Green Inc.: Environmentalism For Profit

A Denver Public Schools committee will present a bond proposal to the Board of Education next month that would raise nearly $1 billion, a measure that, if placed on the November ballot, would represent the most money the district has ever sought from voters. The Community Planning and Advisory Committee this week recommended that DPS use more than half of the money from the $975 million bond proposal for maintenance projects, including finishing a years-long effort to install air conditioning in school buildings without cooling. DPS is Colorado’s largest school district and operates on a $1.3 billion annual budget. If approved by voters in November, the bond measure would allocate $240 million toward putting air conditioning in the remaining 29 schools that still don’t have cooling, according to a presentation by the committee this week. “I love the recommendations; I think they are what we need,” Denver school board President Carrie Olson said Thursday, noting that she previously taught in a school that didn’t have air conditioning. “That’s really important especially when you think about the future,” she said, adding, “We’ve got so many aging buildings across our systems.” According to the committee’s presentation, the proposed $975 million bond issue would break down to include: $301 million for critical maintenance at 154 buildings across the district, including mechanical, electrical, code and plumbing enhancements and renovation $240 million to install air conditioning at 29 schools $124 million for new facilities, including building a new school — Gateway E-5 — and expanding the district’s Ceylon 6-8 campus, both of which are in far northeast Denver $127 million to upgrade 12 middle and high school performing arts hubs as well as three innovation centers and 14 athletic facilities $100 million to improve learning environments at 136 schools $83 million for safety and technology, including improvements to network infrastructure and adding 17 secure vestibules The committee will present the proposal to the school board on June 13, with board members expected to vote in August on whether to approve the plan and place the bond measure on Denver voters’ ballots in November. DPS has asked voters to approve a new bond measure every four years since at least 2012, including a $466 million bond issue that year to improve school buildings and technology, and a $572 million bond measure in 2016 to fund a new elementary and middle school in northeast Denver and to add air conditioning to schools. In 2020, Denver voters passed a $32 million mill levy override to increase educator pay and a $795 million bond issue, which DPS also used to put air conditioning in 26 more buildings and pay for other infrastructure projects. Related Articles Education | Denver offers bonuses to some teens, young adults who work summer jobs in an effort to reduce youth violence Education | Jeffco Public Schools, teachers union strike deal for 5% cost-of-living raises Education | Cherokee Trail repeats as Class 5A track state champion, and more boys storylines from Jeffco Stadium Education | Goldilocks and the 3 jurors: Denver students put beloved fairy tale on trial Education | DPS, teachers union clash as school district says it can’t fully fund next year’s raises On average, DPS buildings are 55 years old, and with such aging infrastructure comes the need for significant investment, said Trena Marsal, the district’s chief operating officer. “Here in Colorado temperatures are a lot higher than they used to be,” Marsal said, adding, “There’s significant needs in all of our buildings.” DPS starts its academic year in late August — a change Marsal said was made a few years ago so that classrooms aren’t as hot when students return from summer break — but the district still had to end classes early because of record heat at the beginning of the last academic year because not every school has air conditioning. The volunteer committee met 20 times since January before making its recommendation. Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter.

He grew up on the fringe of Yosemite National Park and went to school in Yosemite Valley, where his schoolhouse offered close-up views of Yosemite Falls, Glacier Point and Sentinel Rock. He says he wasn’t a very good student because he was more intent on gazing out the window at the natural wonders outside. Beckoning three miles to the east of the school was a famous monolith, Half Dome.

Colorado’s local governments will soon have the right to be first in line to purchase subsidized housing units and keep them affordable before a building or complex is sold to a private buyer. The first-of-its-kind housing bill was signed into law Thursday by Gov. Jared Polis. “The cheapest affordable housing is housing that already exists,” Sen.

Beat writer Bennett Durando opens up the Nuggets Mailbag periodically during the season (and now, the offseason). You can submit a Nuggets- or NBA- related question here. Who is the most realistic addition the Nuggets will make this offseason? — Kevin G, Thornton  You and everybody else are wondering, Kevin. Look, if we’re going to cut right to the chase, then I appreciate your use of the word “realistic.” There are countless roster changes that would be fun to imagine, but the Nuggets simply aren’t signing Klay Thompson out of free agency this summer. Even in a hypothetical scenario where Kentavious Caldwell-Pope declines his player option, gets offered four years at $20 million by another team, and the Nuggets elect not to exercise their Bird rights to match that offer, that does not mean they suddenly have that exact amount of money to allocate elsewhere — even if Thompson’s market somehow falls to a $20 million salary.

Dear Amy: My wife and her sister “Bobbi” have stopped speaking to each other over a disagreement that has now lasted for more than two years. Our families live on opposite coasts, so communication has always relied on phone/video calls. During the pandemic, my wife made a particular effort to schedule video calls for our young children with their Aunt Bobbi (who they have only seen in person once or twice). Before one such scheduled call, my wife informed Bobbi that the kids weren’t feeling well, and canceled the call.

Moon Alert: Avoid shopping or making important decisions from 10:30 p.m. to 11:45 p.m. EDT today (7:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. PDT). After that, the Moon moves from Pisces into Aries. Happy Birthday for Friday, May 31, 2024: You have a straightforward approach to life. You also have strong opinions. You are pragmatic and adaptable.