Ned eyes new housing, summer music preview and more

Take a break from national headlines and tune in to what's going on in your neighborhood. On this week's episode, we've got just the headlines: a quick round up of everything that's been happening in the Peak to Peak these last two weeks, from proposed rental housing in Nederland to Central City Opera's show stopping drag performance in Denver. 

Also

• Nederland child care center nears completion
• Massive turnout for Ned's annual clean-up day
• Live music kicks off summer at Chipeta Park

Read Caribou Current's roundup of shows playing at Central City Opera this summer

Nederland Summer Concert Series full schedule

Hazel Miller and The Collective at Village at the Peaks

Our theme song is courtesy of singer-songwriter Brittney Wagner. Stream her record Better off Dead here.

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:01

Sometimes all there is to talk about is the news. Or at least it feels that way. It's hard to cut through the noise when state and national headlines constantly spell doom. This episode is a reminder that there are headlines coming straight from your neighborhood, too. And not all news is bad news. Take a break from the doom scrolling and listen in to what's happening right here in the Peak to Peak for a breath of fresh air. Welcome to the Mountaineer Podcast. I'm Tyler Hickman. On today's show, we're bringing you just the headlines from your local community. We've got a lot to catch you up on. So sit tight. Before we dive in, here's a quick word from one of our sponsors, the Regional Air Quality Council. This year, set the summer trend. Take simple steps for better air, and go electric with your lawn care equipment. Through the end of 2026, take advantage of a 30% point-of-sale discount on all new electric leaf blowers, lawn mowers, and trimmers at participating retailers statewide. Maintaining your property without gas emissions helps reduce ground level ozone pollution in the front range and to protect your health. Learn more at SimpleStepsbetterAir.org. Now, let's get to the headlines. Last week, Chris paid a visit to the west end of town, where the construction of the joint project between the town of Netherland and local nonprofit Teens Inc. is underway. The center broke ground less than a year ago and is expected to open its doors this October. It will have the capacity to serve up to 65 infants and preschoolers, while offering after school care for children up to age seven. The center comes at a time of dire need for childcare in Ned. With only 20 slots available at the existing preschool and more than 65 families on the wait list, Teens Inc. hopes this new center will help close that gap. 120 cars packed with debris, garbage, and unwanted odds and ends poured into the Ned transfer station this Saturday for an annual cleanup day hosted by Boulder County in the town of Netherland. Workers filled seven dumpsters with residents' trash and recyclables in less than three hours. According to the US EPA, only 32% of American waste is diverted from landfills annually. Boulder County is better than average, with 41% of waste recycled and composted every year. Despite this comparative success, it's still well below the county's zero waste goal it hoped to achieve by 2025.

SPEAKER_02 3:35

Well, singing Glitter and Be Gay from Canteen, please give a warm welcome to Central City Opera singer Halle Schmidt and lip syncing for her life. Give it up for Virgin Boy, the Steva of the Seas, and a single crystals, everyone!

SPEAKER_03 3:50

The Central City Opera got dragged down the hill to Denver's Levitt Pavilion for its third annual Drag Me to the Opera celebration in the Mile High City. The event promoting CCO's 2026 season mashed the opera and a drag performance into one grand display of pure drama. The singers belted the scores from their upcoming shows alongside lip-syncing drag performers who brought the songs to life with attitude! If that got you hooked, you should definitely check out Caribou Currents Roundup of Shows coming to the Central City Opera House this summer. We ran the story in our May issue, but it's a great primer for what to expect this season. We'll drop the link in the show notes. Back up the hill, Netherland has been cooking up a proposal for an apartment complex to help close a large gap in housing availability for the town. A 2023 town survey identified the need for up to 150 additional rental units over the next four decades, with a target of 36 new rental units by 2030. The town planning commission met on May 20th to review potential plans for a 16-unit rental property near the town's new child care center and located on site at a current trailer park. This came just one day after the Board of Trustees voted to approve a fast track review process for affordable housing in order to be eligible for state funding for these projects. The potential development has yet to designate any of its units as affordable, though the property owner and site architect said that they were open to having the discussion. No action was taken during the meeting, but the commission advised the developers to inform the neighborhood of the proposal before the official plan comes back for a vote. The vibes were immaculate along the creek at Chipetta Park this weekend with the return of Netherlands Summer Concert Series. Clay Rose, Adam Perry, and the Al Capone's took to the stage to serenade Nedheads to the sweet sounds of Skyrock Fusion. Don't worry if you miss this one. Concerts will be popping up on the lawn all summer long. The next show is this Saturday, June 13th, featuring Hazel Miller and the collective. We'll drop a link to the summer's full schedule in the show notes. Those were this week's top headlines. You can read all these stories and so much more in our weekly print paper or online at the MTNEAR.com. Remember, local news is still news. Oftentimes it has a lot more impact on your day-to-day life than what you're reading in national outlets. So don't forget about your community newspaper. We'll be here as long as you're tuning in. That's all for today. If you like this episode, or you want to let your neighbors know what's going on in their own backyard, please share it around. It's the best thing you can do to support what we do every single week. You can like or subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts to get the news the moment we hit the airwaves. Once again, this is the Mountaineer Podcast. I'm Tyler Hickman. Thanks for listening. To get you hyped for this weekend's concert in the park, we're gonna let Hazel Miller play us out. We'll see you next week.

unknown 8:01

Oh, there's my baby.

SPEAKER_00 8:40

I'm just a link in your chair. I not think much of food, baby, baby, baby, baby.