By Chalan Harper
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

The Town of Superior Board of Trustees this week agreed to host a public hearing to further discuss whether the Superior Urban Renewal Authority should be extended to include several undeveloped properties, like the Biella-Menkick parcel, the future site of the town center.

During a Monday, June 5, meeting the trustees agreed to consider other properties, if any, that could be included in future urban renewal efforts.

Other properties that could be considered include: Aweida; Spicer; Schuck; Anderson; and, Zaharias.

The action came with a 4-2 vote. Trustees Dana D’Souza and Elia Gourgouris opposed the move.

Currently, the Superior Marketplace is part of the original urban renewal authority.

Extending the authority across the street will lend itself to drawing developers to the town to work on the town center concept design, officials said.

To be included in the urban renewal authority, town leaders must conduct a study to determine if the property is blighted.
A blighted property can lack infrastructure — streets, sewer systems or the presence of safety considerations — even though the property may consist of weeds and vegetation.
Properties may only be considered blighted if they fall within a certain number of government-set blight factors.

The current urban renewal authority at the Superior Marketplace operates under tax-increment financing, as applicable to sales tax.

If the authority is extended to the 80-acre Biella-Menkick property, the authority will include property tax financing.
With property tax, any money above and beyond what the property was originally worth before it was developed is put back into renewal authority.

On Monday, town administrator Bruce Williams told the trustees the issue was time-sensitive because the state legislature could pass a bill that mandates all properties must be reviewed for blighted conditions on an individual basis, rather than through a larger study.

Williams said there were two properties in the study that would not be considered blighted if studied individually.
Property owner Richard Biella said he and George Menkick lost another developer, the third for the project, who did not want to wait for town officials to decide on urban renewal extension and had taken on another project.

"All the developers have told us they cannot do the development as we want it, as the town wants it, as a showplace without some help," Biella said. "Urban renewal is a way to do that."

By Chalan Harper
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

The outpouring of affection for Superior Elementary School first-grade teacher Janis Lorenz has been overwhelming since she announced her retirement at the beginning of the year.

Children have written and decorated poems and letters for the teacher, parents have shared gifts and fellow teachers have offered colorful flowers.

After 27 years as an educator, Lorenz said she will miss the “family” she has worked with since the school opened in 1996.

“This is like my second house,” Lorenz said of her classroom.

One of the original team members to plan and design Superior Elementary before it opened, Lorenz said the change and evolution of the school has been satisfying and incredible to witness.

Last week, parents, staff members and current and former students attended a going-away bash for Lorenz and assistant principal John Nagle.

“(The party) was absolutely the best,” Lorenz said. “It was everything anybody could ever hope for.”

Lorenz began teaching more than 25 years ago at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Colorado Springs.

Over the years, she taught classes ranging from kindergarten to fifth grade.

Lorenz was presented with a cake and honored by all the members of her “family” during last week’s event.

In lieu of retirement presents, Lorenz asked that anyone who wanted to give a gift donate something that could be given to the “Warm Hearts, Warm Babies” charity that provides clothing, food and supplies to low-income families with infants.

The idea was a success. Lorenz said she plans to donate several items of clothing and supplies, such as diapers and baby wipes, to the organization.

Lorenz said she planned to retire at the conclusion of the 2004-2005 school year but stayed an additional year when she was asked by several teachers and staff members.

“When you work at this school, you become a part of a larger family and they asked me to stay for one more year,” Lorenz said.

Though she stayed, Lorenz said she knew it was time to get back to her family and start giving back to the community.

As someone dedicated to helping others, Lorenz said she wants to do something that involves helping people going through rough times or trials.

One idea, Lorenz said, is to volunteer as a driver and help people who cannot drive themselves or that need someone to watch their children to have a break or go grocery shopping.

“My real goal is to help people going through new trials and problems and who need a helping hand to get through,” Lorenz said.

Lorenz said despite her hope and future goals, she will lament leaving her old professional stomping grounds.

“I know it’s time to move on to a new phase of my life, but I really hate to leave,” Lorenz said. “We have great teachers. The parents are so supportive and the kids are wonderful.

“When you have that kind of combination, you have the right kind of combination for a great school,” Lorenz added.

By Chalan Harper
Colorado Hometown Newspapers

Maria Ligia Naranjo-Zuniga, a Costa Rican nanny accused of shaking and injuring a 5-month-old infant, last week was offered a plea deal by the Boulder County District Attorney’s office.

During a Thursday, June 1, hearing Deputy District Attorney Colette Cribari extended the deal in exchange for a guilty plea in the case where Naranjo-Zuniga faces three felony child abuse charges.

If Naranjo-Zuniga accepts the deal, she will plead guilty to two class-4 felonies and could serve six-10 years in jail, Cribari said.

If Naranjo-Zuniga declines the offer, she could face 10 years or more in jail if convicted on the charges, according to state statues.

In early March, 5-month-old Von McLaughlin was rushed to Avista Adventist Hospital and later transported to Denver’s Children’s Hospital.

The Superior infant was diagnosed with two brain bleeds and a broken clavicle, according to court records.

Court records state the Naranjo-Zuniga put the baby down for a nap when he began to cry excessively.

When the nanny picked up Von, he went limp and she shook the baby to see if he was OK, Naranjo-Zuniga told authorities.

Since that time, the child has returned to his parent’s Superior home. He has undergone further medical procedures since his release.

Naranjo-Zuniga is expected to accept or decline the plea agreement during a Friday, July 14, hearing.

Since her arrest, she has remained in the Boulder County jail, in lieu of a $500,000 bond.