Good morning! I trust everyone got a great night’s sleep, free of nightmares about Kansas City joining what used to be a pretty exclusive club of back-to-back champs and wondering if the Broncos will ever even sniff a Lombardi trophy again.
But we can’t complain too much. Denver is, after all, home to a defending champion this season (and only a year removed from a Stanley Cup). And the real masochists out there are noticing that pitchers and catchers report Thursday — just make sure to read this before you get too invested in the Rockies this season.
In Colorado, at least, we’re just trading one American pastime (football) for another (politics) as ballots for the presidential primary will be hitting voter mailboxes as early as this week. Even though it feels much too early to be thinking about November, our politics team will help you learn everything you need to know about getting your ballot filled out.
So let’s put our jerseys into storage and grab our civic engagement hats while we’re rummaging around in there, shall we? I’m not the only one who has one of those, right?
CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE NEWS
EDUCATION
One employee works as cook, tutor and driver as staff shortages strain Colorado schools
Crystal Quintana’s day starts before 6 a.m., working dough for the day’s lunches. Twelve or 13 hours later, she has cooked, baked, tutored, counseled and sometimes even been behind the wheel dropping off students at their homes miles from school. Her story is emblematic of how staffing shortages outside of the classroom are stretching employees thinner than ever. Erica Breunlin has more.
ELECTION 2024
Presidential primary ballots will start being mailed to Colorado voters today. Here’s what to know.
If you’re unaffiliated, make sure you only vote for one party. If you’re voting Democratic, you’ll see a “none of the above” option on your ballot. If you’re voting Republican, there’s a (dwindling) chance that a vote cast for Donald Trump won’t count. This is one of the strangest primary elections we’ve seen in Colorado, but Sandra Fish is here to walk you through it so you know exactly what you’re getting into.
ART & CULTURE
Two contested statues won’t return to Denver’s Civic Center park as city audits public art
A statue honoring Christopher Columbus was toppled during Denver’s protests against police violence in the summer of 2020, while a statue of Kit Carson was removed more formally from the top of a fountain across the street the day after. Now, after years of internal debate, Stephanie Wolf reports that they will stay in storage while the city opens up the conversation to the community to decide what to do with these and other pieces of public art.
ENVIRONMENT
Fight on Colorado oil drilling ban appears headed for legislature
2030
The year that a proposed bill banning all new oil and gas drilling in Colorado would take effect
Michael Booth brings us a look at a bill proposed by state Sens. Sonya Jaquez Lewis and Kevin Priola that would constitute one of the boldest moves to fight climate change in state history — a total ban on new drilling permits by 2030, expiration of previously unused permits, restrictions on modifying existing wells and studies on how to find new careers for oil and gas workers who would be phased out of jobs.
MORE NEWS
COLORADO SUNDAY
An unusually comprehensive collection of northern Colorado artifacts sits dormant. Will it ever reopen?
As visitors step into The Bee Family Centennial Farm Museum, north of Fort Collins, they enter a portal into northern Colorado’s agricultural past. From horse-drawn plows to vintage machinery to volumes of documentation, the Bee family has preserved many aspects of life on Colorado’s northern plains. Now, the museum and property face an uncertain future and supporters are looking for a way to retain the historical resource.
Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler
THE COLORADO REPORT
🔑 = source has article meter or paywall
Section by Olivia Prentzel | Reporter
THE OPINION PAGE
COLUMNS
The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.
Thanks for spending some of your Monday with us. Here’s to having a great week and we’ll see you here tomorrow!
— Eric and the whole staff of The Sun
Corrections & Clarifications
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