WEEK OF OCTOBER 3, 2024
VOLUME 20 | ISSUE 14
FREE
Hitting the dusty trail: Arvada students’ camaraderie through mountain biking
Arvada City Council takes another look at upcoming water rates raise Members narrow options, will decide on Oct. 21 BY LILLIAN FUGLEI SPECIAL TO THE ARVADA PRESS
come up here and just do 20 miles in the mountains. It’s so beautiful,” said Arvada West sophomore Bergen Sands, who is leading the sophomore girls category in the state. Mountain biking is not a CHSAAsanctioned activity but is run by the Colorado High School Cycling League. Ralston Valley and Arvada West are just two of over 90 teams in the league.
Arvadans are in for another raise in water rates, but city council still isn’t quite sure what that raise will be. In a meeting on Sept. 23, Arvada City Council looked again at potential water, stormwater and sewer rates for 2025. Council had previously heard three different options for next year’s rates during a workshop on Aug. 24. At the Sept. 23 meeting, council had cut one of the options — Scenario A, which was a 0% increase in rates. This scenario would have left sewer services only 92% funded and would have required a much larger hike in rates in 2026. This left council with two options for the rate raises. Scenario B, referred to as the “Budget Book” option, includes raises to all rates in order to meet the city’s budget needs. This includes a 10% increase to water fees, a 10% increase to sewer fees and a 5% increase to stormwater fees. Scenario C fully funds all Capital Improvement Projects for the city in 2025, meaning it has a larger rate increase.
SEE BIKING, P2
SEE WATER RATES, P8
For years, students from Ralston Valley and Arvada West high schools competed on the same Ralston Valley mountain biking team. PHOTO BY JOHN RENFROW But last season, A-West had enough riders to start its own team. But both teams still train together regularly.
Ralston Valley, Arvada West teams train together, compete separately BY JOHN RENFROW JRENFROW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
At the Bird’s Nest Disc Golf Course in Arvada, students largely from Ralston Valley and Arvada West high
schools meet in a gravel parking lot before a 20ish-mile mountain biking practice run on a hotter day than they’d like in late September. The two teams have always trained together. In fact, Arvada West didn’t have its own team or uniforms until this season. Before then and even still, students from several Arvada high schools — including Pomona, Standley Lake, Arvada, etc. — held a spot on Ralston Valley’s mountain biking team. “I love biking and I love that we can
VOICES: 14 | LIFE: 16 | CALENDAR: 19 | SPORTS: 22
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