Gov. Polis Names Three New Members to the Colorado Board of Health

30Sep

Governor Jared Polis has appointed three new members to the Colorado Board of Health, which creates rules related to public health in the state and approves funding for public health grant programs. The appointments were effective Monday, Sept. 26.

Under state law, there must be a representative from each Congressional district in Colorado on the board, plus two at-large members. Gov. Polis appointed the following three Coloradans to the board:

Dr. Christina Suh, representing the 6th Congressional District, for a term expiring March 1, 2025. Dr. Suh has a background in pediatric medicine and knowledge and expertise in immunizations, disease management, nutrition, food security, physical activity, cardiometabolic disease prevention, and environment and its impact on health. Currently, she is the Director of Clinical Content for Phreesia, Inc. She has worked with the Accountable Care Collaborative Program Improvement Advisory Committee at the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. Dr. Suh also holds a Master in Public Health from the Colorado School of Public Health.
Jeffrey Kuhr, representing the 3rd Congressional District, for a term expiring March 1, 2025. Kuhr has been working in local public health for several years, including 11 years as the Executive Director of Mesa County Public Health. He also is an adjunct faculty member at Creighton University College of Nursing. Kuhr received the COVID-19 Pandemic Leadership Award from the Colorado House of Representatives in 2021.
Guyleen Castriotta, representing the 7th Congressional District, for a term expiring March 1, 2026. Castriotta is the Mayor for the City and County of Broomfield. She currently serves as the Chair for the Broomfield County Boards of Health and Human Services and has contributed to the Broomfield County’s public health improvement plans and environmental safety initiatives.

Board of Health appointees must be confirmed by the state Senate once the legislature is in session. The Governor’s appointees can serve until the Senate formally considers them.

“I want to welcome the Governor’s appointees to the Colorado Board of Health,” said CDPHE Executive Director Jill Hunsaker Ryan. “These three members bring considerable experience to the board, and I’m looking forward to working with them to promote a healthy Colorado.”

Click Here for original press release.

Rise in Broomfield Property Crime Shows Signs of Leveling Off

30Sep

A yearslong trend of increasing property crime in Broomfield is showing signs of leveling off, according to crime data from the Broomfield Police Department.

Motor vehicle thefts in Broomfield have risen since 2019, Police Chief Enea Hempelmann told Broomfield City Council on Tuesday. The police department responded to 139 motor vehicle thefts in 2019, 283 motor vehicle thefts in 2020 and 380 motor vehicle thefts in 2021.

The city and county saw an increase in motor vehicle thefts this spring, with 47 reported in March alone, but those numbers have decreased. Twenty-seven motor vehicle thefts were reported in August.

“To see that decrease in just one month is good, because if we had continued at the rate we were at we would have exceeded 400 (thefts),” Hempelmann said.

It’s not always clear what leads to a decrease in crime statistics, Hempelmann said.

“I don’t have that magic wand, but I do know we’ve done a number of special enforcement plans,” she said. One example is a recent night when officers went out on a “safety audit” at Camden Flatirons Apartments, which had seen an increase in property crime reports.

Officers spend two hours walking around and leaving notes on cars that were unlocked, had purses in plain view or had keys left in the ignition.

Those numbers will likely continue to drop throughout the year, Hempelmann said, as the department typically sees higher rates in the summer and lower during the fall and winter.

The department is also requesting funding for a special enforcement team that can focus on and target different types of crime, Hempelmann said.

“Motor vehicle theft will always be one of the topics we have for specialized teams, because a lot of the time criminals are traveling in stolen cars, so if you can nip that a little bit you might be able to control some of the other numbers,” she said.

While Broomfield’s property crimes have increased, violent crime rates – which includes assault, robberies, rape and murder – have remained relatively stagnant, and Broomfield continues to have lower violent crime rates that neighborhing communities, Hempelmann said.

The city and county is also looking at more stringent penalties for motor vehicle thefts, said City and County Manager Jennifer Hoffman, and will bring the topic to City Council near the end of the year.

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Leaders Laud Broomfield Resilience But Warn Headwinds Ahead for the City

14Apr

Companies survived by consolidating.

Broomfield Mayor Guyleen Castriotta and local economic officials all said Thursday that the city and county is emerging from the global COVID-19 pandemic, relatively strong and with a bright future.

Still, inflation and high housing prices continue to drag down the local economy and some businesses are looking at a murky future as federal COVD-19 dollars are diminishing, the experts told Broomfield Chamber of Commerce members.

“We’re doing well but there are headwinds coming,” Joseph Vostrejs, co-founder and principal with City Street Investors, told the Chamber. His group is developing the Broomfield Town Square and hope to have the rezoning approved for the mixed-use development by the end of May.

Vostrejs said the federal Paycheck Protection Program — or PPE —“pumped a massive amount of dollars into businesses” and kept employees working and businesses afloat. PPE funding is running out and restaurants are now dealing with 20% price hikes while consumers are dealing with price increases nearly twice that, he said.

“There are real concerns as these prices continue to go up,” Vostrejs said.

Vostrejs, Joe Zepeda, senior project manager for Wiens Capital Management, and Jeff Romine, director of development finance and economist for Broomfield all spoke at the Broomfield Chamber of Commerce 2022 annual meeting at the Roots Restaurant, 1200 Miramonte St.

Zepeda, project manager for the Arista master-planned development in Broomfield, said the project is “blessed with full occupancy.” Romine added that Colorado is still considered a “mecca” for many people leaving other parts of the county.

Local companies also survived the pandemic by consolidating and making reinvestments. Other companies are still struggling, Romine said.

“As far as an economic perspective, we are seeing a lot of strength but it is very uneven,” Romine said. “It’s all about getting the word out and getting people back into these businesses.”

Castriotta spoke about Broomfield becoming one of the top cities in Colorado as far as liveability and economic growth. She cited statistics that show Broomfield is the fastest growing in Colorado and among the top five healthiest communities in the United States.

Broomfield is moving ahead with several efforts to help the environment including the pursuit of a policy to produce zero waste by 2035, she said.

The city and county is also advancing on providing affordable housing, including Crosswinds at Arista, which will provide 158 affordable apartments in Broomfield, Castriotta said.

An independent Broomfield Housing Authority has just been created to increase housing options for residents, she said.

The city is also working on equity issues, mental health access and in improving transportation options for residents, said Castriotta, adding Broomfield proved it is resilient.

“We’ve been through a lot lately, now it’s time to move forward,” she said.

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Broomfield City Council in Favor of Campaign Finance Limits, Additional Reporting

18Feb

Broomfield currently has no contribution limits for candidates or any type of committees.

The Broomfield City Council wants to create campaign finance limits and implement a stricter reporting period for municipal elections.

Councilmember William Lindstedt initiated the conversation in December, with many councilmembers agreeing it’s long overdue. Broomfield currently has no contribution limits for candidates or any type of committees.

While other municipalities have implemented additional reporting requirements, Broomfield follows the reporting periods required by state statute.

City and county Clerk Erika Delaney Lew said during the Tuesday evening study session that Broomfield campaign finance limitations and reporting is guided by the Colorado Constitution, the state Fair Campaign Practices Act, the Colorado Secretary of State Campaign Political Finance Manual and the Broomfield Campaign Finance Guide.

The state contribution limit for County Commissioners is $1,250 per election cycle, Delaney Lew explained, which doesn’t apply to Broomfield as a Home Rule city. Still, various Home Rule cities along the Front Range have enacted additional contribution limits, ranging from $75 for a council campaign and $100 for a mayoral campaign in Fort Collins to $500 for a district seat and $750 for an at-large seat in Arvada.

Delaney Lew noted Castle Rock, Colorado Springs, Northglenn and Thornton have not adopted contribution limits.

In Broomfield, the vast majority of contributions are to candidate committees, city and county staff wrote in a memo to Council, which represent candidates running for the Council. In 2019 four out of 1,866 contributions were made to non-candidate committees. In the same year, there were 59 Major Contribution Reports filed with contributions larger than $1,000, which accounted for 3.2% of the total number of donations, the memo states.

In 2021 there were 1,321 donations made with 1,253 sent to candidate committees. Of donations to candidate committees 1,195 were under $1,000; 38 donations were between $1,000-$2,499; 11 donations were between $2,500-$4,999; eight donations were between $5,000-$9,999 and one donation was larger than $10,000, the memo shows.

According to campaign finance records, Ben Vagher donated $10,000 to Groom4Broomfield, former councilmember and mayoral candidate Kimberly Groom’s campaign.

Financial reporting requirements differ based on the type of committee, whether the committee or candidate is on the ballot and based on the contribution amount, the City Council memo explains.

According to the state filing schedule, reports are due 21 days before the election, the Friday before the election and 30 days after the election for entities on the ballot. For those not on the ballot, reports are due annually on the first day of the month of the anniversary of the election. Unscheduled reports include Major Contribution Reports, which are due within 24 hours, and Independent Expenditure reports, which are due within 48 hours for contributions or expenditures greater than $1,000 in the 30 days before and 30 days after the election, the memo states.

Various municipalities have increased the required number of campaign finance reports, which come with deadlines in addition to the state’s standard three deadlines. The city of Boulder requires finance reports to be filed 42, 28 and 14 days before the election, the Thursday before the election rather than the Friday before, and then 30 and 60 days after the election, the memo shows.

The city of Denver requires additional reporting in the fourth, third and second months before the election and then every two weeks until the election.

“This is an issue that has received bipartisan criticism over the years, with our reporting periods especially,” Lindstedt said Tuesday. “I think the public and the press and the community deserve to know who’s funding City Council campaigns early and more regularly. We need to clean it up.”

Lindstedt said he liked Denver’s finance filing schedule and said he felt $1,250 was a fair limit for contribution limits.

Councilmember Todd Cohen said he supported a contribution limit. He said that without a limit, it discourages residents without unlimited funds from getting involved. Using his phone’s calculator, Cohen said he calculated about 2% of contributors donated about 34% of the money.

The majority of the Council spoke in favor of the $1,250 limit and Denver’s reporting requirements.

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Broomfield City Council Appoints First Independent Housing Authority

21Dec

The inaugural, independent Broomfield Housing Authority has been commissioned with the first five members.

The Housing Authority was created to advise the City Council on affordable housing and related issues and will replace Broomfield’s Housing Advisory Committee, which was decommissioned by the City Council Tuesday, effective Dec. 31. The Broomfield Housing Authority will begin Jan. 1, 2022.

Of the five unpaid members, three will serve four-year terms and two will serve two-year terms. There were nine applicants for the position and all were nominated for the board during Tuesday’s Council meeting, meaning the Council each voted electronically to select five from the nine.

In the first round of voting, applicants Bob Munroe, Alan Feinstein and Nicholas Rosenbeck each received more than six votes and were commissioned into four-year terms.

In the second round of voting, applicants Joy Castillo and Linda Fahrenbruch received enough votes and were appointed to two-year terms.

“The fact that we have so many interested and qualified residents is what makes Broomfield such a great place to live,” Mayor Guyleen Castriotta said prior to the Council’s vote.

The city and county was looking for board members with a diverse range of experiences, including housing development/management, development finance, housing policy and advocacy and lived experience with housing insecurity.

Munroe has lived in Broomfield for 24 years and currently serves on Broomfield’s Health and Human Services Advisory Committee. He’s worked in affordable and attainable housing finance and development since 1997, his application states. From 2012-2020 he served as a founding partner in Solvera Affordable Housing Advisors, a financial services and real estate development firm that serves nonprofit and housing authority-owner/operators of affordable rental housing.

Feinstein has lived in Broomfield for 10 years and currently serves on Broomfield’s Health and Human Services Advisory Committee. He has worked for housing authorities in Boulder and Jefferson counties and Englewood spanning 38 years and was an original member of Broomfield’s Housing Advisory Committee.

“I have worked with seniors, families, handicapped and disabled persons who all had experience in housing insecurity, poverty or homelessness during my 38 years of work experience,” his application reads.

Rosenbeck has lived in Broomfield for one year and currently works for a Denver general contractor that builds affordable housing, his application states.

“In being involved with affordable projects it has afforded me the opportunity to gain a broad knowledge of construction and affordable housing,” his application continues. He works in construction estimating and helps establish and maintain budgets for affordable housing projects, including projects that have received tax credits.

Castillo has lived in Broomfield for eight years and has spent the last year on the Broomfield Housing Advisory Committee.

“I feel like between the 18 years I spent housing insecure and my 20 year long real estate career, I have a lot to add to conversations about housing-specifically to affordable and attainable housing,” she wrote in her application, later adding, “In short, no community can truly thrive without all its members’ ability to access housing.”

No community can thrive without all members having the ability to access housing, she added.

Fahrenbruch has lived in Broomfield for 43 years and currently served on Broomfield’s Health and Human Services Advisory Committee. She has experience in the finance of tax credit projects.

“I have had a passion for housing for a long time. I believe everyone is entitled to a place to call home,” her application reads. “I also believe that along with that, we should facilitate a sense of ownership and responsibility among those who seek assistance with housing.”

Residents Seth Patterson, Susan Speece and Logan Langenhuizan also applied for one of the five spots but did not receive enough votes from Council. Applications can be viewed online.

The Housing Authority will be funded through a grant from the city and county.

“One of the sources of the funds for the initial, and potential future grants will be proceeds from cash-in-lieu payments, which are held in a fund established with the passage of the Inclusionary Housing Zoning Ordinance 2100,” the corresponding council memo explains.

The estimated cash-in-lieu balance projected as of Jan. 1, 2022 is about $4,159,425, and the anticipated amount to be allocated and transferred to the Housing Authority would be $3 million, the memo states.

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The Chimney Hollow Reservoir Project

16Nov

A New and Much-Needed Reservoir

The Chimney Hollow Reservoir Project is a collaborative effort by 12 Northeastern Colorado water providers to improve the reliability of the Windy Gap Project. Chimney Hollow Reservoir will be located just west of Carter Lake in Larimer County. Its 90,000 acre-feet of dedicated storage capacity will supply a reliable 30,000 acre-feet of water each year for future generations. Construction began in August 2021.

This project will not take water away from irrigated agriculture or other users, but will utilize the water rights currently associated with the existing Windy Gap Project, which has been delivering water since 1985. Once built, Chimney Hollow Reservoir will provide the additional storage needed to improve the Windy Gap Project’s reliability for its participants and constituents.

The Windy Gap Firming Project (of which Chimney Hollow Reservoir is the major component), was reviewed and approved under the National Environmental Policy Act. NEPA, state and local approvals and requirements, plus substantial negotiations, will result in robust mitigation, enhancements and protection for fish, wildlife and the environment, to address the project’s impacts.

Click Here for Chimney Hollow Resevior Project main informational website

Guyleen Castriotta Wins Broomfield Mayoral Race

02Nov

A slate of six candidates in Broomfield’s City Council race won election Tuesday after winning endorsements from the state’s Democratic party.

Incumbent Mayor Guyleen Castriotta won the race over opponent and Councilwoman Kimberly Groom. According to unofficial results, Castriotta received 52% of votes and Groom received 48%.

Candidate James Marsh-Holschen won the Ward 1 race with 57% of votes, while opponent Chriss Hammerschmidt received 43% of votes. Ward 2 candidate Austin Ward won with 57% of votes against opponent Brent Hultman, who garnered 43% of votes. In Ward 3, incumbent Councilman Deven Shaff was voted in another term with 55% of votes against opponent Brian Peotter, who received 45% of votes. Bruce Leslie won the Ward 4 race with 54% of votes against opponent Mindy Quiachon, who received 46% of votes. Incumbent Ward 5 Councilman Todd Cohen won the final race with 54% of votes against opponent Grayson Hofferber, who received 46% of votes.

All votes received by the city and county of Broomfield have been counted, city spokeswoman Carolyn Romero said Wednesday. According to unofficial results, 23,269 of Broomfield’s 52,716 active voters, or 44%, cast a vote.

Official voting results will not be available until the Canvass Board certifies the Abstract of Votes, scheduled Nov. 16, Romero said.

“Within the next few days, we will receive Broomfield ballots returned in error to other counties, usually a very small number,” she added. “In addition, the law allows eight days for voters to cure ballots that have been flagged with signature discrepancies and for military and overseas citizens absentee ballots to be returned and processed by the city and county.”

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An LGBTQ Victory Fund candidate event for Guyleen Castriotta and John Ronquillo

20Sep

An LGBTQ Victory Fund candidate event: Guyleen Castriotta for Broomfield Mayor & John Ronquillo for Aurora City Council!

September 22nd, 2021 from 5:30 to 7:30pm @ Reelworks Denver, 1399 35th St, Denver, CO 80205Location: Reelworks Denver (formerly EXDO Tracks)

Please contact the campaign at [email protected]
(614) 325-9357 or Becky Christensen at (970) 430-7686 to RSVP. You can also RSVP online at secure.actblue.com/donate/victoryfund2021.

Host Committee (In Formation):Sponsors; The Chambers Initiative, Andrew Feinstein, Congressman Joe Neguse

Hosts; Councilmember Alison Coombs, Kyle Ferari-Muñoz, Speaker Alec Garnett, Josh Hanfling, Rep. Leslie Herod, Sen. Dominick Moreno, Sen. Brittany Pettersen, Daniel Ramos, Rep. Briana Titone, Rep. Alex Valdez

Co-hosts; Erik Clarke, Lorena Garcia, Councilmember Robin Kneich, Javier Mabrey, Comm. Steve O’Dorisio, Dir. Paul Rosenthal, Roger Sherman

Ueda Art and Culture Exchange

19Sep

Tonight I was honored to open the program for the Broomfield – Ueda Art and Culture Exchange! The live event was broadcasted on Zoom with our partners in Ueda, Japan and we shared our community’s art and music simultaneously!

A Sister Cities relationship creates the opportunity to embrace the ideal of promoting peace through mutual respect, understanding, and cooperation – one individual, one community, at a time.

Broomfield is invested in arts in the city and many organizations are working together to keep the art and culture of the city lively. It is our sincere hope that this art exchange will bring additional opportunities to our friendship.

Broomfield values and promotes cultural understanding and inclusion. In fact, our diversity is a community asset. Our Sister Cities relationship helps us cultivate stronger connections that bridge relationships between community members and diverse cultures.

Find out more here: https://broomfieldsistercities.weebly.com

Support Guyleen Castriotta for Broomfield Mayor & Todd Cohen for Ward 5 Council

14Jul

Please join Council Members Heidi Henkel, Laurie Anderson, Stan Jezierski, Jean Lim, William Lindstedt & Sharon Tessier

At an Event to Support Guyleen Castriotta for Broomfield Mayor & Todd Cohen for Ward 5 Council

To Celebrate the City and County of Broomfield Marking 60 Years a City and 20 Years a County

Date & Time: Sunday, August 8th 6-8PM
Location: At the Home of Heidi and Scott Henkel, 14049 Park Cove Drive, Broomfield, CO 80023

Refreshments Provided

Suggested Contributions:
Co-Host $100
Supporter $60
Attendee $20

Can’t attend? You can still support here. https://secure.actblue.com/donate/4ward5