ICE raids in Aurora, protests at the Capitol

Good morning, Colorado.

I’ve been a journalist for more than a decade now, and while the work of each newsroom I’ve been part of has always felt critical, our stories in this moment feel more consequential than ever. As policies in flux come down from the new Trump administration, local reporters are the ones making sense of exactly how those policies will trickle down to individual states and communities.

We’re on the frontlines capturing in real time how some of these new policies are already rapidly transforming the lives of our neighbors. Yesterday was a crucial example, when a team of our reporters fanned out across the Front Range to follow federal raids of immigrants and, later on, a massive protest that was part of a national backlash against President Donald Trump’s initial actions targeting immigrants and members of the LGBTQ community.

It goes without saying, but it also bears repeating: I’m so proud of our team of journalists who go to any lengths necessary to chase the stories and nail down the facts that keep us all better informed. I hope you’ll consider supporting The Colorado Sun’s work if you haven’t already. Become a recurring member, sign up for one of our other great newsletters or make a one-time donation. Tune into one of our upcoming events. Or simply share the stories you find here with others searching for a trustworthy local news outlet. I’m grateful for your support in any form.

Now, let’s get into the details of those raids and protesters along with the other headlines of the day.

Erica Breunlin

Education Reporter

THE NEWS

IMMIGRATION

Armed federal agents conduct immigration raids at Denver, Aurora apartment complexes

Residents at Cedar Run Apartments in Denver said more than 100 armed federal agents surrounded their complex with tanks and heavy vehicles at 4 a.m. and began to make arrests as part of President Trump’s “Operation Aurora.” Jennifer Brown and Olivia Prentzel have more from a chaotic day.

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• Spectacle or substance? Impact of Denver immigration raids is up for debate. Denverite talked to immigration attorney Laura Lunn, who questioned the show of force by ICE coupled with a lack of specific data about the number and type of arrests made. “It’s like the big bad wolf showed up and was huffing and puffing this morning,” she said. “When we think about how this is different from any other day, it isn’t materially — other than that the drama and fearmongering and chaos is unprecedented.”
  — Denverite

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Thousands gather at Colorado Capitol as part of nationwide protests against Trump policies

Protesters — including students from local high schools who walked out of class — descended on the Colorado Capitol yesterday draped in Mexican flags and hoisting pro-LGBTQ signs in protest of the Trump administration’s attempts to reshape the American government. Olivia Prentzel, Alyte Katilius and Blake Simony have more from the scene.

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HOUSING

In Colorado’s war against NIMBYism, Democrats want to give churches the right to build housing

As church attendance shrinks — often in areas where the housing supply is shrinking even faster — a push for congregations to use land owned by their churches to build affordable housing has found supporters in the Colorado legislature. Brian Eason digs into House Bill 1169, which would be one of the first laws in the country to allow religious institutions to build housing on their land, regardless of local zoning.

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POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Colorado bill banning manufacture, sale of semiautomatic guns loses Democratic backer, but is still set to pass Senate

Sen. Marc Snyder, D-Manitou Springs, was one of the cosponsors of the bill that would ban the manufacture and sale of semiautomatic rifles, shotguns and handguns that can accept detachable ammunition magazines. But as Jesse Paul and KUNC’s Lucas Brady Woods report, Snyder’s withdrawal highlights the shifting ground under the support for the bill — without actually stopping its current momentum.

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ECONOMY

Mistrust bubbles up as nuclear waste storage talks come to rural Colorado

Jeri Fry, one of the founders of Colorado Citizens Against Toxic Waste, has a personal history with nuclear waste. Her father, Lynn Boughton, was the whistleblower at the Cotter Uranium Mill who died of cancer after a lawsuit linked his lymphoma to radiation exposure. And now the group is piping up in response to efforts to bring the nation’s nuclear waste to northwestern Colorado, KUNC’s Scott Franz reports.

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Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

COLORADO REPORT

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

• Trump plan to slash federal office space could immediately hit dozens of sites in Colorado. CPR News obtained a confidential presentation by senior officials shown to leadership in Colorado describing the General Service Administration’s plans. The presentation says the plan is not yet final but argues for the sale of more than a thousand federally owned buildings across the country. It does not mention any properties in Colorado, but local officials worry the massive Federal Center near Lakewood could be in the crosshairs.
  — Colorado Public Radio
• Skier found dead at Winter Park Resort after missing ski train on Jan. 26. The skier’s girlfriend alerted authorities when he failed to catch the 4:30 p.m. train, and rescue teams found the still unnamed man near a Mary Jane ski run around 7:30 p.m.
  — Sky-Hi News
• The Colorado River is salty. But where does salinity come from, and what’s being done about it? A baseline amount of salinity is OK in the Colorado River — and even occurs naturally. But too much salinity can have adverse effects on drinking water, appliance wear, aquatic life, the productivity of some crops (including wine grapes, peaches and other salt-sensitive products).
  — Summit Daily
• Owner to rebuild “crispy at edges” Cherry Creek gas station after fiery crash. “It’s certainly been — no pun intended — a big hit,” said the owner of the damage caused when a drunk driver careened into the pumps, which set the property at Josephine Street and East Sixth Avenue ablaze last August.
  — BusinessDen
• Nikola Jokic has a new fan in Hank Green. The internet’s science dad (ask your kids or grandkids if you don’t know who he is) has recently discovered Denver’s favorite Serb. “Just this giant man whose nose is always running who moves like his feet are sticky and the air is thick. He appears to care a great deal about basketball, but also not at all. He’s much more interested in his horses. But he’s also the best basketball player alive but he’s also not good at basketball.”
  — @hankgreen1 on TikTok

Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

THE OPINION PAGE

COMMUNITY

• Colorado’s elected officials need to make a climate superfund law a top priority. Similar to those in other states, a superfund would hold the fossil fuel industry responsible for the pollution it creates.
  — Kevin Cross, Colorado Coalition for a Livable Climate & Leslie Weise , 350 Colorado

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.

What’s Happening

Feb. 6-12

TANK and B2 Listening Session. When an event is listed as “one of a kind” I tend to consider it hyperbole — but the collaboration between Tank Center for Sonic Arts in Rangely and the Atlas B2 Center at CU Boulder might actually deliver the “one-of-a-kind sonic experience” that it promises.

The Tank Center, a previously abandoned, seven-story steel water tank that’s been converted into an unlikely music venue, has joined up with CU Boulder to host five-day artist retreats twice per year. Residents use the time to conduct recording sessions in the unique sonic environment and engage with the Rangely community through workshops or performances.

This weekend, the Tank experience is coming to the Front Range, for a one-night performance of Alan Mackwell’s “Rail Dynamics,” inspired by a defunct rail line in New Mexico, and premiered at the Tank during a residency last fall.

The work will be broadcast over B2’s “immersive 44-multichannel spatialized speaker array,” and if you know what that means then you’re one step ahead of me. But it sounds cool.

Free; 6:30-7:30, Feb. 8; ATLAS Black Box Experimental Studio, 1125 18th St. Boulder

• Silverthorne Lantern Festival. Silverthorne’s annual evening festival marks the Lunar New Year, Noche de Candelas and the approaching spring. Make a wish lantern float to send down the Blue River, take a salsa class or participate in Year of the Snake crafts during this cultural and celebratory mashup. Free; 5:30-8:30 p.m., Feb. 7; Silverthorne Pavilion, 400 Blue River Pkwy., Silverthorne
• WeldWerks Invitational. If a group of lions is a pride and a bunch of bats is a cauldron, what do you call a gathering of craft brewers from all over the country? This weekend, anyway, it’s called the WeldWerks Invitational. Grab tickets to either the late-morning or afternoon session and sample yourself silly. $99; Feb. 8; WeldWerks Brewery, 508 Eighth Ave. Greeley
• Stitched Snapshot workshop. Artist Jane Waggoner Deschner leads a photo stitching workshop to accompany her current exhibition, “Remember Me.” Bring your own old photos or pull from the supply pile. $30; 6-8 p.m., Feb. 12; Museum of Art Fort Collins, 201 S. College Ave., Fort Collins

Section by Parker Yamasaki | Reporter

It’s been a newsy few days — and a newsy year, for that matter — and we’ll see you right back here tomorrow to dissect whatever news the end of the week holds.

— Erica & the whole staff of The Sun

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Corrections & Clarifications

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