DENVER (KDVR) — The Adams County Veterans Memorial, a place built for quiet reflection, was left damaged and vandalized just hours after residents gathered to celebrate Veterans Day.

County leaders say they’re frustrated, and crews are once again being forced to repair a monument that’s been targeted repeatedly since it opened.

The Adams County Veterans Memorial, designed to resemble the World War II battleship USS Colorado, had been covered in flowers earlier this month for Veterans Day.

“We do a great event every Veterans Day,” said Byron Fanning, Adams County’s director of Parks, Open Space and Cultural Arts. “You can take a flower and place it at our remembrance wall in honor of somebody that you want to honor that’s important to your life.”

The morning after the holiday, Fanning said he discovered graffiti on the sidewalk, and a park bench soaked in paint. There was also damage to the plumbing system, which now needs to be pumped out.

“It really hurt my heart,” Fanning said.

Fanning described the graffiti as “gibberish” but said photos of it have been blurred while the sheriff’s office investigates.

Most of the cleanup work is already done. Crews removed graffiti that had been sprayed across the walkway and took out a bench for repairs after someone dumped a bucket of paint on it.

And it’s nothing crews aren’t used to. Fanning say this is the tenth time the memorial has been vandalized since it opened in 2023.

“Some of them are small, just a little graffiti on the railings or on some of the structures behind me,” Fanning said. “But some of them have been rather extensive.”

Hoping to protect the memorial as a place to honor those who served, Fanning offered a simple plea to the public.

“Please stop,” he said. “Please show some respect for who this was built to honor, and for those veterans that mean so much to our community. You’re disrespecting them, and it’s not okay.”

Officials estimate the latest cleanup cost about $3,000. The county is working to install security cameras, and the sheriff’s office is increasing nighttime patrols in hopes of preventing future vandalism.

The county is also asking visitors to report any vandalism to law enforcement.

Metro Denver is leading the country for the share of homes that have lost value over the past year, with 9 in 10 homes down in price compared to only half nationally, according to an analysis from Zillow.

About 91% of metro Denver homes lost value in the past year compared to 53% nationally. Denver edges out other once-hot metros like Austin, with 89.5% of homes down in value and Phoenix, with 86.9% down the past year.

Home prices have bounced around in a narrow band since the peak in June 2022, making it hard to discern the overall trend. Overall, Denver home prices are about 10% below the peak, matching the average decline measured nationally, Zillow said.

The Denver Broncos have won eight games in a row and, after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 22-19 on Sunday, have made their case as the best team in the AFC and perhaps, the entire NFL. 

What a difference one game makes. The Broncos hung on to beat the Las Vegas Raiders 10-7 on Thursday Night Football in Week 10 and all of the talk was about how the sky was falling in Denver because the offense was so bad. That was the narrative that the national media ran with, but others were talking about the fact that all wins in the NFL count, no matter how they come. Those same folks realized that it was a short week, having to play on a Thursday night, and that the team was playing in its seventh game in 39 days. 

Maybe Sean Payton knew the Broncos could easily beat the Raiders, even in ugly fashion, and held back so he can unveil bigger plays when the team really needs them? 

There are many things to consider, but one thing is for sure: that performance against the Raiders doesn’t mean anything now. The Broncos arguably got their biggest win since winning Super Bowl 50 when they beat the Chiefs on Sunday, and now hold a 3.5-game lead over them in the division standings. 

Right now, the Broncos are the best team in the AFC. If the season ended today, the Broncos would have the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs on the AFC side, meaning they would have home-field advantage. While the team still has six games to play, there are multiple reasons why they are the best team in the AFC, not just on paper, but in reality. 

4 reasons why the Broncos are the AFC’s best team

The Broncos have beaten both teams that were in last year’s Super Bowl

Super Bowl LIX featured the Philadelphia Eagles playing the Kansas City Chiefs. Within a span of just 42 days this season, the Broncos have beaten them both. 

Both games were hard-fought, but the Broncos arguably got each team’s best shot in both of them. The Eagles were still undefeated and playing at home in Week 5, but the Broncos left Lincoln Financial Field with a 21-17 win. On Sunday, the Chiefs had their backs against the wall and many considered it a must-win situation for them. The Chiefs, who never lose those games, were also coming off their bye week. Andy Reid was 22-4 in his career when coming off the bye week. 

The Broncos overcame all of that and handed the Chiefs a loss. 

Denver has won its last 11 home games

The best teams in the league don’t lose at home. The Broncos have won their last 11 games at Empower Field and if they can get home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, it will be a very difficult place for any team to come into and play. 

The Broncos have the best defense in the NFL

This is almost not even an argument at this point. 

The Broncos lead the league in sacks and could break the all-time record by a team in that category. They are allowing only 17.4 points per game and have been winning even without Pat Surtain II, who could be back in the lineup following the bye week. 

Defense wins championships and a team with a combination of having the best defense and home-field advantage will be quite difficult to beat. 

The Broncos’ two losses are by a combined 4 points

A case could easily be made that the Broncos could be 11-0 right now. Their only losses are by a total of four points, both on field goals on the last play of the game. 

Their first loss came against the Indianapolis Colts on a 45-yard field goal as time expired. Of course, that was when the Colts got to run the play again as their first attempt, a kick from 60 yards, missed badly, but the Broncos were called for a somewhat fluky unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for leverage when trying to block the kick. 

They lost to the Los Angeles Chargers the following week, but that took a miraculous throw from Justin Herbert after slipping through a Zach Allen sack. The Broncos went three-and-out on their following possession and the Chargers moved into range for a game-winning field goal from Cameron Dicker on the game’s final play. 

READ: Ja’Quan McMillian proving that team would have messed up by trading him

Both the Colts and Chargers are current playoff teams and both of those games were on the road, so they weren’t bad losses. Both games could have easily gone the other way. 

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