September 3, 2025 Community Meeting Notes 

(These notes were generated by AI from a recording of the meeting and checked by a fallible human for accuracy. If you find an error, please notify us at acteam@alamedaconnects.org)

1. City of Lakewood Mayor

• Mayor Pro Tem Jeslin Shahrezaei spoke on behalf of Mayor Wendi Strom.
• She discussed the city zoning rewrite and confirmed the plans for the Emory school property.
• The city of Lakewood is partnering with the Jefferson County Public School District to hopefully purchase the Emory school property in Ward 3.
• The city intends to own the property, and the school building would become the new home for the Action Center.
• This is an ongoing conversation with several community meetings already held.

2. Jefferson County Commissioner’s Report

• Lesley Dahlkemper reported on the county budget. Due to a changing landscape, Jefferson County may lose up to $16 million in federal and state funds.
• An executive order task force has been formed to proactively track federal-level changes.
• Jefferson County Public Health will lose about $1.5 million in federal funding.
• Predicted changes to SNAP and Medicaid could affect over 100,000 Jefferson County residents.
• The county is exploring partnerships with municipalities, nonprofits, and foundations to address community needs.
• The passage of 1A allowed the county to invest over $7 million this year into building and expanding its wildland fire management program.
• Federal funds for Head Start were received, allowing for the expansion of early childhood services in Lakewood and Golden starting October 1.

3. Lakewood Police Department Update

• Agent Quinn Pratt-Cordova provided an update on recent events and initiatives.
• The homeless outreach team has been approved to move to 24-hour camp cleanups, down from 72 hours.
• The “drone as a first responder” program has been successful. In 19 weeks, drones have handled over 1,000 calls, beating agents to the scene 78% of the time. The program has resulted in 92 arrests and cleared 40% of calls without an agent needing to respond.
• A new software system called “Fusus” will integrate all camera feeds into one platform for real-time information.

4. West Metro Fire Update

• Gary Armstrong reported that three fire crews are on federal deployments for wildfires.
• He highlighted the county’s unprecedented wildland fire efforts.
• Nineteen new firefighters have been hired and are going through the academy.
• The Firemuster event will take place on October 4.

5. Denver Report

• Former Lakewood Mayor Adam Paul, now a regional director for Denver, discussed the city’s budget challenges, including a low growth rate and recent layoffs to cut $250 million. Public safety was exempt from these cuts.
• Denver has seen a 45% reduction in street homelessness and a 45% drop in the homicide rate, the largest decline among the top 50 U.S. cities.
• The city anticipates hiring 168 new police officers, 24 firefighters, and 60 sheriffs.
• A new permitting program for housing and businesses offers a refund if a permit isn’t issued within 120 days.
• The city is swapping land to turn the former Park Hill Golf Course into the city’s second-largest park.
• A new women’s professional soccer team, the Denver Summit, plans to build a stadium at Santa Fe Yards.
• The 16th Street Mall has been rebranded to 16th Street, with enhanced public safety.
• A pilot program is offering a shuttle service from the Jefferson County station to Red Rocks.

6. Trolley Car 25

• Dave Schaff announced that the city’s historic Trolley Car 25 will be on display at the Federal Center on September 20 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Visitors can ride the restored trolley for free.

7. Partner Updates

• Marcus Johnson announced upcoming events from the Lakewood Economic Development department, including a women-owned business lunch and chat, Colorado Startup Week, and the return of the “Shop Lakewood” holiday campaign.
• He noted positive signs in Lakewood’s real estate, including an increase in lease rates and pricing.
• A pilot program offering grants for safety improvements along the Colfax Corridor was well-received and may be expanded.
• The Chamber of Commerce announced a “Putter’s Pride” event on September 18 and the Jeffco Golf Tournament on September 25.

8. Belmar Updates

• Joyce Rocha provided updates on upcoming events at the Belmar Plaza, including the Lakewood Food and Wine festival, the Romanian Festival, and Barktember Fest, which features wiener dog races.
• New stores have opened recently, including Miniso. She announced several new and upcoming stores: Miniso and Spirit Halloween recently opened; Clean Your Dirty Face, Onto Coffee, Spavia, Badass Coffee, and Kp Korean barbecue are opening soon.

9. Announcements

• Trevor Wolfson announced that Love Lakewood Day is on the 20th of this month, and is a city-wide day of service. The website to sign up is servespotlakewood.org
• A mentor event will be held jointly with the Belmar Library on Thursday, October 23.
• The music stage for Lakewood Cider Days will run on October 4 and 5.
• Julie Elam will conduct the Sustainable Business workshop is designed to help business owners connect with one another, share stories, and learn how to make their businesses more sustainable. The workshop will include breakout activities to help attendees take small steps toward sustainability. It’s also open to people who are just concerned about sustainability and want to learn how to be more sustainable at home or in schools, as the lessons are transferable.
• The workshop is scheduled for Thursday, October 16th, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., with a happy hour to follow from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.. It will be held at the Valkyrie Gallery in downtown Belmar. An event registration link will be sent out via email and Eventbrite.
• Rachel Griffin confirmed the rescheduled “Movie in the Park” for September 12 at O’Kane Park, showing the movie Moana 2. She also announced a Crime Prevention Round Table for September 24 at 10:30 a.m.. She noted two grant programs: a $500 “Small but Mighty” grant and a $5,000 “Securing Alameda” grant.

10. Upcoming Dates

• September 6: The Lakewood Food and Wine festival.
• September 12: A rescheduled Movie in the Park at O’Kane Park, showing the movie Moana 2.
• September 13: Clean Your Dirty Face facial place opens.
• September 18: The “Putter’s Pride” event, hosted by the West Colfax Chamber of Commerce.
• September 20: The Romanian Festival at Belmar Plaza.
• September 20: Love Lakewood Day, a city-wide day of service.
• September 20: The historic Trolley Car 25 will be on display at the Federal Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m..
• September 24: A Crime Prevention Round Table at 10:30 a.m. with Agent Quinn Pratt-Cordova.
• September 25: The Jeffco Golf Tournament, hosted by the Chamber of Commerce.
• September 27: Barktember Fest, featuring wiener dog races at Belmar Plaza.
• Mid-September: Onto Coffee opens.
• October 1: The expansion of early childhood services in Lakewood and Golden through Head Start funds.
• October 4: The Firemuster event hosted by West Metro Fire.
• October 4-5: The music stage for Lakewood Cider Days.
• October 16:  Sustainable Business Workshop at the Valkyrie Gallery from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m..
• October 23: A mentor event, held jointly with the Belmar Library.
• October: Spavia opens.
• November: Badass Coffee opens.
• Before the end of the year: Kp Korean barbecue opens.