The importance of water in Colorado
Re: “Liquid assets; Turning water into gold,” Nov. 20-23 news series.
I want to thank The Denver Post for getting back into writing about Colorado water. Staffers David Olinger, Chuck Plunkett and Barbara Hudson deserve kudos for their fine work in compiling last week’s series.
As a Colorado native of 78 years, I must say this topic has been so badly underreported over the years that few people, including myself, have any idea of what a tremendously expensive, big and complicated business that so-called “public water” has become in our state, let alone the many mysteries that surround it – everything from metropolitan districts to the profits municipalities accrue by buying water shares wholesale at a one-time cost, then selling it retail to consumers at a set fee that rarely goes down.
Yes, I know about the cost of dams, tunnels, diversions, distribution infrastructure, etc., but I also know it costs very little to treat water for human consumption. That was one great thing about the good old Denver Water Board – it had no incentive to profit from water.
As for extra fees upfront, homebuilders don’t seem to mind shelling out $20,000 to $25,000 for a water impact fee on each house. They get the water they need and quietly pass through the cost of the impact fee to the homebuyer. For municipalities that add 400-500 houses a year, it’s hard for them to break away from an annual $8 million to $10 million revenue stream like that, even though a lot of it may go into paying off bond issues, buying more water, and building more infrastructure – to provide for more growth.
It’s all in the game, I suppose. But it’s killing Colorado agriculture. A rather novel way to fallow the land, and we are all guilty.
Percy Conarroe, Longmont
Racism at the University of Colorado
Re: “CU students protest racism,” Nov. 23 news story.
The recent racist incidents at the University of Colorado reflect a growing trend in education: a focus on test scores rather than on the student as a person. CU, like most schools, primarily accepts students based on standardized test scores (SAT or ACT) and GPA, without consideration of what type of students they are admitting. Meanwhile, public schools, knowing that the key to their success is high test scores, neglect to build character and educate students on moral issues; they teach to the tests. Thus, we have universities filled with students who look good on paper, but lack the level of leadership, worldly intelligence and moral solidarity necessary for a productive society.
One might argue that people such as white supremacists and bigots are those most in need of an education. While I believe that education is one of the best ways to wipe out ignorance, the education of these individuals must not impinge on other students’ feelings of safety, belonging and efficacy. I argue that college campuses across this nation must start considering the whole person before admitting him or her. If well-rounded, open-minded students become a priority for colleges, then elementary and secondary schools will follow suit and work to provide them.
Marissa Deal, Boulder
Denver police staffing
Re: “Hiring new cops foolish,” Nov. 17 Susan Barnes-Gelt column.
I do not appreciate Susan Barnes-Gelt’s criticism of the Denver City Council’s hiring of police officers. I am a tow truck driver, and I work with police officers every night. I overwhelmingly feel they work hard and with a sense of purpose.
Mayor John Hickenlooper and the Denver Police Department have been much discussed in the media. The mayor now has an image, whether justified or not, of failing to support his law officers, and this alone can lead to diminished police effectiveness. He has perhaps asked for this conflict, and it may be late to question the suitability of the City Council’s action when he arguably has only decimated police morale. By disapproving of the City Council’s boldness, the mayor’s supporters increase the perception that they trivialize the police department.
I am more than a little put off by Barnes-Gelt’s accusation that the City Council is “throwing money” at an understaffing problem while she advocates hiring an out-of- town consultant to study it.
Doug Wilson, Denver
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