All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
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The annual meeting of the Niwot Community Association (NCA) will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 23 at the Left Hand Grange No. 9. The guest speaker will be Don Haddad, St. Vrain Valley School District Superintendent, and will include a question and answer session. There will also be a speaker on the topic of urban interface wildfire mitigation. The annual meeting is also the occasion for NCA board elections. The board is seeking nominations for Secretary and Area 6 Representative. Area 6 includes Gunbarrel Estates and the Homestead... Full story
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) welcomed Abby Silver, Wildfire Partners Outreach Coordinator, at the March board meeting. Silver was invited by NCA Area Representative and wildfire protection specialist Neal Anderson. Anderson introduced Silver, pointing out that Niwot is the largest community in unincorporated Boulder County. Wildfire Partners provides Boulder County’s volunteer fire mitigation program, which has been in place for mountain communities for years. It helps homeowners clear fire fuels away from near their homes to lessen t...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) board held its monthly meeting at the Left Hand Grange hall on Feb. 14. Membership Director Johnny Barrett reported that a membership drive will begin soon. The manager of the NCA's annual Cleanup Day, John Barto, reported that planning is very nearly finished, with all contacts made, approvals in place and a date of May 18 set. These two activities are related because the cost for non-members of the NCA to drop off yard waste, scrap metal, some types of...
The working draft of the Niwot Master Plan 2023 was presented to the Niwot Community Association (NCA) on Jan. 23 at the Left Hand Grange No. 9. The master plan is the first step in imagining how Niwot might look in the near and distant future, and includes an update to the 2012 Transportation & Connectivity Plan that has guided Niwot projects for the past decade. This vision for Niwot has been developed by the Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) in conjunction with the...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) is a non-profit organization established in 1990 that advocates for the Niwot community with local governmental agencies. The NCA also provides a forum for Niwot citizens to have an opportunity to become informed and involved in proposed changes affecting their lives in the community. The NCA board of directors held its monthly meeting Dec. 13 at the Left Hand Grange No. 9. The focus of the December board meeting was to set goals for the new year. In...
Karen Ragland, Niwot's St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) school board representative, joined the Niwot Community Association's (NCA) September board meeting to hold a conversation with members and the public about the banners on the football field fence, an upcoming bond measure, and property valuation and taxes. NCA board members have previously spoken with Niwot High School (NHS) principal Eric Rauschkolb about the advertising banners on the football field fence facing Niwot Road, which...
Two transportation projects on the periphery of Niwot and Gunbarrel are ramping up and seeking citizen input. The "US 287 Vision Zero Safety + Mobility Study" is driving towards eliminating serious injuries and fatalities in accidents on US Highway 287. Phase I of the study focused on mobility through Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) for the section between Longmont and Broomfield. Phase I has been completed. A report has been published and is available for public review and comment. Phase II of the...
A traffic accident on Aug. 30 at Niwot Road and Colorado Highway 119 (the “Diagonal”) led to to a hazmat response to clean up a large volume of diesel fuel on the Diagonal, slowing traffic to a crawl. According to Colorado State Patrol Public Information Officer Troy Kessler, the call came in at 2:40 p.m. Kessler described the accident, saying, “A Kenworth dump truck was northbound on Highway 119 and failed to stop for a red light at Niwot Road. A Toyota 4Runner was going westbound on Niwot Road. The Toyota hit the right side of the dump truck...
Boulder County announced that $100,000 is available to be awarded as grants to help launch or grow circular economy projects. The application deadline is September 6. "Circular Economy" is the county's rebranding of "Zero Waste." This grant program was formerly known as the "Zero Waste Funding Program." In 2005 the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) created the Sustainability Initiative to support the reduction of the environmental footprint of county employees, residents and businesses. In...
The Niwot Business Association (NBA) and Niwot Local Improvement District (LID) Advisory Committee have been hard at work to convince Boulder County and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to add an underpass into Niwot as part of the Colorado Highway 119 Safety and Mobility Improvements Project and Bikeway Project. County funding for the underpass design has now been approved. Scott Firle, chairperson of the LID, said, "[The LID effort] started about two years ago when we had our...
The first month of Zero Fare for Better Air has passed, but the program will continue through August. All Regional Transportation District (RTD) rides for buses and trains will continue to be free until Sept. 1. The RTD board of directors decided at the July 25 meeting to reduce the price of tickets after August. Regular fare for local buses will be $2.75 while the discount price (for seniors, for example) will be $1.35. Fares for youths (age 19 and under) will be zero for a year, beginning in September. Pass programs for employers and...
The City of Boulder held its second airport open house on July 18 at the Via Mobility offices on 63rd Street as part of the process to decide the future of the Boulder Municipal Airport. The process has been named the "Airport Community Conversation." In addition to two open house events, there is a community working group which has met four times and will meet one more time before results are presented to the Boulder City Council. City staff and the working group have collaboratively developed...
The Boulder County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) held a virtual public briefing on July 18 to hear from county staff about how sales taxes will be spent on transportation projects. In 2022 voters approved Ballot Issue 1C to extend the 0.1% countywide sales tax in perpetuity. All three commissioners were in attendance at the hearing. Kathleen Bracke, Deputy Director of Community Planning & Permitting, provided most of the presentation. Bracke identified staff priorities for spending. The...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly meeting on July 12. This was the first meeting of the new schedule, with monthly meetings moving to the second Wednesday of the month, and it was held at the Left Hand Grange for the first time. The new meeting time and location worked well. The NCA has previously paid to clear the weeds from the north side of Niwot Road at the west entrance to Niwot from the Diagonal Highway, thanks to arrangements made by board member Pat Murphy. The thin strip of ground between the sidewalk and fence has...
The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) will hold virtual public meetings for the Colorado Transportation Planning Region Study. The date for CDOT Region 4 meeting, which includes Niwot, is July 31. The meetings are required by the Ozone Season Transit Grant Program Flexibility bill that Governor Jared Polis signed into law on April 28, 2023. The meeting and a survey will gather public input about local transportation priorities and will contribute to the statewide transportation plan that will be updated next year. Registration for...
U.S. Congressman Joe Neguse announced on June 22 that Boulder County has been awarded a $25 million grant from the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program. This is the final piece of the funding puzzle that is needed to pay for the CO-119 Safety and Mobility Improvement Project. The project includes Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), Park-n-Rides, a bikeway, and safety improvements on CO-119 (the “Diagonal”) between Longmont and Boulder. Con...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly meeting June 14. This is a busy time of the year for the NCA as it focuses its work on the many events it sponsors. Niwot Clean Up Day and the second annual Slepicka Tractor Show were a success, and the annual 4th of July Pancake Breakfast and Parade is coming up very soon. Director John Barto led the effort organizing Niwot Clean Up Day. Barto reported that the event went very smoothly with traffic spread out throughout the morning. A...
The Boulder City Council meeting on June 1 was the last stop for the consideration of allowing e-bikes on Boulder's Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) trails, a process that took 18 months. Boulder City Council members present were Matt Benjamin, Mayor Aaron Brockett, Lauren Folkerts, Rachel Friend, Junie Joseph, Nicole Speer, Tara Winer and Bob Yates. Mayor Pro Tem Mark Wallach was not present. At the beginning of the hearing regarding e-bikes council member Rachel Friend recused herself with...
The Boulder City Council will take up the issue of allowing e-bikes on city open space trails, including several trails in and around Niwot and Gunbarrel, at its meeting on June 1 at 6 p.m. in the council chambers. On February 8 the Boulder Open Space Board of Trustees (OSBT) rejected the Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) staff recommendation for the adoption of regulations to allow e-bikes on trails that are in the plains (east of Broadway and US 36). This is known as Alternative B...
The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) held an in-person town hall on May 18 at the La Vita Bella restaurant on Main Street in Longmont. All three commissioners, Claire Levy, Marta Loachamin and Ashley Stolzmann, attended along with Boulder County Assessor Cynthia Braddock. The primary focus of the event were questions and answers about the assessor's property valuations. Other county issues raised by members of the public included rural subdivision paving policy. After introductory comments...
The City of Boulder continues the process of evaluating allowing e-bikes on city open space trails. On February 8 the Boulder Open Space Board of Trustees (OSBT) rejected the city staff recommendation to allow e-bikes on trails that are in the plains (east of Broadway and US 36). The staff recommendation would have been consistent with Boulder County’s regulations permitting Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes on county open space trails. The OSBT sent their recommendation to the Boulder City Council for a final decision. The Boulder City Council w...
The Mountain View Fire Protection District (MVFPD) Board of Directors is composed of five people representing citizens of the district. Each director must be a resident or property owner within the district. An election was held on May 2 for three of the five seats. Preliminary results show that the following people have been elected to the board: Suzanne DeVenny received the most votes with 304. DeVenny is the current treasurer of the board. She was appointed to the board in 2022 with the merge...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly board meeting May 3 at the Mountain View Fire Rescue Niwot Station. Life Scout Montana Heather gave a presentation about his proposed Eagle Scout service project to create a town sign for the west entrance to Niwot. The 4 or 5 foot tall stone sign would have a carved message welcoming people to Niwot. The sign would be installed on the north side of Niwot Road and east of the railroad tracks in the strip of land between the sidewalk and the...
The Niles commercial structure for 364 2nd Avenue was conditionally approved by the Director of the Boulder County Department of Community Planning and Permitting (CPP) on April 25, 2023. The 4,180 square-foot building will include a new location for the dental office of Dr. Ashley Niles on ground level, as well as an upstairs architectural office. The Determination Letter specifies the conditions on the approval to build. The 720 square-foot building currently at that address which is home to...
Did you know that Niwot had a live nude dancing venue in the 1980s? The Ace of Hearts was located at 112 2nd Avenue, now occupied by Little Bird. The show was apparently short-lived. Kathy Koehler said she contacted the Boulder County Sheriff's Office to see if anyone recalled the business. "One former deputy remembers this location," Koehler said. "She remembers that the business was open for about three weeks. The closure was related to liquor license issues rather than an eviction closure."...
The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) approved the Colorado Highway 119 Safety and Mobility Improvements Project and Bikeway Project at a "1041" review in a hearing on April 20. The "1041" designation is shorthand for an "Areas and Activities of State Interest" law which outlines how the county must manage projects that involve State of Colorado lands. The BOCC hearing was the final step and highest level of government review in the county. A significant outcome from this hearing was that the...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its annual meeting at 7 p.m. on April 19 at the Left Hand Grange No. 9. A presentation was made by the Niwot Community Connection (NCC), followed by a slide show and presentation by the principal organizations involved in creating the CO 119 Safety and Mobility Projects (Bus Rapid Transit and the Bikeway). The results of the annual election for one-half of the board to 2-year terms were: Vice President Julie Nelsen-Breyer Treasurer Terry Larsen...
• On April 20 at 9:30 a.m. the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) will hold a hearing on the CO 119 Safety and Mobility and Bikeway Projects (Docket SI-22-0002). This is the continuation of the Colorado "1041" process, which allows Boulder County to evaluate how county land use regulations and the Comprehensive Plan apply to governmental projects. The Bikeway Project is a 9-mile long 12-foot-wide multi-use path in the median between the traffic lanes of the Diagonal Highway. Boulder County i...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly board meeting April 5 at the Mountain View Fire Rescue Niwot Station. Keith Long, Assistant Chief for Special Operations in the Mountain View Fire Protection District (MVFPD), gave a presentation on the new Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) that is being developed under MVFPD leadership. Long has 42 years in service and was a Type 1 incident commander on the Marshall Fire. The goal of the CWPP is to create a planning document with input from the local fire district, government...
The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) unanimously overruled county staff and approved the construction of a 2500-square-foot hay barn at the location adjacent to the Niwot Cemetery proposed by Mary and Douglas Lyle. The decision occurred at a public hearing for the Lyles' appeal as docket SPR-22-0077 on March 21. The Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting (CPP) Department had conditionally approved the proposal on December 9, 2022, but with a condition that the barn be constructed at...
The Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LIDAC or LID) held its annual meeting with the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) on Monday, March 27 in the Left Hand Grange. The members of the LID are a mix of people from businesses and community plus representatives of the Niwot Business Association (NBA) and Niwot Community Association (NCA). The commissioners serve as directors of the LID while the LIDAC advises the commissioners on ways to benefit the district through...
The Boulder County Planning Commission recommended to the Board of County Commissioners that they approve the CO 119 Safety and Mobility and Bikeway Projects (Docket SI-22-0002) at their March 15 meeting. These projects will provide Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and a bikeway on CO 119 (the Diagonal) between Boulder and Longmont. This hearing was part of the Colorado “1041” process, which allows Boulder County to evaluate how county land use regulations apply to governmental projects. The commissioners present for the meeting were Mark Blo...
The Niwot Historical Society (NHS) held its first lecture before a full in-person audience since the COVID-19 pandemic began with Niwot's Laurie Algar Adams speaking about her father's career at Disney. The event was held at the Left Hand Grange on Wednesday, March 8, before an audience of 40. It was the first opportunity for the public to experience the new wood laminate flooring which replaced the old linoleum floor and has improved the acoustics in the building. The title of the lecture was,...
The Niwot Homestead Project is a three-year-old project dedicated to reimaging suburbia as an ecosystem that feeds people a complete diet. The Project held a community meeting on Sunday, March 5th at the Old Oak Coffeehouse to present the concept to the Niwot community, hear feedback and brainstorm solutions. Amy Scanes-Wolfe grew up in Niwot and attended Niwot High School. After working on a commercial vegetable farm for several years Scanes-Wolfe thought about growing food in a different way....
• On March 8 the Boulder County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) held its inaugural Vision Zero Safety meeting. The goal is to "reduce, and ultimately eliminate, all serious injury and fatal traffic crashes for people using all modes of travel," according to the BOCC statement. Many local agencies and county departments participated in the event. No public testimony was taken. Paul Frank, Boulder County Vision Zero Specialist, reported on the statistics of serious and fatal accidents on c...
The Boulder Transportation Connections (BTC) group within the Boulder Chamber of Commerce held its quarterly luncheon on March 7 at its offices in Boulder. Niwot resident Elaine Erb, BTC Sustainable Transportation Planner, welcomed a larger turnout of local transportation professionals from community organizations, advocacy groups and businesses. Amanda Mansfield, BTC Program Consultant, described recent BTC accomplishments which include the launch of the Commuter Connection program using a...
Dr. Richard A. Cross is celebrating thirty years of his optometry practice in Gunbarrel this year. Dr. Cross has helped many people throughout his career, both here in the Boulder area and through the eye care institute he launched in Jamaica twenty-seven years ago. That is enough time to treat generations of people. "I'm seeing the children's children of patients," he observed. Dr. Cross grew up in Mason, Michigan, which is about twenty minutes from Michigan State University in East Lansing. Hi...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) has a full calendar of events for 2023 which are all open to the public. One event in particular, the annual Niwot Clean-up Day on May 20, is free for members and is a great reason to join the NCA. Roll-off dumpsters will again be set up in the Niwot High School parking lot so that members of the community can drive through to unload a variety of materials which might otherwise end up in a landfill. That includes yard waste, branches, and much more. Staff...
The Boulder County Commissioners will host a meeting about the “Vision Zero” program and safety policy on March 8 at 9 a.m. The Vision Zero goal is to eliminate serious injuries and fatal traffic crashes in unincorporated Boulder County by 2035. Public meetings were held in 2021 to obtain input from the community. The virtual meeting on March 8 will be for program managers to update the commissioners on crash analysis, safety projects and other initiatives. The meeting is open to the pubic, but it will not be open to public comment. To sign...
The City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks Department (OSMP) proposal to allow Class 1 and 2 e-bikes on city trails on the plains was rejected by the board that advises the department. The City of Boulder Open Space Board of Trustees (OSBT) has an advisory role over the OSMP policy and sends recommendations to the Boulder City Council for final approval. Members are Jon Carroll, Michelle Estrella, Karen Hollweg, Dave Kuntz, and Caroline Miller. The 3-2 vote against adopting the staff recommendation took place at the OSBT meeting on Feb....
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly board meeting Feb. 1 in the Mountain View Fire Rescue Niwot Station conference room and the first topic was trees. Board member Pat Murphy raised her concern about the loss of old trees in Niwot and arranged for Josh Morin, founder of We Love Trees, Inc., to present information to the NCA. Morin explained how humans relate to the ecosystem and have established trees in this area, many of which are aging. He described some initiatives that mi...
The Regional Transportation District (RTD) held an open house in Gunbarrel on Jan. 31 to gauge citizens' reactions and thoughts about the feasibility study regarding commuter rail service between Denver and Longmont. Northwest Rail is the long-promised provision for rail service from Denver to Boulder and Longmont that voters approved as part of the FasTracks transit expansion in 2004. FasTracks has provided 25 miles of light rail and 53 miles of commuter rail, but has yet to reach Boulder and...
The principal parties designing the CO 119 (the “Diagonal”) Safety and Mobility Improvements Project and Bikeway Project have submitted their plans for review in compliance with a 1974 law known as the Areas and Activities of State Interest (also known as the “1041” application). This law provides a way for local governments to regulate development by other governmental agencies on lands that are located within their communities. Project leaders provide the governmental entities with their designs in order to obtain permits and permiss...
The Regional Transportation District (RTD) is hosting an open house on Tuesday, Jan. 31 in the Hampton Inn & Suites in Gunbarrel at 6333 Lookout Rd. You may arrive any time between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to learn about the Northwest Rail project and provide input. Northwest Rail is the long-promised provision for rail service from Denver to Boulder and Longmont that voters approved as part of the FasTracks transit expansion in 2004. FasTracks has provided 25 miles of light rail and 53 miles of commut...
A few updates on transportation news in Boulder County: Voters approved the extension of the Boulder County transportation sales tax in the November 2022 election. The tax was previously scheduled to expire in 2024. Therefore, many transportation programs will continue to be funded as they have in the past. There is a long list of proposed projects to receive sales tax funding. The list of projects is available from the Boulder County website. Two projects are notable for Niwot: Niwot Road Shoul...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly board meeting Jan. 4 in the Mountain View Fire Rescue Niwot Station conference room. The board approved the budget proposed for 2023. Costs have increased for many of the NCA's events and activities, but there are no plans to increase the annual membership fee. It was reported that membership in the NCA has increased to 364 members. The board followed up on the presentation made to the board last month about a possible affordable housing...
The Niwot Community Association (NCA) held its monthly board meeting Dec. 7 at the Mountain View Fire Rescue Niwot Station conference room, and listened to a presentation about a proposed housing development at the northeast corner of SH 119 (the Diagonal) and SH 52 (Mineral Road). The proposal, which is in a very preliminary stage, would include 100 units of affordable housing and 150 units of workforce housing. Workforce housing is designated for those earning 80% to 120% of the Area Median Income (AMI), while affordable housing is designated...
Regional Transportation District (RTD) customers didn't have to pay to ride buses and trains for the month of August as part of the Zero Fare for Better Air initiative. The initiative was part of the Colorado's Ozone Season Free Transit Grant Program, in which many transit organizations throughout Colorado participated. RTD spent $10.3 million on the effort and will be reimbursed for 80% of that cost by the State. This is detailed in RTD's official report to the Colorado Energy Office that was...
It's beginning to feel a lot like it's time for Niwot's annual Holiday Parade. In fact, the parade is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 26 at 11 a.m. The parade will proceed down 2nd Avenue starting at Murray Street and ending in the Left Hand Corner parking lot at Niwot Road. The event is sponsored by the Niwot Business Association (NBA). Linda Klueber, the NBA coordinator for this event, said, "Not only [are] Niwot's Holiday Magic Events intended to recognize the holidays, they are an opportunity...
The City of Boulder’s Open Space Board of Trustees (OSBT) began their review of rules regarding the use of electric bicycles on open space trails at their first of three monthly meetings held on Nov. 9. This came about because of the recognition of inconsistency between City of Boulder and Boulder County regulations. The first meeting focused on a presentation by the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks Department (OSMP) staff regarding their surveys of the community to gauge support. The e-bike presentation was given by Marni R...
