December 29, 2011

LOOK INSIDE:

PAGE 2

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VCR, VCR

Girl gives back

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SEI update

the

Sun

Sopris Carbondale’s

weekly, non-profit newspaper

Volume 3, Number 46 | December 29, 2011

2011 Carbondale community spirit

In this issue, The Sopris Sun takes a look at the year that was 2011. Clockwise from upper left: the Rocky Mountain Omnium criterium returned to downtown streets, volunteers built a playground, PAC3 opened and folks staged an unplanned protest parade. Photos by Jane Bachrach

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Carbondale Commentary The views and opinions expressed on the Commentary page do not necessarily reflect those of The Sopris Sun. The Sopris Sun invites all members of the community to submit letters to the editor or guest columns. For more information, e-mail editor Lynn Burton at news@soprissun.com, or call 510-3003.

Letters

The Sopris Sun welcomes your letters, limited to no more than 400 words. Letters exceeding that length may be edited or returned for revisions. Include your name and residence (for publication) and a contact email and phone number. Submit letters via email to letters@soprissun.com or via snail mail to P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, CO 81623.

VcR won’t flood market Dear Editor: This letter responds to the statement I’ve heard from opponents of The Village at Crystal River, that the project will flood the market with more residential units in an already soft market. This will not be the case. No residential units will be built until the current market conditions have improved considerably to the point where the current homes on the market have been sold and prices start moving back to the range they were a few years ago.

Yes, this could take several years, but as I have said from the start, we have a long-term perspective on this project. The overall goal of the development is to use the catalyst of a new state-of-the-art grocery store, the village’s mixed-use nature (residential and commercial), the great location and the strict architectural guidelines and covenants to attract new retail and commercial users to Carbondale.

The concept of residential within walking distance and the site’s connectivity will be a significant marketing tool in attracting these tenants. These new tenants will allow Carbondale citizens to shop more in their town rather than the outlying communities.

The Road Map Citizens Group recommended residential and the mixed use character for the project and actually encouraged even more density than this plan is proposing. Also, didn’t Carbondale vote down a development plan for this land in 2003 that did not have any residential?

Rich Schierburg Crystal River Marketplace, LLC

Don’t californicate carbondale Dear Editor: I was recently in Dayton, Ohio. I stayed at

a friend’s who lives in a multi-use development, akin to the Village at Crystal River proposed for Carbondale. Attractively built and depressing as hell. I wondered what the rich farmland that had been there looked like.

Dayton’s economy is “in crisis.” Malls aren’t their savior.

It got me thinking about Orange County, which reportedly used to have orange groves.

Now, it’s malls and multi-use developments.

And traffic. Are they saving the economy?

Hardly.

Development for its own sake is disaster.

We’ve watched an economy based on empty development escalate to heights never seen, and at the same time we see poverty and environmental degradation at levels never seen, resulting from the “profit over life” model.

We’re in a time that demands that the steps we take be WELL thought out. Sustainability.

Economic, environmental, and emotional.

Carbondale is not Anywhere, U.S.A. with a Sopris view.

The developer is asking us to change into that and pay for the privilege with a PIF (“Public” Improvement Fee, a 1 percent tax on every item purchased to pay for construction for access to the mall.). Meaning, he wants people who are struggling to survive, pay for his indulgence every time they buy their necessities.

Check out your bill next time you shop at any of the PIF-laden stores in Glenwood Meadows to see how that increases your spending. Supporters of VCR say it’s the only way. Willits doesn’t have a PIF. If this 24-acre monster gets built, I’ll make the drive and shop there. I don’t give my monetary vote to welfare for wealthy developers.

Yes, we need jobs. Lately, people are discovering the term “manifestor:” someone who is able to manifest things.We’re all man-

ifestors, or else we wouldn’t be living where we are. So, we are able to face the challenges in Carbondale in an inimitably Carbondalian way. We can find solutions to the jobs need, plus ways to put the 60 empty business spaces in town to use without destroying the character of Carbondale.

Think about California and other places that succumbed to ill conceived development.

So much building with no thought to the future, the existing beauty of the place, or the actual needs of communities. Remember the lessons California gave us. Say yes to Carbondale by voting NO on VCR. Don’t Californicate Carbondale!

Ellie Davis Satank

Reserves expected to drop Dear Editor: Item 5 of “Five reasons no” by Bob Schultz and Denise Moss terms the “Big Lie” is that Carbondale is broke. To back up this claim, they state that Carbondale has $4.5 million in reserves.

According to the financial documents I was given by the town, that number is actually $4.8 million at the end of 2010, but is projected to be about $2.6 million, a 46 percent drop, by the end of 2016. The truth is that Carbondale is on a downward financial slope leading to disaster.

The town’s reserves exist because it has not invested in itself for years. Schmuser, Gordon, Meyer, a highly respected engineering firm’s, 2010 report pointed out that Carbondale’s infrastructure is old and crumbling.

Carbondale’s rolling stock has not been replaced for several years. There has been little if any capital investment by the town.

In fact, a 2004 study by the town showed 75 percent of money spent by locals goes elsewhere. City Market, which provides a large part of the town’s sales tax income, was characterized as “undersized.” Highway 133 was described as“deficient both aesthetically and functionally, an unattractive entryway into the community and a poorly developed community shopping area.” This report can be seen on the town’s municipal web site.

The choice is simple. Carbondale can be a town that people pass on their way elsewhere, with fewer and fewer amenities to recommend it. Those who want it to remain as it was will have the wreckage of the past to enjoy.

Or it can grow into a community that is self sustaining, educates its young and provides a welcome both for those in it and those who wish to join in its future.

Herbert Feinzig Carbondale

A wish for carbondale

This Roaring Fork Valley crew remembered the essentials for a Caribbean sailing trip in the French West Indies. From left to right are: John Baker, Cheryl Murphy, Art Smythe, Val Lankford and Herschel Ross. Photo taken by Lucy Smythe between St. Lucia and Guadalupe.

2 • THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011

Dear Editor: We have all shared the many reasons why we have chosen to live and/or work in Carbondale. Bottom line is it’s for the passion of the place and the people. The small-town joy of when you walk down the street, go to an event or pop into a store and say, “Hi!,” to someone you know.

Whether you are for or against the Village at Crystal River, it is about your caring for your community that is driving your passion.

Please don’t continue to give dirty looks,

make nasty comments or expand the divisiveness to your fellow Carbondalians. Take this time to smile, say “Happy Holidays” or “Happy New Year” and realize we are all working from a perspective of caring.

It may not match your opinion, but it deserves the respect and cordiality that comes from neighbors in a small community. Work towards the betterment of your community.

Say “thank you” to your board of trustees, whether you agree with them or not and to your mayor who works tirelessly on your behalf to find the best solution for Carbondale while balancing work and family.

That is my wish for Carbondale for 2012.

Work towards a time of healing and don’t destroy the very thing you love about Carbondale – the diverse nature of everyone who lives and works here.

Regardless of the outcome of this initiative, we need to remember to work together for a shared future.

Debbie Patrick Carbondale

No on VcR Dear Editor: In the past week we have been inundated with mailers and pricey advertisements in newspapers telling us why we should vote “YES” for the Village at Crystal River (VCR) development. Here’s why I’m going to vote “NO”: Several years ago, we were told that if we didn’t allow a big box development like Home Depot to be built in Carbondale our community would “die on the vine” with LETTERS page 7

To inform, inspire and build community Donations accepted online or by mail. For information call 510-3003 Editor: Lynn Burton • 510-3003 news@soprissun.com Advertising: Bob Albright • 970-927-2175 bob@soprissun.com Photographer/Writer: Jane Bachrach Ad/Page Production: Terri Ritchie Paper Boy: Cameron Wiggin Webmaster: Will Grandbois Sopris Sun, LLC Managing Board of Directors: Peggy DeVilbiss • David Johnson Allyn Harvey • Colin Laird Laura McCormick • Trina Ortega Jean Perry • Elizabeth Phillips Frank Zlogar

Sopris Sun, LLC • P.O. Box 399 520 S. Third Street #35 Carbondale, CO 81623

970-510-3003 www.soprissun.com Visit us on facebook.com Send us your comments: feedback@soprissun.com The Sopris Sun is an LLC organized under the 501c3 non-profit structure of the Roaring Fork Community Development Corporation.

Village at Crystal River top story in 2011 Sopris Sun Staff Report The Village at Crystal River faced some stiff competition – sheepdogs, volunteers building a playground, mudslides, a new performing arts center – but in the end, the much cussed and discussed commercial development proposal on Highway 133 tops The Sopris Sun’s list as Story of the Year.

The current development proposal is the third for the 24-acre parcel since the public hammered a previous developer’s vision so brutally in the late 1990s and early 2000s he scrapped it.

The developer downsized “Vision No. 2” but voters rejected that one in 2003.

The third time around comes to a close on Jan. 31 when all the ballots are counted and we’ll know whether residents will let current developer Rich Schierburg and his partners start work on a planned unit development that calls for up to 125,000 square feet of retail space (anchored by a new 58,000-square-feet grocery store), up to 164 residential units, commercial uses that allow a gas station, bank and restaurant, plus a roundabout on Highway 133 and a 1 percent PIF to pay for it. Later phases could include a hotel, medical facility, school or light manufacturing, according to the development application.

The Carbondale Board of Trustees voted 5-1 on Nov. 1 to first approve the project, then put it to a vote of the people.

Other big stories in 2011 include:

2. Sheepdog finals hit town Strang Ranch on Missouri Heights hosted the 2011 National Sheepdog Finals Sept. 13-18. The event attracted approximately 200 sheep-dog handlers and their pooches from the United States and Canada.

Several related events took place at Strang Ranch, while others were staged in town.

The event attracted several thousand spectators to Carbondale and Strang Ranch.

4. Satank bridge refurbished After eight years of grant writing and planning to save the 110-year-old Satank Bridge, a small group of dedicated volunteers saw their hard work pay off. John Hoffmann was among the early volunteers who orchestrated a plan to help save the bridge. He then lobbied elected officials and the state for support that eventually saved the bridge from demolition or collapse.

NOTED New manager joins town New Carbondale Town Manager Jay Harrington settled into his role in late August. Harrington was chosen from a field of 62 applicants. Before coming to Carbondale, Harrington, 45, served as town manager of Pagosa Springs, Telluride and Cortez. “The issues I dealt with during the past 20 years have served me well,” Harrington told The Sopris Sun. Mayor Stacey Bernot said, “He brings the whole package to Carbondale. From the community panel and staff, Jay was their top choice. He was clearly the best for Carbondale.”

source Efficiency (CORE), Carbondale, Basalt and Aspen are dealing with ways to reduce the use of plastic carry-out bags for environmental reasons.

8. couple drops coin on town hall A local couple, angry about a town trustees decision, dropped more than a halfton of coins in town hall to pay off their disputed building permit fees.

Roxanne and Brent Lough hauled 11 buckets of unwrapped coins, totaling $11,589.45 (“plus $10 extra”), into town hall to pay the outstanding balance on building fees that were due on May 19.

The dispute dated back to 2009 when Brent, who owns Ridge Runner Construction, paid approximately $24,000 in permit fees and taps for a spec home he built at 641 North Bridge Drive in River Valley Ranch.

Brent thought a certificate of occupancy (CO) from the town was forthcoming, but last July a town building official wrote a letter saying he still owed $11,589.45 in fees.

It wasn’t easy trying to get eight border collies to pose for the Sun’s cover photo on Sept.

15. It took four handlers and a lot of patience to get them to sit, stay and look at the camera at the same time. This is one of the outtakes from that fun photo shoot, when they weren't all looking at the camera. Photo by Jane Bachrach To rebuild the historic bridge, a crane lifted it off its abutments and disassembled it on the north side of the Roaring Fork River.

Useable components were transported to a Garfield County shop; metal components were tested for strength; new timbers and decking were used to replace rotten wood.

The bridge was set back into place in early 2011 and dedicated on May 12.

4. Police officer commits suicide Records from the Garfield County Sheriff’s Department showed that police officer Nino Santiago was under investigation for alleged sex crimes that took place in Arapahoe County, between 2004-2008, at the time he killed himself in his patrol car in the parking lot between the Church at Carbondale and Crystal River Elementary School in March.

5. PAc3 opens PAC3 in the Third Street Center opened to rave reviews in May. The acoustics in the former gym in the former Carbondale Elementary School (now the non-profit Third Street Center) were pronounced “clear” and “sharp.”The lineup so far has included such

notables as: Bruce Cockburn, the March Fourth Marching Band, Steve Earle, James McMurtry, Hayes Carll, Del McCourie, Robert Earl Keen and Leon Russell.

9. Denver Peak?

A Denver resident asked a federal agency to rename one of the peaks on Mount Sopris after the late John Denver. The proposal brought a harsh rebuke from many Carbondale residents and the issue seems to have gone away.

10. Slides close Rio Grande Trail

6. Volunteers build cRES playground Several hundred volunteers came together for four days in late April and early May and built a dazzling playground at Crystal River Elementary School. Aided by an $83,000 grant from the Colorado Health Foundation – plus grants from the Carbondale Rotary Club, Aspen Thrift Shop and the Thendara Foundation – the project was organized by the CRES Parent Teacher Organization.

7. Trustees target plastic bags The Carbondale Board of Trustees voted 5-1 to charge a 20-cent fee on paper bags and to ban plastic bags at City Market grocery store. The trustees did provide one loophole for City Market by exempting “thin film bags derived from starch-based biodegradable polymers.” The ordinance won’t take effect until May. Acting on a suggestion from the Community Office of Re-

mayor breaks them up

Developer pulls out

Mayor Stacey Bernot had to step between trustees Frosty Merriott and Ed Cortez after they squared off in the town hall kitchen following a discussion about medical marijuana. “They were nose to nose, in essence,” Bernot told The Sopris Sun. The issue that started the confrontation was Merriott’s motion to readdress the minimum distance medical marijuana dispensaries are allowed from schools, which at present is 1,000 feet. Merriott’s motion failed 4-2-1 and seconds later he called Cortez a “hypocrite” for siding with the majority.

Three parcels in Carbondale’s downtown core were turned over to a bank in lieu of foreclosures in early January as Golden Tree InSite Partners (GTIS), owner of the land planned for the Town Center development north of the Dinkel Building, pulled out of town. An attorney for GTIS said the recession, and the complexity of Carbondale’s land use review process, contributed to the firm’s decision to abandon the project. The Town Center project, and GTIS, were the original motivating factor for the contentious downtown zoning revisions approved by the town trustees in a 4-3 vote in late 2010. In late 2008 GTIS suggested to

A 100-year downpour caused mud and rockslides that closed the Rio Grande Trail between Catherine Store bridge and Rock Bottom Ranch in August. The slides were an estimated 10-15 feet deep in places. The trail was closed for more than two weeks before RFTA could clear the debris and open it back up.

11. Pot place busted A team of law enforcement agencies busted the Mother Earth medical marijuana center on Main Street for allegedly selling pot to unlicensed buyers and selling cocaine to undercover law enforcement agents in October. The bust was only the second of its kind in the state.

The raid was led by the Colorado Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division, with assistance from Carbondale police and TRIDENT (the Two Rivers Drug Enforcement Team).

the Planning and Zoning Commission that the town draw up a zoning “overlay” for Carbondale’s Historic Commercial Core to offer developers a chance to build taller, denser projects. But GTIS was not pleased with the rezoning package eventually approved by the town. A source said GTIS took issue with the requirements attached to the overlay, such as fees for parking not provided on-site, among other restrictions. “By the time [the town] got through with it there were so many strings attached and so many restrictions that it wasn’t an incentive [for development] at all; it was a disincentive,” said a source close to GTIS. YEAR IN REVIEW page 4

THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011 • 3

Year in review continued om page 3 Library plans move forward The Garfield County Library District has chose a design team in October to build the new Gordon Cooper Library at the corner of Fourth and Sopris. The district plans to break ground on the 13,000-square-foot structure in 2012.

Powers Art center completed The Powers Art Center, which focuses on limited edition prints on paper of 20thcentury artist Jasper Johns, opened in the fall of 2011. The two-story, 15,000-squarefoot building sits about a half-mile north of Highway 82, just upvalley from Highway 133. The collection comes from the late John G. Powers and his wife Kimiko.

For many years they lived near the site that is now the Powers Art Center.

Alexandra Jerkunica was one of several performers featured in CCAH’s “An Afternoon of Dance” during October’s SWAN month events. Photo by Jane Bachrach

browning twins shine Taylor and Zach Browning, both seniors at Roaring Fork High School in 2011, brought home medals from the state 3A track meet in May. Taylor took silver in the 100 meters with a time of 11.1 seconds and second in the 200 (22.35). Zach took second in the 400 (49.35). For the girls, Adrienne Ackerman finished fifth in the 300 hurdles and Taila Howe claimed eighth in the 100.

bread oven fired A community group that promotes the enjoyment of food rather than the speed and convenience at which it is cooked, spearheaded the construction of a wood-fired community bread oven on the south side of the Third Street Center. The project was completed with volunteers and donations, with help from Gallegos Corp. and Valley Lumber.

big barn draws ire Several neighbors complained to the Garfield County Commissioners about a new 68,000-square-foot barn that was constructed on County Road 100 on Missouri

Heights in 2011. They were told the county does not put a maximum size on barns, and that it could be legally built with just a building permit.

TDc rally draws 300 Residents from the lower Roaring Fork Valley rallied in Carbondale on a Saturday morning in October to prevent energy development in the Thompson Divide area southwest of town. Nearly 300 people showed up for a rally in the park behind the Third Street Center that featured petitions to the federal government, a variety of speakers, music and a strong message of support for the work of the Thompson Divide Coalition. After the rally much of the crowd followed a parade of local tractors which rolled down Main Street.

SWAN takes off The Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities’ staged a month of events and exhibitions in October called “United We Art: New Work from 42 Contemporary Women” as part of the worldwide SWAN month. The event was made possible through a $25,000 grant from the Embrey Family Foundation.

bike race returns The Rocky Mountain Omnium Criterium returned to Carbondale’s downtown streets in June, bringing in more than YEAR IN REVIEW page 5

Cop Shop The following events are drawn from incident reports of the Carbondale Police Department.

Dec. 15 At 8:27 a.m. a citizen flagged down a patrol officer and said there was a dead deer in a yard in the 200 block of Eighth Street.

Dec. 15 At 8:30 a.m. Carbondale police helped a citizen in the 200 block of Eighth Street obtain a road kill permit for a dead deer.

Dec. 15 between 3:10 and 3:52 p.m. an officer issued seven tickets to vehicles violating the two hour parking limit at the Main Street parking lot; between 3 and 3:02, an officer issued two tickets for vehicles violating the two hour limit on Fourth Street.

Dec. 20 A woman called police to complain about a parking ticket. The officer explained the town’s two-hour limit in some locations but she continued arguing. The officer eventually told her to talk to the police chief.

Dec. 21 At 2 a.m. police received a call that a medical marijuana dispensary on Highway 133 had been burglarized. No other information was available.

Dec. 22 A woman in the 100 block of Garfield Avenue called police to report a “suspicious van” parked in front of her house. Police responded and learned the driver was a “private eye.”

Western Slope Concert Series presents Celtic band FEAST and STRICTLY IRISH Champion Dance Duo in an all-new show

Ring In the New Year with Winter “Bells”!

Sing! ~ Move! ~ Imagine! ~ Create! ~ Connect!

Join other Parents and Young Children for weekly music play and learning time together. Research-based, developmentally appropriate music and creative movement. A Musical Multiple Vitamin that supports all learning in early childhood.

Family Style (mixed ages) or Baby Class.

New friendships and sharing in community.

Winter Term January 9-March 16 Enrolling now for classes in Carbondale Basalt ~ Aspen ~ Glenwood Springs ~ New Castle

963-1482 All Valley Music Together AllValleyMusic.com • annieflynn@sopris.net

Celtic band

FEAST

Champion Irish dancers

GLENWOOD SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL Jeannie Miller Auditorium Sunday, Jan. 15, 3:00 PM TTICKETS: ICKETS: TICKET OUTLETS: online at Adults: Adults:$19in inadvance, advance, www.JunctionConcerts.com $22attthe heddoor. oor.

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www.JunctionConcerts.com 4 • THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011

Year in review continued om page 4 150 racers. The race closed Main Street for most of the day, prompting several downtown business owners to complain that it adversely affected their business while other businesses said it helped theirs.

NEWS NAmES Susie Jimenez made the final cut in the “Food Network Star” competition on cable TV but lost in the last round to “The Sandwich Guy.” For several weeks, Jimenez shared a big house in Los Angeles with other contestants, bantered on-air with such TV food stars as Guy Fieri, had her “bowl licked” by actress Courtney Cox during one segment, and listened over her thumping heart when super-star food entrepreneur Wolfgang Puck said her open-face chili relleno was “memorable” during one of the show’s final episodes.

••• Noted actor Oliver Platt paid a visit to Colorado Rocky Mountain School for Family Weekend on Oct. 15 and in part had this to say about his alma mater during his passionate address: “You know, CRMS didn’t just save my life … My mind caught fire here. The engine by which I would eventually become myself roared to life here. I was taught to look beyond the obvious and then beyond that … .”

••• Zeta Epsilon sorority named Maureen Nuckols as its 2011 Woman of the Year in September. Nuckols retired after 33 years as

a volunteer EMT/firefighter. In accepting the award she said in part, “The reason I’m accepting this award … there are 75 volunteers still doing this. They invest their time … it takes discipline and real commitment.”

••• A crew comprised of Austin and Maitland Lottimer, their father Barclay, Sophie Sakson and Sally Brennan won first place in the Olympus 48 Hour short-film contest at the Vail Film Festival. The competition called for contestants to shoot, edit and present a short video within 48 hours in Vail using an Olympus PEN camera.

••• Kathy Johnson, of Missouri Heights, took off for Belgium in late August to compete in the World Championships for amateur bicyclists. Johnson qualified for the World Championships by placing third at the Fort Collins Cycling Festival on Aug. 19-21, then won her division in Belgium.

••• The Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities promoted Amy Kimberly to the position of executive director in September, as former director Ro Mead stepped down to focus on education programming. About the changes at CCAH, board president Dan Giese said, “The team of Mead and Kimberly has created much positive change in this community. That partnership will continue to be an even stronger force.”

••• Judy Harvey had a hot hand in the Car-

January January Nutrition Classes Fridays, 10-11 am • Valley View Cardiac Rehab & Wellness Center Registered dietitians teach weekly sessions on eating for wellness. Free to Valley View’s Cardiac Wellness members, $7 for nonmembers. Preregister by calling 384-7006.

December 30 Class cancelled

January 6: Managing Your Weight and Fad Diets January 20: Reading Food Labels and a "Virtual" Grocery Store Tour

January 27: What is the BEST Cardiac Diet?

Recycle magazines Your 2011 magazines can provide distraction and entertainment for our patients and visitors.

Donating them to this purpose also diverts publications from the landfill. You may drive to the hospital’s upper entrance and give them to our valet staff.

The Carbondale Wild West Rodeo, held Thursday nights through the summer, packed ‘em in as never before. Photo by Jane Bachrach bondale Mountain Fair baking contests, taking first in the fruit pie category, third in exotic pies and second in cake torte. In fly-casting, Jesse Avery of Aspen put his bug 3/4 of an inch from the fish’s lips to take first place. Other event winners included: Stacy Evans (women’s limbo), Allison Austin and Shanthy Coleman (tie in men’s limbo), Jeff Craig (horseshoes sin-

gles), Willie Joe/Bix Trujillo (horseshoes doubles), Zeke Tiernan (men’s Mt. Sopris Runoff), Megan Lund Lizotte (women’s Mt. Sopris Runoff), Henry Maxwell (under 19 Mt. Sopris Runoff), Dustin Roth (4-Mile Fair Run), Mark Ross (men’s wood splitting), and Betty Pfeiffer (T-shirt scavenger hunt).

••• YEAR IN REVIEW page 7

AT VALLEY VIEW HOSPITAL

HMR offers help with weight loss Losing weight is among the most common New Year’s resolutions. The HMR weight management program at Valley View Hospital can help those resolutions become reality with a real lifestyle change and medically significant weight loss.

There are program options to fit every lifestyle, both in-clinic and at home. From the decision-free medically supervised diet to self-directed diet kits, the HMR method has helped thousands to lose weight and gain health.

To find out about HMR, the country’s leading weight loss program, call 945-2324 or toll free at 866-231-6260.

Tobacco Cessation Classes Create a personalized plan to stop smoking using the Quit Smart Program from Duke University. Small group classes are taught by Sandy Hyra, RN and Deb Meader BSN, CCRN. All three sessions must be attended. Individual classes available by request. Fee $35.

January 9, 23, 25, 5:30 pm

Second floor classroom at Valley View Hospital.

New class sessions begin on the first Tuesday of every odd-numbered month.

For questions or to register, please contact Valley View Hospital Respiratory Therapy at 384-7695.

Genetic Counseling for cancer patients and their families

Clinic held every fourth Thursday of the month at VVH

Many people worry about being diagnosed with cancer, especially if a close relative had the disease. Determining if your family’s cancer is related to an inherited gene is important in assesing your risk for cancer and its recurrence.

An evaluation by the genetic counselor may clarify your personal risk of cancer or the risk for other family members. It can also help you and your physicians make more informed medical decisions about cancer surveillance and prevention strategies.

Most patients who meet with a genetic counselor find reassurance, direction and empowerment.

Genetic counseling and testing is covered by most insurance companies. For information or an appointment please call 970-384-7570.

VALLEY VIEW HOSPITAL 1906 BLAKE AVENUE, GLENWOOD SPRINGS • WWW.VVH.ORG • 970.945.6535

THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011 • 5

Scuttlebutt

Send your scuttlebutt to news@SoprisSun.com.

Right place, right time Chloe Cox, 8, was in the right place at the right time on Dec. 22 and decided to pass along her good fortune.

It seems that Chloe was dining with family at the Double Dog in West Glenwood when the now-famous “Mystery Gifter” appeared and started handing out crisp, new $100 bills. News accounts say the gifter had withdrawn $10,000 from Wells Fargo bank and then started giving it away.

He handed Chloe a pair of $100 bills, at which point she announced she was putting one of them in a Salvation Army red kettle and donating the other one to CARE (Colorado Animal Rescue). Upon hearing her plans, the gifter then handed over two more.

Good goin’, Chloe. Your donations went to worthy causes.

Pevec film on its way

Emily Bruell boosts her sister, Renee, so she can hang donations on the Giving Tree at Third and Main on Christmas morning.

The girls made several puffballs and hung them on the tree, and also brought some jackets, mittens and hats that they donated for those who need them. Photo by Julie Albrecht

Zuleika Pevec reports that her brother, Hamilton, has just returned from eight months in Nepal where he made a film that has been selected for the Banff World Tour 2012.

Titled “Hanuman Airlines: Fly Over Everest,” the film follows Sanubabu Sanuwar and Lakpa Sherpa as they paraglide from the top of the world’s tallest mountain.

The two men have also been nominated for National Geographic magazine’s Adventure of the Year.

Hamilton reports you can vote for Sanuwar and Sherpa until Jan. 18 at www.adventure.nationalgeographic.com.

“What’s good for them is also good for the movie,” Hamilton said.

“Hanuman Airlines” received international acclaim after it became the first film to win two awards at the

Coupe Icare film fest in St. Hillaire, France, including the top prize and the people’s choice award. “The ball is rolling and we have been requested to screen at many film festivals around the world,” Hamilton said.

For more information, go to www.fauxreelfilms.com.

Firefighter II class The Carbondale Fire District’s Flashing Beacon newsletter for December reports the following volunteers participated in the Firefighter II class and did an outstanding job: Susie Adgate, Joe Enzer, Nic Kirvida, Ray Sauvey, Ray Bourg, Tony Petrocco, Ryan Lahti, Seth Williams, Coley Campbell, Josh Greene and Debra Lee.

Tune in to barry Barry Sheehan used to follow Cowboy Randy every Friday morning on KDNK but now he’s shifted to every other Friday night from 7 to 9 p.m. “Barry’s Show” (as it’s called) is reminiscent of free-form FM programming from the late 1960s and early 1970s, when DJs loved the music they played, blended various genres together and made it all fit.

While we’re at it, a delayed “Welcome to Town” goes out to KDNK News Director Erik Skalac and Public Affairs Director/News Reporter Ed Williams.

You’re doin’ good.

They say it’s your birthday Birthday greetings go out to: Randy Schutt, Sue Edelstein and Nick Walgren (Dec. 28), Mark Gray (Dec. 29), Beymar Silva (Dec. 30), Kris Cook (Dec. 31), Lucas Pulver and Anne Grice (Jan. 1), and Paul Nieslanik and Skip Bell (Jan. 4).

A UNIQUE RESALE BOUTIQUE AT RED ROCK PLAZA 774 HWY 133 CARBONDALE (Next to the Co-Op) 970-510-5030

BRAND NEW MERCHANDISE AT DISCOUNT PRICES! Holiday hours: Open Daily 11AM - 7PM, Sundays Noon to 5PM

Santa forget something on your list?

Don’t pout... don’t cry!

Labels is here, so stop on by!

REMEMBER... First customer of the day picks the Daily Sale!

6 • THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011

Year in review continued om page 5 Holly “Honey” Miely said she planned to compete in an international pole dancing competition at the Oriental Theatre in Denver on Aug. 5-7. “I am looking forward to the opportunity to perform amongst so many amazing pole dancers I respect and admire,” Miely said in a press release. “The international presence is also very exciting for me as you rarely get access to so much international talent in one place.”

••• John Toly, a longtime Carbondale resident, was chosen to design the 40th annual Carbondale Mountain Fair poster and T-shirt. He last designed the poster/T-shirt in the mid-1970s.

••• Jack and Marsha Brendlinger were inducted into the Aspen Hall of Fame during a banquet at the Hotel Jerome on Jan. 22. They built the Applejack Inn on Aspen’s Main Street in the early 1960s, were involved in Aspen in numerous ways for decades, and moved downvalley to Carbondale several years ago.

••• Liam Kelly from Carbondale Boy Scout Troop 235 organized a team to travel to Joplin, Missouri to help rebuild a church gazebo damaged by a tornado. Caleb Begly of Marble and Robbie Thompson of Carbondale both thought the trip was a good idea so they also signed on.

••• After a collective 64 years between them in Marble, Ron Miller and Joyce Illian moved to Astoria, Oregon, into a small cottage overlooking the Columbia River.

In remembrance Carbondale area residents said final goodbyes to several community members in 2011, among them: Anna Fredericks Lois Jane Fender Christopher Cameron “Cam” Moore Emilie Jane Phillips James “Jim” Luttrell Ellen Grenko Conny Erhard Josephine Schultz Philip Arthur Rosenberg Geoffrey D. Legg Michael Albert Barry Jamie Jon Samuelson Andreux Jeffree (AJ) Argento Amy Lee Luttrell Charlotte Ruth Walls Thomas Raymond Becker Howard W. Berkman Kurt Thomas Jakob Rowan Fredrick Dietz Jake Stoner Bill Jeffries

Letters continued om page 2 tumbleweed blowing down the street, storefronts boarded up with their shingles squeaking in the wind.

Au contraire! Since we bravely “stood down” the Big Box developer our town has thrived! We have the Third Street Center, Phat Thai, Beer Works, Steve’s Guitars, S.A.W artist’s studios, Fatbelly Burgers, an upscale furniture store, a leather shop, clothing boutiques, jewelry store, a locally-grown meat store, a running/hiking store, wonderful consignment stores, an alternative high school in the old middle school building, along with other valuable non-profits.

We have also seen a bike trail developed from Carbondale past Rock Bottom Ranch to Emma and beyond and another bike trail built from downtown Carbondale along Highway 133 toward Redstone. We have a new recreation center. We have the 5Point Film Festival that joins Mountain Fair, Potato Day, music in the park during the summer, and a host of other community events. Our restaurant and bar scene has improved so much that people from Aspen who are look-

ing for something“real”come to Carbondale for an evening of fun.

Now those of you who count every salestax penny might say these businesses and activities aren’t lucrative enough to fill our coffers to overflowing. I have a difficult time believing that Carbondale will suffer tremendously if we vote against a huge, more expensive grocery store and some multi-story retail outlets and more housing.

I hope the majority of us have the common sense to know a good thing when we already have it. Carbondale is at the confluence of two of the most beautiful rivers in the world, at the base of a mountain, that if you were asked to draw one, would look just like Sopris! We are “on the radar” of a very coveted clientele of tourists, outdoor enthusiasts, artists, performers, and seekers of something unique. They won’t want to come here anymore if we become like everywhere else! Let’s not be like“anywhere U.S.A.”Let’s not“spoil our nest.”

Pat Bingham Carbondale THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011 • 7

Community Calendar

To list your event, email information to news@soprissun.com. Deadline is 5 p.m. Saturday. Events take place in Carbondale unless noted. For up-to-the-minute valley-wide event listings, check out the Community Calendar online at soprissun.com. View and submit events online at soprissun.com/calendar.

THURSDAY Dec. 29

ROTARY • Carbondale Rotary meets at the firehouse Wednesdays at 7 a.m.

Highway 133. The cost is $12 and includes incredible appetizers, a house drink and tip. Featured guests include: Jeannie Martellaro (Mary Kay Cosmetics, Laura Albriecht (Aspen Face & Body Sculpting) and Angie Marasco (Parents Handbook).

An RSVP is requested. Info: Go to facebook or call 704-1711.

DIVAS mEET • The Valley Divas, a women’s networking group, meets the first Wednesday of the month from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Konnyaku in La Fontana Plaza on

OPEN mIc • Dan Rosenthal hosts open mic nights at Rivers restaurant in Glenwood Springs every Wednesday from 8 to 10 p.m.

Glenwood Springs Center for the Arts concludes. The hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ROTARY • The Mt. Sopris Rotary Club meets at Mi Casita every Thursday at noon.

WEDNESDAY Jan. 4

LIVE mUSIc • PAC3 in the Third Street Center presents Motet with special guests Euforquestra at 8 p.m.

Motet’s roots are in jazz, Afrobeat, funk, salsa and samba. Info: www.pac3carbondale.com.

FILm • Aspen Film’s “Academy Screenings” takes place at Harris Concert Hall in Aspen through Jan. 1. Info: www.aspenfilm.org.

Further Out

FRIDAY Dec. 30 mOVIES • The Crystal Theatre presents “My Week with Marilyn” (R) at 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 30-Jan. 5. mUSIc TOGETHER • Today is the deadline for receiving an early registration discount for All Valley Music Together.

Winter Bells music classes begin on Jan. 9.

The classes are for infants to age 5. Info: 963-1482.

LIVE mUSIc • PAC3 in the Third Street Center presents Young Dubliners at 8 p.m.

This hard-rocking Irish band is notorious for whirling “jig pits” that often erupt at live shows. Info: www.pac3carbondale.com.

LIVE mUSIc • Steve’s Guitars presents live music every Friday. Info: 963-3304.

ANTONIO APPEARS • Film star and Aspen resident Antonio Banderas helps

NEW YEAR’S • Numerous venues feature music tonight. For details, call your favorite place.

MONDAY Jan. 2 LIbRARIES OPEN • Garfield County libraries will be open during normal hours the day after New Year’s.

TUESDAY Jan. 3

$5 OFF

SHOW cONcLUDES • Winterfest at the

ANY PURCHASE OF $20 OR MORE

$20 OFF

Miser’s Mercantile

OF $100 OR MORE

HPc mEETS • Carbondale’s Historic Preservation Commission meets the first Thursday of each month at town hall starting at 6:30 p.m.

VcR DIScUSSION • The Hothouse Design Project hosts a discussion about the design of the Village at Crystal River at the Third Street Center from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Items up for discussion include the project’s history, financial implications, design vibe (what it feels like), future opportunities to publicly review the project in the town processes, commercial vacancies in town, market supply/demand for both the housing and the retail/commercial space, open space in Carbondale, Highway 133 now and in the future, the current City Market site and Main Street implications, according to Hothouse Design Project founder Andrea Korber.

WINTER cAmPING cLASS • The Colorado Mountain Club gives a free class in Winter Camping from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Carbondale fire house. The class is taught by Eli Fester, a volunteer instructor with the club’s backpacking school. RSVP at 925-6648.

FRIDAY Jan. 6 FIRST FRIDAY • Carbondale’s First Friday celebration continues with all kinds of events on Jan. 6.

TUESDAY Jan. 10 NORDIc SKIING • Roaring Fork Conservancy’s hosts a guided cross-country ski tour along the banks of the Roaring Fork River from 5 to 7 p.m. The tour begins at Stein Park at the end of Cemetery Lane and covers about 1.5 miles of gently sloping terrain. The tour is appropriate for those 12 and older. Info: 927-1290.

ONGOING page 9

Happy Holidays from

A PURCHASE

THURSDAY Jan. 5

in

Coupon good December 9-31, 2011

SATURDAY Dec. 31

upon & is co br cu t out th ing

SEASON’S GS N I T E E R G

host the Ajax Cup apres-ski event from 2:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Aspen Mountain. Proceeds benefit the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club. A limited number of tickets are still available. Info: Barbara Frank at 970-205-5102.

303 Main St. • Carbondale • 963-3940 OPEN 7 DAYS

and Thank You.

L

IFT-UP has been a reliable channel of our community’s goodwill and compassion for the past 29 years. Together we have brightened the holidays for thousands in our region, and kept many families going through the past year of economic hardship. This tremendous outpouring of assistance is only possible through the combined efforts and generosity of many volunteers, businesses, churches and financial supporters. Thank you for sharing in this wonderful, effective community outreach, and for trusting LIFT-UP to meet the basic need for food in our local area. Current economic conditions have more than 2,000 people turning to LIFT-UP for help each month.

Please consider making a tax-deductible year-end contribution by December 31st so LIFT-UP can continue to serve our local neighbors in need this winter and throughout the coming new year. Secure online donations may be made at www.liftup.org or sent by mail to:

LIFT-UP • P.O. Box 1928 • Rifle, CO 81650 • 625-4496 8 • THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011

Ongoing WYLIE ART cLASSES • Registration is under way for art classes at the Wylie Art Center in Basalt. Classes include Boys Art Club I (ages 5-10) and Girls Art Club (ages 5-10). Info: 927-4123. ccAH • The Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities’ “Hand to Heartâ€? handcrafted gifts show continues through the holiday season. Arts include: Laurel Astor (pastel paintings), Ginny Beesley (pottery), Stanley Bell (paintings), Tanya Black (fabric art), Jenna Bradford (fabric art), Staci Dickerson (paintings), Melanie Finan (textile art), Sandie Gardner (pottery), Kathy Hansel (jewelry), Norrie Hoffman (crochet hats), Alexandra Jerkunica (painted ballet shoes), Bob McCool (photograph), Brad Reed Nelson (wood), David Moore (turned bowls), Rochelle Norwood (hand-made chocolates), David Powers (blown and sculptural glass), Erin Rigney (paintings), Tom Semborski (metal sculpture), Lisa Singer (cards) and Matt Suby (photograph). Info: 963-1680. cLAY cENTER • The Carbondale Clay Center concludes its 2011 Holiday Invitational on Dec. 30. Featured ceramists include: H.P. Bloomer, Tony Wise, John Cohorst, Nathan Bray, Lyla Goldstein, Avi Arenfeld, Tyler McGinn, Casey Coffman, CJ Jilek, Elizabeth Farson, K Rhynus Cesark, Shawn O’Connor, Lusterbunny, Diane Kenney, Sarah Moore, Donie Hubbard, Charlie Childress, Mary Ballou, Sue Tirrell, Katie Kitchen, Lisa Maher, Tom Jaszczak, Ronan Peterson, Tammie Lane and Gail Burtik. The Carbondale Clay Center is located at the east end of Main Street. Info: 963-2529.

WINTER FEST • The Glenwood Springs Center for the Arts’ Winterfest show features Joy Commons, Dan Glidden, Betsy Blackard, Ewa Lachur- Omeljaniuk, Chad Zanca, Mary Blichmann, Dara Barth, Nancy Helser, Phyllis Hackett, Anne Ramsay, Tara Vetter, Anne Moll, Sinda Wood, Barbara Jean Swan, Sara Ward, Kellie Philburn, Jennifer Miller, Randi Garcia, Sandy Richards, Jamie Spry, Marcia Fuscaro, Jessica Kidd, Terry Muldoon, Noemi Kosmowski, Kristoff Kosmowski and Kari Doerr. The show continues through Jan 3. The Glenwood Springs Center for the Arts is located east of the Hot Springs Pool. Info: 945-2414.

TEEN PHOTO SHOW • The Gordon Cooper Library presents a photo show by local teens based on their favorite book titles.

mAYOR’S cOFFEE HOUR • Chat with Carbondale Mayor Stacey Bernot on Tuesdays from 7 to 8 a.m. at the Village Smithy, located at 26 S. Third St. PHOTOS SHOWN • Allison Austin shows her photography at the Blend on Highway 133.

GORDON cOOPER • The Gordon Cooper Library presents activities for kids from kindergarten through ďŹ fth grade from 4 to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, and toddler and infant story time on Thursdays at 10:30 a.m. Info: 963-2889. bOOK cLUb • The Senior Matters Book Club meets the third Tuesday of the month at the Third Street Center from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Info: 945-7094. bLOOD DRIVE • Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs holds its monthly blood drives from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the third Tuesday of the month. Info: 384-6657. cONVERSATION cIRcLES • Literacy Outreach holds conversation circles for non-English speakers to practice their English at the Gordon Cooper Library Mondays from 2 to 3:30 p.m. and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers are needed. Info: 945-5282.

LINX NETWORKING • The Linx networking group meets each Tuesday morning at 7:15 a.m. at the ChafďŹ n and Light Real Estate ofďŹ ce in downtown Basalt. Linx is a business networking organization whose members work together to grow and promote their businesses. All dues not used for administration are given to local charities each December. Info: Keith at (970) 390-8401. cANcER SUPPORT GROUP • PathďŹ nders holds its support group at the Third Street Center the fourth Tuesday of every month. Info: Elizabeth Miller at 925-7792.

AL-ANON mEETS • Al-Anon for friends and families of alcoholics meets at the Orchard Tuesdays. Info: 963-8773.

GRIEF GROUP • Hospice of the Valley, in partnership with Grand River Hospital, is offering an ongoing Grief and Loss Support Group that meets the ďŹ rst and third Monday of every month. Info: 544-1574.

The last word on 2011 comes from Peppy on Missouri Heights. Witnesses said Peppy was exclaiming “yea� rather than “nay.� Photo by Jane Bachrach

YogaWorks Teacher Training Returns to Carbondale in 2012

Curious?

12 Hr YogaWorks Intensive!

Jan 21 and 22

(970) 309-6911 449 Main Street, Carbondale

info@peacefulfrank.com

December’s Special FILMS SHOWING: Monsieur Lazhar | Melancholia | Shame The Kid with a Bike | The Descendants ... and many more

TICKETS

aspen show tickets at the wheeler 970 920 5770 | www.aspenshowtix.com DOORS open 30 minutes before show MEMBERS of AMPAS, BAFTA and guilds call 970 925 6882 x308 LIGHT FOOD AVAILABLE for purchase in theater

aspenfilm.org

Cranberry Body Masque Private Mineral Bath Back, Neck and Shoulder Massage plus a Day Pass to Our Historic Vapor Caves

IT’S A DAY AT THE SPA FOR $115

-VY 0UMVYTH[PVU 9LZLY]H[PVUZ JHSS ‹ `HTWHOZWH JVT :WH 6WLU :HSVU ‹ 4HQVY *YLKP[ *HYKZ ‹ .PM[ *LY[PÄJH[LZ (]HPSHISL THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011 • 9

Community Briefs VcR forum Jan. 4 A Village at Crystal River forum will take place at town hall at 6 p.m. on Jan. 4. Representatives from both sides will be on hand to give presentations on the development proposal that residents will vote on Jan. 31. Professional mediator Tim McFlynn will be the moderator.

On a related note, a VCR forum that KDNK broadcast earlier in the month can be accessed at www.kdnk.org.

The deadline for in-town residents to register to vote in the municipal election is Jan. 3. The Garfield County Clerk and Recorder will mail out ballots by Jan. 9.

Ice skating arena now open

Mark Gray provided the bass line for the Walt Smith Trio when they played KDNK’s community mixer at PAC3 on Dec. 21. Later in the night, Santa paid a visit to the kids.

Photo by Lynn Burton

The ice rink at the Gus Darien arena on County Road 100 is open seven days a week, according to a press release.

Skate rentals are also available seven days a week at the Carbondale Recreation Center at 567 Colorado Ave. Skates are available on a daily basis (24 hour rental) for $3 or for an additional fee, a multiple day rental will be available for five days for $10.

Ice maintenance usually takes place in the mornings and the rink is closed to the public for safety reasons and to let the ice form during this time.

The rink is also closed to the public for the following recreation programs: • Wednesdays from 6 to 10 p.m. for the broomball league; • Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 7 p.m. for youth hockey lessons and scrimmages.

• Pick up hockey is scheduled for Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays from 7:30 to 9 p.m.

• Private rentals of the rink are also available. Call 5101278 for more information.

business of the Year nominations released The nominations for the Carbondale Chamber of Com-

merce Business of the Year are: Collage Creative Collections & Handmade Gifts, Sopris Liquor & Wine, EverGreen Events, Eco-Goddess, lulubelle, Umbrella Roofing, InterMountain Waste & Recycling, The Gathering Center at the Orchard Church at Carbondale.

The winner will be announced at the chamber’s Business After Hours in January.

christmas tree recycling continues Carbondale’s Christmas tree recycling for in-town residents at the northeast corner of Colorado Avenue and Fourth Street continues through Jan. 31. Please, no ornaments, tinsel, garland, wreaths, lights, wires, nails, plastic bags, stands, flocked or artificial trees, commercial waste or dumping. Mulch will be available in mid-February. Call 963-1307 for more information.

cmc offers personal care training Starting in January, Colorado Mountain College is offering personal care attendant training at CMC centers in Rifle, Glenwood Springs and Edwards.

A CMC spokeswoman said the field of personal care attendant is one of the fastest growing careers in the country.

The class provides hands-on training for those wanting to become a home care aide, patient care provider, nurse assistant, family caregiver or volunteer for elderly, chronically ill or disabled individuals. “The class also can provide a starting point for anyone interested in a health care career,” said the spokeswoman.

The minimum age for enrollment in this continuing education class is 16. No GED or high school diploma is necessary to take the course.

The class at Colorado Mountain College in Glenwood Springs runs Tuesdays, Jan. 31 through May 1, from 6 to 9 p.m. To register, call 945-7486.

PUBLIC NOTICE

Wishing you a pleasant year to come.

Thank you for reading and supporting The Sopris Sun. •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••

The Sopris Sun Board of Directors Peggy DeVilbiss, David Johnson, Allyn Harvey, Colin Laird, Laura McCormick, Trina Ortega, Jean Perry, Elizabeth Phillips and Frank Zlogar The Sopris Sun Staff Bob Albright, Jane Bachrach, Lynn Burton, Will Grandbois, Terri Ritchie and Cameron Wiggin

10 • THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011

From the Garfield County Clerk and Recorder Election Division In accordance with C.R.S. 1-7.5-105(1.5) (b) and Secretary of State Rule 12.3.4, the Garfield County Clerk & Recorder Election Division, invites the public to comment on the proposal of conducting the 2012 Primary Election by mail ballot.

Garfield County voters have been voting by mail in Coordinated Odd Year elections since 1993. Many municipalities in Garfield County conduct all elections by mail ballot. Since the 2000 General Election the percentage of Garfield County voters requesting mail ballots has increased steadily from just over 50% in 2000 to 79% of the voters who cast ballots by mail in the 2008 Presidential Election as well as the 2010 General Election. Legislation enacted in 2007, gives all voters the opportunity to opt into permanent mail-in voter status. At this time 68% of the active registered voters in Garfield County have requested placement on the permanent mailin voters’ list.

The factors considered beneficial to the voters of Garfield County, if the 2012 Primary Election scheduled for Tuesday, June 26, 2012 is conducted by mail, include convenience, popularity, turnout, and cost effectiveness.

Written comments will be received via mail, fax, or e-mail until Friday January 13, 2012. The public hearing with the Board of County Commissioners is set for Monday, January 16, 2012 at 8:00 a.m.

E-mail address: jalberico@garfield-county.com Mailing Address: Garfield County Clerk & Recorder 109 8th Street, Suite 200 Glenwood Springs, CO 81601 Fax Number: 970-947-1078 For more information call: 970-945-2377 ext 1820

Surfing the “It” in Baja, Mexico I’ve known for a long time that surfers are crazy. They suffer from an acute disease of the inner ear called “glassy swells” that makes their gaze fall on waves, any waves, within eyeshot. Which in turn makes them walk into metal posts, stand like statues, swerve like drunken sailors, or suddenly stop mid-sentence.

They get jumpy around the ocean. They have nicknames like Pondo, Carrier and Mads.

Sometimes they even have hippy-bum tendencies like not showering for weeks, sleeping in the sand, and living off tacos, limes and beer. But get them in

By Cameron Scott the water and life snaps into the one-dimensional focus of the obsessed. The obsession of the “it.”

These past few weeks “it” hasn’t been about the el Nortes blasting over the dunes and depositing sand in every crack and orifice of every sentient and non-sentient thing around.

It hasn’t been about the rain, either, up to my count at least five downpours, which isn’t strange if you are visiting the Pacific Northwest or, say, the Amazon. Or the fact that every single desert plant is growing green and flowering. Or that the rocky, spiky, poisonous peninsula of Baja, Mexico has suddenly erupted in green. Not even long runs on open beaches without dwellings as far as the eye can see. No, it hasn’t been about any of that. These past few weeks have been all about the “it.”

In the Unabridged Dictionary of Surfing and Bumming by Cooly McRadderpants, “It” is defined as “ An absorption, meditative, vegetative, or otherwise, that can lead down the pathways of self-realization and enlightenment as easily as the pathways of chaos and distraction.”

Tailgate

“It” all started by skipping out on the winter snow season in Colorado, because, well, I’d grown up skiing since I was three and all it takes is one or two good days of powder a year to satiate my hunger. And while winter fly-fishing, my go-to sport for solitude, is beautiful, the ice that forms on your waders and the guides of your fly rod is not. Winter flyfishing gets … ummm … cold after a while, so I didn’t particularly feel the need to spend the dead winter months of December and January freezing and thawing various body extremities in the Roaring Fork Valley.

“It” then morphed into gut sucking, grunting and pulling my way into various wet suits, booties, and hoodies while barking like a trained seal for sardines. I was going surfing.

Yes, I was. I was going to learn a new trick or two while avoiding the risks of avalanches, collapsing ice-shelves and the holiday season.

“It” wasn’t long before I was sitting in a hammock, beneath the three walls and a roof of a palapa, drinking a Tecate with lime, pondering the important things of life -- like the ever changing states of my ear fuzz and if the curried eggplant over lentils, rice and potatoes would be enough to score a massage from my curvaceous, curly haired, beach-babe of a palapa-sharing partner who was out catching the last few sets of waves in the setting sun.

Did “it” happen? Kind of. I mean I stood up on a graciously loaned surfboard a few times, and felt the exhilaration and power of a breaking wave on more than one occasion, and also the exhilaration and power of having a wave spincycle me, and what it was like to spend days and days waiting for surf, playing Farmopoly and Chinese Checkers and the ukulele, tearing through books, sorting sea shells on the sea shore, and sharing my life with millions of sand grains.

Sounds more like a road-trip than a surf trip? Somewhat.

But there was a bit of “it” and the “it” was good. In fact, I’m not sure I wouldn’t mined more of “it.”

A lot more.

Dear Tony The birds dive for words.

If they fly away with nothing they circle back and dive again.

When the waves wash over rocks the kelp lifts in the barrel then smash! Over and over until strands of words break free.

The word is a sound, the sound a sea, the sea, an ocean.

Without Internet or telephone the ocean is the first and last word of the day.

– Cameron Scott

Proud to call Carbondale home

Common Ground

It’s been a blessing to be able to live and work in Carbondale these last few years.

Though my job is taking me back to Glenwood Springs, I’ve

By Bill Kight decided to continue living here.

There are many reasons for choosing to stay in a town that I am proud to call home. The first thing that comes to mind isn’t a thing at all. It has to do with what makes this community alive. What makes a place thrive is the people who live here. It is easy to forget that “we” are those people.

“We the People …” the first three lines of the Constitution of the United States hold the most powerful union of any nation on this earth. Think about that for a moment.

COMMON GROUND page 12

Please remember these folks Below, you’ll find most of the businesses and individuals who helped support your community newspaper with advertising in 2011.

Thanks to these folks, for the past 12 months The Sopris Sun has been able to bring you news, entertainment, photos and more.

5 Point Film Festival Ace Hardware- Carbondale Ackerman Log and Timber Adherence Insurance All Valley Music Together Aloha Mountain Cyclery Alpine Animal Hospital Alpine Bank - Carbondale Alpine Meadows Kennel American Crown Circus Amore Realty AreDay Artist Vision/ Melida Prall Jewelery Aspen Art Museum Aspen Center for Physics Aspen Choral Society Aspen Dance Connection Aspen Eco Fest Aspen Filmfest Aspen Home Health Aspen Santa Fe Ballet Aspen Skiing Company Aspen Solar Aspen Valley Land Trust Aspen/Pitkin County Housing Authority Avalanche Ranch Back Door Consignment

Berthod Motors Blue Sky Woodwork Blue Tulip Music Production BMS Multi-Sport Bross Hotel Carbondale Acupuncture Center Carbondale Animal Hospital Carbondale Clay Center Carbondale Community School Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities Carbondale First Friday Carbondale Food Co-op CBC Cello Piano Chamber of Commerce - Carbondale Child Help River Bridge Children First Chris & Terry Chacos Church at Carbondale City Market CLEER/G-NECI Collage! Creative Collections Colorado Animal Rescue Colorado Educational Consulting Colorado Medical Center Colorado Mountain College/Doug Stewart Colorado Mountain College-Foundation Colorado Mountain Dispensary Colorado Rocky Mountain School Colorado State Veterans Home Comfort Inn & Suites Community Bread Oven Coredination Pilates Cornerstone Mortgage Company

Cowboy Up Carbondale Crystal Fly Shop Crystal River Elementary School Crystal River Spa Crystal Springs Ranch Crystal Valley Veterinary Care Cuong Nhu Oriental Martial Arts Cutting Edge Travel Dancing Colours Doctor’s Garden Domino’s Pizza Don’t Trash Carbondale Down Valley Tavern El Je Barber El Montanes Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Evolving Gardens & Grounds Landscapes Farmers’Market Fig & Lily Fireplace Company Floral Boutique Floyd’s of Mayberry Barber Shop Fortune Media Frank McSwain Jr Fresh & Wyld Friends of the Gordon Cooper Library Frosty Merriott Garden Planet, LLC Garfield County Clerk Garfield County Housing Authority Garfield County Public Library Get it All Auction Gianinetti’s Performance & Services, LLC Glenwood Downtown Market

Glenwood Vaudelle Reveu Grass Roots Television Green Build Roofing Green Miracle Medicinals Greenline Architects Greg Masse Harmony Scott Jewelry Heidi’s Deli Heritage Park Care Center High Country News High Life Unlimited High Tone Auto Body Humanitarian Services Awards Dinner Independence Run & Hike Independent Press Jackson Hewitt Jacquelyn & Lou Ron Thompson Jazz Aspen Snowmass Konnyaku / Sake Sushi Bar Labels Lift-Up Linda Wylie Lisa Dancing-Light Lodge on the Roaring Fork lulubelle M3 Marketing Main Street Gallery & The Framer Main Street Spirits Marble Charter School Marble Rye Company Mason & Morse Medical Marijuana Centers of Colorado

Miser’s Mercantile Mother Earth Mountain Family Health Mountain Groove Productions Mountain Harvest Mountain Regional Housing Mt Sopris Historical Society Mt Sopris Nordic Council Paula Valenti Peppino’s Pizza Pitkin County /Pat Bingham Pitkin County Airport Pitkin County Jobs Planted Earth Polish, A Salon For Nails Potato Day Comittee Project Graduation Promotional Concepts Ragged Mountain Sports Rampage Raven Heart Gallery Red Hill Council Red Rock Diner Redstone Inn Reynovations Warehouse Rifle Truck & Trailer River Valley Ranch RJ Paddywacks Roaring Fork Cultural Council Roaring Fork Family Physicians Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers Roaring Fork Transit Authority Rock Bottom Ranch Rocky Mountain High

Rocky Mountain Omnium Ross Montesorri Rotary Club Of Carbondale RPI Consulting Russets Rythm & Brews San Juan Leather Sheepdog Finals Slow Food Solar Flair Sopris Kitchens & Baths Sopris Liquor and Wine Sopris Women’s Clinic Spellbinders Spring Creek Land & Waterscapes St Mary’s of the Crown Stan Badgett Starsong Foundation State Farm Insurance Sunburst Car Care SunSense Solar Susan Gibbs/Kids Ranch Camp Susie’s Ltd Sweet Rubys Symphony in The Valley The Agency/Bryan Welker The Barber Shoppe The Blend The Buddy Program The Confluence Center The Fleischer Company The Green House The Pour House

Theatre Aspen Third Street Cafe Third Street Center Thunder River Theatre Company Town of Basalt Town of Carbondale - General Town of Carbondale - Legal Announcements Town of Carbondale - Police Dept.

Town of Carbondale - Rec. Dept.

Town of Carbondale - Public Works Dept.

True Nature Inc. Two Rivers Unitarian Universalist Uncle Pizza Valerie Gilliam Valley Events Valley View Hospital Community Relations Valley View Hospital Foundation Village Smithy Waldorf School Western Slope Concert Series Wewer Koehane Wheeler Opera House Whimsical Women of the West White House Pizza Wilderness Workshop Will Grandbois WindWalkers Yampah Spa Zikr Dance Ensemble

Please remember these businesses as you complete your holiday shopping because you’re not only helping them, you’re helping The Sopris Sun continue its mission to “Inform, inspire and build community.”

THE SOPRIS SUN • DEcEmbER 29, 2011 • 11

Weiss steps down at SEI; Houpt named interim director Sopris Sun Staff Report Solar Energy International announced last week that co-founder/director Johnny Weiss is stepping down as of Jan. 1, 2012, and board chairperson Tresi Houpt has been named interim director. “I am so proud of SEI -- both our new team and all of our past accomplishments,� Weiss said. “Our mission to help others learn about renewable energy is stronger than ever, and it has never been more important.�

Houpt, a former GarďŹ eld County Commissioner, has served in non-proďŹ t management at the local, state and national level, and has advanced awareness on critical issues that support the need for adoption of renewable energy technologies, according to a SEI press release. “Now, more than ever in the history of our nation, is the time for all of us to make a true commitment to renewable energy,â€? Houpt said.“SEI offers a broad spectrum of instructional opportunities for people interested in pursuing a profession in the new energy economy, and I am proud to help lead the board and staff in providing these opportunities.â€?

Weiss co-founded SEI in 1991 as a non-proďŹ t educational TrĂŠsi Houpt organization to help others to use renewable energy resources and sustainable building technologies through education and technical assistance.

The development of SEI’s renewable energy training and outreach capabilities over the last 20 years has provided the organization the opportunity to adopt a new leadership structure, which will allow for enhanced innovation in education and greater offering capacity in the training industry, according to a SEI press release.

Solar Energy International’s growth has been in parallel with the overall expansion of the renewable energy sector and has presented many opportunities for SEI to support its mission. “With this growth and expansion in mind, SEI supports executive director Johnny Weiss's transition to the position of advising co-founder,� said a SEI spokesperson. “For more than 20 years, Weiss has provided SEI with outstanding leadership and guidance, establishing the organization as the most respected professional solar training provider in the industry.�

In recent years, SEI has launched programs to provide training to ensure a thriving professional workforce in support of the renewable energy sector. Additionally, SEI has established programs to serve other solar businesses and organizations through contract training and other business-to-business efforts. At the same time, SEI has expanded many of the original outreach and informational programs that helped position the non-proďŹ t as the global leader in renewable energy education for all populations in the U.S. and internationally.

Through the years, SEI has trained more than 20,000 people from all 50 states and more than 90 countries through hands-on workshops and online courses.

SEI is not afďŹ liated with any dealer, manufacturer, distributor or any other renewable energy commercial enterprise, according to the press release.

Common ground continued om page 11 What a diverse and eclectic bunch we are. Not every community embraces diversity like Carbondale does. Lose that ability and you lose the vibrancy and the vitality that makes life so interesting and worthwhile.

Working downtown on Main Street in the old Forest Service building across from the post ofďŹ ce has given me a sense of belonging, of being in the heart of what makes this place what it is.

On the same block is Sopris Park, the home of “theâ€? Mountain Fair and so much more. A place where on summer evenings you can hear music oating through the air along with the laughter of children playing in the park.

Behind the post ofďŹ ce is Colorado Mountain College where you can register for an evening class or two and learn valuable life skills that carry over into the community.

Close by is the Thunder River Theatre where world-class actors take the stage to perform unforgettable plays.

Across the street from the theatre is the Recreation Center. Here you can exercise after work then next door attend an evening town hall meeting where people who passionately care about where they live know they can have their say and be truly heard.

Where else can you still ride your bike down Main Street? Next time you’re in a hurry to get somewhere ďŹ rst take a deep breath, slow down and enjoy where you live.

Drive down Main and turn south on Third Street a few blocks to the Third Street Center. Thank your lucky stars that we have such a wonderful place where community sustainability is more than just a concept.

Walk down the halls and ďŹ nd one of the non-proďŹ t ofďŹ ces. Go in. Thank them for investing in a dream come true.

Living where I do is a rich and rewarding experience. The block I live in has great neighbors. We often invite each other over sit down and enjoy a home cooked meal together.

A friend across the street is putting the ďŹ nishing touches on her straw bale home.

Over the last year and a half neighbors have pitched in to help any way they can to put sweat equity into where and when it was needed.

Go into a local restaurant and there is usually someone there you know to say hello to and enjoy a laugh or two. What other small town has such a variety of places that serve great food?

Drive a few miles out of town and enjoy a rodeo in the summer or ice skating in the winter.

We need to ask ourselves are we doing enough to preserve the uniqueness of this place we call home. What common values do we hold that are woven into the fabric of what makes us who we are in large measure because of where we live?

Remember ‌�We the People.�

Bill Kight has served as community liaison with the Aspen Sopris Ranger District for the past two years. This month he will be taking over the duties of the Public Affairs OfďŹ cer for the entire White River National Forest.

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