Headlines May 14, 2020

Headlines May 14, 2020

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Another Colorado restaurant has been cited for violating state laws aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus. The Denver Post reports that Shooters Grill restaurant in Garfield County was open for in house dining.

County officials secured a temporary restraining order from a district court judge to stop Shooters Grill in Rifle from opening for in house dining.

The owner of the restaurant, Lauren Boebert is also a Republican congressional candidate. The restaurant was served with a cease-and-desist order Tuesday afternoon, but continued to operate Tuesday evening. The county then obtained a restraining order and served it on the restaurant owner Wednesday evening.

Diners inside the restaurant on Wednesday evening were allowed to finish their meals, but no other patrons were allowed in.

Earlier in the week a restaurant in Castle Rock restaurant was indefinitely closed by the Colorado health department for defying a public health order prohibiting in house dining. As of this afternoon, a go fund me account set up for C & C Coffee and Kitchen had raised more than $28,000.

Lafayette City Council yesterday unanimously approved an emergency resolution that will require customers and employees at businesses and places of public accommodation to wear facial coverings.

The Daily Camera reports that the Council also passed an ordinance setting up a fine structure for violations of the order. First-time offenses are subject to a possible $50 fine, second offenses a $200 fine and subsequent offenses a $500 fine.

The public has until May 18 to weigh in on new rules being formulated by the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission.

The rulemaking process is in response to several bills passed in the 2019 legislative session.

This particular rulemaking process is the first time the commission is making rules directly related to climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

Boulder County is leading a coalition of communities from around the state in calling on the commission to enact strict rules on these gases and they’re calling on members of the public to submit comments ahead of the May 20th meeting.  This is all the more urgent because the roll back of federal regulations could even further degrade the air quality here in this part of the Front Range which has been given an F by the American Lung Association.

People can submit a comment to the commission by May 18 and you can find the link at bouldercounty.org/environment/

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Colorado colleges and universities have received millions of dollars from the federal coronavirus stimulus package to help students who are impacted during the pandemic. But the Trump administration has barred colleges from using that money to help undocumented students including DACA students. It’s prompting state colleges to find other ways to help the students.

Colorado State University, based on an assessment of student need, has given $1,500 grants to 400 students not included in the federal CARES Act, including 218 undocumented individuals.

Metropolitan State University of Denver said grants for its Dreamer population would range from $250 to $650 per student based on need, with $80,000 to help the university’s 381 undocumented students.

All of the University of Colorado campuses has set up a student relief fund. It is giving preference to students in the DACA program and others who are unable to get federal money. CU’s grants are also based on type of need. The University of Northern Colorado is looking at private philanthropy to help their undocumented student population.

There are 15,000 immigrants in Colorado enrolled in the Obama-era DACA program, which allowed people who came to the U.S. as children to stay in the country.

Governor Jared Polis met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday along with the Governor of North Dakota.

The two were told by Trump that they were doing an excellent job. Polis and other members of the Colorado delegation wore masks while Donald Trump and Governor Doug Burgum, a Republican, not wearing masks.

Governor Polis took his mask off during the meeting.

Polis told reporters that he and others, including Trump advisor Jared Kushner, met with the president for more than 20 minutes after the televised portion of the meeting discussing testing and the need to increase supplies at nursing homes, the governor said. Governor Polis told reporters after the meeting that his mission in Washington was seek more federal support, including testing supplies and protective equipment such as N95 masks.

Polis has avoided directly criticizing Donald Trump during the pandemic, although he has expressed frustration with the federal response especially around testing. On being asked by reporters after Wednesday’s meeting about his feelings on Donald Trump, he repeatedly said, “He’s the president that we have.”

One residential nursing home in Broomfield has seen deaths from COVID-19 more than double in the past week.

The Daily Camera reports that figures released Wednesday by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, showed 9 confirmed COVID-19 deaths at Sunrise at Flatirons two more deaths have been identified as probable. A week earlier it had recorded four.

The Broomfield Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, another facility, has now recorded seven deaths resulting from the pandemic, up from five one week earlier. Residential Nursing facilities have been a hot spot for COVID-19.

1,062 people have died of COVID-19 in the state.

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