WEEK OF MAY 29, 2025
VOLUME 23 | ISSUE 25
FREE
Commissioners claim victory in lawsuit over meetings law Douglas County judge turns down request for preliminary injunction BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
vide these services to the community, the Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club of Parker saw that the Highlands Ranch Rotary Club had previously had a successful electronics recycling event. The Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club of Parker began to research and decided to give another opportunity for residents to properly recycle materials. Due to some partnering issues last year, the Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club of Parker held a paint, shredding and battery recycling event instead. With about 2,000 cars passing
A Douglas County judge on May 20 denied a preliminary injunction request made by Rep. Robert Marshall, former Douglas County Commissioner Lora Thomas and Lone Tree resident Julie Gooden. District Court Judge Robert Lung found there were no violations of Colorado’s Open Meetings Law during the Douglas County Commissioners’ advanced planning meetings and elected officials luncheons. On April 22, Marshall, Thomas and Gooden filed a lawsuit against the Douglas County Commissioners claiming that the board had discussed public matters, like home rule, in a series of “behind closed doors” and “without public notice” meetings. Earlier this month, Lung heard testimony regarding the Open Meetings Law violation claims and requested that both parties submit a proposal. According to the ruling obtained by the Douglas County News-Press, the court had to determine, based on evidence, if the Open Meetings Law applies to advanced planning meetings. The ruling states: “While the court is unwilling to rule that a discussion about an election can never implicate a policymaking function, the court is satisfied that there was no evidence of any policy-making function at these advance planning meetings and therefore, on the evidence before the court, the Open Meetings Law did not apply to these meetings.” Lung also decided that the elected officials luncheons were not subject to the state’s Open Meetings Law. He noted that the March 25 adoption of the two resolutions concerning
SEE RECYCLING, P12
SEE LAWSUIT, P16
The Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club of Parker will be hosting a recycling event for the third year at Legend High School in Parker.
PHOTO COURTESY OF NATE DEVINE
Paint, electronics recycling set for Parker Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club to host event on June 7 in parking lot of Legend High School BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
For Douglas County residents who are looking for a safe and eco-friendly way to dispose of unused paint and electronics, the Cherry Creek Valley Rotary Club of Parker is hosting a paint and recycling event in Parker in early June. The free event will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on June 7 at Legend High School, located at 22219 Hilltop Road, in the stu-
dent parking lot that is closest to Canterbury Parkway. “In today’s day and age, recycling … we just need to do it,” said Nate DeVine, the Rotary club’s fundraising chair. Dozens of items will be accepted at the event, such as computers, CD players, printers. Some items that won’t be accepted include thermostats, smoke/Co2 detectors, lightbulbs, aerosol (spray) paint, paint thinner, solvents, cleaning
VOICES: 10 | LIFE: 14 | CALENDAR: 17 | PUZZLES: 18
agents, drywall mud, roof tar and hazardous waste. Additionally, while most of the event is free, Tube TVs and CRT monitors will have a $30 charge due to their weight. “There’s a great need in Douglas County for these services,” said DeVine. “ “It’s not real easy to do.” Since recycling services in and around the town are outsourced, it’s challenging for the average resident to be able to recycle these types of materials, especially larger items, said DeVine. He added that Douglas County residents often have to drop their items off in Aurora. In trying to find a way to pro-
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