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Droplets, Diamonds, and Citizen Initiatives

Golden Eye Candy – Frank Hanou – Early Morning Sprinklers in Parfet Park – Click to enlarge

Public Health References
CDC * Colorado * Jefferson County * City of Golden

Coronavirus report from Jeffco Public Health’s Case Summary Page, as of 3PM Monday:

Cases in Jeffco
Thursday: 2766 | Monday: 2843
Deaths in Jeffco
Thursday: 212 | Monday: 212
Ever Hospitalized in Jeffco
Thursday: 425 | Monday: 427 (currently 16)
Recovered
Thursday: 2367 | Monday: 2446
Known Cases in Golden
Thursday: 114 | Monday: 114

The Safer at Home and in the Vast, Great Outdoors protocol is in effect. City and County fire restrictions are in place. The City is requiring masks on public property unless you’re six feet apart and the Creek is fenced off. See the City’s website for more details….


Virtual Golden

Today’s virtual core conditioning class is canceled.

10:15-11:15 Baby and Toddler Time with the Library

2PM South Golden Merchants’ Meeting
This business group meets monthly to discuss the needs/promotions/updates of the area. All are welcome to attend. – Register HERE to get the Zoom link.

Exploring for Diamonds in the Sahara

6:30-8:30PM Friends of Mines Museum Lecture Series
Please join us for the next installment of Friends of Mines Museum Lecture Series on Tuesday, July 7th at 6:30 PM (Mountain Time Zone).
Steven Smith, USGS Geological Survey . Steve will be talking about exploring for diamonds in the Sahara Desert of Algeria.
https://meetingsamer4.webex.com/meetingsamer4/j.php?MTID=md9f207d0bbbfbf20120ceb1fc7ef404c
Meeting password: Diamonds!!
Please mute audio and disable video (make sure the microphone and video icon in WebEx are RED) before entering meeting.
Email friendsoftheminesmuseum@gmail.com if you have any questions.


Golden History Moment

When Tom Atkins moved out of Golden’s historic district about a year ago, he wrote an inspiring farewell address to his neighbors. (I’m not one of them, but he was kind enough to send me a copy.) For me, the most memorable line was:

“I will remind you, that nearly all the most important changes in policy vision over the 26 years I have lived here in the Historic District have come not from city staff or City Council, but from citizen activist groups just like ours.”

Tom went on to cite Save the Mesas, Citizens Involved in the Northwest Quadrant (anti-beltway), Jeffco Open Space, the 1% Growth Limit, and more citizen-led initiatives that have greatly benefited Golden. It occurred to me that those were all historic efforts, and they should be documented. I asked Tom to write about his work to save the Golden Library.

Previous Golden Library 923 10th St. – Now the Golden History Museum (Google Maps)

How Golden Saved its Library – and got a Better One

By Tom Atkins

Golden was the site of Jefferson County’s first library, opened in 1914 on 13th Street by several women’s groups. It joined the Jefferson County Public Library system (JCPL) in 1961. We now have one of the most popular, well-used libraries in the county.

But nearly 30 years ago, it came close to being turned into a reading room. How could that have happened? Its funding was threatened by the county after Colorado voters passed TABOR in November of 1992. With the proposed budget cuts, the library board of trustees decided they would have to eliminate book circulation at the Golden Library and essentially turn it into a reading room.

The Golden community stepped up and said “NO WAY!”

Library patrons protested those budget cuts in an effective, positive, and organized way. People packed meetings. Thousands of gold-colored petition cards were signed and mailed. Concerned residents formed a library support group called GABLES. Long-time Golden library patrons like Martin and Arkley Barber, Lorraine Wagenbach, Linda Ropes, Anna Shuck, Merrilyn Tarlton, Pat Tripp-Addison, and many others were doggedly committed in their support for the library.

Later in 1993, one member, Tom Atkins, analyzed the library’s usage statistics and concluded that Golden didn’t need to simply restore the library’s budget – they actually needed a bigger library with a bigger budget. The existing Golden Library was built in 1970 and was the smallest full-service library in the county, yet was heavily used.

Atkins proposed the City of Golden and Jefferson County swap facilities: what was then the Golden Library (now the Golden History Museum) for the soon-to-be vacated Golden Recreation Center right next door, which was about twice the library’s size with a bigger parking lot.

Golden’s “New: Library – Twice as Big as the Old One! (Google Maps)

Golden Mayor Marv Kay had strong support from City Council for the idea, but the swap required approval by Golden voters in a special election. That election was held in June 1994 and passed by the overwhelming margin of 95%. Now the budget again became the problem. Remodeling the rec center would cost $1.6 million and the library could only come up with a quarter of that from its own budget. Still, it looked like a great deal – $1.6 million was less than half what an equivalent new library building would cost.

Faced with such intense support from Golden residents and City Council and with the proven need for a new library, the Jeffco Commissioners relented on the budget and contributed $1.2 million out of their own general fund to complete the project. And they appointed Atkins as a member of the library board of trustees, where he served for eight years.

The persistent, positive involvement of the community, working with city and county governments willing to engage with citizen activists, gave birth to, promoted, funded, and built a creative solution to Golden’s library needs. Though once again straining at the belt under a much larger population, the Golden Library still stands as a proud member of the community and proof of Margaret Mead’s famous observation:

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

Highlights