April 13, 2025
No Comments
Copyright ©️ 2025 Lake City Silver World. All rights reserved.
Americans love their National Parks and Monuments. Perhaps you were one of the 332 million people who visited one of the 433 units of the National Park System in 2024? Yet, despite the public’s passion for these iconic landscapes, our Congressman, Jeff Hurd, has sponsored a bill that would take away the President’s authority to create new national monuments (House Bill 521). Talk about being out of touch with his constituents!In 1972, when I began my love affair with our national parks, the population of the United States was 207 million. You could drive into any of our national parks or monuments without a reservation and find a hotel room or campsite.Now, with the U.S. population at 342 million people and growing, you need to make your reservation 6 to 12 months in advance—and there’s still a good chance you will not find a place to stay. And if you are lucky enough to get a hotel or campsite reservation, expect long lines at entrance stations when you arrive, crowded scenic overlooks, and a steady stream of fellow hikers on the trails.With demand for outdoor recreation growing even more rapidly than our population, one thing is certain—we need to designate more publicly-owned lands as national parks and monuments to accommodate the rise in recreational tourism. So, how do we do this?There are two ways a site can become a part of the National Park System. The first is through a decades-long effort to persuade Congress to pass legislation to create a national park.The second is by the President of the United States designating an area as a national monument under the authority of the Antiquities Act of 1906. U.S. presidents have used this authority almost 300 times to protect publicly-owned land. Forty-three percent of our national parks started out as national monuments and were later designated national parks after Congress realized the recreational and economic value of national parks to local communities. National parks and monuments contribute $55.6 billion to the national economy and support 415,000 jobs. Our national parks and monuments cost U.S. taxpayers just 7/100 of one percent of the entire federal budget but deliver a $15 boost to the nation’s economy for every dollar invested.Republican presidents have consistently supported creating new national monuments. Popular national parks like Arches, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Chaco Canyon, Death Valley, Grand Canyon, and Zion were originally protected as national monuments by Republican Presidents.Colorado has four national parks and seven national monuments. Eight of these were first protected when the President of the United States designated them as national monuments.Colorado’s Third Congressional District is the home of three national parks (Black Canyon, Great Sand Dunes, and Mesa Verde) and three national monuments (Hovenweep, Yucca House, and Colorado National Monument). With the exception of Mesa Verde, all began their life in the National Park System after first being protected as a national monument by the President.Colorado National Monument, located next to Jeff Hurd’s hometown of Grand Junction, was originally designated as a national monument in 1911 by Republican President William Taft and later enlarged by Republican Presidents Herbert Hoover and Dwight Eisenhower. If Congressman Hurd had his way, these presidents would not have had the authority to protect the spectacular landscape of Colorado National Monument and instead it would be open to logging, mining, and oil and gas drilling.Isn’t it about time Congressman Hurd represented his constituents’ interests rather than the private companies that want to plunder our precious publicly-owned lands? He can start by withdrawing his support for House Bill 521 and instead proposing legislation to create additional national parks and monuments.
I wanted to express my heartfelt gratitude and thanks to the community for all the well wishes in leaving the Treasurer’s office and for the many friendships that have developed over the past 10 years.I’d especially like to thank the girls at the courthouse for the wonderful and total surprise send-off on my last day in the office. They are truly the best and I will miss working with them. Thanks so much,Lori LawrenceLake City
During open discussion and a two-hour workshop, followed by half-hour meeting last Wednesday, April 2, Hinsdale Commissioners covered a myriad of topics including formally increasing safety-related OHV infractions to $300, requisite spark arrestors and reflects Town of Lake City’s lead in mandating hours of OHV operation on public roads in unincorporated areas of the county from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. effective May 5, 2025.Simmering dissension also marked the board’s workshop discussion on wording and timing for a county OHV ballot initiative, and prior to the three-member board’s unanimous approval concerns which were expressed during normally routine renewal of a Wade’s Addition liquor license.Topping the April 2 meeting agenda was formal approval appointing Lori Hanko as successor to recently resigned Hinsdale County Treasurer & Public Trustee Lori Lawrence. Hanko, who was Deputy Treasurer, was recommended in Lawrence’s March 17 resignation letter.During the workshop portion of Wednesday’s meeting, EMS Director Katherine Heidt advised Commissioners on an impending incremental three-year increase in Emergency Medical Service rates, the first since 2015, based on charges for comparable emergency services in neighboring areas.Under the incremental three-year plan starting this year and extending through 2027, the rate for BLS (Basic Life Support) transport increases from $900 to $1,400 in 2025 and then respectively $1,650 and $1,900 in 2026 and 2027. For ALS (Advanced Life Support), $1,200 since 2015, the new rate is $1,700 2025, $1,900 2026, and $2,200 2027.One-way ambulance ground mileage — for instance from Lake City to Gunnison Valley Hospital — increases from $24 currently per mile to $31 per mile 2025, $33/mile 2026, and $35/mile 2027.Modest one-time charges for specific supplies, as explained by Heidt, will see an increase from $45 current to $50 new rate for oxygen supplies; heart monitoring goes from $65 now to $75; ALS IV drug administration, $65 to $75; ALS and BLS routine disposables, $100 to new $150 rate.Heidt emphasized to Commissioners that the new EMS rates are the result of a calculated study last September by a team of EMS professional from throughout Colorado as part of a state-funded consultative visit. The upshot from that study, according to Heidt, was the suggestion for improved financial stability through a review and update of Hinsdale EMS rates.Heidt furnishes the chart reprinted above which illustrates comparable rates being charged by regional agencies (among them Gunnison and Crested Butte) and comparisons between industry standards and Lake City which, based on its remote location, is classified as a “frontier area.”As an incentive “intended to thank the community for its incredible support over the decades, Hinsdale EMS’ proposed rate increase also includes a $200 “Local Discount” for local patients with the 81235 billing address.Heidt said the new 2025-2027 rate structure will be widely publicized on the Hinsdale EMS website and with handouts to patients.Hinsdale Commissioners were receptive to the increased EMS fee structure, Commissioner Hurd noting that the new rates will result in reduced county subsidies to EMS, “the closer we get to a self-supporting program the better,” said Hurd.The county’s 2024 “contractual adjustment” to Hinsdale EMS in 2024, according to Finance Officer Lynn McNitt, amounted to $75,000.Commissioners are scheduled to formally approve the new EMS rate structure at a special meeting on Wednesday, April 23, and new rates will go into effect on May 1.Commissioners’ workshop discussion and subsequent meeting finalized an amended OHV ordinance mirroring Town of Lake City with hours of operation on unincorporated public roads in the county limited to 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., county following Federal standards with mandatory spark arresters, and an increase to $300 fine for safety-related citations.The amended county OHV ordinance, published in its entirety elsewhere in this week’s issue, is set for a second reading at the county’s 9 a.m. Wednesday, April 23, special meeting and, once passed, goes into effect prior to Memorial Day. While discussions between the three commissioners regarding the amended OHV ordinance were in general amicable, differing viewpoints were evident as the OHV topic turned to specific wording and timing for a planned ballot…… Continue Reading this Lengthy Article! Subscribe to the Lake City Silver World and receive the weekly issue in your inbox or mail!
Hinsdale County Commissioners hashed out details on interim funding for the county’s $4.3-million Operations Center project during an at-times heated two-and-a-half-hour workshop and meeting on Friday afternoon, April 4.During the process of Friday’s workshop — which was attended by county staff including County Administrator Sandy Hines and Finance Officer Lynn McNitt, together with remote Zoom attendance by representatives from two Denver-based financial firms —it was revealed that $2 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding toward the project, which had been on hold, is now confirmed and available to the county.McNitt said that FEMA funds awarded in 2025 remain under review but that a saving point for Hinsdale County is that the Congressional-Directed FEMA funds were awarded in 2024.The pace at which the FEMA funds will be doled out remains an unknown, although both County Administrator Hines and Finance Officer McNitt stated that paperwork has already been filled out for a preliminary advance payment which would include a $19,775 reimbursement to county billed by general contractor Building by Design for preliminary technology and related contractor costs.McNitt said it is uncertain whether payments to the county from the FEMA grant will be monthly or quarterly.With affirmation from County Attorney Michael O’Loughlin who stated “it’s your meeting,” Commissioners Kristie Borchers, Greg Levine, and Robert Hurd asked Finance Officer Lynn McNitt for an update on funds owed to the county by the State of Colorado as part of the All Hazards Team Program.The lack of reimbursement to date is proving a sticking point to several of the commissioners owing to the fact $500,000 in All Hazards TeamVol. 48, No. 2 Friday, April 11, 2025 Lake City, Hinsdale County, Colorado 81235 U.S.P.S. No. 436-63075¢reimbursement represents half of the $1-million which the county is pledging toward the Operations Center construction.Asked for an up-to-date accounting, McNitt told the county board that, all told, All Hazards Team reimbursements owed to the county by the State of Colorado now exceed $3.6-million.County Attorney O’Loughlin, by Zoom connection, reassured the commissioners, telling them he “remains optimistic” that a resolution with the State will be reached — potentially as early as next week when a representative from the Colorado Attorney General’s Office belatedly confers with him — and that the money will be repaid. Failing that, O’Loughlin stated “they can’t just not pay it back; if they don’t, we go to court.”Lack of the All Hazard Team reimbursement payment in hand remains a major sticking point, an exasperated Commissioner Hurd telling Borchers and Levine, “when is the frick’in State going to pay us our money?”Hurd likened non-payment to date of what is owed to the county as a major “fear” and is the primary reason for his hesitation in proceeding with Operation Center construction.On a similarly cautious note, Commissioner Levine said he has “no confidence in the state at present” in terms of repayment and, in worst case scenario, of not repayment assurances, ultimately “I will not back this project.” An even worse case scenario as alluded to by Levine, would be entering into a lease-purchase agreement for interim funding “and then something else happens, I can’t see tackling two giant issues at once… it’s very, very difficult.”[NOTE: since the April 4 meeting and at the county board’s Wednesday meeting this week, it is now announced that the reimbursed All-Hazard funds are now on schedule for payment, the first check — $862,572.59 — expected Monday next week.]As a brief recap of the project, the 6,409-square foot facility combining sheriff’s dept., emergency operations, and county administration will be funded through the $2-million Congressionally-Directed FEMA grant, $1-million from Colorado Department of Local Affairs which is guaranteed, and $1-million from Hinsdale County (comprised $300,000 from the county’s sale of the Wee Care property to the school district, $500,000 through the All Hazard Team reimbursement, and $226,000 interest earned on investments). In addition to an array of funding which has been lined up for actual construction of the Operations Center, other funds have been competitively awarded to the county for actual construction of the Operations Center, other funds have been competitively awarded to the county for electric wiring totaling $256,500 from the state’s energy office, and a JAG (Justice Assistance Grant) through Colorado Division of Criminal Justice which will furnish and technologically equip the sheriff’s dept. portion of the new structure.Costs to date on the project and already paid by the county, as enumerated by Commissioner Borchers, total $192,900 and include $28,000 for demolition of the old shop building on the site north of the courthouse where construction will take place, $9,800 in attorney’s fees, and $116,000 architectural work paid to the county’s architectural firm on the project, Reynolds Ash & Associates.Following a request for bid, Building by Design was selected as general contractor for the project in February at a negotiated price of $4,398,173.In her compilation of the project, board chair Kristie Borchers reminded fellow board members, staff and public at the meeting that the concept of an Operations Center is not exactly new: discussions on the need for a new facility have been bantered about for decades. Referring to crowded and substandard office and meeting conditions in the existing Coursey Annex, she said, “it’s an embarrassing facility… I want to be the board that solves this.”“Now is the time to do it,” said Borchers, “if we don’t pull the trigger and get it done, it will never get done.”Plans for what was then referred to as a Justice Center combining county and sheriff’s dept. offices with a new county courtroom date back as least as far as 2009 when a DOLA-funded small space assessment resulted in plans for a two-story $7-million building which included basement archival storage. That project, however, languished and proceeded no further. The current plan calling for a reduced-size, 6,409-s.f. single-story complex costing $4-million was revived starting in 2021.Borchers recalled a comment by Commissioner Levine last year when overages were anticipated on the four-mile chip and seal project on County Road 30 to Lake San Cristobal. Comparing the
Copyright ©️ 2025 Lake City Silver World. All rights reserved.
