Wheat Ridge and Arvada are two Front Range municipalities who collect a sales tax on grocery food, while many of their neighbors do not impose such taxes. Lakewood is somewhat unique, as it once collected sales tax revenue from grocery food but rescinded the tax 17 years ago. Mountain View, Golden, Edgewater, Littleton and Denver
After nearly a half century, the Wheat Ridge branch library will have a new home in the near future. At a special Aug. 20 meeting, Jefferson County Public Library trustees gave consensus to a recommendation to find a new site for the branch library. Executive Director Donna Walker told the Neighborhood Gazette in an Aug. 21
Finding blind spots, changing procedures and raising awareness of potential bias or discrimination in Wheat Ridge’s internal policies are parts of an upcoming equity audit. The city council, by a 5-3 vote on July 13, approved spending up to $96,000 in reserve money for the audit. Council members Mike Okada, Rachel Hultin, Jenny Snell, Kathleen
Final work was underway last month on Wadsworth Boulevard in Wheat Ridge — including digging up some new, smooth pavement and other features — while other projects began or were in planning stages. Meanwhile, very preliminary talks could result in the relocation of the library. City spokesperson Amanda Harrison responded to several emailed questions from
A desire to finish a project she helped start as a Wheat Ridge city council member led Janeece Hoppe to her appointment as the city clerk. The position had been vacant since February 2025, when then-city clerk Steve Kirkpatrick passed away. An initiative on the Nov. 4, 2025, election ballot would have designated the city
Property owners in Wheat Ridge, Jefferson County and across Colorado recently learned they will be paying up to 20% more in property taxes this year. It’s due to a complicated combination of changes made after the expiration of tax relief for residents and businesses as well as other changes. Property tax statements were mailed by
Wheat Ridge police have declared a traffic camera program a success after eight months and plan to expand it in the new year. In April, solar-powered automated speed camera trailers were placed at West 32nd Avenue and Independence Court (Wheat Ridge High School) and West 44th Avenue and Field Street (Anderson Park). A series of
Close to 140 full-time Jefferson County School District employees will be unemployed when summer arrives. Ninety of those eliminated positions will be due to vacancies and current or pending retirements, according to a Dec. 18 community update from the district. Between December 15-17, approximately 50 central service employees learned they were among those to be
One second-place-finishing Wheat Ridge City Council candidate in the Nov. 4 general election found the experience personally satisfying and surprising. Another hopes his experiences might help lead to more contested elections. Justin Slocum and Alex Gouldsmith have focused on the positives of running campaigns that came up short, and both may run again sometime in
Wheat Ridge has a new mayor for the first time in eight years, a lodging tax was approved in Mountain View and Edgewater voters favored their incumbent city council members and mayor in the Nov. 4 general election. According to unofficial results from the Jefferson County Clerk and Recorder’s office, Wheat Ridge Councilmember Korey Stites
One major Wheat Ridge development project is nearing the finish line, while another could get underway next year. Meanwhile, the same can be said about two city traffic improvement projects. The Clear Creek Crossing project, a 100-acre retail, entertainment, hotel, multifamily residential and business project, is nearing some final work, according to Tyler Carlson, Evergreen
Wheat Ridge City Council is one of the first donors to an expansion of the 18-month-old Clear Creek Marketplace. They agreed to a $30,000 request from Localworks, a nonprofit organization focused on the city’s economic development. Executive Director Paige Piper, reading from a prepared statement at the council’s Sept. 8 meeting, called the $350,000 expansion
A measure of justice was achieved in August for the family and friends of a Wheat Ridge businessman shot and killed in a 2023 robbery. On Aug. 6, a Jefferson County District Court jury found Charles Robinson Shay, 42, guilty of several counts — including first-degree murder — for the killing of Peter Damian Arguello
Scuba diving and economic development seem a world apart, but Steve Art of Wheat Ridge enjoys one for the “peace and tranquility” it offers and the other for the opportunity to be part of a growing communityNext year, Art and his wife, Peggy, will take their next life step as he retires and the couple
Mentoring is something Karen O’Donnell has done for 15 years. But she never thought she’d win an award for helping others grow and find their way in life. The Wheat Ridge Parks and Recreation Department director for the last six years, O’Donnell will receive the Dirk Richwine Professional Mentoring Award at the 2025 National Recreation
Wheat Ridge High School can welcome many students who now attend Jefferson Junior/Senior High School — when and if the Edgewater school closes, according to WRHS Principal Lisa Mahannah. Jefferson County School District officials recently decided to delay a planned 2026-27 school year closure of Jefferson due to low enrollment for one or two school
Edgewater residents don’t want Jefferson Junior/Senior High School to close and have developed a plan to hopefully reverse its declining enrollment. The Jefferson County School District has proposed to close Jefferson for the 2026-27 school year and merge the Jefferson and Wheat Ridge articulation areas. Everitt Middle School and Wheat Ridge High School would become
Residents living near the former home of Lutheran Medical Center in downtown Wheat Ridge were concerned earlier this year after receiving a letter that gave the mistaken impression they could be paying a property tax to help the site redevelop. The center moved to Clear Creek Crossing on Aug. 3, 2024, and was renamed Lutheran
More than a dozen projects are on Wheat Ridge Public Works Director Maria D’Andrea’s to-do list this year, including the seemingly never-ending Wadsworth Boulevard improvement and expansion project. The list also includes potential roundabouts, a bus terminal and a 10- to 20-foot-tall city welcome sign. Here is most of D’Andrea’s list, edited for clarity and
Closing a public school starts what is usually a lengthy process to determine how those buildings and sites are put to other uses. For example, Kullerstrand, New Classical Academy at Vivian and Wilmore Davis served Wheat Ridge families and were among 16 Jefferson County School District elementaries closed by the school board at the end
From outdoor classes and graduation to concerts and festivals to a place to gather, a new Wheat Ridge park promises many fun times. Once completed next summer, the nearly two-acre Green at 38th Park will include a stage/outdoor classroom, civic greenspace, festival promenade for vendors, playground, two fire pits, a game grove, seating areas, significantly
A mainstay of Wheat Ridge’s bar and restaurant scene is back in business, after an 8-month hiatus to expand and change not only its appearance but its business approach. Co-owner Eugene Kahng has operated the Colorado Plus Brewpub, 6995 W. 38th Ave., in Wheat Ridge for 18 years. During that time, he also volunteered to
The end may be approaching for Wheat Ridge motorists who have had to slowly navigate through seemingly never-ending lane closures and slowdowns on Wadsworth Boulevard for the last three years. The city recently announced the multi-year improvement project had reached 75% completion in terms of money paid: $40.5 million of the $55.265 million contract. Barring
Following last year’s voter-approved tax increase and bond issue ballot question, the Wheat Ridge City Council recently approved a $75 million increase in the city’s debt to pay for several improvement projects. Memos to the council noted the debt will have a repayment cost of $125 million and a $7.7 million maximum annual repayment cost.
