Redstone February/March 2020

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ANNIVERSARY RESIDENT / OCCUPANT

R •E •V•I •E •W LOOK FOR REDSTONE REVIEW AT ISSUU.COM / SDCMC VOLUME 1, NUMBER 21

LYONS, COLORADO

PRSRT STD ECRWSS US POSTAGE PAID LYONS, CO PERMIT No 2053 $.50

FEBRUARY 19 / MARCH 18, 2020

B •R •I •E •F •S Redstone Review has a new look LYONS – The Redstone Review is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a new look. The pages are now 2” longer creating more space for information and news. Let us know on our Facebook page how you like our new look and longer pages.

Ash Wednesday Service LYONS – Ash Wednesday service will be held on Wednesday, February 26 at 6:30 p.m. at Lyons Community Church, 350 Main St. Pastor Emily Kintzel, pastor of Lyons Community Church will conduct the service. Join the group for a contemplative service as we begin our Lenten journey. It will be a service of song, scripture, prayer, and silence. You will also have the opportunity to receive ashes as a part of the service. All are welcome. For information contact www. lyons communitychurch.org.

Work began on US 36 near Lion Gulch LYONS – On February 17, the Colorado Department of Transportation and Flatiron Constructors began work on U.S. 36 near the Lion Gulch trailhead between Lyons and Estes Park. Drivers can expect delays with intermittent single lane closures until March 9 when there will be a 30-day closure of U.S. 36 to allow crews to permanently repair the road from the 2013 floods. Three open house public meetings, with one in Lyons, are planned to inform residents and commuters about the closure: • February 24, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Pinewood Springs Fire Station, 61 Kiowa Rd. • February 25, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Lyons Community Library, 451 4th Ave. • February 26, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Estes Park Town Hall Board Room, 170 MacGregor Ave. CDOT and contractor staff will be on-hand at each of the meetings to answer any questions people may have. The full closure will start at 12:01 a.m. on March 9 until the week of April 7, with crews working around the clock. Detours will need to be used. School buses and emergency responders will be able to get through. The project teams have Continue Briefs on Page 7

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I •N •D •E •X LYONS

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MAYOR’S CORNER

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CANDIDATES

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EDUCATE

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INSIGHT

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CULTURE

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A&E

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EXPRESSIONS

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COMMUNITY

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ISSUES

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OPTIONS

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Willa Leggett, age 3, at left, and Joey Mason, age 4, share a book at Lyons Valley Preschool on February 11.Lyons Valley Preschool opened in December 2013 under an Emergency Exemption Appeal after the flood in September caused the Lyons Community Montessori school to close. They currently serve 27 families and have graduated over 70 children. Their goal is to promote critical thinking, confident life-long learning, and to foster the joy of learning in all children. PHOTO BY CATHY RIVERS

Town Board election and board passes ordinance for town to require testing for uses at the waste water plant By Susan de Castro McCann Redstone Review Editor LYONS – The Redstone Review, Lyons Chamber of Commerce and the Lyons Recorder will hold a Candidates Forum on Monday March 9 at 5:30 p.m. at the Lyons District Library in the Community Room. The audience will be able to write down questions for the candidates to answer. There will be appetizers and soft drinks available. The election for Town of Lyons Board of Trustees and Mayor will be on Tuesday April 7, which is the last day to turn in ballots or to vote at the Town Hall, 432 Fifth Ave. April 3 is the last day to register and still receive a ballot in the mail otherwise you will need to vote in person at the Town Hall. From March 16 to 20, ballots are scheduled to be mailed to all registered voters in Lyons. On April 20 the newly elected Mayor and Lyons Board of Trustees will be sworn into office. Two candidates are running for mayor: current Lyons Trustee, Jocelyn Farrell, and former Mayor Nicholas Angelo. Seven candidates are running for Lyons Trustees: Hollie Rogin, current Trustee Mark Browning, Robert Brakenridge, Greg Lowell, current Trustee Wendy Miller, current Trustee Mike Karavas and Kenyon Waugh. For more election information, see https://www.townoflyons.com/330/Elections. At a town board meeting early in February,

the board approved Ordinance 1074 to allow the town to require testing and monitoring facilities on some customers’ wastewater pipes. The ordinance passed 6 to 0; Mayor Connie Sullivan recused herself saying that her husband was a partner in a business that would be affected by the ordinance. This ordinance would allow the town to require testing and monitoring of some businesses to determine the levels of certain pollutants in their wastewater. Some of the pollutants that are limited by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Colorado Dept. of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) are a concern in Lyons include BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand), TSS (Total Suspended Solids), and copper, along with a number of other heavy metals and chemicals. The BOD levels have sometimes been higher than the Lyons wastewater treatment plant is permitted to treat. To further complicate matters the centrifuge at the wastewater plant was not working properly and had to be rebuilt costing about $8,000. “It is being worked on now and should be ready soon,” Town Administrator Victoria Simonsen said. “Between having the centrifuge repaired and other operation modifications, this will help is to reduce the amount of BODs we have to process.” But that will not solve the whole problem. Simonsen said that currently there are no official ports for testing fluids going into the wastewater plant at any of the businesses in

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free and independent press is essential to maintaining democracy. Lyons has benefited from having the Redstone Review as a local news resource for 20 years. I want to extend my sincere congratulations and gratitude to the staff at the Redstone Review, especially for their coverage of local government and issues of importance to Lyons voters. Mayor Connie Sullivan

town. There is one makeshift port in a pipe near Spirit Hound Distillers, 4196 Ute Hwy. in Lyons. This port was found to have higher than acceptable levels of copper in the wastewater that needs to be removed. Simonsen said that the town wants to put in ports on the businesses that fall into the High Category of the High Strength Waste Classification; currently this is about four or five businesses. These ports would be up to code, outside on the sewer pipes of individual businesses and allow for testing their wastewater. The businesses would be required to pay for these ports and if needed pay for separating out the waste and having it hauled away and treated separately if they cannot reduce the levels of pollutants that are regulated. Lyons is a small town with small businesses and some businesses are balking at the cost of treating BODs. Craig Englehorn, the head distiller at Spirit Hound said, “I’m the elephant in the room. Continue Town on Page 15


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