May we play through?
Photo by John McEncroe
Click to enlarge
What's happening in Golden today?
Events for Tuesday, Dec. 17th
- All day - CURRENT EXHIBITS AT THE MUSEUMS
- All day - Live Workouts with Community Center Pros
- All day - Golden History Tours
- 8-9AM - Canceled: What's Brewing Golden
- 9-10AM - Women's Exercise and Bible Study
- 9AM - Golden Seniors - Coffee Klatch
- 9:15-9:45AM - Baby Time - Registration Required
- 10AM-5PM - Foothills Art Center - Holiday Art Market
- 10-11AM - Story Time and Craft
- 10AM-5PM - Foothills Art Center - Holiday Art Market
- 10:15-10:45AM - Preschool Time - Registration Required
- 1-2:30PM - Email: Basics
- 1-3PM - Hand Embroidery Stitchers
- 2:30PM - Local Licensing Authority Meeting
- 5-8PM - Auction in Honor of Officer Evan Dunn
- 6-7PM - Golden Library Discussion Book Group
- 6:30-8:30PM - Team Trivia Tuesday
- 6:30-8:30PM - Trivia Tuesdays
- 6:30PM - City Council Regular Business Meeting
- 6:30-8:30PM - Toad Trivia
- 6:30-8:30PM - Bar Bingo Night
For more information, click the item above or visit the Golden Today Calendar
6:30PM City Council Meeting @ City Hall
- Meeting Agenda
- Watch the meeting streaming live starting at 6:30PM
- Attend the meeting @ City Hall Council Chambers - 911 10th Street - (map)
- Send comments on any of the following topics to PublicComments@cityofgolden.net BEFORE 3PM, or
- Provide in-person comment (limited to 3 minutes) during the meeting. If you want to comment on the green building policy or the proposed $52.5 million debt, you must wait till the public hearings. If you plan to speak about anything else, plan to do it at the beginning of the meeting, shortly after 6:30PM.
CONSENT MATTERS
Topics on the "Consent Agenda," will not be discussed unless one or more of the Councilors requests discussion.
- The City has a multi-year plan to turn West Colfax into a "complete street" (includes bike lanes and sidewalks. Construction of that project has been delayed in light of the adjacent Lena Gulch drainage project. The combined projects are considerably more expensive than originally planned, but the City has received two additional grants totaling $11.6M. Tonight, Council will be asked to approve an amended intergovernmental agreement with the Colorado Dept. of Transportation increasing the project funding from $7 million to $18.6 million. The meeting memo says the City will seek public input based on the greater scope of the project.
- Council will be asked to approve an update to City Fees for 2025.
Council will be asked to approve an $648,615.00 to redesign Arapahoe Street between 11th and 13th. This plan has been underway for several years. The West Downtown Plan, which was approved in 2020, originally called for a significant reduction in available parking.
This plan was approved by the Planning Commission on 2/5/20.
Meeting Video (at 1 hour, 28 minutes to 2 hours, 5 minutes)
It was discussed by City Council in a study session on 5/21/20.
Meeting Video (at 1 hour, 44 minutes through 2 hours, 9 minutes)
It was approved by City Council in a business meeting on 6/11/20.
Meeting Video (at 2 hours, 7 minutes)
On 10/28/21, the Mobility and Transportation Advisory Committee held a public hearing on 10/28/21 to decide the specific question of, “are sidewalk improvements on Arapahoe Street worth reducing parking?” No members of the public attended the meeting, but the board did receive letters from employees at the physical therapy business on Arapahoe Street, saying that their patients needed close-by parking. MTAB voted to approve the plan to widen sidewalks and reduce parking.
We haven't heard much about this plan since 2021, but tonight's meeting memo shows a different configuration of parking spaces. It's difficult to tell whether the total number has changed. I can't tell whether the sidewalks are being widened.
The meeting memo says "The proposed improvement designs were brought to the Mobility and Transportation Advisory Board at a public meeting for discussion. MTAB provided positive feedback, and designs were altered based on their suggestions. No other public outreach efforts were conducted." I looked for that discussion, but the meeting packets and recordings have not been posted for Sept, Oct, and November of this year.
- The new Finance Director will be appointed as a director of the Golden Capital Leasing Corporation, which is the entity used to finance the City Shops with Certificates of Participation.
PROCLAMATION
PUBLIC HEARINGS
- Council will be asked to approved a green building policy for municipal buildings. The Resolution states that all city-owned projects of 1,500 square feet or more should meet the new standards. This means that the current city hall would not comply with the policy.
- Council will be asked to approve a plan to incur $52.5 million in debt to build a new city hall and police station.
This is a controversial move, in that many citizens believe taxpayers should vote on such a large discretionary purchase. By using Certificates of Participation instead of a bond issue, Council is side-stepping the need for a vote by residents.
A group of citizens is currently circulating a petition to restrict Council expenditures (without a vote) to $20 million, but their petition process won't be completed until late January. By approving this Ordinance tonight, Council avoids the possibility of having to bring it to a vote of the citizens
LEGISLATIVE POLICY STATEMENT
Council will review the policies that the Legislative Subcommittee (2 council members) will be asked to support or oppose in state legislation. The document also goes into considerable detail about the roles and expectations of the Legislative Subcommittee.
Construction Update
New Residence Hall at 19th & Illinois - Photo by Patrick Klein
Many thanks to Patrick Klein for his on-going documentation of Golden's biggest construction projects.
5 – 8PM Auction in Honor of Officer Evan Dunn @ The Eddy Taproom
A member of Rise Studio, Kevin Armbruster, donated two pieces of art created by his second cousin, a Vietnam Vet, to be auctioned off in support of Annalise and the Dunn Family. These art pieces are very unique and need to be seen in person!
We will hold a silent auction in the Prospect Room. All proceeds from the Silent Auction will benefit the Dunn Family. There will be a cash bar and 10% of sales will also be donated to the Dunn Family. Please join us in honoring Officer Dunn and his service to the Golden Community and our Country.
The Eddy Taproom and Hotel
1640 8th Street (map)
6-7PM Book Group @ Golden Library
Today’s Title: Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
Book some time to discuss great reads!
More information
Golden Library
1019 10th Street (map)
Puzzle: December Evening Reflections
Photo by Carol Freza
If you're reading this as part of your morning newsletter, visit the website to play the puzzle.
Pro Tips!
You can make the puzzle harder or easier to work by choosing the number of pieces contained in the puzzle. Before clicking "OK" to start the puzzle, click the 9-Dot symbol and select the number of pieces you want to tackle.
You can start with only the edge pieces (just as you might with a real life puzzle). Click the Frame button, as shown above. Once you've completed the frame, all the other pieces will appear.
Make the puzzle bigger (and easier to see as you work) by clicking the "Full Screen" button.
Live Music for Tuesday, Dec. 17th
- More Live Music
6PM Karaoke with Linda @ Dirty Dogs Roadhouse
6PM Open Bluegrass Pick Night @ Over Yonder Brewing
For more information, visit the Golden Today Calendar
Golden History: Postcards Plus
Before color photography was available, postcard publishers used to hand-tint black and white photos. The postcard above looks like some exceptional night photography, but in reality it's this photo, with painted embellishments.
Here are several more examples, contributed by Bill Robie:
Many publishers of postcards in the early 1900s embellished their images. They added features not really there, removed features they felt unattractive, incorrectly placed features in the wrong location and even moved features from out of view into the scene to enhance the visual.
This first example adds the image of an Indian chief in the lower right corner. The thought probably was that the Indian will make the card more saleable. No one worried about where or on what the Indian is standing. Notice the five mounted horsemen on the top of Castle Rock. Probably real.
Look closely at this scene of Golden and you will notice that the winding Lookout Mountain road passes behind the front face of Mt. Zion, rather than in-front as constructed. Also, the approach route to the base of the mountain, at least in part, seems imagined. And the alignment of the “Incline RR” (Lookout Mountain Park Funicular) was actually constructed up the ridge to the right of where shown. Were the snow-capped mountains on the distant horizon added?
In this interesting photo image of Golden, everything looks true and accurate, but wait. Notice that the School of Mines Guggenheim Hall building has been repositioned about three blocks to the north (visually to the right of the old South School) perhaps to show Golden has even more impressive buildings than would otherwise be shown.
This is an unmodified photo of Washington Avenue except for the blue sky color wash.
This is the same photo (colorized) with a number of additions and deletions. The four people in the middle of the street have been added. Apparently, the telephone or electric poles and the wagon tracks were all considered unattractive and removed.
Thanks to Bill Robie for his sharp eye and keep insights!
Weather
Today: Partly sunny. High near 52, with temperatures falling to around 41 in the afternoon. West wind 13 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 29. West northwest wind 6 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. High near 55, with temperatures falling to around 48 in the afternoon. West southwest wind 7 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.
Wednesday: Mostly Sunny, 55°F
Wednesday Night: Partly Cloudy, 39°F
Thursday: Mostly Sunny, 58°F
Thursday Night: Mostly Clear, 34°F
Friday: Mostly Sunny, 60°F
Friday Night: Partly Cloudy, 39°F
Saturday: Sunny, 59°F
Saturday Night: Partly Cloudy, 39°F
Sunday: Mostly Sunny, 59°F
Sunday Night: Mostly Cloudy, 37°F
Monday: Partly Sunny, 56°F
Monday Night: Partly Cloudy, 38°F
News About Golden - December 17, 2024
Photo gallery: Oh, it’s a jolly holiday parade in Golden
By Corinne Westeman
Golden Transcript
When Goldenites walk down the street, they say hello to friends they know and everyone they meet... Read more...
Avenue Flashes: The holidays can be hard. Here’s a place to go if you need one
By John Akal
Golden Transcript
I talk a lot about how much I like Halloween in this column, but I rarely say much about how special Christmas is to me. There are a few reasons for that. First of all, the holiday season is about more than one holiday, and although Christmas is the one my family celebrates, I do want to be mindful that this might not be the case for everyone and try to make my column about events that all people can enjoy together... Read more...
Supporters
Many thanks to the people and organizations who support What’s Happening in Golden? If you would like to support local news, please CLICK HERE!
Sponsors:
($100/month and up)
Buffalo Rose, Buglet Solar, Foothills Art Center, Golden City Brewery, Golden Cultural Alliance, Miners Alley Performing Arts Center, The Golden Mill, Golden Chamber of Commerce, Golden History Tours, Miners Saloon, Golden Hayride Outpost, Unite Fitness, Tom Reiley, and Michael Mason
Friends:
($50-99.99/month or $550/yr)
Tall Pines Painting, Baby Doe’s Clothing, Goozell Yogurt & Coffee Paul Haseman, Donna Anderson, Carol & Doug Harwood, Beth Bidwell, Stephanie Painter, Greg Poulos, Ann Norton & Jonathan Storer, Mary & Don Parker, Saré Merrigan, The Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum, and Joy Brandt
Supporters:
($25-49.99/month or $250/yr)
Laura King and Scott Wilson, Bobby German and Alison McNally, Forrest Jones, Barry & Liz Bettis, Cheryl & Tom Schweich, Marjorie Sloan, Chris and Joyce Davell, Rick Flint, Forrest Jones, AC Development, Cynthia Merrill Tamny, Stephen Pero, Meg Van Ness & Steve Kalasz, Steve & Karla Schaefer, Bud Rockhill, Steve Enger, and Kristie Brice & Mike Schwartz
Members:
($10-24.99/month or $110/yr)
Brad Miller & Julie Bartos, Holly Thomas, Jim and LouAnne Dale, Ann Pattison, Thomas Hoffman, Carol Abel, Brian Quarnstrom, Sandra Curran, Bobby German and Alison McNally, Kathy Smith, Karen Smith, Carlos & Nancy Bernal, Robert Storrs, Michele Sannes, Elaine Marolla, Dixie Termin & Ron Miller, E Tom Hughes, Crystal M Culbert, Patrick A. Madison, Alice Madison & Jim Kalivas, Deb Goeldner, Christopher Ball, 6th Chair Home Services, Dot & Eric Brownson, Rosemary Coffman, Emeline Paulson, Sandy Schneider, Mark and Cathy Pattridge, Cheryl G Leidich, Jen Rutter, Carol Abel, Frani R Bickart, Jennings and Litz, Bill Sedgeley, Nancy Hughes, Justin L Wade, Kathi Eggers, Traci Case, Donna Owen, Leslie D Lutz, Karen Oxman, Catherine Skokan, Ross Fraser & KC Gilliland, Lynne Haigh, Elizabeth Hilliard, Frank Young & Terre Deegan-Young, Kathy Hirons & Jack Markin, Jess & Anthony Monasterio, Ella Lyons & Jeanne Fritch, Heather Duncan, Lee Ann & Pete Horneck, Carol Cameron, Cheryl Williamson, San Daugherty, Jim Garner, John and Carol McEncroe, the Golden Welcome Center, the Golden Transcript, Koshare Eagle, Ken and Colleen Krantz, Traci Neuman Lacey, Jo Barber, Jamie Cookinham, Kermit Shields, Meridee Cecil, Vicki Olson, Colleen & Michael Ramey, and Nancy & Pete Torpey
Followers:
($5-9.99/month)
Golden Community Garden, Lora Haimes, Mariane Erickson, J.J. Fraser
