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July 8, 2021
ELBERT COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
ElbertCountyNews.net
VOLUME 126 | ISSUE 21
Cowboy Up in Kiowa rodeo celebrates 25 years Court dismisses airport’s challenge on flight paths
Thousands jam fairgrounds to enjoy Western spectacle BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
For many attendees, it was standing room only at the 25th annual Cowboy Up in Kiowa rodeo on June 26. The threat of rain didn’t stop the thousands of people who crammed into the Elbert County Fairgrounds arena to watch bareback bronc riding, barrel racing, breakaway roping and more. The crowd was filled with excited families with children, couples and friend groups, making the atmosphere electric. The 25th anniversary celebration of the rodeo was postponed in March 2020 due to growing concerns over COVID-19, making the 2021 return particularly exciting. The Cowboy Up in Kiowa Rodeo is among the first wave of large-scale events in Elbert County since the slowing of COVID-19 cases and increased vaccination rate. For some attendees, it was their first venture out into large, crowded events amidst the pandemic. “It was definitely nice to get out with people again,” said Josh Hood of Spring Valley Ranch. “There was a completely oversold crowd. People were sitting on fences and just sitting on the ground. It was one of the best rodeo experiences I’ve had in a long time.”
SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM COWBOY UP, P5-6 INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 8 | CALENDAR: PAGE 7
Centennial Airport opposed FAA’s Denver Metroplex plan, fearing noise, effect on safety BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
The 2021 Elbert County Fair Princess, left, and 2021 Elbert County Fair Queen. PHOTO BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON
In what may serve as an anticlimactic end to a years-long dispute between metro Denver governments and the Federal Aviation Administration, a federal court has dismissed Centennial Airport’s challenge to the FAA’s approval of a plan to reroute metro Denver airplane traffic. “I think frankly the court punted on this — didn’t want to touch this with a 10-foot pole,” Robert Olislagers, the airport’s director, said at a June 17 meeting of the airport’s board of leaders. The FAA’s plan to optimize arrival and departure at local airports is called the Denver Metroplex project, and it includes Denver International Airport, Centennial Airport and some others. An FAA environmental-assessment study had looked at impacts the project could have on noise, air quality, wildlife, and historic and cultural resources. It said the proposed change in flight paths was expected to have “no significant impacts” on those aspects of the project’s area, including metro SEE FLIGHT PATHS, P11
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