Lake City - The Silver World Newspaper

Veterans Day -Observance Nov. 11

Hinsdale County’s annual Veterans’ Day observance takes place in the Town of Lake City Armory starting 11 a.m. next Monday, November 11. Presentation of Colors by flagbearers Ben Redler, Dennis Cavit and Doug Franz begins the ceremony, after which Veterans Service Officer Mike Harrington will make opening remarks and Air Force Veteran Don Farmer will sing the National Anthem. Guest speaker of the day will be U.S. Army Veteran and former Hinsdale County Judge Al Lutz, whose speech is titled “Reflections of a Vietnam Veteran.” U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer, Retired, Russ Brown will recite his poem, “Veterans’ Day Remembrance”. Concluding elements of Monday morning’s service are a prayer for Veterans and their families by Rev. Jason Santos of Community Presbyterian Church. New this year will be a salute to singer Toby Keith, and his song ‘Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue’ will be played, after which the Color Guard will retire. Harrington tells WORLD that a free meal will be provided to every veteran at either Sportsman’s BBQ, Beny’s Mexican Cafe or Packer Saloon and Grill, for either lunch or dinner, and anyone accompanying dining veterans will enjoy half-off pricing for their meal.

November 7, 2024 No Comments

Undersheriff Starnes, Commissioner Levine Elected Amid Heavy 88% Voter Turnout…

Hinsdale County voters in record droves maintained the status quo on Tuesday as they handily returned two incumbent County Commissioners to successive four-year terms, and affirmed Undersheriff Denim Starnes who was elected to a four-year term as Hinsdale County Sheriff, the 38th sheriff in the county’s 150-year history. Again, indicating voter satisfaction with the current slate of the county’s elected officers, Hinsdale County Coroner Lori Lawrence, running unopposed, received 479 votes, the highest vote tally of any candidate in this year’s General Election. Hinsdale County Clerk & Recorder Joan Roberts credited “smooth and efficient” work on the part of her staff, Deputy County Clerk Allison Athey and election judges, for a speedy turn around which allowed election results to be checked and double checked, with formal announcement of election results prior to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. At poll closing at 7 p.m. on a cold and snowing election evening Tuesday, the clerk’s office reported a tremendous 88 percent return of the 692 ballots which were mailed to registered voters last month. Of the 692 ballots sent to the county’s voters, 608 ballots were returned either by mail, hand delivery to the clerk’s office, or drop off in the county courthouse outside ballot box prior to Tuesday evening’s deadline. Election judges Alice Attaway, Karen McClatchie, Peggy Bales, Lorie Stewart, and Kathleen Whinnery Murphy smoothly processed this year’s ballots, reporting no provisional ballots which were left uncounted. In the county’s two tightest, contested election races, Unaffiliated incumbent District 1 Commissioner Greg Levine garnered a total of 343 votes county-wide compared to his Republican rival, Steve Ryals, who received 245 votes. Incumbent District 3 County Commissioner Robert Hurd, a Republican, was unopposed in his quest for re-election and received 443 votes, second highest vote tally among local candidates in Tuesday’s election. A second contested local election was for Hinsdale County Sheriff with an unprecedented three candidates who were vying to fill the vacancy resulting from last summer’s resignation of Chris Kambish. Since Kambish’s June, 2024, departure, the role of Hinsdale County Sheriff has been filled by former Sheriff Ron Bruce who was drafted to fill the position with the stated intent of once again retiring from office after the new sheriff is sworn into office on January 8 next year. Top vote recipient in the sheriff’s election was Unaffiliated candidate Denim Starnes, with 343 votes, who is currently Hinsdale County Undersheriff. Starnes was challenged by two candidates, Republican Jordan Kaminski, a former Hinsdale County Undersheriff, who received 186 votes, and a total of 42 votes were tallied for write-In candidate John Thomas Stratton. In other regional election results, traditionally GOP-leaning Hinsdale County awarded a near-identical number of votes to Gunnison County Democrat Kathleen Curry who was vying for the District 58 State Representative seat against Republican Larry Don Suckla. Within the county, Suckla was slightly ahead in Tuesday evening’s tally with 288 votes compared to Curry’s 262; district-wide and according to the Colorado Secretary of State’s cumulative tally Wednesday morning, Suckla was declared the winner with a 52.90 percent vote tally, 26,730, compared to 47.10 percent, 23,795, for Curry. Montrose Republican Marc Catlin was similarly triumphant in the district-wide vote tally for District 5 State Senator, Catlin receiving a total of 41,977 votes, 52.02 percent, compared to 38,718, 47.98 percent, for his Democratic challenger, Cole Buerger. In Hinsdale County in the District 5 State Senate race, Catlin received 336 votes, 216 votes going to Buerger. Predictably Republican leanings were also evident among Hinsdale County voters in the U.S. Presidential race, the Lake City tally after close of polls on Tuesday awarding 329 votes to Donald J. Trump and 252 votes Democratic challenger Kamala Harris. State-wide, as was heavily reported, Colorado voters on whole favored Democrat Harris, 51 percent with 1,374,175, compared to 1,084,812 votes — 43.1 percent — which were awarded to Trump. Other elections of interest include 7th Judicial District Attorney Seth Ryan, an incumbent, who was the sole candidate, receiving 342 Hinsdale County votes. The rub, however, is that Ryan resigned on September 24; state-wide, the 37,727 votes cast for Ryan now go to his replacement, Anna Cooling, who was named by the vacancy committee. The results for state ballot questions are as follows: Amendment G – “shall there be an amendment to the Colorado Constitution concerning the expansion of eligibility for the property tax exemption for veteran’s with a disability to include a veteran who does not have a service- connected disability rated as a one hundred percent permanent disability but does have individual employment status?” State-wide, this measure passed, with 72.45% of voters voting “yes” and 27.55% of voters voting “no.” In Hinsdale County the Amendment G vote was 396 yes, 163 no. Amendment H – shall there be an Amendment to the Colorado Constitution concerning judicial discipline, and in connection therewith, establishing an Independent judicial discipline adjudicative board, setting standards for judicial review of a discipline case, and clarifying when discipline proceedings become public? This measure passed, with 72.74% of Colorado voters voting “yes” and 27.26% of voters voting “no.” Hinsdale County voters: 378 yes, 162 no. Amendment I – shall there be an amendment to the Colorado Constitution concerning creating an exception to the right to bail for cases of murder in the first degree when proof is evident or presumption is great? This measure passed, with 69.39% of voters voting “yes” and 30.61% of voters voting “no”. Hinsdale County: 384 yes, 173 no. Amendment J – shall there be an amendment to the Colorado Constitution removing the ban on same-sex marriage? This measure passed, with 63.78% of voters voting “yes” and 36.22% of voters voting “no.” Hinsdale County: 300 yes, 269 no. Amendment K – shall there be an amendment to the Colorado constitution concerning the modification of certain deadlines in connection with specified elections? This measure did not pass, with 55.31% of voters voting

November 7, 2024 No Comments

WORLD Receives Five Awards in State Press Competition

Lake City SILVER WORLD has received a total of five awards — four first place and one second place — in Colorado Press Association’s 2023 Better News Contest.Competing among weekly newspaper in Category 4, small weeklies under 2,000 circulation, in writing and design categories which were published in calendar year 2023, the Lake City newspaper was awarded both first and second place honors for Best Series/Sustained Coverage, with a first place award for multiple articles which were written about fiberoptic broadband installation in and around Lake City extending from January through November, 2023, and a second place award for a series of interviews with Continental Divide hikers highlighting motivational insights, personal discovery, and favorite foods which were written for the newspaper by Mia Dougherty.Dougherty, age 13 at the time and granddaughter of Lake City seasonal residents Gary and Kathy Koehn, interviewed and photographed a series of Divide hikers at the Presbyterian Church Hikers’ Center in August 2023.Visiting Colorado Springs journalist Mary Vader received a first-place award in the Best Business News/Feature category for an article which she wrote in January 2023, highlighting positive economic impacts of the town’s ice climbing wall.First place for Late Breaking/Deadline news went to a series of articles in a single issue of the paper written by Grant Houston detailing a February 2023, electric outage which “plunged the town into icy darkness.”In the newspaper layout and design category, Lake City SILVER WORLD garnered a first place Best Page Design Award for a two-page photo collage in February 2023, highlighting “Ice Thrills” at the annual Henson Creek Ice Climbing Festival.

October 18, 2024 No Comments

Inspiring Borealis Light Display Above Lake City… While Dry & Warm Conditions Dominate Early Autumn Here

by Phillip Virden Many Lake City folks were able to marvel at a dynamic light show last week. The “show” was the result of a highly active Aurora Borealis. The Aurora Borealis, known as also as the Northern and Southern lights, are a result of a strong surge of energy and particles from our Sun. This phenomenon, commonly known as the “solar wind” begins on the Sun’s outer atmosphere. At times, huge explosions of energy take place which are known as “coronal mass ejections or CME.” CMEs eject energy out into our solar system and, as a result, some solar winds take a direct path towards Earth. When they arrive here, Earth’s magnetic field shields us from much of this storm. However, some are so powerful that some particles journey down the magnetic field lines and into Earth’s atmosphere. When this occurs, a glow of colorful (red, green, violet, blue) light can be seen on Earth; the Aurora Borealis can only be seen in upper latitudes of such places as Alaska, Iceland, Scandinavia, Canada, etc. However, a powerful CME was strong enough to cause sightings throughout the United States and as far south as Texas! In Lake City, the CME was especially powerful on the evenings of October 9 and 10th. Several Lake Citians posted their Aurora experience on Facebook. Kathleen Whinnery, Michelle Cogger, Amanda Hartman, Katie Elkins, Michael Underwood, and others took beautiful pictures of the Aurora with most showing the dominating color of red. The Aurora was so strong that it could be seen not only in the north but also in the west, east, and southern skies. Our Sun goes through cycles of calm and stormy activity. This year, the stormy activity has been quite vigorous. As early as April, the Aurora was seen by the Elkins family at Windy Point. Forecasts for more energetic CMEs are for the phenomenon to continue through this year and all of 2025. The downside of Auroras on Earth is that they can play havoc with satellites, radio communications, and electronics. Blackouts can shut down cities for hours. There are many sources to get more information and forecasts for the Aurora Borealis such as www.spaceweather.com, www.swpc.noaa.gov, www.spaceweather.gov. www.spaceweatherlive.com. If you go out to see the Aurora, you may notice a bright white glow but no colors. This is because our human eyes are limited in detecting colors at these times. Fortunately, a cell phones camera can pick up these colors. The best photos are placing your phone on a stable surface, turning off the flash, and setting exposure of about 3 seconds. Is This The “New Normal” No measurable precipitation for three weeks…no low temperatures below 32 in September…average median temperature for September, 2024 was two degrees above the historical average…flowers still blooming and grass still green this month…aspens were brilliant this year but were latent in taking place but lasted well into October…and, for this October so far, our average high is 72 compared to 59.5 historical average and 36 low compared to 25.6 historical average! As a National Weather Service observer for four decades, this trend is not surprising to me as I have witnessed this gradual warming up of September for the last several years. Additionally, we have seen these long stretches of three to four weeks of little or no precipitation. Will this trend continue? If so, should the Lake City business and the Chamber address this by actively promoting early fall tourism through mid-October? Unfortunately, I do not have the crystal ball for such a long-term outlook for our weather. Nevertheless, based upon my observations (especially over the last fifteen years), there is a change in our September and early October climate.

October 18, 2024 No Comments

Lake City Chamber’s annual Oktoberfest was a weather-perfect event — the best yet!

Lake City Chamber’s annual Oktoberfest was a weather-perfect event — the best yet — with 300 attendees in sun-dappled Lake City Park and, with 400 tickets sold, Judge Jim McDonald the winner of Beth Kendall’s raindrop-themed quilt. A packed afternoon of events included a Teutonic-themed costume contest. Willie Merfeld was the ultimate beer-stein holding winner, time a remarkable 17 minutes, 31 seconds. Denver-based Prime Time Band comprised of Camillo DiSalle provided the music. The best dressed winners were Greg and Libby Olson. Mace Elkins was tops among juveniles in the log throw with an amazing 18’10” toss. Forrest Swift was superlative with 21’5” among men in the log throwing contestants, a repeat winner. Alyssa Meier from Gunnison was top in women’s log toss with 16’. Town Trustee Landon Whinnery came in second to first place nail pounding champ Chad Henrie from Montrose. Hammerschlag competitors included equally well-dressed Mariah McClung, Lake City, and Marietta Jordan. Elsa Berkner, and fellow teammates Landon Whinnery, Jackie Noelke and Willie Merfeld were top among teams in the fastest beer drinking competition. Volunteers at Saturday’s Oktoberfest served up delightful beer brews from Lake City Brewery ranging from hoppy dark to light wheat-based and Corn Hole, Jenga, and Connect 4 were popular park games on Saturday, log toss winner Forrest Swift shown warming up for a precision ball toss.

October 11, 2024 No Comments

Silver Thread Public Health District Hires Two New Employees…

Silver Thread Public Health District has hired, after a long bout of advertising, two new employees: Brooke Jones, Health Educator and Senior Resource Coordinator, and Lori Heinrich, Consumer Protection Officer. Brooke made a visit to WORLD offices this week and was quizzed about her new position. She said while she still learning the scope of her job, she has been working with Cheryl Tate and the Senior Connections crew, taking over some of the responsibilities of the weekly senior walking in the Armory and the bimonthly senior lunch events. Also, she is working on community outreach for seniors, lining up speakers and organizing activities, all with the goal of getting the senior population of Lake City to gather as much as possible to avoid social isolation. In addition to her efforts with the senior citizens, she will be working through funding from the State of Colorado Tobacco Control Grants Program, assisting with tobacco cessation and outreach to keep the younger population away from tobacco as much as possible. “I have lots of training for that coming up,” she said. Jones was hired by Silver Thread Public Health District in mid-September; before she moved to Lake City, she and her husband Matt Jones were living in Monument, Colorado and she was working at a Polaris dealership. Matt, who is a carpenter, was building a house in Lake City and she decided to accompany him; as is the norm for Front Rangers when they first come to Lake City, she instantly fell in love with the place and before she knew it, they had a place to rent and she had a job. Her daughter, Cora, has begun the 10th grade at Lake City Community School, and her 18-year-old son, Indy, remains in Monument. Lori Heinrich was hired as the Consumer Protection Officer, beginning work on September 3. She spent a number of years in corporate administration and finance for engineering and biotech firms, and later worked for a non-profit anti-trafficking organization, a cause near to her heart. Most recently, she worked as Business Manager for Creede School District, 2018-2021 and was Development Director for Creede Repertory Theatre from 2021-2024. She attended Baylor University in Waco, Texas. As far as her new job is concerned, Heinrich says, “I now have the privilege of working with our local retail food establishments, schools, and institutions to promote and protect public health through education and partnerships to advance food safety. This will include licensure, inspections and plan reviews. Additionally, I will be working to identify environmental health needs in our communities, research creative and effective ways to address them, and seek funding to help meet these needs.” As the spouse of an Air Force pilot, Heinrich’s family moved several times, living in Delaware, Illinois, Texas, California, and Colorado. Having spent summer vacation in Creede since she was seven years old, this area has been “in my soul for a very long time,” she said. “When my husband retired from active duty and became a Registered Nurse, we knew there was no place else we’d rather settle. We have been here just over six years. It’s the longest we’ve lived anywhere in our married lives by far, and we plan to stay forever.” Lori’s husband, Karl, is the nurse at Creede Family Practice, so they are excited to get to work together in the same building. Speaking to her personal life, Heinrich said, “we have four children ranging from 16 to 32, two adorable grandkids, and are less than two years from an empty nest. We also have two spoiled dogs and two persnickety cats, and my parents followed us to Creede and now live nearby.”

October 11, 2024 No Comments

District 1 Commissioner Candidates Share Insights, Challenges for Future

A hotly contested local election on the upcomingTuesday, November 5, ballot is for District 1 HinsdaleCounty Commissioner.SILVER WORLD mailed identical questions to thetwo District 1 candidates — incumbent Greg Levine,an Independent who was first elected to a four-yearterm as County Commissioner in November 2020,and his Republican challenger, former Lake CityTown Trustee Steve Ryals — last week with therequest that answers with cumulative total no greaterthan 2,500 words for each candidate be returned forthis week’s issue.Verbatim answers are as follows, each candidate’sresponse listed alphabetically following eachquestion.In addition to District 1 Commissioner candidatesLevine and Ryals, Robert Hurd, incumbent Republican for Hinsdale County CommissionerDistrict 3 is seeking re-election unopposed. Hurdreceived the same set of questions and his responseswill be published in the Friday, October 11, issue ofthe newspaper.Letters to the Editor explaining views of aparticular candidate or endorsing candidates foroffice are accepted by SILVER WORLD on a weeklybasis. In advance of this fall’s election and in fairnessto all candidates, politically themed letters to theeditor will not be accepted after the Friday, October25, issue of the newspaper. Here are a list of the questions asked. To see the Candidates answers, plus more details, pick up your own issue of the LCSW. 1.Tell us about yourself: age, education – publicschool and college, family? 2.How long have you lived inLake City and where didyou previously live? 3. What is your business experience, past jobexperience before and since moving to Lake City? 4. What is your job experiencebeing an elected official? 5. Why do you want to be a County Commissioner? 6. Why should we vote for you? 7. Should the program allowing OHVs on Highway149 through the town of Lake City remain frommid-June through the end of September or, go backto the previous time frame, (Memorial Day throughthe end of September), or do you have an alternateoption? 8. Are you in favor of maintaining the current OHVroute, or are you in favor of extending the route? 9. Do you feel the current OHV regulations aresufficient and is law enforcement adequate? 10. Why is the partnership between the Town of LakeCity and Hinsdale County important, and how doyou feel it could be improved? 11. Emergency services is under the direction ofHinsdale County; the County is exploring a stablerevenue source for these services. What are yourideas for these important services? 12. What is your plan to address the lack of affordablehousing in and around Lake City? 13. The income influx to Hinsdale County through theAll Hazards Team earned revenue has beensignificant and is an important element of eachyear’s county budget [2022 – $428,217; 2023 –$1,035,976; and 2024 year to date – $872,107 as of8/31/2024]. Do you feel these funds are beingappropriated properly? What is your plan in theevent the funds are diminished or eliminated? 𝑷𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝒖𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒑𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒌’𝒔 𝑺𝒊𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑪𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔!

October 4, 2024 No Comments

Fleet-of-Foot Cross Country Runners…

In addition to Lake City’s hometown Fourteeners cross country team, last Friday afternoon’s annual cross-country meet drew swift middleschool runners from Gunnison — the Mustangs — and Titans from Crested Butte, together with a talented mix of middle school and highschool running teams from Del Norte (Tigers), Center (Vikings), Centauri (Falcons), and Antonito (Trojans). Pick up your copy of the Lake City Silver World Newspaper at local businesses to read more about this Cross-Country Meet. Elementary 1 Mile Gage King 7:33 Manassa Tayce Sowards 7:46 Centauri Lauren Rhodes 7:47 LCCS Judah Pankratz 8:01 LCCS Isai Villagomez 8:15 Center Ethan Gallagos 8:21 Gunnison Abbot Clifton 8:33 Homeschool/LC Keller Pankratz 8:34 LCCS Corinne Ruggles 8:35 Center Harper Callahan 9:16 Gunnison Afton Tubs 9:21 LCCS Remy Villagomez 9:25 Center Alanah Escobedo 10:07 Antonito CJ Pacheco 10:13 Antonito Ryker Archuleta 10:23 LCCS Eiven Carson 10:29 LCCS Remington King 11:00 Centauri Ximena Sanchez 11:04 LCCS Kyra Gurule 11:05 Center Daniel Rodriguez 11:18 Center Jose Rodriguez 11:19 Center Chadleigh Hutchins 11:45 LCCS Mackenzie May 11:46 LCCS Joee Withrow 11:51 Homeschool/LC Alex Garcia 11:53 Center Dominic Rota 11:56 Gunnison Azael Rodriguez 12:25 Center Nathaniel Menzies 12:28 LCCS Amesley Rota 12:36 Gunnison Jesus Valeria 12:38 Center Ismael Rodriguez 12:54 Center Lydia Clifton 12:57 Homeschool/ LC Henley King 13:10 Centauri Mikey Carson 13:30 LCCS Nayeli Valadez 13:37 Center Corban Humphreys 13:50 LCCS Khloe Valadez 13:52 Center Emma Najera 14:02 Center Reyna Gutierrez 14:21 Center Sawyer Lear 14: 32 LCCS Miyela Lopez 14:52 Center Miranda Vigil 14:54 Antonito Emilia Salazar 15:00 Antonito Lou Nold 15:01 Gunnison Sami Rodriguez 15:03 Center Addie Mason 15:06 Antonito Gabriel Menzies 15:10 LCCS Warren Pierce 15:10 LCCS Gloria Harrison 15:11 Center Max Milksi 15:12 LCCS Kate Loper 15:15 LCCS Delilah Morse 15:16 LCCS Brystil DeCristino 15:39 LCCS Mae Nold 15:48 Gunnison Rosa Padilla Navarro15:52 Center Declan Withrow 16:35 homeschool/LC Everest Robertson 16:38 LCCS Aspen Crump 16:46 LCCS Holden Crump 16:57 LCCS Penelope Kinne 17:00 LCCS Middle School Boys 2-Mile Asher Chodorowski 12:19 Gunnison Brandon Hallock 12:29 Gunnison Ari Eberly 13:00 Gunnison Joseph Tubbs 13:06.15 LCCS Ethan Martinez 13:06.43 Antonito Benaiah Larson 13:18 Crested Butte Blake Miller 13:26 Centauri Dahir Ornelas 13:30 Center Blayzen Sowards 13:33 Centauri Rhys Phillimore 13:35 LCCS Alder Lamar 13:41 Gunnison Caden Garber 13:46 Centauri Houston Stair 14:16 Gunnison Mateo Pacheco 14:19 Antonito Jackson Moore 14:20 Crested Butte Gabriel Larson 14:36 Crested Butte Julius Martinez 14:42 Sangre de Cristo Joey Torres 14:58 Centauri Landon Rhodes 15:03 LCCS Justin Ast 15:06 Del Norte Jack Siegrist 15:13 Gunnison Shaun Crowther 15:16 Centauri Blake Hill 15:19 Gunnison Tavin Sowards 15:24 Centauri Grey Frymoyer 15:48 Gunnison Walker Sovick 15:49.05 Gunnison Noah Lockman 15:49.09 Crested Butte John Lockman 15:51 Crested Butte Isaac Garcia 15:53 Center Atley Tillger 15:54.30 Crested Butte Elijah Hansen 15:54.42 Crested Butte Elijah Garcia 16:10 Center Adan Baca-Ornelas 16:17 Center Sam Malouff 16:23 Centauri Kai Townsend 16:25 Centauri Olen Peterson 16:31.06 Del Norte Gabriel Kaufmann 16:31.58 Crested Butte Jacob Anderson 16:35 Centauri Sam Koontz 16:36 Centauri ?? 16:37.10 ?? Armando Ruybal 16:37.32 Center Adrian Mondragon 16:38.26 Antonito Adrik Abeyta 16:38.54 Antonito Wheeler Larsen 16:47 Centauri Wyatt Loper 17:04.1 LCCS Devon Garcia 17:04.3 Center Walker Sovick 17:04.5 Centauri Oliver Pugh 17:13 Crested Butte Brantley Votruba 17:26 LCCS Hagen Bradley 18:24 Antonito Amir Abeyta 18:38 Antonito Casen Foltz 18:59 Centauri Gabriel Woytek 19:02 Gunnison Gael Rodriguez 19:12 Center Larkin Lockard 19:33 Crested Butte Ernesto Quintana 19:33 Antonito Gavin Frazier 19:47 Gunnison Evan Smythe 20:41 Gunnison Mic McGrath 21:07 Gunnison Koen Hostetter 21:17 Centauri Dempsey King 21:52 Centauri Arvid Piltingsrud 22:06 LCCS Jovani Bean-Martinez22:21.3 Center Mathias Romero 22:21.5 Centauri Middle School Girls 2-Mile Avery Duran 13:37 Centauri Betsy McMahon 13:58 Crested Butte Genesi Morris 14:17 Centauri Indie Howe 14:39 Del Norte Avril Villagomez 14:51 Center Lily McElyea 14:8 Gunnison Eliza Wickenhauser 15:03 Gunnison Dari Spedden 15:05 Crested Butte Faith Crowder 15:05 Del Norte Jaylah Martinez 15:07 Center Andrea Maldonado 15:07.36 Center Charli Martinez 15:12 Center Sophie Nold 15:23 Gunnison Keira Ruggles 15:34 Center Oceana Garcia 15:35 Center Autumn Terry 15:39 Gunnison Jordan Callahan 15:42 Gunnison Brailey Adkins 15:50 Gunnison Kate Bagwell 16:02 Centauri Oakland Brady 16:07 Centauri Ariana Maez 16:12 Centauri Blake Tubbs 16:12.44 LCCS Josephine Brown 16:13 Crested Butte Sienna Taylor 16:16 Centauri Brityn Miller 16:20 Centauri Gracie Tucker 16:20.21 Crested Butte Liza Anderson 16:21 Crested Butte Kyndall McCaroll 16:23 Centauri Cristina Matta 16:25 Del Norte Brianna Kaufman 16:39 Del Norte Brynna Rota 16:49 Gunnison Makayla Sowards 16:58 Centauri Mercedes Heredia 17:16 Del Norte Jessee Withrow 17:26 LCCS Arely Juarez 17:28 Center Aaliyah Abeyta 17:36 Centauri Jade Smith 17:37 Gunnison Juliana Rendon 17:58 Antonito Minerva Gonzalez 18:25 Antonito Olivia Cowett 18:36 Del Norte Ellen Coleman 18:46 Crested Butte Taylor Horton 18:52 Centauri Nua Tuioti-Mariner 19:00 Centauri Harper Harmsen 19:01 Centauri Alexandra Rubio 19:07 Center Rylie Trujillo 20:18 Centauri Autumn Sample 20:21 Gunnison Sheyla Barco 21:35 Gunnison Fynlee Garel 22:14 Centauri Maelyn Garcia 22:19 Center Carson Shepherd 25:11 LCCS Meliyani Pulido 25:31 Center High School Boys 5k Cruz Matta 18:55 Del Norte Mads Kreutzer 18:55 Del Norte Jax Lester 19:24 Del Norte Caleb Cowett 19:27 Del Norte Andree Meraz 19:47 Center Josiah Yocom 19:59 Del Norte Dean Garcia 20:41 Antonito Corbin Horrocks 20:52 Del Norte Peter Loper 21:07 LCCS Landon Crowder 21:40 Del Norte Tomas Benavides 22:28 Del Norte Micah Humphreys 23:24 LCCS Westlea Tipsword 24:57 Center Nick Mondragon 25:19 Antonito Kevin Thomas-Lopez25:33 Center Steven Velasquez 29:07 Antonito Austyn Lopez 32:00 Antonito High School Girls 5k Priya Hartman 25:21 LCCS Mackenzie Phillimore27:25 LCCS Anahlicia Villagomez27:40 Center Alyssa Abeyta 28:27 Antonito Sophia Rendon 31:33 Antonito Anali Garcia 31:58 Antonito Eliana Garcia 32:14 Antonito Evolet Garcia 33:33 Antonito Lavine Casas Hernandez36:34Center

October 4, 2024 No Comments

Trustees Award Contract to Ridgway Valley for WWTP Renovation Project

At the September 18 Town of Lake City Board of Trustees meeting, trustees approved the award of a contract with Montrose-based Ridgway Valley Enterprises, Inc., to begin work on the impending wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) renovation project. The matter was discussed at length in the workshop portion of the meeting, with Town Engineer Joanne Fagan — who has been integral in the negotiations and planning of the project — in attendance. In her staff report, Fagan referenced a $375,000 supplemental grant award from the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) that the town will receive for the renovation project, as well as a supplemental loan for $900,000 from the Colorado Water Resources and Power Authority (CWRPA), that has been completed and submitted and is now under review. Her report states, “that loan application is under review and is due to be presented to CWRPA on October 4. When we last talked with CWRPA staff, Lake City was the only loan applicant for their October meeting and they felt that funds were available. Staff is continuing to look for other resources that might help lower the loan amount. As we have recommended in the past, we suggest that the town secure the loan and then if the project costs less, the Town can repay the portion of the loan that is not needed and reduce the debt service. We did hear that the loan rate is expected to be 2 percent rather than the 3.25 percent initially indicated.” In the meeting, Fagan stated, “Ridgway Valley would like to start [their work] the 29th (of September), but the loan doesn’t go to the Power Authority until the 4th of October. They would be giving us the loan on the condition that we raise our rates, and the loan is probably not going to close until the end of the year, so you probably have until you finish your [2025] budget to get your rates adjusted. If you want to [Ridgway Valley to] start the work – I need to know if you want to have heard that they’re recommending that the loan would be approved [first]?” Town Manager Lex Mulhall spoke up, saying, “I doubt that we’re going to be turned down. They’ve already given us so much, we’ve already tied up so much money that we’ve been sitting on, that we have to spend in the next couple years, that they’re not going to prevent us from getting started and finishing the project. They want us to spend that money, they want us to start paying them back. I don’t see them turning it down. While I’m not 100 percent sure, I’d say I’m 98 percent sure. There is always that slim 2 percent possibility.” Mulhall went on to say, “They know we’re running out of time. There are a lot of people at the state level who understand the challenges we face, that are unique, so personally, I say, let them start building on the 29th, we’ll find out a week later. If we wind up having to find the money somewhere else, we’ll figure it out.” Mayor Dave Roberts agreed with this, stating the project had been “delayed and delayed and delayed,” and that it needed to get started. Mulhall agreed, saying that in speaking with representatives at Ridgway Valley Enterprises (RVE), “they’re eager to get started.” The overall project has been reported as costing, according to Mulhall, approximately $5.6 million, and the contract with RVE would encompass $3 million of that scope. Fagan has worked diligently to find ways to cut the costs of the project, hoping to keep the burden from falling too heavily on water and sewer customers. In her staff report, she refences the fact that in her negotiations with RVE over the past few months, she was “trying to refine the project scope, trying to re-use more of the existing piping, making changes to the aeration system, and miscellaneous other changes.” The report went on to say, “RVE suggested that the Town furnish some of the equipment for the contractor. They charge a 20% surcharge on everything they furnih, so staff looked at what equipment the Town could furnish and decided to focus on the most expensive equipment – blowers, fixed film modules, insulated covers and the air diffusers. The total cost for those 4 items is almost $2 million.” Fagan asked to speak about one other topic, which was adding a $6,000 additional ‘builder’s risk’ insurance policy into the contract, and Town Attorney Dan Krob, who had Zoomed into the meeting, offered his opinion on this addition. “I think it’s duplicative,” Krob said. “We already have many different insurances in place in this contract. We have property, liability, vehicle, worker’s compensation. I think we can forego the ‘builder’s risk.” Trustee Henry Woods said, “Six thousand dollars in the scope of this project is a drop in the bucket.” Fagan asked Krob if he had looked over the construction specifications of the project, to which he replied, “I don’t even pretend to know how to do your job, but I did review the contractual part and this is. I believe you’ve used this same contract for a while, it’s standard. It’s good.” Mayor Roberts joked that he had intended to read the entirety of the 355-page contract but fell asleep, to which Trustee Diane Bruce quipped that it was “a little above her pay grade” to read the very complicated document, deciding instead to defer to Fagan’s expertise. When the time came to vote on the contract award approval, the motion was made by Trustee Henry Woods and seconded by Trustee Jesse Kendall and approved unanimously.

September 27, 2024 No Comments

Town Trustees Reject Changes to Historic District Rules in 3-2 Vote

Town of Lake City Board of Trustees decided at the September 4 regular meeting not to alter the town’s Historic Preservation Guidelines to allow four-foot fences with six-foot arbors in front of historic homes. This has been a topic discussed by Town trustees for several weeks, after a request was received from a Lake City homeowner. During the action items segment of the meeting, Trustee Henry Woods made the motion to not approve changes to be made, and Trustee Diane Bruce seconded the motion. Trustee Jesse Kendall, who is also a member of the Hinsdale County Historical Society board, took a pensive moment before speaking, and said the decision was a “difficult one,” ultimately voting against supporting the motion, as did Trustee Landon Whinnery. Mayor Dave Roberts voted in favor, and the motion carried 3-2. Chairperson for the Historic Preservation Commission, Kerry Holt, was in attendance at the September 4 meeting, and she said, “I tend to follow with property owner’s rights, and I did a lot of research to find out what a property owner is allowed to do in other communities. It was the same everywhere I looked – four foot fences are allowed, even with arbors, just not in front of the facade of the house. If you allow a fence more than 4 feet tall in front of the home, it blocks the facade and changes the character of the view of the house. This is according to History Colorado. It’s not allowed anywhere in the nation; it’s not just specific to Colorado. I caution you about a slippery slope. For example, I’d love to build a covered front porch in front of my house, but I can’t.” In Town Manager Lex Mulhall’s report, he said, “I strongly urge the Board to follow the Historic Preservation Commission recommendation to not change the historic guidelines to allow 4 foot fences with 6 foot arbors in the front of historic properties. The Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) have received training in historic preservation districts and guidelines. They also spent several hours of unpaid time in making a very well-researched and informed recommendation to the Board. If the Board goes against the recommendation of the HPC and changes the guidelines, then I foresee the following unpleasant possibilities opening up before us: adopting the change will set a precedent that will cause others to come and present their recommended changes to the historic guidelines when they are unable to fulfill their desired plans due to not meeting current historic guidelines. Secondly, If 6 foot arbor fences are widely adopted and built by property owners in the historic district, then that will completely change the historic character of our district. When History Colorado comes back to do an inventory of the historic properties and sees that the historic character of our district has changed and no longer meets the national guideline standards, we may lose our historic district designation altogether. If we lose our historic district and violate our status as a certified local government, then we also lose the ability to locally designate historic properties like Car 211, and property owners, including the town, will lose access to financial and technical services and funding.” Trustee Henry Woods said, “As trustees, we need to protect the historic district. If we were ever to lose that designation, we would lose grants and tax write-offs. Our designation has brought millions of dollars into our town over the years. In 2007, when the country was in a recession, we got all these grants through historic preservation for a variety of historic buildings, including the Hough building – it brought us through the recession. It’s a really important thing. There are towns who have lost their designation and it really hurt them, as it would hurt us. We need to support our Historic Preservation Commission because they’re the ones doing this work for us.” Trustee Diane Bruce said, “I have read all the information, and I have put a lot of consideration into this. I understand where Svetlana (Piltingsrud, homeowner) is coming from, but in the end, I agree with the recommendation of the Historic Preservation Commission and I thank Kerry – I’m appreciative of all her hard work, gathering facts and evidence. But I really think opening ourselves up to this would be a mistake. I speak in favor of not changing the guidelines.” Trustee Landon Whinnery, said the problem he was having with the issue was that there are a lot of modern-technology substitutes to keep deer out of a yard, such as water spraying, motion sensors, lights, “these things are okay, but a nice-looking arbored fence is not?” Trustee Jesse Kendall said, “I understand her side of this. She built a beautiful garden all over her lots. I’m glad I don’t live in the Historic District. I’m really ‘on the fence,’ so to speak.” Mayor Dave Roberts said, “I am a proponent of people’s property rights. It’s not an easy decision. Do we know for certain that an arbored fence really does stop [the deer]? I come back to the fact that it is a designated Historic District and there are guidelines that go with that. When I was a realtor, I made sure every single person I dealt with in selling a home in the historic district – that they were fully aware of what could and could not be done. I had a packet ready with Historic District guidelines, and I made sure they had read it. I feel for her, but in changing the ordinance, I am concerned we would be opening a can of worms. I am not in favor.” In other Town news, Town staff and the Board of Trustees are having a difficult time finding new board members. The resignation letter of Trustee Justin Hill was read and formally accepted by the Town Board at their September 18 regular meeting. At the September 4 meeting, Town Manager Lex Mulhall cited the following: 31-4-303. Trustees to fill vacancy – mayor pro tem – clerk pro tem. (1) The

September 20, 2024 No Comments

Tag: Lake City