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What's Happening in Golden - Wednesday, Apr. 10th

News and events in Golden, Colorado. Wednesday, Apr. 10th

,   and  Barb Warden
9 min read
Click to enlarge

Spring in Lions Park

Photo by Barb Warden

What's happening in Golden today?

Events for Wednesday, Apr. 10th

Golden History Tours
Toddler Time

For more information, visit the Golden Today Calendar

Lots of Thumbs

City Council - April 9, 2024


I started watching City Council meetings, and later board and commission meetings, more than a decade ago. During that time, I've witnessed many examples of residents who learn about a city plan on the night it's being finalized. The frustrated citizens ask, "Why am I just learning about this?" The Councilors or board or commission members are asking the same question, "Why are you just learning about this? We've been working on it for months!" The frustration on both sides is palpable.

I started writing previews of meeting agenda in an effort to stave off this problem. I try to keep the public informed by telling them "This topic is going to be decided--if it's something you care about, now is the time to weigh in, write a letter, talk to your councilor, make public comment."

That goal has been exceptionally challenging with this City Hall issue. It's been very difficult to identify exactly when a decision point has arrived. Instead of formally voting, and giving city staff a clear mandate, City Council has had a series of "discussions" during study sessions. Each time, using "thumbs up or down" voting, they've encouraged staff to continue their planning activities.

Those activities have become increasingly expensive. In addition to staff time, the City budgeted $800,000 in 2023 and $700,000 in 2024 for these planning activities. (2023-2024 Biennial Budget, p. 195, line 26)

Yesterday's public comments included several citizens who were opposed to constructing a new building without a vote of the citizens. One was in favor. Former Mayor Jan Schenk provided in-person comment (1 hr, 18 minutes), saying he was "offended" by Council and staff for not bringing this issue to a vote.

The new city hall was the second topic in last night's study session. It begins at minute 21 with an 8 minute soliloquy by the Mayor, expressing frustration at the "misinformation and mischaracterization" in public discussions on this topic. She said that the City has been discussing the need for new municipal facilities since "2012, or likely earlier than that."

"Why are you just learning about this? We've been working on it for years!"

Other councilors also opined. They did not discuss whether the 32 hour work week or employees who work at home affected the need for new facilities.

Staff asked if they would like them to bring a formal resolution so they could vote on it. The Mayor declined, saying they were only approving more staff time to publish RFPs. The City Manager pointed out that the engineers, architects, and consultants that they were asking for RFPs would prefer to know that the city does plan to go through with this plan (before they devoted time to producing proposals).

In the end, they all gave "thumbs up" to the project and COP funding.

6-7PM Proposed Rental Registry


Join us for any one of three public Rental Registry Listening Sessions being held at the Golden Community Center.

The purpose of a rental registry is to create and maintain a comprehensive list of long-term rental properties and relevant contact information of landlords, tenants, and property managers. This information would enable swift and effective communication from city staff in emergencies or for official city matters related to rental properties, and help the City gain valuable insight into the long-term rental properties, including aspects of health and safety, transit, and affordability.

Each listening session provides an opportunity for community members particularly tenants, landlords, and property managers, to learn more about and provide feedback on implementing a rental registry in Golden. The City is hosting listening sessions on three separate dates and times to accommodate different schedules, so please come to the session that works best for you:

  • Wednesday, April 10, 6 – 7 p.m.
  • Friday, April 26, 3:30 – 4:30 p.m.
  • Thursday, May 9, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

.More information

Historic Preservation Board - April 10, 2024

North Elevation - 405 18th St.


6:30PM Historic Preservation Board @ City Hall
HPB will consider granting a Certificate of Appropriateness regarding 405 18th Street (map). The owner plans to construct a new facade and front porch as well as anew detached garage with second level accessory dwelling unit (ADU).

Live Music for Wednesday, Apr. 10th

5-8Pm Taylor Smith @ Golden Mill

For more information, visit the Golden Today Calendar

Golden History: Arcane Details About Funiculars

Golden’s Funiculars–one on Castle Rock and one on Lookout Mountain


As you may know, Golden used to have two funicular railroads. The first was built in 1912 on Lookout Mountain. The second was built in 1913 on South Table Mountain.

Here’s something you don’t normally see in Golden History Moments: pictures of other places. I had an email from a reader who was confused by a sentence she found online about the Castle Rock Railway: The funicular railway had two railcars, one on each side of the mountain.

single and double track configurations at funiculars in Iowa, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and California
Funicular Track Configurations

She didn’t think the “one on each side of the mountain” sounded right (and she was right). So I sent some pictures of Golden’s funiculars and some modern-day funiculars–see the photos above.

Funiculars (also called incline railways) come in pairs. One car goes up as the other goes down. Some are set up with a pair of rails used by both cars, with a passing area in the middle. The Castle Rock Funicular was built that way. The Lookout Mountain Funicular had three rails, so each car had one of its own and they shared the one in the middle–again, with a passing area in the middle.

There are still a few funiculars left in the U.S. Of those, the ones in Los Angeles, Dubuque, Chattanooga, and Altoona are set up with passing lanes. The Pittsburgh and Johnstown railways were designed so the “going up” car and the “going down” car–each has its own pair of rails–no passing area required.

Why do I have all this arcane knowledge? I wrote a book about Golden’s funiculars* several years ago, then started traveling the country and visiting the ones that still remain.

* Funiculars of Golden Colorado is available at the Railroad Museum and the Golden History Museum.

Weather

Overnight's Weather

Overnight: Mostly cloudy. Low around 35, with temperatures rising to around 37 overnight. West northwest wind around 8 mph.

Wednesday's Weather

Wednesday: A slight chance of rain showers after noon. Mostly sunny. High near 48, with temperatures falling to around 46 in the afternoon. North northwest wind 9 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Wednesday Night's Weather

Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 34. North northeast wind 2 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 16 mph.

Wednesday Night: Partly Cloudy, 34°F

Thursday: Sunny, 62°F

Thursday Night: Mostly Clear, 41°F

Friday: Sunny, 73°F

Friday Night: Mostly Cloudy, 48°F

Saturday: Mostly Sunny, 72°F

Saturday Night: Mostly Clear, 48°F

Sunday: Sunny, 72°F

Sunday Night: Partly Cloudy then Slight Chance Rain Showers, 47°F

Monday: Chance Rain Showers, 68°F

Monday Night: Chance Rain Showers, 45°F

Tuesday: Chance Rain Showers, 62°F

News Relating to Golden - April 10, 2024

Golden High School students produce original plays at inaugural 24-hour event

By Corinne Westeman
Golden Transcript

Whether it was developing a song-and-dance routine for a piece of cheese or crafting one-liners straight out of a 1980s action comedy, there’s no denying Golden High School students have creativity in spades... Read more...

Colorado School of Mines students teach next generation of female scientists

By Corinne Westeman
Golden Transcript

The elementary school students making paper parachutes and homemade kaleidoscopes now will — in about 10 years or so — be studying aerospace engineering and nuclear fission.

That’s the hope behind programs like Colorado School of Mines’ third annual Girls Are SMART event, which recently hosted 130 girls from elementary schools across the Denver area... Read more...

Playing against the wind: Mines baseball weathers weekend series with Adams State 2-2

By Corinne Westeman
Golden Transcript

The Colorado School of Mines baseball players battled two opponents simultaneously April 5-7, as they took on Adams State and Mother Nature in a blustery weekend series... Read more...

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Tall Pines Painting, Baby Doe’s Clothing Paul Haseman, Donna Anderson, Carol & Doug Harwood, Beth Bidwell, Greg Poulos

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Members:
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Highlights