Good morning and hello from the passenger seat of a rental car barreling across west Texas!
I like to get ahead of the game, so, I managed to take care of all my July Fourth holiday travel a full week ahead of time. Efficiency!
But before you follow in my tire tracks and hit the open road for the weekend, make sure to drop by our Colorado’s Best reader’s choice survey and cast a vote for your favorite local businesses. Every vote helps get them the attention they deserve.
I could lose my phone signal at any minute, so let’s reach into the backseat cooler and crack open a can of refreshing news, whaddya say?
HOUSING
Aerial view of housing in the south Denver metro area June 8, 2023. (Kathryn Scott, Special to The Colorado Sun)
“There is a huge affordability gap — in part maybe due to supply, but also in part due to the fact that the places where people would most want housing are the places that are not providing it.”
—Sara Bronin, the president and CEO of the Zoning Atlas
Local zoning codes across Colorado prohibit building duplexes, townhouses, condominiums, apartment units and single-family homes on small lots — the most affordable kinds of housing, according to a zoning report published last month by the National Zoning Atlas. Brian Eason reports on how strict local zoning codes are contributing to the state’s affordable housing crisis.
Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., speaks March 5 during the confirmation hearing of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, President Donald Trump’s choice to be Director of the National Institutes of Health, before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Colorado Republicans have yet to laser in on a candidate to run against Democratic U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper next year, largely because most potential challengers don’t believe they have a real shot at winning. It’s the latest signal of a major political shift in Colorado, Jesse Paul reports.
Demonstrators march in Denver after Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)
“My goal is to help people gain a better understanding of this segment of abortion care, and through understanding, gain compassion, and through compassion, really understand that this is a decision that the pregnant person makes themselves based on the reality of their lives.”
—Shelley Sella, the first woman in the country to openly offer third-trimester abortions
Dr. Shelley Sella, one of few physicians to offer third-trimester abortion care, chronicled the experiences of some of her patients and has written a book about the difficult life experiences that brought them to her. Jennifer Brown interviewed Sella about why she devoted her career to abortion care and the kinds of patients she cared for, from women facing domestic violence to others whose babies would not survive birth.
Jonnie MacPhee reads a hidden-object book with his mother, Rachael, and dog Albie on April 28 at home in Westminster. Jonnie is one of three people in the United States diagnosed with multisystemic smooth muscle dysfunction syndrome, or MSMDS, and one of only 50 cases worldwide. (Claudia A. Garcia, Special to The Colorado Sun)
“I just wish that I could impress upon people, it’s not just a gift of money, it’s the gift of time. It’s the gift of margin. It’s the gift of getting to experience life with my kid, who I know won’t be here for forever. I have to live with that reality every day. But I get to play Uno with him, instead of being on the phone with billing.”
—Rachael MacPhee, whose young son benefits from Medicaid coverage while struggling with a variety of health conditions
Supporters of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the major tax and spending bill in front of Congress, say the bill and its plan for Medicaid cuts won’t impact kids covered by Medicaid. Others, including parents of some of those children, have serious doubts, particularly since recent proposals would decrease funding for hospitals in Colorado. John Ingold talked to parents and kids who rely on Medicaid about why their coverage has been a lifesaver and their anxiety while waiting for Congress to act.
Police investigate the scene and talk with witnesses after a reported attack on Boulder’s Pearl Street in front of the Boulder County Courthouse on June 1. (Kevin Jeffers, The Colorado Sun)
Karen Diamond, 82, who was one of 29 victims in a June 1 attack on a group of people in Boulder gathered in support of Israeli hostages, died of severe injuries. She is remembered as “someone whose warmth and generosity left a lasting impact on all who knew her.” Olivia Prentzel has more.
RTD director stripped of committee chair position, membership over complaints about conduct. RTD Director JoyAnn Ruscha ran committee meetings in a “disorderly and ineffective” manner, demeaned others in the workplace and violated Colorado’s open meetings law, the board chair found. Ruscha fired back, calling the move retaliatory and antidemocratic. — The Denver Post 🔑
During Anita Mumm’s week in a writing residency on the Eastern Plains, she took long walks and focused on the nonhuman life around her. The result was her entry in the Colorado Book Award anthology finalist “The Alma Journal.” With keen imagination and humor, she shares the thoughts and conversations among seven lives she encountered on her strolls. A variety of other artists and writers also contributed their thoughts and observations of the rural landscape.
Great, finished this newsletter just in time to grab a savory breakfast kolache (which all good Tex-Czech cuisine experts know is actually a klobasnek).
Have a great day and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!
