Week of September 22, 2022
$1.00
An edition of the Littleton Independent A publication of
VOLUME 21 | ISSUE 44
‘Celebrating Mexico’ piñata exhibit opens at Smoky Hill Library Exhibit is collaborative BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Longtime Realtor not sold on recession talk
A bright smile spread across Michelle Ollerton’s face as she watched her 2-year-old son, Isaac, point to the colorful piñatas hanging above them in the cafe of Smoky Hill Library, trying to choose which one was his favorite. Would it be the piñata of “El Trompo,” a spinning top that is a popular traditional toy in Mexico? Or what about “La rosa,” the rose, or the monarch butterfly, which was his mom’s favorite? With about 30 options to choose from, it’s a tough choice. The piñatas are part of a new exhibit, called Celebrating Mexico/ Celebrando México, which debuted at Smoky Hill Library on Sept. 14 and will be open through Nov. 9. About 40 people gathered to celebrate the opening of the exhibit, which was developed through a partnership between Arapahoe County libraries, Museo de las Americas and a local artist, Maribel Arredondo. SEE EXHIBIT, P10
BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
One of the piñatas on display in Smoky Hill Library, as of Sept. 14, is of a sugar skull. PHOTO BY TAYLER SHAW
Arapahoe Libraries group for Black employees advocates for change Program will grow BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Although her job as a library specialist is great, working at Arapahoe Library District’s Koelbel
Home prices see short-term drop
Library, located in Centennial and near Greenwood Village, is “a bit of a doozy as a visibly Black employee,” said Sydney Hawkins. Based on data from 2020, about 2.4% of Centennial residents and 1.1% of Greenwood Village residents were Black or African American, according to Data USA.
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 17 | SPORTS: PAGE 22
In Arapahoe County, about 10.6% of residents, which is more than 69,000 people, were Black or African American. At Arapahoe Libraries, nine out of 343 employees identify as Black — less than 2.7% — said Michelle
Kelly Moye bought her first house in the north Denver metro area for $120,000. That was in 1991. Prices likely won’t ever come back down to that level, said Moye, who has worked as a Realtor for three decades. But home prices in the metro area and statewide have shown some early signs that they may be breaking the pandemic-era trend of steep increases. August was the fourth consecutive month of decreases in the median price for single-family homes in the metro area and statewide, according to the Colorado Association of Realtors’ most recent report. The median price was $620,000 in August in the metro area, down from $660,000 in April. And while the single-family home prices are still up compared to this time last year, the rate of year-overyear growth in prices has slowed for the last several months in the metro area and statewide. But Colorado’s housing situation is still dire: This spring, the measure of housing affordability tracked by the association reached its lowest level since at least 2014 for both metro Denver and the state as a whole. While the market remains in an affordability crisis, the tracker has at least started to turn in the other direction. The federal government’s move in SEE HOUSING, P19
SEE LIBRARIES, P20
WHEN GRASS ISN’T GREEN
Lawns less popular as dry landscaping grows
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