Home Care In Wheat Ridge, CO

Police in Wheat Ridge are looking for a red pickup as well as additional clues in a shooting at a business on West 38th Street near Teller Street late Wednesday morning. Friends and colleagues identified the victim as Peter Damian Arguello, the owner of Peter Damian Fine Jewelry and Antiques.

Police got calls about 11:15 a.m. and arrived to find the victim dead in the parking lot in the back of the store. There was evidence of a shooting inside. Investigators are indicating that robbery was possibly the main motive.

On Wednesday night, people began to show up at the store, placing flowers and candles in memory of the victim.

RELATED: 1 dead as homicide investigation continues in Colorado at Wheat Ridge business

"He would give you the shirt off his back. Just a super nice guy and he had such a neat little business here. Basically an eBay business with a storefront. He had very unique items in here," said Dan Hrouda, a retired firefighter who previously worked nearby and knew Peter Damian Arguello for years. "A simple man like me, if I could just find my way to be as solid and steady as Pete. Because he was just salt of the earth. Super kind man," he shared. "He was always very proud of the time he spent with his kids and his wife. Fixing up their house and just making things better. I think he made things better everywhere he went."

Also arriving a place a memento was Kax Downs. Downs and his mother lived in a van for a time nearby when they were homeless and if brought items in to sell, there was help.

He was a good man, he always helped out, never had a bad word about anybody," said Downs, who is now a caretaker for his mother living nearby. "Me and my mom just living on the streets in a van and anytime I found some antique toys or stuff he always looked at them and bought them from me because that's what he liked."

Police are looking for tips as they investigate and released images of a red pickup they were trying to find.

Police posted the following: "We believe it is a red 2003-2007 Chevy Silverado. If you see this vehicle, please call 911. Anyone with information, images or video that can help our investigation, reach out to Detective Mark Slavsky at (303) 235-2807 or email [email protected]."

Alan Gionet

Alan Gionet is a reporter for CBS News Colorado. Read his latest reports or check out his bio and send him an email.

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Lauren convinced her husband Will to try a move to Colorado for three years just to “scratch that itch.”

Moving from Kansas to Jefferson Park, they recently moved again to what Will describes as their “forever home” in Wheat Ridge. The home was built in the 50’s and was in need of a remodel. Work began earlier this year, and as they knocked down walls, their contractor found a folded map in one of the walls.

“We both knew we had something special here,” Lauren said.

Lauren and Will unfolded the map and realized they had something special on their hands. A 1971 stamped map of the city with detailed names of every neighborhood, including zoning and development plans and phases. It was also signed by Wheat Ridge’s first mayor Albert “Ed” Anderson.

Since they enjoy the strip on 38th with all the stores combined with their love to support local businesses, they contacted Russell at Art Centric on 38th Ave. An art gallery that opened last year and provides framing services as well. Russell and Sam have been building an excellent reputation for not only the wonderful art in their gallery but the level of service they provide.

It was Sam that first alerted me to this great find. I was so excited to hear about the map. It was in 1969 that Wheat Ridge became an actual city. With possibly being swallowed up by Lakewood or Denver, a group of residents came up with a plan for this area to become independent from any other city. Having drafted an initial map of what would be Wheat Ridge, they planned for a referendum that would for or against being independent. They walked the perimeter and knocked on every door to find out if the homeowners would be for or against the resolution. If you were against, they would use a Sharpie to exclude you on the map and if you were for this resolution, your house would be included inside the perimeter.

Now this map is not THAT map but pretty close. Drawn in 1971 and signed by the city’s first mayor A.E. Anderson. This 42” X 72” map includes the names and sub divisions throughout the city. Very rare for a developer to have possession of such a map. The home Lauren and Will bought was built in 1951 and was owned by Jack and Sandra Emery who in 1987 sold it to a local surgeon by the name of Hamilton Lockey. “Ham” was a popular gentleman and was known for bartering. The story goes that he traded a. Procedure for new hardwood floors in his home. Ham in turn sold his home to his son Lockey JR in 2013 and then in 2022 it was purchased by Lauren and Will.

The process to carefully open up the folded map was slow and methodical. Brushing the dirt off the 52 year old map and making light repairs on the thin areas where the folds had been was a delicate step in the process. Using a stretched canvas instead of a traditional sub-straight, Adding a sheet of 1/8th plexiglass instead of glass for safety purposes and a beautiful wood frame. The map itself was not matted flat as you’d think but raised off slightly with the edges exposed. Almost like an artifact. This process is called “float mount” and Russell was very proud of it when we spoke.

Both Sam and Russell each spoke about the personal touch and enjoyment they both experienced working on this project. Not that they are assembly workers but they understood the significance of the map. I felt the same sentiment from Lauren and Will when I spent a bit of time at their home. The map is a focal point when entering the home and they talk about plans for the room it’s in.

Now before you go and start cutting up your walls looking for hidden treasures, consider what you can leave behind, to be found in 50 years. An issue of the Gazette, a menu from Clancy’s, maybe a bottle of whisky from Apple Jacks? History is all around us. If you look hard enough you’ll catch a glimpse of it.

Two climbers are growing their athletic chalk company within the Denver area.

FrictionLabs, which makes chalk products for climbers and other athletes to improve their grip, is moving from its previous 6,000-square-foot space into a new 10,000-square-foot warehouse at 9500 W. 49th Ave. in Wheat Ridge.

Co-founders Kevin Brown and Keah Kalantari said the new location will help the 10-year-old business produce more chalk for its wholesale and retail customers around the country and the world.

“We probably could have found much lower cost places out closer towards the airport, but we would have lost a lot of our team, and that's just not something we were willing to do,” Brown said. “It met all of our requirements for electricity and space and loading docks and offices.”

Currently, FrictionLabs employs 24 people and plans to be operational by the end of January. With the new manufacturing equipment that FrictionLabs is adding to the warehouse, the owners think they can increase their production by at least 50%.

The new space includes manufacturing space as well as front-of-house offices, and of course, a small climbing wall for product testing.

As self-described “obsessive rock climbers,” Kalantari and Brown started FrictionLabs 10 years ago after greasy chalk negatively affected one of Brown’s climbs. The friends started testing out all sorts of chalk and landed on what they thought was the perfect chemical formula to help athletes have the best possible grip, including particle size, texture and pH balance.

“As far as we know, we're the only U.S.-based manufacturer of athletic chalk products,” Kalantari said, adding that most other chalk brands manufacture in China or Taiwan.

The company has a few different kinds of chalk products, including Unicorn Dust, Gorilla Grip and Bam Bam.

“We just thought it could be done so much better. It's not going to be possible at super-low price points, but the quality will make a difference. And at the end of the day, it's still chalk, so it's not going to break the bank,” Kalantari said.

FrictionLabs’ customers include climbing gyms, REI and other specialty outdoor shops. While climbers are the vast majority of its customers, FrictionLabs has also made inroads with other athletic activities, including CrossFit, powerlifting, tennis and other racquet sports. FrictionLabs distributes to more than 20 countries. Revenue has increased by approximately 20% every year for at least the last four years. Even during the pandemic, FrictionLabs was able to continue growing, thanks to the development of a new product: liquid chalk that also sanitizes users’ hands.

The Warehouse Hotline helped broker FrictionLabs’ five-year lease at its new space.

Kalantari and Brown think products that help with athletes’ grip are an underserved market right now, seeing how grip in many sports is critical for performance.

“What Nike did for feet is our hope to do for athletes' hands,” Brown said.

FrictionLabs’ athletes include two Colorado rock climbers who are both headed to the Paris 2024 Olympics: Natalia Grossman and Colin Duffy, in addition to other athletes.

The Jefferson County League of Women Voters recently held an election forum for Wheat Ridge voters. League president Christina Manthey moderated the Sept 28. event.

The candidate forum touched on some of the most pressing issues within the community including affordable housing, traffic congestion and the proposed sales tax increase.

The candidates running for city council seats in Wheat Ridge include:

Steve Kirkpatrick is running for city clerk and Chris Miller is running for city treasurer. Both the city treasurer and city clerk candidates are running uncontested and both are incumbents for the positions.

The ballot measure asks voters to extend a $.50 sales tax to 20 years to raise $75 million for infrastructure projects. The city council has worked on this issue over the course of several city council meetings. Visit WheatRidgeSpeaks.org to get those discussions.

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Both Hultin and Stites agreed that the solutions to Wheat Ridge’s complex problems are already in the works.

“We have great momentum,” Hultin said. “We’ve got work ahead of us and we’ve just committed to increasing our affordable housing by nine percent over the next three years.”

The incumbents also agreed that Wheat Ridge is ahead of neighboring cities in their housing affordability plans.

“They’re starting processes that we’re finishing,” Stites said.

Stites and Hultin cited current programs in the works as well.

“We’re actually putting into implementation programs like our affordable housing fund to where we can go to existing housing and instead of building new housing everywhere,” Stites said as an example. “We can actually go to existing landlords and help them refurbish their stock and reinvest in our community.”

District 1 candidates Snell and Fuller had differing views on housing in their district.

Snell echoed her incumbent peers in acknowledging that the city already had great plans in place.

“The city’s already done some really wonderful work in this in this area. But it’s certainly not done,” Snell said. She spoke about the long hard work ahead that’s needed to reach the goal of “affordable housing for all.”

Fuller agreed that the city is doing good work, but he also called for more coordination with the region and the state in order for the city to keep housing affordable.

“It is more than a Wheat Ridge problem and more than a regional problem,” Fuller said. Though I very much applaud the Wheat Ridge affordable housing plan and am happy to hear steps towards that are being implemented, it should be in lockstep with more regional, state and larger directed efforts towards addressing affordable housing.”

Fuller shared a personal story about moving to Wheat Ridge, which led to a call for protections. He wants to ensure that the residents can afford to rent and own housing in the city.

District 4 candidates Larson and Matthews both talked about protecting Wheat Ridge from the downfalls of urbanism. Larson believes that stability should be the focus of plans to fix Wheat Ridge’s housing woes.

Larson said that as the city continues to grow, the stability of the neighborhoods must be protected.

“It is the city’s role to strike a balance between the developer’s economic reality and concerns about density in our neighborhoods,” Larson said.

Meanwhile, Matthews called for balancing the current approach with more protections for the Wheat Ridge way of life.

“We have to maintain a balanced growth and not let our neighborhoods become a mishmash of cute quaint homes and then high-rise buildings in sandwiched in between another,” he said.

Matthews wants to protect the single-family homeowner market while also finding solutions for the growing “urban rental” market that he says is happening in Wheat Ridge.

Larson spoke on the Wadsworth project and the congestion problems for drivers, pedestrians, and businesses along the route. He spoke about keeping everyone updated on the timing of the project.

“I’ve asked that whenever the city sent out a Wadsworth update, that it includes a progress meter. One of those thermometer things you see on a fundraising page that way we can see how far the project has come and how much there is to go.”

Matthews explained that the traffic issues in Wheat Ridge are also related to housing. He suggested exploring a balanced approach.

“There has to be balance and common sense in our development,” he said. “That is the only way we can get a handle on keeping our streets so that we can actually get from point A to point B without being stop and go.”

Fuller turned focus to alternative modes of transportation and sidewalk access, another concern for Wheat Ridge residents.

“We could revisit the amount of resources that we direct towards various alternative modes of transportation,” Fuller said. “Make this city walkable and bikeable while still doing improvements like the Wadsworth improvement with you know out-of-the-box ideas like a continuous flow intersection.”

Snell continued Fuller’s sidewalk conversation with a look at safety. This discussion, according to Snell needs to consider families pushing strollers, disabled Wheat Ridge residents in wheelchairs and walking with aides, in addition to the increased traffic from e-bikes due to the rebates.

“I think that when we talk about this uh this discussion this topic we have to consider all modes of transportation and so that’s that’s something I would like to to continue and get solutions for,” Snell said.

Incumbents Hultin and Stites both agreed that the tax issue on the ballot was the solution to the city’s infrastructure problems.

“Four years ago when I ran, when Rachel (Hultin) ran, we weren’t looking for solutions,” Stites said. “We already had a solution. It was the Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy that was implementing. Now, we already have a solution here. It’s (the ballot issue) 2J.”

All six candidates for the city council support the ballot measure.

Fuller was the only candidate to site environmental issues as looming problems for Wheat Ridge. He mentioned the water supply troubles that are looming on the Front Range and the damage the emerald ash bore could cause to Wheat Ridge green spaces if left unattended.

You can see watch the Jefferson County League of Women Voters interview incumbent treasurer Chrie Miller, on the Wheat Ridge Channel 8 on YouTube.

For more information on the upcoming election, visit Vote411.org.

Catch the entire candidate forum at Wheat Ridge Channel 8 on YouTube.

Google Fiber will add another Colorado city to its growing footprint after being unanimously approved by the Wheat Ridge City Council this week. The agreement will allow GFiber to deliver high-speed internet to businesses and some 20,000 households within the Denver suburb’s city limit.

The buildout, which is 100% funded by Google Fiber, will begin in late 2024 and bring service to its first customer sometime in 2025, Google Fiber General Manager Sasha Petrovic told Fierce Telecom. Through "close work" with the Wheat Ridge City Council, Google will build its network within the city’s right of way.

Google Fiber offers 1-gig, 2-gig, 5-gig and 8-gig symmetric speed tiers. The 8-gig service costs $150 per month, which is half the price of Lumen’s comparable service tier. That rate includes a Wi-Fi 6 router and up to two mesh extenders. Pricing for its other tiers remains the same, with 1-gig offered for $70 per month, 2-gig for $100 and 5-gig for $125.

Wheat Ridge is Google’s third fiber-to-the-home city in the Rocky Mountain state, joining Lakewood and Westminster. According to Petrovic, construction in Lakewood will most likely start later this year.

Google Fiber heads to Denver suburb Lakewood in Colorado

“We haven't technically started building in Colorado, but we have built in a dozen other markets within the U.S. along with mountain towns like Salt Lake City, and we have quite a bit of experience in terms of execution,” Petrovic noted. "So I think we're going to be pretty comfortable by the time we get to Wheat Ridge.”

While Google Fiber’s toolkit can facilitate aerial and underground deployments, the company anticipates the majority of the Wheat Ridge network will be built underground. As the company goes through design engineering, they'll determine how to “most effectively build as much of Wheat Ridge as possible.”

The buildout has the potential to bring jobs to the area, although Petrovic said the exact number is difficult to quantify. Google will build an internal operation and sales GFiber team that “will come from the greater Colorado area,” but the company will also have its vendor base working on inspection, quality and permitting processes, all of which will help develop jobs.

“It's difficult to put a number around it, but it definitely will be a plus for the greater Denver area,” said Petrovic. The company has been active in the Denver area since 2017, providing gigabit speeds with the Google Fiber Webpass point-to-point wireless product.

Wheat Ridge is already host to some fiber providers, including Lumen’s CenturyLink available to about 50% of the city and Quantum Fiber available to 12.2%. Both fiber providers currently offer speeds up to 940 Mbps.

“As always, there's a healthy level of competition wherever we go. There are some incumbents, but it's no one that we haven't worked with in the past in terms of competing for customers, which we think is always healthy. The customers, at the end of the day, always win with additional competition,” said Petrovic.