Centennial Council of Neighborhoods - 26 April 04 Minutes

Meeting was called to order at 6:50 p.m. and was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. with a total of 20 members present

• There will be a free Home & Garden Expo at Koelbel library on Saturday, May 1^st, from 9AM to 12 PM
• Summer reading program begins June 5^th. Everyone has a chance to win gifts
  • Read for the Gold - preschool through 5^th grade
  • Cinema Summer - grades 6 through 12
  • Exercise Your Mind – adults
• There will be blood drives at:
  • Koelbel Library on Saturday June 5^th. Call 303-220-7704 X280
  • Smoky Hill Library on Thursday May 16^th from 2 to 7:30 PM, and Friday June 11^th from 10 Am to 3 PM. Call 303-363-2300
  • Southglenn Library on Friday May 7^th from 10 AM to 3 PM. Call 303-221-3998
• All libraries will be closed May 31 for Memorial Day
• Business seminars will be held at Smoky Hill library on May 13^th and May 27^th
• Colorado newspapers can now be accessed from the library web site. Denver Post from 1989 to present, Rocky Mountain News from 1990 to present. Boulder, Ft. Collins, and Colorado Springs papers are also available. Colorado State Library will eventually have all state newspapers from the 1880’s available
• Councilman Todd Miller has found a coffee shop owner to help with the coffee shop at Smoky Hill library
• Meadow Spring Community Church is renting the Smoky Hill library meeting room and is using the parking lot on Sunday mornings from 8 AM to Noon until their new church is constructed. Library opens at the regularly scheduled time, 1 PM to 5 PM
• If your HOA newsletter editor is not receiving information from the library district, call Marlu at 303-798-2444
• The free 2004 InfoArapahoe Community Guide is available. Obtain copies for your entire HOA by calling Marlu at 303-798-2444

• Grand opening of the Lone Tree Recreation center (10249 Ridgegate Circle, SE of Yosemite & Lincoln) will be on Saturday, 22 May, 6 am to 8 pm. Special activities from 10 am to 2 pm
• South Suburban election for Board of Directors is on Tuesday, May 4^th , 7 AM to 7 PM. Polling place locations are:
  • Cherry Hills Elementary School – 2400 E Quincy Ave
  • South Suburban Golf Course – 7900 S Colorado Blvd
  • Acres Green Elementary School – 13524 Acres Green Dr
  • Lone Tree Civic Center – 9777 S Yosemite
  • Littleton Golf & Tennis Club – 5800 S Federal Blvd
  • Littleton Community Center – 1950 W Littleton Blvd
  • Goodson Recreation Center – 6315 S University Blvd
  • Willow Spring Service Center – 7100 S Holly
• There will be a study of parks and recreation service providers for the City of Centennial and Arapahoe County east of I-25. Centennial Study Committee met on April 23^rd to select consultant to perform the work.
• Study will inventory current public and private parks, open space trails and other recreational amenities east of I-25
• Study will also include a "needs assessment" for current & future requirements based on the National Recreational Park Association standards and future population estimates, and will also conduct a financial analysis & review funding options for required services
• Nine public meetings will be held to discuss the results of the study

• Captain Mark Fisher, of the Public Safety Bureau, will be the new Arapahoe County Sheriff’s representative for CenCON. Capt. Fisher may be contacted at 720-874-3783 or mfisher@co.arapahoe.co.us
• Juveniles are using "airsoft guns" which are accurate replicas of real weapons. There is a very small "orange" tip, which the kids are coloring black. This makes it impossible to tell that it is not a real weapon.
• The County District Attorney and the Centennial City Attorney have determined that the use of these guns is illegal in the City of Centennial and in unincorporated Arapahoe County west of Gun Club Road
• So far, one youth has been hospitalized after getting shot in the eye, and numerous windows have been broken
• A recent test of the liquor licensing law compliance resulted in 6 violations among the 55 liquor establishments in Centennial and unincorporated Arapahoe County. Violations were for selling liquor to minors. 5 of the 6 violations were in Centennial
• Sheriff’s Office is very up-to-date on issues concerning terrorism and it’s prevention and will be getting a new, more sophisticated robot for handling bomb incidents
• All sheriff’s deputies receive 10 hours of additional training on many topics each month, which is more than any other law enforcement agency in the Denver area

• New recreation center at Buckley & Orchard will open this fall. Construction is ahead of schedule
• The water slide at Lookout Park near Eaglecrest H.S. will open Memorial Day
• Beavers have constructed dams at three locations on Tollgate Creek near Picadilly & Riviera
• The new sports park in the Piney Creek Hollow Park (near Tower & Orchard) is on hold because of non-approval from Arapahoe County for a proposed horse arena in the park

• Arapahoe County West Nile Task force anticipates another bad year for West Nile disease. See www.fightthebitecolorado.com or call 1-877-462-2911 for more information
• Task Force has begun applying larvacide already in Arapahoe County and City of Centennial. City has ordinance allowing entry onto private property to inspect standing water for mosquito infestation, and may issue an Abatement Order, with or without a citizen complaint
• There were 134 known cases of West Nile disease in Arapahoe County last year
• 70 % of the people getting West Nile did not use a repellant that included DEET
• Ward 1 meeting on Saturday, May 1^st at Southglenn Library from 9:30 AM to Noon
• Ward 3 meeting on Wednesday, April 28^th at Castlewood Library from 7:30 PM to 9 PM
• Ward 4 meeting on Thursday, May 13^th at Smoky Hill Library from 7 PM to 9 PM
• Bronco’s Parkway bridge to Parker Road (about where Dry Creek would be) will open in about a month, probably the end of May or beginning of June
• There is a blood drive at the City of Centennial Offices on May 14^th, 10 AM to 3:30 PM
• Municipal Court is completely filled with handling traffic cases. Additional sessions have been implemented because of the number of cases
• Open Space tax money from the recently approved tax increase by Arapahoe County will be distributed at the end of 2004. Centennial is estimated to receive about $1,500,000 annually
• Road repair project for Centennial has begun. Maps of affected areas are available on www.centennialcolorado.com
• Agendas for City Council meetings on Monday night are posted to the City’s web site on the previous Friday

• The April 20^th meeting at Littleton City Council concerning the Marathon re-development was continued to Tuesday, May 4^th at 7 PM at the Littleton City Hall. Major concerns about drainage, traffic, noise, density, and building height still exist
• Project LifeSaver training will kick off on May 25, 26, and 27. This program will provide a transmitter bracelet to Alzheimer’s and other patients with similar types of medical problems. If the person wanders off, they can be found by tracking the transmitter by the Sheriff’s Office. The start of the program will be June 1^st. Initial cost of bracelet is $263.00 and monthly fees are $7.60. The City will donate $3000.00 towards the purchase of 10 bracelets
• The problems with reliability of service continue with XCEL in the western areas of Centennial. This week, the PUC will hear recommendations from their staff on how to implement key points to ensure the quality of service and accountability from XCEL
• City of Centennial is reviewing a "nuisance ordinance" based of the types of complaints being received from citizens

• Cherry Creek State Park meeting on Thursday, April 29th
• Neighborhood Resource Center is hosting a neighborhood workshop on Saturday, May 8^th. Cost is $12.00
• American Red Cross has a list of suggested supplies to have at home to prepare for a potential disaster - www.preparecolorado.org
• South Metro Fire/Rescue will be having an election on Tuesday, May 4^th to increase the mill levy for capital improvements
• Comments concerning the first CenCON workshop were all positive, and it was suggested that CenCON host additional workshops
• Swingle Tree and Lawn Care is offering a mosquito reduction service. Call 303-337-6200

- Treasurer - Gerry Cummins

• Moved by Ron Weidmann and seconded by Dorothy Mauro that the March 2004 minutes be approved as read. Approval was unanimous

• Ms. Betty Ann Habig left the CenCON meeting and did not participate in any discussion of the developer plans or comments
• 2 new developer plans were received. Copies of the detailed comments will be sent to all CenCON members as usual

-Membership -Michael Kirrane

• Letter concerning CenCON Associations sent to: Cherry Hills View, Cherrywood Village, Dreamhouse Acres, and Broadway Estates

• According to DRCOG, FasTracks will increase transit’s share of commuters from 5.5% to just 5.6%. Transit’s share of all travel will rise from the present 2.0% to just 2.3%
• DRCOG reports FasTracks will consume more than 52% of region’s entire capital budget for transportation improvement projects, yet serve the needs of less than 6% of metro residents
• With highway and road funding starved to pay for FasTracks, congestion will nearly double & time wasted in traffic will increase at least 150%. With so few people using FasTracks & many more cars stuck in traffic, pollution benefits are negligible
• FasTracks will average less than 30 mph, and in many cases, will go only 18 mph
• Gov. Owens strongly suggests that voters carefully consider the gap between FasTracks perceptions & realities. The pro-FasTracks PAC is heavily funded by companies and individuals that stand to reap millions in profits from a "Yes" vote
• HOT (High Occupancy Toll) lanes and bus-rapid transit can greatly reduce congestion at 1/10 the cost, & without a tax increase. Annual cost of getting one commuter out of a car & onto FasTracks ranges from $6000.00 to $18,000.00
• For more information, call Spencer Swalm at 303-228-1675 or slswalm@mho.com

Page last updated on: 05/29/2006