climate-change

Safety Committee for Some

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on September 7, 2025Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, Colorado, death, equity, identity politics, Lakewood, LGBTQ+, nonprofit, Patricia Dillworth, police, public safety, racism, safety, zoning

Safety Committee for Some Previously deprioritized investigations got a slap in the face after City Council made a new police oversight committee to serve only the LGBTQ+ community, rather than providing oversight for all residents. Instead of learning a lesson from a member of a vulnerable community, Lakewood is now marginalizing others. The new committee is “to ensure Lakewood police achieve the goal of serving LGBTQIA residents and other marginalized communities with integrity, intelligence, and initiative.” City Councilors Shahrezaei and Isabel Cruz made the motion, which ultimately passed unanimously. However, creating a police oversight or public safety committee is a big step that has been declined several times before. The committee, as envisioned, would potentially involve granting subpoena powers. Giving political appointees special powers could lead to the political weaponization of the justice system. Download Repeated calls for police oversight have been made over the years. So why is this special committee needed now? Why is it serving only one sector of the population? Is City Council suggesting Lakewood Police do not serve ALL LAKEWOOD with integrity, intelligence, and initiative? Are they calling all Lakewood Police homophobic? Or are they suggesting that Lakewood Police are just incompetent to begin with? What is the exact problem? Shahrezaei said that action was necessary because for weeks there was “a packed house”. Public from all over the Front Range asked for oversight in the case of Jax Gratton, who was found dead of unknown causes. Jax’s death was a tragedy. Many people came to City Council to express feelings of loss and said how much they will miss Jax and her impact on the trans community. Asking for answers is a common reaction in such cases where loved ones want closure, and the trans community is especially vulnerable. However, this new committee is unlikely to help in Jax’s case because of slow-moving government processes. While this specific case deserves attention, so do many others. This isn’t a question of equity. City Council has been asked by other grieving family members for more oversight or increased attention to other cases involving death from unknown causes and they didn’t act. For perspective, there were 18 new death investigations started in August alone. None of them are getting oversight or attention by City Council. Many stay open forever with no further leads. Location of 18 death investigations started in August, 2025. History of Neglect by Council Even on the same August 25, meeting, a Lakewood resident stayed until midnight to make public comment on the amount of crime in North Lakewood. That is the same area represented by Councilors Shahrezaei and Isabel Cruz who have ignored so many other members of the public before on crime. Why does some crime get personalized attention and others get ignored? “We are going into a blight situation caused by the city [ignoring crime]” – David Rothenberger, Lakewood resident In 2023, then-City Councilor Rich Olver also made a request to add a safety committee to City Council. Denied. Denied by the same Jeslin Shahrezaei, now Mayor Pro Tem, who is requesting a special “oversight committee” for ONLY the LGBTQIA community. Former City Councilor Anita Springsteen asked for additional transparency from the police department. She helped win a victory in the release of body cam footage of a shooting involving the Lakewood Police killing a 17-year-old girl involved in a robbery. Springsteen asked for additional transparency and oversight for this case and Councilor Shahrezaei, who was on Council at the time, did not support her efforts. The same thing happened when Springsteen asked for increased attention to the case of Patricia Dillworth, an African American disabled woman. That would seem to meet the definition of “marginalized community,” but Shahrezaei and the rest of Council did not support the public pleas from her grieving daughter. Again, only specific marginalized people matter. Former City Councilor Mary Janssen called for the formation of a safety committee when she was on Council. She suggested it at the annual retreat, where it got turned down and morphed into “public safety = street lights” nonsense. Later, Janssen suggested forming a public safety committee, and Shahrezaei argued against it. Janssen Request for Council Action 29, calling for a Public Safety Committee, dated November, 2022. Former City Councilor Michael Bieda and Springsteen both made legislative requests in 2021 for oversight on use of force. Declined. Hundreds of residents have come out to request more oversight and equal enforcement of the law. Landlords report having problems renting their property because of all the crime that is allowed. Death investigations have increased. There are multiple calls for police oversight. What’s the Difference? What are the differences in these cases that ended without Council action? Many involved marginalized community members but none were LGBTQ+ Do Council Members feel they can score political points specifically with the LGBTQ+ community? Do they feel that safety concerns of the rest of Lakewood residents do not need to be addressed? Unfortunately, Council may have been denying the requests because sunlight on police investigations may reveal non-enforcement policies, aka de-prioritization, that Lakewood does not want you to know. It seems that Lakewood Police are trapped with having laws on the books that residents want, but that leadership do not want. As a result, sometimes police enforce crime penalties, sometimes they do not. Sometimes they handle investigations differently than others. It is all situational – not as a result of the police force members, but as a result of conflicting directives. One written and one unwritten. And now, Council approved direct action with special powers but only for LGBTQ+. More situational discretion. How will this committee strengthen justice for all? How does this hold City Councilors accountable for representing all constituents? Unfortunately, this motion may show that Lakewood now needs an oversight committee to identify which City Councilors will only listen to you if you identify as LGBTQ+. The Motion Not even five minutes after a Lakewood resident made yet another plea for increased public safety, Shahrezaei

Lakewood Passed the First Sections of the Zoning Code

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on September 7, 2025Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, Colorado, equity, identity politics, Lakewood, nonprofit, racism, zoning

New Zoning For Racism, Equity and Climate Change At the time of breaking up the zoning code, Councilor Mayott-Guerrero argued that she had people lined up to speak at the August 25th meeting and, therefore, no delay was possible. On August 25th, residents got to see what she meant as speaker after speaker from her influence bubble came to speak. Almost all the speakers were young, connected to the nonprofit world, many from Ward 2, and believed these zoning changes were critical to climate change. Mayott-Guerrero was pleased with the results, saying it was overwhelming to have so many people in favor. A running theme throughout these public comments was that supporters believed the new zoning was necessary for racism, equity, and climate change. Lakewood HOAs are Racist The new zoning code overrides HOAs and mandates high-density developments, no matter what the HOA or individual homeowners want. Lakewood has the option of exempting HOAs, but they have not taken it. Zoning change supporters made a flurry of requests to deny an HOA exemption because they stated that HOAs were started to keep Black people out of neighborhoods. Speakers seemed to believe that if left unregulated, HOAs across Lakewood would exhibit racist behavior. Apparently, racist behavior includes saving single-family neighborhoods from high-density mandates. Equity The equity argument is a bit of a bait and switch. To back up, affordable housing advocates have been pushing density for years, starting with transit areas. The reasoning is that areas near a bus or train route would be the perfect place for high-density because residents could walk to the bus, therefore they wouldn’t need a car. They also wouldn’t need a parking space. That reasoning worked and a state law was passed that mandated high-density along transit routes. Then, Lakewood officials quickly changed their story and said that wasn’t fair. Transit zones are more common in some areas of Lakewood, often in areas of higher diversity, and therefore changing zoning along transit areas are racist. Now, EVERY AREA should have high-density because Councilors have said that it wouldn’t be fair if Wards 4 and 5 didn’t change their zoning code just because there were fewer transit routes in the area. It is unclear as to why it is “unfair” to have too much of a good thing. If these affordable housing measures are so wonderful that everyone wants them, wouldn’t everyone embrace the changes rather than label them a burden that others must also bear? Climate Change Supporters say that high-density means less cars and more efficient building standards. Many people made general comments on climate change, transportation, even home energy and appliances. It remains unclear why an urban-jungle-concrete-heat-sink is better for the environment than low-density homes that promote healthy lawns and landscaping. Public Support Although online there were more comments to oppose or amend, Council seemed impressed by the number of people in person supporting the changes. It’s rare to find City Council impressed with public comments unless it favored their original position. People attending the meeting also noticed the special treatment given to these members of the public. They were allowed to stand in corners and aisles and have signs on little poles. Typically, these actions are not allowed. Supporting Nonprofits Clean Energy Lakewood Neighborhood Development Collaborative (Representing Metro West Housing, Archway Community, Elevation Community Land Trust and others) Livable Lakewood Colorado Nurses Association AARP Colorado Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) Conservation Colorado Natural Resources Defense Council Metro West Housing Solutions Good Business Colorado Elevation Community Land Trust The Redress Movement- Denver Together Colorado – Jeffco Chapter West Colfax Lampstand Jeffco Food Council 350 Colorado RTD Board Director Paglieri

Terumo BCT draft permit modification open for public comment until Feb. 6, 2024

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on January 7, 2025Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, environment, ethylene-oxide, health, news, public-comment, sustainability, terumo-bct

via reader notification – thank you! The CDPHE Air Pollution Control Division is actively working with Terumo BCT to further reduce ethylene oxide emissions. A draft permit modification for Terumo BCT to install and operate additional devices to reduce ethylene oxide emissions from the facility is now available on the division’s website. Terumo BCT currently uses a device known as a “dry scrubber” to reduce ethylene oxide emissions. The proposed permit modifications would allow Terumo to use a new control device called a “thermal catalytic oxidizer abatement plant” as its primary emissions control. The dry scrubber would then serve as a backup control. The draft permit is open for public comment from January 7, 2025 – February 6, 2025. Division staff will review all public comments received and use relevant comments to inform the permit updates. The permit is available on the division’s air permit public notices web page. That web page has details and tips for submitting effective public comments. Terumo BCT has indicated new control equipment could be fully operational in early 2025. Once the equipment is fully operational, Terumo BCT would have to test ethylene oxide emissions to ensure it meets the permit requirements. These tests would use U.S. EPA-approved methods to evaluate emissions reductions. More air quality monitoring around Terumo BCT The air division conducts its own air quality monitoring around Terumo BCT and will continue doing so after the new equipment is in place. The division will make this data available to the public on its website once it has undergone quality control assurance and review. The division will use this information to inform its ongoing work protecting clean air in Colorado’s communities. New regulations and proposals that apply to Terumo’s emissions of ethylene oxide March 2024 federal ethylene oxide rule Terumo BCT must comply with the U.S. EPA’s new rule to reduce harmful ethylene oxide emissions and exposures. This new rule applies to four commercial medical sterilization facilities in Colorado, including Terumo BCT. The federal rule is expected to reduce ethylene oxide emissions at these facilities. Learn more on EPA’s website. Ethylene oxide proposed as priority air toxic in Colorado From January 16-17, 2025, the Air Quality Control Commission will hold a rulemaking hearing on a proposal to identify up to five priority air toxics in Colorado. Ethylene oxide is one of the five priority air toxics proposed for commission consideration. After the commission determines priority air toxics, Colorado will then work to establish health-based standards for each one through a separate rulemaking later in 2025. This is one of the requirements under Colorado’s Public Protections from Toxic Air Contaminants Act. The division developed the draft proposal with input from monitoring and modeling data, the public, and a technical working group of scientific experts. The division may propose adding more priority air toxics in the future. You can register to offer a verbal public comment or listen to the January 2025 rulemaking hearing. A registration link to listen or offer verbal public comment is available on the commission’s website. Contact us To submit permit comments, visit the division’s air permit public notices web page. You may contact us anytime at the following email addresses:

City Council Wants More Done To Fight Climate Change

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on December 16, 2024Posted in UncategorizedTagged 2024, city-council, climate-change, Colorado, environment, Lakewood, news, sustainability, update-2024

Most of Lakewood City Council is concerned that Lakewood will not reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Although Lakewood has been increasing climate change regulations and spending for over a decade, it’s not enough and the city will be increasing both spending and regulation in 2025. Are these goals achievable and which programs are most effective? Lakewood is still developing its model to predict emission reduction. It is almost impossible to attribute which programs result in the best emission reductions because every result is intertwined not only with other programs but with the existing climate, which by definition is changing. Lakewood has more sustainability goals than surrounding cities. Lakewood is named “one of 119 cities across the globe providing leadership in environmental action and transparency by the Carbon Disclosure Project”, showing Lakewood is more aggressive than most of the world. The city is currently working on a new climate vulnerability study, a new sustainability plan, updating zoning codes and building codes for increased required sustainability measures. Votes on the new codes are scheduled for spring. Full-time sustainability staff has increased from 2, in 2014, to 12 in 2025. Dozens more part-time staff are employed throughout all city departments. According to Sustainability and Community Development Director, Travis Parker, about 30% of the new comprehensive plan focuses on sustainability. Despite already doing so much, every Council Member present asked about doing more during the November 18, 2024 Study Session on Sustainability. The key to City Council goals was to secure more funding. Council Member Jeslin Shahrezaei points out that cities like Fort Collins and Denver have a dedicated sustainability budget. She says grants for one project at a time is not a long-term solution. She believes residents want more funding to go to sustainability efforts. According to Shahrezaei, Lakewood played a pivotal role in securing a regional $200M grant because it has the tracking numbers for emissions and workforce. Council will talk about new revenue generating possibilities at the annual retreat workshop. Council Member Paula Nystrom asked for a new program and budget for residential greenhouse gas emission reduction for the upcoming revised budget. Lakewood has not asked residents to support the climate change fight directly with their pocketbooks before. Staffing initiatives often start as “free money” from other sources and continued past the grant’s expiration date without a public discussion. More direct taxing and funding suggestions represent a significant new direction for Lakewood, especially on the scale of new programs at millions of dollars a year. Councilor Glenda Sinks was concerned about being able to track sustainability spending through the budget. This was a good question without a good answer. According to Director Parker, Lakewood is not showing much in the budget yet because it is in the “enviable place of having more money available than we have plans for yet but that won’t be the case for long.” There was no answer as to where the money is shown in the current budget. Councilor Roger Low echoes the need for clear spending and goal tracking in the budget. He would like to see more progress on SolarApp implementation. Council Member Sophia Mayott-Guerrero floated a new idea to expand the greenhouse gas fee and have a larger spending pool to be used for things like sidewalks, bike lanes, lighting, park maintenance, road maintenance, climate impact and water impact. All of these could be viewed as “sustainability” measures. Several Councilors, including Cruz and Shahrezaei, were interested in making sure that money was distributed equitably. They want to make sure that low-income areas were first in line for assistance, as was intended through the federal program that Lakewood receives funding from. Councilor Jacob LaBure would like to be a national leader in sustainability efforts. LaBure points out that much of the federal money may be lessening under a new administration. As a result, he suggests Lakewood do more internally. For instance, Lakewood may require garbage and waste contractors to only use contractors with EV vehicles. Mayor Strom echoes the benefits of buying or contracting EV vehicles companies. Councilor LaBure would like to mandate new buildings, especially city buildings, be LEED certified through the building code. Director Travis Parker says some buildings could already meet LEED standards but do not want to pay the quarter million dollars to get certified. Councilor Rein would like to see more specificity in the sustainability plan in order to get Lakewood on track for less emissions. He is interested in the city getting a LEED certification. City staff say big new projects under city control, like the new maintenance facility, may not be able to get LEED certification but will be sustainable on some level. Rein asked staff if the current budget has enough funding to improve sidewalk connectivity and make the city more walkable in order to cut down on vehicle traffic. Staff answered there was not enough funding.

No More Gas Fireplaces?

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on October 27, 2024Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, energy, news, renewable-energy, sustainability

Lakewood City Council Member Paula Nystrom and Jacob LaBure proposed banning gas fireplaces on October, 14, 2024. On the heels of two other proposals that night for increased sustainability measures, most Councilors urged for a deeper discussion of the topic at the council’s annual retreat. Councilor Rebekah Stewart was the only other “yes” vote on moving this ban forward. This discussion will be included again later in the zoning update tentatively scheduled for May, 2025 The city is already moving forward to fund electrification efforts, which include eliminating all gas appliances. As recommended by Lakewood’s Sustainability Committee, funding incentives would be provided for residents to voluntarily change their appliances, after which, mandates would be needed for everyone else. When asked whether Council is advocating for electrification, then-Councilor Wendi Strom responded that Lakewood was just in the research phase. According to the 2025 budget Q&A, Lakewood has moved beyond research without a Council policy vote and without further public discussion. Lakewood will be a part of five different programs to remove gas appliances in residential homes starting in 2025. The theory is that since grants are “free money”, no one could object and furthermore, the city’s Sustainability Plan calls for decreasing greenhouse gas emissions 20% below 2007 levels by 2025 so no public discussion is needed. As Councilors LaBure and Nystrom point out, Lakewood is behind its goals. To assist in reaching those goals, all gas appliances will have to be replaced with arguably more expensive and less efficient electric appliances. The goal does not address how to power the new electric infrastructure given the grid cannot handle the current load. It also does not address the legal problems caused by similar demands to the commercial property world. There is no word on how to reverse or stop Lakewood’s policy of encouraging high-density growth, which led to more people with more gas appliances over the past decade. Funding programs according to budget Q&A: Scorecard: Banning Gas Fireplaces Strom: Nay Shahrezaei: Nay Sinks: Nay Mayott-Guerrero: Nay Cruz: Nay Stewart: Aye Low: Nay Olver: Nay Rein: Nay LaBure: Absent Nystrom: Aye

Increased Housing Density Coming to Your Neighborhood

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on July 7, 2024Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, densification, environment, housing, Lakewood, news, real-estate, sustainability

The City of Lakewood is looking for a consultant to write new zoning codes to: Current efforts to density have caused Lakewood to develop problems with traffic, stormwater drainage, parking and more. Existing developments have not been designed for high-density. The city has not offered any solutions to these problems. In fact, parking is such a problem that Lakewood is studying requiring parking permits for residents – paid for by residents – rather than mandating increased parking in development plans. This proposal will intensify that problem and increase the amount of resident-funded parking permits throughout Lakewood. Lakewood appears intent on exacerbating existing problems by allowing more densification to solve another problem… affordable housing. It must be noted that parking, traffic and stormwater management are key functions of the city government, whereas housing is traditionally regarded as a market-based function. There are two citizen-led initiatives in Lakewood news demonstrating that current densification is not in line with the city’s existing ordinance to maintain the existing characteristics of existing neighborhoods: a new development near Belmar Park and on Whippoorwill near Youngfield. City ordinances are a series of laws that rule Lakewood’s development. However, Lakewood staff can interpret these rules through the lens of the city’s Comprehensive Plan. The existing Comprehensive Plan states (pg 3-12): “The City will continue to support the diverse image and character of the community by maintaining the existing characteristics of neighborhoods with existing single-family residential zoning; creating appropriate transitions between commercial, multi-family, and mixed-use development and single-family zoned areas; and encouraging contextually appropriate infill and redevelopment projects.” For the last several years, Lakewood has de-emphasized the existing characteristics of neighborhoods and transition zones in favor of other factors, which has caused conflict with resident groups, such as those mentioned above. Lakewood is currently developing a new Comprehensive Plan to show the direction of the city for the next fifteen years. The densification proposal coming out before the 2040 Comprehensive Plan is finalized shows that Lakewood anticipates knowing what the results will be, regardless of any input the community provides. The proposal reads: “The Contractor will identify goals, recommendations, and implementation strategies, to ensure the new code is consistent with the 2040 [Comprehensive] Plan.“ Since this proposal calls strictly for plans to densify, it appears that the Comprehensive Plan may have to be adjusted to match densification, rather than vice versa. The Planning Commission will serve as the community input for this project. See the full proposal here:

Will Lakewood Follow Denver into Lawsuits over Green Remodeling

By Lakewood News from KarenPosted on May 7, 2024Posted in UncategorizedTagged climate-change, Colorado, energy, environment, Lakewood, news, sustainability

Denver and Colorado are being sued for rules on climate goals and greenhouse gas emission standards that the City of Lakewood is considering adopting. Denver and Colorado both approved a building performance standard that would force builders, landlords and homeowners to meet emission goals through green remodeling and electric appliance retrofits. Lakewood also has building performance standards through its Article 13. Lakewood takes four times as many climate mitigation and adoption steps as other cities, leading to Lakewood being named a leader in climate action. Lakewood is one of only 119 cities around globe to take steps like building standards. Rule 28 in Denver and Colorado goes even further by requiring “benchmarking” performance since 2021. Based on building performance, it is now time for required cuts, leading to a lawsuit by the Colorado Apartment Association, the Colorado Hotel and Lodging Association and others. The cuts will require costly remodeling. In August of 2023, Lakewood staff recommended the city join Denver and Colorado in the benchmarking program, described below, that only about 30 cities throughout the nation have adopted. However, these policies are not market-tested and they are extreme enough that Denver and Colorado are being sued. If Lakewood leadership adopts the additional staff recommendations, or agrees to recommendations from the LAC on Green Remodeling, the city may find also find itself in the news and in legal jeopardy. Colorado apartment landlords sue to block Denver, state greenhouse gas cuts that they find crushing State and local governments don’t have a right to require expensive renovations and appliance swaps to cut greenhouse gases, group suit says – by Michael Booth4:08 AM MDT on Apr 25, 2024 Is Being a Leader a Good Thing? In a “you say potato…” moment, the lawsuit in Denver shows that one person’s leader is another person’s extremist. Not everyone agrees that going where these climate policies lead is worth it. While the debate rages over climate science, policy makers rarely point out that there are two sides to the story, in order to promote their narrative. Climate policies have real-world economic consequences that could make housing even more expensive. Lakewood already has an Enhanced Development Menu that requires new development to meets a point scheme, based on the Menu options, that achieves climate goals of rolling back emissions in compliance with state goals. Development is thereby prohibited unless it meets climate goals. The policies Lakewood is currently advocating align with Colorado’s Rule 28 that monitors energy usage for buildings not already covered by the state. This process is called benchmarking, which Lakewood staff describe as “the regular monitoring and reporting of an individual building’s energy consumption to track changes over time and monitor progress towards increased efficiency and decreased GHG emissions.” While the process may sound routine and innocuous, this program must be put in place before the government can have access to private energy-use data. Once in place, the data can be used to set the bar and start imposing usage limits, incentives, conversions, etc. Lakewood is specifically talking about the switch from gas-powered to electrical tools and appliances. The Colorado and Denver rules currently only apply to commercial and multi-family units but the policy puts them to the left of cities like Boulder, as seen in the map below. In fact, Denver is second in the nation only to San Francisco. Being on the forefront of the climate change debate gets Denver in the news but it also attracts lawsuits. And Lakewood is recommending these same actions. Lakewood is taking things a step further and seeking similar solutions for residential homes, the details of which can be found at the city website, with more from the Lakewood Informer news site. Back in August, Lakewood staff were enthusiastic about Lakewood becoming another purple dot on the map below, which would show their leader/extremist tendencies, depending on your viewpoint. Will that change once the lawsuits start?