Serving Lakewood, Wheat Ridge and beyond
WEEK OF MARCH 6, 2025
VOLUME 41 | ISSUE 31
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‘Why Jefferson? Why Now?’ Families fight to save school amid closure plans BY SUZIE GLASSMAN SGLASSMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
JEFFCO RESIDENTS TOUR P2 FUTURE LIBRARY
FINDING A PATH TO COLLEGE COURSES P8
Ken Cruz, Patrick Flaherty and Pedro (Pete) Roybal are competing to represent Ward 3, which covers parts of southern and western Lakewood, including areas near Bear Creek Lake Park and Green Mountain. Cruz, a digital media business owner, has lived in Lakewood for seven years and serves as president of his HOA. His campaign focuses on transparency, small business support and improved community outreach, particularly for Spanish-speaking residents.
“This is my home. This is my community. Why do I have to leave?” Gloria Rubio’s son asked her when he learned Jefferson Jr./Sr. High School might close. He didn’t understand why the school that had shaped him and his friends, where he felt safe and supported, could be taken away. He emptied his piggy bank and asked his mom to buy three bags of halos. He planned to hand them out at the meeting, wanting everyone to wear one in solidarity. He made signs that read “Once a Saint, Always a Saint” and “We Are the Home of the Saints.” He even made a special one for a younger child in Edgewater that read “I Want to Be a Saint.” “He told me, ‘Mom, I want them to see what they’re destroying.’” Rubio said, her voice breaking in an interview before a recent community engagement meeting hosted by Jeffco Public Schools at Jefferson Jr./Sr. High School. In early February, due to declining enrollment and a structure the district claims is “not sustainable long term,” it proposed a draft plan to close the 7-12 junior/senior program at Jefferson at the end of the 2025-2026 school year, sending sixth- through eighth-graders to Everitt Middle School and ninththrough 12th-graders to Wheat Ridge High School. The plan proposed two options for the school’s eventual reopening in 2027. Option A would allow students to enroll in a home high school for their core classes and choiceenroll in a part-time program at a Career and Technical Education Campus.
SEE COUNCIL, P6
SEE CLOSURE, P7
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Candidates for the special March 25 election for Lakewood City Council. Top row from left: Ward 3 candidates Ken Cruz and Patrick Flaherty. Not pictured: Pedro (Pete) Roybal. Bottom row from left: Ward 4 candidates William Furman, COURTESY PHOTOS Diane Rhodes and Nicholas Munden. Not pictured: Desiree Gonzalez.
WESTMINSTER
Meet the candidates for Lakewood City Council
7 candidates compete for 2 open seats in March 25 special election BY SUZIE GLASSMAN SGLASSMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
‘DETOUR’ MAKES WAY THROUGH DENVER ART SCENE P12
2025
MINSTER VOTING STARTS
NOW!
Seven candidates are vying for two open seats on the Lakewood City Council in a March 2025 special election, with races in Ward 3 and Ward 4. The election will fill vacancies left by Rebekah Stewart, who resigned from her Ward 3 seat after being elected to Colorado House District 30, and Rich Olver, who stepped down from his Ward 4 seat at the end of 2024. The candidates offer various perspectives on growth, public safety and affordability. Some advocate for controlled development and housing reforms, while others emphasize government transparency and community engagement. Ballots for the March 2025 Special Election will be mailed to voters the first week of March, and Election Day is Tuesday, March 25. Residents can check the Lakewood website for voter registration details and ballot drop-off locations. To learn more about where each candidate stands, read their full Q&A interviews.
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VOICES: 10 | LIFE: 12 | CALENDAR: 15 | SPORTS: 18
Colorado Community Media contacted all candidates for interviews. Pedro Roybal, a Ward 3 candidate, did not respond. Desiree Gonzalez, a Ward 4 candidate, declined to comment on her attorney’s advice as she currently faces felony retaliation charges and is awaiting trial. Here’s a look at the candidates who participated. Ward 3 race features business owner, contractor with differing priorities
JEFFCOTRANSCRIPT.COM • A PUBLICATION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA