This letter was sent to Yellow Scene Magazine. As with all Letters to the Editor, the views expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the publication. We value providing space for community voices.

I am proud to support Jenn Kaaoush for Boulder County Treasurer.

Jenn is qualified for this job. She has served in the military, worked in diplomacy, managed finances, worked in real estate, and served on the Superior Town Council. But my support for Jenn comes from something more important: I have seen her lead.

After the Marshall Fire, Jenn got to work. She helped fire survivors deal with insurance, cleanup, rebuilding, bureaucracy, and the exhausting financial challenges that followed the disaster. She then used that experience to help other fire-impacted communities, including Maui and California. She also traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for changes to the tax code so fire survivors would not be penalized for insurance proceeds needed to rebuild.

I have worked closely with Jenn on the Superior Town Council. She is prepared, tough, persistent, and serious about solving problems. Jenn is not someone who just talks about public service. She shows up, does the work, and gets results.

The Treasurer’s office requires judgment, diligence, transparency, and respect for public dollars. Jenn has those qualities.

Boulder County would be fortunate to have Jenn Kaaoush as Treasurer.

Mark Lacis

Mayor, Town of Superior

The post Letter to the Editor: Boulder County Treasurer Endorsement From Mark Lacis appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

This letter was sent to Yellow Scene Magazine. As with all Letters to the Editor, the views expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the publication. We value providing space for community voices.

My name is Neal Shah. I serve on the Superior Town Council and am a former Mayor Pro Tem. I am writing in support of Jenn Kaaoush for Boulder County Treasurer.

In the weeks after the Marshall Fire, I was looking for volunteers to help lead the community’s recovery. Jenn was one of the people who stepped forward. She joined a small team that built Superior Rising into a real organization and did the hard, unglamorous work of helping families rebuild. What I did not fully appreciate at the time was that Jenn took on that work before she had even assessed how badly her own home was damaged. She was helping other families navigate their losses while still sorting through her own.

That same period, post-fire settlements were at risk of federal taxation that would have stripped a significant portion of the money families needed to rebuild. Jenn worked directly with members of Congress to help secure the only federal disaster tax bill passed in 2023, protecting hundreds of millions of dollars for Boulder County families. She also helped residents work through FEMA, SBA, insurance, and rebuilding processes that were overwhelming for many.

Her qualifications for the Treasurer’s office are substantive. Jenn is a fourth-generation Army veteran and former U.S. diplomat who led department operations in conflict zones. She has more than twenty years of managing complex financial systems, multi-million-dollar operating budgets, and teams in environments where precision and accountability are required. She currently serves on the Superior Town Council and its Finance Committee.

Jenn has already protected significant public resources for Boulder County families. I trust her to continue that work, and I ask you to support her candidacy.

Sincerely,

Neal Shah

Resident of Superior, CO

The post Letter of Support — Jenn Kaaoush for Boulder County Treasurer appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

Bike safety and public murals dominated Superior’s February 9 town meeting.

Public Works and Utilities Director Brannon Richards briefed Town Council on bike and pedestrian safety along 88th Street, the main access route to Monarch K-8 and Monarch High School for residents of Rock Creek and parts of downtown Superior. The corridor becomes heavily congested at the start and end of the school day, and cars illegally occupying bike lanes have resulted in injuries to cyclists and pedestrians.

A map of 88th Street. Promenade Drive is on the south side, and its terminus at Dillon Road is on the north side. Monarch K-8 and Monarch High are on the east side, near the center.

Richards presented video footage showing students riding on sidewalks and against traffic. “[Students] don’t want to cross 88th Street by the school,” he said. “They have to wait for the signal […]. There’s no sidewalk on 88th Street on the Louisville side.”

Staff recommendations included extending the 20 MPH school zone into Superior and adding a protected, two-lane bike lane on the east side. Richards noted the flex posts protecting the lane would not interfere with snow plowing. He closed his presentation with a blunt assessment: “[The] current situation is the most dangerous: if we do nothing.”

Mayor Mark Lacis praised the video evidence. “You can drive 88th Street every day, but if you’re not capturing it at […] school drop-off time, you’re going to miss the heart of the problem.” He added that the Council was “on board with staff’s recommendations.”

The meeting’s second major item drew sharper debate. Council considered a resolution to partner with Boulder nonprofit Streetwise Arts on a mural festival planned for October. Proposed locations included the amphitheater, concrete benches along Main Street, the Marshall Road underpass, public restrooms, and a dumpster enclosure, with a total budget of $74,000, including $10,000 drawn from the Art & History department.

Mayor Pro-Tem Jason Serbu didn’t hide his skepticism. “This whole thing was supposed to be big murals. I get the underpass, I get the breezeway, but… park benches? A garbage thing? And, forgive my language, but… a shitter?”

Liza McKenzie, vice-chair of the Cultural Arts and Public Spaces Advisory Committee, pushed back. “Those little pieces of art here and there, […] they’re integrated into places we want people to be. A public bathroom? I know it sounds silly, but people use them. That’s where the community is.”

Council members Jenn Kaaoush and Stephanie Miller backed the proposal. “I love the benches,” said Miller. “I’m okay moving funds into this, knowing it creates more of a sense of place.”

Art & History Supervisor Jennifer Garner acknowledged the budget impact plainly: “It’s workable, but it will absolutely take away from museum programming, public art maintenance, and other smaller programs.”

Mayor Lacis offered a closing argument in favor. “The one thing I’ve never heard from any resident, ever, is ‘You guys are spending too much on art.'”

The Council voted 5-2 to approve the resolution. Council member Foster and Mayor Pro-Tem Serbu voted against.

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The post Superior Town Council Tackles Bike Safety and Public Art appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.