Hi all,
Thank you Guy for your tenacity as a smiling warrior seeking to keep the community informed about good, bad or ugly items of business or governance. I also love the mix of human interest stories that involves our neighbors as well. This is such a nice paper to receive each month.
Your publication is important in our community and I am so grateful for your 3T’s (time, talent and treasure). I also appreciate your staff who help with all the details associated in publishing this paper each month. Lots of moving parts involved.
Wishing you and the staff at the Neighborhood Gazette a wonderful holiday season.
Kind regards,
Jerith Gronski, District 3 resident
Hi,
I read the article regarding 2B in the December issue of the Neighborhood Gazette. It laments about the amount of distrust the public has in our government. A statement you made at the end of your opinion pieces summed up perfectly why.
“Still, Wheat Ridge voted “no” on 2B. And odds are, it’ll be back on the ballot next year-likely with a stronger campaign behind it”
If government were to do that after we, the voters have voted it dowBy “a meaningful margin” then why should we trust our government. We’re the bosses (supposedly) we told government that we wanted to continue electing these officials, now these same government officials should get on with running our city by doing the things we elected them to do, like fixing roads, maintaining parks, etc.
The government and its officials shouldn’t imply that we made a mistake that they will get us to correct. NO, we told them how we want it to work. Maybe we don’t want to concentrate more power in our city’s unelected officials. Additionally, I do not believe these elected positions have been shown to be detrimental to the success of our city government.
I could go on but thanks to your own words I have been able to synopsize my feelings. Maybe government should listen to the voters for a change.
~ Patrick Phalen, Wheat Ridge, CO
Hi Patrick,
Thanks for your letter Patrick.
Great points that you bring up. It’s important to make the distinction between the government as a whole and the people that work there, including many of my friends. I love the individual relationships within the organization, and yet struggle with some of the decisions and regulations that are made that seem void of any residents’ input. But one thing i am certain of, is that you have to participate in the process in order for your voice to heard.
As always, thanks for reading
Guy Nahmiach, Publisher/Owner, Neighborhood Gazette
Hello,
I’m wondering if there is any interest/bewilderment regarding Wheat Ridge’s version of the Great Wall of China, The Berlin Wall, a Prison Compound wall now that it can finally be seen materializing along Wadsworth on the east side adjacent to the Morningside Apartments. This sound wall is easily twice as tall (if not more), than the sound walls currently being constructed along 6th Avenue and along I-70 in various places very close to individual residential properties. I wonder if anyone, including the residents of Morningside really understood what a monstrosity this thing was going to be, not to mention the cost. I’m sure the city will justify it because some sort of sound study was done. Yet right across the street at the Edison Apartments, no sound wall, and those apartments are pushed right up next to the sidewalk. Makes no sense, no consistency of thought. As usual I’m sure the governmental authorities will have whatever mental gymnastics at the ready that are necessary to justify it and defend it.
~ Paul Battista
Hello,
We’ve gotten that question a few times since the columns for the wall went in.
As part of the planning process and because federal funds were being used, the Wadsworth project had to comply with the federal NEPA EA process (the National Environmental Policy Act’s Environmental Assessment). Under NEPA, an Environmental Assessment must analyze whether a proposed project would cause significant noise impacts—especially for “sensitive receptors,” which typically include homes, schools, and parks.
As part of this process, sensitive receptors are identified and mapped, future noise levels are modeled, and predicted noise is compared to federal thresholds. If impacts are identified, the EA evaluates whether mitigation is necessary and, if so, whether it is feasible (works acoustically and physically) and reasonable (meets federal cost-effectiveness criteria). Noise walls are a common outcome of this analysis. When a noise wall is determined to be feasible and reasonable, the affected property owner is given the choice of whether to have it installed.
The Edison apartments were already being designed with upgraded windows to minimize noise, and a wall on that site didn’t meet the criteria. Morningside, on the other hand, received a noise wall: it was identified as a sensitive receptor, predicted noise exceeded federal thresholds, a wall was deemed feasible and reasonable, and the property owner elected to have it installed, so it was included in the project.
The height of a noise wall is usually based on its proximity to both the noise source and the receptor.
~ Lauren Mikulak, AICP, Community Development Director, City of Wheat Ridge
A $40 Lesson in Bureaucracy:
Most people who receive a Wheat Ridge photo radar ticket do what the city hopes they’ll do: sigh, grumble, and pay the forty bucks. I, however, chose a different path—one paved with printer errors, contradictory instructions, and more administrative effort than the fine is worth. And frankly, it was glorious.
It began with a Notice of Violation whose text looked like it had been laid out by a malfunctioning Etch-A-Sketch. Sections explaining my rights, obligations, and payment options were printed directly on top of each other, leaving the whole thing looking like a ransom note drafted by someone in a hurry. Naturally, I decided this was a matter of principle.
I mailed a timely request for a hearing, relying on the quaint belief that the U.S. Postal Service still delivers letters across the country in under two weeks. And why was I relying on mail? Because, in the year of our lord 2025, the City of Wheat Ridge requires hearing requests to be sent by physical letter—yes, a paper envelope—to a P.O. Box in California. It’s a process that feels one horse short of the Pony Express. And you’re right to suspect this antiquated system is not an accident; when a system works best when fewer people use it, complexity is often a feature, not a bug.
Altumint—the photo radar contractor—later insisted no hearing request was ever received, and that my right to dispute the ticket had evaporated. The City’s own notice, for reasons known only to municipal alchemy, simultaneously told me I had until the printed due date (30 days) and 45 days from issuance to request a hearing. A choose-your-own-adventure rulebook if there ever was one.
So I did what any self-respecting Wheat Ridge resident with a stubborn streak would do: I wrote letters. Many letters. Letters to the City Manager, the City Attorney, and the camera company. I cited statutes. I highlighted ordinance language. I explained that overlapping text, contradictory deadlines, and inconsistent instructions constitute defective notice. Somewhere, a file clerk sighed deeply. Somewhere else, a contractor realized they were about to earn their fee the hard way.
Will I win? Probably not. Will I still end up paying forty dollars? Almost certainly. But in an era where automated systems churn out citations with all the grace of a fax machine on life support, someone has to stress-test the process.
And here’s the real kicker: Will I slow down in the future, now that I’ve been spiritually mugged by a $40 camera? Probably. Did I also manage to slow down the flow of revenue to the City by forcing them to untangle their own paperwork? Also probably. In government finance, they call that a win-win—I drive slower, and the citation machine has to take a coffee break. Both can be true.
Sometimes the principle really is worth the price of admission.
~ Zachary Urban
Hi Zach,
Thanks for writing in. I recently got dinged by the “officer photo bandit” as well—this time on 44th Avenue.
It reminded me of the old saying: if a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Is this enforcement truly being carried out by the police, or is City Hall operating in the name of the police?
I’ll admit, I felt almost cheated by not being able to face an officer issuing the ticket. There’s something unsettling about enforcement without interaction, explanation, or discretion.
Much has also been said about the roughly 40% of every ticket that goes to the California-based company operating these systems. It raises a fair question about incentives and accountability.
I sometimes wish there were a way for residents to issue fines to the city for non-service issues when no service was needed—or provided. Imagine sending a citation to the building department when an inspector doesn’t show up, or issuing a small fine when a call to City Hall isn’t returned. It’s certainly something to think about.
UPDATE – WRPD has dropped the Charges against Zach Urban. Congratulations, tell us next month how you did it. As always, I enjoy your writing and appreciate you raising these questions.
~ Guy Nahmiach, Publisher/Owner, Neighborhood Gazette
