Happy Friday, Boulder! 🎉 Here’s your latest edition of BRL Today to send you off into the weekend.
First, John Herrick breaks down years of Boulder crime data. One main takeaway: Violent crimes are on the rise — but the rates of aggravated assaults, robbery, rape and murder were comparatively low to begin with.
Also in this morning’s newsletter, you’ll find updates on the Disaster SNAP application deadline, a community conversation for older adults affected by the Marshall Fire, tips on assessing your homeowners’ insurance policy and a whole lot more.
One last thing: We’re hiring! BRL is currently looking for a climate and environment reporter to join our growing team. This person will explore the climate and environmental consequences playing out in our community and dive deep into solutions. Does this sound like someone you know? Does it sound like you? Email BRL Publisher Stacy Feldman (and me) with a cover letter, resume and links to your work.
– Jezy, managing editor
Top Story
What we know (and don’t) about the Boulder crime rate
The national rising crime trend has not entirely spared Boulder: The violent crime rate today is similar to the peak of the last major wave, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, according to an analysis of FBI data by the Boulder Reporting Lab. Even then, the rates of aggravated assaults, robbery, rape and murder were comparatively low. Read the full story, and check out the charts
Quickly
⏱️ Plenty of sunshine and highs in the mid-40s should help melt yesterday’s snowfall.
⏱️ Applications for Disaster SNAP relief close on Feb. 1. Apply in-person at the St. Vrain Community Hub in Longmont (515 Coffman St.) or call 303-441-1000 and select Option 3.
⏱️ Civil engineering researchers from CU Boulder, Oregon State and Purdue University will deploy drones to study Marshall Fire impacts today in Louisville, Superior and Unincorporated Boulder County.
⏱️ Was your smoke detector affected by the Marshall Fire? The county will take them off your hands and dispose of them safely (for free).
⏱️ Andrew O’Connor, an attorney, is running for the District 3 Boulder County commissioner seat as an unaffiliated candidate, according to reports.
⏱️ Annabelle Gochis of New Vista High School, Josue Hernandez-Guerrero of Boulder High School and Megan Hess of Nederland MS/HS are winners of this year’s Corden Pharma Science Fair design contest.
⏱️ Have you checked your homeowners’ insurance policy lately? At Home Colorado has tips on how to do it.
⏱️ Aggregate Industries expects to begin blasting within the Lyons Quarry Reclamation project as early as Monday, Jan. 31. This will take place on and off for several weeks, but it’s not expected to affect traffic on Colorado Highway 7.
Covid-19 in Boulder County: Jan. 28, 2022
- 712 daily new cases (7-day avg.) 🔺Up 13% over preceding 7-day avg. (Note: This data was last updated Jan. 25.)
- 90 patients hospitalized with Covid (7-day avg.) 🔺Up from avg. of 40 since July 2020.
- 69% percent of ICU is occupied. ⬇Down from avg. of 72% since July 2020.
- Data: Here’s how and where we’re tracking all of the above.
Latest Covid news
- “More good news.” The Covid-19 situation continues to improve in Colorado across all metrics — cases, percent positivity and hospitalizations — according to yesterday’s media update from Colorado State Epidemiologist Rachel Herlihy. “While things are moving in the right direction, there’s still a lot of Covid-19 circulating in our community right now,” she said.
- BA … what? That’s right. There’s a subvariant of the Omicron variant called BA.2, which looks to be replacing BA.1 (the most common Omicron variant) in some countries. This suggests that it might be more transmissible than BA.1, and that may lead to more transmission and more cases, temporarily. There’s no evidence that it’s any more severe, Herlihy said. And the Colorado Department of Public Health has detected only one case of BA.2, and that was in late December. The subvariant has not been detected in wastewater testing, she added.
BRL Picks
🗣️ Community convo for older adults. City of Boulder Older Adult Services and Mental Health Partners are offering a virtual community conversation about older adults in the wake of the Marshall Fire on Thursday, Feb. 10, 10–11:30 a.m.
🚸 Volunteer crossing guards needed. BVSD is “in desperate need” of volunteers to help kids cross the street before and after school at various locations around the district. There is particular need for communities affected by the Marshall Fire. Sign up here.
❤️🩹 Be an advocate. The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office is seeking volunteer advocates to “provide assistance to victims of crime, accidents, trauma, disasters, and other critical events.” This is a one-year commitment, including monthly support meetings and being on-call for one week a month. Volunteers will respond to the scene of an incident and stay with the victim/survivor during the immediate crisis.
🎨 Boulder Arts Week sponsorships. $500 grants are available for projects by artists and arts organizations during Boulder’s large-scale local art blowout, March 25 through April 2. Info and application here.
What We’re Reading
- Lightning didn’t spark the Marshall Fire — so what did? The short answer is we don’t know yet. “Few details about the investigation have been made public. The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office says it’s casting a wide net and considering all possibilities. However, a spokesperson confirmed that investigators are actively focused on three explanations: downed power lines, human activity, and underground coal.” [CPR News]
- Everyday heroism. To celebrate 28 years of publishing, Boulder Weekly is highlighting the city’s unsung heroes. “Boulder County endured unimaginable trauma last year; we lost loved ones to violence and illness, we lost homes to fire. But we came together each time and saw each other through. We hope the stories we share in the following pages lift your spirits, soften your armor and remind you of the beauty in this world.” [Boulder Weekly]
- For the kids. As we reported in the immediate aftermath of the Marshall Fire, BVSD has been helping students get the resources they need in the wake of the disaster. “Tending to students coping with trauma has become a specialty in the district of more than 29,000 students, which, on top of pandemic stresses, dealt with a mass shooting at the Table Mesa King Soopers before the Marshall fire blew up into the state’s most destructive in history.” [Colorado Sun]
ICYMI from BRL
🚗 Nosh Boulder pitches in after the Marshall Fire. The restaurant-owned food delivery service had been a vital community partner during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, offering a financially feasible delivery option for local dining establishments as indoor dining plummeted. Now, with the Boulder County community in need more than ever, it was time to step up again.
💉 Half of Boulder County kids ages 5-11 are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. According to data from the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, just over 14,000 children ages 5–11 have been vaccinated in Boulder County as of Jan. 24. Of those, about 11,500 have received their second dose.
🦠 Could Omicron get us closer to herd immunity? When it comes to Covid-19 variants, we are essentially witnessing Darwinian evolution – survival of the fittest – in real time, three University of Colorado Boulder researchers explain.
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