Thursday, May 1, 2025

Good Morning! On this day in 1890, Mary Elitch opened Elitch’s Zoological Gardens, making her the first woman in history to own and operate a zoo. Her gardens later expanded to include concerts and stage shows, laying the groundwork for what would eventually evolve into Elitch Gardens Amusement Park, now located downtown.

Speaking of theme parks, Glenwood Caverns, home to America’s highest looping roller coaster, will open for the summer tomorrow. Check out the details in Et Cetera.

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257 Bills Await Action with Days Left in Session

With less than a week left in Colorado’s legislative session, lawmakers face a tight deadline to resolve 257 pending bills, including some of the session’s most controversial.

House Joint Resolution 1023, a Democrat-led challenge to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), has awaited a House vote since April 7. House Bill 1297—which would redirect some state reinsurance funds to cover health insurance for non-citizens—is stalled in the House Finance Committee.

House Bill 1291, the Ride Share Safety Bill, made headlines when Uber threatened to exit Colorado if it became law. Sponsors say they’re working with companies on amendments ahead of a Senate vote.

Of the 652 bills introduced in 2025, Gov. Jared Polis has signed 157 and vetoed two. One veto override failed in the House; a vote to override the other is expected Friday.

Colorado Files 15th Trump Admin Lawsuit

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed the state’s 15th lawsuit against the Trump administration on Tuesday, joining 24 states in suing to block cuts to AmeriCorps.

AmeriCorps, a national service program, placed 85% of its staff on leave in anticipation of the cuts, which would eliminate nearly $400 million in grants.

According to the suit, the cuts would “effectively end” AmeriCorps’ programs. In Colorado, where AmeriCorps has over 1,000 volunteers, those programs include wildfire mitigation, public health outreach, and student tutoring.

The other 14 lawsuits include challenges to the administration’s tariffs, education cuts, government downsizing, and a birthright citizenship ban.

Boulder Atomic Clock to Track World’s Time

A new atomic clock developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder is one of the most accurate in the world.

The NIST-F4 uses a cesium fountain to achieve ultra-precise timekeeping. According to NIST, if it began ticking 100 million years ago, it would be off by less than a second today.

NIST has submitted the clock to the International Bureau of Weights and Measures—a group that oversees global timekeeping—for acceptance as a primary frequency standard.

If approved, it would join an elite group of atomic clocks used to calibrate Coordinated Universal Time, or UTC, which is critical for industries like telecommunications, finance, and transportation.

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➤ Statewide: Jeff Sperbeck, John Elway’s longtime agent and close friend, died Wednesday after suffering a head injury in a golf cart accident. He reportedly fell from the back of a cart driven by Elway following the Stagecoach music festival on Saturday. (More)

➤ Colorado Springs: Federal sources confirmed 17 active-duty military personnel were present at the underground nightclub raided Sunday. Some worked security, and several are now under investigation. (See Details)

➤ Statewide: The House voted to postpone action on Gov. Jared Polis’ veto of Senate Bill 25-086, effectively blocking an override of the measure regulating how social media platforms handle illegal conduct. (More)

➤ Boulder County: Forensic experts have identified the human remains found in last year’s Stone Canyon fire as those of Kevin James Tracy, 74. The fire is believed to have started in Tracy’s home. (More)

➤ Statewide: Bird flu infections among household cats are on the rise in Colorado, according to researchers at Colorado State University. (See Details)

➤ Weld County: Officials determined a barrier failure caused the April 6 containment incident at a Chevron-operated oil well. A spokesperson called the accident “rare and unprecedented.” (More)

➤ Statewide: A first-of-its-kind study revealed over 52,000 people in Colorado sought services for homelessness in 2024. 30% were chronically homeless and 6% were veterans. (See Study)

➤ The Colorado Avalanche are sticking with Mackenzie Blackwood at goalie for Game 6 of their playoff series tonight, despite pulling him during the second period of Game 5 after a rough showing. (More)

➤ The Colorado Rockies’ brutal start to the season continued on Tuesday when they fell 8-2 to the Atlanta Braves, pushing their losing streak to eight games and their season record to 4-25. (More)

➤ The NFL has fined the Atlanta Falcons and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich a combined $350,000 after Sanders’s phone number was accessed and used for a prank call during the draft. (More)

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➤ Los Dos Potrillos, a Denver-area Mexican restaurant chain, paid out $3.75 million in a class action settlement based on allegations it underpaid employees and violated other labor laws. (More)

➤ Walmart plans to remodel more than 650 stores across the United States, including 25 in Colorado. (See Stores)

➤ Denver City Council gave preliminary approval to parts of a plan to turn the shuttered Park Hill Golf Course into the city’s fourth-largest public park. (More)

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➤ Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, the only mountaintop theme park in the country, will open all rides for the summer season tomorrow. (See Details)

➤ The Colorado Underground Research Institute plans to build a ground-breaking quantum computing lab inside an underground mine in Idaho Springs. (See Details)

➤ Romance is the most popular book genre in Colorado, according to a new study that mapped genre popularity by state. (See Map)

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