LAKEWOOD INFORMER

Guest Post by Alex Plotkin One of the fundamental jobs that a government has is to ensure that businesses act ethically.  In theory, the government, local, state or federal will pass regulations which keep corporations from exposing thousands of residents to cancer-causing chemicals.  In theory, having learned just how abusive metro districts can be, a government would, maybe, outlaw them? Some cities, such as Longmont and Westminster, have taken such a stand but Lakewood is still working on ways to enable formation of metro districts. Metro Districts are a type of special district especially for developers. It is not a government of the people, by the people for the people, because THERE ARE NO PEOPLE. There is only a developer, making deals with himself to have future people pay increasing amounts of taxes and fees. Not surprisingly, granting governmental immunity and taxing abilities to a developer who is only accountable to himself, has caused problems  (see this district with toxic sludge for a recent example.) On May 6th 2024, Lakewood City Council had a workshop to study a proposed ordinance on Metro Districts in Lakewood.  The ordinance was first proposed in 2021 and it was immediately obvious that it’s more of a “see, we did something for the good of the public”, while allowing the big money they shill for to continue to make profit, at any cost. City Council Members seemed very aware of all the pitfalls of metro districts, asking pertinent questions about how Lakewood could possibly limit...

Cross-post from By Jeffrey A. Roberts, Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition A judge Friday ordered the Lakewood Police Department to release blurred body-worn camera footage of officers shooting and killing a 17-year-old crime suspect in March 2023. The city withheld the video from Scripps News journalist Lori Jane Gliha, contending it was required to do so by the Colorado Childrens Code — which restricts the disclosure of most juvenile records — and privacy provisions in the Law Enforcement Integrity Act, passed by the legislature in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd. But Jefferson County District Court Judge Chantel Contiguglia found that the footage must be released under the four-year-old statute. “I don’t see that there is a choice,” Contiguglia said, ruling from the bench during a morning hearing. “I see that it has to be disclosed with a plain reading of the law.” Read more from CFOIC…

Mayor Strom’s explanation during the May 15th Council meeting demonstrated first-class political spin for why the April 22 meeting was adjourned early. For those active citizens who have shown up to protest at City Council meetings and have been told they “must refrain from audible support”, Mayor Strom and Mayor Pro Tem Shahrezaei issued a slap in the face. They threatened people for clapping between speakers but allowed interruptions to a speaking Councilor. Then they both claimed that security concerns led the Mayor to adjourn the meeting early on April 22, rather than the active heckling that they allowed. The reality is that no safety concerns were cited at the time and there were no efforts to tame the crowd. Instead, there were people interrupting the Councilors they disagreed with. Councilor Shahrezaei made the motion to adjourn the meeting and said “We’re done with you, Councilor Olver.” No matter the explanation offered by Mayor Strom, Strom was not the leader of this drama. Instead, she followed Shahrezaei. Neither of them asked the people who were heckling and questioning Olver to please quiet down. Mayor Strom explains at the beginning of each public comment session that there should be no “audible support” from the public. In the past, one or two people clapping between speakers has been enough for Mayor Strom to threaten to recess the meeting. “We will be recessing if  we continue to have clapping.  Let’s please make sure that we can respect everybody’s ability to listen.” – Mayor Strom, November...

Cross-post from Justin Wingerter, BusinessDen A $60 million blunder along Wadsworth Boulevard that was all but abandoned in January is now a stable, $117 million apartment project and two-thirds complete, its receiver said. Aspen Heights Partners, a Texas developer, broke ground in 2020 on a 352-unit apartment complex at 1225 Wadsworth in Lakewood, with plans to finish it by the end of 2022. Amenities were to include a heated pool, dog park, bike repair shop and golf simulator. That didn’t happen. Instead, millions of dollars in mechanic’s liens piled up and Truist Bank, which loaned $59.9 million to the project, tried suing to get its money back. “Truist has become aware of significant cost overruns, scheduling delays and defects in the course of construction of the project,” the Atlanta-based bank wrote in a lawsuit that it filed in Golden in January. “Additionally, work on the project has come to a standstill due to infighting between the two primary members” of Aspen Heights’ development team. Read more from BusinessDen…

Guest Post from Joan from Lakewood Week of June 1 – personal update on homelessness and immigration housing. So this week I was invited to two different meetings with two different perspectives on homelessness, immigration, and affordable housing. This is my perception of both meetings. Meeting number one 6/4 was the Common Sense Institute (CSI) meeting, titled Egg and the Economy. The CSI is a non-partisan issues researching group that has been on the scene of Colorado politics for the last year. Their breakfast was held at the AMG Dome in Greenwood Village. There was a presentation on CSI latest research on migrants and homelessness by CSI’s Director of Policy & Research, DJ Summers and then he moderated a fascinating panel with Adam Paul (Denver Mayors Office), Paul Scudo (Step Denver) & Heidi Williams with (Metro Mayors Caucus). The panel presented two diffing views on homelessness. Step Denver stated that 70 percent of homeless are substance addiction victims. There were other  fun facts from a report that CSI had released. You can see this report at Common Sense Institutehttps://commonsenseinstituteco.orgCommon Sense Institute and then go to the menu and choose local issues. Look for the report “A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023”. and the fact that stood out to me was that between 2021 and 2023 the amount spent on a homeless person grew from $30,000 per year to $60,000 per year. And that in fall of 2023, Denver was ranked #5 in the nation with fifth largest homeless population. The panel was quite lively and one point that came...

Lakewood agreed to an interest-free loan for up to $2.75 million, for Texas-based developer Artesia Real Estate Investments. The money will be used to demolish the old Sears buildings at 10785 W Colfax Ave. The Lakewood Reinvestment Authority (LRA) Executive Director Robert Smith says the rampant crime at this vacant property justifies using city funds for private property demolition. The number and cost of service calls could not be stated but apparently, Lakewood has desired to demolish these buildings for years. The developer was not present to answer any questions and Lakewood did not ask anything in return, such as affordable housing or even a credit check. Lakewood will spend about 67% of the available redevelopment funds on this project but high property taxes could refill the coffers soon. The loan could also be forgiven completely in return for something like affordable housing units later. LRA Executive Director Smith argues that this loan helps Lakewood because Lakewood will have lower crime due to being a vacant property, rather than a vacant building, for approximately 18 months that it otherwise wouldn’t have. The crime reportedly comes from homeless residents occupying the property. The justification seems to be that demolishing the building is a high-priced equivalent of sweeping a homeless camp. The loan also helps the developer. Smith reports that developers are hesitant to eliminate buildings on their own because it might lower the mortgage value of the property.  There was no word on how a city loan will not lower the...