Headlines – June 8, 2023

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Boulder Sheriff to Announce Marshall Fire Findings

Boulder County officials are expected to announce their findings regarding the cause of the Marshall Fire in a 10am news conference today. 

The investigation has taken almost 17 months. Boulder County Sheriff Curtis Johnson and District Attorney Michael Dougherty are scheduled to speak at today’s press conference.

The Marshall Fire started on December 30th of 2021. Hurricane-force winds and drought conditions fueled the fire, which destroyed over 1,000 homes and left two people dead.

Ft. Collins Aerospace Company Suing Boeing

A lawsuit filed Wednesday by a Fort Collins-based company, Wilson Aerospace, accused aerospace giant Boeing Company of stealing their intellectual property.

Wilson Aerospace claims that Boeing sought Wilson’s expertise in 2014 as Boeing struggled to safely attach engines to NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. Wilson says Boeing canceled the collaboration after receiving their designs, but still used their trade secrets. 

According to the lawsuit, Boeing did not have full instructions on how to build and install Wilson’s designs, and created flawed, inferior, and unsafe machinery. Boeing allegedly blamed Wilson for dangerous design flaws that delayed the rocket’s introduction, while also taking in millions of dollars from NASA.

The suit alleges that Boeing also stole proprietary information from Wilson in 2012 for the 787 Dreamliner aircraft. 

Polis Signs Bill to Help Foster Youth Transition to Housing 

Governor Jared Polis signed the Fostering Success Housing Voucher Program into law this week. SB-82 would create a voucher program to assist with stable housing for up to 100 youth as they age out of foster care.

Recent findings from the annual National Youth in Transition Surveys revealed that approximately one-third of former foster youth in Colorado were experiencing homelessness at age 21. Last year around 150 Colorado youth transitioned from foster care to adulthood.  

The voucher program will serve former foster youth who are between the ages of 18 and 26 and meet a set of eligibility criteria, including participation in case management services.

The Colorado Departments of Human Services and of Local Affairs are working to develop a joint administration and implementation plan for the program, which aims to start administering vouchers to eligible youth in the fall of 2023. 

Denver Considers Additional Safe Parking for Homeless

Denver’s Department of Housing Stability wants to increase funding for an initiative that creates safe parking for people living in their cars. The nonprofit Colorado Safe Park Initiative is already organizing sites at Denver church parking lots. City officials would like to extend the contract with the charity by earmarking $600,000 dollars for more parking sites over the next three to five years.

According to Axios Denver, organizers say about 75% of the people who use the safe parking sites are experiencing homelessness for the first time and their car is their last asset. While many of them have jobs, they do not have enough money to pay for permanent housing.

Neguse Introduces Legislation to Protect Endangered Wildlife

Congressman Joe Neguse introduced a bill Wednesday that would allow funding to continue for endangered fish recovery programs in the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins beyond its original 2024 deadline. Under the legislation, water development projects could still move forward alongside the wildlife protection work. 

Mountain Biker Seriously Injured at Walker Ranch

Boulder County Emergency Services aided a seriously injured biker at Walker Ranch on Tuesday afternoon.

Mountain View Fire Protection District paramedics responded to a call from the biker’s partner after the biker was thrown over the handlebars of her bike, resulting in head and neck pain.

The paramedics stabilized her condition, and transported the biker back to the trailhead using a full body splint.

American Medical Response EMTs re-evaluated the biker at the trailhead, and drove her to a local hospital for continued medical care.

St. Vrain Creek Tubing Closures in Effect

The almost daily rain has left several waterways swollen and running fast. One result of the deluge is a temporary ban on tubing. Boulder County Sheriff’s Office and Town of Lyons officials say the North and Saint Vrain creeks and river will be closed to tubing and similar single chamber flotation devices like rafts, starting today at 8 a.m.

In addition to rain, the South Platte River Basin’s snowpack is still above average and the annual scheduled release of water from local reservoirs will raise currents above the levels that are safe for tubing. Violators will be fined $100.

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