Full Text
WEEKLY BRIEFS City of Arvada internal news March 27, 2023 I Am Arvada Meet Aaron Jacks, a Senior Assistant City Attorney, in the latest I Am Arvada video. Aaron is the legal advisor assigned to the Arvada Police Department. Aaron answers questions and offers legal advice related to cases officers are working on. He also assists with contracts for the purchase of PD equipment. See how Aaron Jacks' work supports the community and City's priorities! I Am Arvada is a video series that focuses on the City's mission, vision and values, and on how our work supports the community and City's priorities. View more I Am Arvada videos on the City’sYouTube channel. Organizational Service Effectiveness Work System April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month The City of Arvada Employee Committee Outreach Team is supporting Ralston House Child Advocacy Center this April by planting a pinwheel garden outside of City Hall along Ralston Road. The garden and its location are designed to serve as a beacon of hope for children and youth in our community. If this is a cause that touches your heart, join your colleagues by making a donation toward the City of Arvada pinwheel garden today through paypal or invite a representative from Ralston House to attend a team meeting to accept donations. Thank you, City of Arvada employees, for supporting this very important cause. Additional fundraisers in support of Ralston House can be found at Look for an upcoming Everyone email regarding Arvada University Course Assignments Judson Smith, the City’s Learning Management System Administrator, will soon be sending out an Everyone email regarding Arvada University Course Assignments. The Everyone email will cover what to expect regarding online self-paced courses and in-person courses you are signed up for (or may already have completed). The HR team is in the final stages of moving paper training records to NEOGOV (which will enable you to access your records online from anywhere), and this process includes some course assignment Email your news to ---PAGE BREAK--- verification. Please read through Judson’s Everyone email and respond accordingly to make sure your records are up to date. Questions? Contact Judson at [EMAIL REDACTED]. Arvada University update Register in advance on the Arvada University Learning Calendar. Contact Judson Smith ([EMAIL REDACTED]) with questions. Session/topic Date Time and/or resource link Type of Training Leadership: How to Engage Your Team Panel - Peer-to-Peer Sharing April 7 from 3 to 4 p.m. Networking after Register here In-person Radical Collaboration Two-day training: April 12 and 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day Register here In-person 7 Habits of Highly Effective People April 20 from 8:30 am to 4:30 p.m. Register here In-person Cloverleaf - Learn helpful tips! April 21 from 9 to 10 a.m. Register here Virtual Training DEI: Surfacing and Addressing Bias in the Workplace May 10 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Register here In-person Project Management Training June 28 from 1 to 5:30 p.m. Register here Virtual Training Neighborhood Engagement: Neighborhood Grants and Block Party Trailer coming soon! Do you live in Arvada? Are you and your neighbors interested in applying for a neighborhood grant or reserving the block party trailer? Both programs are opening their application/reservations systems soon! ● The Neighborhood Grant applications open Saturday, April 8. This program is a great opportunity to plan creative and collaborative experiences for your neighborhood. ● The Block Party Trailer reservation system will open Monday, April 17. Be sure to apply early as reservations often fill up quickly. If you’d like to know more about the City’s Neighbors Connected program, visit And you can meet the City’s new Neighborhood Engagement Coordinator, Brady Porterfield-Finn, under the “New Employee Spotlight” section at the bottom of the Briefs. Email your news to ---PAGE BREAK--- Infrastructure Work System Lake Arbor Snapping Turtle The Lake Arbor restoration project is well underway. Throughout the project, which has included partially draining the lake, the City team has put forth great effort protecting the wildlife, including this past week, when they relocated a snapping turtle who calls the lake home! The turtle was safely recovered and moved from the small pond into the main lake. What a great success! The photos were shared widely on social media and generated some fun and positive community engagement! If you are interested in learning more about the Lake Arbor Restoration project, visit Vibrant Community & Neighborhoods Work System Hiring Event at West Woods this Friday & Saturday The West Woods Golf Club and Restaurant is hosting a hiring event Friday, March 31 and Saturday, April 1, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 6655 Quaker St. In-person interviews are guaranteed! You can apply now online or at the event. West Woods is hiring cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders, beverage cart attendants and more. The City’s parks team will also be at the event on Friday, March 31. The Parks team is in need of seasonal maintenance workers. Email your news to ---PAGE BREAK--- Gold Strike Park Outreach at the Kite Festival Heading to the Arvada Kite Festival on Sunday, April 16? Join us to kickoff the redesign of Gold Strike Park! Bring your kids to participate in a play-based idea jamming session to show us how they'd like to play in the park. Community input is needed to help the project team design a community gathering place that also highlights Arvada's rich history. Visit the project page at arvada.org/gold-strike-park for more information about the project, community engagement activities, and to sign up for project updates. Majestic View - Earth Day Poster Contest Do you have a young artist in your life who loves nature? Encourage them to submit an Earth Day poster to this year’s poster contest! The winning poster’s artist will receive a tree that may be planted on their school grounds (with school permission) or in an Arvada park of their choice thanks to the support of the Arvada Parks Department. Winners will be announced at the April 22 Earth Day Celebrations at the Nature Center. Students K-12 are welcome to participate. Visit the Majestic View Nature Center website for more details, requirements, and submission instructions. Email your news to ---PAGE BREAK--- Employee Updates Retirements Bonnie Carson, effective 3/23/2023, NIBRS Data Specialist Promotions Scott Gallardo, effective 3/20/2023, Municipal Inspector Foreman Kristen Tackman, effective 3/13/2023, NIBRS Data Specialist Newly Hired Isaac effective 3/11/2023, Parks Worker II Jared Carlson , effective 3/13/2023, Park Worker II Cole Knippen, effective 3/20/2023, Streets Technician II Loren Mahan, effective 3/13/2023, Customer Information Specialist Brady Porterfield-Finn, effective 3/22/2023, Neighborhood Engagement Coordinator John Sittner, effective 3/20/2023, Custodian Giles Clasen, effective 3/13/2023, Communications Coordinator AURA March 2023 New Employee Spotlight A few of our new hires have elected to share their background information and photos with us. Meet Brady, Sam, Chase and Giles! Brady Porterfield-Finn Neighborhood Engagement Coordinator Hello everyone. My name is Brady Porterfield-Finn and I am the new Neighborhood Engagement Coordinator. I love to travel and visit new places both in Colorado and around the world. A few special places to me where I have spent time working are Burkina Faso (West Africa) and the Dominican Republic. I live in the Northside of Denver with my partner Bentley, daughter Raury and two cats named Boris and Bouda. I am brand new to Arvada so please reach out to me with recommendations for coffee shops, parks, and organizations to partner with. My desk is on the 3rd floor in the City Manager’s Office if you would like to come say hi. Sam Bradley Affordable Housing Development Specialist Sam Bradley was recently hired to serve as the Housing Department's new Affordable Housing Development Specialist. Sam spent the last five years as an affordable housing finance and development consultant to numerous Public Housing Authority clients across the United States. She provided services ranging from assessments and strategic plans, acquisitions and refinancings, to Authority self-development of new affordable projects. She is thrilled to begin working to help bring affordable housing solutions to the City of Arvada! Email your news to ---PAGE BREAK--- Chase Amos new (additional) Public Information Officer Chase Amos is a native of Scottsdale, Arizona, and graduated from Arizona State University in 2012. His law enforcement experience includes an internship with the Chicago Police Department, having served as a Deputy Sheriff for the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, the U.S. State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, and most recently, as a Police Services Technician with Arvada Police. Chase and his husband are avid travelers and have visited six continents and over 30 countries. He recently returned to the U.S. following a five-year tour at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel. He worked as a Political Officer covering Human Trafficking and Arms Export Control, and served as the Deputy Chief of Staff to the U.S. Ambassador. Chase is excited to begin his role as a PIO for Arvada Police. He looks forward to expanding public engagement initiatives to enhance the relationship and cooperation between the Department and the public. Please welcome Chase or offer your sympathy for having to work with Dave. Giles Clasen AURA Communications Coordinator Giles started this position on March 13. He comes to AURA after spending the past 13 years working in finance, first as an independent financial advisor and then as an educator and promotions specialist with Colorado PERA. He is thrilled to be working for AURA and helping build Arvada. Giles has always been community-centric and continues to work as a freelance photographer and writer in his free time. He is a regular contributor to the Denver Voice and covers homelessness and social justice issues and is always looking for a good story to tell. Email your news to