Hi. Lots you should know about in Denver today, including potential severe weather, discolored water, the plan for Montbello, our investigation into dangerous shelter conditions and more.
Park inside if you can:
There's a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms this afternoon. If they do materialize, they could bring strong winds and big-big hail. (Denverite)
It could have been a disaster:
Staff at Denver's Road Home knew that the population of the city's largest homeless shelter was spiking to "unprecedented" levels, but they apparently never checked with fire inspectors to determine whether that was safe. It wasn't. Inspectors found that severe overcrowding and building safety problems could have led to numerous deaths if an emergency had happened. Here's my investigation into how this happened. (Denverite)
The oldest buildings in Denver:
One of the oldest buildings in Denver is a doggy day care. This is a very satisfying thing to read, by Adrian. (Denverite)
Yellow water in Arvada:
Arvada says the city's water is safe to drink despite some reports of discoloration. It's apparently caused by manganese, a "largely benign" mineral that shows up with high water usage after winter, as Robert Garrison reports. (ABC7)
Way northeast:
Denver is trying to do this crazy thing where the city makes plans for neighborhoods based on what people want. First up: Montbello and Gateway-Green Valley, where some 60,000 people live. Erica has a super helpful explainer laying out the issues, such as the lack of grocery stores and the development of the last open space. (Denverite)
Gorsuch's house:
The newest Supreme Court justice is selling his home in Boulder County, which makes sense because that's a lifetime gig. It's listed for $1.7 million. Here's what it looks like. (Westword)
Dodging ICE:
Starting this month, the city will open up a private building so people can wait for court without necessarily being seen by immigration enforcement agents. ICE has been using people's court dates as an easy way to find and detain them. The city says that scares people away from testifying about crimes and dealing with other legal matters, as Allison Sherry reports. The piece also explains the politics of the situation. (CPR)
What health care bill?
I can't say it better than reporter Blair Miller: "U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, who is one of a handful of Senate Republicans working in small groups to craft the Senate’s version of the American Health Care Act, said Wednesday he has still not seen a text version of the bill just a week before the full chamber is set to vote on it." Read Miller's interview with the senator. (ABC7)
Falling wages:
People are, on average, making less money in every major Colorado county, including a drop of 0.4 percent in Denver for 2016. It's a national phenomenon, as Monica Mendoza reports. (DBJ)
Discount gym downtown:
Planet Fitness has taken a 10-year lease on the 800 block of 16th Street, above Walgreen's. Kate Tracy reports on why this is a big development for downtown. (BusinessDen)
Gentrifying schools:
Denver's fastest gentrifying neighborhoods are losing school-age kids. Public school attendance is down as much as 21 percent in some neighborhoods, which poses a major challenge for school planners, as Melanie Asmar explains. (Chalkbeat via Denverite)
Insurance people are nervous about weed:
A leading insurance research group has released a study that says car crash claims are up 2.7 percent in states that have legalized marijuana, even when controlling for traffic, age, gender and more. (AP via Denverite)
Real estate:
Megan's got your six stats that sum up this week in Denver real estate. Always worth a read. (Denverite)
