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So long, 2008
  
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Soldier's death leads our top 10 stories of the year
By Robyn Lydick
News was sad and poignant, bureaucratic and fun by turns in 2008.
The loss of a second resident to war in Afghanistan brought a somber feel to the Turkey Day 5K and also brought in more support for the Highlands Ranch Veterans Monument.
Sgt. Jon Stiles, a member of the National Guard, died Nov. 13 from a handmade bomb in Jalabad, Afghanis-tan.
His widow Launa Stiles ran in the 5K in honor of him.
“Jon’s mom told me as a small child he always wanted to be a soldier. It was in his DNA,” Launa Stiles said. “He was a soldier’s soldier and we are free because of him.”
A wife’s duty, Launa Stiles said, is to support her husband 100 percent.
“He was designed by God to be a soldier,” she said. “I prayed, hoped and knew the sacrifice he was making, we were making.”
A plaque honoring Stiles will be added to a monument in Highlands Ranch.
The veteran’s monument broke ground July 1 with much fanfare. Actual construction will begin this spring.
Girl Scout troops, schools and concerts have all raised money for the edifice.
Organizers hope to get $200,000. As of Dec. 26, 2008 $132,000 had been raised.
2- HRCA opens, closes idea of outside memberships
Looking for more revenue, the Highlands Ranch Community Association looked into opening memberships to people outside of its boundaries.
The board of directors voted to allow a pilot program for memberships Sept. 16, only to have the delegates on the recreation advisory committee raise concerns during budget negotiations.
So in November, the budget passed without the expected revenue from out-of- area members, keeping HRCA trails, pools and recreation centers for Highlands Ranch only.
3- Convention in our midst
The Democratic National Convention was the local stop on Barack Obama’s road to the White House.
Highlands Ranch resident Glen Spagnolo was a point man for protesters at the Democratic National Convention in August. Recreate ’68 was the banner for an assortment of dissatisfied folks from around the country.
He brought many speakers to Denver for the week, including Ward Churchill, Fred Hampton Jr., Cindy Sheehan, and Rosa Clemente, a vice presidential candidate on the Green ticket. Performers David Rovics and Ded Prez also lent their voices.
“We can have hip-hop in the White House,” Clemente said. “We are not the alternative, we are imperative.”
After the speeches, the rally became a march — a permitted, police-escorted march.
4- Target in their sights
Town Center is expanding north across Highlands Ranch Parkway and the retail anchor of the expansion will be Target.
While all the details have yet to be finalized, preliminary OKs have been made.
Some residents were less than thrilled with the idea of a super-sized big box retailer and the attendant light and noise pollution across from their homes.
Residents 200-plus strong came out in force during the June Development Review Committee meeting at Wildcat Auditorium.
Usually one or two members of the public attend these meetings.
5- Direct bus service to airport lost
Regional Transportation District directors voted to stop AT, or Sky Ride, buses at Arapahoe Village Station on the Southeast rail line.
The AT had stopped at Mineral Station in Littleton and University Park-n-Ride in Highlands Ranch.
Many residents were unhappy with the situation, from business travelers to Denver International Airport employees. Some took to grassroots activism, standing up on the AT and announcing the planned changes and encouraging users to contact their director.
Those efforts failed, and the AT now ends at Arapahoe Village Station.
6- Neighbors get it right
Over the past two years, a cul-de-sac off of Broadway and Northridge Drive has seen its share of bad news. Since 2007, Coyote Street saw a murder-suicide, a house fire, the departure of a favorite son to the U.S. Marines Corps and Iraq, and the death of a neighbor from cystic fibrosis.
But the neighborhood pulled together, an outgrowth of a strong Neighborhood Watch program and its routine communications.
Greg Giesen is the Neighborhood Watch coordinator who helps organize many of the street’s get-togethers.
“What we have on Coyote Street should be the norm for Highlands Ranch,” he said.
7- Transgender child gets support from community
In February, the family of a transgendered girl — a genetic boy who identifies as girl — told their story after a neighbor who disagreed with how the family and the Douglas County School District was handling their situation called a television station.
Since the story ran, the girl has gotten a mix of responses from classmates. Overall, the community has supported her.
8- Prairie dogs evicted
Metro District decided to eliminate a colony of prairie dogs in Spring Gulch open space.
Activists and neighbors had words as the district board of directors discussed the plan at multiple meetings.
In October 2008 the animals were removed. Most went to become food for black-footed ferrets.
9- 2008 Election
It was a tough election year for Douglas County government.
The Douglas County School District was turned down for a dual request for a $395 million mill levy increase and a $17 million budget override. The library district mill levy increase fell for the second election in a row after voters again said no in 2008.
10- Sweet three-peat
The Highlands Ranch High School girls basketball team did it again. The Falcons claimed their third 5A title in a row with a 59-54 win against Regis Jesuit March 14 in Boulder.
Janessa Burke’s 3-pointer in the final minute gave Ranch the lead for good. Adding to the drama was that Burke was in the game for Alyssa Fressle, who had fouled out.
Fressle, the Gatorade player of the year for the state of Colorado, scored 13 points before having to leave the game.
The loss of a second resident to war in Afghanistan brought a somber feel to the Turkey Day 5K and also brought in more support for the Highlands Ranch Veterans Monument.
Sgt. Jon Stiles, a member of the National Guard, died Nov. 13 from a handmade bomb in Jalabad, Afghanis-tan.
His widow Launa Stiles ran in the 5K in honor of him.
“Jon’s mom told me as a small child he always wanted to be a soldier. It was in his DNA,” Launa Stiles said. “He was a soldier’s soldier and we are free because of him.”
A wife’s duty, Launa Stiles said, is to support her husband 100 percent.
“He was designed by God to be a soldier,” she said. “I prayed, hoped and knew the sacrifice he was making, we were making.”
A plaque honoring Stiles will be added to a monument in Highlands Ranch.
The veteran’s monument broke ground July 1 with much fanfare. Actual construction will begin this spring.
Girl Scout troops, schools and concerts have all raised money for the edifice.
Organizers hope to get $200,000. As of Dec. 26, 2008 $132,000 had been raised.
2- HRCA opens, closes idea of outside memberships
Looking for more revenue, the Highlands Ranch Community Association looked into opening memberships to people outside of its boundaries.
The board of directors voted to allow a pilot program for memberships Sept. 16, only to have the delegates on the recreation advisory committee raise concerns during budget negotiations.
So in November, the budget passed without the expected revenue from out-of- area members, keeping HRCA trails, pools and recreation centers for Highlands Ranch only.
3- Convention in our midst
The Democratic National Convention was the local stop on Barack Obama’s road to the White House.
Highlands Ranch resident Glen Spagnolo was a point man for protesters at the Democratic National Convention in August. Recreate ’68 was the banner for an assortment of dissatisfied folks from around the country.
He brought many speakers to Denver for the week, including Ward Churchill, Fred Hampton Jr., Cindy Sheehan, and Rosa Clemente, a vice presidential candidate on the Green ticket. Performers David Rovics and Ded Prez also lent their voices.
“We can have hip-hop in the White House,” Clemente said. “We are not the alternative, we are imperative.”
After the speeches, the rally became a march — a permitted, police-escorted march.
4- Target in their sights
Town Center is expanding north across Highlands Ranch Parkway and the retail anchor of the expansion will be Target.
While all the details have yet to be finalized, preliminary OKs have been made.
Some residents were less than thrilled with the idea of a super-sized big box retailer and the attendant light and noise pollution across from their homes.
Residents 200-plus strong came out in force during the June Development Review Committee meeting at Wildcat Auditorium.
Usually one or two members of the public attend these meetings.
5- Direct bus service to airport lost
Regional Transportation District directors voted to stop AT, or Sky Ride, buses at Arapahoe Village Station on the Southeast rail line.
The AT had stopped at Mineral Station in Littleton and University Park-n-Ride in Highlands Ranch.
Many residents were unhappy with the situation, from business travelers to Denver International Airport employees. Some took to grassroots activism, standing up on the AT and announcing the planned changes and encouraging users to contact their director.
Those efforts failed, and the AT now ends at Arapahoe Village Station.
6- Neighbors get it right
Over the past two years, a cul-de-sac off of Broadway and Northridge Drive has seen its share of bad news. Since 2007, Coyote Street saw a murder-suicide, a house fire, the departure of a favorite son to the U.S. Marines Corps and Iraq, and the death of a neighbor from cystic fibrosis.
But the neighborhood pulled together, an outgrowth of a strong Neighborhood Watch program and its routine communications.
Greg Giesen is the Neighborhood Watch coordinator who helps organize many of the street’s get-togethers.
“What we have on Coyote Street should be the norm for Highlands Ranch,” he said.
7- Transgender child gets support from community
In February, the family of a transgendered girl — a genetic boy who identifies as girl — told their story after a neighbor who disagreed with how the family and the Douglas County School District was handling their situation called a television station.
Since the story ran, the girl has gotten a mix of responses from classmates. Overall, the community has supported her.
8- Prairie dogs evicted
Metro District decided to eliminate a colony of prairie dogs in Spring Gulch open space.
Activists and neighbors had words as the district board of directors discussed the plan at multiple meetings.
In October 2008 the animals were removed. Most went to become food for black-footed ferrets.
9- 2008 Election
It was a tough election year for Douglas County government.
The Douglas County School District was turned down for a dual request for a $395 million mill levy increase and a $17 million budget override. The library district mill levy increase fell for the second election in a row after voters again said no in 2008.
10- Sweet three-peat
The Highlands Ranch High School girls basketball team did it again. The Falcons claimed their third 5A title in a row with a 59-54 win against Regis Jesuit March 14 in Boulder.
Janessa Burke’s 3-pointer in the final minute gave Ranch the lead for good. Adding to the drama was that Burke was in the game for Alyssa Fressle, who had fouled out.
Fressle, the Gatorade player of the year for the state of Colorado, scored 13 points before having to leave the game.
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