Coronavirus/COVID-19
Public Health References
CDC * Colorado * Jefferson County * City of Golden
JCPHD updates these numbers Monday through Friday at about 3 PM. Here’s the most recent Coronavirus report from Jeffco Public Health’s Case Summary Page:
Cases in Jeffco – Tues: 10,209 | Weds: 10,472 (+263)
Deaths in Jeffco – Tues: 333 | Weds: 338 (+5)
Ever Hospitalized in Jeffco – Tues: 746 | Weds: 794 (currently 93) (+48)
Recovered – Tues: 7,796 | Weds: 7,810 (+14)
Known Cases in Golden – Tues: 324 | Weds: 339 (+15)
Note: Based on the rate at which Jefferson County cases have been climbing, next Monday (November 9th) our status will change from “Level Yellow: Safer at Home Concern” to “Level Orange: Safer at Home High Risk.” See Public Health Order 20-36 for the definitions for those levels.
School of Mines COVID-19 case page. | Masks are required. | City and County fire restrictions are in place. | Sign up for exposure notifications.
Virtual Golden
9AM Public Art Commission Meeting
The Public Art Commission will discuss a Golden RV Park tree carving, the new downtown murals, light for the Checkmate statue (on the 19th St. overpass of 6th Ave.), which public art pieces currently require maintenance work, the Public Art Master Plan, and the Newsboy statue repair. See the meeting packet for more information….
10AM Shelton Elementary Kindergarten Virtual Open House
10:15AM Preschool Time with the Library
6:30PM City Council Regular Business Meeting
Tonight’s council meeting will begin with Proclamations regarding Wildfire Responders Appreciation Day (November 10th) and Veterans Day (November 11th).
Accommodating Golden’s Homeless Population
Their next topic will be a report from a group called “Home in Golden.” They are starting a program to accommodate homeless people who are living out of their cars. They will allow them to park overnight at the Methodist Church (1500 Ford St. – map). Home in Golden will provide 10 parking spots, available from 6PM to 7AM, access to a storage garage, WIFI, restrooms, showers, laundry, dinner, access to mechanics for vehicle problems, financial assistance with registration and insurance, clothing, blankets, and essential needs.
You might wonder whether our zoning permits this use of the church parking lot. The Planning department and City Attorney say that this could be considered a hotel, which is allowed in commercial zone districts in Golden.
You might wonder what the Golden Police think about this plan. There is concern about the lack of security staff, cameras, or fencing. The police report that in late July, Denver and other cities began clearing out their homeless camps. Some of the former residents apparently came to Golden. In August and September, 47 of the 50 homeless individuals contacted by the police had no ties to Golden. Those individuals were responsible for 86 calls to the police over that 2 month period. The police have had 298 incidents involving homeless people in 2020. Six of those were criminal acts against a person (such as assault), 91 of them were criminal acts against property (such as trespassing) and 201 were other types of offenses. See the meeting memo for more information about this plan.
Astor House
The next topic will be the ongoing negotiations between the City and Foothills Art Center to negotiate the terms of a lease for the Astor House. Staff will ask council to consider three topics:
1) The Astor Yard. The back yard of the Astor House is a public park. The City would like to design it but have Foothills maintain it. If the City has to maintain it, they would remove it from the lease, so Foothills could not plan events in the yard.
2) The Wash House (the little building in the back yard). Foothills is willing to leave it there, but they don’t want to pay to restore it.
3) Third Party Held Historic Easement. The Astor House Alliance (which includes Golden Landmarks Association and other history-mind Golden residents) strongly recommends that the City place a historic preservation easement on the property. There had been considerable discussion about this earlier in the year, but the City is now leaning away from acquiring the Easement. They want to maintain “flexibility” regarding the future of the building and avoid having oversight by the Colorado Historical Foundation.
The City sent out some new information yesterday for how to watch the meeting or provide comments:
To view the meeting, there are several options:
- Live-streamed at www.cityofgolden.net/Agendas – Find the meeting in the schedule and click “VIEW EVENT”. This option will only be available once the meeting has begun.
- Live-streamed on GCO.tv – Find the meeting in the schedule on the right and click the “WATCH” arrow.
- Live Broadcast on Comcast Channel 880
- To call in and listen to the meeting audio live, call 1-408-418-9388 and enter access code 146 870 0385.
To provide public comment there are two options:
1. Comment in advance: Email your comments to PublicComment@Cityofgolden.net by 5 p.m. on the day of the meeting.
2. To provide comment live, you must pre-register for the meeting by 5 p.m. on the day of the meeting. You will receive a “Registration Approved” email with a link to join the meeting. At the time of the meeting, click that link. You will be called upon to speak during the general public comment period, or during the public comment period for the agenda item you have indicated your interest in, if that agenda item has a separate public comment period. You will have three minutes to speak and will be cut off at the end of three minutes.
Real World Golden
Live Music:
7PM Mr. David Booker at Golden Moon Speakeasy
8PM Karaoke at Rock Rest Lodge
Golden History Moment
Castle Rock was one of Golden’s earliest tourist attractions. In 1906, the owner of the Avenue Hotel set up a refreshment stand on Castle Rock. He found it to be a hard place to run to business–subject to both high winds and vandalism. He applied for a license to serve liquor on Castle Rock, and was refused, so he gave up on the venture.
Charles Quaintance took up the cause in 1908, and he raised the fun quotient by providing a string a burros, so customers could ride up the mountain. These burro rides preceded the building of the Castle Rock Railway.
Quaintance was a photographer, so he took pictures of the groups before they headed up the mountain. Before they returned, he developed the photos and offered them for sale. As a result, such photos come up fairly often in old photo sales. Since each touring group was unique, so are the photos!
