STANDARD BLADE B R I G H T O N
SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1903
75cI
VOLUME 119
Issue 35
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 1, 2022
Little kids, big trucks
Task force examines 27J funding Citizen group finds low funding, good graduation rate BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Two-year-old Alex Romero isn’t sure what to do behind the wheel of this John Deere tractor. So Dad Luis Romero offers a pointer durSTEVE SMITH ing the city of Brighton’s Touch a Truck Event at City Hall Aug. 27. BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Youngsters of all ages had a chance to see trucks of all shapes and sizes at Brighton City Hall Aug.
Follow us at: facebook.com/brightonblade
Contact us at 303-566-4100 INSIDE THIS ISSUE
OBITUARIES LOCAL CALENDAR SPORTS LEGALS CLASSIFIEDS
27. It was the city’s annual Touch a Truck event, which allowed the youngsters to climb into -- and in some cases all over -- rescue units, big rigs, tractors and city of Brighton public works vehicles.
LOCAL
2 •Platte Valley cuts 3 ribbon on Brighton clinic 8 15 • Page 3 19 22
SPORTS • Eagle Ridge earns first cross country win
• Page 15
With 27J Schools Superintendent Chris Fiedler’s words as a backdrop, a 15-member panel of Brighton citizens examined the district’s finances and made a presentation to the 27J board Aug. 23. The gist of its message was simple. Even though the district says its funding is the third-lowest in the state, “the ends have gotten so far apart that they can’t meet unless significant changes are made.” “We need to look at our challenges in a different way and through the lens of the community’s values and priorities. We need to get our community’s best thinking on how to address the funding issue,” Fiedler said in a written statement. “We’ve made significant sacrifices over the years just to balance our budget and provide the services we can. We’ve gotten to the point where this is unsustainable.” The non-partisan committee (its members included a state senator, an Adams County commissioner, parents, grandparents, recent district graduates and city council members) looked at the funding for schools, past 27J funding decisions and their impacts and what should be the next direction to take. John Myers, a retired partner with the firm Augenblick, Palaich and Associates that specializes in education finance policy, was the chairman. “Understanding how schools are funded is a tall order,” Myers said in the statement. “But this group has SEE FUNDING, P3
WWW.THEBRIGHTONSTANDARDBLADE.COM