Franchise Opportunities in Denver, CO

Ignore the hype: There could be a few wet snowflakes in Denver and maybe a slushy few inches of snow in the foothills, but anything beyond that looks unlikely.

DENVER — Nobody wants snow – and more than that, meaningful precipitation – more than I do.

But despite the hype on social media, it doesn't look like Friday and Saturday's storm is going to produce more than a few wet snowflakes – perhaps at best – in Denver and the immediate metro area. However, some beneficial cold rain does look likely on Friday and maybe into Saturday morning.

A cold and powerful storm system arriving from the north will bring Colorado much colder and potentially wetter weather starting on Thursday night. And while the mountains and foothills look likely to get some late May snow from this storm, the snow probably won't make its way down to Denver and nearby locations.

Computer forecast models (and many corners of social media) are excited about Denver-area snow chances, and that excitement only grew on Monday. Computer forecasts produced higher snowfall totals, with some models showing as much as 5-6 inches of snow into the Denver area on Friday and Saturday.

But while the chances of Denver seeing measurable snowfall are far from zero, it looks unlikely for several key reasons.

In 140 years of official Denver weather records, it's snowed this late in the winter season in Denver (May 20th or later) exactly 10 times. It's only snowed this late in the season twice in the last 47 years.

So while it can absolutely happen, that would seem to indicate that you need a pretty unique set of circumstances to get snow this late in the winter season. That doesn't appear to be the case, despite the insistence of some computer models.

The bulk of the storm system stays to our north, and you'd really want the core of the system to pass over Denver and Colorado to create a better chance for snow here. That said, a trailing piece of energy should bring in enough moisture to create at least a chance for snow, and certainly some much colder temperatures.

Also, if you want snow this late in the year, it almost certainly has to take place during the night. The very high late May sun angle (along with our recent warmth) will make it nearly impossible for any snow to stick during the day.

And while the snow could come on Friday night, it's looking like the majority of the precipitation may fall during the day on Friday, which would make measurable snowfall in Denver very unlikely.

So what does that all mean? You probably don't have enough cold air, or enough moisture, to produce snow in lower elevations like Denver. The foothills above 6,500 feet could be in line for a slushy few inches of snow under the current scenario, though.

We'll have to watch for the possibility of frost on Friday night and Saturday morning, especially in higher areas just outside of Denver. Right now, it looks like temperatures may fall to right around 32 degrees on Saturday morning.

So after a snow-less April and what's likely to finish as our shortest snow season on record, we understand that you might want snow in Denver. But it doesn't look likely, at least right now.

Colorado parents might find it more difficult to secure baby formula for their newborns because of a national shortage. Some stores are limiting the amount of formula that be purchased, as many face setbacks even getting it in stock.

Major chains in Colorado, from CVS Pharmacy to Walgreens, have reported shortages. Shelves in stores throughout the metro area aren’t barren, but the limited supply is noticeable.

CVS set a customer limit of three baby formula products per purchase in stores and online “following supplier challenges and increased customer demand,” said spokesperson Monica Prinzing. The national chain includes more than 50 stores dotted throughout the state.

“We’re continuing to work with our baby formula vendors to address this issue and we regret any inconvenience this causes our customers,” Prinzing added.

Walgreens also established a purchase limit of three per transaction on all infant and toddler formula to help improve inventory, said spokesperson Karen May. Kroger is curbing purchases to four containers per customer, said spokesperson Erin Rolfes.

Notably, Natural Grocers hasn’t had supply issues with its baby formulas, said co-president Kemper Isely.

“But, because of the nationwide shortage, it appears as if we may start experiencing this, as the demand for the formulas we sell goes up because of the shortage of the formulas sold in mass,” he wrote in an emailed statement.

King Soopers, the state’s largest grocery store chain headquartered in Denver, issued a limit on baby formula to four per customer at its 1155 East 9th Avenue store. At its store on 136th Avenue in Broomfield, there were no signs indicating a purchase limit, but shelves of formula were at least half empty.

Elsewhere on the north side of the metro area, the Safeway on 144th Avenue in Broomfield had mostly full shelves, but was limiting purchases to five items, and the Target on 144th Avenue had little supply.

Representatives of King Soopers and Walmart didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment.

Around 40% of large retail stores nationwide are out of stock of baby formula – a jump from 31% in April, according to Datasembly, a data analytics firm. Only a few companies control the baby formula market – Abbott, Mead Johnson, and Gerber, which is owned by Nestlé – which leaves it susceptible to disruptions.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning in February not to use recalled Similac, Alimentum, or EleCare powdered infant formulas produced at an Abbott Nutrition plant in Michigan. The federal investigation followed complaints by consumers about infant illness.

“We recognize that many consumers have been unable to access infant formula and critical medical foods they are accustomed to using and are frustrated by their inability to do so,” said FDA Commissioner Robert Califf. “We are doing everything in our power to ensure there is adequate product available where and when they need it.”

The FDA is working to allow flexibility in the movement of already permitted infant formula products from abroad into the U.S., according to a Tuesday update. Notably, “other infant formula manufacturers are meeting or exceeding capacity levels to meet current demand,” the agency wrote.

President Joe Biden met with Gerber and Reckitt Thursday to talk about how his administration could help them boost production. He also spoke with Walmart and Target leadership about how to restock shelves and tackle regional disparities in accessing baby formula, the White House said.

“We recognize that this is certainly a challenge for people across the country, something the president is very focused on and we’re going to do everything we can to cut red tape and take steps to increase supply,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.

The Biden administration aims to work with trading partners in Mexico, Chile, Ireland and the Netherlands on imports, although 98% of baby formula is produced in the U.S.

Colorado’s baby formula shortfall is “probably on average with the rest of the country,” said Chris Howes, president of the Colorado Retail Council, whose members sell the majority of the product in the state.

But, the Abbott plant isn’t the lone source of the problem. Howes also pointed to the transportation sector’s labor deficit and lingering effects from COVID-19.

“Everybody is working on this to try to find a quick fix,” he said, but cautioned parents against making their own formula.

Parents who strike out finding formula at the store still have options in the metro area.

Colorado families can stop by Denver Inner City Parish at 1212 Mariposa St. From Monday through Friday, the human services nonprofit gives out child-care supplies, including baby formula.

Alex Romberg, office manager and executive assistant, said their team is sorting through all of the Similac products to ensure they’re not part of the recall.

Alternatively, its food pantry, which is only open on Saturdays, has baby food available. Denver Inner City Parish is open 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for walk-ups.

Residents of the Denver metropolitan area can also turn to WeeCycle, a Colorado-based nonprofit that helps families in need. While WeeCycle doesn’t donate directly to individuals, its Mobile Baby Essentials program distributes diapers, wipes, baby food, formula and more at five Denver locations and one Aurora location.

The nonprofit has nine events in May and seven in June, as listed online. Most are drive-thru, and all are first-come, first-serve with no documentation required.

Lindsey Zaback, WeeCycle development director, said she’s seen a boost in demand for baby formula, particularly for specialty brands. “I can’t even wrap my mind around this formula shortage as a mom,” she said in a telephone interview.

Through grant funding, the nonprofit is able to purchase $20,000 of formula each month, but Zaback encourages financial donations from those interested in helping the cause.

WeeCycle also collects infant and toddler gear at various donation locations and distributes the cleaned and inspected gear to community-based organizations. Donations can include diapers, wipes, baby food, formula and more.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

DENVER (CBS4)– “When you get to play with a guy like this every night, you don’t take it for granted, that’s for sure,” said Cale Makar.

Devon Toews is the Robin to Cale Makar’s Batman. Toews might get less national anthem than Makar, but he’s a superstar in his own right.

“He plays every situation for us. Whether we’re up a goal or down a goal, he’s now the guy we lean on,” Jared Bednar said of Toews.

There’s no shortage of love being Toews and Makar. Their chemistry is palpable and it makes them an unstoppable force on the ice.

“Cale makes it easy a lot of times. He’s such a dynamic player. I think our friendship off the ice helps a lot. We have a lot of rapport. We don’t fight, we don’t bicker. If something happens on the ice, we talk it about and move on. We view the game the same and have the same mindset,” Toews said

“I feel like Devon just does everything well. It always feels like if one of us is up, the other is back. Whether its just reading off each other or finding different ways to go up the ice together and expose their forecheck, I just feel in that aspect we work well together,” Makar said.

DENVER, COLORADO – MAY 03: Mikko Rantanen #96 joins teammates Nathan MacKinnon #29 and Valeri Nichushkin #13 of the Colorado Avalanche to celebrate a goal by Devon Toews #7 against the Nashville Predators in Game One of the First Round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena on May 3, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Through the first round of the playoffs, Toews and Makar are tied for the most goals by a defenseman. That’s impressive on its own. Even more when you consider they’re on the ice with one of the best scoring top lines in the league.

“It helps when they defend so well too. The five of us defend so well and it allows us to play offense freely and creatively. It’s tough to read off those guys too sometimes. They’re so creative and have such good hockey minds. I’ve learned a lot from them, how they like us to play and how they like us to jump the rush,” Toews said.

For Toews, it’s all about one thing:

“Consistency. I think that’s something always been something I’ve keyed in on. If I can just be consistently good at what I’m doing and consistently be a contributor every night. It’s been since college that I really started to hone in on that part of my game.”

Toews is now a staple on the Avalanche, but his journey to get to this point was no easy task. It started as an unbelievable whirlwind. On October 10, 2020, Devon married his wife, Kerry with plans to build their life on the east coast. Two days later he was traded to Colorado.

“I think we were still on the wedding high, still going through wedding cards. To get that call was a little bit shocking. Probably took a week for that to settle in and to understand it was an exciting place for us to go. It was nothing against Colorado, we just loved our set up out there and felt like that was home for us at that point in our lives. It was a lot of life moving fast for us.”

Packing up and moving at a moment’s notice is tough at any time. But Devon and Kerry had to do it at perhaps the toughest time – in the height of the pandemic, when ingratiating themselves into a new community was nearly impossible. But the Avs came through.

“It speaks to how great the hockey community is that we were able to move here and have no one and feel like we did have a lot of people behind us, helping us.”

Just a couple years after the crazy move, the Toews have built a life in Colorado, on and off the ice.

“It’s a business and there are always things that happen – case and point us getting traded from New York. But if we have the opportunity to spent the rest of my career and the rest of our lives together, we would love that.”

High winds are blowing dust and smoke across the Denver metro area.

DENVER — The strong winds that fueled high fire danger Friday also blew dust and smoke across Colorado's Front Range.

Winds were incredibly fierce Friday afternoon, gusting up to 73 mph at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora and regularly gusting above 50 mph.

Smoke from fires burning south of the state in New Mexico as well as the Silver Charm that was burning in north Colorado Springs blew north into the Denver metro area. Dust was also picked up in the strong winds and blown around the state.

This storm is pulling up quite the mix of dust, wildfire smoke, and clouds over the state of Colorado this evening. #9wx pic.twitter.com/PTF98PKiKP

— Cory Reppenhagen (@CReppWx) April 23, 2022

Located near Interquest Parkway and Interstate 25 in Colorado Springs, the Silver Charm grass fire led to evacuation orders for the Farm subdivision on Ridgeline Drive about 1 p.m. Those evacuation orders were lifted shortly before 4 p.m.

There are multiple wildfires currently burning in New Mexico, including the Cooks Peak Fire, which has burned 48,672 acres so far, the Calf Canyon Fire, which has burned 34,768 acres so far and combined with the Hermit's Peak Fire.

Blustery winds combined with unseasonably warm temperatures created extreme fire danger across much of Colorado.

The temperature at Denver International Airport (DIA) rose to 89 degrees Friday afternoon to set a record high for April 22. The previous record high was 88 degrees Fahrenheit, set in 1989, according to the National Weather Service in Boulder.

On top of that, the high of 89 degrees in Denver made it the hottest April temperature in the city since 1992, and it also tied for Denver's second-hottest April temperature on record.

In welcome news, a weather system will bring snow to Colorado's mountains and a few light rain showers to lower elevations over the weekend, with cooler temperatures in the mid- to upper 50s.

Mild weather returns next week with sunshine and 60s Monday in Denver; however, it's looking like we'll be back into the 80s by the middle of next week.

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DENVER (KDVR) — A 90-year-old Denver woman is stuck in a damaged condo as her homeowner’s association and insurance company point the blame at each other for a pipe burst in her building hallway.

Sadie Licata has been living in her condo at the Windsor Gardens for nearly 20 years now.

On March 20, a pipe burst in her condo’s communal hallway sending water flooding into Licata’s and two other neighbors’ homes.

Her HOA fixed the pipe in the hallway and paid for emergency water restoration services including ripping out Licata’s kitchen flooring and molding along her walls. However, months later the floor and molding are still not replaced.

“I’m sitting on cement that’s hurting my legs because it’s cement,” Licata said. “I’ve got arthritis in my knee, I shouldn’t be walking on cement. The carpet was wet all the way through here too and they said it all has to be torn out.”

Licata’s son Joe has been fighting to get his mother’s home fixed, pleading back and forth with her HOA and the insurance company she pays to protect her, The Hartford.

“Both of them are just passing the buck back and forth, it’s just ridiculous,” Joe said. “It’s aggravating. It’s really frustrating knowing my poor mother is going through all this and yet they don’t give a damn.”

Joe asked the FOX31 Problem Solvers to help. We contacted the HOA and The Hartford to ask about the holdup.

The Windsor Gardens Association responded to our request with this statement:

Ms. Licata’s unit was involved in a water loss on March 20, 2022, resulting from a sudden and accidental water pipe burst that occurred under the concrete slab of the first floor. Windsor Gardens repaired the pipe and paid for the emergency water restoration services provided to the three units involved.

Unfortunately, Ms. Licata experienced flooring damage from the water loss and her insurance company is recommending replacement.

Ms. Licata informed the association that she installed the flooring when she moved to Windsor Gardens. As such, the flooring is considered an improvement and betterment installed by the Unit Owner. In accordance with the Association’s Declaration, Owners acknowledge that insurance coverage for improvements and betterments installed by Unit Owners shall be at the cost of each individual Owner.

The association has advocated for her over the past several weeks and strongly encouraged her insurance company, Hartford Insurance, to extend coverage under her policy.”

A representative from The Hartford shared the following statement:

We take the privacy of our customers’ information seriously, and, as a practice, we do not discuss specifics of individual claims.

Generally speaking, when a pipe bursts in a condominium causing damage to common areas and individual units, the homeowners association’s insurance covers some of the repairs and the residents’ insurance covers others. It can take time to sort out which insurance policy applies to each damaged piece of property. We are working with the homeowners association on a resolution for our customer so that the damage can be repaired as soon as possible. Customer service is a top priority for us, and handling claims is at the heart of what we do.”

“My contention is, get it fixed. Why let these people sit around in this stuff for over two months now? It’s ridiculous,” Joe said.

Following the Problem Solvers’ contact with The Hartford, Joe tells FOX31 he got a call from a supervisor. According to Joe, the supervisor said she just got his mom’s case from March on her desk and he should be receiving names and numbers for contractors soon.