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Volume 24, Issue 3 Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Your News Source for Niwot, Gunbarrel, South Longmont and Vicinity. All Local, All the Time.
Postle resigns as NBA representative to LID committee
SPORTSNiwot goes2-0 to startleague play
Page 13
HOLIDAYWORSHIPSERVICES
PAGE 4
New flood maps may be surprising to some residents
Downtown Niwot post-moratorium
Citing concerns over the appointment of new members of the Niwot Design Review Committee, LID member Anne Postle resigned from the Niwot LID Advisory Committee at its monthly meeting on Jan. 7.
Reading from a letter she planned to send to the Boulder County Board of County Com-missioners on Jan. 8, Postle said, “For me, with the NDRC pro-cess, this trust has again been compromised to the point that I cannot continue to serve as the NBA representative on the LID. I hope my resignation will be a wake-up call to ensure that the NDRC will be comprised of members that truly represent Niwot’s different community organizations and constituen-cies.”
Postle, who has served on the LID since 2018, was refer-ring to recent appointments to the NDRC, a five-member panel of local residents that serves as a referral agency to the county’s Historic Preservation Adviso-ry Board. It has been largely inactive over the past several years, but was revived in last year’s land use code update, prompting the county to recruit
five new members who were appointed to three-year terms.
According to Postle, land use director Dale Case and the BOCC didn’t adhere to county guidelines when they rejected her candidacy on the NDRC, as well as a substitute candidate put forth by the NBA. They also rejected the Niwot Community Association’s nomination, de-spite language in the code that says representatives from those organizations are intended to be included. (For more informa-tion about the NDRC process, see “Downtown Niwot after the moratorium” on page 1.)“An unfortunate clear precedent is being established, that no organization has any voice in determining who can represent them on the NDRC. In 2019, no recommended candidates were accepted into the position for which they applied,” Postle’s letter continued.
Postle’s resignation from the nine-member board is effective immediately. The NBA will forward a candidate for her replacement on the LID to the BOCC in the coming weeks, likely after its upcoming officer elections on Feb. 11.
By Jocelyn Rowley
FEMA will soon be imple-menting new floodplain maps for Boulder County.
A move by the county last week to begin community review and appeals for the newly designated preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) from FEMA is just one step in an ongoing process to reevaluate and replace the old, outdated floodplain maps in Boulder County.
In September 2019, the county came one step closer to approving new floodplain File Photo
A river of water ran down Nimbus Road Friday, September 13th, 2013.
By emily long
Continued on Page 6 Continued on Page 7
It’s been nine months since the moratorium on develop-ment concluded for downtown Niwot and as yet, no new projects have been born, and new land use codes have not been put to the test. When the Boulder County Commission-
ers (BOCC) approved updated land use codes in April 2019, the nettlesome issue of access to the mostly unused alley between the residential side of the alley facing 3rd Avenue and the commercial area facing 2nd Avenue had yet to be laid to rest.
BOCC approved more pre-
scriptive provisions for devel-opments, and also gave the land use department marching orders to resolve the questions of alley usage and design. Additionally, members of the waning Niwot Design Review Committee needed to be ap-pointed.
In September, following meetings the county arranged with residents and business owners regarding the alley on Block 5 of the Niwot Rural Community District, the land use department’s recommen-dations were released, allow-ing commercial access, but requiring property owners along the alley between Frank-lin Street and Niwot Road to pay for improvements “upon submitting a development ap-plication” that would bring the alley up to the revamped de-sign requirements. They must
Photo by Vicky Dorvee
The former dental building at 376 2nd Ave. remodel to a residence is thus far the only change in buildings along Block 5 of downtown Niwot since a moratorium concluded nine months ago.
By Vicky DoRVee
File Photo
Anne Postle delivers her comments to the BOCC during a hearing in March, 2019.
Continued on Page 4
FLOODPLAIN OPEN HOUSE
Boulder County is host-ing an open house to review FEMA’s Preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) with residents and property owners impacted by the recent revisions to the floodplain map of the Saint Vrain Creek, Lower Left Hand Creek, Dry Creek #2, and Little Thomp-son River on Thursday, Jan. 16 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Ron Stewart Building (5201 St. Vrain Drive, Longmont). Representatives from FEMA, the Colorado Hazard Mapping Program team, and Boulder County will be on hand. Visit For more information or to view the Preliminary FIRMs, visit BoCoFloodplainRemap-ping.com.
BASEBALL REGIST R ATION
Early bird registration for the 51st season of Niwot Youth Sports baseball opens on Jan-uary 21. The program is open to players from ages 4-14 of all abilities. Practices start in early April and games run from early May through June. NYS is also looking for um-pires, volunteer coaches, team parents and team sponsors. For more information, visit niwotyouthsports.com.
ALZHEIMER’S SUPPORT GROUP
Alzheimer’s Association De-mentia Caregiver Support Group meets on the first Wednesday of each month from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Niwot United Methodist Church (7405 Lookout Road).
This free service is for family members and friends who care for and care about people with Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.
INKBER RY BOOK - AU T HOR EV EN T
Local poet Ian Hayes will read from his collection of unique poems at 2 p.m. on Sun-day, Jan. 19, at Inkberry Books in the Cottonwood Shopping Center in Niwot. Hayes’ 10 vol-ume collection of verses titled “In Other Words” are more often than not, a rephrasing of other people’s words. Coming across speeches and stories, quotes and songs, and on-line reads often launch Hayes into his poetry-writing mode. Hayes’ reading will be fol-lowed by a reception.
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Community Calendar
Page 2
Editorial/Circulation: 303-845-3077
Advertising: [email protected]: [email protected] Site: www.lhvc.com
Editor: Jocelyn RowleyProduction: Nesscel CalaraManaging Editor: Bruce WarrenSenior Editor: Mary Wolbach LopertBusiness Manager/News of Record: Vicki MaurerAdvertising Director: Selene LunaAdvertising Representative: Ann WhitehillNiwot News/Editor: Karen CopperbergReporters: Kim Glasscock, Vicky Dorvee, Abby Scott, Hannah Stewart, Amy Scanes-Wolfe Sports Reporters: Jocelyn Rowley, Bruce Warren, Jack Carlough
Published weekly in Niwot, Colorado by LEFT HAND VALLEY PUBLISHING, L.L.C. Member Colorado Press Association.
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Egor Zigura’s statue titled “Kore That Awakening” will soon be standing tall in the expanded Niwot Community Corner. The winning sculpture created by Zigura of Kiev, Ukraine, along with three other sculptures will be put in place in Niwot next month.
Zigura’s depiction of a fe-male figure is nearly six feet in height and is described as “a fragmented shape, harkening back to the Classical Antiqui-ty.” This piece was the winner of the $750 stipend awarded by the Niwot Sculpture Park Committee. Zigura’s sculp-tures have been acquired by numerous private and public purchasers and are on display internationally.
Three other artist’s pieces will be installed in Commu-nity Park along Niwot Road. “Friends,” a sculpture by Marc Arnold of Niwot, a metal sculp-ture titled “Return” by Dan Toone of Utah, and “Space
Moon,” a contemporary steel piece by Denver artist Reven Marie Swanson, will be on display.
Seven area residents make up the Niwot Sculpture Park Committee, which selected the first round of sculptures in 2018. In Sept. 2019, the com-mittee began accepting appli-cations for additional pieces. Committee representation is comprised of volunteers from the Niwot Community Asso-ciation, Niwot Business Asso-ciation, Niwot Cultural Arts Association, Niwot Future League, Cottonwood West Homeowners Association, art-ists and Niwot residents. The members are Laura Skaggs, Chuck Klueber, Anne Postle, Lisa Rivard, Scott Deemer, Asher Panian, and Catherine McHale.
The four new pieces were selected out of 19 entries. They will take up residence for the public to enjoy for at least the next year.
“This was just really quite
astonishing,” McHale said “because amongst the various applications, suddenly we had this guy from the Ukraine.” The application was the first international sculpture sub-mission the committee had re-ceived and the piece is already in the U.S.
Originally, the winners were scheduled to be announced in November. McHale said, “We held off announcing, because we really wanted to make sure we could make it work. We saw this piece and we loved it. The quality is amazing, the artistry fantastic.”
In addition to the level of artistic quality, the selection committee considered how each sculpture would fit in with the outdoor space and how it would complement the other sculptures. The intention was also to have a variety of materials, sizes, and styles to add interest to the display.
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Four new sculptures to be installed at Niwot’s Community Corner
Courtesy photo
Kore the Awakening created by artist Egor Zigura along with three other new sculp-tures will be installed in February at the expanding Niwot’s Community Park, on the corner of 79th Street and Niwot Road.
By Vicky DoRVee
Continued on Page 9
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Wednesday, January 15, 2020
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also “provide an acceptable lo-cation on their property for an appropriate area and easement to ensure adequate access and emergency turnaround from the alley.”
The unoccupied former den-tal building at 376 2nd Ave. sits
at the dead-end of the alley. In the summer of 2018, that prop-erty, which is owned by David Meisner, was under official review to become a mixed-use development, but plans fizzled out as a result of the 200+ day moratorium. Despite ongoing efforts to either lease or devel-op the property, the building is now being converted to a residence and, because of the
scope of the remodel, no alley improvements are required.
“Due to the circumstances that unfolded through the years of trying to develop my land into a beautiful gateway for Niwot,” Meisner said, “I de-cided my best option currently is to build myself a home then to see what the future brings. Hopefully one day we can all work together to utilize my
land to the benefit of all the Niwotians.”
A mixed-use project that lo-cal business owner Anne Postle proposed straddling Southpaw Commons at 240 2nd Ave. and the rear of Osmosis Art and Architecture at 290 2nd Ave. has been put on hold.
“The alley is the big concern for me,” Postle said. “The alley solution that was proposed is cost prohibitive. For me the biggest issue is that the county is requiring that I dedicate easements for turnarounds on my property to them. I’m frankly not willing to dedicate part of my property to Boulder County when nobody on the historic district has to dedicate their property.”
Because there have been no other improvements along the alley to date, under the new recommendations, Postle would be required to upgrade beginning at the entry of the alley for a total of 300 linear feet to make changes to her property.
The former Colterra Restau-rant property, 210 Franklin St., at the start of the alley, remains unoccupied, with a for lease sign on the historic Bader House. In an earlier interview, Terry Palmos, the represen-tative of the new ownership, Palmos Development, said the hope was to find a restaurant tenant for the Bader House. Palmos said, barring an eating establishment securing a lease, the building would be suitable for an office or retail tenants. Additional plans were to tear down the larger fire-damaged restaurant and construct resi-dences in its place. To date, no permits have been issued for development.
Porchfront Homes’ project to add on to its building at 102 2nd Ave. was in the planning stage prior to the moratorium, but is now “on indefinite hold,” owner Mary Coonce said. Fol-lowing the code changes, plans for the mixed-use addition would be deemed “no longer acceptable” by the county, according to Coonce, because of new setback requirements.
NBA president Tony San-telli’s present assessment of downtown is, “There were six projects in play, the moratori-um got triggered – five of the six are on hold indefinitely. The sixth is the Colterra property, and it’s presently being de-veloped without a restaurant in the plan...at a place where we’ve had probably a 20-year run of first-class restaurants. Number two, access to the alley has become so cost prohibitive that there will not be any access to the alley, contrary to what we all thought had happened as a consequence of the new recommendations.”
Niwot Design Review Com-mittee update
As part of the update to downtown development re-quirements, Boulder County put out a call for Niwot Design Review Committee candidates, a review panel that had been called on with sporadic and decreasing frequency as new downtown building projects dwindled. The committee is made up of five individuals, ac-cording to the county’s website, “and the selection process will be completed with the intent to include representatives of the Niwot Business Association,
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DOWNTOWN Continued from Page 1
the Niwot Community Associa-tion, the Niwot Historical Society, at least one member of the HPAB, and members of the community who have lived or worked in the community for more than five years.”
Both the NBA and the NCA put forward nominations for representative members, but nei-ther of those representatives were selected for the respective organi-zations. Candidates participated in a group interview with the Boulder County Commissioners and each advised the commis-sioners which organization they would be representing.
The selected appointees re-ceived notice of their assignments in December, although a public announcement has yet to be made. The committee is com-prised of Satir DeMarco (NBA), Will Hentschel (NCA), Katherine Koehler (NHS), Jason Emery (HPAB), and Bruce Larsen (com-munity member). The committee serves on an as-needed basis to review proposed developments to preserve the historic character of downtown Niwot and make recommendations regarding proposed projects, but it has no enforcement authority. Members serve a three-year term.
NCA president David Lim-bach requested and received a list of the committee members from Boulder County Principal Plan-ner Denise Grimm on Jan. 6 via email. None of the appointees, aside from Emery, who has been on the NDRC for several years (and the county requested that he continue to serve on behalf of the HPAB), were assigned to the organization for which they had intended to represent, including the NCA nominee who was assigned to be the community
representative.Following word of the ap-
pointments, Santelli sent an email to Boulder County Land Use Director Dale Case and copied the BOCC inquiring why the resulting appointees were not the individuals each organization had requested.
Santelli later said in an inter-view, “If that’s the case, then the NBA has no voice in the NDRC, and I found that surprising to be honest. I accept it…they decide the rules of the game, but I was hoping to be able to go back with another representative and have a mutually acceptable person.”
Case’s email response to San-telli read, “The NDRC repre-sentation is an aspirational goal, and while the BOCC seriously considers the recommendations it receives for board applicants, it is not required to follow these recommendations.”
Anne Postle was nominated by the NBA to be its NDRC representative, but was not se-lected by BOCC. Postle actively participated throughout the mor-atorium process advocating that the BOCC not adopt restrictive code provisions for downtown developments.
On this matter, Case wrote to Santelli, “…[T]he recommenda-tion of the NBA was appreciated and considered, but was just one factor in the BOCC decision-mak-ing process. And as you may remember, during the NDRC appointment hearing the BOCC expressed their concerns regard-ing potential conflicts of interest with Anne’s application, and thus made the appointment with those concerns in mind.”
Following the NDRC selec-tion process, Postle resigned as the NBA Local Improvement District (LID) representative and stated in a letter to BOCC dated Dec. 31, “I can certainly understand the reasons why the
Commissioners and Land Use Staff would choose to reject me as the representative of the NBA on the NDRC...Your appointment of a 3rd Avenue resident who has fought both alley access for the commercial properties who share her alley, and new development on the 5th block, for decades, to be the representative of the NBA sends the message that conflicts of interest don’t matter.”
The NBA will nominate a new member to represent the
organization on the LID board following NBA annual elections in February.
It was originally construed by Santelli ,and others involved, that the process of selecting NDRC members was similar to LID procedures where each group specifies their representative, and if that individual was not ap-proved, another may be submit-ted. However, the process went forward without that occurring.
Neither Dale Case nor De-
nise Grimm responded to the Courier’s requests for additional information.
Citing the moratorium as a “blow” to development, Postle said, “There’s a caution that we have to work really, really hard to turn around, so a lot of people are trying to do that. I believe that
Niwot still has so much po-tential and that we should have a vibrant, thriving commercial district, and we will get there. “
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Wednesday, January 15, 2020
DOWNTOWN Continued from Page 4
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“We all know that with the leadership of Laura [Skaggs], and Biff [Warren], and Jim [Eastman]—the people who started on the LID—that the LID is now a pretty well-oiled machine,” she said. “...I’m not concerned about the LID, and I respect everybody at this table and have enjoyed working with all of you, but, for me, I can’t do it anymore.”
Several members had an
emotional reaction to the news, including LID chair Laura Skaggs, who called Postle’s news “hard to hear.”
Postle’s resignation came near the end of an eventful night for the committee, as it checked several items off its annual to-do list.
Treasurer Bruce Rabeler opened with a report on dis-trict finances, starting with revenues. Through Octo-ber, the district has collected $166,254, up nearly 8 percent from the same period in 2018 ($154,276). For 2020, the Niwot LID initial budget will have $149,313 available to distrib-ute, which is 80 percent of the total revenue collected in 2018 ($186,651). That is 12.8 percent higher than the three prior years.
At December’s meeting, the group approved $41,289 in expenses for the upcoming year ($25,000 for the Econom-ic Development Director’s compensation, and $16,289 to support the NBA’s 2020 mar-keting plan), leaving $108,024 remaining. After approval of January funding requests, the unallocated portion of the budget total falls to $89,998.39, with about $76,000 in project-ed expenses to come.
Rabeler then discussed the district’s 2019 finances. Through December, the Niwot LID approved $140,586.79 in funding requests, exceeding its budget of $132,854 by about six percent. However, just $118,259 of those expenses
have been reimbursed to date, which Rabeler attributed to a combination of late invoic-ing and lower than expected costs. Groups with outstand-ing expenses have until Jan. 15 to submit any outstanding invoices to the county.
Moving onto funding re-quests, first up was Postle, with two requests on behalf of the Niwot Cultural Arts Asso-ciation: $2,453 for the annual Wine About Winter fundraiser in February, and $1,747 for the 2020 Why Not Niwot juried art show, slated for the spring. Both amounts are the same as were approved in 2019, and were approved unanimously.
Next up was Chuck Klueber with the NBA’s Streetscapes committee with four requests related to annual maintenance and repair expenses, includ-ing utility payments ($1,900), snow removal on 2nd Avenue ($1,800), tree care ($2,000), and general maintenance and repair of the lampposts, ban-ners, tree sculptures, and other community assets ($3,500). Again, these are the same amounts requested by Klueber in 2019, and all were approved unanimously.
“I appreciate the folks that have kept the costs within last year’s parameters,” Skaggs said. “That’s worth noting, and we do appreciate it, be-cause this is not an endless pot.”
For the final request of the night, Klueber asked for $4,625 to help build a second phase
of Niwot’s sculpture park at 79th Street and Niwot Road, which will be home to four ad-ditional art installations later this spring. The new area will be to the west of the original park, incorporating the Niwot Christmas tree, and featuring similar low-lying landscaping.
Niwot resident Scott Deem-er and his company Outdoor Craftsmen will be providing design, labor and materials for the project, for a total cost of $9,950. The NBA ($1,500), Cot-tonwood West HOA ($1,500), and a pending Boulder County Economic Development Grant ($2,325) are also expected to provide funding, and the HOA will also be contributing water for the park’s irrigation lines.
“I think it’s amazing what the committee has done, es-pecially in working with the HOA,” Warren said of the Ni-wot sculpture committee, com-posed of representatives from the NBA and Niwot Cultural Arts Association, including LID members Skaggs, Postle,
and Lisa Rivard. “The HOA used to be very protective of its property, but now that’s totally reversed, and they’ve been supportive and are even financially supporting this.”
In the night’s final agenda item, the committee formally adopted an introduction to the Niwot Vision 2029 adden-dum to the town’s strategic plan, which was approved last month. Language in the docu-ment refers to the 2029 plan as “aspirational,” and “a vision,” as opposed to “a precise plan.” It also invites “a local group or individual to embrace one of the hub ideas and to champion that element.”
To view the Niwot strate-gic plan and its addendum, visit https://assets.boulder-c o u n t y . o r g / w p - c o n t e n t /uploads/2020/01/niwot-vi-sion-2029.pdf
The Niwot LID Committee will meet next at 7 p.m. on Feb. 4 at the Mountain View Fire Sta-tion (8500 Niwot Road, Niwot).
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maps by adopting the prelimi-nary FIRMS provided by FEMA. Those rate maps will be subject to an appeals process in the spring of 2020, and will be made effec-tive some time in 2021 or later.
Once approved, “The flood insurance implications of that could be significant for people,” according to Kelly Watson, the Floodplain Program manager at Boulder County.
The process is happening for two reasons: first, to update the old maps based on impact from the 2013 flooding, and second, the current, effective FIRMs are inaccurate.
Concerning the pre-2013 FEMA flood maps, Watson said in some cases “It was just bad mapping,” especially up in the mountains. “Sometimes the floodplain was up on a hillside. It just wasn’t very accurate.”
The Colorado Hazard Map-ping Program (CHAMP) was initiated and funded by the state after the 2013 flood, and run by the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB), to address these
issues. This process included several steps and phases, and was carried out not only in unin-corporated Boulder County, but also in Weld County and other nearby areas.
During the CHAMP process, scientific surveys were conducted on land and with LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, a remote sensing method that uses lasers to measure distance and ranges), to create new topographic data. The history of flooding was taken into account.
This information was used to create new flooding models for the region, which were subse-quently used to create new draft floodplain maps. At that point, Watson said, “The county did a whole bunch of outreach with draft maps and got feedback from residents and property owners in a series of meetings in 2017 and 2018.”
Because of this process, Wat-son said, “These new CHAMP maps are much, much better in terms of their accuracy and in terms of reflecting the post-2013 conditions.”
The county has been using the CHAMP mapping for per-mitting, however, the FEMA flood insurance rates have not yet changed, and won’t change immediately. The timeline for
adoption of new effective FIRMs could be 18 months or longer.
The new preliminary FEMA maps are largely consistent with the work that came out of the CHAMP process, and will con-tinue to be edited to reflect on-going restoration processes via a process called LOMR or Letter of Map Revision.
Approximately 1600 house-holds, all of the properties that intersect the preliminary FIRMs, were notified via postcard in November of a public hearing related to the mapping process, and again this month regarding a public meeting in their area.
Six of these open house meet-ings were scheduled in January for property owners and resi-dents to learn more about the FIRMS and the upcoming appeal process, which began on Jan. 14.
Community members from anywhere in the county are welcome to attend any of the remaining five sessions. Specific waterways will be the focus of each meeting.
The next meeting, which ad-dresses the area in the Left Hand Valley of Saint Vrain Creek, Low-er Left Hand Creek, Dry Creek #2, and Little Thompson River, is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 16, in Longmont, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. A presentation will begin at 5:15 p.m.
Watson said, “We will have flood insurance experts from FEMA at the meetings, we’ll have the engineers who worked
with the state who actually made the maps to explain how the mapping occured, and then of course we’ll have people from the county who can talk about how the county is going to run the appeals process, which is this 90-day period in the spring when the county is going to collect all these comments and forward them to FEMA.”
The county will also provide the preliminary FIRMs for people both in paper and digital forms at the meetings. The maps are cur-rently available on the county’s website. Additional resources and information are listed at the end of this article.
The idea for these open hous-es, according to Wason, is “that we can review the flood insur-ance requirements and the ap-peals process” and answer ques-tions from concerned citizens.
For more information contact Kelly Watson by email, [email protected], or call 720-564-2652, with questions about the Floodplain Remapping Program and the upcoming open houses. Details about the current process, the Colorado Hazard Mapping Program, the FEMA preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps, and more, can be discov-ered via www.BoCoFloodplain-Remapping.com. Additional Open House meeting dates and times are available on the “How to Stay Informed” section of the website.
FLOODWAY Continued from Page 1
Courtesy photo
An illustration of the component parts of the floodplain.
Prairie dogs are a conten-tious issue in Boulder County, so it is no surprise that Jan. 7, Boulder County’s Annual Public Meeting on Prairie Dog Management ran overtime.
In fact, it was difficult to derail the lively conversation long enough to welcome an unexpected visitor. Despite several murmured protests, the crowd hushed when a representative from the Birds of Prey Foundation pulled out a live red-tailed hawk.
The hawk was no doubt intended as a reminder of the integral role prairie dogs play as a keystone species in the prairie ecosystem. Se-nior Wildlife Biologist Susan Spaulding touched on the sta-tus of two endangered species that rely on this tunneling rodent--the burrowing owl and the black footed ferret.
There are plans to reintro-duce the latter into the south central grasslands of the county, which are co-owned with City of Boulder. To suc-cessfully reintroduce the req-uisite 30 black footed ferrets into the area, it is necessary to have 1,500 acres of contiguous prairie dog colony.
The resident prairie dog population was nearing this goal until an epidemic, pre-sumably plague, wiped out 75% of the colony last fall. The good news is that the county’s proactive dusting of colonies with Delta Dust and vacci-
nating prairie dogs against the Sylvatic Plague prevented the complete decimation of the colonies.
T h i s ac t io n p r o b a bly sounded like bad news to a large cont ingent of the audience. While one part of the county struggles to keep prairie dogs alive, the other is waging war against ever-expanding numbers encroaching into No-Prairie Dog zones or NPDs.
NPDs are are one of three county designations regard-ing prairie dog management. It describes areas where ag-ricultural and human uses are prioritized over wildlife habitat. Most NPD’s are ag-ricultural land, especially irrigated cropland. MOAs are Multiple Objective Ar-eas, where prairie dogs can be managed as necessary. In Habitat Conservation Ar-eas (HCAs), nature takes its
course, and prairie dogs are protected.
Currently, NPD zones com-prise 18,712 of Boulder Coun-ty’s 65,767 open space acres.
The problem is, prairie dogs don’t always stay away from No-Prairie-Dog zones. Since they can’t read, the county put up a chicken-wire barrier fence. Though not 100% effective, the fence is a step up from vinyl visual bar-riers, which had a nasty habit of blowing away. In 2019, the county put up 2,500 linear feet of barrier fencing.
When prairie dogs cross the line, lethal control by live
trapping and carbon monox-ide exposure is the county’s typical measure. Euthanized prairie dogs become an im-portant free food source for black footed ferret recovery programs and the Birds of Prey Foundation.
This year, the county dou-bled the resources dedicated to prairie dog removal. It also changed its strategy. “For several years, we realized our approach was to jump around in response to brush fires,” said Rob Alexander, agricul-tural resources supervisor. After they treated one colo-ny, neighbors and survivors would quickly repopulate the vacated burrows. “There’s nothing worse than subject-ing prairie dogs to lethal control... and then having to do it again.”
The county’s new focus is to completely eliminate prairie dogs in one area be-fore moving onto another. They are also quick to nip recolonization in the bud. Twenty-four properties were cleared in their entirety, and though 30 remain untouched, the county was twice as ef-fective at eliminating prairie dogs in 2019 as in 2018.
The audience raised sever-
al concerns about the county’s methods. One was the tox-icity of Delta Dust, a broad spectrum insecticide used to kill plague-carrying fleas. The county stressed that it places the dust only directly into burrows, and it hopes to eventually transition to a vaccination-only approach.
Another discussion was that leaving burrows intact after eradication may tempt new prairie dogs to move in. The county often does backfill burrows, manually destroy them, and till and replant abandoned areas, but not always.
Perhaps the most contested policy was the moratorium period between March 1 and May 31 in which prairie dogs cannot be removed from es-tablished colonies. The origi-nal intent of this 1999 decision was to prevent adult prairie dogs from being trapped and removed, leaving defenseless pups behind. The county revisited this moratorium, but decided to test their new strategy before attempting to amend it.
Residents can find more de-tails about the county’s prairie dog management policy on the Boulder County website.
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, January 15, 2020Page 8
Prairie dogs spark lively conversationBy Amy ScAneS-wolfe
Photo by Amy Scanes-Wolfe
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Construction slated to begin at Whistle Stop Park
Courtesy Photo
On Jan. 13, members from the Niwot Business Association and Niwot Cultural Arts Association held a groundbreaking ceremony for The Depot at Whistle Stop Park, a permanent concession stand that will house beverage sales at the Rock & Rails summer concert series. Construction on the 990 square-foot structure is scheduled to start later this spring. In the meantime, the group is still hoping to raise another $40,000 to cover the costs. Tax-deductible donations may be sent to the Niwot Cultural Arts Association, P.O. Box 733, Niwot, CO 80544, or may be made online at www.niwotarts.org. From left: Dan Hawk, NBA President Tony Santelli, Felicia Santelli, Doug Miller, Anne Postle, Michelle Henzel, Tim Coonce, Satir DeMarco, Alyson Bell, NCAA President Biff Warren, Holly D’Apolito, Vicki Maurer, and Jim Dorvee.
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERWednesday, January 15, 2020 Page 9
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To accommodate the piec-es, the park is growing west-ward from the corner of Niwot Road and 79th Street, toward the tree carvings. In keeping with the park’s pres-ent feel, a boulder bench, na-tive perennial plants, shrubs, and evergreens, along with large boulders are being in-stalled. Outdoor Craftsman, owned by Niwot resident Scott Deemer, is donating plans, materials, and labor to expand the park.
Local Improvement Dis-trict funds were approved to help fund the project and will be added to contribu-tions from Cottonwood West Homeowners Association, the Niwot Business Associ-ation, and hopefully a Boul-der County grant. Cotton-wood West HOA has been extremely supportive and helpful with planning the park, McHale said.
“It’s a great example of the community pulling togeth-er,” McHale said.
The new sculptures will be joining Feather, Aviator, Peacemaker, Three Graces, Ocean Embrace, Desert Vi-
sions, Winot Bronze, Waco Curves II, and The Spirit of the River Does not Live Long in a Drainage Pipe.
All of the sculptures are available for purchase, except for Spirit of the River Does Not Live Long in a Drainage Pipe and Waco Curves II, which were previously purchased and are now on permanent display. In-terested buyers may contact Os-mosis Art Gallery for additional information. An “unveiling” ceremony for the new sculptures and built out park will be held in early March, details to follow.
SCULPTURE PARKContinued from Page 3
Finding mindfulness at the Meditation Place
According to Deborah Bow-man, Ph.D., and licensed psy-chologist, “Mindfulness, itself, is like you take a string of pearls on a necklace, each mo-ment is one of those pearls--the goal of it, it creates a continuum of awareness.”
When googling “mindful-ness,” after getting past ads for online classes, most search results are definitions, many of which focus on being fully, mentally present in any given moment. It has deep roots in Buddhist tradition and was introduced to much of Western culture by individuals interest-ed in Buddhism and its spiri-tual practices. Its principles of awareness and compassion to oneself and others have been central to psychotherapy for years before the general public even began discussing it.
While she recognized the importance of the mind and thoughts when it comes to
mindfulness, Bowman also stressed the importance of the emotions and body as well. “Mindfulness isn’t just about awareness of the self, it’s about awareness of the other...We’re not just talking about a mental process, it includes our thoughts, our feelings, our sense of connectedness.”
Connection is at the core of mindfulness, and at the core of The Meditation Place’s (TMP) Mindfulness and Psychother-apy event. It is organized by TMP founder and Buddhist priest Cliff Clusin, who re-cruited Bowman as well as her colleague Robyn Chauvin, a li-censed professional counselor.
Clusin originally started TMP because he found the community wanting a commu-nity space for meditation. They allow groups to rent the space for meetings--including group meditation and yoga classes--and events such as the one on Saturday.
“It occurred to us to have a conference with experts on the relationship between mindful-ness, meditation, psychother-apy, and mental health,” said Clusin. “So we found out that Dr. Bowman was the found-er of one of the psychology programs at Naropa, and she agreed to hold a workshop.”
Some of the impetus for the workshop was to clarify misconceptions about mind-fulness in general. Bowman expressed some frustration that it has been given a “new-age, me-focused” label and spec-ulated that since the practice has roots in the East, many
Courtesy Photo
“The Meditation Place presents different ways to explore mindfulness… [people should come] to explore and clarify how mindfulness is being used in psychother-apy,” said TMP founder Cliff Clusin about Saturday’s event.
By HAnnAH StewARt
Continued on Page 11
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Wednesday, January 15, 2020Page 10
Open House February 4th
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EDITORIALFAMILIAR FACES Sonja Motley-Turman
Niwot’s Little Bird is a sym-phony of good taste in every form - from art to jewelry, clothing to body care. Sonja Motley-Tur-man can be found amongst the treasures at Little Bird, offering customers her assistance. Her expertise in all things fashion and style won’t come as a surprise to those who know her well. But for everyone else, here is some insight into Motley-Turman’s life.
Left Hand Valley Courier (LHVC): Where did you grow up and what brought you to Colorado?
Sonja Motley-Turman (SMT): All over the world, I’m an
army brat. I was born at Fitzsim-mons Medical Center and then my father was stationed in Ger-many. We came back to the states and lived around, including El Paso and Ft. Monroe, VA. From there they shipped my mother, my father, and I to Bangkok. I was there as a pre-teen.
When it was time for my fa-ther to retire, he’s from Missouri and my mother’s family is from Colorado, so we’d be retiring in Colorado over Missouri and I’ve been here ever since.
LHVC: What has been your career path?
SMT: I went to art school at the Colorado Institute of Art on a full-ride scholarship to become a fashion illustrator. It’s still an art, but it’s not utilized by the adver-tising market anymore because no one wants an illustration of a dress, they want to literally see it. So I do know how to draw and I moved into graphics.
Knowing the woman’s hu-man body, fabric, and draping, it was easy to transition from illustrating it to dressing it. That’s where my business, 26 years ago now, turned into personal styling and closet organizing and doing things to help women dress well and easily, to find who they are and not flow from one trend to another, to embrace what they love and dress even better. That company is called Clutter Free Closet. I also rep a custom men’s clothing line, J. Hilburn.
LHVC: How did you and the owner of Little Bird, Liz Gould, get to know each other?
SMT: Liz and I worked to-
gether at a clothing company - Carousel and Scott’s Ltd. - in Boulder where she was the buyer and I was the advertising direc-tor. We met 30 years ago, became friends, and stayed in contact. We were also reps together at the Denver Merchandise Mart for 14 lines of clothing. I’ve always sprinkled a little bit of retail in my work because I don’t have clients or a closet to organize every day. In between my own work, it’s a pleasure and an honor to work in Liz’s creation. With a lot of guidance on Liz’s part, I created the Little Bird logo.
LHVC: Tell us a bit about your family.
SMT: I’m an only child, so I’m a brat. I lost my mom last year; she was 92 and my best friend. It was a doozy, she was an unbelievable woman. Dad was a trickster and what we called Jackie Gleason. When he walked in the room, he made a presence. He was jovial, he was loud, he was 100% of everything. He was the best man in the world. When he passed away, my mom and I were amazed at the preparations he’d made to take care of us. My life and childhood, in the wide scope of things, was angelic.
Kenneth is my second hus-band and he’s amazing - so kind. He’s the guy who cleans your car off and fills the gas before you get up. We’ve been together for six years and got married last year.
I was challenged after my divorce. A girlfriend said to me, ‘Gee your hair looks great today. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to sit here in
your chair with your Earl Gray tea and your croissant and your cat Zelda in your lap and watch Downton Abbey for the rest of your life?’ She said I needed to get online and told me the right thing - ‘It’s like shopping.’ I found Kenneth and I put him in my bas-ket. Our first meeting lasted three and a half hours and he said some key things that let me know we could have a second date.
We have two fur-babies, Ban-dit the golden retriever, and Zelda the cat.
LHVC: What passions do you have?
SMT: I love music. I love movies. My husband and I love to travel and I love to eat good food and try new restaurants.
LHVC: Are there ways in which you connect with the community?
SMT: I have a lot of clients who utilize me to speak to women’s groups and for silent auctions. Anything that’s woman-based, my time is given to them free of charge.
LHVC: What would people be surprised to know about you?
SMT: I grew up, from my teens to my early twenties, fun-damentally religious. I chose that life. It was pretty regimented and pretty beneficial. It’s given me options, it’s given me patience, it’s tempered me like an old pan. I grew out of it and started to live, but that restriction let me know I could do it.
To learn more about Sonja Motley-Turman’s business, visit ClutterFreeCloset.net.
By Vicky DoRVee
Photo by
Sonja Motley-Turman is a familiar face at Little Bird on 2nd Avenue in Niwot. She also offers her expertise as a fashion stylist and closet organizer for men and women through her own
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERWednesday, January 15, 2020 Page 11
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Western approaches are somewhat skeptical of it . Clusin echoed Bowman’s concerns and added that he fears that with mindfulness increasingly appearing in lifestyle blogs and maga-zines, it comes across as a marketing gimmick or some-thing like a hobby of the upper-middle-class.
TMP’s workshop, in turn, aims to make mindfulness more accessible to the com-munity. Both Clusin and Bowman expressed hope that participants will have a clear-
er sense of what mindfulness is, and how it relates to men-tal health. “It’d be highly ed-ucational and it doesn’t have a specific system or group to endorse, it’s just general public information for people interested in mental health,” said Clusin.
The event itself will be primarily focused around a presentation/dialogue from. Bowman and her colleague Chauvin and will have some guided meditation and exer-cises to give participants a hands-on sense of integrating mindfulness in daily life. “[We’re] helping people see truth with kindfulness, [that] is the practice of mindful-
ness,” Bowman said.Furthermore, it is a con-
tinuation of TMP’s mission to serve the community; every year they host a day of meditation. In the past, this day has included keynote speakers, or even a Japanese tea ceremony.
Regardless of the setting, TMP aims to provide indi-viduals and groups with the
opportunity and the space to come together and meditate. Clusin said, “It’s kind of a birthright of humanity to be aware and to meditate.” He went on to explain how TMP seeks diversity, saying that they are not exclusive, but open to people who want to explore and learn more about mindfulness.
“Mindfulness is about the
mind and heart working to serve us in a more compas-sionate way,” said Dr. Bow-man. “[So,] come to increase your happiness, your wellbe-ing, and your effectiveness in the world as a contributing member.”
For more information or to sign up for the event, visit https://www.themeditation-place.org/.
MEDITATION Continued from Page 9
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LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Friday, August 22, 2014Page 12
Last Thursday, Jan. 9, Niwot High alumni Oskar Wells and So-phia Jones stepped up to cut the ribbon. After months of construc-tion, Niwot High School hosted a grand re-opening to show off its latest renovations.
“Kids have always been proud to go to Niwot High School,” said Principal Eric Rauschkolb, “but now the building reflects the pride they feel in their school.”
The funding for this project came from a 2016 bond issue in which voters approved $10 million for improvements and renovations. The school pulled
together a Design Advisory Group comprised of past stu-dents, present students, parents and staff to decide how to move forward.
A recurring complaint about the school’s design was the feel-ing of descending down the main staircase into a dungeon. “It was really dark,” said NHS junior Ky-lie Eker. “We all got progressively more pale over the year.”
The new design attempted to brighten the building while uni-fying the first and second stories.
Visitors now pass by the main office into a spacious seating area flooded with natural light. This space, the Learning Commons,
has an enlarged stairway and terraced seating and working space for students, complete with electrical outlets. Through the full-length windows, it is possible to see the solar panels, which now provide up to 60% of the school’s energy.
At the base of the staircase is a large 9-panel informative screen, where news, weather, and events are broadcast. Other wall banners showcase close-up photos of students and the opportunities Niwot High School has to offer.
Natural light extends far be-yond the scope of the windows, as interior classrooms now boast solar tubes that convey sunlight
from the outside in. In addition to new classrooms, the school received new carpeting with a gray-green design. “We love the Vegas carpet,” said Eker.
Two other areas that got big updates were the library and the auditorium.
The library was converted into a modern media center and maker’s space, complete with a green screen and plans for a 3-D printer. This new space provides opportunities for collaborative digital learning and creativity.
The auditorium got new car-pets, seats and paint. There is a new accessible seating area in the back, plus a spring-loaded
stage ideal for performances by the Centennial Ballet.
Outside the main building, the grounds also got an update. Pass-ersby have probably noticed the refurbished track and the banners suspended from parking lot light posts. Down on the athletic fields, the number of tennis courts increased from six to eight. This will give Niwot the opportunity to host larger athletic events such as Regionals.
Just this summer, the learning commons was one large pit of dirt, and students were trekking
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Jan. 15 though Jan. 24Thursday, Jan. 16
6:30 p.m. - Wrestling vs. Longmont
Friday, Jan. 175:30 p.m. - GBB @ Greeley Cent.
7 p.m. - BBB @ Greeley Cent.
Saturday, Jan. 188 a.m. - 8 a.m. - Wrestling @ Alameda Invitational
9 a.m. - Girls swim @ SVVSD District meet, MVAC
Tuesday, Jan. 215:30 p.m. - GBB vs. Silver Creek
7 p.m. - BBB vs. Silver Creek
Thursday, Jan. 234 p.m. - Girls swim vs. Windsor
6:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. - Wrestling @ T. Valley
Friday, Jan. 245:30 p.m. - GBB vs. Centaurus
7 p.m. - BBB vs. Centaurus
"Within 10 minutes of Niwot and Gunbarrel"
Niwot High celebrates new renovations
Photo Courtesy of Amy Scanes-Wolfey
New Learning Commons were part of Niwot High School’s recent renovations
Photo by Jocelyn Rowley
Niwot students Kendra Perez, Nick Valin, Sophia Storz, and Kyle Reeves cut the ribbon on the school’s new renovations at the Grand Re-Opening celebration, held Jan. 9. Forner Students Oskar Wells (far left) and Sophia Jones (far right) hold the ribbon.
By Amy ScAneS-wolfe
Continued on Page 16
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LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIERFriday, August 22, 2014 Page 13Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Niwot goes 2-0 to start conference playThe Niwot boys basket-
ball team improved to 7-4 on the year, after picking up another pair of wins as Northern League play got underway last week. The Cougars were considerably more effective on both sides of the ball in rousing home wins over Northridge (63-40) on Jan. 7 and Thompson Valley (48-39) on Jan. 10, but it was his team’s return to form on defense that had head coach Clay Wittrock back in a posi-tive frame of mind.
“Thompson Valley is a tough, big physical team, and I knew that was going to be a test of how much we’ve rebounded defensively,” he said after Niwot’s victory over the imposing Eagles. “A big point of emphasis in our discussions this week was our defense feeding our offense, and no matter what happens on the offensive end, how do we create opportunities. I really thought we saw it in the first half, and we started off slow in the third, but the defense picked back up again, and started creating opportu-nities and really put us in a position to win.”
A trio of seniors accounted for 36 of Niwot’s 48 points against Thompson Valley, including Milo Ostwald, who was 5-of-9 in field goal at-tempts and led the team with 13 points. Guard Cooper Sheldon added another 12 to his team-leading total (146), while Kyle Reeves followed up his 19-point performance against Northridge on Tues-day with another 11 points against the Eagles, and also led the team in assists (5), deflections (6), and steals (2).
“It wasn’t falling for him at Roosevelt, and I don’t think he was seeing his shot,”
Wittrock said of Reeves, who has 40 points in his last three games. “On Tuesday, and you saw it again tonight, I think it was a combination of him having that confidence and focus and finally finding a shot that was his.”
Elsewhere for Niwot, se-nior Austin Rathburn was held to just two points on the night by Thompson Val-ley’s big center, but had 12 rebounds and five blocks. He also scored 10 points for the Cougars against Northridge two nights before. Jarrett Noterman scored five points against the Eagles, while Noah Pena scored three to bring his weekly total to 11. Overall, the Cougars shot 44 percent (40-for-90) from the floor for the week, outpacing their average of 40%. They also posted higher than aver-age totals in assists, rebounds, and steals.
Sheldon echoed his coach’s sentiments about defense cre-ating offense in Niwot’s two
wins, but also pointed to a less tangible factor that helped the Cougars get off to a 2-0 start in conference play.
“I truly believe it was just within us,” he said. “Standing together as a team, and lead-ing each other along the way also helps with the offense, and this past week we really came together. We’re best friends off the court, but, as a group, we really fought and came together to make it as powerful as it was on the court. Honestly, if we just keep doing that, I think we’re going to be in an ok spot.”
Both Sheldon and Wittrock aren’t anticipating any chang-es to Niwot’s defensive-mind-ed game plan heading into the second week of conference action, where they will face powerhouse Longmont (8-2), runner-up in last year’s Class 4A championships. Though many of the stars from that team have moved on, the Tro-jans have just two losses so far this season, and seem to be the team to beat once again in the Northern League.
“They’re disciplined, and they’re well-coached, so it’s
going to be on us to find that defensive effort, and take advantage of opportunities,” Wittrock said. “Against a disciplined team, you have to create more opportunities, and you have to make sure you’re not beating yourself up. From where we were this week, I think we have to find that next gear for both those match ups.”
(1/7) — Niwot 63, Northridge 40Grizzlies (1-8, 0-1) 10 5 6 19 — 40Cougars (6-3, 1-0) 19 19 14 11 — 63Kyle Reeves 6 (3-4) 19, Cooper Sheldon 5 (5-5) 15, Austin Rathburn 4 (2-4) 10, Noah Pena 3 (2-4) 8, Milo Ostwald 3 (1-2) 7, Row-an Granat 0 (2-2) 2, J. Noterman 0 (1-3) 1, Dev Muduktore 0 (1-2) 1, B. Noterman 0 (0-0) 0, Hayden Morford 0 (0-1) 0, Team Totals 21 (17-27) 63(1/9) — Niwot 48, Thompson Valley 39Eagles (3-7, 0-2) 8 8 10 13 — 40Cougars (7-4, 2-0) 11 15 10 12 — 63Milo Ostwald 5 (1-2) 13, Cooper Sheldon 4 (4-6) 12, Kyle Reeves 5 (0-0) 11, J. Noterman 2 (0-1) 5, Noah Pena 1 (0-0) 3, Rowan Granat 1 (0-0) 2, Austin Rathburn 1 (0-0) 2, Team Totals 19 (5-9) 48
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Senior Austin Rathburn was held to just two points on the night, but was solid on defense for Niwot against Thompson Valley on Jan. 9.
SSSSSS NNNS
LEFT HAND VALLEY COURIER Friday, August 22, 2014Page 14 Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Lopez takes third at Frederick InvitationalKyle Reeves
Kyle Reeves has been on the brink of a breakout game for Niwot all season, and when it fi-nally came in the Cougars’ 63-40 win over Northridge on January 7, the talented guard didn’t hes-itate to reveal the family secret behind his success.
“I was actually playing for my grandmother,” the senior said of his 19-point, five-steal perfor-mance, both bests as a Cougar. “She’s a big part of my life, and I dedicated the game to her. She’s taught me so much, and she’s just my everything.”
Reeves has enjoyed a close relationship with grandmother since early childhood, which he spent growing up in Niwot, but it was another influential family tie that led Reeves to basketball, his other great passion in life.
“My dad played college ball, and I just wanted to keep my father’s legacy going, and make it as far as I can,” he said. “I tried baseball, soccer, and football, but basketball was really the one that stayed on top. It’s in my blood.”
That’s evident in Reeves’ in-tensity on the court, where he is turning heads as a senior guard for the Cougars, despite being plagued by inconsistency during the early weeks of the season. Over his last three games, he has averaged 13 points while shoot-ing 54 percent from the floor (13-for-24) and 80% from the line (8-of-10). He has also provided a spark on defense, with 10 steals and 12 deflections.
First-year head coach Clay Wittrock said that the senior’s “willingness to embrace the changes in offensive and defen-sive philosophy,” is a key factor in Niwot’s 7-4 record on the year, even if it had come at the expense of some personal success.
“He has had to make adjust-ments to his game to be more effective. This is something that
can be hard for a player when they have developed a style of play. It is great to see how he has taken some early season struggles and is now using those lessons to be a more consistent contributor on both ends of the floor.”
In addition to his father, Reeves counts NBA superstars Kyrie Irving and Russell West-brook as his basketball role mod-els, the latter for his “transition and athleticism,” and the former for his hard work and positive mentality, two traits Reeves said he does his best to model on an off the court.
“It’s always keeping positive, always inspiring others to do good things—aim to show that there are no shortcuts in hard work. You always have to work hard to get what you want, and always believe.”
That positivity has helped him gain a reputation for kind-ness among his fellow students at Niwot High, a tribute the modest senior was reluctant to accept.
“I just do what I think is right, and I also try to put myself into
another person’s perspective—I always try to treat others the way I want to be treated.”
Reeves is a member of Ni-wot’s Link Crew and also partic-ipated in the Sources of Strength program. On Jan. 9, he was one of four current students to par-ticipate in a ribbon cutting cer-emony to celebrate the school’s recent renovations.
The senior hopes to continue his basketball career in college, but doesn’t have any firm offers on the table as yet. He is cur-rently debating between Otero Junior College in La Junta and Humboldt State in California, and is interested in studying bot-any and horticulture, another in-spiration from his grandmother.
“I really want to focus on reforestation and faster ways to regrow plants more naturally... Throughout elementary and middle school, I would take care of as many plants as I could, some being at my grandparents’ house, and some being at my house. One specific plant that played a big role in my life is the Venus flytrap.”
Reeves also credited Niwot teacher Kane Hollins for foster-ing his future career ambitions, even if it was indirectly
“He knows how to teach, and he doesn’t sugarcoat any-thing—if you have a question, he’ll tell you the reality of it, and why it might happen. He actually speaks to you, not at you.”
In the meantime, Reeves is looking forward to finishing his senior basketball season with the teammates that have meant so much to him over the years.
“The main seven seniors on varsity, we’ve all been playing ball together roughly on the same team since middle school,” he said. “So we’ve had that bond from knowing each other for a long time. We feel more comfort-able playing around each other, and that will help us out for the rest of the year.”
Photo by Jocelyn Rowley
Senior guard Kyle Reeves is averaging 13 ppg and shooting 54% from the floor in his last three games for Niwot.
By Jocelyn Rowley
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Niwot heavyweight Jovani Lopez earned his fifth trip to the podium this season with a third-place finish in the 285-pound class at the Freder-ick Warrior Invitational on Jan. 11. Lopez was methodical in his final match against Wheat Ridge’s Samuel Mondragon (12-7), steadily accumulating take down and nearfall points that would ultimately result in an 8-1 decision.
“My strategy was not to rush the moves, to just move around until I saw the open-ing,” the senior said after the win, his 16th of the year. “He was a strong opponent, so I struggled a bit on moving him around.”
Lopez went 3-1 on the day, his two other wins coming over Jesse Burt (2-2) of Strasburg by major decision (17-5) and Loveland’s A.J. Anderson (4-5) by fall in the tournament’s early rounds. His loss came in the semifinals, when he was pinned by Victory Martinez (12-5) of Greeley Central after a split second of indecision during an attempted escape.
“He’s a good wrestler, I’m not going to deny it,” Lopez said. “He got me in a move and he stuck me.”
Lopez’s medal was the high point of an otherwise disap-
pointing day for the Cougars, who were without varsity wrestlers Angel Aldama and Keith Hemenway due to ill-ness. Niwot scored 32.0 points on the day, finishing in 17th place. Seniors Max Pecherze-wski (9-7) and Bryan Martinez (5-9) picked up first round wins, but fell in the quarterfi-nals and were later knocked off in their consolation rounds.
There was also some bad news for the team when se-nior and state qualifier Daniel Torres (12-9) was forced to forfeit his consolation semi-fi-nal match due to an elbow in-jury. According to head coach Bobby Matthews, it is not yet clear how this will impact the remainder of his season.
Niwot will be back on the mat again Longmont on Jan. 16, then at the Alameda Invi-tational on Jan. 18.
1/11—Frederick Warrior Invite
Team Scores— Loveland 178.0, Mountain Range 170.0, Greeley Central 127.0, North-glenn 125, Skyline 125, Mon-arch 106.5, Frederick 101.0, Strasburg 98.0, Holy Family 94, Erie 80.5, Severance 71.5, Northridge 66, Standley Lake 58.0, Wheat Ridge 57.0, Summit 52.0, Silver Creek 42.0, Niwot 32.0, Denver North 28.0, Res, Christian 19.0, Westminster 0.0 Niwot results120 — Cons. Round 2 – Logan Erickson (Holy Family) over Max Pecherzewski (Fall 0:29)126 — Cons. Round 2 – Jesse Valdespino (Skyline) over Satchel Hart (Fall 0:42)145 — Cons. Round 2 –Johnathan Riggenbach (Strasburg) by fall over Josh Amas (Dec 6-2)152 — Cons. Semifinals – Axel Wil-liams (Monarch) over Bryan Martinez (Fall 0:52)170 — Cons. Round 1 – Giovanni Herrarte (Northridge) over Luis Sosa (Fall 3:00)220 — Cons. Semifinals – Chad Sutherland (Strasburg) over Daniel Torres (Inj. for.)285 — 3rd Place Match – Jovani Lo-pez over Samuel Mondragon (Wheat Ridge) (Dec 8-1)
Photo by Jocelyn Rowley
Senior Jovani Lopez was third overall in the 285-pound bracket at the Frederick Warrior Invitational on Jan. 11.
By Jocelyn Rowley
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”I would like to say thank you to the voters who made this all possible,” said Rausc-hkolb. He recognized that the
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A new makerspace in the school’s media center will allow students to explore their creativity.