Headlines Tuesday October 14th, 2025
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Flood Watch for Southern Colorado Update, Homeless shelters in Denver, Denver Air Traffic Control and Gov’t Shutdown Jack Armstrong
Homeless shelters in Denver
Three of Denver’s hotels-turned-homeless shelters are transitioning to new management, with a fourth shelter being shut down. That’s according to the Colorado Sun, who says the turnover is a sign the city’s “All in Denver” homelessness transition program is in flux.
The Sun is also reporting that the city is operating at less-than half the capacity of shelters; eight shelters at the height of the program are now declining to three. But the program has shown results: A count from July 2023 showed that about half of those who left Denver homeless shelters found permanent housing, however about a third of those who left the shelters returned to being unhoused, or were put in jail.
The Colorado Sun reports that the change in management comes from the Salvation Army pulling out of providing services to three shelters: The Aspen, Stone Creek, and Tamarac. The transition comes as the city and salvation army have faced community criticism over lacking security at the shelters, which have led to mounting incidents, particularly at the Aspen Shelter.
An annual count from 2024 found more than sixty-five hundred people were living in Denver homeless shelters. Derek Woodbury from the city’s Department of Housing Stability told the Sun that they’re QUOTE, “…working diligently with all partners to ensure not only a seamless transition with no interruption in services, but improved outcomes for people in need.”
Denver Air traffic control still affected by shutdown
Air traffic controllers at Denver International Airport are managing one of the nation’s busiest aviation hubs without paychecks as the federal government shutdown continues.
October 14th marks two weeks since the federal government has been shutdown. According to FAA data, Denver International Airport is down approximately 16 controllers, while the Denver center facility in Longmont is short around 21 controllers. The remaining controllers face mounting stress while working unpaid, adding to the stress from chronic understaffing.
Dave Riley, a retired Federal Aviation Administration controller, worked with Denver tower and Denver approach control for 15 years. He believes “We’re on the precipice of a huge impact to the system because of this shutdown,” He emphasized that controllers experiencing stress should not report for duty if they cannot maintain focus.
Training replacements requires years. While the FAA academy has remained operational during the shutdown, it could eventually run out of funding.
The shutdown has lasted 14 days so far, beginning October 1st. The longest and most recent government shutdown was for 35 days in 2018 and 2019, during President Trump’s first term.
Flood Watch for Southern Colorado
Areas of Southern Colorado are preparing for further flooding this week after extreme rains doused communities throughout this past weekend. According to the Colorado Sun, some areas received 4-6 inches of rain Tuesday, causing nearby rivers and streams to flood to historic levels.
Kate Abbott, a meteorologist with the Grand Junction Branch of the National Weather Service told The Sun yesterday that another heavy push of rain is likely through the next week. According to Abbott, the heavy rainfall is due to falloff from Hurricane Priscilla and tropical storm Raymond coming into the region from the southwest coast of the United States.
Over the weekend, emergency responders evacuated 390 La Platta County homes. In Archuleta county, officials also evacuated parts of Pagosa Springs, where flood warnings remain in effect.
The Colorado Sun also clarified that a flood warning means that a flood is happening or will happen soon, a flood watch, however, means that there is a high likelihood of flooding in an area.
A meeting about the floods was held last night at the Vallecito Community Center, *** KGNU will have more on the area’s flood plans in further updates..
CO River District
The Colorado River District, a coalition of water managers and local governments, hosted a seminar about the issues facing the water world earlier this month.
At the heart of the conversation was the Colorado River and how the seven states, two countries, and numerous tribes will deal with the reality of less water in the coming years.
Attorney Jay Weiner represents the Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe in Arizona on water issues.
During a panel, he said there’s no world where large metropolitan areas like Southern California, Central Arizona, and Colorado’s Front Range would be left to go dry, leaving both tribes and rural Western Colorado in a precarious position, even though both have very old, senior water rights. Weiner says, “One of the things I always notice when I hear, particularly people from Colorado talking about what Colorado was promised under the compact, and what investment did or didn’t come… you’re singing our song. That is the life experience of tribes on this river who have been excluded from the compact framework from the get-go.”
Becky Mitchell represents Colorado on the Upper Colorado River Commission, and is the state’s top negotiator.She agreed with Weiner’s assessment, saying that the tribes needed greater consideration, and that negotiations were currently focused on the actual supply of water in the river, rather than demand from users. Mitchell told the panel, “We also need to set aside building an operations plan that meets the needs as they are currently. We need to let go of that dream and, and be able to figure out how to respond. And I think that’s been a bit of a struggle.”
Mitchell said representatives from the seven states are meeting about every other week, and called the meetings “not enjoyable.”
Indigenous Seed-Saving class in Boulder
Harvest of All First Nations is hosting an indigenous seed-saving class this Thursday, October 16th. Participants will learn traditional methods for harvesting and storing heirloom seeds, with a focus on culturally significant plants of the Southwest.
The event will take place at Growing Gardens, and participants are required to sign up in advance, which they can do at cool boulder dot org. The organizers say their aim is to carry forward the resilience of Indigenous foodways.
