NORTH FORK TIMES
SURFACE CREEK NEWS
BIKING, HIKING MECCA Special recreation status sought for Jumbo Mountain, B1
SWEET CORN FESTIVAL 25th ANNIVERSARY
MEMORY LANE
Olathe Sweet Corn Festival celebrates ‘agricultural jewel’, C6
Fairview reunions continue 50 years after school’s closure, C1
DELTA COUNTY
AUGUST 3, 2016 VOL. 133, NO. 31
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INDEPENDENT
www.deltacountyindependent.com
City pursues grant for trail extension parks, said the trail would begin behind Big O Tires, go under both bridges and loop back up to the sidewalk on the east side of Highway 50. The distance is 600 feet to the far side of the bridges, then 840 feet back to the sidewalk. Total cost is estimated at $500,000, which includes final engineering and contingency fees. The trail was identified as a high priority in a study of the Gunnison River corridor recently completed by RiverRestoration. A strategic plan developed by Better City consultants point to the city’s inactive riverfront as a significant opportunity to develop recreational assets that will reposition the community
BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
By a 3-2 vote, Delta City Council voted to pursue a grant from the Colorado Department of Transportation to complete the first portion of a trail extension from Confluence Park. In a special meeting July 26, councilmembers agreed to set aside matching funds of $100,000, which is about 20 percent of the total cost of developing the trail under the Highway 50 bridge in North Delta. Christopher Ryan, Ron Austin and Ed Sisson voted in favor of the expenditure; Gerald Roberts and Bill Raley were opposed. Wilma Erven, director of
as a destination attraction and community of choice for employers and their associated workforce. The trail project will not begin until after July 2017, so the city’s contribution can be budgeted in 2017 ($20,000 for design) and 2018 ($80,000 for construction). That news did not reassure councilman Bill Raley, who expressed concern about committing funds that could potentially be used for street repairs and other infrastructure needs. Between the alternate truck route and golf course debt, the city has little in the way of discretionary funds, Raley pointed out. City manager David Torgler said ideally the city’s contribu-
tion will be repaid from a revitalized Delta Urban Renewal Authority, or DURA. DURA is expected to play a major role in developing the gateway project outlined in Better City’s strategic plan for economic revitalization of Delta (see related story). Torgler said the City of Delta has done a great deal of work with Better City, Delta County, Region 10 and Delta County Economic Development to develop that strategic plan. “Now the rubber hits the road,” he said. Raley said it’s nice to talk about the gateway project, which is to include a major hotel, but it’s time to get realistic. Will Delta ever be considered a destination city? “No, it’s not a destination,” Mayor Ed Sisson responded. “We’re trying to change that.” Councilmember Ron Austin said it’s time for the City of Delta to step up and present to the citizens of Delta a viable proposal that in the longterm will create jobs and additional tax revenue.
Austin, who describes himself as a fiscal conservative, said it would be a crying shame to back away from efforts to revitalize the economy. “I truly believe what we’re doing will be an asset to this community,” he said. Raley said he felt city council was being rushed into a decision because of a July 29 grant application deadline. The grant being pursued by the city is funded just every three years. Mary Cooper, a former councilmember, questioned whether the $500,000 project would become “a trail to nowhere” due to lack of right-of-way on the east side of the bridge. She was assured major property owners on the south side of the river have been consulted and are open to discussion about the sale of their property. Torgler said full activation of the 2.2-mile-long river corridor is estimated at $14 million, so it can’t all be done at once. “This is step one,” he said. “River activation will have to take place over time.”
City studies DURA as funding mechanism BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Photo by Randy Sunderland
Harvest time
In the mid 1980s, the City of Delta established an urban renewal authority for the purpose of renovating downtown Delta. Merchants agreed to give up their vendor fee — the portion of sales tax collections they were allowed to keep to cover bookkeeping expenses — to fund the effort.
A bumper crop of locally grown sweet corn is being harvested from fields in the DeltaOlathe areas. Twenty-five years ago, John Harold and a few folks from Olathe decided this agricultural jewel called for a celebration, and the Olathe Sweet™ Sweet Corn Festival was born. The 25th anniversary celebration takes place this Saturday at the Olathe Sweet Corn Park. In addition to all-you-can-eat sweet corn fresh from the fields surrounding Olathe, the event features music, vendors, kids’ games, a pancake breakfast and more. See the complete story on page C6.
School district moves to online student registration BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Delta County Joint School District #50 has expanded its online registration process for the 2016-17 school year. In the past, the Registration Gateway has been used for new students; now it’s open to both new and returning students. “New” students include those students who recently relocated to Delta County, as well as students who are moving from one community to another within Delta County. The process begins with a visit to deltaschools.com. Registration takes 15 to 30 minutes. New students must wrap up registration at their school; an appointment will be scheduled for that visit online.
INDEX
Accent ........................... A4 Activities ....................... A7 Back Page ................... D6 Business ........................ A8 Church ........................... D4 Classifieds .................. D1-2 Editorial ......................... A2 Legals ............................ D3 North Fork Times ........B1-4 Obituaries ..................... A6 Olathe Sweet Corn Fest C6 Service Directory ........ D5 Sports .............................B5 Surface Creek News ...C1-5 TV Listings ..................C3-4
Families of returning students will need their username to log in to their student’s PowerSchool number. The username was provided in a letter from each student’s school. The password for each student is their date of birth, including slashes (example: 02/25/2000). Parents will need to log in separately for each student to be registered, using their respective login information. At a recent school board meeting, school board member Jill Jurca had high praise for the process. She was out of state, and was able to register her daughter for high school in just 10 minutes. Parents without internet access are invited to stop by their child’s school, where computers will be available
for registration. “In this transition year, we’re offering both ways to register,” said superintendent Caryn Gibson. Parents who come in to school will still go through the online registration process, but staff members will be present to guide them through the process. On page B4 of this week’s edition, the school district has listed registration dates and times for each school. “We really look forward, in future years, to registering students in the spring,” Gibson said. “That will be helpful for staffing for the next year.” Also available online are school supply lists for each school in the district. The first day of the 2016-17 school year is Monday, Aug. 22.
Through the Delta Urban Renewal Authority, the Last Chance building at the corner of 3rd and Main was purchased and converted into a visitors’ center that today houses the Delta Area Chamber of Commerce. The old firehouse at 3rd and Meeker was transformed into the Delta County Museum. DURA TO A2
Search for Mary Finnegan suspended After spending five days combing the Uncompahgre National Forest, searchers have exhausted resources and all leads looking for 82-yearold Mary Finnegan of Delta. In light of the time that has passed since Finnegan was reported missing, and when her car was found as well as the extensive search that was conducted, the Mesa County Sheriff ’s Office made the decision to suspend the search at the end of last Thursday. “This was a very difficult decision to make. We were really hoping to find Mary and bring some closure to her family,” Mesa County Sheriff Matt Lewis said in a press release issued last week. “Our searchers are heartbroken, as they really put everything they had into finding her.” The Mesa County Sheriff ’s Office remains in communication with Finnegan’s family, who has been a part of the search from the beginning. The sheriff ’s office is committed to resuming the search if more information or new leads come to light about
Finnegan’s whereabouts. The Mesa County Sheriff ’s Office, Mesa County Search and Rescue, Mesa County Sheriff ’s Posse, Montrose County Sheriff ’s Posse, Montrose Police Department, Carbon County (Utah) Sheriff ’s Office, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Civil Air Patrol, local ranchers familiar with the area as well as family members were involved in the search. All of the resources at the agency’s disposal were used including ground teams, experienced trackers, ATV teams, horses, dogs and air resources. “We can’t thank enough all of the agencies and volunteers who have dedicated their time and energy to this search effort,” said Sheriff Lewis. “These volunteers took time off from their jobs, and gave up, in some cases, days with their own families to help in the search for Mary Finnegan.” It hasn’t been an easy task SEARCH SUSPENDED TO A2
Fish salvage on Grand Mesa lake
Business consulting offered
Colorado Parks and Wildlife has authorized an emergency fish salvage at Big Eggleston Lake on the Grand Mesa starting Saturday, Aug. 6. The lake is being drained so that repairs can be made to a dam outlet structure. The salvage order removes all size, possession and bag limits for all species of fish. Anglers are encouraged to harvest all the fish they can. Anglers must possess a 2016 Colorado fishing license and can use only legal methods of take. Big Eggleston Lake is located about 23 miles northeast of the City of Delta. The lake contains trout. “As the lake is drained the fish will die, so we want anglers to go up there and use the resource,” said John Alves, senior aquatic biologist for CPW’s southwest region. The repairs, being made by the Grand Mesa Water Users Association, are scheduled to be completed in the fall.
The Colorado Office of Economic Development and Trade is partnering with the counties of Delta, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Ouray, San Miguel and Montrose to bring one-on-one consulting to the area. All businesses in the region can take advantage of the business growth strategy assistance. In addition, businesses will have an opportunity to connect with OEDIT’s global business development, business funding, incentives and the Small Business Development Center. Consulting stations will be open at the Bridges Golf & Country Club, 2500 Bridges Drive in Montrose, Friday, Aug. 29, from 9 a.m. to noon. Pre-register online at popupconsultingregion10.eventbrite.com. For more information, email meridith.marshall@state.co.us.