Lakewood Informer

Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado

Lakewood Informer

Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado

Transparency

Council to Make Resident Petitions More Difficult

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Elections, Entrenched Bureaucracy, TransparencyTagged , , , , , , , 1 Comment on Council to Make Resident Petitions More Difficult

City Council is changing petition law, making it harder for residents to take direct democratic action. These changes come after successful citizen petition measures against unpopular City Council laws, such as zoning. The proposal involves many substantive changes, despite city officials saying several times that this was not the case. The overall effect is to make it harder for residents to raise their voice.

City Attorney Alison McKenny Brown says these changes are codifying “current standard practice”. This is somewhat deceptive because “current” practice is different from past practices. Current staff, including the attorney, made new interpretations of law. Therefore, staff have arguably changed the law, leading to the necessity for codifying current standard practice.

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City Approves Initiative for Charter Amendment

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Development, Elections, TransparencyTagged , , , ,

The Lakewood Citizens Alliance (LCA) announced that the City Clerk has officially approved an initiative for a Charter Amendment aimed at improving public communication, transparency, and community engagement surrounding future large-scale rezoning and legislative land use changes.

Centered around the principle of “Transparency Before Transformation,” the proposed amendment is designed to establish clear procedural guardrails for future citywide zoning actions while protecting the character and stability of existing single-family neighborhoods.

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Lakewood Shifts Blame to RecoveryWorks

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Entrenched Bureaucracy, Homeless, TransparencyTagged , , , , , ,

Lakewood blamed RecoveryWorks for previous problems at the city homeless shelter. Shifting the blame made it easier to get a  Special Use Permit for the shelter on June 3, 2026. Instead of taking responsibility for the problems they created, city staff said crime and people overflow were caused by RecoveryWorks. RecoveryWorks was managing the property as Lakewood’s handpicked, sole-sourced contractor.

The special use permit was approved, which allows Lakewood to continue shelter use with a new operator. Most of the online comments were in favor of granting the permit. However, Lakewood had three misinformation narratives throughout the permit hearing that show they are not acting in good faith:

Shifting the blame
Dismissing crime rates
Claiming no permit was needed

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911 Calls Show Deteriorating Conditions Around Navigation Center

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Business, Homeless, TransparencyTagged , , , , ,

Why hasn’t Lakewood done a safety analysis to show there is no substantial harm in giving the Navigation Center a special use permit? Lakewood is not protecting the current residents and business interests, which is just as important as serving regional homeless. The desire to do good is only half the equation. Demonstrating this use will not substantially impair nearby properties is the other half.

The map above shows the number of 911 calls made to the highlighted address since September 2023. This map is incomplete where property addresses did not match Lakewood database. You can see the high number of calls made to the Navigation Center property compared to other properties in the half-mile radius. 

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Special Use Hearing on June 3 For Navigation Center

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Homeless, TransparencyTagged , , , , , , , , ,

The Lakewood Planning Commission is anticipated to approve a Special Use Permit for the Navigation Center on June 3, 2026. Lakewood staff have already made a presentation in favor of the permit. There are no neutral reports or equal opportunities for opposing viewpoints. While public comment is allowed, the way Lakewood interprets the Planning Commission rules means evidence needs to be presented AT THIS HEARING.

Every public comment that was made in previous City Council meetings is meaningless unless repeated at the hearing. Testimony at the hearing that presents problems with the special use could result in the permit being denied.

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City Staff Pull Wildfire Code Recommendation Following Resident Feedback

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Crime, Entrenched Bureaucracy, TransparencyTagged , , , , , , , , ,

Lakewood proposed, then later retracted, the adoption of a new wildfire resiliency code. Lakewood said the new code was needed to satisfy Colorado Senate Bill 23-166 but the staff memo suggested adopting much more extreme measures than required. The broad impact and high cost led to opposition from the community, which is detailed below. City staff are now developing a new recommendation that will be brought forward when ready, to replace the proposal that was pulled.

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Lakewood Council Enables Personal Advocacy For Themselves

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in TransparencyTagged , , , , , , ,

Lakewood City Council Members gave themselves the right to use the city resources as a personal platform, while at the same time further limiting the voice of the residents. New City Council Policies and Procedures were adopted April 24, 2026.

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Observations from the Navigation Center Neighborhood Meeting

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Homeless, TransparencyTagged , , , , , ,

By Lenore Herskovitz

On April 28, 2026 a neighborhood meeting was held at the Navigation Center at 8000 W. Colfax to explain and discuss the Special Use Permit required for the facility to operate as an overnight shelter. Presently the Navigation Center is performing this service for individuals under a Temporary Permit. The meeting was well-attended by a diverse group. Some had been notified because of their proximity to the facility, others through social media or word of mouth. Young and old residents were present to ask questions and voice their concerns to the City’s representatives Chris Conner, Manager of Lakewood’s Housing and Thriving Communities Division and Paul Rice, the Director of the Planning Department. Chris had been more directly involved with the project so he led the presentation and discussion. There were handouts that provided information about the Navigation Center and the Special Use Process.
Initially many of the comments came from angry residents who felt they should have been notified much sooner. The Navigation Center was already opened and had people living there before there was community outreach. Prior to that,  engagement regarding who would operate the shelter consisted of City Staff, representatives from the West Colfax Community Association, non-competing area nonprofits, Jefferson County and command-level staff from Lakewood Police. So basically by the time this neighborhood meeting was being held the Navigation Center was operational.

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Meeting Move Raises Questions

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Elections, TransparencyTagged , , , , , , ,

Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church says they did not ask the Ward 1 meeting to relocate on Saturday, April 4.

Despite the holiday weekend, the room reserved for the city was open. The meeting remained on the church’s calendar. In fact, church staff reportedly did not even know about the change until the following day, when they discovered a note left on the door.

Ward 1 City Councilors say they remember the church not being available in 2025 and offer apologies for the mix-up.

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False Allegations Lead To Election Free Speech Harassment

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on Posted in Crime, Elections, TransparencyTagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Lakewood confiscated political yard signs without warning or discussion less than a week before election day. Whole neighborhoods were denuded of signs, angering residents who argue they were properly placed. Days later, residents pushed back, protesting for free speech at a city ward meeting. City Council members unjustly accused the protesters of electioneering, even while conducting similar discussions within electioneering limits themselves. Police were called. No electioneering was found. No apologies were issued to free speech, “Vote Yes” advocates for any of these incidents.

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