Two, separate, eyewitnesses confirm that an extended bus of migrants was dropped at the Hometowne Studios at 6th and Kipling, in Lakewood, Colorado. The first report came in on Monday, February 26 during a City Council meeting where Lakewood Mayor Wendi Strom would later say she feared a busload of migrants would show up without prior notice. The news was confirmed the next day by a second eyewitness near the motel. An extended bus is the same as two regular buses and has been described as an RTD-style bus that was painted white. Hotel management has not returned calls. Denver responded that they have no involvement in any hotel in Lakewood. Mayor Strom responded promptly on February 28 that she was not aware of such a bus. A high-ranking city official has said that a private group is paying for the hotel.
Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado
Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado
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Guest Post by J.T. Johnson – Lakewood Ward 4 If you missed the last two Lakewood City Council meetings, you missed… Well, let’s put it this way, if my Mom had caught me doing what I saw at the meeting, I would have been sent to my room without any dinner. Let’s start with the February 12 meeting: Perhaps the most disconcerting and substantive financial part of the meeting came about as a result of questions posed by Councilor Rein to the City Planning Office and the State’s representative providing the grant. According to the City Planning Office, the taxpayers are on the hook for $2M – $2.5 of operating expenses each year. (The City’s own financial documentation indicates the operating costs will be much higher, but let’s use the Planning Office numbers for now.) He went on to say that any decision of the Council to accept the $9M grant would “not be binding on future Councils.” I believe most legal scholars would disagree with the City Planner and state that future Councils will be bound by grant conditions and the “strings” attached to the grant. A future Council could elect to breach – but that always comes with a price tag. Query: Where was the City Attorney while the City Planning Office was providing legal advice to the Council? She sat there and didn’t say a word. Following the Planning Office comments, the grant representative from the State said that a contract would be negotiated with the City...
Does the Lakewood Police Department (LPD) check the ICE database when making arrests, as was common practice before Colorado became a sanctuary state? Would Lakewood Police release a person charged with a crime before Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE could file a detainer, as happened in Georgia with Laken Riley? What does Lakewood PD do if they find someone with uncertain immigration status? What are the processes and policies for Lakewood to cooperate with ICE? From January 17 to February 7, a series of questions and open records requests were submitted to Lakewood PD to answer these questions. The intent was to establish whether Lakewood was cooperating with ICE or acting as a sanctuary city. After almost a full month, on Feb 12 at 5:15, right before the big City Council meeting at 7pm, Patrick Freeman, the Senior Police Legal Advisor for the Lakewood PD, called to say they couldn’t understand what was being requested. He said policies were online and could be found there – exact page unspecified. So after emails dated January 17, 24, Feb 7, registered mail and phone calls, the answer was to find the answer yourself on an unindexed website. Can you find the answers to these questions in one of the links, sub-links, etc. below. Yes, this is a list of approximately 600 links that is the self-service method to answering citizen requests regarding policy. Freeman repeatedly stressed that he was not trying to be difficult, he just couldn’t understand the request. This is...
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In response to news about the letter from the Metro Mayors (see explanation here) Lakewood Mayor Wendi Strom said she was passionate about the issue and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this letter. At the February 26 Council meeting, Strom said she hopes it amplifies the voices of the Denver Metro area since we have seen so many migrants. She did not mention the voices of Lakewood, Colorado residents who have also been vocal about the issue. Strom went on to talk about the importance of planning, rather than the perception that this migrant crisis might be used as an opportunity to push for reform at the expense of border security. Strom acknowledged all the problems coming to the city, including overwhelmed non-profits and the conflicts between homeless and migrants. However, she said those problems are here and the city must deal with them while also addressing the needs of our residents. Again, Strom did not address solutions involving border security or removing sanctuary status, showing that although the letter might be bipartisan, it is not comprehensive and may not represent Lakewood resident viewpoints. The dialogue once again skirted the issue of who pays. The Metro Mayors letter asked for federal funding while Lakewood Mayor Strom said this was something Lakewood could do that didn’t cost money. However, Lakewood residents still pay federal taxes and removing state sanctuary status would also cost no money. This package of federal funding, new laws and fast track work authorizations...
Guest Post by Bill Foshag Lakewood City Council held a regular business meeting on February 12, 2024 to discuss a number of items including a resolution on the Lakewood Strategic Housing Plan and adopting an ordinance to accept a DOLA (Department of Local Affairs) grant to purchase and renovate a property on West Colfax that will house a Navigation Center. The meeting was well attended by a number of residents who were interested and concerned about these two issues. Migrant Concerns One of the main concerns that many expressed during the public comments, as well as an earlier town hall meeting on February 6th, was that recently closed public schools, the Navigation Center, and possibly city facilities would be used to house migrants being relocated to Denver, which would make Lakewood a de-facto sanctuary city. The basis for these concerns stemmed partly from the City Council meeting in January in which the City Manager, Kathy Hodgson, was instructed to meet with leaders of the City and County of Denver to “discuss all feasible options for Lakewood to do more to support our region’s response to the growing migrant crisis and influx of our new neighbors, and to report back to us (City Council) with options”. Language used by council members during the meeting, words such as “our new migrant neighbors” and “welcoming”, seemed to indicate sanctuary status for Lakewood was the direction in which council was headed. At the February 12th meeting, Ms. Hodgson reported that she and her staff...
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