🏳️‍🌈 Republican condemns GOP Pride attack

🏭 Citizens Suing Sunscor

Three environmental advocacy groups have announced plans to sue Suncor Energy for its near constant air quality violations. Despite federal attempts to regulate the Commerce City oil refinery, activists argue it’s clearly not enough. [CO Sun]

• Yes, we’ve been talking about Suncor a lot. Just this week, the refinery has been in the news over a recent permit renewal and its toxic spill into Sand Creek.

🚧 Sidewalk Fees Face Another Delay

The rollout of a new fee for property owners that would raise funds to build and repair sidewalks across Denver might get postponed for a second time. The fee was originally supposed to go into effect at the start of this year, but was deferred until July. Now with only a month left to go, program sponsors are asking City Council to push the rollout until January 2025 to give them a little more time to fine tune. [Westword]

🚫 Advocates Admonish Camping Ban Enforcement

A recent report from the homeless advocacy group Housekeys Action Network Denver claims that anti-homeless enforcement is up nearly 50% since this time last year. The group is criticizing Mayor Johnston for doubling down on the city’s urban camping ban, despite public promises to prioritize Denver’s homelessness crisis. [Denverite]

✊ Do City Workers Deserve Collective Bargaining Rights?

This week, a city council committee forwarded a measure to give thousands more city employees the right to unionize. Now the full council will decide if the proposal should go before Denver voters on the November ballot. [Axios Denver]

🏳️‍🌈 Republican Condemns GOP Pride Attack

Earlier this week, the chair of Colorado GOP Dave Williams sent out an email with the subject line “God hates pride.” In response, candidate for Congressional District 1 Valdamar Archuleta — a Republican who identifies as gay — spoke out against the messaging and publicly rejected his own party’s recent endorsement. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

Why a Gay Republican in Denver is Rejecting His Own Party's Endorsement

Earlier this week, the Colorado GOP sent out an email condemning Pride Month and calling LGBTQ+ people “godless groomers.” Now, Congressional District 1 candidate Valdamar Archuleta — a Republican who identifies as gay — is pushing back. Archuleta joins City Cast Denver podcast host Bree Davies to explain why he rejected his own party’s endorsement but still stands by the GOP.