thedenverpost--2020-05-24--Chambers: NHL players motivated to return for all the right reasons

NHL players are certainly an unselfish breed , mostly motivated by the pursuit of a silver chalice they can share with teammates and friends .
They have one paycheck due them for the 2019-20 regular season , and they ’ ll get that regardless of whether play resumes from the COVID-19 crisis and the Stanley Cup is awarded this summer .
The playoff bonus pool is $ 15 million , a relatively small number when considering each member of the Cup-winning team receives between $ 150,000 and $ 200,000 , depending on how many players get a share .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Cup .
Just mostly .
It ’ s also about revenue sharing and protecting their brand .
The players want to help the NHL return from the coronavirus pandemic and gain strength for the future .
They recognize how important the league ’ s television deal is with NBC — particularly this summer when playoff games can fill prime slots previously held by the Olympics .
They will play in empty buildings but likely in front of large TV audiences .
“ There is a possibility to get a playoff bonus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a two-time Stanley Cup champion with Pittsburgh , told me over the phone .
“ There is a little bit more , financially speaking , to that .
And then there ’ s revenue sharing and escrow that would take place next year if we ’ re not able to get back and claw back some revenue that we lost .
So there are quite a few more financial issues to it , certainly , that coming back to play will benefit — whether that ’ s now or in the future @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the primary driver is the ability to compete for a Stanley Cup .
You only have so many opportunities to be on a really great team that has a very legitimate chance and I view us as a team that has a very legitimate chance to win the Stanley Cup .
I look around all the teams in the league and , obviously , I ’ m quite a bit biased , but I think we can beat any team in this league in a seven-game series.
” So the Avalanche has tremendous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ San Jose Sharks , not so much .
The Western Conference last-place Sharks , along with fellow California teams Anaheim and Los Angeles , are undoubtedly happy to learn of the league ’ s straight-to-the-playoffs approach .
Same goes for the Eastern Conference ’ s weakest teams — Detroit , Ottawa , New Jersey and Buffalo .
Those combined seven teams don ’ t have much incentive to restart the regular season in a scenario that would begin with a two-week training camp , only to finish the remaining 11-13 regular-season games before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and then go back to where they came from while quarantined .
Doesn ’ t make sense .
Some believe the 24-team playoff is two teams too many because Chicago in the west and Montreal in the east don ’ t deserve to get in .
The Blackhawks ( 32-30-8 , 72 points ) are six points out of a traditional playoff picture and the Canadiens ( 31-31-9 , 71 points ) are 10 points out .
In a typical season at this time of the year , they would have virtually no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Money comes into play for sure , ” former NBC and Avs television analyst Brian Engblom told me recently .
“ It ’ s Chicago and Montreal .
Big hockey markets .
The league obviously wants them in the picture.
” The Blackhawks and Canadiens might also be in the picture because a 22-team playoff doesn ’ t work with 11 teams on each side .
Worth noting is that the Arizona Coyotes and New York Rangers were close enough to sniff the playoffs when the league suspended play March 12 .
Arizona @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the Rangers just two behind in the east .
Canceling the rest of the regular season and going into a 24-team playoff is a good plan .
Unless the Blackhawks or Canadiens win the Cup .

NHL players are certainly an unselfish breed, mostly motivated by the pursuit of a silver chalice they can share with teammates and friends.
They have one paycheck due them for the 2019-20 regular season, and they’ll get that regardless of whether play resumes from the COVID-19 crisis and the Stanley Cup is awarded this summer. The playoff bonus pool is $15 million, a relatively small number when considering each member of the Cup-winning team receives between $150,000 and $200,000, depending on how many players get a share.
So returning to play is not all about the Cup. Just mostly.
It’s also about revenue sharing and protecting their brand. The players want to help the NHL return from the coronavirus pandemic and gain strength for the future. They recognize how important the league’s television deal is with NBC — particularly this summer when playoff games can fill prime slots previously held by the Olympics.
They will play in empty buildings but likely in front of large TV audiences.
“There is a possibility to get a playoff bonus, too,” Avs defenseman Ian Cole, a two-time Stanley Cup champion with Pittsburgh, told me over the phone. “There is a little bit more, financially speaking, to that. And then there’s revenue sharing and escrow that would take place next year if we’re not able to get back and claw back some revenue that we lost. So there are quite a few more financial issues to it, certainly, that coming back to play will benefit — whether that’s now or in the future.
“That being said, certainly the primary driver is the ability to compete for a Stanley Cup. You only have so many opportunities to be on a really great team that has a very legitimate chance and I view us as a team that has a very legitimate chance to win the Stanley Cup. I look around all the teams in the league and, obviously, I’m quite a bit biased, but I think we can beat any team in this league in a seven-game series.”
So the Avalanche has tremendous hunger to return this season. The San Jose Sharks, not so much.
The Western Conference last-place Sharks, along with fellow California teams Anaheim and Los Angeles, are undoubtedly happy to learn of the league’s straight-to-the-playoffs approach. Same goes for the Eastern Conference’s weakest teams — Detroit, Ottawa, New Jersey and Buffalo.
Those combined seven teams don’t have much incentive to restart the regular season in a scenario that would begin with a two-week training camp, only to finish the remaining 11-13 regular-season games before empty arenas in “hub” cities and then go back to where they came from while quarantined. Doesn’t make sense.
Some believe the 24-team playoff is two teams too many because Chicago in the west and Montreal in the east don’t deserve to get in. The Blackhawks (32-30-8, 72 points) are six points out of a traditional playoff picture and the Canadiens (31-31-9, 71 points) are 10 points out. In a typical season at this time of the year, they would have virtually no chance of making the playoffs.
“Money comes into play for sure,” former NBC and Avs television analyst Brian Engblom told me recently. “It’s Chicago and Montreal. Big hockey markets. The league obviously wants them in the picture.”
The Blackhawks and Canadiens might also be in the picture because a 22-team playoff doesn’t work with 11 teams on each side. Worth noting is that the Arizona Coyotes and New York Rangers were close enough to sniff the playoffs when the league suspended play March 12. Arizona is four points out in the west and the Rangers just two behind in the east.
Canceling the rest of the regular season and going into a 24-team playoff is a good plan.
Unless the Blackhawks or Canadiens win the Cup.


thedenverpost--2020-05-24--Broncos Insider: Raiders’ move to Las Vegas will add juice to stale rivalry with Broncos

So long as Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are together in Kansas City , the road to the division title runs though Arrowhead Stadium .
The Broncos , who have lost nine straight to K.C.
, are keenly aware of this .
For that reason , Kansas City vs. Denver games have taken on heightened importance over the last several years as the Chiefs have claimed four straight AFC West titles .
Correspondingly , the Broncos ’ rivalry with the Raiders , who have had just one winning season in their last eight , has grown a bit stale .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vegas — coupled with a new-look Raiders defense and general fan excitement in the third season of Jon Gruden ’ s second tenure with the team — is sure to inject fresh juice into the rivalry with the Broncos .
The Raiders , who lead the all-time series 65-54-2 , currently have the hottest and most expensive ticket in the NFL since the schedule was officially released a few weeks ago .
In the secondary market , the team ’ s ticket prices have gone up over 500 % from their final season @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pack brand-new Allegiant Stadium .
And with playoff expansion coming in 2020 via an additional wild card in each league , the Broncos and Raiders — both widely predicted to finish somewhere just north or south of .500 — are likely to have more playoff intrigue in their two matchups .
That ’ s especially the case for the regular-season finale as the Raiders come to Denver on Jan. 3 .
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Tap here to ask Ryan O ’ Halloran .
NFL scouts passed on Broncos rookie Tyrie Cleveland left and right .
Now the former Florida Gators wide receiver can ’ t wait to prove those scouts were wrong .
Read more… NFL Journal : Power rankings following free agency and the draft Broncos beat writer Ryan O ’ Halloran offers an offseason edition of his NFL power rankings entering the summer .
Read more… Why Broncos ’ rookie offensive lineman Netane @ @ @ @ @ @ @ draft — if he stays healthy Former college position coach said some NFL teams gave Muti a second-round grade , if not for trio of season-ending injuries .
Read more… + Keeler : Peyton Manning and Tiger Woods have edge on Tom Brady and Phil Mickelson , Broncos kicker Brandon McManus says + Led by Mike Munchak , Broncos offensive tackle Hunter Watts feels he can make transition from FCS to NFL + Broncos new No .
1 cornerback A.J .
Bouye hasn ’ t lost the chip he had as an undrafted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of four finalists for ESPN ’ s Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year Award + “ Peyton ’ s Places ” to return to ESPN+ for second season + Former Broncos WR Cody Latimer fired shots , assaulted friend at poker game , affidavit says + Want to chat about the Broncos ?
Ask to join our closed discussion group on Facebook .
How much revenue would Denver Broncos lose without fans in stands ?
All told , the NFL would lose $ 5.5 billion in stadium revenue , with the Dallas Cowboys @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 621 million .
Read more… Broncos podcast : The importance of team being named finalist for ESPN humanitarian award and the extended impact of “ Futures Football ” In this edition of the First-and-Orange podcast , Denver Post sportswriter Kyle Newman is joined by guest co-host Aric DiLalla of DenverBroncos.com to discuss the team being named a finalist for an ESPN humanitarian award as well as the impact of the Futures Football feeder program .
Plus , analysis on the Broncos ’ 2020 schedule .
Listen here… If you see something that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comment , thought or suggestion , email me at dboniface @ denverpost.com or tweet me @ danielboniface .

So long as Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are together in Kansas City, the road to the division title runs though Arrowhead Stadium. The Broncos, who have lost nine straight to K.C., are keenly aware of this.
For that reason, Kansas City vs. Denver games have taken on heightened importance over the last several years as the Chiefs have claimed four straight AFC West titles. Correspondingly, the Broncos’ rivalry with the Raiders, who have had just one winning season in their last eight, has grown a bit stale.
But the Raiders’ move to Las Vegas — coupled with a new-look Raiders defense and general fan excitement in the third season of Jon Gruden’s second tenure with the team — is sure to inject fresh juice into the rivalry with the Broncos.
The Raiders, who lead the all-time series 65-54-2, currently have the hottest and most expensive ticket in the NFL since the schedule was officially released a few weeks ago. In the secondary market, the team’s ticket prices have gone up over 500% from their final season in Oakland as silver-and-black diehards are eager to pack brand-new Allegiant Stadium.
And with playoff expansion coming in 2020 via an additional wild card in each league, the Broncos and Raiders — both widely predicted to finish somewhere just north or south of .500 — are likely to have more playoff intrigue in their two matchups. That’s especially the case for the regular-season finale as the Raiders come to Denver on Jan. 3.
— Kyle Newman, The Denver Post
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What’s on tap?
TV/RADIO: Here’s what sports are airing today
Ask the Expert
+ Broncos Mailbag: Have a question about the team? Tap here to ask Ryan O’Halloran.
Must-Read
NFL scouts passed on Broncos rookie Tyrie Cleveland left and right. Now the former Florida Gators wide receiver can’t wait to prove those scouts were wrong. Read more…
Broncos beat writer Ryan O’Halloran offers an offseason edition of his NFL power rankings entering the summer. Read more…
Former college position coach said some NFL teams gave Muti a second-round grade, if not for trio of season-ending injuries. Read more…
Quick Hits
+ Keeler: Peyton Manning and Tiger Woods have edge on Tom Brady and Phil Mickelson, Broncos kicker Brandon McManus says
+ Broncos film study: Arkansas DE McTelvin Agim’s versatility gives Vic Fangio another defensive line asset
+ Led by Mike Munchak, Broncos offensive tackle Hunter Watts feels he can make transition from FCS to NFL
+ Broncos new No. 1 cornerback A.J. Bouye hasn’t lost the chip he had as an undrafted college free agent
+ Broncos named one of four finalists for ESPN’s Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year Award
+ “Peyton’s Places” to return to ESPN+ for second season
+ Former Broncos WR Cody Latimer fired shots, assaulted friend at poker game, affidavit says
+ Want to chat about the Broncos? Ask to join our closed discussion group on Facebook.
By The Numbers
$5.5 billion
All told, the NFL would lose $5.5 billion in stadium revenue, with the Dallas Cowboys standing to lose the most at $621 million. Read more…
Parting Shot
In this edition of the First-and-Orange podcast, Denver Post sportswriter Kyle Newman is joined by guest co-host Aric DiLalla of DenverBroncos.com to discuss the team being named a finalist for an ESPN humanitarian award as well as the impact of the Futures Football feeder program. Plus, analysis on the Broncos’ 2020 schedule. Listen here…
Get in Touch
If you see something that’s cause for question or have a comment, thought or suggestion, email me at dboniface@denverpost.com or tweet me @danielboniface.


thedenverpost--2020-05-24--The coronavirus pandemic is widening the chasm between Colorado’s haves and have-nots

On April 15 , Randy Narvaez posted on Facebook that his best friend had just died of COVID-19 .
“ Way too close to home for me , ” he wrote .
“ Yet I still see so many people out on the street .
Not obeying this ‘ stay at home ’ order .
Come on now people , this is serious !
” Narvaez worried he ’ d get infected , too .
The 51-year-old Denver native , a nearly 30-year employee at King Soopers , based for the last couple years at the store on Capitol Hill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ co-workers , disappointed — even “ disgusted , ” his sister said — by how many customers weren ’ t wearing masks or maintaining six-foot distancing .
And he wanted company brass to do more to protect the staff .
He knew he was at risk , but kept going to work every day because he and his family needed the money .
“ That ’ s his livelihood , ” said sister Nikki Trujillo .
“ It wasn ’ t an option to stay home.
” On the morning of May 4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thought he might have caught the virus .
He had a headache , difficulty breathing , dizziness and no sense of taste or smell , he told her .
She drove up from Parker and dropped him off at a hospital .
“ I couldn ’ t go in with him , and I was so terrified that this was the last time I was going to see my brother , ” Trujillo said through tears .
“ And it was.
” Narvaez , a West High School graduate and Broncos super-fan , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is one piece in a growing mountain of evidence that while the coronavirus doesn ’ t discriminate by class , its harms clearly do .
In the 11 weeks since the coronavirus was confirmed in Colorado , data has shown that working from the safety of home is an economic privilege ; that low-wage earners , and particularly undocumented workers , are more likely to be laid off or to stay in dangerous jobs out of fear of losing employment ; that incarcerated people account for the largest known outbreaks in the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disproportionately likely to catch the virus ; that poorer families can not adapt to online schooling as nimbly as wealthier ones ; and that housing insecurity has skyrocketed , as many struggle to pay rent or mortgage , and fear eviction or foreclosure .
The Colorado legislature , which reconvenes Tuesday after pausing its session in March due to the coronavirus , faces a budget crisis that leaves the state with very little money to strike up new programs aimed at helping these or other populations .
State safety-net programs , plus private @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — some food banks around the state , for example , say demand is now 10 times greater — and worried about a long-lasting spreading of socioeconomic gaps in Colorado .
The disparity was vast to begin with .
Zion Xavier Justice , a Denver-based advocate for the disabled and the hungry who has experienced homelessness himself , said , “ This has widened the gap between the haves and the have-nots .
But the have-nots have always been there , and will continue to be.
” A 2018 study authored by Diana @ @ @ @ @ @ @ showed that even as the state ’ s economy boomed , about one in four households in Colorado lived below the self-sufficiency standard — that is , they didn ’ t have enough money to cover their basic necessities .
Pearce said last week it ’ s too soon to guess how many Coloradans will fall below the standard in this recession , but that it ’ s clear the number will increase .
“ I ’ m pretty worried , ” she said , “ because I think we ’ re pushing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ become homeless and hungry and have nowhere to go .
I don ’ t know what ’ s going to happen .
It ’ s going to be pretty bad.
” Low-wage earners — defined by the state as those earning no more than $ 22 an hour — “ have a notably higher share of layoffs than higher-paying industries , ” the governor ’ s budget staff wrote earlier this month .
Low-wage workers in the leisure and hospitality sectors make up the plurality of the roughly 450,000 Coloradans who had filed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The demand is so high that the state ’ s unemployment trust fund , which had been $ 1 billion in the black , is expected to be insolvent by early summer . )
Among those who remained employed , it ’ s low-wage employees most likely to have to show up to work in person .
Many are getting sick and some are dying , though deaths are so far less prevalent among retail workers than workers in industrial settings .
For retailers , the state has only reported three worker deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Aurora — though that data , updated weekly , lags , and does not yet count Narvaez ’ s death .
The JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley , which is currently reporting 264 cases , had an outbreak so bad that it shut down for two weeks in April , and has since reopened , even as workers there continue to die .
At the King Soopers where Narvaez worked , 11 employees have tested positive for the coronavirus , according to data released Wednesday .
“ I have employees coming to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to come to work .
They want to leave , they ’ re afraid , ” said Felicity Evitt , a front-end manager at the Capitol Hill King Soopers who knew Narvaez well .
“ They cant go home , because who ’ s going to pay their rent ?
“ For $ 20.16 an hour , ” she added , “ I am risking my life.
” Company spokeswoman Jessica Trowbridge said that King Soopers “ does not take lightly ” the safety concerns of workers and the death of Narvaez .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ encouraging all customers to wear masks ” and “ making every reasonable effort ” to keep shoppers and staff safe .
But Evitt said she ’ s not empowered to refuse service to people who , despite a citywide mask order , come into the store without face coverings — roughly 30 % of clientele , she estimated .
“ If somebody from corporate came down and stood in my store for one hour , they ’ d feel different , ” she said .
Said one employee at JBS meatpacking in Greeley @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the union says , eight employees have died , “ Enjoy your meat .
It ’ s at a big expense .
People are getting sick and dying.
” That employee spoke on the condition of anonymity , fearing retaliation from a company he said is not ensuring safety for workers .
“ We ’ re scared .
We ’ re trying to take our personal precautions , but the company isn ’ t quite doing what they should be doing , ” the employee said .
“ They do the six-feet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ break , but while we ’ re in progress , we ’ re shoulder to shoulder , face to face.
” In an email to The Denver Post , JBS spokeswoman Nikki Richardson said , “ We have been doing all we can to promote social distancing within our facility , including increasing spacing in cafeterias , break and locker rooms , using dividers in common areas and on the production floor , and staggering starts , shifts and breaks.
” She added , “ We understand some people are scared and anxious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this virus out of our facility.
” That the plant is open at all is a result of meat production being deemed essential .
Both the president and Colorado Gov .
Jared Polis have spoken about the importance of that plant and others like it to the national food supply .
JBS closed for two weeks amid its outbreak , but it reopened with no plan to guarantee testing for all workers .
“ The meat matters more than our lives , ” the JBS employee said .
“ That ’ s how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Evitt said something similar : “ Our lives are not as important as a carton of eggs , I guess.
” Many workers are faced with an impossible choice every day : go to work and risk infection , or stay home and risk unemployment , thus risking housing , food and medical security .
“ What we ’ re seeing is a lot of folks who are still employed are in jobs that are front-line , constantly battling whether they should go to work , how to keep themselves and their families @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advocacy coordinator for the Denver-based Center for Work Education and Employment .
That unemployment insurance is available — people can currently collect that money for up to 26 weeks in Colorado , though that limit may be extended — is of little comfort to some who live paycheck-to-paycheck .
Said Rachel Garnett , a King Soopers employee who worked with Narvaez , “ When your job is taken away from you and you have to rely on unemployment , which is a headache within itself , it ’ s hard to know what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ able to pay.
” Garnett , who tested positive for the virus , said she ’ s also concerned by the lack of job prospects for low-wage workers who become unemployed , either via layoff or a personal choice .
“ How do you find another job unless it ’ s with some big , giant corporation like Amazon and King Soopers ?
” she said .
Trowbridge , the King Soopers spokeswoman , said that company and its sister grocer , City Market , have hired 6,000 people in Colorado amid this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and keeping their doors open , ” Garnett said , “ but if you ( work there ) you have to put yourself at risk.
” The company recently decided to end a “ hero pay ” program that gave workers an extra $ 2 per hour , replacing that program with one-time bonuses of $ 400 for full-time workers and $ 200 for part-time workers .
Employees told The Post that this will result in lower net pay .
Trowbridge did not explain why the company shifted to the one-time bonuses , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ working hard and doing the very best that they can.
” For Garnett , the end of “ hero pay ” means she goes back to making $ 16 an hour .
She has a second job , she said , because that ’ s not enough money to cover her $ 970 monthly rent and other expenses .
“ I would love to have been able to work from home , ” Garnett said .
“ So do you go to work and make money or not go to work , not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t supply for their employees ?
If you have a family , … you have to put food on the table , but you ’ re putting your family at risk.
” Even some who are employed are having trouble putting food on the table .
Calls to the hotline run by the nonprofit Hunger Free Colorado have tripled in recent weeks , CEO Marc Jacobson said .
Jacobson described this moment of profound need and growing inequality as a possible turning point .
“ We can either accept this as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appropriately to make sure this doesn ’ t become the status quo , ” he said .
“ Are we going to put forth the resources and effort to make sure this is a temporary blip ?
” That , of course , remains to be seen .
Politicians are hopeful .
Polis has said many times that Colorado can emerge “ stronger than ever ” from the pandemic , but it ’ s clear that major interventions will be needed if the state hopes even to get back to its pre-pandemic status @ @ @ @ @ @ @ couldn ’ t cover basic expenses — much less if it hopes to cut into that figure .
State Sen. Chris Hansen , a Denver Democrat who has voiced optimism for a “ stronger than ever ” bounce-back , said he believes the state “ does not have the tools that are adequate for this moment , ” but that the legislature has an opportunity now to change that , to some degree .
“ My belief is that with careful legislative action , and working with the private sector , and really @ @ @ @ @ @ @ use our resources , I believe in that premise ” of returning “ stronger than ever , ” he said .
Hansen and the other 99 state lawmakers have been on recess since March 14 , but they ’ ll return to work on Tuesday .
And early indications are that it ’ ll be hard to pass sweeping legislation that affords vulnerable populations the securities that coronavirus has stripped or reduced — housing protections , cheaper and more accessible health care , and paid sick leave , to name a few .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s very little money available in the state budget to spend on new programs .
Colorado ’ s Joint Budget Committee has spent weeks hacking away at spending in an effort to cover a projected $ 3.3 billion shortfall .
There isn ’ t nearly enough to maintain existing programs in this state , which means lawmakers interested in writing bills this year to close socioeconomic gaps can only get so ambitious .
Hansen ’ s a sponsor of House Bill 1203 , which would give a tax credit to working-class families @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that this bill would put an average of $ 250 in the pockets of 60,000 families .
He acknowledged that such a bill doesn ’ t solve a family ’ s problems , but feels it ’ s a positive step .
Meanwhile , bills to create a public health insurance option and to provide paid family and medical leave to workers both have been tabled .
Lawmakers have ruled out a rent and mortgage freeze , and it ’ s unclear whether they ’ ll be able to pass a bill to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did not receive stimulus checks .
The budget woes they presently face are expected to last years .
Pearce , the professor , agreed with Jacobson and Hansen that this state can make the “ stronger than ever ” platitude a reality .
But getting there anytime soon would require broad buy-in from politicians , and seismic shifts in their collective imagination .
In the meantime , Pearce predicted , “ There ’ s going to be a lot of pain .
”

On April 15, Randy Narvaez posted on Facebook that his best friend had just died of COVID-19.
“Way too close to home for me,” he wrote. “Yet I still see so many people out on the street. Not obeying this ‘stay at home’ order. Come on now people, this is serious!”
Narvaez worried he’d get infected, too. The 51-year-old Denver native, a nearly 30-year employee at King Soopers, based for the last couple years at the store on Capitol Hill, was, like many of his co-workers, disappointed — even “disgusted,” his sister said — by how many customers weren’t wearing masks or maintaining six-foot distancing. And he wanted company brass to do more to protect the staff.
He knew he was at risk, but kept going to work every day because he and his family needed the money.
“That’s his livelihood,” said sister Nikki Trujillo. “It wasn’t an option to stay home.”
On the morning of May 4, Narvaez texted Trujillo to say he thought he might have caught the virus. He had a headache, difficulty breathing, dizziness and no sense of taste or smell, he told her. She drove up from Parker and dropped him off at a hospital.
“I couldn’t go in with him, and I was so terrified that this was the last time I was going to see my brother,” Trujillo said through tears. “And it was.”
Narvaez, a West High School graduate and Broncos super-fan, died on May 17. His death is one piece in a growing mountain of evidence that while the coronavirus doesn’t discriminate by class, its harms clearly do.
In the 11 weeks since the coronavirus was confirmed in Colorado, data have shown that working from the safety of home is an economic privilege; that low-wage earners, and particularly undocumented workers, are more likely to be laid off or to stay in dangerous jobs out of fear of losing employment; that incarcerated people account for the largest known outbreaks in the state; that black and Latino Coloradans are disproportionately likely to catch the virus; that poorer families cannot adapt to online schooling as nimbly as wealthier ones; and that housing insecurity has skyrocketed, as many struggle to pay rent or mortgage, and fear eviction or foreclosure.
The Colorado legislature, which reconvenes Tuesday after pausing its session in March due to the coronavirus, faces a budget crisis that leaves the state with very little money to strike up new programs aimed at helping these or other populations.
State safety-net programs, plus private organizations, are stretched by unprecedented need — some food banks around the state, for example, say demand is now 10 times greater — and worried about a long-lasting spreading of socioeconomic gaps in Colorado.
“I am risking my life”
The disparity was vast to begin with.
Zion Xavier Justice, a Denver-based advocate for the disabled and the hungry who has experienced homelessness himself, said, “This has widened the gap between the haves and the have-nots. But the have-nots have always been there, and will continue to be.”
A 2018 study authored by Diana M. Pearce of the University of Washington showed that even as the state’s economy boomed, about one in four households in Colorado lived below the self-sufficiency standard — that is, they didn’t have enough money to cover their basic necessities. Pearce said last week it’s too soon to guess how many Coloradans will fall below the standard in this recession, but that it’s clear the number will increase.
“I’m pretty worried,” she said, “because I think we’re pushing the bounds of tolerance for when people become homeless and hungry and have nowhere to go. I don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s going to be pretty bad.”
Low-wage earners — defined by the state as those earning no more than $22 an hour — “have a notably higher share of layoffs than higher-paying industries,” the governor’s budget staff wrote earlier this month. Low-wage workers in the leisure and hospitality sectors make up the plurality of the roughly 450,000 Coloradans who had filed unemployment claims as of Wednesday. (The demand is so high that the state’s unemployment trust fund, which had been $1 billion in the black, is expected to be insolvent by early summer.)
Among those who’ve remained employed, it’s low-wage employees most likely to have to show up to work in person. Many are getting sick and some are dying, though deaths are so far less prevalent among retail workers than workers in industrial settings. For retailers, the state has only reported three worker deaths — all connected to a Walmart Supercenter in Aurora — but that data, updated weekly, lags, and does not yet count Narvaez’s death. The JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, which is currently reporting 264 cases, had an outbreak so bad that it shut down for two weeks in April, and has since reopened, even as workers there continue to die.
At the King Soopers where Narvaez worked, 11 employees have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to data released Wednesday.
“I have employees coming to me saying they don’t want to come to work. They want to leave, they’re afraid,” said Felicity Evitt, a front-end manager at the Capitol Hill King Soopers who knew Narvaez well. “They can’t go home, because who’s going to pay their rent?
“For $20.16 an hour,” she added, “I am risking my life.”
Company spokeswoman Jessica Trowbridge said that King Soopers “does not take lightly” the safety concerns of workers and the death of Narvaez. She said the company is “strongly encouraging all customers to wear masks” and “making every reasonable effort” to keep shoppers and staff safe.
But Evitt said she’s not empowered to refuse service to people who, despite a citywide mask order, come into the store without face coverings — roughly 30% of clientele, she estimated.
“If somebody from corporate came down and stood in my store for one hour, they’d feel different,” she said.
Said one employee at JBS meatpacking in Greeley, where similar pressures apply and where, the union says, eight employees have died, “Enjoy your meat. It’s at a big expense. People are getting sick and dying.”
That employee spoke on the condition of anonymity, fearing retaliation from a company he said is not ensuring safety for workers.
“We’re scared. We’re trying to take our personal precautions, but the company isn’t quite doing what they should be doing,” the employee said. “They do the six-feet distancing outside the plant or at a break, but while we’re in progress, we’re shoulder to shoulder, face to face.”
In an email to The Denver Post, JBS spokeswoman Nikki Richardson said, “We have been doing all we can to promote social distancing within our facility, including increasing spacing in cafeterias, break and locker rooms, using dividers in common areas and on the production floor, and staggering starts, shifts and breaks.”
She added, “We understand some people are scared and anxious, but our focus remains on keeping this virus out of our facility.”
That the plant is open at all is a result of meat production being deemed essential. Both the president and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis have spoken about the importance of that plant and others like it to the national food supply. JBS closed for two weeks amid its outbreak, but it reopened with no plan to guarantee testing for all workers.
“The meat matters more than our lives,” the JBS employee said. “That’s how we look at it every day.”
Evitt said something similar: “Our lives are not as important as a carton of eggs, I guess.”
No safe option
Many workers are faced with an impossible choice every day: go to work and risk infection, or stay home and risk unemployment, thus risking housing, food and medical security.
“What we’re seeing is a lot of folks who are still employed are in jobs that are front-line, constantly battling whether they should go to work, how to keep themselves and their families safe,” said Isabel Cruz, advocacy coordinator for the Denver-based Center for Work Education and Employment.
That unemployment insurance is available — people can currently collect that money for up to 26 weeks in Colorado, though that limit may be extended — is of little comfort to some who live paycheck-to-paycheck.
Said Rachel Garnett, a King Soopers employee who worked with Narvaez, “When your job is taken away from you and you have to rely on unemployment, which is a headache within itself, it’s hard to know what bills you’re going to be able to pay.”
Garnett, who tested positive for the virus, said she’s also concerned by the lack of job prospects for low-wage workers who become unemployed, either via layoff or a personal choice.
“How do you find another job unless it’s with some big, giant corporation like Amazon and King Soopers?” she said. Trowbridge, the King Soopers spokeswoman, said that company and its sister grocer, City Market, have hired 6,000 people in Colorado amid this pandemic.
“They’re thriving and keeping their doors open,” Garnett said, “but if you (work there) you have to put yourself at risk.”
The company recently decided to end a “hero pay” program that gave workers an extra $2 per hour, replacing that program with one-time bonuses of $400 for full-time workers and $200 for part-time workers. Employees told The Post that this will result in lower net pay.
Trowbridge did not explain why the company shifted to the one-time bonuses, but added, “Our team is working hard and doing the very best that they can.”
For Garnett, the end of “hero pay” means she goes back to making $16 an hour. She has a second job, she said, because that’s not enough money to cover her $970 monthly rent and other expenses.
“I would love to have been able to work from home,” Garnett said. “So do you go to work and make money or not go to work, not make money, because the company doesn’t supply for their employees? If you have a family, … you have to put food on the table, but you’re putting your family at risk.”
Even some who are employed are having trouble putting food on the table. Calls to the hotline run by the nonprofit Hunger Free Colorado have tripled in recent weeks, CEO Marc Jacobson said.
“Stronger than ever”
Jacobson described this moment of profound need and growing inequality as a possible turning point.
“We can either accept this as a new status quo or we can respond appropriately to make sure this doesn’t become the status quo,” he said. “Are we going to put forth the resources and effort to make sure this is a temporary blip?”
That, of course, remains to be seen.
Politicians are hopeful. Polis has said many times that Colorado can emerge “stronger than ever” from the pandemic, but it’s clear that major interventions will be needed if the state hopes even to get back to its pre-pandemic status, in which a quarter of households couldn’t cover basic expenses — much less if it hopes to cut into that figure.
State Sen. Chris Hansen, a Denver Democrat who has voiced optimism for a “stronger than ever” bounce-back, said he believes the state “does not have the tools that are adequate for this moment,” but that the legislature has an opportunity now to change that, to some degree.
“My belief is that with careful legislative action, and working with the private sector, and really using this moment to reshape how we use our resources, I believe in that premise” of returning “stronger than ever,” he said.
Hansen and the other 99 state lawmakers have been on recess since March 14, but they’ll return to work on Tuesday. And early indications are that it’ll be hard to pass sweeping legislation that affords vulnerable populations the securities that coronavirus has stripped or reduced — housing protections, cheaper and more accessible health care, and paid sick leave, to name a few.
That’s in part because there’s very little money available in the state budget to spend on new programs. Colorado’s Joint Budget Committee has spent weeks hacking away at spending in an effort to cover a projected $3.3 billion shortfall. There isn’t nearly enough to maintain existing programs in this state, which means lawmakers interested in writing bills this year to close socioeconomic gaps can only get so ambitious.
Hansen’s a sponsor of House Bill 1203, which would give a tax credit to working-class families, including undocumented people. He estimated that this bill would put an average of $250 in the pockets of 60,000 families. He acknowledged that such a bill doesn’t solve a family’s problems, but feels it’s a positive step.
Meanwhile, bills to create a public health insurance option and to provide paid family and medical leave to workers both have been tabled. Lawmakers have ruled out a rent and mortgage freeze, and it’s unclear whether they’ll be able to pass a bill to give cash assistance to undocumented people who did not receive stimulus checks. The budget woes they presently face are expected to last years.
Pearce, the professor, agreed with Jacobson and Hansen that this state can make the “stronger than ever” platitude a reality. But getting there anytime soon would require broad buy-in from politicians, and seismic shifts in their collective imagination.
In the meantime, Pearce predicted, “There’s going to be a lot of pain.”


thedenverpost--2020-05-24--The president says all-mail ballots benefit Democrats and lead to rampant voter fraud. Colorado says

The president says all-mail ballots benefit Democrats and lead to rampant voter fraud. Colorado says no

At least 67 Wisconsin voters and poll workers contracted COVID-19 after participating in that state ’ s in-person primary election last month .
Still , many Republicans from President Donald Trump on down are resisting the idea of conducting November ’ s election via mail-in ballot — mainly on the grounds that the results would be vulnerable to election fraud .
Colorado ’ s experience shows that vote by mail can be at least as secure as in-person voting while increasing turnout .
The coronavirus pandemic has raised the question of whether to implement universal , all-mail voting in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have it .
Of those states , 36 already provide no-excuse absentee ballots , but voters have to ask for them .
As the virus spread through primary season , states delayed elections entirely or became entangled in legal battles and confusion .
The issue is growing more urgent as states look ahead to November ’ s presidential election without a clear idea of how widespread the coronavirus will be then .
“ What the pandemic has exposed is the significant vulnerabilities and risks with most states reliant on in-person voting as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ McReynolds , chief executive officer of the National Vote at Home Institute and Coalition , said .
McReynolds , a former Denver elections director , helped design Colorado ’ s vote-by-mail system , which is often referred to as the gold standard .
By early April , a third of states had contacted Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswoldfor advice as they tried to build their own systems before the November election .
By the second week in May , election officials in all 50 states were on calls with each other about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ National Vote at Home Institute rolled out a 50-state analysis and plan to expand vote-at-home policies .
Griswold , a Democrat , has advocated for expanding Colorado ’ s system across all 50 states so every eligible voter can cast a vote during the pandemic .
Still , partisanship and misinformation may prevent many states from making changes .
Colorado followed Oregon and Washington state in adopting all-mail ballot elections , holding the first one in 2014 .
The state continues to see record turnout , according to the secretary of state ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had the second highest turnout rate in the country .
The switch to all-mail ballots yielded a 9.4 % increase in overall turnout among registered voters for the state , even when other states were seeing a decline in rates between 2010 and 2014 , according to a study by a group of university political scientists released this month .
The most significant increase was among younger voters .
Nationwide , the majority of voters across the political spectrum are in favor of remote voting .
An April poll from Reuters/Ipsos found that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Republicans supported giving all voters mail-in ballots in the 2020 general election .
The spread of the highly contagious coronavirus has cemented voters ’ interest in that approach .
In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in March , a majority of respondents said they would feel uncomfortable voting in person in the presidential primaries during the pandemic .
Still , Republicans are fighting the expansion of all-mail elections across the country , while Democrats are in favor of it .
The Republican National Committee and Trump ’ s re-election campaign have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ changes to voting rules in battleground states .
The GOP ’ s chief argument is that voting by mail is less secure .
“ It ’ s subject to tremendous corruption — cheating , ” Trump told reporters during a White House meeting May 13 with Colorado Gov .
Jared Polis .
But one of Trump ’ s own appointees is among the many who have lauded Colorado as having among the most secure elections in the country .
In the 2018 election , Colorado forwarded only 0.0027 % out of 2.5 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ We ’ d love to continue to use you as an example of what other states can adopt , ” then-Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said at a training in Denver in 2018 .
Many Colorado Republicans such as former Secretary of State Wayne Williams are also advocates of mail voting , though Republicans opposed the effort in 2013 .
Paper ballots , signature verifications , a risk-limiting audit and voter list checks make it safe , supporters say .
Republicans elsewhere also believe mail-in ballots would increase the number @ @ @ @ @ @ @ David Ralston last month said he agreed with the president that an increase in absentee ballots would be “ devastating to Republicans.
” “ Every registered voter is going to get one of these , ” Ralston said .
“ Now I ask you … what was turnout in the primary back in 2018 or 2016 .
Was it 100 % ?
No .
No .
It ’ s way , way , way lower .
This will certainly drive up turnout.
” Colorado ’ s increase in turnout , however , hasn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to the research paper released this month .
The increased turnout in 2014 for both parties was almost identical .
Independent voter participation , however , increased the most .
That year , Republican Cory Gardner unseated then-U.S. Sen. Mark Udall [ cq comment= ” cq ” ] , and Republicans won three of four other state seats .
The GOP in other states such as Florida also has relied on mail ballots as a key tool in winning their elections .
Despite that success , Gardner has said in media @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democrats to help states adopt all-mail voting because states should decide how to run their own elections .
States without all-mail ballots have rules allowing voters to request absentee ballots in some circumstances , but the reasons allowed vary by state .
In Texas , the Republican attorney general is seeking to force counties to reject absentee ballots that are requested solely because of the voter ’ s fear of catching the coronavirus .
“ What ’ s interesting is in every single state voters have the option to request a ballot by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right now is an inevitable huge increase in voters doing that , ” McReynolds said .
That ’ s evidenced in states like Georgia , Wisconsin and Ohio that have had hundreds of thousands of additional absentee ballot requests , she said .
“ Voters are the ones asking for this , ” McReynolds said .
“ It ’ s not up to the policy makers to decide how many there will be.
” Moving all states to a full vote-by-mail system couldn ’ t happen overnight even if with bipartisan support for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provisions about how balloting should take place , and there ’ s the issue of vendor supply .
Ballot printers have warned that states need to decide soon if they want to have enough mail ballots ready for the election .
It will also take time to updated processes and databases and train election workers .
“ Even in Colorado , we phased this in over more than a decade , and even last year , we made additional tweaks in the process to make it better , ” Williams said .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system can serve as a model for others .
Williams favors a mixed approach that expands the option to get absentee mail ballots while offering in-person voting that abides by social distancing guidelines .
Griswold is advocating for Congress to act to help states get the resources they need .
“ We ’ re just really wanting to help states think about what they need to do to quickly to expand vote by mail … The last thing any of us want to see is the pandemic used as a way to suppress @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .

At least 67 Wisconsin voters and poll workers contracted COVID-19 after participating in that state’s in-person primary election last month. Still, many Republicans from President Donald Trump on down are resisting the idea of conducting November’s election via mail-in ballot — mainly on the grounds that the results would be vulnerable to election fraud.
Colorado’s experience shows that vote by mail can be at least as secure as in-person voting while increasing turnout.
The coronavirus pandemic has raised the question of whether to implement universal, all-mail voting in the 45 states that don’t already have it. Of those states, 36 already provide no-excuse absentee ballots, but voters have to ask for them. As the virus spread through primary season, states delayed elections entirely or became entangled in legal battles and confusion. The issue is growing more urgent as states look ahead to November’s presidential election without a clear idea of how widespread the coronavirus will be then.
“What the pandemic has exposed is the significant vulnerabilities and risks with most states reliant on in-person voting as the primary method of voting,” Amber McReynolds, chief executive officer of the National Vote at Home Institute and Coalition, said.
McReynolds, a former Denver elections director, helped design Colorado’s vote-by-mail system, which is often referred to as the gold standard.
By early April, a third of states had contacted Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold for advice as they tried to build their own systems before the November election. By the second week in May, election officials in all 50 states were on calls with each other about the possibility of all-mail elections. The National Vote at Home Institute rolled out a 50-state analysis and plan to expand vote-at-home policies. Griswold, a Democrat, has advocated for expanding Colorado’s system across all 50 states so every eligible voter can cast a vote during the pandemic.
Still, partisanship and misinformation may prevent many states from making changes.
Popular with voters
Colorado followed Oregon and Washington state in adopting all-mail ballot elections, holding the first one in 2014. The state continues to see record turnout, according to the secretary of state’s office. In 2018, Colorado had the second highest turnout rate in the country. The switch to all-mail ballots yielded a 9.4% increase in overall turnout among registered voters for the state, even when other states were seeing a decline in rates between 2010 and 2014, according to a study by a group of university political scientists released this month. The most significant increase was among younger voters.
Nationwide, the majority of voters across the political spectrum are in favor of remote voting. An April poll from Reuters/Ipsos found that 79% of Democrats and 65% of Republicans supported giving all voters mail-in ballots in the 2020 general election.
The spread of the highly contagious coronavirus has cemented voters’ interest in that approach. In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in March, a majority of respondents said they would feel uncomfortable voting in person in the presidential primaries during the pandemic.
Still, Republicans are fighting the expansion of all-mail elections across the country, while Democrats are in favor of it. The Republican National Committee and Trump’s re-election campaign have budgeted $20 million to fight Democrats’ changes to voting rules in battleground states.
The GOP’s chief argument is that voting by mail is less secure.
“It’s subject to tremendous corruption — cheating,” Trump told reporters during a White House meeting May 13 with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.
But one of Trump’s own appointees is among the many who have lauded Colorado as having among the most secure elections in the country. In the 2018 election, Colorado forwarded only 0.0027% out of 2.5 million ballots for fraud investigation, Griswold said.
“We’d love to continue to use you as an example of what other states can adopt,” then-Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said at a training in Denver in 2018.
Many Colorado Republicans such as former Secretary of State Wayne Williams are also advocates of mail voting, though Republicans opposed the effort in 2013. Paper ballots, signature verifications, a risk-limiting audit and voter list checks make it safe, supporters say.
Republicans elsewhere also believe mail-in ballots would increase the number of Democratic voters. Georgia House Speaker David Ralston last month said he agreed with the president that an increase in absentee ballots would be “devastating to Republicans.”
“Every registered voter is going to get one of these,” Ralston said. “Now I ask you … what was turnout in the primary back in 2018 or 2016. Was it 100%? No. No. It’s way, way, way lower. This will certainly drive up turnout.”
Colorado’s increase in turnout, however, hasn’t benefited one party over another, according to the research paper released this month. The increased turnout in 2014 for both parties was almost identical. Independent voter participation, however, increased the most. That year, Republican Cory Gardner unseated then-U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, and Republicans won three of four other state seats.
The GOP in other states such as Florida also has relied on mail ballots as a key tool in winning their elections.
Despite that success, Gardner has said in media interviews that he opposes efforts by congressional Democrats to help states adopt all-mail voting because states should decide how to run their own elections.
States without all-mail ballots have rules allowing voters to request absentee ballots in some circumstances, but the reasons allowed vary by state. In Texas, the Republican attorney general is seeking to force counties to reject absentee ballots that are requested solely because of the voter’s fear of catching the coronavirus.
“What’s interesting is in every single state voters have the option to request a ballot by mail, what we’re seeing right now is an inevitable huge increase in voters doing that,” McReynolds said.
That’s evidenced in states like Georgia, Wisconsin and Ohio that have had hundreds of thousands of additional absentee ballot requests, she said.
“Voters are the ones asking for this,” McReynolds said. “It’s not up to the policy makers to decide how many there will be.”
Running out of time
Moving all states to a full vote-by-mail system couldn’t happen overnight even if with bipartisan support for the idea.
Some states have constitutional provisions about how balloting should take place, and there’s the issue of vendor supply. Ballot printers have warned that states need to decide soon if they want to have enough mail ballots ready for the election. It will also take time to updated processes and databases and train election workers.
“Even in Colorado, we phased this in over more than a decade, and even last year, we made additional tweaks in the process to make it better,” Williams said.
But Griswold and Williams believe Colorado’s system can serve as a model for others.
Williams favors a mixed approach that expands the option to get absentee mail ballots while offering in-person voting that abides by social distancing guidelines.
Griswold is advocating for Congress to act to help states get the resources they need.
“We’re just really wanting to help states think about what they need to do to quickly to expand vote by mail … The last thing any of us want to see is the pandemic used as a way to suppress voter turnout in November,” Griswold said.


thedenverpost--2020-05-24--How Gary Lane helped bring the Avalanche to Denver and the Stanley Cup soon followed

Wearing a Patrick Roy jersey inside the Miami Arena visitors ’ locker room around 1:30 a.m. on June 11 , 1996 , Wellington Webb found himself in Joe Sakic ’ s crosshairs .
The Avalanche , in its first year of existence , had just swept the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final with a 1-0 three-overtime victory in Game 4 .
And now , minutes after defenseman Uwe Krupp ’ s sudden-death winner clinched the Cup , Sakic , the Avs ’ captain , was pouring champagne all over Denver ’ s mayor .
Any doubts Wellington may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it in Denver had long since vanished .
On this night , Webb became a true burgundy-and-blue Avalanche fan , like thousands of other Coloradans have become in the 25 years since the Avs became the Avs .
“ We ran down on the ice , which in hindsight , I thought , ‘ This is kind of silly , who is this black guy running around down here ? '
” Webb said in a phone interview .
“ … I flew back on the Avalanche flight .
I thought that was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being elected mayor to do this .
I have a little disappointment for those mayors who never had a chance to fly with their team after that ( major-league ) championship.
” Gary Lane was also in Miami Arena that night , reveling in the Stanley Cup victory .
Just two years earlier the City of Denver executive had helped sell Webb on the idea of bringing professional hockey back to Denver .
And while Lane didn ’ t get the chance to share in the euphoria of that jubilant flight home , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s first major sports championship wouldn ’ t have happened without him .
Lane , now 67 and semi-retired from his company , CenterLane Attractions , was the City of Denver ’ s director of arenas and theatres under Mayor Webb when a chance to bring the International Hockey League to Denver came across his desk in 1994 .
At the time , Lane oversaw every aspect of city-owned McNichols Sports Arena , Red Rocks Amphitheater , Denver Coliseum and multiple other venues throughout Denver .
But he and Webb didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A Pittsburgh native who worked for the Penguins and the NHL ’ s Colorado Rockies ( 1976-82 ) , Lane was a hockey guy who believed a successful stint with an IHL franchise could lead to another shot at getting an NHL team .
He helped bring several NHL preseason games to McNichols , including Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings against the Quebec Nordiques on Sept. 20 , 1989 , and Mario Lemieux and the reigning Cup-champion Pittsburgh Penguins against the Calgary Flames on Sept. 19 , 1991 .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with what was to become the expansion Denver Grizzlies of the IHL , Lane said Webb told him , “ Hockey will never be successful here.
” Denver already had the Broncos and the Nuggets , and baseball ’ s Colorado Rockies were in their second year as an MLB expansion team and drawing record crowds .
With three pro franchises in town , as well as a successful brand of hockey down the road at the University of Denver , Webb wasn ’ t convinced the city would support more hockey .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ as splitting the existing sports pie market .
I told him we would make a bigger pie out of it , ” Lane said .
“ I said the Grizzlies will help us get the NHL back here .
And he said , ‘ No way , it ’ s just not going to be successful . '
” Webb said he doesn ’ t remember today exactly how he felt about hockey in 1994 .
“ If I had doubts it was probably because we had so much on our plate .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Airport was sucking up all the oxygen in the room , ” he said .
Tim Leiweke , the Nuggets ’ president at the time , was also in favor of adding a hockey team to McNichols because “ he also understood that having two tenants would help him get a new arena , ” Lane said .
McNichols was built in 1975 but considered outdated at the time .
What became the Pepsi Center was in the works .
So , betting on an untapped hockey market and gaining traction with Leiweke @ @ @ @ @ @ @ owner Dave Elmore .
A year later , the Grizzlies had to leave town .
The 1994-95 hockey season in Denver was a great one .
The Grizzlies played to near-sellout crowds at McNichols , which held 16,061 for hockey , en route to winning the IHL championship .
Then came the Quebec Nordiques , who were playing in the NHL ’ s smallest market , coming off a lockout-shortened 30-13-5 season and surprising first-round exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs .
They were looking to relocate to the U.S. , and Nuggets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) was interested in acquiring another major league tenant as it eyed a new arena deal .
Lane worked that deal with Tony Tavares , a veteran national sports executive who helped facilitate negotiations between the Nordiques , COMSAT executive Charlie Lyons and the NHL .
“ The Grizzlies , that worked , but what really worked for me was meeting with Charlie Lyons , ” Webb said .
“ You know how sometimes people have chemistry and then others don ’ t ?
The chemistry with Charlie Lyons was good.
” That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helped push the sale along .
And the Nordiques were ultimately sold to COMSAT for $ 75 million and renamed the Colorado Avalanche .
“ You know how the NHL works .
They like to make their own decisions .
I voiced my support in the deal and so on and so forth , but I wasn ’ t the main guy — I just tried to help , ” Tavares said .
“ Gary was a friend and I thought Colorado was a great spot for an NHL team .
I can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that happened .
There were people like Gary ( Lane ) who fought tooth and nail to get the thing.
” But Tavares had business and personal relationships with Nordiques president/CEO Marcel Aubut and general manager Pierre Lacroix , the latter of whom relocated with that same title to Denver .
“ He and I were buddies , ” Tavares said of Lacroix .
“ I knew Aubut and Pierre very well .
So , I knew the players , is the best way to put it , and I tried to provide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possible because Lane made a save of Patrick Roy proportions a year earlier when he was negotiating a five-year lease to bring the Grizzlies to Denver .
Lane , having known minor-league hockey ’ s checkered past at Denver Coliseum , insisted the Grizzlies play at McNichols — the former home of the NHL ’ s Rockies — and share the building with the Nuggets .
But the real stroke of genius came with an “ out clause ” Lane insisted be part of the contract — language that allowed the city to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if the city had an opportunity to bring the NHL back to town .
In hindsight , that paved the way for the Nordiques , who were also considering a move to Arizona at the time , to relocate to Denver and become the Avalanche .
“ If it weren ’ t for a paragraph in the Grizzlies contract , ” Lane said , “ we probably wouldn ’ t be here.
” Lane ’ s 10 years with the City of Denver ended in 1996 when he opposed tearing down McNichols as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Interstate 25 in 1997 .
“ At that time , no city was tearing down a perfectly good public assembly venue just because they were building another one .
They still need them , so I disagreed , ” Lane said .
“ McNichols had no debt .
All it needed was a new roof .
We wanted to make McNichols a concert hall .
“ It was part of the Broncos ’ footprint .
Both ( McNichols and the Broncos ’ new stadium ) would have co-existed quite well .
But as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t make an omelette unless you break a few eggs.
” Still , Lane has fond memories of his tenure with the city — particularly Game 4 in Miami .
He flew there with a friend in the security business , Thompson Smith , who would ultimately build Argus into the security giant that now has contracts for the Pepsi Center , Empower Field at Mile High , Red Rocks , Magness Arena and others .
In a two-year span , Denver went from no professional hockey to a Stanley Cup-celebrating city .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ his role in bringing the Nordiques to Colorado .
But 25 years later , he ’ s still proud of the determination he had in giving Denver a second chance at the NHL .
“ It doesn ’ t get much better , ” Lane said of celebrating with the Stanley Cup in 1996 .
“ I really don ’ t want to live in the past , but that past is pretty hard to beat .
We plotted for this long-term plan , but it happened a lot faster than we , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ You could say that group of mine were unsung front-office folks .
”

Wearing a Patrick Roy jersey inside the Miami Arena visitors’ locker room around 1:30 a.m. on June 11, 1996, Wellington Webb found himself in Joe Sakic’s crosshairs.
The Avalanche, in its first year of existence, had just swept the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final with a 1-0 three-overtime victory in Game 4. And now, minutes after defenseman Uwe Krupp’s sudden-death winner clinched the Cup, Sakic, the Avs’ captain, was pouring champagne all over Denver’s mayor.
Any doubts Wellington may have once had about professional hockey making it in Denver had long since vanished. On this night, Webb became a true burgundy-and-blue Avalanche fan, like thousands of other Coloradans have become in the 25 years since the Avs became the Avs.
“We ran down on the ice, which in hindsight, I thought, ‘This is kind of silly, who is this black guy running around down here?'” Webb said in a phone interview.
“… I flew back on the Avalanche flight. I thought that was the most special moment that was worth being elected mayor to do this. I have a little disappointment for those mayors who never had a chance to fly with their team after that (major-league) championship.”
Gary Lane was also in Miami Arena that night, reveling in the Stanley Cup victory.
Just two years earlier the City of Denver executive had helped sell Webb on the idea of bringing professional hockey back to Denver. And while Lane didn’t get the chance to share in the euphoria of that jubilant flight home, it’s quite possible Colorado’s first major sports championship wouldn’t have happened without him.
Doubting Mayor
Lane, now 67 and semi-retired from his company, CenterLane Attractions, was the City of Denver’s director of arenas and theatres under Mayor Webb when a chance to bring the International Hockey League to Denver came across his desk in 1994.
At the time, Lane oversaw every aspect of city-owned McNichols Sports Arena, Red Rocks Amphitheater, Denver Coliseum and multiple other venues throughout Denver. But he and Webb didn’t see eye-to-eye about professional hockey in Denver.
A Pittsburgh native who worked for the Penguins and the NHL’s Colorado Rockies (1976-82), Lane was a hockey guy who believed a successful stint with an IHL franchise could lead to another shot at getting an NHL team. He helped bring several NHL preseason games to McNichols, including Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings against the Quebec Nordiques on Sept. 20, 1989, and Mario Lemieux and the reigning Cup-champion Pittsburgh Penguins against the Calgary Flames on Sept. 19, 1991.
As he was working on the 1994 deal with what was to become the expansion Denver Grizzlies of the IHL, Lane said Webb told him, “Hockey will never be successful here.”
VALUATION COMPARISON Colorado Avalanche Purchase price in 1995: $75 million Valuation December 2019: $475 million Colorado Rockies Purchase price (expansion): $95 million Valuation March 2020: $1.275 billion Source: Forbes’ 2019 Business of Hockey and 2020 Business of Baseball rankings
Denver already had the Broncos and the Nuggets, and baseball’s Colorado Rockies were in their second year as an MLB expansion team and drawing record crowds. With three pro franchises in town, as well as a successful brand of hockey down the road at the University of Denver, Webb wasn’t convinced the city would support more hockey.
“(Webb) looked at it as splitting the existing sports pie market. I told him we would make a bigger pie out of it,” Lane said. “I said the Grizzlies will help us get the NHL back here. And he said, ‘No way, it’s just not going to be successful.'”
Webb said he doesn’t remember today exactly how he felt about hockey in 1994.
“If I had doubts it was probably because we had so much on our plate. It is without question that Denver International Airport was sucking up all the oxygen in the room,” he said.
Tim Leiweke, the Nuggets’ president at the time, was also in favor of adding a hockey team to McNichols because “he also understood that having two tenants would help him get a new arena,” Lane said.
McNichols was built in 1975 but considered outdated at the time. What became the Pepsi Center was in the works.
So, betting on an untapped hockey market and gaining traction with Leiweke, Lane brokered a deal with Grizzlies owner Dave Elmore. A year later, the Grizzlies had to leave town.
Excellent from the outset
The 1994-95 hockey season in Denver was a great one.
The Grizzlies played to near-sellout crowds at McNichols, which held 16,061 for hockey, en route to winning the IHL championship. Then came the Quebec Nordiques, who were playing in the NHL’s smallest market, coming off a lockout-shortened 30-13-5 season and surprising first-round exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs. They were looking to relocate to the U.S., and Nuggets ownership group COMSAT (Communications Satellite Corp.) was interested in acquiring another major league tenant as it eyed a new arena deal.
Lane worked that deal with Tony Tavares, a veteran national sports executive who helped facilitate negotiations between the Nordiques, COMSAT executive Charlie Lyons and the NHL.
“The Grizzlies, that worked, but what really worked for me was meeting with Charlie Lyons,” Webb said. “You know how sometimes people have chemistry and then others don’t? The chemistry with Charlie Lyons was good.”
That chemistry, among many other things, helped push the sale along. And the Nordiques were ultimately sold to COMSAT for $75 million and renamed the Colorado Avalanche.
“You know how the NHL works. They like to make their own decisions. I voiced my support in the deal and so on and so forth, but I wasn’t the main guy — I just tried to help,” Tavares said. “Gary was a friend and I thought Colorado was a great spot for an NHL team. I can’t honestly take credit for anything that happened. There were people like Gary (Lane) who fought tooth and nail to get the thing.”
But Tavares had business and personal relationships with Nordiques president/CEO Marcel Aubut and general manager Pierre Lacroix, the latter of whom relocated with that same title to Denver.
“He and I were buddies,” Tavares said of Lacroix. “I knew Aubut and Pierre very well. So, I knew the players, is the best way to put it, and I tried to provide good guidance.”
All of this was possible because Lane made a save of Patrick Roy proportions a year earlier when he was negotiating a five-year lease to bring the Grizzlies to Denver. Lane, having known minor-league hockey’s checkered past at Denver Coliseum, insisted the Grizzlies play at McNichols — the former home of the NHL’s Rockies — and share the building with the Nuggets.
But the real stroke of genius came with an “out clause” Lane insisted be part of the contract — language that allowed the city to terminate the Grizzlies’ deal without cause if the city had an opportunity to bring the NHL back to town.
In hindsight, that paved the way for the Nordiques, who were also considering a move to Arizona at the time, to relocate to Denver and become the Avalanche.
“If it weren’t for a paragraph in the Grizzlies contract,” Lane said, “we probably wouldn’t be here.”
End of the Lane
Lane’s 10 years with the City of Denver ended in 1996 when he opposed tearing down McNichols as Pepsi Center was set to open across Interstate 25 in 1997.
“At that time, no city was tearing down a perfectly good public assembly venue just because they were building another one. They still need them, so I disagreed,” Lane said. “McNichols had no debt. All it needed was a new roof. We wanted to make McNichols a concert hall.
“It was part of the Broncos’ footprint. Both (McNichols and the Broncos’ new stadium) would have co-existed quite well. But as the saying goes, you can’t make an omelette unless you break a few eggs.”
Still, Lane has fond memories of his tenure with the city — particularly Game 4 in Miami. He flew there with a friend in the security business, Thompson Smith, who would ultimately build Argus into the security giant that now has contracts for the Pepsi Center, Empower Field at Mile High, Red Rocks, Magness Arena and others.
In a two-year span, Denver went from no professional hockey to a Stanley Cup-celebrating city.
Lane has never before publicly talked about his role in bringing the Nordiques to Colorado. But 25 years later, he’s still proud of the determination he had in giving Denver a second chance at the NHL.
“It doesn’t get much better,” Lane said of celebrating with the Stanley Cup in 1996. “I really don’t want to live in the past, but that past is pretty hard to beat. We plotted for this long-term plan, but it happened a lot faster than we, or anybody, thought was possible.
“You could say that group of mine were unsung front-office folks.”


thedenverpost--2020-05-24--Colorado wildlife agency’s past research raises questions about mountain lion hunting levels

Five years ago , Colorado Parks and Wildlife scientists found that killing mountain lions at the levels agency managers allow across much of the state — including what ’ s now being planned for the next decade on the Western Slope — will lead to declining numbers , contrary to the goal of ensuring stability for this species .
The CPW biologists determined , from research done between 2004 and 2014 for the purpose of guiding agency decision-making , that wildlife managers can not let hunters kill more than 12 % of lions a year without triggering a decline , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ preliminary analysis .
But in proposing a hunting rate of up to 15 % a year in western Colorado , state wildlife officials appear to be overriding those early findings — and not discussing why , beyond declaring the data flawed .
The numbers from the mountain lion study , conducted by CPW scientist Ken Logan , “ have since changed and are no longer valid , ” agency spokesman Travis Duncan said .
State officials would not elaborate , and declined to release the completed study after The Denver Post requested it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( A final report was “ still being reviewed by editors of a scientific journal , ” officials said , adding that peer review and publishing is slow , and that it will be at least a year before findings are released to the public . )
The Post ’ s request to interview Colorado Parks and Wildlife director Dan Prenzlow was denied , a request through the agency to interview Logan went unanswered , and Logan — when contacted directly — referred queries back to a CPW spokesman .
Colorado wildlife commissioners @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the plan for managing mountain lions in western Colorado with hunting kill rates between 11 % and 15 % — while leaving in place quotas as high as 28 % elsewhere around the state .
More than 1,000 residents have weighed in on the plan that will shape the future of mountain lions in Colorado a half century after bounty killing pushed the animals toward extinction .
Mountain lions now number roughly 30,000 around the West but face intensifying threats such as highways cutting through their habitat .
These are elusive , solitary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ able to leap up to 40 feet in pursuit of deer .
Colorado wildlife authorities say they want to ensure a healthy self-sustaining mountain lion population while allowing hunting of lions for meat and minimizing conflicts with people where communities have spread onto lion habitat .
They ’ ve estimated that 4,000 to 5,500 mountain lions live in the state , a number they say is stable or slightly increasing , based on extrapolations from density studies , preliminary data and informal assessments .
Hunters last year killed 541 lions .
The statewide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The CPW plan would control lion numbers by letting hunters kill up to 15 % a year west of the Continental Divide — using hounds and in some areas electronic calls that mimic deer in distress — with an unspecified kill rate higher than 15 % on a 1,829-square-mile urbanizing area in the Roaring Fork and Eagle River valleys between Vail Pass and Glenwood Canyon .
Wildlife managers there say they received 116 calls about lions over 13 months : many sightings and occasional lions snatching pets , including one pet fatality .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 11,372-square-mile western slope “ suppression ” area where lions are hunted at higher levels aimed at reducing numbers .
The plan says no more than 22 % of lions killed could be females .
This plan for the next decade in western Colorado would leave in place current mountain lion hunting quotas as high as 28 % across the rest of Colorado east of the Continental Divide .
CPW officials said they may evaluate these in the future .
No fatal mountain lion attacks on people in Colorado have been reported for more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a boy was bitten on the head in Bailey and a jogger in the mountains outside Fort Collins killed a lion that lunged for his face .
Scientific research on whether hunting of lions reduces or increases conflicts with humans has been inconclusive .
In rejecting the Post ’ s requests to make Logan ’ s mountain lion study available , CPW officials said this “ would be contrary to the public interest ” because the study is “ preliminary ” and subject to more analysis , and revealing data could hurt its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Logan ’ s decade of research on lions across an 870-square-mile area in southwestern Colorado .
This study was designed to find acceptable levels for “ sport hunting ” of mountain lions .
( State rules say lions can only be hunted for their meat , but anti-hunting groups contend hunters ’ main motivation is to obtain lion skins and lion heads as trophies . )
Researchers captured 224 mountain lions , marked them , released them and observed what happened .
Over the first five years , hunting was prohibited in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to the 2015 state summary report presenting preliminary research results and analysis .
Then over the next five years , hunters were allowed to kill 15 % of the lions a year .
When the lion populations decreased sharply after three years , CPW researchers lowered the hunting quota to 11 % for the next two years , the report said , and the population after the five years decreased by 34 % .
The scientists concluded that allowing hunting at a rate that removes 15 % of lions a year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decline in 3 years.
” And they found that lion populations when hunted at levels less than 12 % a year “ may be sustainable.
” Montrose-based wildlife guide Brady Dunne , who runs a mountain lion photo safari company , worked for Logan conducting the CPW research from 2006 through 2013 , running lion capture operations .
While Dunne acknowledged he hasn ’ t seen the final study , he said he was familiar with the results and that , even if math and scales are adjusted for publication in a scientific @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lions at 15 % a year could be ruinous .
“ If they push this plan through , Colorado ’ s mountain lion population will be a third of what a healthy mountain lion population in Colorado would be , ” Dunne said .
“ This is really very bad news for mountain lions in Colorado.
” Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman Rebecca Ferrell defended the agency ’ s approach to mountain lion management .
“ CPW has been managing Colorado ’ s wildlife for close to 125 years , and employs some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on mountain lion management , ” she wrote in an email .
“ Since the 1960s our research , biologists and wildlife managers have been instrumental in bringing the population back , as well as growing population numbers for mountain lions .
Our efforts are focused on maintaining mountain lions on the landscape and protecting their habitat.
” Colorado officials are adjusting the state ’ s approach to mountain lions at a time when a population growth and development boom is drawing more people into lion habitat and deer favored by hunters are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around 5 % of deer and up to 20 % in some herds .
CPW ’ s target statewide population for deer has been 560,000 , but the population has dwindled from 614,000 in 2005 to about 418,000 , state records show .
Elk numbers remain steadier around 286,000 , records show , but herds in the southwestern part of the state are shrinking and migration routes are impaired .
To try to bolster deer , CPW officials committed to a strategy that includes “ predator management where predation may be limiting deer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ approved two experiments to allow increased hunting of lions on a total 3,971 square miles around Rifle and Salida to determine how lion predation may affect deer numbers — for which results have not been made public .
The wildlife agency also rejected a public-records request from The Post to see that study .
Degradation of habitat amid Colorado ’ s commercial and residential development boom looms as a primary threat to wildlife , but CPW lacks power to preserve habitat and officials say hunting is one of the agency ’ s best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provides significant revenue for wildlife management in Colorado .
Sales of hunting and fishing licenses last year generated $ 104 million , about 61 % from hunters of elk , pronghorn and deer , state records show , with the agency ’ s overall budget around $ 231 million .
Hunters from out of state pay $ 401 to hunt deer , $ 350 to hunt lions , and up to $ 670 to hunt elk , which pumps millions into rural Colorado .
Hunters killed more than 36,000 deer last year .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that efforts to control mountain lion numbers are “ not about finances or generating revenue.
” Colorado officials aim to ensure “ a stable population , ” meaning lion numbers in western Colorado would stay the same as at present , Vieira said .
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation advocates “ that predators be managed , ” habitat stewardship director Karie Decker said .
Mule Deer Foundation Colorado chapter president Jon Nestor said “ we ’ re just worried about habitat , ” declining to take a position on mountain lion hunting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ too many lions .
Lions are hard on deer and elk .
We need to get the lions down to where deer populations can remain stable , ” Cotopaxi-based Loco Mountain Outfitters owner Jim Flynn said .
But critics contend Colorado wildlife officials are sacrificing lions and ecosystem balance in a commercial tilt toward managing habitat primarily as a deer-and-elk hunting preserve .
“ What they want to do is have more deer and elk .
It is as simple as that .
They want to keep hunters happy .
This is not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Colorado State University biologist Barry Noon , former chief scientist for the National Biological Service .
CPW officials were directed by lawmakers to take care of wildlife for the benefit of all residents , and only about 5 % are hunters , Noon said .
Agency leaders “ have lost track of what their mission is , ” he said .
“ …And anytime you see an agency muzzle their scientists , that is a really bad sign.
” Colorado wildlife managers have said they are committed to ensuring the survival of mountain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pride .
They point to the recovery of lions since 1965 , when bounty killing ended and hunting lions as “ big game ” began .
“ We work hard to conserve all 960 species under our care as well as the habitat they depend on .
It is our agency ’ s duty and mission to find the responsible and sustainable balance of multiple uses on the landscape .
It is a mission we take very seriously and very personally , ” agency spokeswoman Lauren Truitt said in an email .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our mission is unfounded .
We invest millions of dollars and thousands of hours of staff time every year managing Colorado ’ s resources , the majority of which are non-game wildlife.
” National Wildlife Federation chief scientist Bruce Stein recently warned of a global extinction crisis with thousands of declining species worldwide .
“ Healthy ecosystems depend on the full range of species , which includes your top carnivores , ” Stein said in an interview .
“ When you take top carnivores out… then you saddle yourself with needing to play @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t been very good at that.
” Environmental groups including the Sierra Club , WildEarth Guardians and animal rights groups led by the Humane Society are challenging Colorado ’ s approach to mountain lions and opposing the plan in its current form .
Some lion hunters , too , oppose the plan , saying reduced lions could put them out of business .
CPW officials haven ’ t made the public comments Colorado residents submitted to the agency ahead of an extended April 30 deadline available , saying they ’ re “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ residents are urging restraint in the manipulation of mountain lion numbers .
“ It makes me sick .
It is so wrong I could go to war over it , ” said Terry Stark , 76 , a retired construction worker and former hunter in Glenwood Springs .
“ Leave mountain lions alone .
Let them make their own , natural population level .
This is their environment .
”

Five years ago, Colorado Parks and Wildlife scientists found that killing mountain lions at the levels agency managers allow across much of the state — including what’s now being planned for the next decade on the Western Slope — will lead to declining numbers, contrary to the goal of ensuring stability for this species.
The CPW biologists determined, from research done between 2004 and 2014 for the purpose of guiding agency decision-making, that wildlife managers cannot let hunters kill more than 12% of lions a year without triggering a decline, according to a report summarizing results and preliminary analysis.
But in proposing a hunting rate of up to 15% a year in western Colorado, state wildlife officials appear to be overriding those early findings — and not discussing why, beyond declaring the data flawed.
The numbers from the mountain lion study, conducted by CPW scientist Ken Logan, “have since changed and are no longer valid,” agency spokesman Travis Duncan said.
State officials would not elaborate, and declined to release the completed study after The Denver Post requested it under the Colorado Open Records Act. (A final report was “still being reviewed by editors of a scientific journal,” officials said, adding that peer review and publishing is slow, and that it will be at least a year before findings are released to the public.)
The Post’s request to interview Colorado Parks and Wildlife director Dan Prenzlow was denied, a request through the agency to interview Logan went unanswered, and Logan — when contacted directly — referred queries back to a CPW spokesman.
Colorado wildlife commissioners are scheduled to vote this summer on the plan for managing mountain lions in western Colorado with hunting kill rates between 11% and 15% — while leaving in place quotas as high as 28% elsewhere around the state.
More than 1,000 residents have weighed in on the plan that will shape the future of mountain lions in Colorado a half century after bounty killing pushed the animals toward extinction. Mountain lions now number roughly 30,000 around the West but face intensifying threats such as highways cutting through their habitat. These are elusive, solitary, last-surviving large carnivores in Colorado, able to leap up to 40 feet in pursuit of deer.
Colorado wildlife authorities say they want to ensure a healthy self-sustaining mountain lion population while allowing hunting of lions for meat and minimizing conflicts with people where communities have spread onto lion habitat. They’ve estimated that 4,000 to 5,500 mountain lions live in the state, a number they say is stable or slightly increasing, based on extrapolations from density studies, preliminary data and informal assessments. Hunters last year killed 541 lions. The statewide hunting cap is set at 664.
New plan to control numbers
The CPW plan would control lion numbers by letting hunters kill up to 15% a year west of the Continental Divide — using hounds and in some areas electronic calls that mimic deer in distress — with an unspecified kill rate higher than 15% on a 1,829-square-mile urbanizing area in the Roaring Fork and Eagle River valleys between Vail Pass and Glenwood Canyon.
Wildlife managers there say they received 116 calls about lions over 13 months: many sightings and occasional lions snatching pets, including one pet fatality. That area is smaller than the current 11,372-square-mile western slope “suppression” area where lions are hunted at higher levels aimed at reducing numbers. The plan says no more than 22% of lions killed could be females.
This plan for the next decade in western Colorado would leave in place current mountain lion hunting quotas as high as 28% across the rest of Colorado east of the Continental Divide. CPW officials said they may evaluate these in the future.
No fatal mountain lion attacks on people in Colorado have been reported for more than two decades, but last year a boy was bitten on the head in Bailey and a jogger in the mountains outside Fort Collins killed a lion that lunged for his face. Scientific research on whether hunting of lions reduces or increases conflicts with humans has been inconclusive.
In rejecting the Post’s requests to make Logan’s mountain lion study available, CPW officials said this “would be contrary to the public interest” because the study is “preliminary” and subject to more analysis, and revealing data could hurt its integrity. The completed study is based on Logan’s decade of research on lions across an 870-square-mile area in southwestern Colorado.
This study was designed to find acceptable levels for “sport hunting” of mountain lions. (State rules say lions can only be hunted for their meat, but anti-hunting groups contend hunters’ main motivation is to obtain lion skins and lion heads as trophies.) Researchers captured 224 mountain lions, marked them, released them and observed what happened.
Over the first five years, hunting was prohibited in the area and the lion numbers increased, according to the 2015 state summary report presenting preliminary research results and analysis. Then over the next five years, hunters were allowed to kill 15% of the lions a year. When the lion populations decreased sharply after three years, CPW researchers lowered the hunting quota to 11% for the next two years, the report said, and the population after the five years decreased by 34%.
The scientists concluded that allowing hunting at a rate that removes 15% of lions a year would lead to “a substantial population decline in 3 years.” And they found that lion populations when hunted at levels less than 12% a year “may be sustainable.”
Montrose-based wildlife guide Brady Dunne, who runs a mountain lion photo safari company, worked for Logan conducting the CPW research from 2006 through 2013, running lion capture operations. While Dunne acknowledged he hasn’t seen the final study, he said he was familiar with the results and that, even if math and scales are adjusted for publication in a scientific journal, researchers clearly established that hunting lions at 15% a year could be ruinous.
“If they push this plan through, Colorado’s mountain lion population will be a third of what a healthy mountain lion population in Colorado would be,” Dunne said. “This is really very bad news for mountain lions in Colorado.”
Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman Rebecca Ferrell defended the agency’s approach to mountain lion management.
“CPW has been managing Colorado’s wildlife for close to 125 years, and employs some of the nation’s leading experts on mountain lion management,” she wrote in an email. “Since the 1960s our research, biologists and wildlife managers have been instrumental in bringing the population back, as well as growing population numbers for mountain lions. Our efforts are focused on maintaining mountain lions on the landscape and protecting their habitat.”
Deer, elk and wildlife balance
Colorado officials are adjusting the state’s approach to mountain lions at a time when a population growth and development boom is drawing more people into lion habitat and deer favored by hunters are decreasing, with chronic wasting disease infecting around 5% of deer and up to 20% in some herds. CPW’s target statewide population for deer has been 560,000, but the population has dwindled from 614,000 in 2005 to about 418,000, state records show. Elk numbers remain steadier around 286,000, records show, but herds in the southwestern part of the state are shrinking and migration routes are impaired.
To try to bolster deer, CPW officials committed to a strategy that includes “predator management where predation may be limiting deer survival.” In 2016, state commissioners approved two experiments to allow increased hunting of lions on a total 3,971 square miles around Rifle and Salida to determine how lion predation may affect deer numbers — for which results have not been made public. The wildlife agency also rejected a public-records request from The Post to see that study.
Degradation of habitat amid Colorado’s commercial and residential development boom looms as a primary threat to wildlife, but CPW lacks power to preserve habitat and officials say hunting is one of the agency’s best tools for managing numbers.
Hunting also provides significant revenue for wildlife management in Colorado. Sales of hunting and fishing licenses last year generated $104 million, about 61% from hunters of elk, pronghorn and deer, state records show, with the agency’s overall budget around $231 million. Hunters from out of state pay $401 to hunt deer, $350 to hunt lions, and up to $670 to hunt elk, which pumps millions into rural Colorado. Hunters killed more than 36,000 deer last year.
But CPW carnivore program manager Mark Vieira said that efforts to control mountain lion numbers are “not about finances or generating revenue.” Colorado officials aim to ensure “a stable population,” meaning lion numbers in western Colorado would stay the same as at present, Vieira said.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation advocates “that predators be managed,” habitat stewardship director Karie Decker said. Mule Deer Foundation Colorado chapter president Jon Nestor said “we’re just worried about habitat,” declining to take a position on mountain lion hunting in the state.
Some hunting business operators favor reducing lions.
“We have too many lions. Lions are hard on deer and elk. We need to get the lions down to where deer populations can remain stable,” Cotopaxi-based Loco Mountain Outfitters owner Jim Flynn said.
Conserving Colorado’s wild species
But critics contend Colorado wildlife officials are sacrificing lions and ecosystem balance in a commercial tilt toward managing habitat primarily as a deer-and-elk hunting preserve.
“What they want to do is have more deer and elk. It is as simple as that. They want to keep hunters happy. This is not responsible wildlife management, ” said retired Colorado State University biologist Barry Noon, former chief scientist for the National Biological Service.
CPW officials were directed by lawmakers to take care of wildlife for the benefit of all residents, and only about 5% are hunters, Noon said. Agency leaders “have lost track of what their mission is,” he said. “…And anytime you see an agency muzzle their scientists, that is a really bad sign.”
Colorado wildlife managers have said they are committed to ensuring the survival of mountain lions and call them a source of pride. They point to the recovery of lions since 1965, when bounty killing ended and hunting lions as “big game” began.
“We work hard to conserve all 960 species under our care as well as the habitat they depend on. It is our agency’s duty and mission to find the responsible and sustainable balance of multiple uses on the landscape. It is a mission we take very seriously and very personally,” agency spokeswoman Lauren Truitt said in an email. “…To say we have lost track of our mission is unfounded. We invest millions of dollars and thousands of hours of staff time every year managing Colorado’s resources, the majority of which are non-game wildlife.”
National Wildlife Federation chief scientist Bruce Stein recently warned of a global extinction crisis with thousands of declining species worldwide. “Healthy ecosystems depend on the full range of species, which includes your top carnivores,” Stein said in an interview. “When you take top carnivores out… then you saddle yourself with needing to play those roles. And humans traditionally haven’t been very good at that.”
Environmental groups including the Sierra Club, WildEarth Guardians and animal rights groups led by the Humane Society are challenging Colorado’s approach to mountain lions and opposing the plan in its current form. Some lion hunters, too, oppose the plan, saying reduced lions could put them out of business.
CPW officials haven’t made the public comments Colorado residents submitted to the agency ahead of an extended April 30 deadline available, saying they’re “still being reviewed and collated.” Some residents are urging restraint in the manipulation of mountain lion numbers.
“It makes me sick. It is so wrong I could go to war over it,” said Terry Stark, 76, a retired construction worker and former hunter in Glenwood Springs. “Leave mountain lions alone. Let them make their own, natural population level. This is their environment.”