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'The wild, wild west'

Will Matuska

March 02, 2023 |

Boulder Weekly |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Berthoud, Colorado

The Colorado-based company Biochar Now heats waste wood for hours to produce biochar. The charcoal-like material sequesters the carbon from the organic material it’s made of. And the company’s product has been used to clean up salts, toxins, PFAS, and heavy metals from oil spills and Superfund sites.

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An option for death brings a mindset for life

Will Matuska

October 27, 2022 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado

Natural organic reduction, also called human composting, is growing in popularity across the U.S. as a more environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional burial practices and cremation. During the process bodies are placed in vessels with organic materials like wood chips to be broken down by bacteria. Once the process is over, families are free to do what they want with the composted remains.

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All hands on deck

Angela K. Evans

December 16, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

When technology companies set up shop in any given region, highly-paid employees move into a region and put a strain on affordable housing. Tech companies are attempting to mitigate that effect through strategies that include no-fee lines of credit to local housing commissions, funding for local foundations that focus on building affordable developments, and land acquisition.

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On the bricks: Efforts to increase commercial affordability in Boulder and beyond take time and planning

Angela K. Evans

November 11, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Portland, Oregon

A big factor in the high costs of doing business in Boulder is a tight and expensive commercial real estate market. Some of the many initiatives the city is considering are beginning to work already in Portland. There, the city's economic development agency, Prosper Portland, has acted as an intermediary to open more affordable spaces to small, local businesses. With extras like marketing and accounting help, the program managed to retain all of its original tenants, although a big push to enlist private developers in creating new space has hit snags.

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Learning when to be hands-off

Jodi Hausen

September 30, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder County, Colorado

Although several Colorado law enforcement agencies have trained officers on how to de-escalate interactions with people in a crisis, including people with disabilities, the state in 2022 will become the latest to mandate such training for all law enforcement officers. The training is backed by a study that suggests it helps police better recognize and understand the reactions that people with disabilities might have under stress in a confrontation with police. Trained officers in Boulder last year successfully ended one potentially violent incident without serious inury.

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The great experiment—Can resident-owned mobile home parks save manufactured housing communities?

Angela K. Evans

September 16, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

Mobile home owners in Colorado are beginning to own their own communities due in part to legislation that is making it easier to do so. Resident-owned communities preserve the affordable housing stock, which manufactured home communities make up a large percentage of.

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Turning workers' challenges into workplace assets

Jodi Hausen

September 02, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado

Colorado legislation now bans wages that are even lower than the minimum wage for employees with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD). The antiquated law was initially enacted as an incentive for business owners but has been abolished by several states. The new law also provides access to job coaching, which disability advocates are thrilled about.

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Beautiful on its own: Boulder County housing authorities employ human-focused design to improve outcomes for affordable housing residents

Caitlin Rockett

May 06, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

In land-scarce Boulder, where high demand has priced many people out of the housing market, government-funded affordable housing has used human-focused design to look every bit as attractive as more expensive housing. Mixed-income developments like 30Pearl, accommodating formerly unhoused and developmentally disabled people, among others, combine quality construction and spacious design with a variety of programs like day care and job training, to improve residents' living conditions.

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A lot of moving parts: A rundown on affordable housing in Boulder County

Angela K. Evans

April 15, 2021 |

Boulder Weekly |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder County, Colorado

Almost since housing costs shot up in Boulder County in recent decades, the city of Boulder and surrounding communities have used a variety of methods to protect working-class residents from being priced out of a luxury-dominated market. Some of the measures have bumped affordable-housing inventory up a few percentage points. But the numerous special taxes and incentives, plus coordination by a regional housing body, still fall far short of meeting the need thanks to two main factors: lack of funding and building-density restrictions. This story opens a series on what more can be done.

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Analyzing the risk

Angela K. Evans

November 05, 2020 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder County, Colorado

The Colorado Pretrial Assessment Tool uses a formula to weigh the risk of releasing someone from jail while they await trial. While prosecutors say the tool is better than nothing, critics, backed by a study of the tool's effects, say it disproportionately harms people of color and people experiencing homelessness. Risk assessment algorithms consider a number of facts about a defendant's past and present to predict whether they can leave jail without committing new crimes or failing to make court appearances. But because they penalize already-overpoliced populations, they are not considered objective.

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