Week of February 23, 2023
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An edition of the Littleton Independent A publication of
VOLUME 22 | ISSUE 14
Council members support auto-theft bill Penalties to increase BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
After Colorado lawmakers introduced a bill in January that would
increase auto theft penalties, Centennial City Council voiced its support of the bill, encouraging local representatives to do the same. Senate Bill 23-097, called “Motor Vehicle Theft and Unauthorized Use,” proposes a few legislative changes, including no longer bas-
ing the penalties of motor vehicle theft on the value of the stolen vehicle. Currently, if someone steals a vehicle, the penalty they face depends on how much the vehicle is worth. For example, if a person steals a vehicle that is worth less than
$2,000, they could face a Class 1 misdemeanor. According to the Colorado Legal Defense Group, a Class 1 misdemeanor conviction is punishable by up to 364 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000. SEE COUNCIL, P9
City partners with YMCA for pilot, summer programs New location at SouthGlenn BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
in which residents can request the city remove ice buildup, but right now, there is a “long list of requests,” said Allison Wittern, the city’s communications director. “As of last Friday … we’ve completed ice cutting at 88 locations across the city,” Wittern said in a Feb. 15 interview. “We still have, I mean, approximately like 50 locations in front of us that we need to get to — that meet the criteria and that we need to get to.” Since Nov. 1, 2022, the city has gotten more than 200 calls requesting ice cutting, Wittern said, noting
Thanks to a partnership between the City of Centennial and the YMCA of Metro Denver, a new center will be coming to the Streets at SouthGlenn shopping complex. The partnership will offer youth and older adults a variety of programs such as cooking classes and esports. The new center, called the “Centennial YMCA Center of Generations,” will be located directly adjacent to the Southglenn Library. The space does not require much renovation, and it is currently planned to have a “soft opening” in March. A full opening is planned this summer, said Kimberly Armitage, YMCA senior vice president of strategic growth and mission. “It’s about a 6,345-square-foot space that will be separated but yet intergenerational to be able to, overall, work the teens and the seniors together,” Armitage said during a presentation to the council on Feb. 7.
SEE ICE, P8
SEE YMCA, P11
Snowplow removing snow from a street.
SHUTTERSTOCK IMAGE
City faces long list of ice removal requests Continued storms an obstacle BY TAYLER SHAW TSHAW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
As snowfall has become more frequent this winter, some Centennial residents have raised concerns about large blocks of snow and ice build up on city streets. Wally Goodby, who lives near Mark Hopkins Elementary School, informed the Centennial City Council of ice buildup that he said spans about two blocks of East Eas-
ter Avenue as residents approach the school. “That snow on top of the sidewalk right there is 5 inches thick,” Goodby said during the public comment portion of the Feb. 7 council meeting, showing a photo of the street. A few days later, Centennial resident Dale Brown told FOX31 that there is a block of ice nearly the length of half of a football field on his residential block, located in a neighborhood near South Himalaya Street and East Smoky Hill Road. The city, home to more than 100,000 residents, does offer a residential ice removal service
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 17 | SPORTS: PAGE 22
CLOCKING CONNECTIONS Speed dating as an alternative to swiping P14