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April 11, 2013
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A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwestminsternews.com
Adams County and Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 68, Issue 25
CDBG dollars decrease due to federal cuts By Ashley Reimers
areimers@ourcoloradonews.com Effects of the federal sequestration process are trickling down to the local level. For Westminster, the spending cuts are causing a 5 percent cut in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. This cut is across the board for the CDBG program and most likely will result in a reduction of $25,000 for the city’s allocation.
“We are basing the $25,000 on what we received last year, which was $525,000. So our estimate this year is that we will eventually end up with $500,000,” said Tony Chacon, south Westminster revitalization coordinator. “This cut will affect our staffing levels and then our programs and future projects.” CDBG funds are allocated each year by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and are available for projects that benefit cities with low- and moderate-income residents. Westminster’s allocation will be used to revitalize
parts of south Westminster. Chacon said the loss of $25,000 is equivalent to the loss of five to seven lowincome home repair grants. “This cut puts more pressure on city resources to backfill the loss from sequestration,” he said. Earlier this year the city approved the CBDG projects which include: Rodeo Market Park improvements, Westminster Grange/Rodeo Market community arts center feasibility study, Bradburn Boulevard realignment and the 76th Avenue pedestrian improvements.
Chacon said these projects won’t be affected by the cut, but the timeline to complete the projects could end up being longer. He said the city is constantly keeping track of what the federal government is doing, and is aware that future CDBG cuts could be made. “The city is preparing themselves for a gradual dissipation of federal dollars,” Chacon said. “We know over time this 5 percent could add on and be more in the future so we are trying to be proactive by seeking alternative sources to do the same level of improvements in the city.”
Measure would extend work program Plan allows partial benefits for employees with reduced hours By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews. com
Federal Heights Elementary student Alissa Wilson covers Principal Ron Salazar with caramel during a reading celebration assembly, while assistant principal Stephanie Auday tries to avoid being hit with the ice cream sauce. The students celebrated reading more than 350,000 minutes by turning Salazar into a human ice cream Sunday. Photo by Ashley Reimers
Reading celebrated with ice cream By Ashley Reimers
areimers@ourcoloradonews.com
I
t’s what every kid dreams of — smearing their principal in the face with ice cream and chocolate sauce. And for a few very lucky Federal Heights Elementary students, their dream came true during a reading celebration assembly on April 5. Students and teachers were celebrating reaching their goal of reading more
than 350,000 minutes. The reward was making principal Ron Salazar a human ice cream sundae. Students in grades kindergarten to second grade had the task of reading 20 minutes a day outside of school and students in third, fourth and fifth grade had to read 30 minutes a day outside of school. Teachers Mindy Diaz and Heather Murphy were the visionaries behind the reading undertaking. Both simply wanted to improve their students reading skills, POSTAL ADDRESS
but in a fun way. “We wanted to motivate the kids to read so we created an incentive program,” Diaz said. “It was a way to make reading fun for our kids and try to get our reading scores up and make sure they are reading every day.” Murphy said for the older students, the fact that they had a reward to work for helped them read more. But also the positive feedback they received from teachers was a good motivator. “Students are always wanting the human nature
thing of being recognized for doing something good, whether it was above and beyond or status quo or just improvement,” she said. “They need that recognition just as much as adults do.” Although Salazar left the gymnasium covered with all the yummy toppings of a sundae, he was a great sport about it. He did mention it was worse than he thought it would be, but praised the students by telling them how proud he was for their achievement. “The focus in our building is literacy, so anything I can to do promote reading I’ll do it,” he said. “I’m really proud of the students’ hard, Printed on recycled rigorous work to complete newsprint. Please over 350,000 hours of readrecycle this copy. ing.” All of the students and teachers were also rewarded with their accomplishment with an ice cream party at the end of the day.
State lawmakers have voted to renew a rarely used program that gives struggling businesses an alternative to laying off employees. Senate Bill 157, which has passed both chambers of the Democratic-controlled General Assembly on party-line votes, would extend the Colorado Work Share Program indefinitely. The program gives businesses the opportunity to keep their workers at reduced hours, rather than laying them off altogether. Under the program, which businesses can enter into on a voluntary basis, employees receive prorated unemployment benefits to compensate for the loss of hours. Workers can receive up to 26 weeks of prorated unemployment benefits through Colorado Work Share, under recent federal changes made to the program. The program receives federal money for reimbursement, rather than adversely affecting the state’s Unemployment Insurance Fund. Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp, D-Arvada, a House sponsor of the bill, said the program allows businesses that are going through a “temporary tough time” to keep skilled workers, instead of losing them. Kraft-Tharp said in a recent interview that the program helps companies like Vestas Wind Systems, which has reduced employees’ hours at their Brighton, Pueblo and Windsor wind-power factories. “This is a pretty specialized field,” she said. “We don’t want to lose those people, or have them move away.” The Work Share program, which was put in place in 2010, and is administered under the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, had
Capitol Report
to be taken up again by the General Assembly because it is scheduled to sunset in July. The bill keeps the program going, while making adjustments to keep it in line with federal guidelines. Kraft-Tharp acknowledges that the program isn’t well-known, and that only a handful of Colorado businesses are taking advantage of it. But she expects that to change soon. “There was no money for Department of Labor staff time when it passed in 2010, so the state has not been able to promote this,” she said. “But, with the new changes, we can access federal grants, so we can allocate staff time to support it.” Republicans are opposed to the continuation of the program. The bill passed the Senate without any GOP support in March, and again in the House on April 2. Rep. Brian DelGrosso, R-Loveland, said during a recent debate on the House floor that businesses that pay into the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund could essentially end up paying the wages for competitors’ workers, even though the workers are still employed there. “So, potentially you can have a competitor down the street paying for the employees of a fellow competitor somewhere else in town,” DelGrosso said. But Kraft-Tharp sees value in the program. “The bottom line is, if you’re going to be laid off … and if we can help you, we’re going to help you,” she said. “It’s about keeping people employed and keeping their paychecks coming home.”