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Out-of-work Coloradans with legitimate claims waiting months for benefits – if they receive them at all

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

The state’s attempt to prevent fraud in its unemployment system is having an unintended consequence: preventing thousands of legitimate claims from being paid.At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 when Colorado unemployment skyrocketed to 11.3% from a historic low of 2.5%, the Department of Labor and Employment’s system at times was overwhelmed. It even crashed on a day when 21,000 people filed for benefits.This time, Coloradans can usually file their claims, but they are facing difficulties getting paid — if they’re paid at all — and reaching real people to talk about their situations is proving to be a Herculean task for some.After more than five years working for CPCneutek, a commercial printer in Grand Junction, 68-year-old Ilene Harsip lost her job.She filed an unemployment claim in June. So far, three months have passed without a payment.Harsip learned that her identity was stolen in early 2021. As she tries to rectify her situat...

Enjoy a sunny stroll amid amazing outdoor artworks in these Colorado towns

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

Art doesn’t need to be hemmed in by museum or gallery walls to be appreciated. In fact, outdoor art enlivens communities for both residents and visitors. Sculpture parks and gardens, art districts, outdoor murals and street sculptures beckon us to stop a while, be mindful and inhale the inspiration.These outdoor galleries are invigorating — awakening our eyes, minds and spirits to unique and creative ideas and, sometimes, offering lessons in history and culture, challenging our views on social issues, and, of course, providing some fun. Wander about any of these 10 outdoor art venues for experiences that promise to be transformative.Benson Sculpture GardenA multitude of sculptures (178 to be exact) dot this 10-acre natural environment in Loveland. You could easily spend an afternoon roaming the paved paths that wind through areas shaded by Japanese lilacs, lindens and chokecherries, around wetlands, over footbridges, and past picnic spots. The begonias, black-eyed Susans and other b...

Looking for a ride to Empower Field? Bustang service for Broncos games resumes Sunday.

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

Broncos fans can ride the Bustang to Empower Field at Mile High starting with Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.The north line will pick up passengers at the Fort Collins Downtown Transit Center, Harmony Road Park & Ride and Loveland U.S. 34 Park & Ride. The south line will pick up passengers at the Tejon/Nevada Park & Ride, Woodmen Road Park & Ride and Monument Park & Ride. Both lines drop riders off near the southeast side of the stadium in Lot A.Buses arrive at the stadium approximately 90 minutes before kickoff and depart 30 minutes after the game ends, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.Related ArticlesColorado News | Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran fans used 2.5 times the amount of wireless data as typical Broncos games at Empower Field Colorado News | Broncos, CMLL announce partnership bringing lucha libre to Empower Field at Mile High Colorado News | Country star Zach Bryan will play a Denv...

Have tomatoes to spare? We’ve got you covered, with recipes and ideas.

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

The tomato plants in my raised garden beds are heavy with fruit, so plentiful now that I just can’t keep up. My family and neighbors imbibed for a while, but now groan each time I nudge, “Eat more tomatoes!”And should the weather hold, it looks like I could be picking them until mid-October — or later.Related: Is your tomato harvest really late this year? You’re not alone.So far this summer, I’ve made a few caprese salads, tomato omelets, BLTs, bruschetta with roasted tomato and brie, tomato-cucumber (also from my garden) salad, and just roasted up some super-sweet hybrid cherry tomatoes with garlic, oregano and onion without having any idea what I would be doing with them. (But oh, that SMELL!)Former Denver Post food writer Bill St. John swears by a simple tomato sandwich.A simple yet highly addictive tomato sandwich. (Bill St. John, Special to The Denver Post)“O, what a glory is summertime’s tomato sandwich, little more than a sliced ripe tomato...

Aurora becomes 13th city in Colorado to outlaw selling cats and dogs in pet stores

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

Pet stores in Aurora will soon be prohibited from selling cats and dogs in their stores unless they have come directly from animal shelters or nonprofit animal rescues, making Aurora the 13th city in the state to implement such a ban as cities try to crack down on puppy mills.Aurora doesn’t have any pet stores that sell dogs and cats — the city shut down its last one in March 2020 because of unpaid taxes — but the new regulation, set to take effect Oct. 1, will prevent any future pet stores from doing so. Advocacy by Aurora residents prompted City Council members Danielle Jurinsky and Juan Marcano, many times at opposite ends of legislation, to jointly sponsor the proposal.“The hope is that we don’t have puppy mill dogs coming into Aurora,” Jurinsky said. She added that she thinks the rest of the state should follow suit.Colorado state lawmakers attempted to outlaw the sale of cats and dogs in retail stores in 2020, but even a significantly watered-down version of ...

Target store closes in Buena Park after suspicious fire erupts in children's section

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

A Target store had to be evacuated and closed in Buena Park after a suspicious fire broke out in the children's section Tuesday nightFire authorities received a call reporting the fire at about 7:15 p.m. in the store located at 7530 Orangethorpe Ave. Crews arrived to find a hazy, smoky scene and discovered the fire had already been extinguished, Orange County Fire Authority Battalion Chief Erik Miranda said.Cellphone video captures a fire at a Buena Park target on Sept. 5, 2023. (OnScene.TV)The sprinkler system had been activated and a video showed that a Target employee had also helped put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher. The video showed flames bursting toward the ceiling from a children's clothing rack. “There are some items that were burned,” Miranda said.The store was open at the time, prompting dozens of employees and shoppers to evacuate the building. Thieves call rideshare after ransacking Macy’s store “We thought it was a Halloween prop,” witness Guillermo Sa...

wAFF Slaps that Funk

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

wAFF Slaps that Funk: British dance music artist wAFF got his start performing at arts college, studying dancing and acting.“I used to be a sick street dancer ha which is quite funny to people when I tell them as I just look like Frodo is trying to take the ring back to Mordor… not a dancer,” he says with a laugh. “But my dance teacher would take all the dance class to nights out at house music events which was new to me then. So, after spending every weekend in clubs dancing my tits off to house music, one day I just decided to download fruity loops and try attempt making music. Turned out I became so addicted to it that I quit my college to pursue music. I was about 17 at the time, and by the time I was 18 I was going in the clubs in Hull (UK) the city where I lived back then. My life took a turn to music suddenly, but it just felt right and it seems as though it all worked out ha. But it didn’t really get serious until my very first proper show I played, like my...

Ex-city attorney, fierce critic of the 49ers, sues Santa Clara over ‘unlawful’ firing, retaliation for whistleblowing

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

SANTA CLARA — Former city attorney Brian Doyle, a fierce critic of the San Francisco 49ers’ management of Levi’s Stadium, is suing the city two years after his firing, contending the Santa Clara City Council terminated him unlawfully and in retaliation for whistleblowing.The city and the NFL team were locked in several legal battles during Doyle’s four-year tenure, and his lawsuit said he sought “to hold the San Francisco 49ers to account” — well before the political makeup of the council began to shift.Doyle said he first became skeptical of the City Council’s motives regarding the NFL team ahead of a Dec. 8, 2020, council meeting in which Councilmember Raj Chahal had requested a closed-door meeting to discuss a lawsuit involving the California Voting Rights Act and a proposed change in electing city councilmembers.The request to put it on the Dec. 8 agenda was denied, prompting Chahal to ask for it to be placed on the Dec. 15 agenda,...

San Jose: Two injured in early morning shooting; ‘several’ people taken into custody

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

SAN JOSE — An early Wednesday morning shooting just south of downtown San Jose left two people wounded and several others being taken into custody, according to authorities.In a series of posts to social media, San Jose police said officers responded to a report of a shooting on the 160 block of West Alma Avenue at 1:12 a.m. Upon arrival, two men were transported to hospitals with non-life threatening injuries.Police located a suspect vehicle which then fled the scene, and officers pursued the vehicle to a location outside of the City of San Jose. Police said that “several subjects” were taken into custody and at least one firearm was recovered.Officers are currently in 160 block of W Alma Ave investigating a shooting. Two adult males were transported to local hospitals with non-life threatening injuries. pic.twitter.com/I97PxmpWox— San José Police Media Relations (@SJPD_PIO) September 6, 2023Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | San Jose man sentenc...

Restored Delta tidal marsh fights climate change and attracts wildlife, native species

Published Thu, 06 Feb 2025 10:14:58 GMT

Once eyed for thousands of homes, the recently restored Dutch Slough tidal marsh in east Contra Costa County is already flourishing as a new habitat for fish and wildlife, a living laboratory for scientists and one of the world’s strongest sinks for absorbing and storing carbon long-term.Led by the state Department of Water Resources, the ambitious $73 million project to restore 1,187 acres of freshwater Delta tidal wetlands near Oakley – one of the largest such projects in the state – is a little more than half finished. When it is completed, the scientists are hoping it will become a model for future restoration projects, climate change defenses and scientific research.“It’s taking in carbon at a rate compared to the top 1 percentile (of all ecosystems) in the world (annually),” said Katie Bandy, the department’s Dutch Slough Tidal Marsh Restoration project manager. “It’s taking in a lot more carbon than other land is producing.”That’s important, because many scientists beli...