August 11, 2016 VOLUME 121 | ISSUE 28 | 75¢
LET PEACE RING OUT Area churches sound bells to honor victims of gun violence on PAGE 10.
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Tempers flare over planned housing Developers unveil preliminary proposal for Independence project
Residents of Elbert and Douglas counties listen to a presentation by developers with Craft Companies, LLC, during a meeting at Pinecrest Community Church concerning a proposed housing development on Aug. 1. The meeting grew heated as residents frequently expressed frustrations toward developers and each other. Photo by Tom Skelley
By Tom Skelley tskelley@coloradocommunitymedia.com The staff for a new housing development rented Pinecrest Community Church for a full two hours on Aug. 1, but it only took 10 minutes for the meeting to turn loud and contentious. Denver developers Craft Companies LLC presented a preliminary plan for a new, 920-home Independence development on the eastern
side of the border of Douglas and Elbert counties, north of Hilltop Road. The land was approved for the Bandera development in 2009, but that project never came to be and the property has since sat unused. The meeting began with four tables spread around the church sanctuary, with representatives at each station to answer questions. But the din from more than 200 voices quickly drowned out any discourse, and attendees began shouting complaints about not getting answers to their questions and whether the meeting was genuinely Project continues on Page 6
Kodi Henderson, 14, cleans up her steer Quick Silver for the Junior Market Sale at the Elbert County Fair. Photo by Rick Gustafson
‘It’s hard to give them up’ Junior Market Sale brings lessons for local 4-H members Jeff Thomas blindfolds Josiah Cabria for the annual backseat driving contest. The blindfolded driver must navigate an obstacle course by taking direction from the navigator in the back seat. Photos by Rick Gustafson
Fair offers fun for everyone From displays of horsepower to 4-H contests, annual event satisfied many interests By Rick Gustafson Special to Colorado Community Media For more than 80 years, the county fair has provided a sense of community within Elbert County. Whether it’s residents catching up with old friends over a barbecue or making new
acquaintances with recent arrivals, the 2016 Elbert County Fair in Kiowa had a little something for everyone. This year’s fair, which concluded Aug. 7, featured the return of some old favorites, such as the Backseat Drivers Contest, in which blindfolded drivers navigated an obstacle course in a riding lawnmower while the backseat driver gave directions from the trailing wagon. Jeff Thomas was on hand to Fair continues on Page 9
Emilyann Turner eggs on a rooster during the Crowing Contest. Each contestant had five minutes to get their rooster to crow the most.
By Rick Gustafson Special to Colorado Community Media Kodi Henderson tickles the nose of her 1,105-pound steer Quick Silver. The baby-powder white animal raises his enormous head, extending his tongue to lick the blue towel soaked with an aloe solution that Kodi is using to clean his face. Quick Silver is big for his age. At 13-months, he is just entering the window that makes him marketable, and in a few minutes, the 14-year-old 4-H’er will lead him from the beef barn across the Elbert County Fairgrounds in Kiowa to the Open Pavilion, where the 82nd Annual Junior Market Sale is wrapping up the auction for Market Swine. Kodi has known this day has been coming since Quick Silver’s birth on her family’s ranch outside Elbert in July 2015. “It’s hard to give them up,” Kodi said, “but they age quickly.” By next year’s county fair, Quick Silver will be too old for market. And in less than a week, he Market continues on Page 9
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