Good morning and happy drizzly Wednesday! Forgive the briefness of today’s intro, we have a whole bunch of fun stuff happening behind the scenes here at The Sun that is keeping us plenty busy. For example:
Colorado SunFest is just 9 days away. Come spend a spring Friday with the whole staff of The Sun and more than 30 experts, researchers, politicians and other fascinating Coloradans as we talk about the future of our beautiful state at the University of Denver. Grab your tickets here (with big discounts for Sun members and students) and I hope to see you there! For Colorado political junkies, The Sun’s annual Post-Legislative Session Recap is happening next Thursday, just before Colorado SunFest. This free event gives Gov. Jared Polis and political leaders from both sides of the aisle a chance to review this year’s legislative session. RSVP here for what is always one of our most fascinating events of the year! If you’re in Colorado Springs, The Sun will be leading a free, in-person panel event at Mountain Chalet on May 21 dubbed Summit Safely: Expert Advice on Climbing Colorado’s 14ers (Without Needing Rescue) that seems well worth your time if, you know, you’re going to try to climb a 14er or just like hiking. RSVP here. Then on June 4, our own Danika Worthington will host Take Me Home: How young Coloradans can actually buy a home in downtown Denver at Rooftop1630, where experts will discuss what it takes to do what seems to be impossible for a lot of people under 40. RSVP here for this free event.And those are just the events from the next few weeks! One of the best parts about this job is getting to meet readers like you, so I hope that we’ll get that chance soon.
Now, let’s dog this pony show and get to the news, shall we?
Eric Lubbers
CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
P.S. — Thank you to reader Roy Wardell who was able to catch a botanical misidentification in my last Sunriser intro. Turns out my meaningful realization about the shared experience between myself and a head of lettuce was not based on cottonwood seeds, but instead an elm tree. Thanks, Roy!
THE NEWS
OUTDOORS
CPW, Forest Service stake out a “turf war” over Mad Rabbit trails project above Steamboat Springs
Steamboat Springs resident Scott Smallish rides his mountain bike Sept. 7, 2020, along the Continental Divide Trail in Routt County near Rabbit Ears Pass. (Matt Stensland, Special to The Colorado Sun)After nearly a year of working on a plan to allow new mountain bike trails above Steamboat Springs with minimal disruption to the area’s critical elk habitat, Colorado Parks and Wildlife had reached a compromise with the U.S. Forest Service. But as the Forest Service makes last-minute changes to the plan, state wildlife officials are reviving their objections, Jason Blevins reports.
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IMMIGRATION
Denver judge extends ban on deportations of Venezuelans under Alien Enemies Act
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Aurora. The facility is operated by a private prison company, the GEO Group. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)“The court has again affirmed what we have always known to be true: deporting and disappearing people without notice or due process is cruel, unconscionable, and unlawful. The federal government cannot misuse the Alien Enemies Act, a two-centuries-old law that was passed in 1798 to provide narrow wartime powers and has only been used three times in our country’s history.”
— ACLU of Colorado legal director Tim Macdonald
A federal judge in Denver has extended a ban on near-immediate deportations of Venezuelans who have been accused of being members of the street gang Tren de Aragua. As the Trump administration continues to argue that the gang has “invaded” the U.S., Jennifer Brown reports on how judges are reckoning with the law from 1798.
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HOUSING
Colorado Senate rejects “YIGBY” measure, a priority for Jared Polis that would have boosted housing on church land
C.P. Martinez and his son, Te, install holiday lights on the tree in front of their home at the Roaring Fork School District’s staff housing neighborhood Nov. 29, 2023, in Carbondale. (Hugh Carey, The Colorado Sun)In a blow to Gov. Jared Polis’ pro-housing agenda, the Colorado state Senate defeated House Bill 1169, a “Yes in God’s Backyard” measure that would have given churches, schools and universities the right to build housing on their land. Brian Eason reports on how the bill, which passed the House in March, never got a full vote in the Senate.
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Legislature rejects Jared Polis’ key effort this year to drive down Colorado home insurance costs. House Bill 1302 would have imposed a 1% fee on every homeowner’s insurance policy. Homeowners would have borne the cost, which is why lawmakers killed the measure, Jesse Paul reports.WATER
Designer of Colorado’s Gross Dam expansion warns of possible flooding if judge halts project
Construction continues with a smaller workforce during a site visit Wednesday, April 9, 2025 at Gross Reservoir in Boulder County. (Alyte Katilius, Special to The Colorado Sun)Mike Rogers, the civil engineer who designed the $531 million expansion of the dam, said bad weather could create flood conditions that would lead to a catastrophic failure similar to what occurred with the Oroville Dam in California in 2017. Fresh Water News editor Jerd Smith reports on the first stage of a federal hearing that could determine the future of the project.
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BUSINESS
Jeffco “clean iron” plant gets inaugural $8 million Colorado decarbonization tax credit
Pictured from left to right are U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Boulder; Quoc Pham, CTO and cofounder of iron ore production technology company Electra; U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet; and Electra senior scientist Colleen Wallace, as they examine a scanning electron microscopy image of iron ore during a 2023 tour of Electra’s facility. (Andy Colwell, Special to The Colorado Sun)Creating industrial-strength iron and steel traditionally uses 1,200-degree furnaces that contribute tons of carbon to the atmosphere. But a process patented by Boulder’s Electra does it at the same temperature as a cup of coffee and, as Michael Booth reports, the company is using a new state industrial tax credit to get a Jefferson County steel plant off the ground.
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MORE NEWS
Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters speaks during a rally at the old Mesa County Courthouse on Dec. 1, 2021, in Grand Junction. (Hugh Carey, The Colorado Sun) Trump directs Department of Justice to try to free Tina Peters from prison in Colorado. “Tina is an innocent Political Prisoner being horribly and unjustly punished in the form of Cruel and Unusual Punishment,” the president wrote on social media. In August, Peters was found guilty by a Mesa County jury on seven counts, including four felonies, after she helped facilitate unauthorized access to county voting equipment that she was supposed to safeguard in search of voter fraud. Colorado skiing legend Mikaela Shiffrin joins NWSL Denver ownership group. The two-time Olympic gold medalist from Vail said in a statement, “The sport culture in Colorado is rich and deep, and — most notably — the growth of women’s sports is one of the most exciting movements in our culture today. To be part of it, and to help bring professional women’s soccer to Colorado, is not only an incredible investment opportunity — but it is both an honor and a joy.”Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE COLORADO REPORT
The last time there were this many homes for sale in Denver was 2011. From the home-buying frenzy of the pandemic, where there were sometimes around 1,000 homes for sale across the Denver real estate market, today’s 12,000-strong listings are creating a buyer’s market — without actually reducing the price of the homes. — Denverite Former Lakeside clerk sentenced to probation in police car flipping scheme. Former Lakeside Town Clerk Brenda Hamilton was sentenced to three years probation for her part in an embezzlement scheme with her father, Lakeside’s former mayor, police and fire chief Robert Joel Gordanier, involving buying and flipping police cars for profit.— The Denver Post ? U.S. Forest Service district ranger gives stark insight into future of Aspen area. “We have 300,000-plus acres of National Forest, we see somewhere in the range of 3,400 day users and a couple thousand overnight users in those wilderness areas every year,” Kevin Warner, district ranger for the Aspen Sopris Ranger District of the White River National Forest told the Pitkin County Board of County Commissioners. “This year, we will have about one-third of the field going staff that we’ve had over the past couple of years.”— The Aspen Times VIDEO: Bear breaks into car near Breckenridge, prompting warnings to be bear-aware. Remember folks, a fed bear is a dead bear, and that includes leaving food in cars in most of the high country. It’s the time of year that the sleepy bruins are stirring from their winter slumber. — Summit Daily Denver rejects $25 million asphalt contract with Suncor because of refinery’s pollution. Despite city finance rules that require the council to do business with the lowest bidder of construction projects, the council unanimously voted to reject the contract.— The Denver Post ? Colorado becomes latest state to legalize Kei vehicles. This is a great vehicle-centric look at the bill passed earlier this legislative session that will allow Coloradans to purchase, title and register the light-weight Japanese trucks for the first time.— Hagerty Media? = source has article meter or paywall
Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE OPINION PAGE
COLUMNS
Trump hasn’t arrested Mike Johnston yet. But he’s suing the Denver mayor. He’s also going after Gov. Jared Polis and anyone who’d get in the way of his anti-rule-of-law deportation plans.— Mike LittwinThe Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at [email protected].
SunLit
REVIEW
Old Firehouse Books suggests titles from urban complexity to English kings
Each week as part of SunLit — The Sun’s literature section — we feature staff recommendations from bookstores across Colorado. This week, the staff from Old Firehouse Books in Fort Collins recommends:
“The Infrastructure Book” by Sybil Derrible, a look at the systems that make 16 cities work “Up Close & Personal” by Ana Holguin, a fitness instructor and journalist gives off Jamie Lee Curtis/John Travolta vibes “The Pretender” by Jo Harkin, historical fiction revolving around the English monarchyRead what the bookstore staff had to say about each. Pick up a copy and support your local bookstores at the same time.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Section by Kevin Simpson | Writer
If the cloudy weather has you in a mood to feel some big feelings, try out this video from Colville tribal member Isaac Tonasket absolutely belting a Spokane tribal chief song to an empty — and reverberating — Red Rocks.
Stay strong, stay dry and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!
— Eric & the whole staff of The Sun
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Corrections & Clarifications
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