Denver, CO
Neighbors voice disapproval after hundreds of trees bulldozed in Green Valley Ranch for new Aurora sewer line
DENVER — Construction is, of course, a common site on the Front Range, with bulldozers, backhoes and trucks clearing the way for new infrastructure and homes. But the location of one infrastructure project near Denver International Airport has neighbors scratching their heads in disbelief.
“I was shocked when that 30 feet easement ended up being from way over there to way over there, 120 feet wide in some places,” said Kelvin Klink.
Klink is talking about wide swaths of trees in a natural wetlands area near North Dunkirk Street and East 53rd Avenue in Denver’s Green Valley Ranch neighborhood that were bulldozed for a new Aurora sewer line.
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“Let’s not cut down the few trees that we have,” said Katrina Johnson as she was walking to work.
“It’s extremely unsightly,” Klink said. “The pipeline comes right next to a pond where the pelicans hang out.”
Klink lives nearby and estimates crews removed hundreds of decades-old cottonwoods and other trees.
“If they had sharpened their pencils some, they could have avoided the unnecessary cutting of a lot of trees,” Klink said. “Since it’s benefiting the city of Aurora, and I’m not challenging their need to do it, it would have been nice to have more communication with the community.”
For its part, the City of Aurora says it did host a number of community meetings that were poorly attended prior to launching the project.
“We definitely try to minimize impact to not only the customers in the area, but also the environment,” said Andrea Long, project manager for the First Creek Interceptor Project, a regional masterplan with Metro Wastewater. “So from day one on the project, we worked with environmental specialists on the design team to help mitigate impacts to wildlife.”
Long says she is sensitive to community concerns.
“Oh yeah, definitely,” Long said. “I live in a community, as well. I have young children — we enjoy the outdoors, we love the trees, we love wildlife. So I would never want to do anything to harm that.”
Long says in the end, the First Creek location through GVR was the most feasible location and while its disruptive now, it will have long-term benefits.
“We have limitations from an engineering perspective of where that can go,” Long said. “People don’t think about sewers until their toilet doesn’t flush or they can’t wash laundry or do dishes or cook supper or give their kids a bath. I don’t want them to have to worry about those things. They shouldn’t have to.”
As for neighbors, they’re now promising to hold Aurora and Denver accountable in terms of returning the area to its natural state.
“All the ground that was disturbed is supposed to be put back to the same grade and same condition that it was,” Klink said.
“I just would hope that whether it’s Aurora or Denver that they have a plan on how to rebuild that habitat,” Johnson said. “It’s critical out here this close to the wildlife refuge at the old Arsenal.”
Aurora Water did pay the Denver Forestry Department about $159,000 for the trees that it removed. Because of that agreement, the Office of the City Forester in Denver is now responsible for replacing the trees if it chooses to do so.
The project is scheduled to be completed in May 2024.
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Denver, CO
Two brand new music festivals join a roster of returning events in Denver area this summer
Metalheads, rejoice! Unhinged Festival will visit Denver for the first time this summer, joining new and returning events that are bolstering the Front Range’s buffet-style music scene.
Unhinged Fest will play the National Western Stockyards July 26-27, with a roster of metal, hardcore and post-punk bands like Knocked Loose, Lamb of God, In This Moment, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Body Count, Power Trip, and more (full lineup and tickets available at axs.com).
Despite a sleepy period just after the holidays, the Denver festival scene has ramped up in recent weeks with news of Unhinged and other large events debuting in or returning to Denver; see the retooled, three-day Punk in the Park (July 18-20, also at National Western Stockyards) and the 5th annual Deadbeats Backyard Jamboree (Zeds Dead & Friends, July 4 at Civic Center park).
Englewood, which has seen an inflow of Denver businesses over the past year or two, will also host a music festival, Swallow Hill Music’s first Indiewood Street Festival on June 7. The day-long party, headlined by Kiltro, will takes place near South Broadway and West Hampden.
The announcements belie a wary festival circuit that has gone increasingly niche to attract crowds. Denver does not have a Coachella or a Bonnaroo — two national festivals that feature a wide range of genres and music lovers — but we do have the 25th, indie-focused Underground Music Showcase, which highlights 200-plus up-and-coming acts (July 25-27 along South Broadway), and further afield, the FoCoMx Music Festival, with a whopping 420 performances on 40 stages (April 18-19 in Fort Collins).
Denver has not supported many new, mainstream festivals in recent years, with examples such as Grandoozy and Vertex coming and going after only one year. Rolling Stone this week asserted “No, the SXSW Music Festival Is Not Dead” as organizers vowed that the sprawling, Austin event would return in 2026 with a single week of scaled-back programming (instead of two, as usual).
While it appeared that Colorado was facing some festival fatigue, with individual bookings at amphitheaters and venues such as Mission Ballroom, replacing larger events, that may not have been the case as stalwarts such as Telluride Blues & Brews, JAS Aspen Snowmass Experience, Bravo! Vail and Country Jam joining the new(er) events.
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Denver, CO
More than 100 DPS schools will be closed Thursday as Colorado teachers rally for K-12 funding. These schools will stay open.
More than 100 schools in Denver will be closed Thursday as teachers and other educators plan to rally at the Colorado State Capitol to protest the state’s funding of K-12 schools.
Thousands of educators from across the state are expected to attend the event led by the Colorado Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union.
While some districts are on spring break, others such as the Boulder Valley School District, Adams 12 Five Star Schools and the Aspen School District, have canceled all classes districtwide Thursday as employees have called out of work to attend the rally.
At DPS alone, as many of 1,000 employees have expressed interest in attending, said Rob Gould, president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.
“Our educators, they’re very concerned about the funding cuts,” he said.
DPS, which has more than 200 schools, will keep 30 district-run schools open Thursday by using substitutes and central office employees.
Another 55 DPS charter and innovation schools will also remain open, according to a list sent out by Superintendent Alex Marrero on Tuesday.
The rest of the district’s schools will be closed, with classes resuming Friday.
“While we support fully funded education, we wish their action didn’t have a direct impact on students’ education,” Marrero wrote in a letter to families and employees. “Our goal is to do everything that we can do to keep our schools open so that our students do not lose a day of important instruction due to this event.
“In addition to the educational instruction that students will be missing out on, many of our students count on their schools for social-emotional support, mental health resources, and the only two meals that they will have to eat that day.”
DPS district-run schools that will remain open Thursday:
- Barnum Elementary
- Compassion Road Academy
- Cory Elementary
- Cowell Elementary
- Denver Center for International Studies Fairmont
- Denver School of Innovation and Sustainable Design
- Delta High School
- Eagleton Elementary School
- Excel Academy
- Florence Crittenton High School
- Gilliam
- Goldrick Elementary
- Grant Ranch
- Hallett Academy
- International Academy of Denver Harrington
- John H. Amesse Elementary
- Manual Middle School
- Marrama Elementary School
- Montbello Career and Tech
- Dr. Martin Luther King Middle School
- Morey Middle School
- Newlon
- North Engagement Center
- Polaris Elementary
- Respect Academy
- Schmitt Elementary
- Steck Elementary
- Steele Elementary
- Trevista at Horace Mann
- Willow Elementary
DPS charter and innovation zone schools that will remain open Thursday:
- Charter and Innovation Zone
- 5280 High School
- Academy 360
- AUL Denver
- Cole Arts and Sciences Academy
- Colorado High School Charter GES
- Colorado High School Charter Osage
- Compass Academy
- Denver Justice High School
- Denver Language School – Gilpin Campus
- Denver Language School – Whiteman Campus
- Downtown Denver Expeditionary School
- DSST: Cedar High School
- DSST: Cedar Middle School
- DSST: Cole High School
- DSST: Cole Middle School
- DSST: College View High School
- DSST: College View Middle School
- DSST: Conservatory Green High School
- DSST: Conservatory Green Middle School
- DSST: Elevate Northeast High School
- DSST: Elevate Northeast Middle School
- DSST: Green Valley Ranch High School
- DSST: Green Valley Ranch Middle School
- DSST: Montview High School
- DSST: Montview Middle School
- French American School of Denver
- Girls Athletic Leadership School High School
- Girls Athletic Leadership School Middle School
- Highline Academy Northeast
- Highline Academy Southeast
- KIPP Denver Collegiate High School
- KIPP Northeast Denver Leadership Academy
- KIPP Northeast Denver Middle School
- KIPP Northeast Elementary
- KIPP Sunshine Peak Academy
- KIPP Sunshine Peak Elementary
- Monarch Montessori
- Omar D. Blair
- RiseUp Community School
- Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley
- Rocky Mountain Prep Creekside
- Rocky Mountain Prep Federal
- Rocky Mountain Prep GVR
- Rocky Mountain Prep Noel
- Rocky Mountain Prep RISE
- Rocky Mountain Prep Ruby Hill
- Rocky Mountain Prep SMART
- Rocky Mountain Prep Southwest
- Rocky Mountain Prep Sunnyside
- Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood
- SOAR Denver
- University Prep – Arapahoe St.
- University Prep – Steele St.
- Valdez Elementary
- Wyatt Academy
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