Volume 24, Issue 26 Wednesday, June 24, 2020

INSIDEJune isPollinatorMonth inColorado

Page 9

Disease investigators work to contain a spike in COVID-19 in Boulder County

LLLL HHHH VHVVLVCOURIER

Your News Source for Niwot, Gunbarrel, South Longmont and Vicinity. All Local, All the Time.

Diane Zimmermann

A signif icant spike in COVID-19 cases sent Boul-der County Public Health looking for reinforcements to help contain the spread. On June 10th, the county’s graph started climbing in the wrong direction, with over 175 new cases in just over a week and more since.

BCPH has about 25 people on staff who do contact trac-ing, a critical step in shutting down an outbreak. That wasn’t enough, so the health depart-ment reached out to the state for more investigators so they could reach all the positive cases within the critical 24 hour window of being diagnosed.

“The only way to stop the spread is to stop the people

who have that disease from being in contact with more people,” said Chana Gousse-tis, Public Information Officer for BCPH. “We have to work quickly, because people are out living their lives. We ask who

they’ve been in contact with. It can be sometimes hundreds of people for one case depending on how social someone is.”

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environ-ment, CDPHE, requires that

all positive cases of COVID-19 are reported to county health departments. Case investi-gators call those people and begin a conversation about the disease and how to stop it from spreading.

“The goal is to try to un-derstand how you got it, who you contacted, how it’s affected you, and answer any questions you may have,” said Boulder County Epidemiologist Carol Helwig, who oversees a team of case investigators.

Once the county is notified of a positive test for COVID-19, an investigator calls that per-son and asks for contact in-formation for anyone they’ve recently been around for more than 10 minutes, within six feet, while they were infectious and two days before having symp-

toms. The investigator notifies those people so they can get tested and follow precautions for control, which may include quarantining for 14 days.

“It’s a box-it-in approach,” Helwig said. “We identify every case, every contact, test everyone, and implement the measures. We have enough testing. Capacity is there, ab-solutely. We didn’t have that at the beginning.”

Most people have cooper-ated with the contact tracing process, but some are leery. That’s why case investigators stress that their personal in-formation will be kept private. Goussetis said the name of the infected person is not revealed. “We just say you might have

By Patricia Logan

Editorial@lhvc.com

Photo by Denys Iarkovoi @ 123rf.com

On June 17, the Boulder County Public Health department announced a significant increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases across the county.

Frontier Airlines President/CEO and Niwot local Barry Biffle leads company through pandemic

Airlines have been hit hard during the coronavirus pandemic and Frontier Air-lines President and CEO Bar-ry Biffle is leading the charge with precautions as travel slowly increases. “It's been pretty tough on the industry overall,” said Biffle, a Niwot resident. He remains hopeful that Frontier will emerge strong and continue to serve Colorado and beyond.

Despite rigorous precau-tions, the airline industry has struggled with stay at home orders enveloping the coun-try. Fortunately for Frontier, Biffle said they cater mostly to domestic leisure travel, which is slowly beginning to return. Another reason to

fly is for business, and that population remains “largely non-existent” according to Biffle. Frontier isn’t as hurt in this sector with only about 5% of their customers travel-

ling for business.“If you're an airline that

is dependent upon business travel, then obviously it's a

By Jack carLough

Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo

Frontier Airlines president and Niwot resident Barry Biffle on how his airline is approaching safety as air travel slowly rebounds.

Continued on Page 8

Continued on Page 5

Planning commission approves parking lot with conditions

Plans for a multimodal park-ing facility adjacent to downtown Niwot got the preliminary go-ahead from the Boulder County Planning Commission at a re-mote public hearing held on June 17. With a unanimous vote, the nine-member board approved a proposal from the Niwot Busi-ness Association and the County of Boulder to develop a lot with 14 spaces on vacant land between the BNSF railroad tracks and Murray Street, provided several conditions are met.

“The applicants were very accepting of the conditions,” Boulder County Land Use plan-ner Molly Marcucilli said. Bruce Warren and Chuck Klueber spoke on behalf of the appli-cants. The conditions of approval include adding an adequate

vegetative hedge to screen cars and enhanced pedestrian con-nections. “They’ve been working with the community members on this, especially the residents along Murray Street. And they’re more than willing to do anything they need to do to make sure that they’re in compliance and appeasing the residents.”

The NBA and Boulder County originally submitted the appli-cation for Special Use Review in November 2019. Per the site plan, the initial phase will occupy 6,318 square feet on the southern tip of the two-acre parcel adjacent to the railroad tracks just behind the Excel Electric building, with 12 regular and two handicapped accessible parking spaces. It will have a permeable surface for wa-ter drainage, and the landscaping will be “consistent with the rural

Continued on Page 10

By JoceLyn rowLey

Editorial@lhvc.com

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, June 24, 2020Page 2

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We look forward to seeing your pets in our Spotlight. Please send your photos and a brief description to editorial@LHVC.com.

Editorial/Circulation: 303-845-3077Advertising: advertising@lhvc.comEmail: editorial@lhvc.comWeb Site: www.lhvc.com

Editor: Jocelyn RowleyProduction: Nesscel CalaraManaging Editor: Bruce WarrenSenior Editor: Mary Wolbach LopertBusiness Manager/News of Record: Vicki MaurerAdvertising Director: Ann WhitehillNiwot News/Editor: Karen CopperbergReporters: Kim Glasscock, Abby Scott, Hannah Stewart, Pattie Logan, Emily Long & Kristen Arendt Sports Reporters: Jocelyn Rowley, Bruce Warren, Jack Carlough

Published weekly in Niwot, Colorado by LEFT HAND VALLEY PUBLISHING, L.L.C. Member Colorado Press Association.

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PRIMARYELECTION

The Democratic, Republican, and Libertarian Parties will be holding primaries for the 2020 election on Tuesday, June 30. Ballots will be mailed to all reg-istered Boulder County voters starting on June 8, and Voter Service Centers will open on June 22, though locations may be limited due to COVID-19. June 22 is also the last day to re-quest a ballot by mail. For more

information, visit the Boulder County Elections website.

VOLUNTEEROPPORTUNITIES

The City of Boulder is re-cruiting volunteers for a variety of programs. Current programs and services in critical need of volunteers include: COVID-19 Recovery Center, Park Champ Program, and Natural Lands Outreach Volunteer Program. Community members inter-

ested in volunteering can learn more at bouldercolorado.gov/volunteer and sign up at count-mein.bouldercolorado.gov/getinvolved. For questions, contact volunteer@bouldercol-orado.gov.

SCHOOL VIRTUAL OPEN HOUSE

Boulder Country Day School will hold Virtual Open Houses on July 22 and August 11 at 4 p.m. BCD is an accredited pre-

school-8th grade private school located in Gunbarrel (4820 Nau-tilus Court North). Register at www.bouldercountryday.org. Financial assistance is available.

CALL FOR PANDEMIC RELATED MATERIALS

The Niwot Historical So-ciety needs your help. In order to document the 2020 coro-navirus pandemic for future generations of Niwotians, the NHS is asking local residents to

submit a short letter describing how their lives have changed in recent weeks, and how they kept busy during the quaran-tine. To submit your reflections electronically, send an email to info@niwothistoricalsociety.org. The NHS will also be accepting hard copy submissions later this year. All will be included in a notebook to be archived for future researchers. For more information, please visit https://niwothistoricalsociety.org/.

Community Calendar

Rock & Rails on hold

The popular Niwot summer concert series, Rock & Rails, remains on hold, according to co-managers Dan Hawk, Vicki Maurer and Biff War-ren. An amended state-wide public health order was is-sued June 18, 2020, allowing outdoor events with up to 175 participants, subject to other regulations, which were issued in a separate order, entitled Guidance for Outdoor Events.

Warren explained that al-though Whistle Stop Park, at over three-quarters of an acre, is large enough to accommo-date an event with up to 175

participants, it is not practical to conduct the concert series with such a limited audience. “We normally have 500 to 1,000 people at the concerts,” Warren said. “We don’t sell tickets, so we would have to drastically curtail the number of people who could attend, and change the way we operate to be in compliance. In addition, the regulations do not allow use of a dance floor, food vendors would be very limited in how they could operate, and the enforcement requirements are beyond our capabilities.”

Other restrictions would require organizers to collect contact information from ev-eryone attending the concerts,

a process which is time-con-suming and difficult to do with volunteers. “Several of our regular volunteers and some of our paid staff have indicat-ed they are not comfortable working a concert at this time,” Warren explained.

The June concerts were postponed and Warren indicat-ed that the July concerts would also be postponed. Until gath-ering restrictions are modified to allow up to 500 persons to at-tend an event, Rock & Rails will not be held, Warren explained. “We’re not ready to cancel the entire season yet, but we won’t be able hold the July concerts we had scheduled,” he said.

If restrictions are lifted in

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Boulder County warns residents to keep an eye open for summer algal blooms

As summer temperatures swing into the 90s, you and your four-legged friends are likely looking for ways to stay cool. And though a dip in one of our local ponds may look tempting, be aware that standing bodies of water may be home to blue-green algae.

You may have seen the cau-tion signs at trailheads this summer or in summers past, typically at Coot Lake, the Boulder Reservoir, or, most recently, at Wonderland Lake: “Caution: Harmful Algae May Be Present.”

Historically in Colorado, blue-green algae blooms have mainly posed a problem for dogs, although the algae is also toxic to humans if ingested. But what is blue-green algae and how can you tell if it is present in a standing body of water?

Blue-green algae isn’t ac-tually algae at all, but rather cyanobacteria, a type of bac-teria that are capable of pho-tosynthesis. Cyanobacteria are native to Colorado waters and are a healthy part of an aquatic ecosystem, helping support fish and other aquatic life. But too much nitrogen or phosphorus in the water can cause blue-green algae to form blooms and scums. Most common during hot, sunny weather, these blooms are

usually found in standing or slow-moving bodies of water and produce toxins that can cause illness in humans, pets, and other animals that come in contact with the algae.

Although cyanobacteria are native, according to Boulder County, warmer temperatures, stagnant water, and nitrogen and phosphorus (nutrient) loading from fertilized lawns and other sources can facilitate unhealthy algae and cyanobac-teria growth. Known as harm-ful algae blooms (or HABs), these cyanobacteria blooms are similar to another cyanobacte-rium bloom that happens in marine or saltwater—the Red Tide.

In the last week, cases of harmful blue-green algal blooms were reported in North Dakota, Nebraska, Florida, Cal-ifornia, and Texas. This prob-lem is not unique to Colorado, but rather a problem unique to any standing body of water that could become a petri dish for cyanobacteria blooms in the warmer summer months.

Boulder County notes that it does not test local bodies of water for current levels of blue-green algae as the levels can change hourly. It’s tricky—a here one moment, gone the next kind of transient algal superbloom.

So what can you do to avoid potentially toxic HABs? First, keep an eye out for signs of blue-green algae blooms. Ac-

cording to the Colorado De-partment of Public Health and Environment, cyanobacteria blooms may look like thick pea soup or spilled bluish-green paint on the water's surface. They can also create a thick mat of foam along the shoreline.

Other precautions you can take are to keep your dogs on leash to keep them out of the water or from finding algae that may have washed up on shore. People should also avoid wading or swimming in any ponds or lakes where suspect-ed algal blooms are present.

Anglers should use caution and follow state recommenda-tions for thoroughly cleaning any caught fish and discarding the guts accordingly. Boating or fishing may be entirely prohibited in some cases, and you should check with local land management agencies for the most current cautions and restrictions.

Not all algae are harmful, but if you are uncertain, it is best to avoid the water. With the proper precautions and an awareness of what to look for, you can keep yourself, your family, and your pets safe this summer.

By kristen arendt

Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo: Boulder County

Blue-green algae isn’t actually algae at all, but rather cyanobacteria, a type of bacteria that are capable of photosynthesis

Pam Turner opened Air-borne Gymnastics and Dance in 1991 in Longmont. On March 12 of this year, the business had over 1000 students between two locations in Longmont and Frederick, and around 75 employees.

That Thursday evening in March, the leadership of the gym met to discuss the recent disturbing news about the novel coronavirus. Turner said, “We were really struggling with the decision” of whether or not to close.

They ultimately decided to remain open, but woke up on March 13 to find that all the schools in the region were closing.

“Nothing like this has ever happened to me and my busi-ness. It’s been such a rollercoast-er. Good news, bad news, good news, bad news,” said Turner.

Closing the gyms was their only option on March 13, and it meant that Turner had to lay off all but seven of her 75 employ-ees, “some of whom I’ve known for 30 years,” she said.

The remaining shoestring staff immediately began build-ing an online program, which launched within a week of closing the physical facilities.

While Turner said, “You can’t just put a 5-year-old in front of a TV on a Zoom call and expect them to be able to be super en-gaged,” she said, “We definitely had some success” with online learning.

That is true for the Cooper family of South Longmont, whose children have been reg-ulars at the gym for over a

decade. Owen Cooper’s two daughters, Audrey, 13, and Na-talie, 10, both started attending classes at Airborne when they were around 2 years old.

Before the pandemic, Natalie was in the preteen program, attending classes twice a week.

After the shutdown, Cooper said, “Natalie took to [the online courses] right away. I wouldn’t say she enjoyed it more than going to the gym, but she was very diligent. And she used their online workouts two to three times a week, at least.”

Cooper continued, “In terms of her strength and condition-ing, she’s made more advance-ment in the past three months than she had in the past year. Because she was doing this multiple times a week and was just focused on it.”

Online learning wasn’t ideal for everyone, though, and gym owner Turner said “At some point it was kind of heartbreak-ing because it was so hard for the teenagers especially to be so disconnected.”

Airborne was able to reopen on June 1 under new summer camp guidelines. “My staff and I got together and set up all kinds of protocols and guide-lines,” said Turner, and at first, only around 25% of the former number of students returned.

Natalie Cooper is back in the gym two times a week, and her father Owen noted, “They are bringing in-person training back in what I consider to be a safe manner.”

There are many protocols in place around social distanc-ing and sanitation, including proper ventilation and utilizing multiple entrances and exits for the high-ceilinged, 25,000

square foot gym in Longmont. The regulations and restric-

tions are robust, while also allowing for the unique needs of the sport. Coaches and staff are required to wear masks, but masks are optional for students.

“Doing gymnastics with a mask on is not safe,” according to Turner.

The future of any business during this time is hard to predict, and as for Turner’s personal outlook on her own nearly 30-year-old organization, she said, “I’m hoping to not go bankrupt.”

“I’m going to do the best I can to find students who are comfortable coming out.”

Turner has increased the staff up to about a third of pre-coro-navirus numbers, and Airborne has seen a gradual but steadily increasing number of students, now around 350. Turner is ac-cepting new students and said, “I’ve had quite a few students that have never been here before sign up for classes and camps.”

“Right now I’ve got about 25 employees who are also de-pending on me, so I need to give it the best shot I can,” she said.

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After weeks of online training, children return to gymnastics

Courtesy Photo

Airborne Gymnastics was able to reopen on June 1 under new summer camp guidelines, including protocols around social distancing and sanitation.

Courtesy Photo

Natalie Cooper at Airborne Gym before the coronavirus pandemic

By emiLy Long

Editorial@lhvc.com

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very difficult time for you,” he said. “But fortunately with our business model and ca-tering to travelers that want good value, we’ve bounced back a lot lately. We’re very optimistic about the future. ...We’re majority domestic U.S., so with less than 20% of our travel outside the United States, we’re not as impacted as some of the carriers that have a large portion of their network being internation-al.”

Biffle began preparing for the coronavirus in January when he bought his employ-ees 300,000 masks. The down to earth airline CEO was thought to be overreacting at the time.

“We were actually really early in terms of being able to respond to it (COVID-19) and we were following it pretty carefully,” he said. “And quite honestly, there were a lot of people that told me I was crazy at the time.”

His precautions contin-ued and on June 1, Frontier became the first airline to implement a passenger tem-perature check. The Den-ver-based airline also re-quires a health certification form acknowledging that you don’t have any symptoms and did not come into con-tact with anyone who has in the last two weeks. Biffle is thankful for his employees embracing new roles during the pandemic.

“We’re just really proud of all of our employees doing a great job of making sure that everybody stays safe during coronavirus,” Biffle said.

On board, they’ve brought along a fogging disenfectant and a HEPA air filtration system that recirculates and brings in fresh, outdoor air.

“Within like five minutes you’re actually down to only one quarter of the (original) air,” Biffle said. “It makes

it especially when you turn your vent on. The odds of contracting it (COVID-19) is very low. In fact, we’re un-aware of anyone contracting COVID(-19) on an airplane, at least ours.”

Biffle has an extra incen-tive for precaution as his 12-year-old son is immuno-compromised. Their family has always been careful and even skipped Christmas last year when a family member was sick. Biffle’s caution has translated to his job out of necessity.

“Probably the reason why Frontier was probably ahead of this in many ways (was) because I have to be con-scious,” he said. “He can’t be around anyone that even has a cold.”

Biffle believes Niwot’s discipline to social distance and every day precautions has led to a low number of local cases. Although he would like to see that routine practiced more throughout the country, he is grateful that Niwot has taken the situation so seriously.

“Compliance here is like 95%,” Biffle said. “I think a lot of people were very re-spectful and they understand in Niwot that I have to wear a mask to protect you and you have to wear a mask to protect me, and it’s more im-portant that I wear a mask. I just think people that live in Niwot are generally pretty conscious of their decisions and how that impacts their neighbors and I think that that’s made a big difference.”

Colorado has always been close to Frontier’s heart and Biffle said his relationship with Governor Jared Polis has been strong throughout the pandemic. Biffle has been proud of Colorado’s urgency to combat the virus and with the help of local leaders, emerge safely with minimal economic hardship.

“We’re just really proud to be a Colorado company,” Biffle said.

FRONTIERContinued from Page 1

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, June 24, 2020Page 6

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Alivia Bell, Niwot barber shop owner, suffers severe bicycle accident

Alivia Bell has owned and operated the Niwot barber shop for the past thirteen years. Throughout her ten-ure, she has made lasting connections with her clien-tele and the surrounding Niwot community. Bell also resides in the heart of the downtown and can often be spotted riding her bicycle around Boulder County.

On June 3, Bell was riding her bike on Airport Road when she was struck by a car. She was knocked off her bicycle and severely injured. Bell has a compound fracture on her left leg and an injured back, but is also suffering emotionally from the strife this has added to her life and livelihood.

Bell was already feeling

strain under COVID-19 re-strictions, but now must post-pone returning to work even longer due to her injuries. Jim Eastman is a friend of Bell’s, and founder of a Go Fund Me campaign to help her get back on her feet, financially and literally. Eastman explained that it could be at least three months before Bell can return to work.

Bell has undergone two surgeries and will visit the doctor again July 1 to see how her physical recovery is going. Bell stressed, “I want to return to the barbershop. I want to ride my bike again, but I’m scared.” She suffered another tough car accident in 2007 when she was ejected out of the rear windshield and also dealt with tough injuries after that incident.

Now, as she recovers, Bell explained that she could

benefit from in-home help to assist with self-care, pain management, and adminis-tration of medication. She is having difficulty taking care of day-to-day tasks and now must pay her apartment rent and shop rent without gener-ating any income.

Bell said of Niwot, “I love this community. My friends here and my customers are my family. I don’t have any fami ly here .” Eastman’s Go Fund Me campaign has raised over $14,000 so far to help Alivia Bell cover her expenses and reduce the fi-

nancial burden this accident has caused. Niwot truly takes care of its own and Bell has and will continue to be a vital member of the community as she recovers. Those inter-ested in donating can access the page here.

By aBBy scott

Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo

Alivia Bell of Niwot Barber Shop was injured in a severe biking accident earlier this month.

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been exposed to a person who tested positive. We nev-er share identifying details. It’s natural for people to not want to share who they have been hanging out with or don’t want to be very clear about where a party may have been. But we’re not interested in what people are up to. We’re interested in who they may have been in contact with.”

Goussetis also said there is fear from some of the Span-ish-speaking community “who naturally feel uncom-fortable sharing their info with the government if they don’t have residency. We’re trying to get the message out that we are not contact-ing immigration. That is not relevant to us. We are only interested in health. Our in-vestigators have to be really adept at helping people be relaxed, that they can trust

us, pull out parts of the story that are really important, and can get to exposure points. It takes some skill. You have to be good with people and data.”

Contact tracing is an im-portant part of the inves-tigation, but epidemiolo-gists are also trying to learn more about how COVID-19 is spread and the character-istics of the disease. “Most of what we know is through this process,” said Helwig. “What put someone at risk, what are symptoms, what underlying health conditions do they have and what outcomes do they have for the disease? The more we gain this infor-mation the more robust our understanding will be.”

That information can then be translated into action. If there is transmission in a workplace, then guidance and protocols can be devel-oped.

Disease investigation isn’t anything new. It’s how health experts learned about polio, measles and many other diseases. Boulder County

Public Health already had a staff of epidemiologists and case investigators, but they had to quickly expand for the coronavirus pandemic. “We did more in the first few weeks [of the pandemic] than we do in a year,” Helwig said.

The county got creative in adding staff, solving two problems. Many workers haven’t been able to do their regular jobs because they involve face-to-face contact with the public, so the county shifted them to BCPH.

“We have an amazing team of people; people with a background in social work, skilled at motivational in-terviewing, staff who have worked in restaurant inspec-tions, so they are very good at working with facilities, the public, implementing guide-lines and communicating risk information,” Helwig said. “Everyone is very empathet-ic, present and engaged and aware every time they’re doing a call. And that com-mitment to wanting to serve the community, is definitely a trait of the team.”

Colorado provides addi-tional investigators when a county asks for help, as Boulder did for this outbreak. New technology is also in the works to make the process of disease investigation better and more efficient. The coun-ty is working on a program to automate texts to check in with people who have the disease, as long as they give permission.

There will soon be soft-

ware to help different coun-ties better communicate with one another. But, there are no plans to use mobile apps that track where individuals go, something that has been used in other countries. There are privacy concerns about using the technology in the United States.

New technology won’t be ready to address the current spike in cases in Boulder County, which Helwig said is primarily due to people in their 20s who gathered in groups to socialize. They have reported symptoms like loss of taste and smell and a mild cough. And while they may not be having serious symptoms, they can spread it to others who are older or are more susceptible to having a severe case, or dying.

That’s alarming to health officials and the governor, who called out the behav-ior that led to the Boulder County spike in his news conference last week when the number of new cases climbed over 100.

“Many of those students also have jobs. They work in retail, work in restaurants,” Polis said. “Those precau-tions that people are taking are so critical at prevent-ing those 108 students from spreading to thousands of Boulder residents.”

Polis and health profes-sionals urge those infected, and the rest of the commu-nity, to stay vigilant; to wear a mask in public, to keep six feet away from others, to

wash hands, to stay home as much as possible, to keep groups to 10 or fewer people and to isolate or quarantine if infected or exposed. Polis said there are a lot of reasons to care, whether it’s your own life, the life of your loved ones, the new freedoms we’re enjoying, and Colorado’s eco-nomic recovery.

“It comes down to per-sonal responsibility,” said Goussetis. She said BCPH is getting a lot of complaints about people who are not following the rules. Enforce-ment, so far, has been focused on education, but the county does have the authority to fine people or even put them in jail for breaking public health ordinances. “We can’t be everywhere and can’t control individual activities. It’s up to all of us to do as much as we can by following instructions,” she said.

Contact tracing is a vital part of preventing more ex-treme measures like another lockdown.

“We are very concerned that many residents feel we are out of the woods,” said Goussetis, who urged Boul-der County residents to be extra cautious. “We are not out of the woods by far. We will be dealing with the virus for at least a year. It’s a bum-mer. I get it. It’s not what any of us wants to be doing. I just want folks to hunker down right now until we can get it under control.”

CONTACT TRACINGContinued from Page 2

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERWednesday, June 24, 2020 Page 9

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As the heat sets in and our early spring flowers fade and give way to summer blooms and vegetable gardens, you might have pollination on your mind. If not, maybe you should! Simply put, pollination is the transfer of pollen from one flower to another flower of the same species. Flowers need to be pollinated to complete their life cycle by producing fruit and setting seed. This is particularly important if you’re growing fruits and vegetables, but also important at a much larger scale for nuts, orna-mentals, native plants, oils, fibers and raw materials. For the past four years, Governors Hickenlooper and now Polis have signed a proclamation designating June as Colorado Pollinator Month, helping bring awareness to the import-ant work that pollinators do.

As you’re out tending your plants and garden beds, take a moment to notice the visitors that appear at the flowers. There are many animal and insect pollinators, but the most common and most efficient are bees. Most people are familiar with honey bees which hail from Europe, but few realize

that we have over 950 species native to Colorado alone! There are more than 3,500 species in the U.S., and it is estimated that there are 20,000+ bee species worldwide. There are so many different species that come in all different sizes and colors that they are often overlooked and/or people don’t realize they are bees. An important thing to note is that most native bees don’t sting. You may have had a green metallic sweat bee land on your arm looking for a salty snack (yes, your sweat)

and not thought twice about it. Most native bees are soli-

tary. A single female will create her nest, lay eggs along with provisions for each and move on, whereas honey bees are eusocial, forming large colo-nies of tens of thousands of individual bees who all work together. Each honey bee has a specific job within the hive and the larvae are carefully tended by the adult bees. Most native bees make their nests below ground in tunnels, but many make their nests in cavities.

Knowing this makes it easier to create habitat for these little friends of the garden. Habitat loss is one of the three main issues that pollinators face today and one that gardeners can have a big impact on. (The others are climate change and anthropic activity.)

Beyond just providing food (flowers for nectar (carbs) and pollen (protein)) you can pro-vide shelter and water which completes the habitat and will make your garden more attrac-tive for them to move in and

stay awhile. For the cavity nesters you

can include a snag (old wood stump or branch) in your land-scape or you can build or buy a bee condo. For the ground nesters you can leave areas of sunny, undisturbed ground that will be inviting for them to create their underground tunnels and nests. Keep an eye out for small holes in your soil, it might be the entrance to a bee’s home!

At the CSU Extension Boul-der County office in Longmont (9595 Nelson Road) we are working to increase pollina-tor habitat by planting more demonstration gardens. Come by and take a look! As garden-ers who depend on the ecosys-tem service that bees and other important pollinators provide, we need to raise our awareness, and help to conserve and cre-ate habitat whenever possible. They are our modest compan-ions in the gardens, and when provided with a little food and shelter, they will work tireless-ly with us, and our gardens will be all the better for it.

For more information on how to create habitat in your own yard check out the CSU Extension website and refer-ence fact sheets 5.616 and 5.615.

By deryn davidson

Colorado State University Extension Boulder County

Courtesy Photo

One of the many demonstration gardens at the CSU Extension Boulder County office in Longmont (9595 Nelson Road) planted to increase pollinator habitat.

Q: Please tell the readers a bit about yourself.

A. I am a 34-year resident ofBoulder, with 33 of those years spent in House District 10. I worked as a software engineer here for more than thirty years, serving in roles as varied as individual contributor, senior director and program manager. While at Xilinx Inc, where I spent my last 20 years before eventu-ally retiring, I was co-author on two patents.

My wife Jane and I were drawn to Colorado for its out-door beauty, spending our free time cycling, mountain biking, climbing, kayaking and back-country skiing for many years. We came to deeply cherish the beauty of Colorado. More recently, I have been active in the Boulder County Republican

Party, and am currently the GOP House District 10 Secretary.

Q: What issues do you see as the most pressing, and what are your plans to fix them?

A. By far the most criticalissue facing us, in my opinion, is the collapse of the state’s economy under the lockdown, associated with attempts to mitigate the Coronavirus pan-demic. Clearly the pandemic has been a terrible tragedy for those of us affected. However,

our state has been thrust into a situation where we, as of April, have nearly 500,000 people who are unemployed. • I will address the economic

crisis in the following ways:• Fight for the immediate full

opening up of the businesseconomy, letting businessesand individuals determinethe level of risk they arewilling to tolerate, whilerestricting very large gather-ings and actively protectingthose at risk.

• Forgo my legislative salaryand donate it to food banksand other charitable organi-zations.

• Request that the U.S. Con-gress and Administrationamend the Payroll Protection Plan to allow businesses tohave their loans forgiven ifthey spend no more than40% on non-payroll expens-es, instead of the current 25%, and lengthen the spendingperiod to 24 weeks.

• Amend Colorado RevisedStatutes Title 24 to require

mandatory legislative ap-proval for the extension of any emergency declaration by the Governor beyond 30 days, thereby guaranteeing accountability from all gov-ernment branches.

• A license fee holiday of twoyears for all small business-es, along with reductions inother business- related feesand taxes.The next most pressing issue

is runaway spending by the State Government. The resounding defeat of Proposition CC in 2018 is a clear signal that spending is an important issue to Colorado voters. Despite TABOR, for the past 10 years the state budget has increased at twice the rate of inflation plus population gain. I propose reining in the budget by eliminating waste and superflu-ous programs while maintaining and enhancing essential services. Then we can lower taxes and fees on both businesses and individuals. Such tax cuts have been shown to increase busi-ness investment and consumer

spending; they will launch a new wave of prosperity for all Coloradans.

Important Local Issues For my district, the local

issues that come to mind are improved infrastructure, protec-tion of our natural environment, and jobs lost due to the shut-down. Infrastructure improve-ments are essential services, and I will work to maintain funding for them; I believe they are a key to a flourishing economy. I will ensure that our State Parks are sufficiently funded, for the enjoyment of all Coloradans. I will also work to revive the dec-imated tourist economy, which is essential to my district and the source of many jobs. Finally, I promise to listen and respond to all issues brought up by citi-zens in my district, and push for workable solutions.

Editor’s Note: Colorado House District 10 candidate Edie Hooten-D did not respond to the Left Hand Valley Couri-er’s request for an interview.

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, June 24, 2020Page 10

Candidate Profile: Ken Stickney (R)COLORADO HOUSE DISTRICT 10By Jesse murPhy

Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo

Kenneth Stickney, candidate for Colorado House District 10 representative

character of Niwot.’’ Addi-tional phases will be built as the need arises and as LID funding is available, with final plans calling for a maximum of 50 spaces.

After reviewing the ap-plication and responses from neighbors and other interested agencies, the county’s Planning Division staff issued its recom-mendation for approval of the proposal on June 10, subject to a list of 20 conditions. Many are related to compliance with the county’s multimodal transpor-tation standards and ADA regu-lations, but the recommendation also addresses landscaping, EV charging stations, and stormwa-ter management.

A few of the recommenda-tions addressed concerns from the residents of the 300 and 400 blocks of Murray Street con-cerning traffic safety, including required pedestrian pathways to 2nd Avenue and improved access for bicycles. However, according to Marcucilli, the residents’ request for stop signs at the 3rd Avenue and Murray

Street intersection was deter-mined to be outside the scope of the Special Use Review, and the residents were urged to contact the county’s public works de-partment.

Based on comments from county Parks and Open Space, as well as the residents, the staff recommendation also requires “vegetative screening” on the east side of the lot, in order to mitigate negative impacts to the View Protection Corridor along the Diagonal Highway. Marcucilli said this was also an important point for planning board members during the hearing, “The commissioners requested that we make sure the hedge is tall enough so that it’s actually screening the cars, but

not too tall that it’s blocking the views of the mountains.”

The conditions also require a fence on the west side of the lot to discourage pedestrians and cars from accessing the BNSF railroad tracks, as well as an EV charging station when the lot expands beyond 14 spaces. Last month, the NBA was selected to participate in Xcel Energy’s EV Supply Infrastructure Program, which provides a grant to help offset the cost of the installation and infrastructure to support a charging station at the proposed parking lot.

Along with the border hedge, the planning board also ad-dressed the interior landscaping of the lot, which must cover 5% of the parking area, as mandated

in the county’s land use code. According to the Land use Code, this isn’t required in the first phase, but the board members were concerned about a delay.

“They also wanted to make sure that the landscaping was in-corporated into all three phases of the parking lot development,” Marcucilli said. “Our land use code says that once you have a lot that hits 50 spaces, five per-cent of that will have to be land-scaped. But since we’re doing it in a phased process, technically it would mean that they don’t need to add landscaping until the third phase, but the commis-sioners want to see landscaping in all phases.”

Murray Street resident Galan Scheidenhelm spoke at the hear-ing on the importance of pe-destrian access. Architect Anne Postle, a Niwot resident and owner of commercial property on 2nd Avenue, spoke to the importance of the parking lot for both customers and employ-ees of downtown businesses. NBA President Eric Bergeson, who owns Niwot Wheel Works on 2nd Avenue, also spoke in support of the proposal. No one

from the general public spoke in opposition, though there were several earlier written responses from neighbors opposing the plan.

The NBA is now working with county planners to bring the parking lot plans into com-pliance. The proposal will go before the Board of County Commissioners for final approv-al at a public hearing in July or August. If passed, the NBA will be eligible to apply for building and other permits and poten-tially start construction later this year. However, there are still a few more hurdles to clear before that milestone is in sight.

“They won’t be obtaining any permits until all of the require-ments are met,” Marcucilli said. “They are going to be working with our engineering team to make sure that everything in the design is fleshed out. They need to know where all of the ADA spaces are going to go, and what the internal circulation is going to be, and where the bike parking is. They need all of the dimensions, and every single detail before they can give out any permits.”

PARKING LOTContinued from Page 1

Photo by Karen Copperberg

The Boulder County Planning Commission voted to conditionally approve phase one of a public park-ing lot near the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Murray Street at a hearing on June 17.

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERWednesday, June 24, 2020 Page 11

Trooper Tips: Yielding

The word “yield” has many meanings in the English lan-guage. You can yield to the next speaker, or the land can yield food from the garden. But today I bring up “yield” as in the road sign.

Too often I find that drivers treat a yield sign as a free for all to go through intersections or turns onto other roads without even slowing. A yield sign allows a driver to reduce speed instead of having to come to a complete stop. Call a yield sign a small time-sav-er. But remember, it doesn’t mean you may not have to come to a complete stop if necessary to yield right of way to any traffic on the roadway you are going to cross or enter.

So, when approaching a yield sign it means slowing to a reasonable speed, which allows you the ability to as-certain what is happening in the area. Ask yourself, did you give yourself enough time to accurately see if traffic is coming? Are there any pedes-trians using the crosswalks? Do you have an acceleration lane or does it go directly into the lane of travel?

In my opinion, a good speed for a yield sign is quite

often what I see when some-one rolls through a stop sign. So quick refresher there. Stop at a stop sign, and slow roll through the yield sign if it's safe to do so.

Are you aware that when entering a roadway, to do so safely and legally, you cannot alter the other vehicle’s path-way? This means causing them to slow from the speed they were going. Make sure you can get your vehicle up to the speed limit prior to anoth-er car coming up behind you aas you enter that new road.

Now let’s talk about what to do when an intersection has flashing yellow lights. This is another area I’ve seen drivers never even slow their speed when going through the intersection. This is high-ly dangerous. You need to know if the lights have mal-functioned and are showing yellow in all directions or if the road crossing your path is flashing red. Either way, those flashing lights require a driver to slow to a reasonable and safe speed to be able to once again ascertain how safe it is to proceed through the intersection.

“I now yield the floor.”As always, safe travels!

Christopher Hill @ 123rf.com

“Yield” isn’t quite the same thing as “stop” when it comes to traffic safety, but Trooper Gary Cutler reminds drivers it’s a sign to decrease speed and be aware of your surroundings.

By master trooPer gary cutLer

Colorado State Patrol

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Friday, August 22, 2014Page 12 Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Niwot 10-year-old shares the awesomeness

Creativity flows through 10-year-old Edsel whether he’s drawing comics or work-ing on his local newspaper, the Neighborhood Awesome-ness. Edsel has noticed there are “many awesome things happening in the neighbor-hood,” and he wanted to dis-play that during the stressful times of a pandemic.

His mother, Catherine, has helped Edsel print over 25 copies of the Awesomeness and distribute it throughout their central Niwot neighbor-hood, rain or shine.

The now bi-weekly paper began when Colorado went into a safe at home order in March and includes comics, sports and a “big story” sec-tion. All ideas are Edsel’s own and it’s not hard for him to find inspiration.

“Some of the stories (Ed-sel) just actually went look-

ing around in the neighbor-hood to see what was going on,” Catherine said, “things about pets, things about what we could notice.”

Pets are a popular focal point with Catherine add-ing in a “Sprocky the Cat” comic and Edsel going a little further with his tall tale, “Geoffrey the Pirate Gi-raffe.” Other treasures by the aspiring cartoonist include “Lil’ Ghost” and “Roger the Radish.” A legendary pair of comics sparked his interest in the art.

“I really like Garfield and Calvin and Hobbes comics,” Edsel said. “I thought that it would be fun to give it a try of my own.”

“He spends a lot of time cartooning,” Catherine said. “Even when he's not doing Neighborhood Awesome-ness, he likes to make up comics and cartoons.” Edsel added that he even made a comic starring himself.

Catherine has appreciat-ed the admiration they’ve received from neighbors. Neighbors have written Edsel friendly feedback, fueled his deliveries with chocolate, and even donated paper when stores were closed during the lockdown.

Besides an occasional re-minder to begin writing and some help with printing and stapling, Catherine gives all the credit to Edsel.

“From the start, it was actually his idea,” Catherine said. “I very much wanted him to lead it. He does it all.”

The Neighborhood Awe-someness will continue to spread positivity throughout the summer and beyond.

“It 's just been a really fun project,” Catherine said. “And a good way for Edsel to keep going during the time he was away from school.”

By Jack CarloughEditorial@lhvc.com

Mwebaza Foundation organizes community mural to support Ugandan partner communities

Since 2008, the Mweba-za Foundation has been an integral part of our Niwot community. The nonprofit has expanded its partner schools to include Coyote Ridge, Corona-do Hills, and Eagle Crest while also incorporating school clubs at Sunset Middle and Niwot High to allow students to con-tinue their involvement with the foundation.

Recently, the foundation’s four Ugandan partner schools have suffered severely under COVID-19 restrictions, in-cluding extended lockdown measures and school closures. Many partner school students rely on school lunches for a bulk of their daily nutrition and, with schools temporarily shut down, some are not get-ting enough to eat. In addition,

many community parents and school faculty are unable to work under the restrictions and are struggling to provide for their families.

To offer additional support, the Mwebaza Foundation has

created a variety of summer fundraisers, including a com-munity mural, to generate money for meal kits, teacher salaries, and future scholar-ships to send children back to school when the country

reopens. The community mu-ral will be a patchwork series of 6x6 and 12x12 canvases, stitched together, and sent over to Uganda. People of all ages are encouraged to partic-ipate and can take all summer creating their own personal painting, drawing, or message of support.

This community fundraiser encourages collaboration for the greater good and reminds us how interconnected we all still are. The current political and social climate may gen-erate feelings of unease and distress, however, there is room for a brighter future through current struggles. This com-munity mural can help spread a message of support, hope, and love to members of our own community and to Niwot’s friends across the ocean.

Interested people, aspiring

artists, or those simply need-ing an activity to stave off summer’s dog days have many options for purchasing and picking up their canvases! For those wanting to buy online, visit https://www.mwebaza.org/mwebazasummerclub and buy via the form. Pick up will be available at Colorado Landmark Realtors, 1002 Grif-fith St. in Louisville after July 1. Mwebaza will also have a table out front of the Niwot Market each Friday, starting June 26, from 10:30 - 2, and those wishing to participate can purchase canvases there or pick theirs up after making a purchase online. Check back on Mwebaza’s website (www.mwebaza.org), Instagram (@mwebazafoundation), or Face-book (The Mwebaza Founda-tion) for more info.

Photo courtesy of Mwebaza Foundation

School students look forward to returning to their classrooms and resuming their education once COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.

By aBigaiL scott Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo

Just a small sample of the awesomeness that is Edsel’s newspaper.

7980 Niwot Road - Niwot, CO 80503(303) 652-8082

www.bankofestespark.com

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERFriday, August 22, 2014 Page 13Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Cougars football resumes workouts

With just 60 days to go before the Nikolas Blume era of Niwot football kicks off, the first-year head coach expected to be well on his way to imple-menting the rebuilding project he was hired to undertake back in February. Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic made a hash of those plans, and so it wasn’t until last week that Coach Blume was able to watch his players in action for the first time. So far, he’s been pleased with what he’s seen, but there’s no denying that the long layoff has taken its toll on the Cougar football program and its hopes for a new beginning.

“We had the meet and greet, I met with the [incoming] seniors, and we talked about what spring football was going to look like as far as getting together, and we had some leadership courses planned,” Blume said about his plans for spring 2020. “And then Covid happened pretty quickly, and we didn’t get to spend a lot of time together and had to put that stuff on the back burner. I think that’s been the biggest struggle for myself and the staff—we should have had a lot of time by now to be building relationships already. Our cul-ture is 100% based on being a highly relational environment, and every coach wants to get to know their kids, and we all want to get to know the whole team together. Covid really put a stranglehold on that.”

Blume and the football team finally held their first in-person workouts during the week of June 15th, under new safe-ty guidelines released by St. Vrain Valley Schools earlier this month. For now, practice is limited to two 90-minute sessions a week, with part of that time reserved for tempera-ture screenings and entering and exiting the field. There are also restrictions on group size and mandatory face coverings when six feet of “social dis-tance” can’t be maintained, a rule Blume and other coaches have questioned.

“Working through the mask situation has been a little diffi-

cult,” Blume said. “I just don’t think it’s understood that high intensity exercise with those things on is, really, in our opin-ion, pretty unsafe. We’re doing everything we can to follow the guidelines placed in front of us, and give the kids a break here and there when they need it.”

Referring to the first week as “transitional,” Blume said the early focus has been on condi-tioning and getting players into camp. Attendance averaged around 30 players, a number the coach expects to see grow as word spreads about the new schedule.

“We’re just trying to ease our way back into it,” he said. “Even if they’ve been training on their own, it’s a little dif-ferent when you have a coach after you, and they’ve all ad-mitted it’s been a challenge to get back into it full-tilt.”

Assisting Blume this season is Matt Martz, who will serve as associate head coach and offensive coordinator. Martz was formerly an assistant at Prospect Ridge and North-glenn, and Blume said he will be a good fit for the Cougars. Coming with him is John Se-idel, an experienced special teams coach that stays in his

lane, according to Blume.“John’s a great special teams

guy, and that’s hard to find because special teams is a stepping stone usually, to try and become an offensive or defensive coordinator,” Blume said. “But John just has a ton of energy for special teams. He loves it, it’s his focus, and so I feel blessed to find a guy who wants that to be his job full-time.”

Blume is also excited about assistant Ryan Younggreen, who has also worked with Ni-wot track coach Mo Henriques and his Real Training club. Younggreen is a former multi-sport athlete from Holy Family High School, who won back to back state championships in 110-meter hurdles in 2014 and 2015.

“Ryan was a great prep standout at Holy Family as a running back and as a corner-back, then he ran hurdles at Ohio State and was at Wyo-ming for a while,” Blume said. “He’s a young guy with a lot of knowledge, and the kids loved him right out of the gate, just because he’s been on the big stage at a big-time level, and he can explain to them what it’s like to be an athlete at that

level. He brings a lot of good stuff to the table.”

Also joining Blume’s staff for the upcoming season are Niwot High staff members Scott Thomas (phys. ed.) and NHS alum La’Mar West (cam-pus supervisor), as well as wide receivers coach Shane Tow, the only coach left from the 2019-20 season.

The team will be practic-ing offense on Tuesdays and defense on Thursdays, and players are expected to attend both, even if they don’t have ex-perience on one side of the ball or the other. Blume is hopeful

that restrictions will be further eased in the coming weeks, giv-ing players even more chance to find the right spot.

“In our system, with our coaches, we focus on kids play-ing an offensive position and a defensive position,” Blume said. “That’s not something they’re used to either, really, so we’re just encouraging them to pick a side, and we’ll help them find their place here as we can be together more.”

The prevailing health re-strictions have limited the

By JoceLyn rowLey

Editorial@lhvc.com

Courtesy Photo

Niwot football players had to get used to practicing at a social distance when off-season workouts resumed on June 16.

Continued on Page 14

LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Friday, August 22, 2014Page 14 Wednesday, June 24, 2020

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Cougars’ chances to par-ticipate in college camps or even cross-town scrimmages before the upcoming season, so Blume and his staff plan to stay “focused on being together as our team through July and into August.” The team is planning to launch a fundraiser later this summer, but Blume said it will be modest in size and scope.

“We’ll set a decent sized goal, nothing outrageous. Be-cause with the economy and the situation in the country, we’re not going to pressure anybody. ...I think that’s the best approach for this fall.”

Among their needs are an end-zone camera and funding for upcoming events such as Senior Night and Huddle in Heels, a new initiative that “gives moms a chance to get

plugged in with their sons and learn about the game.” Blume is also introducing a teacher appreciation night, in hopes of promoting strong relationships between the players and the school.

“So, similar to senior night, each player picks a teacher or administrator who has been a massive influence in their ca-reer at Niwot over four years. They pick the person, and then we’ll honor those individuals either before or at half-time of the second-to-last home game.”

Blume is clearly confident that sports in general and foot-ball in particular will be allowed to proceed in the fall of 2020, though much is still unknown about the specifics. However, as more states allow their seasons to proceed, he said it will be hard for Colorado and CHSAA to stay on the sidelines, especial-ly as the pandemic continues to subside statewide.

“I think July tells us a lot,” Blume said. “Could the ‘no spectator’ thing be a possibility? On the extreme end of it, yeah, possibly, but, my personal belief is that there is no reason for us not to play, and there’s no reason for us not to have fans.”

Until then, he and his staff are looking forward to spending more time with their players and working to achieve some lofty goals.

“We’re stoked to maybe make a shift in culture and see where it goes,” he said. “We hope to get Niwot football, the program, back to a place where we’re not only winning regularly but get football and the academics to match up. It’s such an amazing place academically—can we get our football culture and program to a place that matches up with what the school accomplishes academically? That’s the goal for this year.”

Courtesy Photo

Coach La’Mar West oversees offensive line training at a social distance after off-season workouts resumed on June 16.

FOOTBALLContinued from Page 13