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Local News

  • County considers hefty charges to access public records

    The Jefferson County commissioners may soon be charging up to $50 an hour for access to certain public records.
    If approved, a revision to Jeffco’s policy manual would allow the county to charge the public for the time it takes staff to collect and occasionally redact documents, including the commissioners’ e-mails.
    Currently, the commissioners charge the public only for hard copies of documents, usually 25 cents per page after the first five pages.

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  • New library budget spares branches from closure

    No libraries would be closed under a revised budget presented Sept. 8 to the Jefferson County Public Library trustees.

    Instead, an anticipated $2.4 million shortfall would be addressed through other wide-ranging cuts – most notably through reduced hours at every library branch.

    The library board had earlier considered closing the Conifer, Wheat Ridge and Edgewater libraries to save about $695,000 annually. The branches would be spared under the revised budget, essentially a re-examination of options at the behest of the county commissioners.

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  • Retired teacher dies in Ken Caryl fire

    The county coroner identified a retired Chatfield High School English teacher as the victim of a Sept. 8 fire in her Ken Caryl home.

    Firefighters discovered the body of Jessica Perry Onesty, 68, after extinguishing a blaze that consumed much of the back of her home at 18 Canyon Cedar.

    The coroner has yet to determine a cause of death, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman said. The fire’s origin also had not been released at press time by West Metro Fire Rescue, which responded to the fire.

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  • A house on the road to history

    Even though the historic Bradford Perley House at Ken-Caryl Ranch is just a shell of its former self, the rough-hewn walls and elegant facade welcomed curious visitors for a tour on Saturday.

    Though the house stands in Ken-Caryl Ranch, it has strong ties to Conifer. A main thoroughfare from Denver to the mountains, the Denver, Bradford and Blue River Road began at the Bradford Perley House and ended at Bradford Junction, where the Yellow Barn is located. 

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  • Two more candidates running for school board

    Two additional candidates have entered the race for seats on the Jeffco Public Schools Board of Education last week, submitting affidavits only a few months from November’s election.

    In District 3, lawyer Preston Branaugh filed documents with the secretary of state, and is running against candidate Jill Fellman, a former Jeffco teacher.

    In District 4, candidate Jim Powers declared his intention to run against former Colorado Public Radio reporter Lesley Dahlkemper.

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  • South Jeffco woman wins Spirit Award at Ms. Wheelchair competition

    South Jeffco resident Kendara Peoples didn’t win the Ms. Wheelchair America pageant last month in Grand Rapids, Mich. — but she also didn’t walk away empty-handed.

    Taking note of the 24-year-old’s resilient personality, the national competition’s judges invoked an honor sparingly given, the Spirit Award.

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  • Jury selection to begin Sept. 15 in Eastwood trial

    Jury selection for the trial of alleged Deer Creek Middle School gunman Bruco Eastwood is scheduled to begin Sept. 15, more than a year and a half since the shooting that wounded two students.

    Jury selection is slated to conclude Sept. 16, and opening arguments will follow beginning Sept. 20 in a trial that prosecutors said could last three weeks and public defenders said is likely to span more than a month due to a lengthy list of witnesses.

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  • Body found at scene of Ken Caryl house fire

    Firefighters discovered a body Wednesday morning after responding to a house fire in Ken Caryl.

    The victim’s identity is being held pending results of a death investigation, Jeffco sheriff’s spokesman Mark Techmeyer said. No other occupants were found in the house, though a dog was rescued and placed in the care of neighbors.

    West Metro Fire Rescue received an emergency call shortly before 6 a.m., and 23 firefighters responded, assistant fire chief Scott Rogers said. The fire was almost completed extinguished about five minutes later, he said.

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  • Library porn filters to be in place Sept. 1

    Internet filters to block pornography will be activated on Sept. 1 on all Jeffco Public Library computers, though different standards will be used in controlling content on machines accessed by adults and children.
    Computers used by adult patrons will filter only images deemed pornographic, while those used by children will block websites in their entirety, said Steve Endicott, library information-technology director. Entire sites will also be blocked on computers accessing the library’s wireless signal, regardless of the age of the user, he said.

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  • New community corrections facility considered

    A new $17 million community corrections facility is being considered to replace Jefferson County’s existing 105-year-old building, which county officials said Aug. 23 is crumbling and could be pushed to capacity in coming years.

    Currently, both men and women are housed in the 32,000-square-foot community corrections facility at 1651 Kendall St. in Lakewood, the operations of which are administered by Intervention Community Corrections Services, a private nonprofit.

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