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Stapleton couple Troy and Brooke Miller have twin boys who just turned one less than a week ago. As many Stapleton residents know, having a one year old around the house can be pretty challenging, and even more so if you have two of them. To complicate things further, both boys are beginning to walk, so they are constantly on the move, putting themselves in all sorts of new precocious positions. “It’s crazy how fast they are starting to get around,” said Brooke. “And of course, they want to get into everything. It’s a little scary because they don’t understand heights, corners, hard things versus soft things and so on. And then, apparently everything must be food.” [Read more…] about Stapleton Couple Chooses Paying Attention to Kids Over Babyproofing

For most Stapleton elementary schoolers, this week was their first week back at school. For kids, summer has officially come to an end. No more late nights, week long vacations, or entire days spent at the pool. Time to buckle down and get ready for some book learnin’. Many elementary students were ready to go back to school. Sick of spending time with their siblings and looking forward to rekindling old friendships and making new ones. So when kids went back to school, it was no surprise to parents that their kids had no trouble heading right to class. “It has been pretty easy,” said Lisa Carmen, parent at Westerly Creek Elementary. “No drama at all. Both the kids, a second and a fourth grader, played with friends, said a quick goodbye and went right to class. It’s been great.” Caroline Gibbons had a similar experience at Isabella Bird. “We thought since it was her first year at Izzy B there may be drama,” said Gibbons. “But she had no trouble at all. It speaks to the quality of people Izzy B has and to the resiliency of the kids.” [Read more…] about Stapleton Kindergartner Unable to Provide Evidence She Attended First Week of School

Quietly, a conversation has started all across Stapleton in regards to what makes someone a true Stapletonian. Inevitably, the discussion centers around how long someone has lived in Stapleton versus how much money they have. Those on the side of residency have compelling arguments. “True Stapletonians are the ones who were the pioneers long before Stapleton was hip,” said longtime resident Scott Hanson. “We moved here knowing we had to be patient and wait for the trees to grow, the parks to take hold, and restaurants to stay in business more than three months. We had to endure all the stepford and Pleasantville jokes. So, yeah, we are the real Stapletonians.” Annie Meehan agrees. “It doesn’t take any sense of adventure to move here now,” says Meehan. “You just need to have a fat wallet. When we moved here, we had to have faith that things were going to work out with schools and local businesses. There was no ‘train to the plane,’ there was a crappy bus and the old airport parking lot. Heck, we didn’t even know what they were going to do with that tower. There was a time when people wanted to blow that thing up.” [Read more…] about Great Debate: What Makes a Real Stapletonian; Length of Residency or Affluence?

The Northfield Mall in Stapleton has certainly had its challenges when it comes to attracting Stapleton shoppers. Many shops have come and gone, or they simply aren’t a good fit for Stapleton shoppers. There are absolutely some great shops in Northfield, and Northfield continues to try to build a base to attract the valuable Stapleton shoppers. Of course, residents are always going to Target, or taking their kids to the movie theatre. But, Northfield is trying to expand beyond that. The new neighborhoods will likely help Northfield continue to grow into a Stapleton-friendly shopping environment. [Read more…] about Woman Becomes First Stapletonian to Pay for Parking in Northfield

Stapleton has six pools for the now 10 neighborhoods with more neighborhoods to come. The pools are starting to get crowded with roughly 30,000 residents. “Sometimes the pool hours seem too short, or the season does, or they close prematurely due to weather,” said Stapleton resident Randy Keating. “Our kids really love going to the pool. It seems we are always dealing with adult swim, or swim lessons, or other issues. Just seems like going to one of the Stapleton pools never works out like we thought it would. I want my kids to be able to have fun in a pool whenever they want. So, as a family, we decided to make an investment.” [Read more…] about Overcrowded Pools Cause Stapleton Resident to Build Above Ground Pool

Residents in the new Stapleton neighborhoods purchased their homes long after Dick’s Sporting Goods Park held its first concerts. Some who moved into the area believed things would change after they moved in. “I guess I knew there was a giant stadium that hosted events a couple miles from my house,” said Wicker Park resident Jennifer Meehan. “But, I expected that to change after we moved in. We were also told by the builder the noise wasn’t bad and all the concerts were done by 10PM, and they had no reason to lie to us.” Other residents in the area are also disappointed in the noise coming from Dick’s during concerts. “It turns out, concerts can sometimes be really loud,” said Willow Park East resident Jim Hayes. “I guess I thought it would be a lot of acoustic stuff, or unplugged gigs. But, it seems these concerts are using amplifiers, drums, bass guitar, the whole shebang.” Unbelievably, a spokesman for Dick’s says they plan to continue to host concerts, despite residents moving into the area nine years after they began hosting events. “We absolutely want to be good neighbors,” said spokesperson Nancy Wolf. “But, we had a long term plan for how we would use the area, and concerts and music events were a part of that long before housing was beginning to be built over there. We definitely are not trying to be disruptive, but we have to stick with our long term plans and goals as well.” Resident Megan Walker doesn’t see things the same way. “As soon as homes began being built in North Stapleton, Dick’s should have begun rethinking their strategies,” said Walker. “Cities need to always look after their homeowners, especially a Stapleton homeowner. I think things will end up being changed over there. Stapleton residents will mobilize and shut down or at least curb the concerts at Dick’s.” Some residents in the area aren’t bothered by the concerts. “I enjoy the free concerts,” said resident Colleen Hansen. “We knew when we moved over here from Eastbridge there would be concert noise on occasion. It’s really not a big deal. Plus, we didn’t like being next to the jail in Eastbridge, but we couldn’t tell the jail to move. A lot of people don’t like living next to Aurora, but can we move the city over? You kind of have to know what you are getting into and take the good with the bad. It’s just loud music.” North Stapleton residents are beginning a movement to quiet the noise. “These bands have other options,” said Hayes. “They could listen through wireless headphones, the concerts could be done by 9PM, and only be held on Fridays. So, these are the kinds of things we are looking for. Compromise. That’s all we ask.” The noise from Stapleton residents complaining about Dick’s is expected to quickly become louder than any concert being held there. ]]>

A recent article in the Front Porch discusses the aging of Stapleton homes and the subsequent repainting of them. Many residents are choosing vibrant colors over the drab colors of their homes when they first purchased them. “There just wasn’t a lot of color on our block,” said Stapleton resident Robin Becker. “So, when we decided we needed to repaint, we choose a bright green color that would stand out. Not sure if the neighbors like it, as it looks like Dr. Seuss may have chosen our color, but we love it.” Other residents have gone through the same process. “It was definitely time to repaint our home,” said resident Paige Barnum. “We didn’t want to do the same old drab color we had, so we went with a bright yellow color. It reminded me of a place I lived growing up in southern Florida. We really like it.” As homes begin to get more colorful, Stapleton residents do not. Recent reports show a higher percentage of white people moving to Stapleton than any other Denver community. In fact, statistics in Stapleton have stopped using percentages for non-whites moving to Stapleton and simply use the actual number. “Statistically, the percentages were so low it was meaningless,” said statistician Ben Wollenzien. “The actual number is easier to use, and more meaningful.” The Stapleton community continues to struggle in attracting non-whites to the neighborhood. Until something is figured out, residents will have to count on their homes to bring color to the community. ]]>

The City of Denver recently dropped trash cans off to all Denver residences in an effort to ease the pickup and processing of trash in Denver. Denver and Stapleton residents will no longer be able to use their old trash cans or just throw bags out in their alley. Residents would be left with useless trash cans taking up space only being used the one time every four weeks for trash overflow day. Luckily, there would be a trash can recycle day in Stapleton held at Bill Roberts. Residents would be able to come and drop off their old trash cans, listen to some live music, grab some beer and food, and spend time hanging out with friends and neighbors. Or at least they thought. [Read more…] about Residents Disappointed in Lack of Pomp for “Trash Can Recycle Day”