Denver mayor’s lasting impact

Denver has become a national laughingstock among U.S. cities. Following the wasted time and resources on the futile effort to block Donald Trump from Colorado’s ballot—a move ultimately rebuked by the U.S. Supreme Court—the city now faces bizarre and misguided initiatives from Mayor Mike Johnston, capturing national media attention. One can only assume this was his goal.

Mayor Johnston seems to be following in the footsteps of his father, Paul Johnston, who is often regarded by longtime Vail residents as the town’s worst mayor. While the elder Johnston was a remarkable man in other respects, the damage he inflicted on the Town of Vail during his tenure took years to repair. Even his kindest critics as mayor could only call him “colorful.”

Unfortunately, the younger Johnston’s impact on Denver may prove far harder to fix.

Consider the same week when a family endured the unspeakable tragedy of their 14-year-old daughter being raped by an illegal immigrant. Instead of prioritizing public safety, Mayor Johnston proposes removing police from their critical street duties to form a questionable “blockade” under the assumption that 50,000 citizens will join the effort. This plan is not only unrealistic but also grossly irresponsible.

While I did not support or vote for Donald Trump, I must acknowledge that he is assembling a capable team to address pressing national issues, including the chaos of unchecked illegal immigration, which is devastating cities and states alike.

If Mayor Johnston genuinely wishes to serve the citizens of Denver, he would do well to partner with ICE officials and law enforcement to prioritize safety and sustainability for all residents.

Mark Scott

Denver

Highway debris

As part of the Colorado Springs/Monument/El Paso County area, we have noticed an increase in highway debris. We’ve contacted the El Paso County authorities to rectify the current vast number of debris from the Baptist Exit to the North Gate Exit on I-25 South and North. El Paso County responded that trash/debris is not a priority and will remain as is unless it is done on a volunteer basis. The County informed us that is not a safety concern as we pointed out to them, hence making it a non-priority for normal operational requirement.

We pointed out to the county that the highway road debris has blown into the middle of the highway which has caused us and other drivers to brake hard and/or swerve. This is a safety hazard and should be a priority.

We pay taxes to have this service provided. We are requesting your assistance in helping us cleanup the highway debris.

We recently moved here from Illinois and have observed how much Colorado does not place any emphasis on ensuring the highway areas are maintained and clean of debris; therefore, not concerned about safety. We are speaking of many different kinds of debris (downed highway travel signs to miscellaneous signs of advertisement, etc., tire tread and general trash).

We recently travelled from Monument, to Chicago IL, via car, transiting parts of Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois and did not notice highway debris on the roadways.

It is ironic for Colorado to boast of its beauty; however, no one thinks it is a priority to clean.

As an added note, we have observed other sections of I-25, particularly surrounding the Colorado Springs proper that have county clean-up crews; just not our area.

Mark and Paula Paun

Monument

Ranked choice taxation?

We had Rank Choice Voting on the ballot, what abedout Ranked Choice Tax Allocations? Seems to me that this would benefit all Coloradans.

We would be able to prioritize/rank the money where we feel it should be going to things that we all use on a daily basis.

Ahh, what am I thinking……that would take it away from the politicians.

Doug Rounds

Elbert