Briefs | Lighten up, Boulder

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Lighten
up, Boulder

GO Boulder, the University of Colorado and local merchants have teamed up for
the fourth annual “Lighten Up Boulder” campaign to highlight the importance of
using a bike light for night cycling.

The campaign encourages bike light use by
providing discounts on bike light accessories at participating merchants.

Coupons can be printed from goboulder.net and redeemed at the 14 different
retailers listed on the coupon. They also can be picked up at the Boulder Farmers’
Market on 13th Street on Wednesdays and Saturdays from the GO Boulder/Community
Cycles Bike Ambassadors’ light safety display. Coupons are valid through
Friday, Nov. 11.

Reaching out for GOOD

GOOD, a
collaboration of individuals, businesses and nonprofit organizations, has launched
a Boulder version of its online product called the GOOD Maker.

GOOD Maker is
GOOD’s platform for supporting aspiring people working towards their goals.
Users can submit a project that needs funding, and the community will vote for
the winner. GOOD is offering $1,500 to the winning idea.

For more
information and to view the fund, visit http://boulder.maker.good.is.

Boulder gets grant for electric vehicles

On Sept. 8, the
U.S. Department of Energy awarded the city of Boulder, a part of the Colorado
Clean Cities Coalition, $500,000 in grant funds under the Clean Cities
Community Readiness and Planning for Plug-in Electric Vehicles and Charging
Infrastructure Opportunity.

The grant funds
will be shared by multiple agencies to help fund Project FEVER (Funding
Electric Vehicle Expansion in the Rockies), which will attempt to overcome
barriers that are impeding penetration of electric vehicles in the marketplace
over the course of a year.

With the funds,
the city will help establish guidelines to determine the best locations for
electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, standardize permitting operations and
create a plan for linking Boulder to other communities in a statewide EV
charging network.

For more
information, contact Joe Castro, city of Boulder facilities and fleet manager,
at castroj@bouldercolorado.gov or 303-441-3163.

Boulder
Humane Society fundraising event raises thousands to help homeless animals

Nearly 600 people and 300 dogs attended
the 22nd Annual Cause for Paws Doggie Dash and Walk-A-Thon on Sept. 10, and the
event raised more than $65,000 to benefit the Humane Society of Boulder
Valley’s treatment of the 9,000 homeless and abandoned animals they encounter
each year.

The event featured corporate and
individual team competitions, a pet expo, bone-shaped sandwiches for dogs, dog
massages, dog agility fun, a costume contest, a pancake breakfast sponsored by
Whole Foods Market and a beer garden sponsored by Avery Brewing. More than 100
volunteers were on hand to help organize and run the event.

Lafayette Recreation Department to host “HeartChase”

On Oct. 8, the Lafayette recreation department will host the American
Heart Association’s “Heart Chase,” a community event promoting healthy living
and adventure. The event will take teams through Old Town Lafayette, where
they will solve clues and complete checkpoints in the fastest time possible,
competing to be the HeartChase champion and win prizes.

The Chase will begin and end at City Park and will feature stops at
the Bob L. Burger Recreation Center, Simpson Mine Park, Festival Plaza and
other checkpoints. 

Lafayette is one of 80 locations nationwide that will be hosting the
program this year. Proceeds go to the American Heart Association.  

Funding for
cycling

Community
Cycles, a nonprofit organization that educates and advocates for the safe use
of bicycles, will receive two grants totaling $120,000 from the Denver Regional
Council of Governments (DRCOG) and Boulder County.

The
grants, which begin in 2012, will expand Community Cycles’ programs, including
its Earn-a-Bike, jail work release, workplace training and children’s safety
programs.

DRCOG awarded Community Cycles $50,000 over a two-year period as part of a
Federal Highways’ Congestion Mitigation Air Quality initiative. Community
Cycles will apply the funding to conduct bike-training workshops at local
businesses to encourage bike commuting. The program will begin in March, and businesses
in Boulder County and along the U.S. 36 corridor are eligible to participate.

Boulder
County awarded Community Cycles $70,000 to expand the Earn-a-Bike program,
which involves participants attending several classes to learn basic mechanical
skills, safety and etiquette before “earning” a bike at no cost. The Boulder County
grant is part of a larger Federal Transit Adminstration grant.

The Earn-a-Bike program has
reduced car trips and supported low-income county residents with transportation
needs. As part of the program, more than 1,500 bikes are recycled into the community
as well.