Colorado seniors are facing the housing crisis

Good morning, Sun friends.

I hope you all were able to honor, remember or celebrate the dads in your life yesterday. At my house, this included a new griddle attachment that sits on top of the gas grill. I see a summer of dinners without turning on the stove. Fajitas, fried rice, smash burgers. If you have a favorite flat-top recipe, please share.

The weekend was a particularly newsy one. Catch up on the local “No Kings” protests and the Safeway strike, but don’t miss my two favorite reads: an engaging profile of a Colorado river warrior, and the latest in our Aging in Colorado series, this one focused on the housing crisis.

Jennifer Brown

Reporter

THE NEWS

AGING IN COLORADO

As Colorado ages, seniors are colliding with the housing crisis

The fastest-growing generation, those 65 and older, didn’t cause the housing crunch, but they are increasingly at the center of it. As Colorado grows older, the needs of seniors are colliding with a housing affordability crisis that has left those who grew up with social media competing with those who remember World War II for a scarce supply of homes, Brian Eason writes in the latest installment of our Aging in Colorado series.

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MORE COVERAGE: Aging in Colorado — A Colorado Sun series

OUTDOORS

Record number of chairlift falls in Colorado — and two recent deaths — prods resort industry call for a “cultural shift”

The Colorado ski resort industry does not track chairlift falls or injuries, but Jason Blevins does. The past decade has been the deadliest on record for chairlifts, including 18 falls reported to the Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Board in the 2024-25 ski season. At least eight of those falls involved children.

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POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Thousands gather across Colorado for “No Kings” protest against Trump administration

In one of the largest public demonstrations since the death of George Floyd, thousands of people gathered at more than a dozen places across Colorado on Saturday. They raised signs, chanted and marched for democracy. Rallies were held from Grand Junction to Colorado Springs, Denver to Durango and many other places between.

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• 36 people arrested Saturday night in Denver after “No Kings” demonstration ended. Denver police say a different group of protesters tried at least twice to enter Interstate 25, which led to most of the arrests.
• Colorado politicians react with horror, sadness to shootings of Minnesota lawmakers. Elected leaders described the Minnesota shootings as an attack on democracy and called on Americans to reject political violence.
• Jury begins deliberation in defamation trial against MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell on Monday. Jurors must decide whether Mike Lindell defamed Eric Coomer when he claimed the Dominion Voting Systems boss rigged the 2020 election.
• Federal request for Colorado voter data seems motivated by politics, election officials say. “Sloppy” records request has Colorado’s Secretary of State wondering if the demand has less to do with elections than Tina Peters’ conviction.

EDUCATION

Statue of Bill McCartney, the title-winning coach who called homosexuality an “abomination,” is dividing CU

A towering statue of former Buffs football coach Bill McCartney is coming to Folsom Field this fall. But while “Coach Mac” was revered by many, his stance against same-sex marriage is dividing the University of Colorado. Members of the LGBTQ+ community want the university to rethink how to preserve complicated figures and chapters of its past, Erica Breunlin reports.

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LABOR

Colorado workers at 4 Safeway stores and a Denver distribution center go on strike

Union workers at Safeway stores in Estes Park, Fountain and two stores in Pueblo walked off the job Sunday morning after a temporary contract extension ended with no agreement. Employees at the Safeway distribution center in Denver also joined the strike. Tamara Chuang has more.

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BUSINESS

A pair of CU hockey buds are brewing up business with recycled coffee waste

Just in time for camping season, here’s a story about a business called Blazin’ Joe that is using the dry husks that flake off coffee beans during the roasting process to make campfire logs. The coffee bricks are flammable but environmentally sound, with a pleasant toasted scent, writes Michael Booth.

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• What’s Working: How Enstrom Candies almost left downtown Grand Junction. The candy maker is expanding in town, next to land it sold to the city for affordable housing. Plus: Another Colorado grocery strike?

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

How the GOP budget bill will make the rich richer and the poor poorer, according to a nonpartisan analysis

The biggest winners of the Republican-backed spending bill are the wealthiest Americans, a new analysis from the Congressional Budget office shows, while the biggest losers are the poorest. Taylor Dolven explores how it would affect Colorado’s state spending.

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MORE NEWS

• New measles case in Boulder may have exposed passengers on the Flatiron Flyer bus. A new measles case in Boulder — Colorado’s 15th so far in 2025 — may have exposed passengers on the Flatiron Flyer bus.
• Fact Brief ☀️ Has RTD collected taxpayer dollars for a rail line between Denver and Boulder it hasn’t built? Yes. Despite collecting $4 billion from taxpayers for transit upgrades, RTD hasn’t delivered on a plan to build a Denver-Boulder rail line.
• Men hit by lightning plucked from mountain in record-high Colorado helicopter rescues. The rescues happened late Thursday near the summit of Torreys Peak, a 14,300-foot mountain about 40 miles west of Denver.

COLORADO SUNDAY

Meet the controversial activist who has shaken Colorado’s water world and made 2025 a banner year for its rivers

Gary Wockner is a controversial figure in Colorado’s water arena, where disagreements rarely break out into open conflict, writes Jerd Smith. But Wockner is all about open conflict. He doesn’t hesitate to go after fellow environmental activists who he believes aren’t doing enough to combat the giant water institutions that control much of Colorado’s water. Recent water wins, he said, are the culmination of 20 years of work.

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Section by Eric Lubbers | CTO & Newsletter Wrangler

THE COLORADO REPORT

???? = source has article meter or paywall

• Maroon Bells lack water, electricity and toilets due to budget cuts, staff shortages. One of Colorado’s most photographic spots near Aspen, the scenic area is short on staff and amenities after funding cuts from the federal government.
  — The Aspen Times
• A judge blocked a rural Colorado city from disbanding a church’s homeless encampment. Then the city fired her. The firing in Montrose prompted serious concern from church leaders and homeless advocates, who wonder whether the city is stacking the deck against them.
  — The Denver Post ????
• Mass resignations follow Fort Lewis Mesa fire board elections. In the weeks after a contentious election for the district’s board of directors, the fire chief resigned, two board members quit and nine firefighters left. “This was a pretty hostile situation,” the new board president says.
  — Durango Herald
• Viral TikTok post of Summit County trail sends vehicles spilling onto roadway, prompting Sheriff’s Office response. Acorn Creek trail got a lot of attention recently thanks to a video that garnered over 600,000 views and 101,000 likes. And although the creator said everyone should move to Colorado, the comments disagreed.
  — Summit Daily
• Did Denver really invent the cheeseburger? The Humpty Dumpty Drive-In thought so. If you’ve ever heard that the cheeseburger began in Denver, then here’s what you ought to know about the restaurant supposedly behind the recipe.
  — Tasting Table

Section by David Krause | Editor

THE OPINION PAGE

COLUMNS

• Just before the wild weekend, California Sen. Alex Padilla learned where things are heading. You must have seen the video of Padilla being manhandled and cuffed at a Kristi Noem news conference. What would happen next?
  — Mike Littwin
  
• Jax Gratton embodied pride more than one month a year. Jax Gratton, the transgender woman whose remains were recently found, spent her life making herself and others beautiful.
  — Mario Nicolais
  
• Going to jail for getting in “good trouble” is a patriotic act. History does not look kindly on the government’s violent response to demonstrators asserting their rights at protests.
  — Diane Carman

CARTOONS

• How to climb Longs Peak. Summiting 14,259 foot Longs Peak is a supposedly fun hike I’ll never do again. And you probably shouldn’t, either.
  — Peter Moore
  

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.

Hope you are enjoying outdoor cooking season, too!

— Jennifer and the whole staff of The Sun

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Corrections & Clarifications

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