All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
Sorted by date Results 1 - 50 of 207
Welcome to the Niwot Transportation Update, your go-to source for all things related to transportation and mobility in our vibrant community. Highway 119 Underpass Discussions are underway regarding the proposed underpass linking the current RTD parking lot and downtown Niwot, involving the Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) and Boulder County. Recently, the LID penned a letter to Stacey Proctor, Transportation Strategic Planning and Projects Manager for the CO 119...
The Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) met March 5 at the Niwot Inn to consider funding requests from the Left Hand Grange No. 9 for improvements to the Grange Hall, now owned by Niwot Community Hall, a newly formed non-profit organization. The meeting began with an introduction of Carla Hunter, the newest member of the committee, who was appointed to fill the resident vacancy held by Lisa Rivard, who did not apply for reappointment. LEFT HAND GRANGE Left Hand Grange No....
Saturday Feb. 24 marked the Niwot Cultural Arts Association's annual Let's Wine About Winter Event across both Second Avenue and Cottonwood Square. However, it wasn't very wintery at 60 degrees, but it was windy. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful day to be outdoors to sample wine and culinary delights as well as support local businesses. Twenty-six businesses participated this year across the two primary hubs of Niwot's shopping district. Approximately 500 tickets were sold this year according...
The annual meeting of the Niwot Business Association on Feb. 13 saw the re-election of all current officers and directors. Eric Bergeson of the Niwot Wheel Works and The Wheel House will again serve as president, Deborah Fowler of Slifer Smith & Frampton real estate will continue as vice-president, Nancy Bureau of Left Hand Animal Hospital returns as secretary, and Mary Coonce of Porchfront Homes was re-elected as treasurer. All four officers ran unopposed for one-year terms, and their...
The House Blend Band is back for a fourth summer of concerts on Second Avenue. The Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) approved funding for the popular concerts, now known as 2nd Avenue Concert Series, based on an application from the Niwot Business Association, presented by Michael Tomich and Patty Machen of The Old Oak Coffeehouse. Tomich explained that there would be five concerts this summer beginning May 18, an increase of one over last year. The headliner for the...
Although Pawxatawney Phil has determined spring is right around the corner, based on last weekend's storm, winter seems determined to hang around. One upcoming event might offer some relief: Let's Wine About Winter in Niwot. Sponsored by the Niwot Cultural Arts Association, the annual Let's Wine About Winter event is planned for Saturday, Feb. 24 to welcome community members in from the cold with wine, art, food and hospitality. Kristin Alger, who is co-chair of the event with Anne Postle,...
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...
Niwot is known for its great small-town feel and numerous community events. The inaugural WinterFest event on Saturday, Jan. 27, did not disappoint. WinterFest brought food, games and carriage rides from Cottonwood Square to 2nd Avenue. Vendors, musicians, and activities were scattered through Niwot including Nothing Bundt Cakes in Cottonwood Square and Sweet Maple Cotton Candy at the Emporium on 2nd Avenue. A steady flow of attendees participated throughout town. However, the real hit was the...
Four Niwot-area appointed positions on Boulder County advisory boards are open for applications, which close on Friday, Jan. 19. Niwot Design Review Committee The Niwot Design Review Committee's primary role is to act as a referral agency for proposals within the Niwot Rural Community District I (NRCD I), which consists of the first block of 2nd Avenue between Murray Street and Franklin Street, plus the historic Bader House property. According to the county website, "The committee does not have...
The Niwot Local Improvement District (LID) Advisory Committee approved funding for three upcoming events to be held in January, February and June, 2024, at its Jan. 9 meeting. Mary Coonce, who serves as treasurer of both the LID and the Niwot Business Association (NBA), spoke in support of the events, saying, “The goal is to have an event every month.” In her treasurer’s report, Coonce reported a $10,716 decrease in sales tax revenues collected by the LID through October 2023, compared with...
First, just in case you were wondering, most of these groups of letters are not acronyms but initialisms, as they cannot be pronounced as a word. For example, FOMO (fear of missing out), FedEx, and NASA are pronounced as words, consequently they are acronyms, whereas ATM is not pronounced “attem,” thus an initialism. But the initialisms listed above represent organizations in Niwot, including non-profits, a taxing district and its advisory committee, and a business committee, which are all quite important to local Niwot citizens. The ini...
One of the highlights of the annual Great Pumpkin Party in Niwot is the presentation of the Curtis Lizakowski Golden Hammer Award. This year, event organizer Pat Murphy made the presentation on Oct. 28, just before the Halloween parade down 2nd Avenue, to long-time Scoutmaster Bill O'Donnell, and Niwot Nifties 4-H leaders Jerry and Marsha Slepicka. Murphy explained that the award is designed to recognize volunteers who devote countless hours to the betterment of the community, and often receive...
It took 10 years for the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and other governmental agencies to secure a $25M federal RAISE grant to improve safety on the Diagonal Highway (CO 119) and add a multi-modal bike lane in the center median from Longmont to Boulder. And though the grant was ultimately obtained, with increased funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill which was passed as part of President Joe Biden's Investing in America agenda, it came too late for the family of Magnus...
The 2023 Niwot Trot 5K, which began and ended at Whistle Stop Park Oct. 1, brought a record number of participants, some running, some walking, and some with strollers. Aimee Morin, one of the main organizers, said the event was well attended, and was a huge success. "We had a record number of participants, just over 600," Morin said. "It was a perfectly cool, sunny morning and everyone brought happy smiles and great energy, making it a memorable and successful event for our community." The...
The Niwot Trot returned to the streets of Niwot Oct. 1 with a 5K course winding through residential areas and looping back to the starting line, and finishing line, at Whistle Stop Park. Hundreds of runners and walkers participated, raising money for the school’s PTAC to support salaries for paraeducators. Some students manned aid stations along the route, providing water as well as encouragement to the participants....
Colorado Governor Jared Polis is scheduled to appear in Niwot on Thursday, Oct. 12, at 11:30 a.m. at Whistle Stop Park. Polis will be on hand for a ceremony to celebrate the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) obtaining several grant awards to help fund the Colorado Highway 119 Project. CDOT has been working in conjunction with Boulder County Public Works and RTD, to redesign bus lanes on the Diagonal Highway, and to construct a pedestrian/bikeway in the median of the highway to connect Boulder and Longmont. The Niwot Business...
The Niwot Elementary Parent Teacher Advisory Council (PTAC) is hosting the annual Niwot Trot for the 15th year to raise money for Niwot Elementary School. The Trot will start on Oct. 1 at 9 a.m. in Whistle Stop Park, and will likely end around 12 noon. Registration is $25 and includes a T-shirt, with race day registration at $30. All proceeds go towards the PTAC to help improve the school. Register at https://www.niwotptac.com/niwottrot.html. The PTAC is a non-profit organization composed of...
The Jared Music Foundation's (https://jaredmusic.org/) annual RISE Concert on Sept. 7 had the concert's highest turnout ever with an estimated 1,000 people attending the performance in Whistle Stop Park. The Jared Music Foundation is dedicated to helping children interested in music by granting scholarships and providing instruments to help aid young musicians follow their passion. RISE is the Foundation's main annual fundraiser. The money raised will go towards scholarships for children and...
Although this year's Rock & Rails concert series has concluded, there is still more Thursday night music to enjoy in Whistle Stop Park. RISE 2023, The Jared Music Foundation's annual benefit concert is returning on Thursday, Sept. 7, from 5 - 9 p.m..at Whistle Stop Park. "This will be our third one at Whistle Stop Park," said co-founder Surinder Dahiya. "We're hoping to get a good turnout because we now have about 30 kids that we fund. Over 20 are taking it at the Boulder Symphony Music...
Hazel Miller, who has performed at every Rock & Rails summer concert series since its inception in 2006, will bring her powerful voice and a blend of jazz, blues, R&B and popular music to Niwot Aug. 31. Miller will appear with her band, The Collective, to bring a soulful end to the 2023 summer concert series at Niwot's Whistle Stop Park. For the past several seasons, Miller has been the featured performer at the final concert. Miller has played almost every venue and event in Colorado over the...
A beautiful evening greeted concert-goers at the penultimate Rock & Rails concert of the season on Aug. 24. Although gray skies threatened, nothing more than a brief dash of rain fell, making for a perfect summer evening. Rock & Rails veteran Wendy Woo opened the evening. A Boulder native, Woo's parents were founding faculty members at Naropa University in Boulder. Influential beat writers such as Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, and Ken Kesey would be regulars in the living room – a fact s...
This week's Rock & Rails headliner is possibly the first performer in the series to have ever set foot on Whistle Stop Park's gazebo stage. Nalani is a Niwot High School graduate with deep area roots and fond memories of the concert series. "Rock & Rails is my home," Nalani said. "I remember when they built the gazebo and feeling that it was an anchor point for a community space. I just stood up on it, with my arms wide open, and wondered what the space would be like with the crowd, vendors,...
The annual Jared Music Foundation RISE Concert fundraiser comes to Whistle Stop Park Thursday, Sept. 7, at 5 p.m. The concert will begin with Mojomama, a funky blues Rock & Rails favorite, followed by Soul School, a crowd-pleasing multi-genre band that plays anything from soul to country to pop. Donations will provide young musicians from Boulder to Niwot to Longmont with scholarships and instruments to continue pursuing their love of music. The concert is free. Dancing is encouraged. Food...
It's been a year since the last time Face Vocal Band took the stage at Rock & Rails. "For us, every year, it gets a big circle on our calendar," said Mark Megibow, vocal performer and one of the band's partners. "It's one of the most crowded, animated and excited groups we get to play for. People get loud and they have fun." Megibow said that Rock & Rails is also one of the concert series that Face has been playing for the longest. That creates a lot of memories. In addition to the reliable...
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...
When Robin Abb ("Rockin' Robin") and the Niwot Business Association came up with the idea for Niwot's Rhythm on the Rails summer concert series in 2005 when the bandstand was built in Whistle Stop Park, she had already decided who should manage the sound. Craig Cutcliff, the sound engineer, remembers that moment clearly. "I started the first year that they had it. Rockin' Robin called me up," he said. "I had mixed her band. So that's when I started. And I've been doing it ever since." Cutcliff...
Detroit Motown and classic soul will fill Whistle Stop Park this Thursday, Aug. 10, when Ron Ivory and One on One take the stage. The quartet will be playing a range of music from the 1950s through the 2000s including familiar songs from The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Martha and the Vandellas and The Supremes. They're playing it during a year when the group is marking its 20th year performing in what's been one of its busiest years. "It started in 2003," said Ron Ivory, who serves as bandleader f...
Guerrilla Fanfare Brass Band brought its high-energy brass to Niwot last Thursday. Aug. 3, and the crowd loved it. The group, featuring trumpets, trombones, saxes, drums and a tuba, crowded the stage and entertained the audience with funky instrumentals that everyone enjoyed. The weather cooperated as predicted storms bypassed Niwot, unlike the rain and windstorm on Tuesday night that took down the entry-gate structure at Whistle Stop Park. One of the two tipi-like tripods was damaged when it...
Wind, rain and lightning brought an end to the National Night Out event in Niwot on Aug. 1 before it ever got started. With tables and chairs set up along Murray Street near the 2nd Avenue intersection, the Niwot Community Association's annual event was scheduled to start at 6 p.m. with hot dogs, hamburgers, chips and drinks furnished by the Boulder County Sheriff's Office, Mountain View Fire Rescue and other first responders. Just as the band trailer was being set up for the Niwot Community Sem...
Brass, sass, and a party are coming to the Rock & Rails stage Aug. 3 as Guerrilla Fanfare plays the event for the first time. Made up entirely of Denver-area musicians, they impart a New Orleans-style funk to their concerts, bringing trumpets, trombones, a tuba, saxophones and drums to their audience. The band's founder and manager Zach Brake is a 2016 CU Boulder alumnus and music education major who fell in love with brass band music while in school. He dreamed of starting a brass band at a tim...
Tuesday, July 25, saw The Peter Fund host a concert in Whistle Stop Park in conjunction with the recognition of the first five Kindness Counts Award winners in the non-profit's effort to recognize and reward acts of kindness. The evening opened with two bands, The PSB and Pearl Vision, each made up of local high school students who knew the late Peter Bonn-Elchoness, who died of a rare heart condition during his senior year at Niwot High School last fall. The music concluded with a performance...
A warm summer night, a tribute to Eagles founding member Randy Meisner who died the day before, and a record night for tips and alcohol sales highlighted the July 27 edition of Rock & Rails. The Strangebyrds, comprised of Cari Minor and Ray Smith, were Thursday's opening Rock & Rails act. No "strangers" to the Rock & Rails stage, the duo has been around since 2011, and have released five albums to date, with a musical style they describe as "blue collar folk Americana." The quality of Rock &...
"It seems like it's probably been twelve years at this point," said Mark Trippensee of Last Men on Earth as the band prepares to return to the familiar bandstand in Whistle Stop Park on July 13. "[Rock & Rails] is a hometown gig for us, which we don't do a lot of in the summer," he continued, "so it's always nice to have that amount of people come out." Last Men on Earth's music ranges from classic rock and pop, to country from the 70s, 80s, and current popular music. But what can patrons...
"[Niwot] is a comfortable town. Even if you don't know someone, you probably still recognize them." Chris Teta said this is why he has been involved in the Niwot community since 1988. Teta is originally from New York and moved to Colorado in 1986 to attend college at The University of Colorado Boulder. He received a degree in political science and later got two masters degrees in urban planning and public administration. He is a member of the City of Longmont Planning & Zoning Commission....
Grab your leashes and your best (four-legged) friend for the inaugural Pampered Pooch event in Niwot on Saturday, July 15 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Local businesses and fellow dog-lovers will have give-aways and canine-themed fun for your pet, including Good Boy Dog Beer, snuffle balls, pet food samples, pup-acinos, dog pool cooling area, stylish bandanas, Barkuterie! (Charcuterie for dogs) and other dog-friendly pooch-tivities and swag. You can pick up a map from one of Niwot's local businesses to follow the trail to pup fun and prizes. Four-foot...
Donald Allen Farr Dec. 7, 1943 - June 12, 2023 Donald Allen Farr was born in Detroit, Michigan. He passed away at the age of 79 in Commerce City, Colorado, due to Parkinson's. He met his wife Julie Farr in California and the couple married in Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1970. They lived most of their married life in Niwot, Colorado. They had four children and many pets. They were married 36 years before Julie's passing of breast cancer in 2006. When Don was a kid he loved playing with trains and that...
One of the most enjoyable things about Rock & Rails is the mix of bands that play each week. It's possible that the only thing each week has in common is that whoever is playing on stage, they are going to be danceable. And Los Cheesies might be one of the most unconventional bands to step onto the bandstand stage at Whistle Stop Park. Their mix of fusion reggae, ska, Latin, '80's, rap and psychedelic rock stylings is blended with wacky humor that could winkingly be called "Yankovian" (as in Wei...
The rest stop at Whistle Stop Park was brimming with bicyclists Saturday morning, June 24, to raise awareness and money for the Bike MS charity, dedicated to helping victims of multiple sclerosis. The ride took place on a gorgeous summer morning when all of the flower boxes down Second Avenue were in full bloom, and many locals watched from the coffee shop patio as the endless stream of bicyclists zipped by. Other Niwot community members helped out the riders at the Whistle Stop Park rest stop....
The June meeting of the Niwot Business Association, held Tuesday, June 13 outside of the former feed store at 291 Second Avenue in Niwot, was sponsored by Osmosis Art & Architecture. Owner and architect Anne Postle greeted members and introduced Tucker Huey of her staff. Postle has been instrumental in working with John Fischer, owner of the former feed store, and the Niwot Cultural Arts Association, to arrange for Open Studios artists to use the space until early July to display art by local...
On June 24, hundreds of bikers in colorful gear will fill the streets of Niwot, heading west on Niwot Road before looping down to Second Avenue, with a rest stop at Whistle Stop Park before crossing the Diagonal Highway to continue north on N. 73rd Street. The Bike MS charity is making its annual ride through Colorado. The route for this ride can be up to 100 miles long, winding from the Front Range Community College in Westminster to Colorado State University in Fort Collins. The Niwot...
Caleb Law, a 2023 graduate of Niwot High School, received a $500 scholarship from the County Sheriffs of Colorado, which he plans to apply towards the cost of his continuing education. Boulder County Sheriff Curtis Johnson came to Niwot's Whistle Stop Park to present the award, with Caleb's parents, Michael and Michelle Law, and his older brothers, Jared Law and Evan Law, in attendance. Every odd-numbered high school graduation year, one Boulder County resident is selected to receive the...
The requests for funding presented to the Niwot Local Improvement District Advisory Committee June 6 included old and new events –- a new event designed to capitalize on the Bike MS: Colorado event coming through Niwot on Saturday, June 24, a FlowerFest event scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 5, music for First Friday Art Walks, a resurrection of Oktoberfest on Sept. 30, and a Where’s Waldo Local scavenger hunt throughout the month of July. Bike MS: Colorado Bike MS: Colorado is a bicycle ride, as opposed to a race, with a route from Fort Collins to...
Despite the threat of rain and the allure of the Denver Nuggets playoff game, Rock & Rails kicked off its summer 2023 season last Thursday, drawing an impressive and enthusiastic crowd. With looming dark clouds above, the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band provided the opening set. The headliner, Girls on Top!, followed with two sets of high-octane party music, bringing the dance floor to capacity. As usual, the team of volunteer greeters, beverage servers, and student "gargoyles"...
It was a fun-filled "Saturday in the Park" on June 3 as the Niwot Business Association held its Third Annual Lobsterfest at Whistle Stop Park in Niwot. The rainy skies cleared for this sunny charity event filled with over 150 friends, neighbors and family members which Deborah Fowler, an event organizer said raised over $3,000 to benefit the Niwot Sculpture Park, which is restoring the tree carvings created by Eddie Running Wolf. In addition to Fowler, the event was organized by Linda Klueber...
The first band to play Niwot's summer concert series 18 years ago returns to open the 2023 Rock & Rails summer concert series Thursday, June 1. Girls On Top!, a seven-member band featuring vocalists Dawn Beck, Kristin Henry and Michele Steele in three-part harmony, performs R&B, rock, soul and funk from the 1970s and 1980s, with a stage presence that has made them a favorite along the Front Range. "We're 24 years in," said Henry, who doubles as the band's manager. "We're interactive, we're part...
A crew of volunteers spent the morning of May 13 getting Whistle Stop Park ready for the Rock & Rails summer concert season. Several volunteers cleaned the Depot Building and the Caboose, while others hung banners at the front gate and on the Caboose. Barrels and table tops were moved out of the Depot and lights were reinstalled in preparation for the first concert on June 1. Offseason work included installing additional fencing at the southwest corner of the park, and new signage. Crew...
Niwot's Local Improvement District Advisory Committee (LID) approved funding requests for six events in Niwot from May to September, including several beloved Niwot events as well as a new music event. The May 2 meeting included annual requests from the Niwot Business Association (NBA), Niwot Community Association (NCA) and Niwot Cultural Arts Association (NCAA), and a request from a local restaurant. Cottonwood Concert Among the funding requests approved was a new event, a Cottonwood Concert,...
It's that time of year - when your favorite summer concert series once again returns to Whistle Stop Park. Starting June 1, with the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band opening for Girls on Top, you can enjoy free live music with your friends all the way through August 31. If you are a long-time fan of these weekly summer events, you are sure to recognize several of the headlining bands such as Last Men on Earth, Mojomama, Face Vocal Band, Hazel Miller & the Collective, and The Long...
The Niwot community is home to artists of all sorts. The area's painters, writers, dancers, musicians, potters, sculptors and others enrich Niwot and do what they can to give back to the town. Niwot resident and woodworker Jeff Wolcott exemplifies this inclination. He not only appreciates living here, but he answered the call when he was asked to be part of the effort to restore Spear Lodge Man, and the other iconic Native American tree carvings that are located on Niwot Road near the...
One of the most popular and effective forms of self-care is getting outdoors for physical activity. Incorporating nature into a self-care routine doesn’t have to cost anything (maybe except for investing in a new pair of sneakers), which makes this form of self-care available to just about everyone. Its impact on health and well-being depends on the amount and quality of exposure to nature. Exercise is essential for a healthy body and mind, and current CDC recommendations are at least 150 minutes per week for adults and one hour per day for c...
