapsed, forcing the raptors to find a new place to raise their young. There couldn't have been a more picture-perfect place for people to ooh and aah and get close-up images of owlets. In winter, a pair of great horned owls would nestle into the cavity of a dead cottonwood tree along the ditch...
When historians write the history of the coronavirus pandemic, they might want to add this description of online learning from Niwot Elementary School teacher Dale Peterson, who does Google Hangouts with his first graders. "It's like if you go to a pet shop and let all the pets out of the cages and you spend the rest of the time trying to put them back in the cages," Peterson said. "I have 23 little boxes. One might have his feet in the air or his bottom in front of the camera, another is...
Three out of every four COVID-19 deaths in Boulder County have been in a long-term care facility. Each of the more than 40 deaths in these facilities was a parent, grandparent, extended family member or a friend with a special smile, twinkling eyes, a unique personality and rich life experiences. "It's tragic. There is not a better word. Our most vulnerable and cherished population has unfortunately become victimized by this," said Bob Murphy, president of the Colorado chapter of AARP. It's one...
The day before the Longmont Humane Society re-opened on Saturday, there were a suspicious number of animals already on hold for adoption. The animals weren't being seen by the public. The majority were not even in the building. They were staying in approved foster homes after the shelter closed to the public in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The key to solving this mystery may have something to do with one of the shelter's worst kept secrets. In normal times, the regular volunteers, the one...
