YEAR IN REVIEW
EDITION VOL. 142. NO. 52 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023 | $1.00
GVH staff stress eases in 2023 Over $1 million less spent on travelers Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
Despite another long year of persistent staffing shortages, Gunnison Valley Health has received its best employee engagement score in recent LIGHT UP THE NIGHT: Members of the Resiliency Project arranged a labyrinth of luminaria at IOOF Park on Dec. 21 to celebrate the winter solstice. Community members were invited to help light them. (Photo by Mariel Wiley)
GVH staff A6
Gunnison Arts Center phase four TODAY renovations on schedule INSIDE
A look back at the top stories and photos of 2023
NEWS: Blue Mesa’s miracle recovery, A14
Construction surprises add nearly $400,000 to project cost Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
COMMUNITY: A new era for Parker Pastures, A9
Behind the boarded up windows of the Gunnison Arts Center, demolition on the historic building’s ground level has been underway through the fall
and into the winter season. Crews completed demolition before the ground froze and will work through the winter to have all major construction done by July, with all work completed by 2025. The project is currently in its fourth and final phase of construction, the renovation of the Black Box Theater and Main Gallery. Intervening walls were taken down, revealing stone walls and foundations that are more than 100 years old. But complications arose GAC A7
The Gunnison Arts Center renovation has exposed original stone walls and flooring that are over 100 years old. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Western attempts to repatriate Native American remains held in museum SPORTS: A year in photos, B1
OBITUARIES A2, A3 OPINION A4 CLASSIFIEDS A16-A18 SPORTS B4 ONLINE GUNNISONTIMES.COM
State grant aims to help return ancestors for proper burial
Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
In 1946, the partial remains of 25 Native American people arrived at Western Colorado University wrapped in newspaper and bundled in cardboard produce boxes. It’s a story that mirrors thousands of others around the country. One where looters unearthed and stole the bones of Native American
people for show. Tens of thousands of remains were sold at yard sales or kept in private collections for decades until the federal government mandated they be returned. At Western, those skulls were kept in the basement of the CT Hurst Museum for 90 years. In 2019, a teacher and graduate student opened the heavy door leading to the museum’s inventory and realized just what it was holding. After an unsuc-
cessful attempt to comply with the law in the mid-90s, Western is once again preparing to return those individuals home. In August of this year, the university received a $81,000 grant from Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) that will allow faculty to start consulting with tribal representatives. “We’re trying to do the ethical thing,” said anthropology Western A6
A2 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
QUOTE
Gunnison Country Times
OBITUARIES Brett W. Redden
of the week “It’s an opportunity to reconnect with the people that were kicked off this land.”
— Seth Mensing, Western Colorado University
See story on A1
BRIEFS Starbucks and Natural grocers opening soon The new Starbucks on Tomichi Avenue is now scheduled to open by the beginning of March. After some delays, Natural Grocers, located on North Main Street, in Gunnison is slated for Jan. 31, 2024.
Blue Mesa fishing tournament returns with $10,000 prize Anglers will once again have the chance to earn cash prizes in Gunnison this winter while helping Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) manage lake trout numbers. The Blue Mesa Reservoir Lake Trout Tournament is scheduled to run Jan. 1 through April 30, 2024. The third edition of this tournament is sponsored by CPW in an effort to reduce the population of lake trout 24 inches in length and smaller. This is the first time CPW has held this tournament since 2021. This harvest-incentive tournament will help aquatic biologists maintain adequate kokanee salmon fry survival by limiting predation from lake trout. Anglers must possess a valid Colorado fishing license and follow all Colorado boating and fishing regulations. To participate, anglers who harvest a lake trout 24 inches or smaller can turn in the fish heads and place them in a plastic bag provided at one of three boat ramps at the reservoir. Bags can be found at the Iola, Elk Creek and Lake Fork boat ramps. Heads may also be turned into CPW’s offices in Gunnison or Montrose. To learn more, visit cpw.state.co.us.
Little Blue construction on pause for winter Construction for the Little Blue Creek Canyon project shut down last week for the entirety of the winter season. Traffic will be open to two lanes with no delays. The project will resume for the final finishing work in the spring of 2024 in late April or early May. No start date has been announced.
Brett W. Redden, a kind, dedicated and beloved member of the community, passed away peacefully at his home up Ohio Creek on Dec. 4, 2023 at 60 years old. He is predeceased by his parents Wilbur and Alice, and is survived by his daughters, Madaline and Lily, his sister, Wendy, and a sizable, multigenerational, extended Redden family. Brett was born on Apr. 11, 1963 to Wilbur and Alice (Shore) Redden in Gunnison. He grew up on the family ranch, participating in 4-H and Future Farmers of America, and graduated from Gunnison High School in 1981. He attended Colorado State University, where he was a member of the meats judging team, the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity, and was an intern for Representative Mike Strang in Washington, D.C. Brett went on an International 4-H Youth Exchange trip to the United Kingdom after graduation, and another trip to Thailand later in his life. Community involvement was always an important component of Brett’s life, including 10-plus years on the Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District — most of those as chair of the board, and as an exalted ruler of the Elks Lodge and an active member of Community Church of Gunnison, where he was often found holding the doors and welcoming people in. He was also on HAZMAT, an EMT, a member of the Fairview School House board and a constant p re s e n c e u n d e r w hat e ve r equipment was broken at the
airport, among many jobs and roles he held in his life. Agriculture in the valley was especially important to Brett. He was the Cattlemen’s Days president in 2012 and 2013, and spent stints directing the horse races and the parade. Brett was a sizeable presence in 4-H, coaching livestock judging and serving on the livestock committee and horse committee at both county and district levels. One thing he was very proud of was that he was the leader of the Boots-to-Bridles Club so that his daughters could be in his childhood club. He was especially proud of his daughters, as anyone who talked to him for any amount of time knows. He often talked about his pride in Maddie for working in water rights and, in recent years, was often missed at coffee because he was at one of Lily’s horse shows. Brett, like his dad and uncles, seldom said “goodbye.” Instead, he would end the conversation with “see ya.” So, here’s to you Brett — “See ya!” A celebration of Brett ’s life will be held on Jan. 5th, 2023 at 2 p.m. at Community Church of Gunnison, and at 3 p.m. at the Fred Field Western Heritage Center Rubber Room at the Gunnison fairgrounds. Interment will be held on Jan. 6 at 10 a.m. at the Gunnison Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Nadine Henry 4-H Forever Fund. Please make checks payable to “CFGV ” and note in the memo line “4-H Forever Fund in memory of Brett Redden.” Checks may be mailed to Community Foundation of the Gunnison Valley, PO Box 7057, Gunnison, Colorado, 81230.
FEATURED PROPERTY
Broker/Owner
(970) 209-6208
Lee Gordon English, who was a long-time resident of Gunnison and Montrose, died on Dec.13 at the Gunnison Valley Health Senior Care Center. Lee was born on Nov. 26, 1933 to Leo and Anna English at Dallas Divide, west of Ridgway, Colorado. He was born into a ranch family, and it was on this family ranch on the Dallas Divide that he developed his love of horses and hard work. He started working at a young age in the silver and uranium mines of western Colorado to help support his family and later worked on Bureau of Reclamation water projects — specifically Morrow Point, Blue Mesa and Crystal Dams — locally, as well as many other underground projects which took him and his family to many different states. Lee finally returned to settle in Montrose and later in Gunnison, where he and his first wife owned and operated the Long Holiday Motel until his retirement and his first wife’s passing. He remarried his current wife, Louise Johnson, in 2008. He loved being outdoors while enjoying stacking hay, going to the mountains to gathcontinued on A3
SCHEDULE A SHOWING
NEW LISTING 40 acre historic parcel is the town site of Sherrod and part of the Sherrod Loop on the Alpine Tunnel Loop past Pitkin, just before Hancock Pass. Sherrod was known for its rich silver lodes in the surrounding mountains. Great 4x4 country. 7800 Forest Service Road 839; $215,000.
MAKE AN OFFER Mountain home with loft nestled in the trees with Gold Creek in the back yard on over 3 acres. Just 3.5 miles from Ohio City, 1 bdrm/1 bath, bordered by national forest, built in 1994 with well & septic. 1,008 square feet with generator and shed too. 3491 County Road 771; $635,000.
PROPERTY POTENTIAL Purchase R-3 lots & finish the West End Townhomes for a spec option, rental investment or employee housing. City approved site plans allow for two more duplex units. Water & sewer taps are already installed. Centrally located near the schools & RTA bus stop. 817 W. Denver Ave.; $297,000.
3 HOMES TOTAL Investment opportunity in town where each home is 2 bdrm/1 bath & tenants pay utilities. Located near the airport and fairgrounds. 314 S. 12th St; $950,000.
COMFORTABLE & COZY 1 bdrm/1 bath home in Pitkin sits on 4 lots & offers willows for privacy & an aspen forest out front. Two woodsheds & outbuilding at this quiet & peaceful end of the road location. 10 State Street; $355,000.
ABSOLUTELY STUNNING 2800sf home at the end of the Ohio Creek valley sits on 40 acres with Carbon Creek running through the acreage. Custom home & garage offer in-floor heat, 3 bdrm/3 bath, south facing windows with incredible views and a 4 car garage with work space & a walk-in cooler. 3750 County Road 737; $2,500,000.
HOME ON 50 ACRES in Ohio City features an excellent mixture of wildlife, nearby trails, aspen, pines & 300 feet of Gold Creek frontage. 3 bdrm/2 bath house, huge attached garage, large detached barn, touched by Forest Service lands. 5498 County Road 771; $2,500,000.
READY TO BUILD lot located 3 miles west of town features a county sewer tap with electric and well installed. No HOA dues. 104 Phyllis Lane; $180,000.
WATERFRONT BUILDING SITE to build your new home! Two lots totaling 1.78 acres. Great opportunity to own on the Gunnison River, hidden between the trees & close to the White Water Park. Level building site with mature trees and still close to downtown conveniences. 350 Rio Vista Road; $400,000.
40 ACRE PARCEL close to the city limits of Gunnison. Features include two permitted commercial wells, southern exposure making for possible solar arrays and green energy with endless development possibilities. Crest View Drive; $3,000,000.
Broker/Owner
(970) 209-4479
241 N. Main St. Gunnison, CO 81230 Office: (970) 641-0511 www.clarkeagency.net
In loving memory of Margaret “Peggy” Falasca, born on Feb. 7, 1948 in Poughkeepsie, New York, who peacefully passed away on Nov. 23, 2023 after a courageous three-year battle with cancer. She united in marriage with her beloved husband, Joe, on Sept. 9 1967, forming a partnership that spanned decades. A proud alumna of Irvington High School, Peggy Meszaros held the position of cheerleading captain, while Joe shone as the football team’s MVP. Together, they built a life in Irvington, New York until 1998, when they embraced a new chapter in Ohio City, Colorado. Her professional contributions were felt through her dedicated service at the Irvington School District. Beyond her career, Peggy was a cherished member of the Ohio City Volunteer Fire Department, Quartz Creek Improvement Association and the ladies Elks. Her commitment to community and service was a testament to her generous spirit. Peggy is survived by her devoted husband, Joe, loving son, Joe and daughter, Barbara. The joy of her life extended to her five grandchildren, Nick, Keira, Danny, Dylan and Shane, each a testament to the love and warmth she shared. Also left to cherish her memory is her brother, Richard Meszaros. Peggy found immense joy in family travels, cross-country skiing, hiking and cherished moments walking with her closest friends. Her nurturing spirit extended to the care of her dreamhouse in Ohio City, where countless memo-
IOLA VALLEY TRACTS are situated just a few miles from the Iola Boat Dock at the beautiful Blue Mesa Reservoir. There are 8 sites offered that are each 1.5 acres with no covenants or HOA. Affordable land options just 15 minutes from Gunnison. Spring Drive; $60,000.
Josh Townsend
Clarke agenCy real esTaTe
ries were created. As we say our goodbyes, let us remember Peggy Falasca’s vibrant spirit, unwavering love and the indelible mark she left on the hearts of those who were fortunate enough to know her. May she rest in peace, surrounded by the love she so generously shared throughout her remarkable life.
Lee Gordon English
2 bdrm/2 bath log sided home in town with large windows for passive solar, two inviting patios, metal roof, sprinkler system & detached 2 car garage with separate workshop & bunkroom. Includes RMU lots that could be subdivided and built out. 205 N. 11th St.; $749,000.
Honest, Ethical, Professional
audrie Townsend
Margaret “Peggy” Falasca
People’s Choice Award for Best Realtor 2021 & 2022
View listings at: www.clarkeagency.net
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A3
Gunnison Country Times
OBITUARIES continued from A2 er wild mushrooms and cutting firewood. After preparing a big meal for friends and family, he loved to light a big fire in his fireplace and then rest close by and enjoy the warmth of the fire with them on a cold, wintery night. He also loved fishing, camping, hunting, boating and snowmobiling with his beloved family and friends. Lee was well-known for his generosity. As one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, he loved serving God with his family and received great joy from sharing bible truths and his love of the creator with others. Lee is preceded in death by his parents, Leo and Anna English of Montrose, sister, Frances McNair of Atlanta, Georgia and his first wife of
52 years, Marjorie “Margie” English of Gunnison. He is survived by his second wife, Louise Johnson English and the four children he had with Marjorie English. Those children are Janet English of Mesa, Arizona, Rick English and his wife, Janice, of Gunnison, Cynthia English of Gunnison and Jeffrey English and his wife, Deborah, of Des Moines, Iowa. Lee is also survived by his siblings, Violet and her husband, Jerry Doudy, of Grand Junction, Colorado, Betty Gonzales of Houston, Texas, Ruby and her husband, David Wells, of Corbin, Kentucky, Margie and her husband, Kenneth Purvis, of Malvern, Arkansas and Robert English of Longmont, Colorado. Lee also had three grandchildren, Tisheena English of Montrose, Sean Spring (Josh)
and his wife, Melissa, of Aurora, Missouri and Chelsea (Sadie) and her husband, Austin Curtis, of Creston, Iowa, along with two great-grandchildren, Isla Curtis of Creston and Sophia Spring of Aurora, along with many more nephews and nieces. He will be dearly missed by his friends and especially, his family. We will especially miss the sharp cowboy hats and black leather vest that you hardly ever saw him without, along with his smile, his laugh and the helping hand when work needed to be done.
Lighting up the longest night of the year Flickering luminaria formed a labyrinth in IOOF park on the evening of Dec. 21. Arranged by members of the Resiliency Project, the path of lights offered passerby a cheerful respite from the early nightfall of the winter solstice. Hot cocoa and a crackling fire were at the ready nearby to warm hands and hearts on the longest night of the year.
ww w. g u n n i s on ti m e s . co m
(Photo by Mariel Wiley)
ONLINE ALL THE TIME!
TOYOTATHON IS ON AT TURNER TOYOTA IN MONTROSE! 2023 Toyota 4 r unne r WWW.TURNERCHREVROLET.COM
THE EASIEST WAY TO SHOP FOR YOUR NEW TOYOTA IS TURNERCHEVROLET.COM
249.6691
MONTROSE, CO
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023
ALANWARTESMEDIA
OPINION A new look at ‘narratives’
970.641.1414 © 2023 Gunnison Country Times
Publisher/Owner Alan Wartes publisher@gunnisontimes.com Office Manager Bonnie Gollhofer bonnie@gunnisontimes.com Editor Bella Biondini bella@gunnisontimes.com Staff Writer Abby Harrison abby@gunnisontimes.com Photo Editor Mariel Wiley mariel@gunnisontimes.com Sports Editor Alex McCrindle alex@gunnisontimes.com Advertising Manager Steve Nunn steve@gunnisontimes.com Advertising Assistant Issa Forrest issa@gunnisontimes.com Production Manager Stefan Scott Stefan@gunnisontimes.com
THE GUNNISON COUNTRY TIMES (ISSN 0892-1113) is published weekly by Alan Wartes Media LLC., 218 N. Wisconsin St., Gunnison, Colorado 81230. Periodical postage paid at Gunnison, Colorado. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Gunnison Country Times, 218 N. Wisconsin, Gunnison, CO 81230-0240 Hours: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday
Alan Wartes Times Publisher
What a year this has been. We’ve devoted this edition of the Times to looking back on key events and milestones in the life of the community. We offer some of those stories again as a reminder of where we’ve been and what we’ve accomplished since last Christmas. In the B section, we present a visual feast of outstanding photos captured along the way by our creative team of photographers and reporters. I hope you’ll enjoy the read as much as we enjoyed compiling it. In thinking about how to write a retrospective on 2023, however, I admit my mind kept straying outside the boundaries of our valley. Who can blame me, in times like these? For a while now, we’ve barely had a moment to catch our breath between crescendos of ever more ominous and challenging developments in the world. I could list some of them for you — this is a year-in-review commentary, after all — but I imagine that would be pointless. Unless you have taken a vow of news celibacy, you already know what I’m talking about. It would also miss the most important lesson to be learned by thinking about
these things at all — that it’s not the number or the nature of the issues we face that’s worth considering; it’s what we think about them that matters. Honestly, examining that fact is our best hope of making real change in our lives. Which brings me to the word that kept popping up as I looked back on the big picture of 2023 searching for breadcrumbs. It’s one that used to mean a whole lot less than it does these days, like so many that have been conscripted into service by people with something to sell. Today, it’s nearly impossible to go an entire day without hearing or reading it. The word? “Narrative.” Here’s how Webster defines it: “a way of presenting or understanding a situation or series of events that reflects and promotes a particular point of view or set of values.” Watch for it yourself the next time you consume the national news. If you do, you might notice, as I did, that mostly people use the word narrative to describe how others present their “point of view or set of values.” We don’t call our own thoughts on a subject a “narrative.” That’s just the truth, as we see it. Generally, a narrative is something people employ to promote ideas that are at best weak, and at worst, false — maybe even nefarious. This is everywhere: the climate change narrative, white supremacist narrative, transgender narrative, the end of democracy narrative, the Trump-as-dictator narrative, Bidenomics narrative on and
on. We don’t deal in facts any more. We don’t have to — we have our narratives. Which is to say, we have our stories. In the reality-based world, facts are mandatory; stories are optional. It may be that 2023 (the last in a string of such years) will be remembered as the moment when that order was reversed. Real facts must be supported by language that is clear, precise and, above all, honest; stories are embellished with all sorts of hyperbole, metaphor and exaggeration — to the point where the words cease to mean anything at all. Emergency? Crisis? Dictator? Insurrection? Communist? Nazi? All part of the narrative. Who knows what they mean anymore. Believe it or not, there is really good news in this. Because, we don’t have to believe every story that comes along — much less arrange our lives around them. Once you recognize that it’s all storytelling to one degree or another, you are free to join in and tell your own story, the one that supports a “set of values” worth living for. The facts remain, but the story you tell and believe is up to you. Economic catastrophe on the horizon? We’ll figure it out and get through it together. Political uncertainty? The people are smarter than the powers that be give us credit for. War looming? Maybe so, but fear and hatred from a distance won’t make it go away. It’s like a word wizard’s duel. If we have the power to choose what story we believe, why not choose something a
little less dark for a change? I leave you with a year-end poem and a heartfelt wish for better stories in the year to come.
270 million acres was privatized as a result. That amounted to 10% of the total continental U.S. This movement not only caused the “Go West” settlement movement that civilized the West but at the same time promoted the cattle industry which was the best agriculture product for the vast naturally irrigated acreages. The consumption of beef improved the health of all the settlers along with the entire American public. There seems to be a group of people that want to entirely rid the world of cattle. They have blamed cattle for methane increases. A recent study by Professor Robert Howarth shows that while methane is at the highest level in thousands of years and is growing, cattle are decreasing, proving that cattle are not the cause. Additionally, Dr. Mitloehner of UC Davis
says that methane levels do not increase if herd sizes remain constant, because methane is broken down at the same rate it is being produced. They have blamed cattle for ruining our forests. In fact grazing cattle on our public lands is one of the best fire prevention systems, because our cows graze down the fire hazards. In 1894 the Gunnison County Stock Growers was formed. One of their main goals was to control grass and water rights along with ensuring that the public lands were not being overgrazed. Another attack on our industry is the reintroduction of wolves. Cattlemen are very concerned as wolves are known to attack calves, cows, working dogs and horses for no reason except to kill them. Additionally, they attack wildlife, pets, our wonderful sage
grouse and even our children. I suppose some people aren’t concerned about wolves or cattle ranchers because they’d rather see us be vegetarians. Let us not forget beef is both delicious and provides nutrients with less calories than most food choices.it is also an excellent source of zinc, vitamins B6 and B12 and iron. Jared Knock points out that beef is a circular resource extraction. He explains that liner systems are finite, they are resources that will eventually be depleted whereas circular systems can regrow or repopulate. Have a hamburger and help save our ranchers. Rick Randall Gunnison
Light Bent Low There was a time before the child. In that time, the first fathers and mothers knew the light and danced its return each year, joy in the world when descending darkness was caught in the sun’s rising hands once more. And it was good. But on the night of the child light bent low— entered through the lowest— to say that hope is not a sky creature after all, but clay-made, like us with hands and breath and bones perfectly suited for the precision of love. Follow the star, but look to the earth to find the child— not a harbinger of something new at all, but a reminder of truth beyond time: Who. You. Are. (Alan Wartes can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or publisher@gunnisontimes.com.)
LETTERS Endangered species 2023
2023 Member
LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor must be 500 words or less. We favor local topics and discourage argumentative letters addressed to particular people. If you reference data, please include sources for fact-checking. We will not print letters from candidates for public office. Email letters to editor@gunnisontimes.com or send to 218 N. Wisconsin St., Gunnison, CO 81230. Include your full name, address and a phone number — for our internal use only. The deadline is Tuesday at 12 p.m. Letters may be edited for grammar, clarity or length.
Editor: Folks, we are in trouble. We are about to lose one of the most important species of the west — ranchers. In 1962, there were 1.3 million cattle ranches in the U,S. Today, there are only about 700,000. Not only that, the average ranch now has only 44 cows, and the average owner is 57.6 years old. Less than 1% of the population is responsible for our beef production. Our beef inventory is down to the lowest level since 1962. I’m sure many of you haven’t considered the value of ranchers and beef cattle, so let me give you some background. The Homestead Act of 1862 created the motivation for cattle ranches. From 1862 until 1934 there were 1.6 million homestead applications and a total of
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A5
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: MARCH 2, 2023
Behind the scenes with ‘The Greatest and Best Play in The World’ bringing dreams home | bbre1.com
Call now to book your holiday parties and gatherings! THURSDAY TO SUNDAY 4-9:30 WITH HAPPY HOUR FROM 4-5 206 N. Main St. Gunnison, CO • 970-707-4331 • 1880tapas.com
HAPPY HOLIDAYS! After more than three decades of SonofaGunn in the Black Box Theater, this year’s production is the last before the historical building is renovated. (Photos by Morgan Raspanti)
SonofaGunn says goodbye to the Black Box Theater Morgan Raspanti Special to the Times
On Thursday, Feb. 23, the 34th annual SonofaGunn production debuted “The Greatest and Best Play in The World” to a sold out crowd at the Gunnison Arts Center (GAC). After more than three decades of SonofaGunn in the Black Box Theater, this year’s production is the last before the historical building is renovated. The local theater tradition will be back at the Gunnison Arts Center in 2025. “We're super thankful for everything [the old space] has done for the art center, but it's time to have a new, flexible space,” said Marci Rice, GAC director of operations. For people who are SonofaGunn regulars and the people who were in the production 20 years ago, the Black Box Theater holds many memories, Rice said. “A few of them are in the audience tonight,” she said, addressing the crowd. Paul Giberson, the play's director and one of its four writers said they tried to do a nice send off to the theater in this closing year's show. “It's been the home of this production for so long, it's going to be wild to have a totally different environment in the future,” Giberson said. “But I think we're ready.” The writers agreed to send off the Black Box Theater the best way they knew how: “by poking
fun at it,” said Giberson. Born from abandoned sketches that couldn’t fit into a typical show structure, the original production of “The Greatest and Best Play in The World” is a community theater play about creating a community theater play. “The screen rises, the lights slowly come up, and we find our four heroes sitting around the writers table ready to pump out another masterfully crafted SonofaGunn script,” Giberson said. Four years ago, Giberson, Craig Beebe and Erik Kjosness were at a closing night performance of what was supposed to be the final SonofaGunn, ever. At the end of the show, they agreed to not let it die. Joined by Julie Robinson last year, the writing group's initiative stems not from a deep love of theater, but from a deep love of the community. With additional contributions from Lisa Anders, the writing team crafted a satirical script that brings 25 locals to the stage, eight of whom are kids. The opening scene sets the two-hour show's premise. “What do we want this play to be about?” asks Writer 3, played by Lindsay Durant. “What is the core of SonofaGunn? What is its essence?” “S onofaGunn is p er fe ct parody, it’s stunning satire, it’s wretched writing and atrocious acting,” says Writer 1. In addition to SonofaGunn being a major fundraiser for GAC, it’s an important reminder for our community to laugh, Giberson said, taking all of the amazing things that happen here and putting them on stage. “I think that’s why people like it. It’s the poking fun, but it’s also that shared experience.” While getting ready backstage shortly before Saturday's cur-
tain call, Rachel Alter Branham, who has too many character roles to list, summarized what makes SonofaGunn special to the whole community.
“The screen rises, the lights slowly come up, and we find our four heroes sitting around the writers table ready to pump out another masterfully crafted SonofaGunn script.” Paul Giberson SonnofaGunn director “A town that can roast itself is a town I want to live in,” she said. Three more performances are scheduled for the upcoming weekend, March 2-4 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 on Thursday and $25 on Friday and Saturday. (Morgan Raspanti can be contacted at 970.641.1414 .)
SHONDECK Financial Services & Insurance 970-641-4700 114 N. Boulevard St. Suites 102 & 105 Gunnison 214 6th St. Suite 9, Crested Butte www.shondeckfinancial.com Local Service Since 1994.
414 Star Mountain Drive | Gunnison
Explore this rare opportunity for a smaller home (1840 sq. ft.) on 35 acres in the Ohio Creek Valley. Nestled in a beautiful aspen grove, this cabin was built to provide a comfortable place to get away from it all and spend time with the people you love. Located on a Colorado Scenic Byway and access to Gunnison via the Ohio Creek Valley - a popular area known for its beauty and preserved open space with numerous large ranches. Offered mostly furnished, this home is ready for you to move in and start creating memories today! 3 Bed, 2 Bath | 1,840 Square Feet | $1,300,000
m o l ly e l d r i d g e
r ea l estate b r o k e r / o w n e r ( 97 0 ) 2 0 9 4 23 4 m o l ly @ c b m p. c o m m o l ly i n c r e st e d bu t t e . c o m
A6 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
GVH staff from A1 years, a measure of how committed and fulfilled local health care workers are at GVH. The results rank the local health system above the national average, a designation it hasn’t achieved since before the pandemic. GVH annually surveys its employees to measure team culture, personal satisfaction, unit safety and more. The 2023 results affirm that staff and health care workers systemwide are truly affected by the most acute problems facing the Gunnison Valley’s only hospital. But after a year of using a purposeful “people-first” strategy, like tuition reimbursements and cost-of-living salary increases, scores have improved across the board. The people-first team will meet again in the new year to discuss the hospital’s goals going into 2024, said Human Resources Director Christina Lovelace. The survey, done by national consultant Press Ganey, compares GVH to more than 5,000 hospitals around the county, and does not not limit the pool to similar critical access care or rural institutions, Lovelace said. Employee engagement scores
Western from A1 professor David Hyde, also the collections manager and museum’s curator. “Museums are complicated places, especially for Native Americans. They're tied to colonialism. So it's doing what we can to make things right.” One failed attempt The federal government passed NAGPRA in 1990. This law, managed by the National Park Service, requires any institutions that receive federal funding to return certain Native American human remains, funerary objects, objects of cultural patrimony and sacred objects to descendants of those tribes. It provided a process through which all repatriation must occur, and delegated these duties to each state. When NAGPRA went into effect, Western anthropology professor Mark Stiger organized an initial inventory of the skulls. According to Hyde, the university sent out hundreds letters in the mid 90s to federally-recognized tribes, but not one replied. For many tribes around the nation, the new law meant they were overwhelmed with requests to view and claim remains, while few had the capacity to do so, Hyde said. “This was the 90s, it was the beginning of this process, and no one knew what they were doing,” Hyde said. “The feds, the tribes and tribal representatives were all trying to figure it out, so no one made an official claim.” At one point, Stiger connected with a representative from the Southern Ute Tribe to take the remains, but the federal government intervened. If the remains are to be returned,
across the country have continually declined since the pandemic, while the gap between the highest and lowest performing hospitals widens each year. The hospital’s staffing shortages have stayed the same over the last year: traveling nurses continue to fill critical gaps in patient care, but cost the hospital far more than full- or parttime employees; the Senior Care Center is still the heaviest user of traveling nurses system-wide. Over 50 job openings remain in nursing, nursing support and radiology. Just over 50% of employees responded that their unit is adequately staffed, the survey’s worst-performing result. Despite its struggle to recruit and retain doctors and nurses, GVH more than doubled its overall survey score from 33% last year to 66% this year. Each of the 82 questions on the survey received a better score than last year — some by significant margins. The reason, according to Lovelace and hospital CEO Jason Amrich, is the “peoplefirst” approach, one of six GVH strategic goals in 2023. Lovelace, — aided by Quincy Knight, assistant director of Human Resources, and Chief Nursing Officer Nicole Huff — heads a team of 15 who worked tribes must make a formal claim for those remains through NAGPRA. The Southern Utes did not make that claim, so the skulls remained wrapped in newspaper, in Western’s basement. Little documentation exists from that failed connection, Hyde said. An intern who worked with Hyde was tasked with combing through the university’s archive to find any communications that might shed light on what happened. But the most they found were reports that staff came close to returning the remains. One account states that skulls were packed up in the truck, ready to head south, when a letter arrived from the state, insisting on the formal claim. “It was just someone who was trying to do the right thing, to get these individuals home. But there was a federal process that needed to be adhered to. And that didn't happen,” Hyde said. While the university has technically been in compliance with the federal law, having completed the inventory and communicated with tribes, decades of inaction left the remains untouched in the basement of the museum. But this year, the university has its best chance yet — with the support of federal dollars — to repatriate those Native ancestors. A renewed effort In the late 2010s, a student discovered that Western had to re-inventory the museum’s entire collection in order to remain compliant with a new state law. She started an inventory but left before it was finished. It was then, finishing that work in 2019, that Hyde learned of the remains and felt the need to revisit the NAGPRA process. Ac c o rd i ng t o t h e Pa rk s Service, roughly 208,000 human
Gunnison Country Times all year to brainstorm how the hospital could better care for its current employees and attract new recruits.
“There’s a lot of research that goes into the chilling effect of, when someone makes a mistake, they get written up and blamed.” Jason Amrich GVH CEO GVH employees now have access to LinkedIn Learning and the popular meditation app Headspace. The hospital increased its tuition reimbursement program up to $5,000, supporting staff as they go back to school for nursing and tech degrees. In 2023, 10 employees took advantage of the program. The new, in-house GVH Leadership Academy has offered leadership training for those interested in manage-
ment positions. The hospital brought on housing coordinator, Tyler Stribling, in 2023, and his work has meant more employees get placed in housing and a lower vacancy rate for GVH units, Amrich said in a Gunnison County Commissioners meeting earlier this month. Providing housing for GVH employees is another tool executives are using to make jobs in rural Gunnison more enticing. Administrators plan to increase the number of hospital-owned housing units from 30 — 17 owned, 13 leased — to 37, when the apartments at the old Senior Care Center (SCC) get finishing touches in the coming weeks. Those units will house current SCC workers, especially those who currently travel from Montrose or Salida for shifts. T h e re s u l t s s h o w G V H employees struggle the most with “decompression,” or the ability to rest and rejuvenate outside of work. In questions about losing sleep over work, or one’s ability to mentally disconnect from the hospital, a little over a third of employees indicated that they struggle with work separation. Improving the hospital’s staffing is the main way executives can improve this issue, Amrich said.
The survey also explores leadership and team dynamics, an area which showed improvement over last year. In 2022, 18 of the hospital’s 49 units were categorized as needing serious improvement in team dynamics. But this year, that number fell to just five units — which impacts patient safety as well as employee satisfaction, Amrich said. “There's a lot of research that goes into the chilling effect of, when someone makes a mistake, they get written up and blamed. When they get kind of this punitive treatment, it really quiets the conversations around safety,” Amrich said. During daily morning staff huddles, unit leaders are having conversations about ways to reduce risk and create a culture of safe reporting, he said. Survey results show that over 90% of employees feel they can safely report errors. “When somebody puts in a report in our system, it used to be looked at as tattling,” Amrich said. “Now it's a way of saying, ‘Hey, how can we get better?’ That’s our commitment to the health and safety of our patients.” (Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@ gunnisontimes.com.)
The CT Hurst Museum maintains a collection of art and objects that are scattered around Western’s Hurst building. (Photo by Mariel Wiley)
remains have been reported nationwide since the law took effect. But in 33 years, less than half have been repatriated. A ProPublica investigation in early 2023 revealed that at least 230 Native American ancestors still sit in the collections and backrooms of Colorado universities and museums. “ Yo u d e h u m a n i z e p e o ple so that you can fight, and that's such an ugly thing to do, but we do that,” said We s t e r n ’s Ma r k e t i n g a n d Communications Manager Seth Mensing. “And as time goes on, and there's a little bit more separation, that humanity sinks back in.” In the spring of 2022, master’s in gallery and museum management student Nicole Digate started working with Hyde to reinventory the human remains so they had the most accurate numbers. The pair discovered that the inventory done in the 90s was incorrect, and the university only housed 40 human
remains rather than 67. Western received 25 of those remains, all human skulls, in the 1940s from a graduate whose brother had been a looter in the Durango and Cortez area. When the brother died, the donor didn’t know what to do with the remains and asked if the university would take them. According to the Western’s archival records, they came in cardboard produce boxes, wrapped in newspaper. So far, little is known about the brothers, outside of their last name: Petersen. The exact origin of the remaining 15 is a mystery, gathered from the university’s art and biology departments over the years. Hyde believes those remains are Native American due to the items listed as accompanying the excavations — ceramic pots and specific funerary objects. This time around, Hyde sent nearly 70 letters to tribes in the Four Corners region and
received four replies: Southern Utes, the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe and the Zia Pueblo of north-central New Mexico. Those tribes have volunteered to be involved in consultation and to look over the remains. Tribal representatives can also look at the collection of ceramic items that came with Petersen’s collection, to see if they recognize anything as funerary or other sacred objects. Hyde and members from Western’s executive cabinet will start visiting tribal representatives sometime in the spring of 2024. “It's an opportunity to reconnect with the people that were kicked off this land, and to try to mend some of those fences and heal some of those wounds,” Mensing said. (Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@ gunnisontimes.com.)
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A7
Gunnison Country Times
GAC from A1 once crews ripped up the floorboards, which inflated the total cost by nearly $400,000, said board treasurer Erik Niemeyer. The Arts Center is still fundraising as part of its “Frame our Future” capital campaign, which will help absorb the rising costs. Contractor Christopher Kline’s crew found that the old floor joists — beams that run horizontally across a foundation and provide structural support — had been compromised. This forced crews to pour additional concrete and add more framing to make sure the floor is code compliant. Despite the discovery, renovation plans remain largely the same. The gallery and theater space will flip-flop in the new configuration. Visitors who step into the GAC at the front entrance will be greeted by an expansive gallery space, while the new theater will live on the north side of the building nearest to Hwy. 50. The upper floor will offer more class space for current (and coming) art programs. The only change to the design in the last five months involved converting a moveable wall in the main gallery to large nesting barn doors. The change means more accessible wall space for art shows and flexibility in how the space can be used. The Arts Center launched a
$3.8 million capital campaign in 2019, its first in over 20 years. Last fall, the center entered the “public-facing” portion of “Framing our Future,” with a goal to raise $300,000 from the community. The board, alongside GAC staff, is now seeking additional funds from both the community and state grantors, like the State Historic Preser vation Fund or the Impact Development Fund. “All the cost projections that we had were low, relative to the increase in the cost of materials, and the additional labor and concrete work,” Niemeyer said. Unexpectedly, Kline’s workers also discovered a trove of old glass bottles buried in more than 100 years of dust. The basement of North Gallery, which staff believe was a transfer depot for the trains running through Gunnison harboring silver and gold, may have been a trash can for porters looking to have a drink and escape the watchful eye of a boss, Niemeyer said. The glass bottles are now being sold to help fund renovations. “It underscores the fact that this building has such a colorful history, and has had so many different uses for the community,” he said. The number of art programs available to the community will grow significantly in 2024 as the noisier phases of construction are completed. It’s still unclear if all theater performances will still be held at the GAC or moved to another spot in town, said Executive Director Grace
Thurlow. She hopes to add more STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) classes in addition to expanded theater and dance offerings. Renovations upstairs, including a new digital arts lab, will accommodate a larger program schedule. While time and space constraints forced the Arts Center to move the annual Missoula Theater Camp to Gunnison High School last summer, talks have started to get it back into the center this coming year. SonofaGunn’s 2024 show, “Clue-Less,” will go on at Western Colorado University. The hope is to welcome SonofaGunn back to the Arts Center in 2025, Thurlow said. The GAC launched a new w e b s i t e t h i s y e a r, w h i c h Thurlow called a “game-changer” for the nonprofit. The layout is more intuitive both for staff to use internally and for the community to engage with, she said. Registration for winter programs like culinary and ceramics classes will be posted shortly. (Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@ gunnisontimes.com.)
Happy Holidays Thank you Gunnison County for another great year! I look forward to doing business with you in the future.
Bobby Overturf Broker Associate 719.216.2524 bobby@bbre1.com bbre1.com
RMBL Summer 2024 Youth Programs HIGH SCHOOL: Intro. to Field Biology, July 22nd- August 2nd. High school and college credit expected to be available. Applications accepted starting Dec. 1st, open until full!
MIDDLE SCHOOL: Project Eco-STEM. Two sessions available. July 8th-12th and July 15- 19th. Application period is Jan. 8th-Feb. 12th! K-5: Weekly nature and science camp sessions available. June 17th- Aug. 5th. Application period is Feb. 1st-29th!
For more information and to register visit www.rmbl.org or email youthscience@rmbl.org
SCREEN PRINTING EMBROIDERY FULL SIGN SHOP P R O M O TI O N A L P R O D U C TS LIGH TN IN G F AST BAN N ER TU R N -AR O U N D ! 115 E. Georgia Ave Gunnison 970.497.0679
FIND YOUR TAG. FIND YOUR DEAL. 2023 SILVERADO 1500 CREW CAB RST
$7,000
TOTAL CASH
2023 SILVERADO 1500 ALLOWANCE CREW CAB RST
7,000
1
$500 RED TAG BONUS CASH + $6,500 CASH ALLOWANCE
$
FIND NEW ROADS ™
TOTAL CASH ALLOWANCE 1
SALES / SERVICE: 719-539-6633 | VISIT: WWW.SALIDACHEVY.COM EAST HWY 50, SALIDA, CO 81201 $500 RED TAG BONUS CASH + $6,500 CASH| 931 ALLOWANCE 1
Not available with special financing, lease and some other offers. Take new retail delivery by 01/02/2024
A8 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: MARCH 9, 2023
The edge of affordability High interest rates and market boom puts pressure on Lazy K project Bella Biondini Times Editor
Shadow boxes filled with tiny, hand-painted figurines of Dungeons and Dragons characters hung in Don Lansford’s new living room. They were hidden away in boxes before he moved to Lazy K because there just wasn’t space. Even though the home isn’t much larger than his previous place at the Holden Village mobile home park, it feels that much bigger, he said. “I don’t feel like Gandalf in a hobbit house, I’ve got room for stuff now,” Lansford said. “It just feels more like a home.” L a n s f o rd m ov e d t o t h e Gunnison Valley to attend Western State College in 1996, and has rented for the past two decades. He always dreamed of buying a house, but struggled to save up for a down payment, as home prices crawled upward. He had begun to consider leaving the valley when he stumbled across the City of Gunnison’s first affordable housing development, Lazy K. “The availability of places that I could afford were far and few between until I saw this Lazy K project come up,” Lansford said. “And that was a blessing.” In December of 2021, Lansford selected a winning ticket during the first Lazy K lottery — securing a home long before interest rates spiked in the fall of last year. But other potential first-time homebuyers in search of putting down roots in Gunnison weren’t so lucky. Who is the missing middle? With home prices at Lazy K starting at a little under $300,000 and stretching up to $407,000, stacked on top of high mortgage rates, many locals wondered who exactly Lazy K was built to serve. While some finally have the keys to a house of their own, others are faced with painful monthly payments, and are barred from building equity by deed restrictions. Although other affordable housing developments are scattered throughout the valley, Lazy K is the first project the City of Gunnison has built. The majority of the homes at the site, which is located directly across from the Gunnison Valley Health Senior Care Center in west Gunnison, are restricted to locals at certain income levels. Deed restrictions range from between 80% to 140% of Gunnison County’s
New homes near completion at Lazy K earlier this winter. (Photos by Bella Biondini)
area median income (AMI), which is slightly above $62,000. T h e i n c o m e ra n g e w a s designed to target the “missing middle” — those who make too little to purchase on the open market, but too much to qualify for low-income housing — but many still found themselves on the outskirts of the parameters created. Madeline Thomas was born and raised in the valley and presently works for the Town of Crested Butte. She participated in the first lottery, but was selected as an alternate. It wasn’t until she chose a home during the second lottery that she really began crunching numbers and eventually backed out of the purchase. “My biggest frustration is that I feel like they sold this idea to me by saying that I could afford it when at the end of the day, I really can’t,” Thomas said. “I just really want to know who these are for.” For many, the regular market seemed to be moving further out of reach, even for professionals such as nurses, teachers and government and construction workers — a group that wants something “more permanent” in the valley, Thomas said. “I just really thought that the Lazy K was sold as a solution for that, and I don't feel like in execution that that is accurate,” she said. Between 2019 and 2021, the median price of a single-family home in the City of Gunnison ro s e f ro m a p p ro x i m a t e l y $300,000 to almost $500,000, according to data from the Colorado Real Estate Network. To the north, average home
Agustina Hein drinks tea at her kitchen table. She is still getting settled into her new home at Lazy K.
prices in the once-affordable Crested Butte South exceeded $1 million, while the Town of Crested Butte rose to about $2 million. With some Lazy K homes at the top of the price range at $400,000, they teeter on the lower end of Gunnion’s regular market. Local business owner Arly Landry called Lazy K “such a magnificent, expensive failure,” and one that was too influenced by huge surges in the real estate market. “It’s not actually affordable housing … It was an easy thing to walk away from,” Landry said. She was also selected in the first lottery. The restrictions at Lazy K are not just limited to an individual or pair’s income. Units cannot be short-term leased or serve
as a second home. They also place a 2% cap on how much the home can appreciate in value each year. Although the cap ensures the homes remain affordable in perpetuity, it limits the amount of equity homeowners can build over time. “It's taking advantage of really vulnerable people who aren't going to build any equity in these properties,” Landry said. The majority of deed-restricted single-family homes in Gunnison County, fall between 800-1,400 square feet of living space. In straight dollars, an unrestricted house in Gunnison with a market value of $200,000 in 2012 would have been worth more than $400,000 by 2020, depending on its location — appreciating in value by more than 100%, said William Spicer,
communication manager at the Gunnison County Assessor's Office. During the same period, a deed restricted home with a 2% price cap. would have only risen by approximately $32,000. (Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.) Scan here to read the full article.
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A9
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: APRIL 27, 2023
A new era for Parker Pastures
Cloe Parker, 20 years old, named CEO of cattle ranch Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
It’s no secret that familyowned ranches around the West are grappling with an uncertain future. Water is dwindling in the Colorado River Basin and politicians are sparring over who gets a share of the precious commodity. All the while, generations of ranchers are parsing what the coming years will bring. As these conversations wear on, a crucial question lingers: do the children of ranchers and farmers want to stick around to confront an ambiguous future? For at least one ranch in Gunnison, the answer is yes. Just months ago, Cloe Parker, daughter of Bill and Kelli Parker, was named chief executive officer and co-owner of Parker Pastures, alongside her parents. While Bill and Kelli continue to work in production, Cloe has taken over the meat company. The family practices a holistic and regenerative approach to raising cattle, which means timing grazing to maximize carbon sequestration and increase biodiversity. The belief is that healthy soil translates to healthy meat, Cloe said. Bill is also the child of a rancher. He watched his father lose the family farms in Delta and Lake City in the late 80s during an economic turndown, so seeing his daughter move into the business is a “blessing.”
“Cloe has lived in [ag] her whole life, and thank God she didn't run away from it. She was always a part of it,” he said. For Cloe, taking over the farm is the culmination of a million small moments: building electric fences, gathering eggs, spending late nights crafting marketing emails or moving cattle through the fields on horseback. Each is a notch in her belt that has prepared the 20-year old to lead the business. The moment to leap came last fall, when family circumstances brought her home and overnight, she inherited huge responsibilities on the farm. “[I said], wait a minute, I actually really, really like this. And I've known I've wanted to be in ag all my life, but I just have never been sure of how all the parts would fall together,” she said. Every Gunnison resident who uses the well-known Van Tuyl Loop, on the northwest corner of town, is familiar with Parker Pastures — the beloved trail meanders through the family's cattle grazing fields. For 18 years, the farm has provided the Gunnison Valley with local, grass-fed meat.
Home For Sale By Owner Steps to the Gunnison River!
Wonderful 2-3bd, 1ba home on an exceptional .92ac oasis minutes to everything. Live creeks, pond, gorgeous trees, wildlife and privacy. No subdivision or HOA. Won’t Last! $795K. Contact 719-229-0169 UNDER CONTRACT
Scan for more info
1203 Van Tuyl Circle, MLS #805249, $769,000, 4-Bedroom 3.25 Bathrooms 1766 sqft built in 2017. This quaint contemporary single family home is surrounded by magnificent views of the Palisades in the quiet neighborhood of Van Tuyl Village. This 4-bedroom 3.25-bathroom property, a primary bedroom with full bathroom on the ground floor and half bedroom by the utility room that is easily accessible by guests and friends when entertaining. The living room is equipped with a pellet stove, moving into an open kitchen area with granite countertops, a deep sink and dining area nearby. The upstairs consists of a second primary bedroom with 3/4 bathroom and two large bedrooms with a full bathroom in the hallway. The natural sunlight from the expansive windows throughout the property provides views and sun exposure. The huge fenced in front yard will enable you to garden and play with your pet(s) and/or entertain your family and friends during the beautiful sunny summers in Gunnison. The irrigation ditch is available during spring/summer/ fall months to water the yard and provide you with ambient noise to enjoy during the pleasant Gunnison evenings. Call the listing agent for further questions and to schedule a showing. 216 Lochleven Lane, MLS #804508, $875,000, 3-Bedroom 2-Bathroom 1,988 sqft, built in
NEW PRICE ADJUSTMENT 1985, and with1.056 acres with attached car garage. Well built home situated in the beautiful
little Homestead Subdivision in Almont. Sit on your large front deck and revel in the views up the East River Valley. Located just 10 min from Gunnison and 20 min from CB, you are centrally located to enjoy the activities the area has to offer from world class fishing, rafting and hiking to snowmobiling and skiing. This 2 story home has its main living area on the top floor with a large open kitchen/ dining living room area with a wood stove that keeps the top floor nice and warm. This area is a great space to gather and entertain as you take in the views surrounding the property. The property also has a sunroom that can be accessed from the second level or has 2 separate entrances from the exterior. There is a 1 car oversized attached garage and located next to the garage is a very large storage room/closet for all of your storage needs. The home has a lot of deck area on the outside for outdoor entertaining or to casually relax and take in the many different views. Almont is a quaint small town with 2 restaurants/bars located within minutes from the property. There is a free bus that runs up and down the valley from Gunnison to CB with a stop located in Almont.
(Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@ gunnisontimes.com.) Scan here to read the full article.
459 Fairway Lane MLS #806172 $850,00 4-bedroom 3-bathroom 2291sqft. built in 1979 This contemporary quaint rustic house is within a profoundly well known subdivision, Dos Rios III. Close vicinity to the back 9 of the Dos Rios Golf Course. On a .46 of an acre, has 4-bedrooms and 3-bathrooms, the house features hardwood/tile floors, kitchen fully equipped with stainless appliances, kitchen cabinets and an open concept living room with a wood burning stove and second living room or/an office has a pellet stove. On the first floor you have a half bathroom that is easily accessible. On the second floor the master suite has an oversized bedroom with a full bathroom and a walk-in closet with a sliding barn door. The other full bathroom is down the hallway between the other two oversized bedrooms. The enormous backyard has a shed and plenty of sun exposure to plant/seed flowers, play with your pets and have get-togethers with friends. The two car garage is attached to the house and is very spacious and heated by a wood burning stove. There is sufficient amount of parking in the driveway and along the east side of the house. This home is magnificent so don’t miss out and schedule a showing by contacting the agent.
413 W New York MLS #805945 2125 sqft 1 bathroom Commercial Retail $525,000 Perfect Opportunity to Move a Business and/or a Start a New Business with great past history of tenants using the retail storefront i.e for nail/salon, daycare, mechanical auto body, pet/animal feed and accessories-retail and granite-retail/distribution to name a few. The property consists of about 1500 sqft of retail space with storefront access to New York and a half bathroom that is easily accessible for staff and customers to use. An added bonus is having an attached garage with about 625 sqft with an overhead garage bay. The garage could be a storage facility or part of business operations. The property has 5 parking spaces and close to Safeway and the new location of 5 Bs. A growing and upcoming neighborhood. Don’t miss this opportunity contact the listing agent to schedule a showing.
UNDER CONTRACT 71 Caddis Fly Lane - $200,000, MLS# 809269 Nice level 1.07 acre lot with trees located on on dead end road so there is ultimate privacy. Electric to corner of lot and it is with in close walking distance to HOA rental house for owners use. Subdivision located just minutes north of town and includes fishing rights along the Gunnison River and also includes many walking paths throughout the subdivision. Lot A next to this lot is also for sale, now is a great opportunity to pick up 2 lots to create more privacy!
KELLY
MCKINNIS
970.641.4880
AJ
MANI
129 EAST TOMICHI AVENUE
GUNNISONREALESTATEANDRENTALS. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
A10 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: APRIL 27, 2023
City declines RTA transit center site More than 130 letters written in opposition to proposal Bella Biondini Times Editor
Gunnison 970.641.6691
yuletide ride
Crested Butte 970.349.6691
happy new year
bbre1.com
GET PAID TO OBTAIN YOUR CERTIFIED NURSE AIDE LICENSE!
BE A LIFE ENRICHING CAREGIVER (CNA) CLASS FROM JANUARY 29 - MARCH 3 Class Requirements: Virtual class with an instructor from the Technical College of the Rockies (TCR) with onsite Lab Skills in Gunnison. Students agree to work in a part-time or full-time status at the GVH Senior Care Center after obtaining their certification.
Motivated by resounding opposition from the community, the City of Gunnison formally opposed the construction of a new transit center in front of the Rec Center this week. In February, the Gunnison Valley Rural Transportation Authority (RTA) announced the Rec Center as its chosen and preferred location for a transit center. The $3.5 million center would serve as a central hub and connection point for other bus service lines such as the Bustang. The building was to be no larger than 2,000 square feet and house a lobby for riders waiting to catch a bus, restrooms and an information center. City council heard the proposal for the first time at a regular meeting earlier this month. During the session, staff handed out feedback forms for residents to fill out and opened an online portal for comments. Since April 11, the city received more than 130 written comments on the RTA’s proposal — the majority of which were in strong opposition to the placement of a transit facility at the Rec Center. This was the first formal public comment period for the proposal. According to Finance Director and Interim City Manager Ben Cowan, some of the recurring themes within the comments included safety worries for seniors and children due to increased traffic congestion, loss of green space and soccer fields, limited parking, conveying the land without a public vote and the potential for increased crime near the Rec Center. Dur ing a regular council meeting on Tuesday night,
approximately 20 community members gathered at City Hall to share more of their concerns about the chosen location. Many others gathered online on Zoom. After collecting more feedback, staff did not accept any of the RTA’s proposals on the property, but agreed to work with the organization to find a more suitable location. “Without the public support behind this, there really is no reason to make that heavy lift on the staff and city side to make this happen,” said Councilor Mallory Logan. “But I do think a transit center in Gunnison will be crucial in the future, especially as our population grows.” The RTA’s search for a transit center location began in 2019, but the arrival of the pandemic temporarily placed the project on hold. Staff surveyed the Gunnison-Crested Butte Regional Airport, the northeast corner of New York Avenue and Pine Street, Teller and Hwy. 50 near the visitor center and the Gunnison Rec Center. Criteria used to evaluate each site included its proximity to affordable housing, Western Colorado University and groceries, as well as ease of access for cyclists and pedestrians and proximity to Hwy. 50 and 135. (Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.)
Scan here to read the full article.
• Starting wage of $18.50/hour with weekend & shift incentives! • $5K Sign N Stay Bonus! • Robust tuition reimbursement program! • Up to $15K/year to continue your medical education! • 27% of nursing staff utilize this program!
WANT A REWARDING CAREER WITH GREAT BENEFITS? Call Human Resources at (970) 641-7228. To apply, visit WWW.GUNNISONVALLEYHEALTH.ORG/CAREERS
The RTA’s preferred transit center location sits on the southeast side of the Gunnison Rec Center near the existing bus stop on Spencer Avenue. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A11
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: MAY 11, 2023
Final wolf reintroduction plan approved Adequate funding and pending 10(j) rule still worry local ranchers Bella Biondini Times Editor
Although Greg Peterson’s cows lingered near the ranch house, they would soon roam the rolling sagebrush hills once the snow melted away. The small patch of grass exposed signaled the end of a long winter season as calves and their mothers wandered through the pasture. The fields that stretched into the distance, far beyond the house, are the frontier, Peterson said. During calving season, he keeps an eye out for coyotes at dawn and then again at dusk when the light fades. But in the coming years, Peterson may have to train his eyes for a larger predator. Looking out over his land, he recognizes this may be the open space where his cattle and the gray wolf will mix in the near future. On May 3, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission approved a final draft of the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan at a meeting in Glenwood Springs following more than two years of extensive discussion and public outreach across the state. The adoption of the plan, which was steered by more than 4,000 comments from residents, will guide CPW biologists and wildlife managers as the agency prepares to begin reintroducing wolves west of the Continental Divide by the Dec. 31, 2023 deadline. “This would not have been possible without the tireless work of CPW staff and the Parks and Wildlife Commission, the members of both our advisory boards and the citizens and stakeholders who engaged and weighed in to make our wolf management plan the best for Coloradans and for wolves who will once again grace our Colorado landscapes,” Dan Gibbs, executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources said in a press release. Local ranchers and agricultural organizations have continuously expressed their discomfort with the reintroduction plan, pointing to seemingly gaping holes in the draft, such as the lack of funding to support successful implementation, the lagging approval of management flexibility to use lethal control and adequate damage payments for livestock lost to
the predator. Some worried that the pressure of wolves, a great unknown for agricultural producers, may just be the tipping point, changing a way of life that has existed in the valley for generations. Many local ranchers are already juggling Gunnison sage-grouse regulations, the highs and lows of an unpredictable climate and thin profit margins, said Doug Washburn of Spann Ranches. The operations are based just west of Gunnison, although he works on properties scattered across the Western Slope. Proposition 114, narrowly passed by Coloradans in 2020, received the majority of its support from voters on the Front Range, hundreds of miles from where wolves will be set loose. Earlier this year, the plan earmarked the Hwy. 50 corridor as a probable location for releases in the coming years due to the amount of suitable habitat available for the gray wolf. Feasibility maps stretch east from Gunnison to Monarch Pass, west to Montrose and as far south as the Saguache County line and north of Crested Butte — making it likely that wolves will roam into the Gunnison Valley’s vast system of open space, rangeland and public lands. “It’s the most beautiful place to play cowboy, but it’s the least profitable place in the world to raise a cow,” Washburn said. “We're not doing it because we're making any money, we're doing it because it's special … And then now you put the wolf out there, which is an unknown, that's even harder to deal with because you don't know what's going to happen.” Wolves have already been reintroduced to many of the Rocky Mountain states surrounding Colorado, reclaiming portions of the species native range. But the populations of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho combined — states that are home to vast quantities of open space and wilderness areas — are less than that of Colorado. Although the crowds of people living on the Front Range have continued to grow, the creators of the plan believed that wolves would have the giant landscapes they needed to roam on the Western Slope. But Washburn disagreed. Like the elk and the deer, cattle naturally move down from the high country as the seasons change, he said. The wolves are likely to follow. “It just seems like a tough spot we’re going to be sitting in down here on the valley floor,” Washburn said. Tools to protect the herd While CPW is responsible Continued on A12
Celebrate New Years Eve with us! FOOD SPECIALS: MUSSELS, BEEF TARTARE, LOBSTER ROLL, KOBE BEEF TOMAHAWK, HAWAIIAN OPAH!
KITCHEN OPEN TILL 11PM
Reservations Highly Recommended 970.641.4394 • 122 W. TOMICHI AVE. BLACKSTOCKBISTRO.COM
43110 US Highway 50 | Gunnison
710 Hawk Drive | Gunnison
5 Bed | 4 Bath | 87+/- Acres | $2,900,000
3 Bed | 3.5 Bath | 3,435 SF | 35 Acres | $2,200,000
43191 US Highway 50 | Gunnison
518 E Georgia Avenue | Gunnison
5 Bed | 3.5 Bath | 20 Acres | 2,400 SF Shop | $1,490,000
Fiveplex | WCU Adjacent | Rental Opportunity | $995,000
Brian Cooper
Chrissy Mitchell
Broker Associate c 970.275.8022 brian@bbre1.com
Broker Associate c 970.420.1175 chrissy@bbre1.com
A12 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
Gunnison Country Times Continued from A11
Happy New Year
101 N Main Street | Downtown Gunnison 11,118 SF of Fully Rented Commercial Space | Premium Corner Location 9 Retail & Office Units | Offered for $1,275,000
Maggie Dethloff
2023 GCAR Realtor of the Year c 970.209.7880 maggie@bbre1.com CrestedButteNow.com
BUY OF THE WEEK
THIS READY TO BUILD LOT is located 3 miles west of Gunnison in Pleasant View. Great building site just minutes from town and Blue Mesa reservoir for fishing and recreating. The lot features a county sewer tap with electric and well installed. Property has no HOA. 104 Phyllis Lane
Broker/Owner
(970) 209-6208
People’s Choice Award for Best Realtor 2021 & 2022
2023 legislative session and are awaiting a signature from Gov. Jared Polis. The first, SB 23-256, passed with bipartisan support, blocks wolf reintroduction until the 10(j) rule is complete. Following its passage, Polis signaled he might veto the bill. Ranchers need to be given the proper tools to protect their animals, said Gunnison S t o c k g ro w e r s A s s o c i a t i o n President Hannah Cranor Kersting. “We spent more time with our animals than we do with our family,” she said. “There's a reason we're ranchers, we love the animals. We need to be given the means to protect them.”
Josh Townsend Broker/Owner
(970) 209-4479
Eggnog Latte Eggnog Chai Caramel Apple Cider
Peppermint Hot Cocoa
Scan here to read the full article.
Gunnison Valley Orthopedics & Sports Medicine
WE WORK HARD TO KEEP
YOU PLAYING HARDER
Butter Rum White Mocha Gingerbread White Mocha
(Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.)
Money troubles Under the plan, CPW is
WWW.GVORTHO.NET
HOLIDAY DRINK SPECIALS!
Gingerbread Chai
required to pay fair compensation to livestock owners for any livestock injuries or deaths caused by wolves.
With multiple locations we offer convenient access and scheduling to meet your orthopedic needs.
HONEST, ETHICAL, PROFESSIONAL ClArke AgenCy reAl esTATe Audrie Townsend
Peterson keeps his younger cattle closer to the house during calving season so he can take extra time with them. By the end of the season, which usually stretches from March to the beginning of May, more than 300 calves will roam his properties. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
Whether you are young or elderly, a professional athlete or a casual outdoors enthusiast we have the expertise, care options and depth of resources you need to recover from acute injuries and return to activity quickly and safely.
$180,000
241 N. Main St. Gunnison, CO 81230 www.clarkeagency.net
While CPW is responsible for reintroduction, the agency is working closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a 10(j) ruling under the Endangered Species Act that would list wolves as an “experimental population.” The ruling would give the state greater management flexibility, and permit the “lethal take” or killing of wolves in specific scenarios such as chronic depredation. The rule is scheduled to be finalized only weeks before the end of 2023, fueling worry that it won’t be ready in time. In that case, ranchers would be left without what many consider to be a necessary option to defend their livestock in the case of an attack. No other states have reintroduced wolves without the 10(j) rule first in place. This is something that is spelled out in the management plan that CPW felt was critical for the plan’s success, Peterson said. When coyotes cause trouble on the ranch, he shoots them. “I don't necessarily just like to kill them to kill them,” he said. “Usually, we don’t shoot coyotes except when they're causing problems during calving season, but it works. If we don’t have that with wolves at some level, that just really concerns me.” Over the weekend, two state bills that will help structure the implementation of the wolf plan passed in the late days of the
Coffee Trader gift cards make the perfect holiday gift! Starting at just $10!
Peppermint Mocha
ON THE CORNER OF MAIN ST. AND DENVER
GUNNISON | 970-641-8899 CRESTED BUTTE | 970-349-5103
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A13
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: MAY 11, 2023
City reviews water treatment plant site proposal Future of VanTuyl Ranch in question Bella Biondini Times Editor
Gunnison’s VanTuyl Ranch has been caught square in the middle of a fight between improving the city’s water security and the community’s desire to preserve the character of the open space. The Gunnison Public Works Department updated city council on the status of the city’s water treatment plant project during a regular meeting on Tuesday, May 9. According to staff, the infrastructure upgrade, which will likely be the largest in the city’s history, will reduce the risk of drinking water contamination and improve an antiquated treatment process that is no longer permitted by the state. The city began the planning and design process for the $20-30 million surface water treatment with the Boulderbased firm JVA Consulting Engineers late last year. “A water treatment plant is something that we must construct,” said Finance Director and Interim City Manager Ben Cowan. “It’s really out of the question to have a course of non-action.” The preferred build site is the city-owned VanTuyl Ranch property, which is home to a well-used recreation path that is close to the hearts of many within the Gunnison community. The VanTuyl Loop trail winds through farmland adjacent to the Gunnison River and boasts open views of the nearby Palisades on the northwest boundary of the city. More than 40 residents gathered in the city council chambers to share their thoughts on the proposed location. Even though many recognized the city’s need to build a water treatment plant, they worried it may have the potential to turn the area into a construction
A computer rendering of what city leaders hope the water plant will look like if it is placed on VanTuyl Ranch. (Courtesy JVA)
zone — permanently altering the qualities that attract users to the trail in the first place. “We have fallen in love with this space … the city will always have needs that will arise but open spaces are also an important need of a community,” said local resident Arly Landry. According to city staff, water was always the main priority of acquiring the VanTuyl property. The 2010 management plan states that the ranch was sold to the city in 1993 with the goal of preventing the property from being developed because it is the aquifer recharge area for the city’s domestic water source. It also “holds an enormously important role in the development of future water utilities that will serve the city,” the plan reads. The plan contains a list of objectives the city should consider when management conflicts arise in future years. The first priority on the list is to “protect surface and ground water resources by managing water quality and quantity, and putting water rights to beneficial use.” Other priorities are
conserving riparian habitat, allowing agriculture to thrive and providing opportunities for recreation. City council has not made a final decision on the location of the water plant. A public hearing with the Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled for June 14, followed by a VanTuyl Management Plan update and potential approval from council on July 11. “This is a continuing conversation and we will continue to receive and consider public input as we move this forward,” said Mayor Diego Plata. Contamination risk Gunnison has not had a drinking water treatment plant since 1967, when it was abandoned due to deteriorating filters. Groundwater wells were drilled into the middle of city streets as a temporary fix, but a new plant was never constructed, and this system is still in use. Today, nine wells scattered around town pump groundwater from a shallow aquifer. It is then chlorinated and sent directly into a distribution sys-
tem that feeds the faucets of the community. This method prevents Public Works from treating or removing other harmful contaminants if they were to leak into the system. In 2021, the city initiated the development of a “water master plan” to evaluate the existing system and identify what renovations were needed to meet Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment regulations. The location of Gunnison’s wells and the potential for contamination were named high risks. The master water plan, which was approved by council, designated VanTuyl Ranch as the optimal site to construct a modern water plant. The site was evaluated by the city’s engineering consultants as well as staff. Proximity to existing infrastructure and water sources and land ownership were considered when a site was selected — all factors that could lower the cost of the project. Four of the city’s main water rights also intersect on the property. The proposal would allow the city to use its pre-compact
water rights and pull from the Gunnison River, an “infiltration gallery” — or underground pipe network — and possibly a storage reservoir in a future phase in addition to its existing wells. All of these together make the city’s water supply more resilient in the face of a contamination event, said JVA engineer and President Kevin Tone. “We need a robust treatment system that has the filtration capability and multiple layers of defense or redundancy,” he said. (Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.) Scan here to read the full article.
A14 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: JULY 20, 2023
Blue Mesa’s miracle recovery
Reservoir nears fill-line for first time since 2019 Bella Biondini Times Editor
Last summer, water levels at Blue Mesa Reservoir fell so low that the winding ribbon of the Gunnison River, typically hidden underneath the surface of the man-made lake, was revealed for several miles. Then came the winter of 2022-23, blanketing both ends of the valley with snow that lingered in the high country well into the springtime. The snowmelt rushed into surrounding rivers and streams, before pouring into Blue Mesa. As of July 16, the reservoir was only 8 feet below full pool, up almost 50 feet the same time last year. Many in the community, along with visitors who frequent the reservoir, haven’t seen high water since 2019. Even though urgent negotiations continue
among the seven Colorado River Basin states, prompted by a changing climate and a dwindling water supply, this summer brings a deep sigh of relief — even if it turns out to be only temporary. The view from the Lake City Bridge is a sea of blue, dotted with boaters, while Blue Mesa’s marinas bustle with activity. Blue Mesa’s speedy recovery is an unexpected turn of events compared to the past few years. In 2021, despite persistent drought conditions in the Gunnison Valley, the Bureau of Reclamation called for the release of water from Blue Mesa for the first time to support Lake Powell’s rapidly falling water levels. After the release of 36,000 acre-feet of water, Blue Mesa dropped to its lowest point since it was filled in the 1960s. That August, E lk Cre ek Marina shut down almost six weeks early. After another dry winter, the bad news continued into the summer of 2022. The usually busy marina kept its doors shut. Fluctuating water
levels put the docks at risk of grounding and getting crushed under their own weight so the National Park Service relocated them to deeper water. The slips sat empty and the Gunnison Rotary Club canceled its annual fishing tournament. The water returns On Tuesday, the reservoir sat at 91% of its full capacity, not far from the fill line, and most of the boat slips at Elk Creek marina are occupied. “It feels awesome,” said a retired couple from Grand Junction, who spend most of their summers on Blue Mesa. Carrie Leake, a frequent visitor from Texas agreed. “It was very sad last year, so it’s great to have it back. It’s beautiful,” she said. On July 13, Frank Craig, a local fisherman, stood near the reservoir’s edge with two lines in the water. He’s been visiting Blue Mesa for more than three decades, drawn to the reservoir’s reputation for big fish. Over the years, Craig has seen the water rise and fall. Although
the high water means good fishing, it also supports the livelihoods of the local businesses that depend on the reservoir, he said. He hoped it wouldn’t be siphoned downstream again. “It's definitely nice to see it [the water] back. It just kind of sucks when they let it go … They're not being responsible with the water down there, but we're paying the price,” Craig said. Despite the relief felt by locals and water managers up and down the Colorado River, it’s estimated that it would take three to four years of the healthy winters similar to what the West experienced this year — with no water use — for the system to make a full recovery. Eight such winters would be required to accommodate normal water use, according to a recent update from the governor's Water Availability Task Force — a group that monitors conditions that affect Colorado’s water supply. Lake Powell is currently only 41% full, with water levels slowly beginning to fall as it passes
its peak for the summer. Last August, the reservoir dropped to 26% of capacity, its lowest point since 1967. As of Tuesday, Lake Mead wasn’t much better off, at 32%. S onja Chavez, the general manager of the Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, said she worried about the long-term health of the system if water m a n a g e m e n t d o w n s t re a m doesn’t change. “If they're not going to account for transport loss and reduce their water use, we're going to be right back where we were before,” Chavez said. “This certainly has given us a little bit of a buffer, but we're not out of the woods.” (Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.)
The view of Blue Mesa Reservoir near the Lake City bridge in April of 2022. The low water levels exposed the Gunnison River channel. (Photos by Bella Biondini)
The Lake City bridge on July, 18, 2023.
Elk Creek Marina kept its doors shut during the summer of 2022.
Elk Creek Marina bustled with activity on July 13, the water level nearly 50 feet higher than this time last year.
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A15
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: SEPTEMBER 7, 2023
Universal Pre-K starts in Gunnison County fares well amidst rocky rollout around the state Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
Kids of all ages flooded into local schools last week during the annual back-to-school pilgrimage. For some 3- and 4-year-olds, it was their first time ever in a classroom, thanks to a new state universal preschool program (known as UPK), that is providing free preschool to qualified families. UPK offers 15 to 30 hours of free preschool for all Colorado 4-year-olds and a limited number of 3-year-olds with certain risk factors, like being homeless or in foster care. Through payments directly to local child care providers, nearly $800,000 will flow into Gunnison Valley over the next nine months, offering help to the local families seeking to enroll at preschool. Despite a bumpy road with rollout, including lawsuits
against state education officials for fumbling enrollment, Gunnison Valley preschools are faring better than their Front Range counterparts. “Our team has been amazing at focusing on individual families and making sure that they are getting connected to services,” said Gunnison-Hinsdale Early Childhood Council Program (ECC) Director Margaret Wacker at a regular county commissioners meeting on Aug. 15. “It’s really through that team's attention to detail and families that people don't fall through the cracks.” In Gunnison County, 120 students are enrolled in UPK, and 14 of those students are receiving the extra benefit of fulltime care, or 30 hours a week. Lana Athey, ECC coordinator, expects to see the number of full-time students increase in the coming months, as the state recently allowed families to go back into their applications and select more eligibility factors, all which increase the chance of receiving 30 hours. UPK is essentially a tuition credit for qualified families. The Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC), which manages the program, gives money directly to participating
Bethany Church 909 N Wisconsin St.
(behind Powerstop) • 970-641-2144 Two services at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. FREE lunch for college students following the 10:30 a.m. service gunnisonbethany.com 9 a.m.: Family Service with nursery & children’s church Check out our website for updates! Or download our app on the App Store by searching, Gunnison Bethany.
B'nai Butte Congregation
PO Box 2537 Crested, Butte CO 81224 305-803-3648 B’nai Butte Congregation serving the Jewish communities of Crested Butte, Gunnison and the East River Valley in Colorado www.bnaibutte.org Spiritual Leader: Rabbi Mark Kula; available for you at RabbiMarkKula@gmail.com
Church of Christ
600 E. Virginia • 970-641-1588 Sunday Morning Bible Class: 9:30 a.m. Sunday Morning Worship: 10:30 a.m. Sunday Evening Worship: 6 p.m. Wednesday Night Bible Class: 7 p.m.
Church in the Barn
8007 County Road 887 Waunita Hot Springs Ranch • 970-641-8741 Sundays, 10:30 a.m. Non Denominational Come as you are
child care providers. Gunnison County providers are receiving just over $10,500 per student for full-time care and just over $6,000 per student for part-time care. The county helps local preschools and families figure out the new system and iron out issues. Even with high interest in the program, several child care providers around the county still have open slots. Wonderland Nature School and Tenderfoot Child and Family Development Center in Gunnison and Stepping Stones Children’s Center and Paradise Place Preschool in Crested Butte all still have slots for UPK students. (Abby Harrison can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or abby@ gunnisontimes.com.) Scan here to read the full article.
A Lake School student plays with bubbles on the first day of school. (Photo by Alex McCrindle)
Faith Directory
New Song Christian Fellowship
77 Ute Lane • 970-641-5034 A Christ Centered Gospel Sharing Community where we want to be part of a community who encourage and support one another in our spiritual journey. Sunday 10 a.m. / Wednesday 7 p.m. www.newsonggunnison.net
Community Church of Gunnison
107 N. Iowa • 970-641- 0925 Pastor Larry Nelson Christmas Eve Service 7:00 p.m. Sunday Morning Worship 9:30 a.m. Weekend Services 9:30 a.m. Nursery & Age-Graded Ministry Weekly Student Ministry Weekly Adult LifeGroups Office Hours: Mon-Thurs, 9-4 For more info: ccgunnison.com or email info@ccgunnison.com Join us in-person, listen to our broadcast on 98.3 FM, or view online stream on YouTube Transforming Lives • Building Community
First Baptist Church
120 N. Pine St. • 970-641-2240 Pastor Jonathan Jones 9:30 a.m. Share & Prayer Fellowship 10 a.m. Sunday School Classes 11 a.m. Morning Worship Service 6 p.m. Evening Service Wednesday 7 p.m. - Children's Patch Club Gunnison Bible Institute Thursday 7 p.m. - College & Career Christian Fellowship www.firstbaptistgunnison.org.
Trinity Baptist Church
523 N. Pine St. • 970-641-1813 Senior Pastor - Joe Ricks Sunday Service 9:30 a.m. Adult Bible Study 8 a.m. www.trinitybaptistsgunnison.com
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church 711 N. Main • 970-641-1860 Children’s Christmas Program Sunday, December 17th at 10 AM Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at 7 PM Christmas Day Service at 10 AM
The Good Samaritan Episcopal Church 307 W. Virginia Ave. • 970-641-0429 Rev. Laura Osborne, Vicar Sunday Morning Holy Eucharist, Rite II 9 a.m. Children's Sunday school 9 a.m. - 9:40 a.m. Office Hours: M-Th 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. www.goodsamaritangunnison.com Visit our partnership church: All Saints in the Mountains, Crested Butte Holy Eucharist, Rite II, Sunday 5 p.m. Union Congregational Church, 403 Maroon Ave., Crested Butte.
Grace Covenant Church Gunnison
101 N. 8th St. Gunnison Meeting at the Historic 8th St School House Reformed, Confessional & committed to Expository preaching Sundays 10:00 a.m. Thursdays 1:00 p.m. Women's Bible Study gracegunnison.com
The Rising Church
92 C.R. 17 • 970-444-1545 Service times: Sundays @ 9:30 a.m., Men’s and Women’s group, Tuesday @ 6:30 p.m. Rising Gen (youth ministry) Thursdays @ 6 p.m. Gunnisonrising.church for more details!
Rocky Mountain Christian Ministries
1040 Highway 135 (1/4 mile N. of Spencer Ave.) • 970-641-0158 Sunday Morning Worship 9:30 a.m. Nursery and Children’s ministry through Middle School “Remedy” Worship Nights Small Group Ministries www.rmcmchurch.org
St. Peter’s Catholic Church
300 N. Wisconsin • 970-641-0808 Fr. Andres Ayala-Santiago www. gunnisoncatholic.org www. crestedbuttecatholic.org or call the Parish Office. St. Peter’s - Gunnison Sat 5 p.m. & Sun 10:30 a.m., 12 p.m. (Spanish) Mass First Sunday of every month bilingual Mass 11 a.m. Queen of All Saints - Crested Butte, 401 Sopris Sun 8:30 a.m. Mass St. Rose of Lima - Lake City Mass Service, Sun. at 10 a.m.
Gunnison Congregational Church United Church of Christ 317 N. Main St. • 970-641-3203 Open and Affirming Whole Earth · Just Peace Sunday, 10:00 a.m. Casual, Relaxed, “Come As You Are” Worship www.gunnisonucc.org
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023
LISTINGS TODAY
37 641.1414 Stop by: Gunnison Country Times 218 North Wisconsin Gunnison, CO 81230 Email: classifieds@ gunnisontimes.com Ad policy & Rates:
• $7 for 20 words or less, 20¢ each additional word. • Display Classified rate is $9.40 per column inch. • Deadline is NOON SHARP TUESDAY.
gunnisontimes.com SCAN TO PLACE AN AD
Classifieds EMPLOYMENT
GUNNISON COUNTY EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES Behavioral Health Network Coordinator HHS: 5 hours/week, hourly rate range from $27.15-$30.92, plus partial benefits. Health Navigation Specialist HHS: 10 hours/week, hourly rate range from $25.62-$29.17, plus partial benefits. Family Planning Nurse Practitioner/Physician’s Assistant HHS: 8 hours/week, hourly rate range from $40.44-$46.04, plus partial benefits. Heavy Equipment Operator I Public Works: 40 hours/week, hourly rate range from $21.72$24.72, plus full benefits. Administrative Generalist HHS: 40 hours/week, hourly rate range from $21.72-$24.72, plus full benefits. Case Management Aide HHS: 40 hours/week, monthly salary range from $4,707-$5,722, plus full benefits. Landfill Gate Attendant Public Works: 40 hours/week, hourly rate range from $19.51$23.72, plus full benefits.
CLASSIFIEDS EMPLOYMENT REAL ESTATE RENTALS
A16 A17 A17
NOTICES
A17
CROSSWORD
A17
LEGALS
COMMUNITY
Deputy Chief Financial Officer Finance: 40 hours/week, starting salary range from $100,178$118,618. Full monthly salary grade range from $100,178$141,702, plus full benefits. Caseworker I HHS: 40 hours/week, monthly salary range from $4,989 to $6,065, plus full benefits. Public Health Nurse II – Substance Abuse Prevention, Juvenile Services: 20 hours/ week, hourly rate range from $32.03-$38.94, plus partial benefits. Seasonal Worker Public Works: Guaranteed 40 hours/week, hourly rate range from $15.75-$22.28 depending on experience, plus partial benefits. Outdoor work that includes traffic control, fencing, tree and brush removal, trail work, recycling, equipment training and much more, all in a 4-day work week. Patrol Deputy Sheriff: Full-time, 40 hours/week, monthly salary range from $5,552$7,853, plus full benefits. Detention Deputy Sheriff: Full-time, 40 hours/week, monthly salary range from $4,989$7,057 plus full benefits. Only work 14 days a month. For more information, including complete job descriptions, required qualifications and application instructions, please visit GunnisonCounty.org/jobs.
HIRING CASHIERS AND COOKS: Full and part-time pay based on experience, but expect $22 + after tips. Drop resumes at Powerstop.
CITY OF GUNNISON EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES Emergency Communications Specialist Full-time, $54,000-$63,400/yr Performs public contact and communications duties necessary for the dispatching of all law enforcement agencies, emergency medical services and fire departments for emergency and non-emergency situations. Police Officer Full-time, $68,900-$93,100/yr $33.13-$44.76/hr Performs technical, professional, and administrative duties related to maintaining the security of the city, protecting constitutional guarantees of all persons, protecting life and property, preserving public peace and order, preventing, solving and detecting crimes, facilitating the safe movement of people and vehicles and other emergency services as needed. POST Certification not required. The city will pay for the Police Academy if needed and pay a cadet wage of $50,900 while attending the academy. Includes a $15,000 signing bonus. Increased wages over above-listed salary available for working nights. Personal liability insurance paid by the City of Gunnison. Housing is available. needed. POST Certification not required. The city will pay for the Police Academy if needed and pay a cadet wage of $50,900 while attending the academy. Includes a $15,000 signing bonus. Increased wages over above-listed salary available for working nights. Personal liability insurance paid by the City of Gunnison. Housing is available. The City of Gunnison offers a competitive benefit package including 75% of medical, dental and vision premiums paid for the employee and their dependents, 5% of gross wages in a retirement plan, 3 weeks of vacation (increasing based on the years of service), 12 paid holidays, and 12 days of sick leave per year. For more information, including complete job descriptions, benefit packages, required job qualifications and application instructions, please visit GunnisonCO.gov/HR CHRISTOPHER KLEIN CONSTRUCTION is seeking a motivated self-starter for yearround, part-time (10-15 hours/week) office admin. assistant with strong computer, communication and team work skills. QuickBooks and payroll are a plus. Must pass pre-employment drug screen. Apply online at christopherkleinconstruction.com. Pay DOE ($18-25). SERVICE PLUMBER TECHNICIAN: Timberline Mechanical Contracting is looking for a service technician for troubleshooting and plumbing repair. Plumbing and customer service experience preferred. We offer high pay, paid holidays, paid vacation, health insurance and ski pass. Clean driving record is mandatory. Timberline Mechanical Contracting Crested Butte, CO. Phone: 970-349-5679. Email info@timberlinemech.com. SNOW SHOVELER NEEDED for the winter season. $23/hour, full time hours and ski pass reimbursement. Email office@ prproperty.com or call 970-349-6281. GUNNISON LIQUOR (The Ghost) is currently looking for part-time help. Nights and weekends a must. Stop by with a resume. 603 W. Tomichi Ave., Gunnison. SUMMER YOUTH PROGRAMS INSTRUCTORS: Are you passionate about working with youth and the outdoors? The
EC ELECTRIC IS SEEKING
Journeyman & Residential Wireman for projects in the Gunnison and Crested Butte areas. Must have a valid Colorado driver’s license and pass a pre-employment drug screen. Top pay & Benefits. Send resumes to info@ec-electric.com or call 970-641-0195 www.ec-electric.com/careers
JOHN ROBERTS MOTOR WORKS SEEKS COLLISON CENTER TECHNICIANS AND AUTOMOTIVE CENTER TECHNICIANS. Competitive pay, 401K, insurance, paid vacations. 40 hour work week. Apply at John Roberts Motor Works.
GUNNISON WATERSHED SCHOOL DISTRICT See GWSD website for details gunnisonschools.net Gunnison Watershed School District believes that students thrive when they are connected to something bigger than themselves. That’s why we create learning experiences that spark curiosity, helping students discover who they are and how to make a difference in the world around them. As they excel in academics, athletics and the arts, students find the confidence to pursue any opportunity in life. Our team is “Driven to be the Difference!” HOURLY OPPORTUNITIES: Bus Drivers Food Service-CBCS ELL Educational Assistant-CBCS and GMS Assistant Building Manager-CBCS Lead Custodian-Lake School Permanent Substitute-GHS Substitute Teachers PROFESSIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Counselor-CBES
Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory seeks enthusiastic nature and science educators to teach summer day camps for K-2nd and 3rd-5th grade students in Gothic and the surrounding region for summer 2024. Positions start Jun. 5-Aug. 9, with opportunities to extend the season to midOct. *Housing not provided. To apply, visit rmbl.org. IRWIN GUIDES IS SEEKING A GUIDE OPERATIONS COORDINATOR: This fulltime, year-round position will be responsible for assisting the Irwin Guides general manager with day-to-day operations and management of the guide team, including courses, day trips and coordination with Eleven Experience guest trips. This position will play a key role in Irwin Guides activity sales and logistics, including face-to-face and phone/email interaction with guests, management of Irwin Guides office, calendars and guide staffing, communication and coordination across Irwin Guides and Eleven Experience teams, operation of Irwin Guides retail space, and the development, promotion and sales of Irwin Guides professional training programs. A strong candidate will have knowledge of the outdoor industry and local Gunnison Valley activities and at least three years experience in an administrative role. This position requires effective oral and written communication, orientation to detail, sensitivity to deadlines and responsiveness to delegation. Incumbent must be comfortable working independently and in a fast-paced team environment. During summer and winter operations, this position will be required to work occasional early mornings and/or late afternoons, at least one weekend day per week and some holidays. This is a fulltime, benefited position starting at $55,000$60,000 annually, depending on experience and qualifications. For more information and to apply, please visit elevenexperience.com/ careers/. PROJECT HOPE OF GUNNISON VALLEY seeks an advocacy director for a 34 hour/ week position to serve victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and/or human trafficking. To apply, send resume, cover letter and three references to info@ hope4gv.org. See further info on our website at hope4gv.org/employment. PINNACLE CONSTRUCTION AND ROOFING CORP is ISO roofers. Fulltime, year-round employment. Competitive compensation package based on experience. Large and small projects throughout the Gunnison Valley. Residential and commercial. English speaking/bilingual Spanish a plus. Please send resume to pinnaclescottbogart73@gmail.com. THE TOWN OF CRESTED BUTTE is currently hiring for the position of an unlicensed operator to assist in the operation and maintenance of the wastewater plant and collection system. This year-round position includes a salary range dependent on qualifications of $42,009-$64,361 and includes an excellent benefits package with 100% employerpaid employee and dependent health, dental, vision, life insurance and matching
COACHING: GHS-Speech and Debate GHS-Assistant Girls Basketball Coach Please contact: Superintendent’s Office JoAnn Klingsmith 800 N. Boulevard 970-641-7760 jklingsmith@gunnisonschools.net
contributions to a retirement plan after one year of employment. Full job description and job application are available on the Town’s website at townofcrestedbutte.com/jobs. To apply, please submit an application and resume to jobs@crestedbutte-co.gov. PINNACLE CONSTRUCTION AND ROOFING CORP is ISO carpenters. Full-time, year-round employment. Competitive compensation package based on experience. Large and small projects throughout the Gunnison Valley. Frame to finish. Residential and commercial. Journeyman level carpenter a plus. Please send resume to pinnaclescottbogart73@ gmail.com. AMERICORPS SERVICE OPPORTUNITY: Food security coordinator. The Gunnison Food Pantry is looking for a full-time, selfmotivated and passionate team member to help with the food pantry’s program administration and volunteer coordination. We are looking for a team member dedicated to making a positive impact in the Gunnison Valley by working to better pantry programs that reach those in need. The food security coordinator position will aid in program facilitation, such as recording and reporting information, working with program partners to support initiatives, special projects, and developing materials and program infrastructure as needed. AmeriCorps and other benefits. Email Jodi at director@gunnisoncountryfoodpantry.org to inquire. ADVOCACY DIRECTOR: High Country Conservation Advocates (HCCA) is a 501c(3) non-profit based in Crested Butte, CO with a long history of environmental advocacy. HCCA seeks to hire an advocacy director to lead efforts to protect the health, integrity and beauty of public lands in Gunnison County. Essential responsibilities include monitoring and advocacy regarding public lands issues, membership, development and community engagement and administrative management and support, including writing grant applications. This is a full-time, 40 hrs/week position based in Crested Butte or Gunnison, CO which allows for remote work and flexible hours. Compensation
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • CLASSIFIEDS • A17
Gunnison Country Times Compensation and benefits include a base salary of $70,000-$80,000/year, DOE and a competitive benefits package including health insurance stipend, paid vacation, holidays, sick leave and personal leave. Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree (Juris Doctor or relevant graduate degree preferred), strong understanding of environmental and conservation policies and issues, general knowledge of relevant environmental laws such as NEPA, prior work experience relating to environmental legal issues and advocacy. For more information or to apply, please visit hccacb.org/employment/employment. HCCA is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or any other protected status. THE CLUB AT CRESTED BUTTE is hiring an event coordinator and catering manager. This is a full-time, year-round position with medical, retirement and vacation benefits. Salary range is $62-$65,000/year. For more information please email jobs@ clubatcrestedbutte.com. To submit a resume, please visit theclubatcrestedbutte.com. FOUR DAY/32 HOUR WORK WEEK: CB South Metro District is now accepting applications for a road manager and heavy equipment operator. This position would be responsible for planning, organizing and directing all activities and staff related to the district’s roads and maintenance. Duties include road maintenance, snow removal, drinking water operations, wastewater operations and other day-to-day tasks of running a utility. This job requires the applicant to have motor grader and heavy equipment experience. Applicants must be 18 years of age and have a valid Colorado driver’s license. The successful applicant is eligible to receive an elite benefit package. Full job description, requirements, pay ranges and benefits are available on the district’s website at cbsouthmetro.net. Email resume to info@cbsouthmetro.net or drop off at 280 Cement Creek Road. TEMPORARY LABORERS NEEDED: Need some cash this off season? The Town of Crested Butte Parks and Recreation Department is hiring temporary laborers for spring prep/cleanup season. Work will begin once the snow is gone from the majority of parks and public areas. Duties include raking, power washing, painting and general cleanup and repairs. Full job description and application available online at townofcrestedbutte.com click on “Careers”. Pay $19/hour. The Town of Crested Butte is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. COMMUNITY BANKS OF COLORADO is currently seeking a candidate to fill a full-time associate banker position in our Gunnison banking center. This is a great opportunity for someone wanting to start a career in banking or for an individual looking for a career change. For position details and to apply, please visit cobnks.com. NBH Bank is an equal opportunity employer. PINNACLE CONSTRUCTION AND ROOFING CORP is ISO an excavation manager: Competitive compensation package based on experience. Full-time, year-round employment. Responsibilities include: Manage three excavation crews, oversee sites in Gunnison Valley, oversee machinery, order and oversee materials, knowledge and understanding of construction plans required, snow removal experience a plus, please send resume to pinnaclescottbogart73@gmail.com. INFANT LEAD TEACHER: Tenderfoot Child and Family Development Center
CLUES ACROSS
1. A way to injure 5. Mutual savings bank 8. Rock TV channel 11. Large number of fish swimming together 13. Military mailbox 14. Female of a horse 15. Category 16. City 17. Breezed through 18. Officer who bears a mace 20. Tax collector 21. “Cheers” actress Perlman 22. Pauses before acting 25. Extracted information from a wave 30. Tendency to revert to something ancestral 31. No seats available 32. Nocturnal rodents 33. Moves gently to and fro 38. Not good 41. A way to ready 43. One who makes something better 45. Things associated with American history 48. Ancient Phoenician fertility god
is seeking an infant program lead early childhood teacher for children aged birth-18 months old. Part-time ($19.93/hr) or fulltime ($21.93/hr). Benefits include flexible scheduling, a supportive team, paid time off, free child care while working and continuing education. Email tfootdirector@gmail.com or call 970-642-1949 for more information. EOE. DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANT: The Gunnison Food Pantry is seeking a dedicated and motivated individual to fill the role of development assistant. This parttime position is critical to the organization’s success in securing funds necessary to support the food pantry’s mission of providing food assistance in Gunnison County. The development assistant role includes grant writing, grant research, funding outreach within our community, appeal development and donor recognition. Salary range: $14,976-$16,848. Email Jodi at director@ gunnisoncountryfoodpantry.org to inquire. ELEVEN IS SEEKING A LODGE AND PREP COOK for our Taylor River and Scarp Ridge Lodges in Crested Butte, CO. This position will support the Colorado Culinary team with food preparations, transportation and meal service, performing at a high level in a dynamic, fast-paced work environment while maintaining a respectful, calm composure and fostering a team environment. This position will help manage inventory, maintain a clean, foodsafe, organized kitchen and interact with guests professionally to make sure they’re having the best possible experience. This position will also help host special events at all Eleven Colorado properties and offsite. One year previous food and beverage experience, along with team orientation and flexibility required. This position is fulltime, seasonal starting at $21-$23/hour, depending on experience and qualifications. This position also receives pooled tips. For more information and to apply, please visit elevenexperience.com/careers/.
THE CLUB AT CRESTED BUTTE is hiring an HR generalist. This is a full-time, yearround position with medical, retirement and vacation benefits. Salary range is $65$68,000/year. Previous experience in human resources is required. For more information please email jobs@clubatcrestedbutte. com. To submit a resume, please visit theclubatcrestedbutte.com. CRESTED BUTTE BURGER COMPANY is hiring the following positions: cooks and cashiers, flexible schedule available, starting pay $16-$18/hr. + gratuity. For more information or to submit a resume, please email: crestedbutteburgerco@gmail.com.
REAL ESTATE HOME FOR SALE: 1,700 sq. ft. 2020 build. Very accessible single story home in great west Gunnison location. For further details enter 600 Carbon Court, Gunnison, CO into Zillow search and/or contact terravistalimited@gmail.com, 970-497-9113. SEVEN BDRM, 3 BATH HOUSE FOR RENT IN ALMONT: Close to Taylor Park for snowmobiling and fishing, Crested Butte for skiing and Gunnison for dining and shopping. Sleeps 16 comfortably, fully furnished, including kitchen appliances and on-site washer/dryer. This home is available for $4,000 a month (full month rentals only) from November through March. For more information, call 970-641-1740, or email stay@harmels.com.
Legals NOTICE OF BUDGET Town of Pitkin Notice of Budget Notice is hereby given that the Town of Pitkin Board of Trustees has received a proposed budget for the ensuing Fiscal Year of 2024 on October 9, 2023; a copy of such proposed budget is on file at the Pitkin Town Hall and is open for public inspection by appointment or may be obtained by emailing a request to thetownofpitkin@gmail.com. Such budget was considered at regular meetings of the Town of Pitkin Board of Trustees at the Newcomb Community Center, 801 State Street, Pitkin, CO on November 13, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. and December 11, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. A Public Hearing and Adoption of the 2024 Budget are scheduled for January 8, 2024 during the regular monthly meeting. Any interested elector of the Town of Pitkin may inspect the proposed budget and file or register any objections thereto at any time prior to the final adoption of the budget. Gunnison Country Times Gunnison, Colorado Publication date of December 28, 2023 11727
NOTICE OF HEARING NOTICE OF HEARING BY PUBLICATION PURSUANT TO § 15-10-401, C.R.S. Gunnison County, Colorado Court Address: 200 East Avenue, Gunnison CO
Virginia 81230
In the Interest of: K.A.G., M.G.B, and M.G.B. Respondents Elizabeth P Appleton PC Elizabeth P Appleton Atty Reg 33304 PO Box 234 Crested Butte, CO 81224 Case Number: 2023PR30022, 2023PR30023, 2023PR30024 To: Kendra Gothard (Mother) Last Known Address, if any: Unknown A hearing on the petition for co-guardianship requesting guardianship of the above three minor children will be held at the following time and location, or at a later date to which the hearing may be continued: Date: January 12, 2024 Time: 10:30AM Courtroom or Division: 2 Address: 200 East Virginia Avenue, Gunnison, CO 81230 The hearing will take approximately 90 minutes. Elizabeth P. Appleton PO Box 234 Crested Butte, CO 81224 Gunnison Country Times Gunnison, Colorado Publication dates of December 14, 21, 28, 2023 11651
CLUES DOWN
1. “The world’s most famous arena” 2. Polite interruption sound 3. Private school in New York 4. Refuse of grapes 5. __ Tomei, actress 6. Adult beverages 7. Supporter 8. Papier-__, art material 9. Forests have them 10. Most ancient Hindu scriptures
12. Downwind 14. Marketplace 19. Flowering plant genus 23. Street where nightmares happen 24. Admirer 25. Dip lightly into water 26. When you hope to get there 27. Partner to cheese 28. Egg 29. A way to disqualify 34. South American plant 35. Fold-away bed 36. Debbie Harry album “__ Koo” 37. Swedish krona 39. Displaying warmth and
CROSSWORD ANSWERS FOR PREVIOUS WEEK
NOTICE OF INTENT TO DISPOSE: To the following parties that have their personal property stored at Plotts Mini Storage, LLC. 312 W. Hwy 50 Gunnison, CO 81230: All property will be sold or disposed of, unless claimed and/or all rent and fees paid prior to Dec. 31, 2023. Unit #321 – Evelyn Roper Unit #L-2 – David Birdsall Gunnison Country Times Gunnison, Colorado Publication date of December 21, 28, 2023 11679
on the Saguache County Master Plan and different items. Saguache County Planning Commission members and alternates are paid $100 for every regular meeting they attend, plus mileage reimbursement. If you are interested, please send a brief letter of interest stating qualifications and interest to: Saguache County Land Use, Attn: Amber Wilson, PO Box 326, Saguache, CO 81149 prior to Friday, December 29th, 2023. All applicants will be interviewed by the Board of County Commissioners. Should you have any questions please call Amber Wilson at 719-655-2321. Gunnison Country Times Gunnison, Colorado Publication dates of December 7, 14, 21, 28, 2023 11556
PUBLIC NOTICE
WEEKLY AD SPECIAL PLACE AN AD:
Saguache County Board of Commissioners Seeks Saguache County Planning Commission Members
Town of Saguache surrounding area – member and alternate La Garita/Center area – member and alternate Town of Center and surrounding area – member and alternate Cochetopa area – alternate Moffat and surrounding area – alternate Hooper and surrounding area – member and alternate Villa Grove and surrounding area – member and alternate At Large for All of Saguache County – member and alternate Crestone and surrounding area – alternate The representative must be a property owner or property manager and reside in the area they are interested in representing. Regular member terms are for three years and the alternate terms are for one year.
NT LISTINGS EVERY WEEK
Online all the time!
Fish Fry Friday
DINE IN OR CARRY OUT 5:00PM-6:30PM 400 WEST GEORGIA AVE. GUNNISON
BAKED OR FRIED
CATHOLIC.ORG
Need a quality 78 employee? .com
641.1414 CLASSIFIEDS
501 Camino Del Rio, Gunnison CO. Please call 970-641-1482 regarding any questions.
Listings today
to obtain one within THE CENTER FOR thirty THE ARTS SEEKS of employment. Experience(30) days of date PART-TIME FACILITIES driving loaders, MANAGER rollers, backhoes and responsible for the other heavy equipment maintenance of the required. This is Crested Butte Center a full time position for the Arts which with benefits. Starting pay houses the Steddy REAL ESTATE is $40,000 - $57,000 Theatre, the Kinder A18 DOQ. Benefits include Padon Gallery, the RENTALS fully subsidized Jones Dance Studio, medical, dental and and A18 a number of public vision insurance, spaces life insurance and retirement art studios, and bar/event like classrooms, are also position spaces. Duties benefits. Full job description include managing, is available on updating, the Town’s website DRIVE YOUR CAREER the yearly maintenance and executing at townofcrestedbutte. FORWARD: schedule com. Please submit application for Hiring immediately! Become the building; performing to Town of routine upkeep a bus Crested Butte via email and maintenance Western seeks applicants driver with the Gunnison jobs@crestedbutteof building systems, Watershed co.gov. Position is open for specialized equipment, Equal Opportunity School District and make until filled. The Town Officer (EOO). and machines; of Crested Butte a positive working with outside Responsibilities include is an Equal Opportunity impact in the lives of contractors/vendors Employer. children in our to assist in upkeep of NOTICES to employment-related responding the community while safely building’s systems, A18 discrimination interior, exterior, and transporting complaints or equity grounds; perform minor them to and from school, issues, GOLDEN EAGLE repairs; and other duties. as well as is looking for CDL drivers, conducting intake meetings Compensation $45 field trips and activities a mechanic and extra - $65/hour D.O.E. To with for additional employees and students, Apply, email cover helpers to join our letter hours. Shifts are 7:30 team. For more info and resume with providing call 970-641-3230 references to melissa@ – 9:00 a.m. process and support crestedbuttearts.org resources, and 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. Please put ‘Facilities performing impartial but are paid Manager’ in the subject investigations, SPALLONE for 4 total hours. Learn line. E.O.E. Full job CONSTRUCTION writing reports of findings, more at description: crestedbuttea has immediate openings CROSSWORD and gunnisonschools.net/jobs rts.org for dump truck drivers following policy/proce A17 . in the Gunnison, sses for WEATHER Crested Butte area. successful complaint 3-5 years experience A1 ALPENGARDENER resolution. Full required. CREATE A NEW RECIPE IS HIRING FOR THE announcement and to assist laborer performing Must be able SUMMER: FOR application YOUR CAREER: Hiring physical tasks western.edu/jobs. AA/EOE at involved in construction May - Oct. If you immediately. love the outdoors, activities. Must have Gunnison Watershed have a valid drivers license, gardening experience School District references required. we want you on our is looking for a kitchen Western seeks applicants $18-24 hr depending team. manager in on experience, benefits for the available after one Looking for experienced Crested following Butte, as well as State of Colorado year of employment. machine operators, Please submit hardscape and gardeners team members. Schedule kitchen Classified positions: resume to: office@ with top pay for is Monday spalloneconstruction.com. experience. We also through Friday 6:30 could train the right a.m. – 2:30 p.m. reliable people. Security I (full-time Cook up your career Security with GWSD by Send email to garden@alpe ELEVEN IS SEEKING Guard) – Responsibil applying at gunnisonsch ngardener.com LODGE STAFF ities include to interview or call ools.net/jobs. for our Crested patrolling campus grounds 970-349-0252. Butte/Almont properties, and Scarp Ridge Lodge, buildings, identifying BUSINESS SERVIC Sopris House and and responding ES Taylor River Lodge. PRECISE PAINTING to policy/traffic violations TEACHERS AND EDUCATION Eleven Experience is hiring interior and and safety is an adventure travel exterior painters. No AL hazards, documentin company that provides experience necessaryMOVE IT RIGHT: ASSISTANTS ARE g incidents and comfortable lodging, happy to train the right HEROES: Are actions taken, conducting seasonal food and candidates. Pay starts Professional moving, you dedicated to making crowd and guided outdoor adventures. at $20/hr with no experience bonded and insured, a traffic control during household, furniture, Our Lodge Staff and goes up for impact within our communitypositive campus events, are the foundation experienced candidates estates, pianos, you of the daily operation notifying and working name it. with future options through with responsibilitie for benefits. Flexible with teaching or assisting s including shuttling schedule, awesome Call Brad 970-200-130 enforcement to respond local law students? guests, executing crew! Call Rob at 970-509-085 0 to criminal Gunnison Watershed fine dining service, activity (as needed), 1 School District light housekeeping, inventory and more. has many positions stocking and available. For assisting in an array EMPLOYMENT GARDENER: full position descriptions of other tasks that Custodian contribute to providing , please visit I (starting pay $15/ Join the Town of an Crested gunnisonschools.net/jobs hour) and Custodial experience. This position exceptional guest Crew. Limited Housing Butte Gardening . Trainee (no is a great way to available at The experience needed) gain hospitality experience Ruby starting in positions. on a creative, April. Contact LaDonna SUBSTITUTES AREN’T professional Apply online or email Garcia @ lgarcia@cres and hardworking tedbutte-co.gov or team. Applicants must be SHORT-TERM: Gunnison JUST 970-943-5338x122 HR@western.edu. dedicated team players Watershed for more information. who thrive in a fast-paced School district has multiple Spend your summer Journeyman & Residential work environment, on Elk Ave. and longhave strong communicatio Wireman among the Town’s La Universidad de Western term substitute positions for projects in the Gunnison n skills and are beautiful garden beds. available. eager to contribute and A flexible work schedule Crested Butte areas. Colorado está contratando to a growing company. Enjoy a regular schedule Eleven is a global while being through Sept. Experience is available May valid Colorado driver’sMust have a posiciones de un Custodiolas company with evolving a part of a team who license and products and locations. 1 cares about pass a pre-employm maintenance of flowers, with planting and de tiempo-completo The company has ent drug trees and shrubs is student success. Learn y Aprendiz implemented strict preferred but not required. Top pay & Benefits. screen. more at PPE, Custodio (no se necesita and cleaning protocols social distancing gunnisonschools.net/jobs be able to work outdoors Candidates must experiencia). Los beneficios in line with CDC, . and lift 50-100 lbs. State and County Send resumes to info@ec-ele and possess a valid incluyen regulations to assist un plan de retiro por driver’s ctric. in protecting employees Colorado SHARE YOUR PASSION description and application license. Full job com and guests during PERA, beneficios de this pandemic. For or call 970-641-019 tuición, tiempo at townofcrestedbutte.com available online HIGH SCHOOL COACH: AS A more information and 5 de descanso pagado, click on jobs. Pay to Gunnison apply, please visit $18-20/hr. DOQ. The y planes de elevenexperience.com/ High School is presently Town of Crested Butte aseguranza www.ec-electric.com/care careers/. hiring for de costo-bajo. Para is an Equal Opportunity/A ers both a Head Volleyball ffirmative Action ver el anuncio entero Coach and Employer. del trabajo Head Boys Basketball y para aplicar, por favor FINANCIAL AID/STUDEN Coach. Help T ACCOUNTS play a role in supporting governmentjobs.com/ca visite COUNSELORS: CERTIFIED RIVER our athletic GUIDE TRAINING programs empower colorado o mande correo reers/ The Student Financial COURSE youth through electrónico Services Office is sports they love! Learn seeking dynamic staff a HR@western.edu. May 16-27 plus members with strong how you can another whole week customer service BLIND of experience on the FAITH join our team at and communicatio CUSTOM River, ON US! WINDOW n skills to fill financial FASHIONS is looking Western offers a great Top quality instructors, gunnisonschools.net/jobs aid counselor and for an incredible free gear rental, . student accounts showroom teammate environment, Colorado work hiring for this summer. counselor positions. and installer to join Best PERA job The ever! financial our team. This is aid counselor (full-time $475 retirement, tuition includes a FULL-TIME (4.5 everything, benefits, paid position) days) provides important position. We will need training rebate after 50 commercial time off, and low-cost financial aid counseling this person to be able insurance trips. Limited and student account to install manual, enrollment to ensure motorized and wireless plans! To view the information, while an excellent learning the student accounts full job shades and blinds environment. Scenic announcement(s) in high end residential River Tours, Inc. www. and apply, visit time position) provides counselor (parthomes and condos, scenicrivertours.com. student accurately measure governmen Locally owned and accounts tjobs.com/careers/ receivable/billing information windows and doors operated since 1977. for future installation and services colorado. AA/EOE to students, parents and be able to and university staff load/unload products. members. Exceptional Excellent customer PLUMBING SERVICE service, follow through benefit package including health insurance, TECHNICIAN on customer service Immediate opening situations, paid vacation for service technician. and sick leave, and use a computer, communicate the ability to Knowledge of basic 401K retirement plan via email and plumbing and customer for both positions. to assist in protecting make phone calls is ELEVEN is seeking Start date service preferred. a must. employees and guests a full-time, summer We offer high pay, view the full job descriptions of April 15. To during this pandemic. This team member seasonal Experience paid holidays, paid vacation, will also need to have: For more information and apply visit Planner to join the western.edu/jobs. and to apply, please a Valid Colorado Driver’s health insurance, operations team in training, ski pass. visit elevenexperience. Crested Butte. This Clean driving record com/careers/. (adjust on the fly accordingLicense, flexibility role is responsible for is mandatory. all pre-trip to schedule and appointments), respect Eleven groups, coordination planning for SPALLONE Timberline Mechanical CONSTRUCTION for co-workers and with vendors Contracting clients while being has and group logistics. immediate openings Crested Butte, CO dependable and punctual. The ideal candidate for heavy equipment This is an hourly, is eager, enthusiastic, operators in the Gunnison, Phone 970-349-567 plus commission position very organized and 9 and a company paid a strong multi-tasker. area. 3-5 years experience Crested Butte Email info@timberli ski pass is provided. Strength in both guestrequired. Must nemech.com Please send a resume facing and administrative be able to assist laborer or request for an performing physical interview to admin@blind experience in hospitality roles as well as tasks involved in faithcb.com or call construction activities. THE TOWN OF CRESTED is essential. This Kelly 850-855-8838. position requires a Must have a valid drivers BUTTE is looking flexible schedule and for a Public Works license, references Place your help wanted maintenance worker the ability to work in a required. $22-28/hr here. to fill fast-paced environment. depending on experience, an open position. Qualifications: Colorado The company has benefits available. implemented strict Please Commercial Drivers Call today. PPE, License (CDL) or ability social distancing and office@spalloneconstructiosubmit resume to: cleaning protocols n.com. 641-1414 in line with CDC, State and County regulations
A16
LEGALS
GUNNISON WATERSHED SCHOOL DISTRICT
WESTERN COLORADO UNIVERSITY
COMMUNITY
Classifieds
EC ELECTRIC IS SEEKING
Place your help wanted ad here. Deadline: TUESDAY AT NOON
SUBMIT ONLINE Need a quality employee? GUNNISONTIMES.COM
Network
AMERIGLIDE
COLESLAW - HUSHPUPPIES
WWW.GUNNISON
Full time lead cook, full and part time cooks, bartenders, beverage cart and wait staff. Course maintenance and cart department. Stop by and fill out an application Monday-Friday 10am-3pm.
To place a 25-word COSCAN Network ad in 91 Colorado newspapers for only $300, contact your local newspaper or email Colorado Press Association Network at rtoledo@colopress.net PORTABLE OXYGEN DIRECTV
Call DIRECTV 1-888-725-0897
COD - POTATO -
DOS RIOS GOLF COURSE IS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON
Colorado Statewide
DIRECTV Sports Pack 3 Months on us! Watch pro and college sports LIVE, Plus over 40 regional and specialty networks included. NFL, College Football, MLB, NBA, NHL, Golf and more. Some restrictions apply.
FRIDAY, APRIL 1ST $12 ADULTS, $7 CHILDREN ST. PETER'S PARISH HALL
ST. PETER’S WEBSITE:
Saguache County Planning Commission meets on the last Thursday of each month in the Road and Bridge meeting room. The Planning Commission may also have work sessions throughout each month to work
Don't let the stairs limit your mobility! Discover the ideal solution for anyone who struggles on the stairs, is concerned about a fall or wants to regain access to their entire home. Call AmeriGlide today! 1-877-418-1883
friendliness 40. Official orders 41. Bowling alley necessity 42. Stray 44. About milk 45. Expressed pleasure 46. Caribbean dance 47. If not 48. __ fide (Latin) 51. Swiss river 52. Hebrew calendar month 53. One easily swindled 54. Point that is one point south of southwest 58. Small island (British)
PAGES FOR NEW EMPLOYME
• $7 for 20 words or less, 20¢ each additional word. • Display Classified rate is $9.40 per column inch. • Deadline is NOON TUESDAY.
gunnisontimes
Saguache County Board of Commissioners are seeking members and alternates from:
THURSDAY, MARCH 31, 2022
NEED A JOB?
CHECK OUT THE FOLLOWING
Mail or stop by: Gunnison Country Times 218 North Wisconsin Gunnison, CO 81230 Email: classifieds@ gunnisontimes.com Ad policy & Rates:
EMPLOYMENT
1 BEDROOM APARTMENT FOR RENT: Utilities included. 970-312-5767.
49. A continuous portion of a circle 50. Volcanic craters 55. Units of electrical resistance 56. Gamble on 57. Ethiopian town 59. One point east of northeast 60. Polynesian garland of flowers 61. Spiritual leader of a Jewish congregation 62. State of fuss 63. Keyboard key 64. Partner to relaxation
NOTICE OF INTENT TO DISPOSE
Portable Oxygen Concentrator May be Covered by Medicare! Reclaim independence and mobility with the compact design and long-lasting battery of Inogen One. Free Information Kit! Call: 844-823-0293 FREE HIGH SPEED INTERNET Free High Speed Internet for those that qualify. Goverment program for recipients of select programs incl. Medicaid, SNAP, Housing Assistance, WIC, Veterans Pension, Survivor Benefits, Lifeline, Tribal. 15GB Internet Service. Bonus offer: Android Tablet FREE with one-time $20 copay. Free Shipping & Handling. Call Maxsip Telecom Today: 7-866-654-9429
IRA, call or visit by April 17. Gunnison/Crested Butte 0.00% to 0.00% Corporate Bond Rate
If you can make the bottom three lines a little smaller add2023 a line right above them that may include - " A18 • LEGALS • Thursday, Decemberto28,
column x 6 inches Accounting -2 Public
Computers Cont.
IRA, you’ll have access to investments that could Gunnison Country Times provide a higher return 1 column x 6 inches than youaccounts. currentlyIRAs earn. * IRAs are tax-deferred do not have rates. Only the underlying investments
Insurance
Real Estate
within an IRA If may rates. Basedelsewhere, on corporate to maturity effective xx/xx/xx, Real E youhave have an IRA it’sbond easyyields to transfer IF YOU’RE NOT ATJones YOUR change. LAST subject to availability and price Yieldreceiving and market may fluctuate if sold prior to to Edward and JOB, begin the value face-to-face IF YOU’RE NOT AT YOUR LAST JOB, Selling • Buying maturity, and the amount received from the sale of these securities may be •less than the advice you deserve. Nelson Family Agency Investing Development Serving Gunnison County since 1991. amount originally Some of the available issues are callable. Bond values may decline Rick Nelson, Agent invested. BE take out large farmers word and reSHOULDN’T . benefits To learn more EITHER about the of Maggie an EdwardLloyd Jones Broker & Appraiser Computers, Laptops, Servers Home Auto Life Health Business a rising Leaving interest rate environment. Jones Financial Advisor can provide place with Home Life Business inGUNNISON + Cables,"Auto Telephone Systems call visit by Your Aprillocal 17. Edward209 a 401(k) behind If you can make the bottom three lines a little smaller 1140 North Main IRA, Str., Suite C or Office: 970-641-3481 N. Colorado 970-275-0220 Workers comp recreational. more information about maturity and applicable call provisions. Any bonds called prior Web and Graphic Designto Website add a line right above themGunnison, that may include - could " Colorado 81230 Mobile:dates Gunnison mean leaving it970-596-9362 with CRESTED BUTTE Great Jennie. That work. www.ricknelsonagency.com rnelson@amfam.com www.celticrealty.net • las @will gunnison.com info to come. column x 6 inches x over 6 inches to maturityno would in reinvestment Accounting -2 Public Computers Cont. Insurance Real Estate oneresult to1 column watch it. risk for the bond owner. 210 W. Spencer Ave. Unit C • 641-6438
C.A. West Bookkeeping
ete Sole Proprietor, rship, Corporate, Business nting & Tax Preparation
F A R M E R S INSURANCE WECYCLEYOUR 401 (k) R
WECYCLE
( ) YOUR 401 k Gunnison/Crested Curbside Butte BUSINESS DIRECTORY RECYCLING SHOULDN’T BE EITHER.
-5644
F A R M E R S INSURANCE R
N. Main St., Suite 3D
R One change - can you change Curbside Service C.A. West Bookkeeping a 401(k) with a previous employer could mean We can explain options, ADVENTURELeaving RENTALS www.farmersagent.com/gshort1 REAL ESTATE FINANCIAL SERVICES F AREAL Ryour MESTATE EA R SRINSURANCE HEALTH WELLNESS Architect IF YOU’RE NOT AT YOUR&LAST JOB, the phone number to 641-134 INSURANCE F M E R S Recycling Service FA Name leaving it alone with no one to watch over it. and if you’d like to roll your (k) YOUR 401 W E CNelson YCLE Family Agency st Be WECYCLE e th ce No Sorting Needed en ri Real Estate and Expe and re- Advisor SHOULDN’T Dentistrytake out large farmers word Financial BE EITHER
* IRAs are tax-deferred accounts. IRAs do not have rates. Only the underlying investments within an IRA may have rates. Based on corporate bond yields to maturity effective xx/xx/xx, R IF YOU’RE NOT AT price YOUR change. LAST JOB,Yield and market value may fluctuate if sold prior to subject to availability and Selling • Buying Complete Sole Proprietor, maturity, and the amount received from the sale of these securities may be •less than the Investing Development Partnership, Corporate, Business Serving Gunnison County since 1991. amount originally invested. Some of the available issues are callable. Bond values may decline Rick Nelson, Agent . 401(k) over into an Edward hondeck Accounting & Tax Preparation Laptops, Servers Maggie Lloyd Broker & Appraiser Member SIPC Home - -Auto -interest Life - Health - Business At Edward Jones, we can explainServiceS options for place yourComputers, 401(k) MOUNTAIN www.edwardjones.com Plastics #1, #2 Aluminum-Tin Brown, Green, Clear Glass in a rising rate environment. Your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor can provide with "Auto Home Life Business F inancial Property Management Cables, Telephone Systems ! Leaving ahelp 401(k) behind rado641-5644 Jones can you 1140IRA,we Main Str., Suite Office: 970-641-3481 in Coloyou 209 N. Colorado 970-275-0220 Trailshelp & inSurance Cardboard, Offi ceCmaturity & Mobile: Newspaper Plastics #1, #2and - Aluminum-Tin Brown, Green, Clear Glass Workers comp recreational. Website moreNorth information about dates and applicable call provisions. Any bonds called prior Web Graphic Design and select theSt.,one best for you. If you’d like Gunnison, Colorado Gunnison could81230 mean leaving it970-596-9362 with REIKI THERAPY 234 N. Main Suitethat’s 3D Great Jennie. That work. www.ricknelsonagency.com rnelson@amfam.com www.celticrealty.net • las@will gunnison.com do it with no taxes or penalinfo to come. TAYLOR PARK, Cardboard, Offi ce & Newspaper to maturity would result in reinvestment risk for the bond owner. no one to watch over it. is now Life • Health • Disability to roll it over into an Edward Jones IRA, we can you Ave. 210help W. Spencer Unitopen! C • 641-6438 241 n. M Ain s T ., G unnison One change change www.farmersagent.com/gshort1 BLUE MESA RV RANCH In the Mountain Meadows mall ties. We’ll look out for you. 241 N. Main St., • you Gunnison R - can H E A L T HLong-term Y SMILES Care do it without taxes or penalties. Soayou can feel conLeaving 401(k) with a near previous can explain your options, 970.596.1906 www.farmersagent.com/gshort1 Cityemployer Market. could 808 N.mean Main • 219 N.We HYGIENE CARE, INC & CRESTED BUTTE payingDENTAL 641-1776 Iowa St. Gunnison Architect Cathie elliott the phone number to 641-1345 Retirement Plan Design FA Name leaving it alone with no one to Gunnison. watch over it. and if you’d like to roll your St., Call Jacqueline fident someone is looking out for you and your 401(k). Broker/owner/g.r.i. ADVENTURES! No Sorting Needed No S To find out about 401(k) ryan@tavarealestate.com Employment Benefit Design Dentistry Financial Advisorover into an Edward 401(k) Creed, Reiki III Practitioner,No for Thanks! Needed www.gunnisonwecycle.com At Dental Edward Jones, we can explain options for your 401(k) Sorting Health Screenings www.edwardjones.com Member Plastics #1, #2 - Aluminum-Tin Brown, Green, Clear Glass Auto Home Life Business Visit all of ourSIPC listings at: Plastics #1, #2 - Alum appointment, Jones IRA,we can help you options that makes Cardboard,sense, Office & Newspaper Plastics #1, like #2 - Aluminum-Tin Green, Clear Glass and you select theEdward one that’s best for you. If you’d To find out why it makes sense tohelp talk withand Cardbo ServingCleanings the Gunnison FABrown, Street Address Dental for Adults Children www.clarkeagency.net Recreational 970-596-4995. it with no taxes or penalLeslie LeFevre, RDH Cardboard, OffiWorkers ce & Newspaperdo Comp to(Gum roll it over into H an Edward Jones IRA, we can help you Periodontal Disease) Treatments Call for Service Today! area since 1994. FA City, State, ZIP call today. E A L T H Y S M I L E S Call f First session GIFTED! Jones about your 401(k) options, call or Hvisit your www.farmersagent.com/gshort1 241 N. Main St., • Gunnison Josh Townsend EALTHY SM ILES ties. We’ll look out for you. Audrie Townsend R
Thanks! No Sorting Needed (Auto ) Home Life Business YOUR 401 k Curbside Workers Comp Recreational
S
FA Street Address F A R M E R S INSURANCE RECYCLING SHOULDN’T BE EITHER Ryan Jordi Today! FA City,.Curbside State, ZIPCall for Service HEALTHY SMILES Service RRM S INSURANCE FARecycling Phone INSURANCE FA M EERR S641-0511 Service F A Call for Service Today! R
417.2519 417.2519 SF HONDECK
DENTAL HYGIENE CARE, INC
INANCIAL FGunnison A R M E R641-0511 S INSURANCE FA Phone • SERVICES 641-1776 219 N. Iowa St. 417.2519 417.2519 S
do it without payingDENTAL taxes or penalties. So youCARE, can feel INC conHYGIENE
Wellness Center - 211 isN. Iowa representative today. fident someone out St. for you and your 401(k). 970.641.3525 local investment114 INSURANCE & To find out about 401(k) N. Boulevard, Suite 102 looking Name www.gunnisonwecycle.com Dental Health Screenings Call forIRService Today! options (970) 642-0338 Leslie LeFevre coloradoadventurerentals.com that makes sense, To find out why it makes sense to for talk withand Edward Dental Cleanings Adults Children Investment Representative 641-4700 HONDECK Life • Health Disability Periodontal (Gum Treatments call•today. Jones about your 401(k) options, callDisease) or visit your www.farmersagent.com/ F INANCIAL 2- 211 column IR inches Street Address SERVICES Wellness Center N. Iowa St. x 2 local investment representative today. INSURANCE Long-term Care City/Town IR & Name City/Town gshort1 (970)OFFICE 642-0338SUPPLIES Leslie LeFevre IR City, State, ZIP Investment Representative Carpet Cleaning DENTAL HYGIENE CARE, INC
Carpet Cleaning
Leslie LeFevre, RDH
Financial Services & Investment Securities IR Name, Phone
City/Town
IR Name, Phone
City/Town
ww.quickdrawcleaning.com
contact info (970)Pull 641-4247
Roof Leaking?? R
Roof P
Roof Leaking??
99 7 07- 604-16 - 04 5 41 4- 0 5 4 4 THE DIFFERENCE. DIFFERENCE. MAKEMAKE ALLALLTHE 970-275-6300
www.quickdrawcleaning.com
contact info (970)Pull 641-4247
Picture if possible.
2 column x 2 inches
Visit all ourlistings listings visit allof area at:at: www.clarkeagency.net www .clarkeagency.net
Member SIPC
Serving the Gunnison area for area 15 years for 15 years
Residential/Commercial
Great Prices!
Body copy: B Don’t Delay CallToday Frank Today Don’t Delay Call Frank
CO1998070012612001 970-275-6300 CO1998070012612001 N. Boulevard, Suite FA114 Name To102 learn about the benefits of an
Super Fas
URL: News G SIPC line: 10%Ne OF IR name: New Address, Pho
N. Boulevard, Suite FA114 Name To102 learnJones about benefits Edward IRA,the call or visit today.of an
Member SIPC
Broker/Owner Cathie elliott Broker/owner/g.r.i. 970-209-4479
THE RIGHT INVESTMENTS IN YOUR IRA CAN
IR Name, Phone
www.edwardjones.com logo &from le. Crested fi Butte) www.edwardjones.com and(Gunnison and(Gunnison logo &from fi le. Crested Butte) Member SIPC Picture if possible.
641 www.gun
R
Broker/Owner 970-209-6208
Life • Health • Disability www.farmersagent.com/ Retirement Design Phonex Plan Roofing By Frank 2IRcolumn 2IR inches Street Address Long-term Care City/Town City/Town gshort1 City/Town IR City, State, ZIP Shingle • Metal • Flat Roof IR Name, Phone IR Name, Phone www.edwardjones.com Employment Benefit Design Retirement Design IR Phone Plan Roofing By Frank Services & Member SIPC L e s l i e LIRCity/Town e Name, F e vPhone r e , RFinancial D H City/Town “Marketing The West’s Finest Ranch And Recreational Properties” Super• Metal Fast Shingle •Turnaround Flat Roof Typefaces are www.edwardjones.com Great Employment Benefit Design IR Name, Phone IR Name, Phone L e s l i e L e F e vSecurities re, RDH “Marketing The1West’ sM Finest And Recreational Investment Super Fast Turnaround THE RIGHT INVESTMENTS IN YOUR IRA 4 3 ARanch ICAN N S T REE TProperties” • P ITKIN, CO Prices! Great Serving the Gunnison Residential/Commercial City/Town 4 1 3 M A I N S T R E EPrices! T • PITKIN, CO Headline: Fra
IR Name, Phone
IR Name, Phone
R
OFFICE SUPPLIES
Steve OgdenSupplies Financial Advisor Financial Advisor 641-4700 Cleaning • 641-9530 BreakroomFinancial Supplies AdvisorFA Street Address Steve Ogden Financial Advisor 321 •N.Engineering Main • Gunnison 2 column x 2 inches Color Copies Copies FA City, State, ZIP
641-4700
306 West Tomichi Ave. P.O. Box 1450 Gunnison, CO 81230 306 West Tomichi Ave. 641-2235
Wolfe
Internet /Edward Jones IRA, call or visit P.O. www.edwardjones.com today. 641-9530 Box 1450 FA Phone Typefaces are as follows: FA Street Address 107 N. W iscoNsiN • G uNNisoN Alert: This ad ERIN WELFELT Gunnison, CO 81230 321 N. Main • Gunnison Voice Over IP IF YOU’RE High NOT641-1107 AT YOUR LAST Headline: ITC Franklin Gothic Demi Condensed Speed DSL•starting atJOB, $17.95/ .com www.edwardjones.com WWW .thepaperclip BROKER ASSOCIATE FA City, State, ZIP 641-2235 Member SIPC Note: If this a Body copy: BodoniBerthBQ-Regular & Medium www.edwardjones.com ( ) YOUR 401 k SHOULDN’T BE EITHER. Chris Wolfe month Web Address: BodoniBerthBQ-Regular Custom Remod the words, “b FA Phone Typefaces are as follows: Unlimited Dialup Services SIPC line: News Gothic MT
Internet / IR Name PAINTING & REFINISHING Over IP Condensed www.edwardjones.com 641.3767 IF YOU’RE High NOTSpeed AT YOUR LAST atJOB, Headline: Voice ITC Franklin Gothic Demi DSL starting $17.95/ Email Only Accounts CONSTRUCTION 80 Camino Del Rio, Suite 3, Gunnison, CO 81230
Investment Representative
Ceramic • Slate (970)209.4374
970-208-7136 Erin@signaturepropertiescb.com Large Ad www.signaturepropertiescb.com Body copy: BodoniBerthBQ-Regular & Medium Web Design & Web Hosting City/Town: Extra Condensed Franklin Gothic 114 N. Boulevard St., Suite 105 • Gunnison Matt Robbins CRs, GRi IR Name, Phone: News Gothic To download graphic files goMT toCnwww.edwardjones.com/graphics WebADVISOR Address: BodoniBerthBQ-Regular BILL MATTHEWS - FINANCIAL bRokeR To see why it makes sense to roll Member FINRA/SIPC your 401(k) to Edward Jones, HOUSE call today. S MITH OPERA Member SIPC
YOUR 401 (k) SHOULDN’T BE EITHER. month IR Street Address IR City, State, ZIP IR Phone www.edwardjones.com
CRAFTSMAN
Childcare 641-6438 Windo 641-0400 • www.RaymondJames.com Unlimited Dialup Services SIPC Gothic MT 210 W. Spencer Ave., Unit C line: News SIGNS & SCREENPRINTING Small Ads Speed $17.95/month DSL To see why it makes sense to roll High DSL starting at Member FINRA/SIPC IR name: Extra Condensed Franklin Gothic 641.3767 $17.95/month your 401(k) to Edward Jones, Mountai $19.95/month Unlimited Dial-up Email Only Accounts Address: News Gothic MT Cn Bus: (970) 641-1900 the work on your Doyleville Log Large Ad Unlimited Dialup Services S MITH OPERA HHome OUSE call today. IR Street Address Cell: (970) 596-0715 419 North Main Painting • Refinishing • Carpentry Satellite TV & Satellite Internet Improvement House! Fax: (970) 641-1906 Gunnison, CO 81230 Web Design & Web Hosting Email OnlyFranklin AccountsGothic City/Town: Extra Condensed 114 N. Boulevard St., Suite 105 • Gunnison IR City, State, ZIP Sirius & XM Radio Matt Robbins CRs, GRi Frank Patin 715.892.1673 Web Design & Web Hosting IR Name, Phone: News Gothic MT Cn To download graphic files go to www.edwardjones.com/graphics Interior, Exterior house painting BILL MATTHEWS - FINANCIAL A~DVISOR Phone b ChildcareIRwww.edwardjones.com 641-6438 641-3702 or 641-6438 641-0400 • www.RaymondJames.com ~ Cabinets ~ Decks 641-6438 To download graphic files go to www.edwardjones.com/graphics/usa/sales/ads ~ REMODELS ~ 210 W. Ave., Unit C Member SIPC Small Ads Speed DSL starting at Pre-school andSpencer Child Care 210 W. Spencer Ave. Unit C DSL $17.95/month High FOSTER CONSTRUCTION 210 W. Spencer Ave., Unit C Terri Sokaitis "Helping Buyers & Sellers IR name: Extra Condensed Franklin Gothic Six weeks to 12 years Carleen White 970-209-9119 HANDYMAN, CARPENTRY $17.95/month Since 1984" $19.95/month 525 N. Main St. Unlimited Dial-up Address: News Gothic MT Cn www.cleanlines.biz & RENOVATION SERVICES Bus: (970) Gunnison, 641-1900 CO 81230 Landscaping HOME IMPROVEMENTS, INC. Unlimited Dialup Services HOME IMPROVEMENTS, INC. 970-641-5036 Cell: (970) Office: 596-0715 North Main Satellite TV & Satellite419Internet Home Improvement 642-1949 Cell: 970-275-2899 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE Replacement Windows & Doors Fax: (970) 641-1906 Gunnison, CO 81230 ( Only Accounts Replacement Windows & Doors Email Fax: 970-641-5524 Phone: Personal & Residential Landscaping Roofing - Steel & Shingle www.monarchrlty.com Sirius & XM Radio 720-201-9100 tsokaitis@rockymountainre.com Roofing - Steel & Shingle Email: brokers@monarchrlty.com Fax: (9 Insulated Siding Web Design & Web Hosting www.rockymountainre.com Insulated Siding Seamless Rain Gutters Patio Covers & Awnings Seamless Rain Gutters Warren 641-3702 or 641-6438 Mobile Home Improvements Patio Covers & Awnings 641-6438 To download graphic files go to www.edwardjones.com/graphics/usa/sales/ads Homebuilders Inc. Computers You Buy, Always Give Whitey’s a Try! re-school and ChildBeforeCare 210 W. Spencer Ave. Unit C Mobile Home Improvements • New Construction and Remodels TAX PREPARATION 210 W. Spencer Ave., Unit C
mino Del Rio, CONSTRUCTION IR Name Gunnison, CO 81230 Investment Representative Thanks Mike & Debbie Weidler for
Member SIPC
"Helping Buyers & Sellers Since 1984"
www.monarchrlty.com Email: brokers@monarchrlty.com
RokeR
IRT-1158-A NOV 2006
WHITEY’S
WHITEY’S
Broker Associate
IRT-1158-A NOV 2006
EY’S
• Fine Woodworking / Custom Furniture
WHITEY’S
• Coolest Carpenters • FREE ESTIMATES • Six weeks to 12in Town years
CALL TODAY 970-964-8334
• Financing Available • Credit Cards Accepted
ENTS, INC.
642-1949
BEFORE YOU BUY, ALWAYS RELIGIOUS GIVE WHITEY’SSERVICES A TRY! • Financing Available •
Advertis
HERE Terri Sokaitis
•
FREE ESTIMATES •
Landscaping
Broker Associate
525 N. Main St. Gunnison, CO 81230 Office: 970-641-5036 Cell: 970-275-2899 Fax: 970-641-5524 Call Drew or tsokaitis@rockymountainre.com Kari at 641-1414 to find www.rockymountainre.com Contactless Tax Prep
CHURCH OF HOME IMPROVEMENTS, INC.Discover/Visa/MC Delta • 874-3665 ENERGY SAVING Serving the Gunnison Area since 1947 CHRIST ws & Doors 641-4051 Montrose • 249-9605 Replacement Windows & Doors Montrose • 249-9603 DOORS & WINDOWS Personal & Residential Landscaping 249-9605 Fax • www.whiteyshomeimp.com Shingle 123 W. STomichi www.whiteyshomeimp.com O L A R • DAve E S I G•NGunnison • INSTALL 970-209-4048 Roofi ng Steel & Shingle REACH ding 600 E. Virginia • 641-1588 NEW Sunday Morning Bible Class: Insulated Siding Gutters E. Main #155, Buena Vista | 719-966–5031 Drop off - 301 Upload - Virtual. 9:30 a.m. CL 733 US Hwy 24, Ste 102, Leadville | 719-486-2 IENTS wnings Seamless Rain Gutters Sunday Morning Worship: 1548 G St. #3, Salida | 719-207-4070 ovements 10:30 a.m. Patio Covers & Awnings Sunday Evening Worship: 6 p.m. 970.648.4421 • 123 W Virginia Ave. ve Whitey’s a Try! 970.642.5554 Mobile Home Improvements Wednesday Night Bible Class: 7 p.m. 301 E. Main #155, Buena Vista | 719-966–5031 GABE.JACQUEZ@hrblock.com
Computers
MATES
ilable • cepted
YOUR LOCAL CHOICE , d o o rs • fo r wainndd ows blinds
& (970) 641-2844
641-4051
3665 9-9605
eyshomeimp.com W. Tomichi Ave • Gunnison
www.nunatakenergy.com
BEFORE YOU BUY, ALWAYS GIVE WHITEY’S A TRY!
WANT•TO ADVERTISE BUSINESS? Financing AvailableYOUR • Discover/Visa/MC Contact Advertising Manager, Steve
•
FREE ESTIMATES •
www.whiteyshomeimp.com
HE
steve@gunnisontimes.com. STARTING AT $10/INCH PER WEEK.
Serving the Gunnison Area since 1947
Montrose • 249-9603
Adve
733 US Hwy 24, Ste 102, Leadville | 719-486-2225 1548 G St. #3, Salida | 719-207-4070
970-209-4048
Call Drew or Kari at 641-
Thursday, December 28, 2023 • NEWS • A19
Gunnison Country Times
FLASHBACK: OCTOBER 12, 2023
Photo: Tom Stillo
TAPP sees falling revenue for first time in over decade Eyes turn to CBMR to invest in ski resort upgrades Bella Biondini Times Editor
Next year, the Tourism and Prosperity Partnership (TAPP), the local organization tasked with marketing sustainable tourism in the Gunnison Valley, is expecting falling revenue for the first time in more than 10 years. From the TAPP board’s perspective, the development of its 2024 budget posed several challenges the organization hasn’t faced over the last couple of years, including high inflation rates and a projected decline in local marketing district (LMD) revenue, a tax that is levied on lodges and hotels. This is accompanied by new legislation that allows a portion of the LMD collections to be used for the development of workforce housing in the valley. LMD collections, also known as the “heads in beds” tax, usually generate close to $2 million annually. But in 2024, TAPP is projecting a 10% decline, pushing the board to cut programs that it believes are “underperforming” and dip into its reserves. Its reserves generally act as a buffer during years the valley experiences dry winters or forest fires. Based on its projections, the board recommended to keep tourism spending flat next year. Although visitor traffic has remained relatively strong in the Gunnison Valley during the summer months, TAPP Executive Director John Norton said the region is falling behind when the snow begins to fall. He noted a “competitive frenzy” among ski resorts in the West to make bigger, and better upgrades to attract crowds. To keep Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) in the running, Norton said TAPP plans to encourage the resort to pursue its own capital improvements in the form of new chair lifts and terrain expansions. “We've got challenges this year, probably in a bigger way than we've had for years or maybe ever … Revenues have declined for the first time since this group was working on growing lodging revenues,” Norton told the Gunnison County Commissioners during a regular meeting late last month. “It's mostly in the winter. The competitive posture of the ski industry is greater than I've ever seen.” TAPP presented its draft budget in which it opted to allocate
$730,000 from its reserves to cover any spending gaps with a provision to not use greater than 30% of those reserves moving forward. This follows a decision approved by the commissioners earlier this year to use $1 million from the county’s LMD collections for the second phase of the county’s most recent affordable housing project, Sawtooth — something the TAPP board fully supports, said board president Bill Ronai. It is too early to know if the county plans to siphon money toward affordable housing each year. In 2023, LMD collections continued to pace behind last year, the bulk of the decline stemming from last ski season. This was followed by a slow start to the summer as snow lingered on the trails well into June. Although the number of visitors picked up in July, the overall downturn is projected to be 10% for the year. The winter 2022-23 was an all-time record year for ski industry spending in the billions across both Colorado and the West. Steamboat’s new Wild Blue Gondola will be the longest and fastest 10-person gondola in North America, while Alterra is heading a massive terrain expansion at Deer Valley in Utah. Monarch Mountain also recently released more details about its plans to open new terrain in the coming years. But in the North Valley, CBMR has not initiated any significant upgrades since the early 1990s, with the addition of the North Face and High lifts. This was followed by what Norton described as a “30-year slide” that Vail Resorts arrested when it added the local resort to the Epic Pass. Norton said he planned to meet with management at CBMR to find a way to start grabbing skiers’ attention again. (Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@ gunnisontimes.com.)
Thank You and Happy New Year! “I’m honored to work with such good people in our community. I moved often when I was young and it wasn’t until I moved to the Gunnison Valley that I began to understand what community truly means. From the moment I arrived in CB in 1987, I was blown away by the spirit of support and giving in this valley. 36 years later, I feel the same way.“
Best Wishes, Maggie Maggie Dethloff | Broker Associate GCAR 2023 Realtor of the Year 970.209.7880 | maggie@bbre1.com | CrestedButteNow.com
PRIMARY CARE IN GUNNISON & CRESTED BUTTE
Whether it’s family medicine, internal medicine or pediatric care, our highly qualified and personable providers are your partners in health. Primary care for the whole family including: • Routine wellness checks • Treatment of injury & illness for children and adults • Vaccines and flu shots • Diagnosis of medical • Medicare annual visits conditions
In Gunnison: Monday - Friday And In Crested Butte: Tuesday - Thursday Scan here to read the full article.
To schedule an appointment, contact: 970-642-8413 WWW.GUNNISONVALLEYHEALTH.ORG
We would love your support! Consider making a donation to help keep independent locally owned journalism alive.
Scan to Donate
A20 • NEWS • Thursday, December 28, 2023
Gunnison Country Times
Knowledge. Relationships. Experience. At SGM, we are sincerely thankful for all of the support the Gunnison Valley community continues to provide. We pride ourselves on engineering projects that improve people’s lives — from the roads we drive on to the water we drink. We wish everyone good tidings, good will and good health as we ring in the New Year! Engineering / Consulting / Surveying (Proud sponsor of the Gunnison Country Times’ Photographic Year-in-Review.)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/140P4z-ZNeTsDElbUD2Uf-CNJpWGXI8t_/view?usp=drive_web Kelsey Loftis C. 970-784-6768 kelseyloftis@ crystalpeakproperties.com crystalpeakproperties.com
425 W Spencer Ave Gunnison, CO 3 Bed | 2 Bath | 2 Car Heated Garage 1,650 Sq Ft Listed for $699,000.00 MLS# 809735
95 George Bailey Dr. Almont, CO 2 Bed | 1 Bath 660 Sq t Listed for $79,900.00 MLS# 809660
Commercial Property With Business: Rene’s Garage, Inc. 929 Ocean Wave Dr. Lake City, CO Listed for $1,229,000.00 MLS# 809678
18801 County 30 Road Lake City, CO 1 Bed | 3/4 Bath 1,508 Sq Ft 15 Acre Mining Claim Listed for $325,000.00 MLS# 809715
18001 Hinsdale County 30 Road Lake City, CO 2 Cabins on 40 Acre Mining Claim Listed for $750,000.00 MLS# 809752
Lots 6-7 Vickers Ent Ranch Est 2 Acres Listed for $179,000.00 MLS# 809714
2743 Silver Coin Lane Lake City, CO 1 Acre Listed for $149,500.00 MLS# 809716
Empire MC Tincup Pitkin, CO 10 Acre Mining Claim Listed for $12,000.00 MLS# 809724
ER UND
Cumberland MC Tincup MD Almont, CO 27 Acre Mining Claim Listed for $44,000.00 MLS# 809725
Rose McOneil MC Pitkin, CO 17 Acre Mining Claim Listed for $19,000.00 MLS# 809726
We will be closed the week of Christmas Wishing you and yours a wonderful New Year!
T
TRAC
CON
294 S 5th St. Gunnison, CO 2 Bed | 1 Bath | 1 Car Garage Listed for $395,000.00 MLS# 809664
A YEAR IN PHOTOS GUNNISON COUNTY 2023 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023
INSIDE
The year has flown by, and the community is preparing to welcome 2024. Over the last year, Times journalists have attended events all over the county, seeking and capturing the stories that reflect life here in the Gunnison Valley. From the superbloom that blanketed the hills of Almont, to the grand opening of the new food pantry, these are some of the moments we believe are the best.
Jacob Spetzler
B2 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Mew Year, Mew You! Start the new year with IN-HOME vet care!
PEOPLE & HAPPENINGS Adventure film fest
Free legal clinics
Elk Mountains Backcountry Alliance presents the 5Point Adventure Film Festival on Feb. 1 at the Western Colorado University Theatre in Gunnison and Feb. 2 at The Majestic Theatre in Crested Butte. Thanks to Bluebird Realty for sponsoring this event. Tickets go on sale Jan. 1. Visit emba. earth for details.
Two free legal clinics for parties who have no attorney will take place on Jan. 10 from 2-5 p.m. at the Gunnison and Crested Butte Libraries. Volunteer attorneys will answer questions and explain the process and procedure for all areas of Colorado civil law. Contact the Gunnison Library at 970.641.3485 or 970.349.6535 in Crested Butte to be added to the sign-up sheet. Space is limited.
Gunnison history podcast
Specializing in:
Join Duane Vandenbusche on Zoom for the History of the Gunnison Country Podcast every Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. from Jan. 2-Feb. 27. Each session will include 20-25 historic photos. This series is offered for free. To sign up, visit c re st e d bu tt e mu s e u m. c o m.
• Senior Pet Care • Pain Management • Laser Therapy • Arthritis Solutions • Cancer Support • Hospice Care Serving Gunnison, Almont, Crested Butte, Mt. CB, Lake City and Beyond...
Gunnison Country Times
970.975.0298
hometogethervet.com
Youth Nicotine Anonymous
port group with no religious affiliation. Contact ajohnson@ gunnisoncounty.org with questions.
Caregiver support group T h e A l z h e i m e r ’s a n d Dementia Caregiver Support Group meets on the first Wednesday of every month from 4:30-5:30 p.m. at the Gunnison County Librar y. For more information, contact group facilitator Mary at 970.596.5667 or taktser8@gmail. com.
Overeaters Anonymous
Ni c o t i n e A n o n y m o u s f o r Young Adults will meet every We d n e s d ay b e g i n n i n g o n Jan. 10 from 2-3 p.m. at 601 6th Street in Crested Butte and from 4-5 p.m. at the Fred Field McDonough Room in Gunnison. This is a mutual sup-
Overeaters Anonymous meets on Thursdays from 11 a.m.-12 p.m. at The Last Resort, located at 114 Wisconsin St. in downtown Gunnison. This is an open meeting.
CB CENTER FOR THE ARTS BRIEFS Artist reception
New Years Eve party
Live theater reading
Joanne Lefrak, Hanna Mae Bradbury and Peggy Stenmark present their works surrounding the concept of how shadows and light play with one another through watercolors, glass etching and cyanotypes at the Crested Butte Center for the Arts, beginning on Dec. 30 at 5 p.m. Admission is free.
Don your finest evening attire and relive the golden age of soulful music on Dec. 31 at the Crested Butte Center for the Arts with Mile High Soul Club, spinning the best of Motown rhythm and soul from the 50s, 60s and 70s. The party begins at 9 p.m. Ticket prices range from $55-$250 and may be purchased at crestedbuttearts.org.
The Crested Butte Center for the Arts presents a staged reading of the play “Henry and Ellen” on Jan. 6 at 7 p.m. Ticket prices range from $25-$45 and may be purchased at crestedbuttearts. org.
DIRECT ACCESS TESTING AT GUNNISON VALLEY HEALTH
Convenient access to low-cost laboratory testing. Direct Access Testing gives you the option to choose selected tests without a clinical provider’s order. Direct Access Testing is an important resource but should not be a substitution for treatment by a medical provider. You should discuss test results with your primary care provider. Payment for testing is due at the time of service and insurance will not be billed. Direct Access Testing is available at the hospital laboratory on a walk-in basis, no appointment necessary. Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. We would love your support! Consider making a donation to help keep independent locally owned journalism alive.
Scan to Donate
FOR CURRENT PRICING AND TEST DESCRIPTIONS, VISIT WWW.GUNNISONVALLEYHEALTH.ORG/DAT
Gunnison Country Times
Thursday, December 28, 2022 • YEAR IN PHOTOS • B3
2023
A YEAR IN PHOTOS
When a partial solar eclipse graced the Gunnison Valley in mid-October, locals gathered at the Gunnison County Library to witness the historic event. In collaboration with the Gunnison Valley Observatory, the library handed out eclipse viewing glasses and provided educational materials. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Experience Dinner at Taylor River Lodge.
Join us for an enchanting evening tucked away in the Taylor Canyon for the finest of local flavors.
TAYLOR RIVER LODGE COLORADO
Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat & Sun nights Seatings: 5:30, 6:00, 6:30, 7:00, and 7:30 pm
$225 per person Includes 4-course dinner and all house alcohol. Private shuttle available at an additional cost.
Reservations: trldinnerreservations@elevenexperience.com (970) 319-3693
Putting arts and culture in the
spotlight.
Erinn Cutright, a member of Mountain Roots Food Project’s food security team, loads boxes of fresh produce into her car in late February. The food security team donated hundreds of boxes to early childhood educators around the Gunnison Valley to support them after pandemic-era staffing hardships took a heavy toll. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
www.gunnisontimes.com
B4 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Melissa Post, leader of Curecanti National Recreation Area’s dive team, emerges from the cold water at Blue Mesa Reservoir. The National Park Service team recovers personal property and conducts search and rescue operations. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
Gunnison Country Times
Heidi Magnus melts butter for her famed Firebrand muffins. Firebrand, a local deli that served the community for almost 30 years, closed down in late October after co-owners Heidi and sister, Kate Magnus decided it was time for a break. In the following weeks, several events were held around the City of Gunnison to celebrate the sisters’ legacy. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
Following Maryo Ewell’s retirement from the Community Foundation of the Gunnison Valley, friends, family and colleagues gathered to celebrate her contributions to the community, and her 75th birthday. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Skiers and snowboarders of all ages took to the slopes for Cranor Hill’s opening day in early January. This was the first season that Cranor opened in several years due to both the pandemic and low snowfall. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Volunteers and Gunnison Trails crew members spent an afternoon in late September cutting a new section of the South Rim trail on a hillside near Signal Peak. This summer, Gunnison Trails’ six-person crew completed a record-breaking 4,000 hours of work on the valley’s local trails. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Thursday, December 28, 2022 • YEAR IN PHOTOS • B5
Gunnison Country Times
The Gunnison Valley Cattlemen hosted their annual Ag Venture Day in early May. The event has taken place in Gunnison for over 60 years. Students in grades 2-5 toured educational booths and learned about western history and local agriculture. The Gunnison chapter of Future Farmers of America volunteered at the event, sending 22 kids to man the animal stalls and help educate youth about caring for livestock. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
(Left to right) Laura Osborne, Jodi Payne, Katie Dix and Arden Anderson cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the new Gunnison Country Food Pantry in early October. The new space is over four times the size of the old building and in addition to shelf-stable and refrigerated food, will offer behavioral health resources and a clean water station. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
High Country Conservation Advocates Program Director Julie Nania (left), and Kestrel Kunz, a stewardship director with American Whitewater, look out the window of a plane during an Ecoflight in late June. The flight traced the boundary line of the proposed Thompson Divide mineral withdrawal. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
Vella Molina and her daughter sit in their kitchen in their mobile home at Frontier Land in early January. Park residents received eviction notices this fall, before the homes were subsequently demolished. Despite the owner’s stated plans to renovate the property, the future is still unclear. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
The Gunnison Valley Observatory hosted a Spanish language night in early June, welcoming locals to learn more about the vast night sky. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
B6 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Gunnison Country Times
Acadia McDermott celebrates the Fourth of July with a sparkler. Community members gathered at IOOF Park for food and music before moving to Jorgensen Park for the City of Gunnison’s annual display of fireworks. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Leonard Kreuger checks the temperature in mid-February. For nearly 70 years, Kreuger and his family have monitored the precipitation and temperatures at their home near Cochetopa Creek. Kreuger trudges through snow to record the high and lows each day by hand. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
Western Colorado University students made the most of a winter storm in mid-March with some late night sledding on the big green monster. Mila Lumae, Gibson Kenny and Joey Salat got a head start on boating season, using a kayak to rip down the popular sledding spot. (Photo by Mariel Wiley)
Local farmer Sue Wyman feeds her chickens on a frosty winter morning. In early January, a strain of avian influenza hit the Colorado egg industry and prices of eggs soared in Gunnison. The strain of highly pathogenic avian Influenza killed over 90% of the state’s egg-laying chickens. For weeks, Gunnison’s two biggest grocery stores limited customers to two cartons each. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Gunnison Country Times
Thursday, December 28, 2022 • YEAR IN PHOTOS • B7
This summer, the hills southeast of Almont were awash with yellow sunflowers and Indian paintbrush during a super bloom in the Gunnison Valley. For weeks, hillsides around Gunnison and Crested Butte erupted in color in what many called a banner year for local blooms. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
The nearby ranching community showed its appreciation for the firefighters working the Lowline Fire. The hay bale sat at the entrance to the Mill Creek Ranch. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
First-graders play at the Gunnison Community School in mid-May. Supported by a voter-approved $95 million bond, local schools will soon undergo renovations to improve overcrowding, building safety and expand student programs. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Community members gathered for a Diversity Walk during Gunnison’s second-annual Rural Welcoming Week in mid-September. Led by local band Fuerza Cora Brasil Musical, attendees made their way down Main Street. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
B8 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Gunnison Country Times
Trevor Keenan, captain of Gunnison fire engine 617, directs a team of wildland firefighters along a road toward the Lowline Fire from Castleton Ranch in late July. The Lowline Fire was reported on July 26 and grew to nearly 2,000 acres in a week. (Photo by Garrett Mogel)
(Left to right) County commissioners Laura Puckett Daniels, Liz Smith, Jonathan Houck, Assistant County Manager for Operations and Sustainability John Cattles, County Manager Matt Birnie and Assistant County Manager for Community Development Cathie Pagano move the first piles of dirt at the county-owned affordable housing development, Sawtooth. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
The six candidates who ran for the Gunnison Watershed School District board—from left to right: Anne Brookhart, Cori Dobson, Greg Kruthaupt, Jody Coleman, Lisa Henry and Mark VanderVeer—gathered for a forum in late September. It was the school district’s first election in decades. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
Brad Wick, co-leader of the Gunnison Valley Amateur Radio Club, exits his trailer as the sun sets over Cochetopa Pass. Wick and local radio buff Mike Wells participated in the American Radio Relay League’s annual “Field Day.” The event challenges local radio amateurs to make as many contacts as they can with other single-transmitter operators. In 24 hours, the pair made more than a thousand contacts across the world. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Gunnison Country Times
Thursday, December 28, 2022 • YEAR IN PHOTOS • B9
GUNNISON VALLEY SENIORS CALENDAR Be a Smile-Maker! Donate to Senior Meals! Donate to help the Gunnison Senior Center’s – Senior Meals program keep the costs of our meals down. Checks payable to: City of Gunnison. Mail to: Gunnison Senior Center, 200 E. Spencer Ave., Gunnison, CO 81230.
Ongoing Senior Services
Delivery AssistanceSENIOR Hotline: (970) 641-7959 - assistance with ordering, CENTER PROGRAMS pick-up and groceries and4, prescription medications. • Nordic Skidelivery Lessons – of First Session Jan. 11 &18: Open to never-evers through intermediates, age 55 & up! FREE Nordic ski lessons taught by Gunnison Nordic Club This includes deliveries from the Food Bank.
instructors. FREE ski equipment rentals from CB Nordic. Costs: Senior Center & Gunnison Nordic Club memberships. Reservations required! • Second Session Nordic Ski Lessons: 1, 8 & 15. See above for info. Senior Meals: (970) 641-8272 for Feb. advance orders OR (970) 641-2107 for • First Snowshoe Hike: Tuesday, Jan. 9. Location – Spring Creek. Rated Easy. Costs: same-day service. Pick-up or delivery only! Meals served Mondays, Senior Center membership + $7.00. FREE equipment rental with advanced registration. Wednesdays, & Fridays. Please note: all meals, all days are $4 during this time. Registration required! • Senior Meals: Senior Meals willUpcoming be closed from Dec. 22 – Jan. 5. We re-open on Mon., Order in advance if possible! menu: Jan. 8th. • March 27: Lasagna, green beans, salad, garlic bread, dessert Regular Activities: Mondays – Bridge @ 1 pm; Tuesdays – Canasta @ 2pm; Wednesdays – • March 30:@Salisbury fruit, dessert Book Club 1 pm on 1ststeak, Weds.mashed of month;potatoes, Thursdays –corn, Bridgerolls, @ 1 pm; Fridays – Art Club @ 12:30 pm & Mahjong @ 1 pm
• April 1: Stew, carrot/raisin salad, Mandarin oranges, rolls, dessert
The 123rd annual Cattlemen’s Days Rodeo returned to the Gunnison Valley in mid-July. Cowgirls, cowboys, rodeo queens and everyone in between gathered at the Fred Field Western Heritage Center for three packed nights of roping, riding and more. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
All RSVPs and more info on Senior Center programs: egillis@gunnisonco.gov or 970-6418272. Senior Shopping Hours: FITNESS @ THE REC CENTER – Sign up at the Rec Center front desk! NO CLASSES January 1st. • City Marketon– Mon., Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays (7AM – 8AM)
• Safeway – Wednesdays Tuesdays &inThursdays Mondays & the Gym (7AM – 9AM) (6AM@– 9:30am 7AM) • Walmart – Tuesdays - Silver Sneakers Boom Muscle - Silver Sneakers Classic 10:15am • Gunnison Vitamin &@Health Food Store – Monday - Saturday (8AM – 9AM) • Clark’s Market (Crested Butte) – Every day (8AM – 9AM) Tuesdays @ 10AM in the Leisure Pool -Silver Sneakers Splash Class (all levels) Self-reporting SENIOR MEALSForm: www.gunnisoncounty.org/covid19. Mondays, Wednesdays but & Fridays @ 11:30 am.OK, $5.00 per meals. Advanced orders If you have symptoms are otherwise please fill out the form. appreciate (24 hours). Pick-ups between 11 – 11:15 am (advanced orders only). If you cannot fill out the form, call the Call Center (970) 641-7660. ORDER MEALS: 970-641-8272 Senior Meals will be closed from Dec. 22, 2023 – Jan. 5, 2024.
Call Center: (970) 641-7660. you We will re-open on Monday, If Jan. 8th.are having symptoms, cannot fill out the Happy Holidays!!! We look forward seeing you incall thethe newCall year!!!! online form, or your symptoms aretoworsening, Center. DO NOT go & visitors welcome! Homebound 55 & up eligible delivery. If you need toWalk-in your doctor’s or the hospital. If itadults is anages emergency, callfor 911. a ride, call GVH Senior Bus @ 970-596-6700 (call in advance) or call the Senior Center 970-6418272.
Please practice social isolation. Remain SERVICES 6 feet or more from others when ONGOING needing to be Food out, Pantry but staying at(1home if Wednesdays at all possible. Gunnison Country – Mondays – 4 pm), (1 – 7 pm), Thursdays for 60+ (10 am – 2 pm). Contact: 970-641-4156, Located on the SW Corner of Main St. & Ohio Ave. GVH Senior Bus: 7 days a week, 9 am – 4 pm. Call in advance! 970-596-6700. The Gunnison Senior Center & –Community Recreation Center Crested Butte Senior Bus: Monday thru Friday, 9 am 4 pm Services Montrose & Grand Junction for medical appointments. Call at least 1is week in advance, or more. 970-275-4768. closed until April 30th. Gunnison County HHS Senior Resource Office: Call for appointments. 970-641-3244.
Jarrod Crawley, a maintenance mechanic with the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, ignites a pile of cleared timber near Slumgullion Pass, south of Gunnison. The crew burned over 1,200 piles across 3,000 acres during the 2022-23 burn season. (Photo by Abby Harrison)
B10 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Gunnison Country Times
A YEAR IN REVIEW
A young racer rips down a course during a downhill slalom ski race at Crested Butte Mountain Resort in January. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler) Western Colorado University boxers Will Bradley and Dan McCord spar at the Mountaineer Field House. This year, the club celebrated its 50th anniversary with an electric performance at the national tournament, resulting in three podium finishes. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
Climbers ascent a frozen wall at the 2023 Lake City Ice Festival. (Photo by Bella Biondini)
FRIDAY FEB. 10
SATURDAY FEB. 11
WCU Basketball v Fort Lewis Women 5:30 pm | Men 7:30pm
WCU Basketball v Adams Women 5 pm | Men 7 pm
Basketball v Meeker GHS Roaring Fork The Crested Butte Titans lacrosse team huddles up after an GHS early-season game. (Photo byBasketball Mariel vWiley) GJV 4, BJV 4, GV 5:30pm, BV 7pm
HOME SPORTS EVENTS THIS WEEK WEEKLY SPORTS CALENDAR SPONSORED BY BLUEBIRD REAL ESTATE 970-209-2300 | WWW.BBRE1.COM
GJV 11am, BJV 11am, GV 12:30pm, BV 2pm
HAPPY NEW YEAR GUNNISON VALLEY! THANKS FOR A GREAT YEAR IN SPORTS!
Cowboy volleyball players Lily Wild, Ania Bryniarski, Sienna Gomez and Clara Trezise celebrate winning a set. The team’s exciting season ended with a matchup between the Cowboys and the Colorado Springs Christian Lions for a spot at the state championship. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
HAPPY NEW YEAR! From The MindyLand Team Powered By Quality Service
w ww. Min d y-La n d . c o m
Thursday, December 28, 2022 • YEAR IN PHOTOS • B11
Gunnison Country Times
Miles Harris completes a take-down at home to break the Gunnison High School record in late January. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
The Center presents
NYE 2024
Featuring Mile High Soul Club December 31 | 9:00 pm
The ultimate New Year’s Eve dance party, where the spirit of Motown takes center stage! Don your finest gold attire and step into a world of rhythm and soul as we celebrate the countdown to the new year!
General Admission $55 General Admission + Open Bar $150 VIP Lounge Featuring Private Top-Shelf Bar $250 Tickets available at crestedbuttearts.org
B12 • A YEAR IN PHOTOS • Thursday, December 28, 2022
Gunnison Country Times
COMMUNITY RADIO FOR THE GUNNISON VALLEY
The news you need. The excellence you deserve.
KBUT’s Holiday Auction was a huge success, raising over $15,800 for the station! Thank you to all of the community members who shopped locally & made bids!
KBUT is very grateful to the following businesses & individuals who generously donated items to this auction:
24/7 Gym Abra Karbin Ceramics Ace Hardware Amanda Sage Collection Andris Zobs Angel’s Magic Touch Baldy’s Artful Sandwitchery BISH Productions Blue Mesa Music Store Bobos Bars Browns Canyon Rafting Buckel Family Wine CB/Mt. CB Chamber of Commerce Center for the Arts Chris Coady CORE Creative Catering Crested Butte Film Festival Crested Butte Land Trust Crested Butte Mountain Theatre Crested Butte News Crested Butte Nordic Center Crested Butte School of Dance
Crested Butte’s Personal Chefs Crested Yeti Property Management Decorate CB Deer Creek Blinds Double Shot Cyclery Durango Organics Escape Bodywork Boutique Gas Cafe Gemstone Skincare+Services Goodday Bikeworks Gunnison Arts Center Gunnison Country Times Guy Ciulla L. Ac Handle Bar Bike & Board Shop Harmels on the Taylor Home Together Veterinary Services I BAR Ranch Irwin Guides Jamie’s Jerky Janniebird Farm Jamie Booth JJ’s Jeeps Justin Lefler
Karen Janssen & Munchkin’s Music & Dance Kat Harrington Keep It Green Landscaping Kochevar’s Mario’s Milky Way Miller Furniture Mindy Cohen PT Monarch Mountain Montanya Distillers Moore Orthopedics Mountain Nugget Bodywork Mountain Spirits Liquors Mountain Tails Nails by Whitney Off Center Designs On Point Acupuncture Paradox Footwear Pet Au Pairs Phish Precision Automotive Priscila Palhava & Studio West Red Mountain Liquors Remote Recreation Safaris
Retail Therapy Ride Me Dyes ROCKETTOONZ Rocky Mountain Trees Roshambo Marketing and Creative Secret Stash Sign Guys & Gal Six Points Slogar Sunday Morning Skin Suzanne Pierson The Breadery The Chocolate Enthusiast The Colucci Family & CB South Fitness The Dive The Fountain The ICELab The Lofts at Public House The Majestic Theatre The Trailhead Children’s Museum Thrive Yoga Tracy Hastings WinterWonderGrass Yee Haw Pickle Company Zacchariah Zypp & Co.
WINNER! GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD 2022 2023 Colorado Press Association Awards
Happy Holidays!
We are thrilled to be able to offer financial assistance to local homebuyers purchasing their primary residence! Eligibility requirements application, and more information on the program are available on our website
Abby Loken AJ Mani Alexandra Richland Alla Rubinstein Allison Lee Audrie Townsend Barb Carroll Barbra Myers Bet Egelhoff Betsy Wiebe Candace Coen Cassie Gates
Cathy Benson Cathy Steinberger Danielle Herder Dave Ebner Di Bridges Eric Roemer Erin Welfelt Frank Konsella Fred Sandusky Gary Huresky Heather Peterson Heather Featherman
Jaima Giles Jesse Ebner Jill Matlock Joseph Garcia Josh Townsend Kelly McKinnis Kelsey Loftis Ken Lodovico Kiley Flint Liz Sawyer Lori Mason Maggie Dethloff
Meaghan Nicholl Meg Breathaur Meg Brethauer Melanie Macartney Mindy Costanzo Molly Eldridge Nikki Pulitzer Rachael Miller Reggie Masters Ross Tunkey Sam Lumb Scout Walton Steve Mills
Susan Gross Tammy Armour Teresa Anderson Teresa Widner Trent Bona Trevor Bona Zach Coffey Coldwell Banker Mountain Properties Land Title Guarantee Company Gunnison County Abstract Company