Week of September 15, 2022
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DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
CastlePinesNewsPress.net
VOLUME 10 | ISSUE 4
Douglas County discusses shelter proposal Pastor of The Rock church outlines program idea
having a large homeless community. “We want to have one (unit), where we can bring in one person and help them, but have 20 other churches in Douglas County that each take one, then we have a community in a sense,” Polhemus said. “What we realized is the major need is not shelter, it’s relationships. If we can solve the relationship issue, then we can solve the shelter issue.” Since the expanded shelter
network is in the early discussion stages, its unclear which churches might participate, what the services would be in conjunction with the housing and what requirements would be in place for people participating in the program. The current winter shelter network only serves women and children, while also requiring them
‘Unmasked’ highlights mental-health struggles
Castle Rock kicks off 2023 budget process
BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Douglas County is considering hiring a facilitator to flesh out an idea to make the existing winter shelter network into a more expan-
sive year-round program. At the Sept. 8 meeting of the Douglas County Homeless Initiative, Pastor Mike Polhemus of The Rock church in Castle Rock told the group he was hoping to get help outlining the details of a year-round church shelter network. He said he envisions multiple churches making up the network with one or two families or individuals housed at each location to avoid
SEE PROPOSAL, P5
Public safety, roads are priorities BY MCKENNA HARFORD MHARFORD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Live music was part of the “Unmasked” special event hosted in Castle Pines.
Olympian Missy Franklin shares story of highs and lows BY THELMA GRIMES TGRIMES@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Olympic Gold Medalist Missy Franklin talked about her road to recovering from mental-health struggles during a special event
held in Castle Pines on Sept. 10. The event, titled “Unmasked,” was hosted by the City of Castle Pines and Mental Health Colorado. The unmasked theme for the night was aimed at removing the stigma of mental health, encouraging more
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 14 | LIFE: PAGE 16 | CALENDAR: PAGE 19 | SPORTS: PAGE 26
people to come out and get help when they are struggling. Throughout the evening, three women took turns on the microphone to talk about their struggles with mental health and declare that they are officially “unmasked.” One speaker talked about the
Castle Rock’s proposed budget for next year prioritizes funding public safety, the Crystal Valley Interchange project and investments into the town’s water resources. Town Manager David Corliss presented the proposed budget to the council on Sept. 6, but the council has not taken any action on the budget yet. Heading into 2023, Corliss said sales tax revenues are projected to be up by 6% and growth remains steady based on building permit numbers. The overall budget is $315.3 million with an estimated annual revenue next year of $273 million.
SEE UNMASKED, P6
SEE BUDGET, P13
PHOTO BY THELMA GRIMES
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