Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado
Resident generated news about Lakewood, Colorado
From GoFundMe – Following the terrible apartment complex fire in Lakewood which displaced 30 people, many are turning to GoFundMe to ask for help finding a new place to call home. Four fundraisers have been started to help those affected by this fire. The links to all four of those fundraisers are below.
Discount Tire is giving drivers incredible Black Friday & Cyber Monday deals on tire and wheel purchases from Thursday, 11/20 through Wednesday, 12/3. Below are a few highlights and more information can be found online at Discount Tire’s website.
Lakewood’s City Clerk has determined that the first two zoning petitions had enough signatures to meet initial sufficiency requirements. That means that City Council must now decide whether to repeal the ordinances or send the question to the ballot.
This was a herculean task for a small group of people to accomplish in a very short period of time. But the recurring theme heard while gathering signatures was that residents didn’t know about the new zoning. The more people learned, the less they like it. And petitioners seemed to know that.
Gathering signatures gathered steam as time went on because of resident dissatisfaction and petitioners’ tireless efforts.
The petitions are still subject to protest and verification for another 10 days. During this time, the number of valid signatures may change.
Every Lakewood candidate recommended by the Progressive Voters Guide won the 2025 race in all five ward districts. The Progressive Voter Guide also identified Wendi Strom, Isabel Cruz and Glenda Sinks as progressive candidates in 2023.
Under progressive leadership, Lakewood’s quality of life has declined while Council focuses on issues that residents consider secondary. With progressive ideology dominant, those with differing opinions have been run off, such as liberal-leaning Rich Olver and Anita Springsteen, and conservative-leaning Mary Janssen.
All candidates except Bill Furman ran on climate issues, even at a time when even Bill Gates has said that past investments in climate change have been misplaced. Bill Furman only wrote three little paragraphs on issues, saying the least of all candidates.
A recent ethics complaint was filed against a group of Colorado Representatives, including Lakewood’s Rep. Rebekah Stewart. The complaint alleges Representatives received gifts in the form of food, beverages and lodging in Vail for a lobbyist retreat. The main donor was One Main Street, a nonprofit of the same name as heavy political donors to Wendi Strom’s campaign for Lakewood Mayor in 2023. No matter the outcome of the ethics complaint, these dark money ties are being exposed in Lakewood and throughout Colorado.
As reported by the Colorado Sun: “Ethics complaints were filed Wednesday against several Democratic state lawmakers alleging they violated Colorado’s prohibition on elected officials receiving gifts when they attended a retreat last month in Vail where they mingled with lobbyists at a ritzy hotel. The complaints were filed by Colorado Common Cause, a liberal-leaning nonprofit that advocates for an open government.“
Residents are discovering the truth behind years of planning to consolidate Lakewood’s recreation centers. Despite denials from City Council, the documents speak for themselves. Recent discussions on nextdoor.com show that most residents are unhappy with the idea of closing down any rec centers.
Lakewood resident Steve F points out that the plan included automatic steps forward on rec center consolidation but officials now claim those are not being carried out. He writes, “They are REQUIRED by what they voted on to move forward.” He goes on to quote from the document: “NEXT STEPS: Upon approval, the goals and recommendations of the plan will be pursued by delegating each plan action to a staff representative along with a timeline for completion.” Assuming there is no one working on the consolidation, as staff and Council Members claim, Steve asks, is there even a functioning city government in Lakewood?”
Jeffco Schools is not disclosing how much the district will lose on the Emory Elementary deal. And curiously, no one knows when the Board met or voted on selling the closed school.
Lakewood Informer reached out to school officials and could find NOTHING. How is Lakewood selling the property when the purchase has not been completed through Jeffco? Has it been completed and everyone missed it?
The DAIF will hold its annual Denver American Indian Festival on Oct. 11, 2025, at Lakewood United Methodist Church (1390 Brentwood, Lakewood, CO 80214) from 10 am to 5 pm.
The family-friendly free event features music, crafts, food, dance, and interactive workshops. Festival highlights will feature performances by renowned Native musicians/dancers, including national recording artist Shelley Morningsong & Fabian Fontenelle, Seven Falls Indian Dancers, and Azteca Grupo Huitzilopochtli, among others. Authentic fry bread vendors and Native crafters will also be on hand to provide an experience that reflects the diverse culture of Colorado’s many indigenous communities.
The new zoning rewrite drastically changed the very definition of a residential dwelling unit. Residents may be accustomed to using words like single-family, duplex, or even shelter. All that has now gone away. All of them are now considered the same. They are all “residential dwelling.”
That means that any of them, including a homeless shelter, can be your new nextdoor neighbor and there’s nothing to stop it.
The 2012 zoning code broke out 9 categories for uses and permitted them per zone, depending on suitability.
The same table in the 2025 rewrite shows only three categories. The highlighted categories from 2012 have all been compressed into one category, “residential dwelling”.
Councilor Supports Taxpayer Funds for Migrants Recent comments by Isabel Cruz show that Lakewood Council may still support using taxpayer dollars for migrant housing. Lakewood Councilor Isabel Cruz is a Policy Director for the non-profit Colorado Consumer Health Initiative. As a spokesperson for the Initiative [not Lakewood], Cruz defended Medicaid coverage for undocumented immigrants saying, “…providing coverage to undocumented immigrants benefits everyone and keeps costs down.” She made several additional comments in a Denver 7 article titled “Feds investigate Colorado’s spending on health care for undocumented immigrants” According to the article, she said, ““When we help cover people, we help stabilize our health care system and our safety net health care providers, and we also make sure that we keep costs down for everyone,” said Cruz.” The same sentiment could be applied to housing, where Cruz is currently voting on new policies for “affordable housing” through Lakewood’s zoning code. Cruz’s statements were not made regarding official Lakewood policy. However, this is the same mentality displayed over and over again by Council Members and staff when migrant support comes up – all programs in Lakewood are open to migrants. This question is key to understanding why Lakewood is changing zoning and adopting radical housing strategies that have not been implemented citywide anywhere in Colorado. Lakewood leadership is aggressively pursuing funding support for homeless – including migrants. Colorado Engaged has previously explained how Colorado Prop 123 funding “reallocates TABOR refunds to support government-managed, taxpayer-subsidized housing and homelessness initiatives.” The plans for migrants in Lakewood has been shrouded in mystery. Lakewood says they are not a sanctuary city but they act like one by: Lakewood does not coordinate with ICE Lakewood already “lessens deportation fears” to encourage migrants to live in Lakewood in a policy buried in the Strategic Housing Plan, rather than a standalone policy Council has made clear that Lakewood will not ask for identification to receive shelter or services Lakewood Mayor Wendi Strom supported new migrants becoming “proud workers and residents of Colorado” by approving a letter from the Metro Mayors Caucusthat the city charged an outrageous fee to obtain. Council voted in January 2024 to “be a good neighbor.” Councilor Cruz has not returned a request for comment. Like many others, she has an automatic response saying, in part: “If your email requires a personal response, I will do my best to reply promptly but if you don’t hear from me, please feel free to reach back out. Since council is designed as a part-time job and most of us have additional full-time jobs to support ourselves and our families, I appreciate your patience in advance with my response.”
