🚁 Boulder County herbicide plan paused again amid backlash

Good Wednesday morning, Boulder. Today’s BRL Today is sponsored by Uttecht Physical Therapy, providing concierge, in-home physical therapy to help you stay active and independent. Schedule your free consultation.

Leading today’s edition: Boulder County commissioners have paused, restarted and now paused again a controversial plan to spray herbicide by drone across open space at Red Hill to control invasive cheatgrass. The back-and-forth decision-making has drawn criticism over transparency and public process, while also surfacing a deeper debate over the science: County officials say the herbicide is the most effective way to protect native ecosystems and reduce wildfire risk, while residents and researchers argue that chemical spraying is unnecessary, ineffective and unsafe. With a narrow February spraying window approaching, commissioners now face pressure to decide. Por Jaijongkit reports. 

Also today: CU Regent Elliot Hood has launched a monthslong push to expand collective bargaining rights to faculty, staff and student workers across the CU system. Union advocates plan to speak during public comment at a Board of Regents meeting in Boulder on Thursday as regents begin weighing the proposal ahead of a potential vote this summer. Brooke Stephenson reports.

Plus more, Below the Fold:

• BoulderCAST: Low 50s today; unseasonable warmth returns.
• Eldora deal: Nederland town hall set for Feb. 10.
• CU protest: Calls to drop Key Lime Air over ICE flights.
• CAAAS funding: CU commits $2M to Black studies center.
• ICE access: Judge sides with Neguse on surprise visits.
• Poet laureate: Crisosto Apache succeeds Boulder’s Andrea Gibson.
• Mount Sanitas: Major trail work and detours ahead.

Thanks, as always, for reading,

– The BRL team

Boulder County pauses Red Hill drone herbicide spraying again amid backlash

Critics say a confusing, stop-and-start process has eroded public trust over a proposed plan to spray herbicide by drone to control invasive cheatgrass, while county officials maintain it was already approved. Continue reading…

CU begins push to expand collective bargaining for faculty, staff and student workers

Union advocates will speak at a CU Board of Regents meeting in Boulder on Feb. 5, as a monthslong debate over collective bargaining at the university gets underway. Continue reading…

Sunshine returns ahead of a very warm late week

After yesterday’s dark clouds and gusty winds, things will calm down for our Wednesday. High pressure is drifting in from the West Coast, and it will keep the rest of the work week pretty mellow in Boulder.

Sunshine steps back into the spotlight today, nudging temperatures into the low 50s with only a gentle breeze. Tonight dips to around freezing.

Then comes the all-to‑familiar unseasonable warm-up: Temperatures will shoot into the low to mid‑60s Thursday and Friday with plenty of sun to go around. The weekend will be more of the same.

Any real chance of rain or snow will have to wait until sometime next week when a more significant pattern shift is expected with cooler temperatures and chances for light precipitation, and unfortunately, probably one or two days of wind-driven fire danger.

— BoulderCAST

Nederland to hold townhall on Eldora acquisition Feb. 10

Nederland will host a community townhall at 6 p.m. on Feb. 10 at the Nederland Community Center to walk residents through the town’s planned acquisition of Eldora Mountain Resort and what comes next.

Town officials will present an overview of the $120 million deal, which would make Eldora one of a small number of municipally owned ski resorts in Colorado. The purchase has been approved by trustees but still depends on securing revenue bond financing, U.S. Forest Service approval and final operating agreements, including negotiations to remain on the Ikon Pass.

The meeting is intended as an informational briefing. Residents will be able to submit comments and questions, which will be addressed later through a public FAQ rather than answered live.

If financing is secured, the town will buy Eldora using revenue bonds, which would be repaid with resort-generated revenue rather than tax dollars. The purchase would be followed by a two-year transition period during which current owner POWDR would help hand off operations, we previously reported. Town leaders have described the acquisition as a long-term investment in Nederland’s economic future, particularly after last year’s devastating fire.

All community members are encouraged to attend.

Protesters to urge CU Athletics to drop Key Lime Air contract over ICE flights

CU students, including members of the CU Young Democratic Socialists of America, and community activists will protest CU Boulder’s contract with Key Lime Air outside the CU Board of Regents meeting Thursday, Feb. 5.  

Key Lime Air is a Colorado-based airline headquartered in Englewood that has drawn protests for its operation of detainee transport flights for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). CU Boulder Athletics contracts with the airline to provide transportation for some of its athletes, including basketball teams. The university can terminate its contract at any time without cause with 30 days’ notice but has signaled it does not intend to do so.

At 1 p.m., protesters will then enter the building to provide public comment to the Board of Regents, asking them to end the contract “due to safety concerns about the airline itself and its complicity in a cruel and inhumane detainment and deportation system,” said Dana Miller, co-lead of Denver’s Immigrant Partnership Team, in an interview with Boulder Reporting Lab.

CU Boulder invests $2 million in Center for African & African American Studies

CU Boulder announced a $2 million investment over five years in the Center for African & African American Studies (CAAAS) as Black History Month begins and the center marks its fifth anniversary.

The funding will support CAAAS programs, student services and community partnerships. Founded in 2021, the center focuses on teaching, research and engagement around the histories and lived experiences of people of African descent in Boulder and across Colorado.

“The CAAAS is a young, growing, vibrant center that serves all of CU Boulder and connects to the community in Boulder and across the state,” said Chancellor Justin Schwartz.

CAAAS Director Reiland Rabaka welcomed the support. “Every year, we push ourselves to do a little more for Colorado. It isn’t always easy, and it certainly isn’t inexpensive, but the work matters.”

Judge orders DHS to allow unannounced ICE detention visits after Neguse lawsuit

A federal judge on Monday ordered the Department of Homeland Security to allow members of Congress to make unannounced visits to immigration detention facilities, siding with Rep. Joe Neguse and a dozen House Democrats who sued over a DHS policy restricting access.

U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb issued a temporary restraining order blocking DHS from enforcing a rule that effectively barred surprise oversight visits by lawmakers. The order expires in two weeks, during which a more formal hearing will be scheduled.

The ruling follows an incident several weeks ago in which three Democratic lawmakers were denied entry to a Minneapolis detention facility where U.S. citizens, immigrants and refugees were being held amid the Trump administration’s mass deportation effort, according to Politico. After Monday’s ruling, lawmakers were allowed to enter the building.

Minnesota Rep. Kelly Morrison described the conditions she observed as “horrifying and heartbreaking,” citing cold temperatures, a lack of beds, blankets and adequate food, and people held in leg shackles, according to MPR News.

“The decision is a victory for accountability, congressional oversight and for the American people,” Neguse wrote on Threads Monday.

Indigenous poet Crisosto Apache named Colorado Poet Laureate

Crisosto Apache, an Indigenous poet and associate professor of English at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, has been selected as Colorado’s 11th Poet Laureate. Apache succeeds Boulder poet Andrea Gibson, who was appointed in September 2023 and died last July.

Poet laureates serve as arts ambassadors, hosting workshops, leading readings and engaging communities to encourage the appreciation and practice of poetry.

Apache, who is Mescalero Apache, Chiricahua Apache and Diné (Navajo), will serve a two-year term that includes commemorations of the United States’ 250th anniversary and Colorado’s 150th statehood anniversary. They have said they hope to help young people discover poetry and to work with county poet laureates across the state.

“For me, this service is more than a title; it’s about sharing the quiet miracle of poetry and the transformative power poetry holds for our lives. Today, perhaps more than ever, our young people need poetry,” Apache said.

Apache holds an MFA from the Institute of American Indian Arts and is an editor-at-large for The Offing. Their previous work includes the poetry collections “GENESIS,” “Ghostword” and “is(ness).” 

What to expect on the Mount Sanitas Trail in 2026

Trail work will continue this year on Mount Sanitas, one of Boulder’s most visited natural areas, with nearly 375,000 annual visits — but also a trail system that is poorly designed and requires frequent upkeep.

The city will repair the East Ridge and Mount Sanitas corridors, restore damaged areas and informal trails, and improve bouldering access. New official neighborhood access points will be added on Linden Avenue and 4th Street.

Visitors should expect detours around active construction zones during the work.

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