The Home Front: A transgender candidate for Congress, Air Force accountability and more

The first transgender candidate for Congress challenges Republican Doug Lamborn in Colorado’s most conservative district, The Denver Post reports. “Misty Plowright is shockingly honest, in a nothing-to-lose and what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of way.”

“An independent audit ordered last year by Garfield County looking into the travel expenses of Commissioner John Martin was handled administratively outside of any public meetings, per the county’s procurement code,” reports today’s Glenwood Springs Post-Independent. “An open records request by the Garfield County Democrats revealed the audit and disclosed the $1,800 reimbursement that was advised in the May 18, 2015, forensics audit report.”

Democrats have been turning in more early Colorado ballots than Republicans so far, reports The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. “Because this is the first presidential year that the secretary of state has released day-by-day numbers leading up to Election Day, it is not possible to compare this year with the last presidential election in 2012.”

That’s the case in Larimer County, too, where the Loveland Reporter-Herald localized the results.

What happens if a train derails? The Fort Collins Coloradoan has your answer on today’s front page. “The good news is a train derailment, especially in downtown, is rather unlikely because of the slow speed at which trains travel through the city. Larimer County has seen 39 train crashes or incidents since 1975, compared to Weld County’s 129 and Boulder County’s 68.”

In Vail, a proposed tax aims to ease housing woes, reports Vail Daily. “The money would be managed by the Eagle County commissioners, with the advice of a citizen advisory board similar to those that advise the commissioners about transit, trails and open space. If voters agree, Eagle County would join Summit County and cities of Aspen, Boulder, Telluride and Mountain Village with housing-dedicated sales taxes.”

The Longmont Times-Call reports how Boulder county commissioners will hear comments on their 2017 budget. “This is the first and only public-hearing meeting that Commissioners Elise Jones, Cindy Domenico and Deb Gardner have scheduled on the spending package they’ll be considering for next year.”

A Boulder developer is proposing a futuristic office building and small hotel, reports The Daily Camera. “Both projects are proposed by Sagebrush Companies, the Denver real estate investment firm that’s also partnering on a 32-unit townhome project in Boulder Junction.”

The Junkins fire, now 50 percent contained, is limiting hunting sports, according to The Cañon City Daily Record.

“Local, state and federal politicians Monday called for accountability and more investigation into the military’s use of firefighting foam after a Gazette investigation showed the Air Force ignored decades of warnings from its scientists about a toxic chemical in the foam. The chemical is suspected in widespread water contamination,” reports The Gazette in Colorado Springs.