NORTH FORK TIMES
SURFACE CREEK NEWS
NEW CHAPTER BEGINS Crawford librarian retires after 18 years, B1
SPORTS
CARING COMMUNITY Cookie walk, food boxes embody the spirit of the holidays, C1
DELTA COUNTY
OPENING ROUND
High schools face off in annual bank basketball tournament, C4-6 DECEMBER 26, 2018 VOL. 135, NO. 52
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INDEPENDENT
www.deltacountyindependent.com
Food for Thought goes countywide BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Food for Thought has gone countywide — a goal of founder Willyn Webb since the kidsfeeding-kids program was established 10 years ago at the Delta Opportunity School. “It’s such a good feeling to know that all kids who need supplemental food on the weekends will get it, regardless of where they live,” said Willyn Webb, who established the program to provide a service learning opportunity for her students. The program is now headquartered on the Delta campus of Vision Charter Academy, where Webb serves as director. “It is wonderful how our community has come together for the past 10 years, all of the churches, service clubs, school personnel, etc., to make Food for Thought a lasting effort that’s now expanded into the North Fork,” she said. Each Friday, Food for Thought distributes bags filled with food to get kids through the weekend. “Just as important,” Webb said, “it has provided a service learning experience for kids in kindergarten through 12th grade, where we can learn to create a culture in our community where everyone gives to one another.” The achievement of the 10year goal would not be possible without the unprecedented three Neighborhood Assist awards from State Farm totaling $75,000, and the broad support of online voters who voted Food For Thought one of their favorite nonprofit efforts. Those grants have brought sustainability to the program that just wasn’t possible through fundraisers alone, although Webb says fundrais-
ers are still important, because they’re a great way for Vision learners to connect with the community. With the addition of schools in Paonia, Hotchkiss and Crawford, between 250 and 300 bags of food are distributed each week. Each bag contains two breakfasts, two lunches and a snack — nonperishable food items that essentially replace what students would get at school those two days. Portions are more generous just before breaks like the Christmas holiday, but organizers still have to keep in mind the weight and size of the bags, to ensure they’ll fit inside a backpack even the smallest student can haul around. Much of the logistics — including the expansion to the North Fork — are being handled by Kathy Taylor, who is in her second year as counselor at Vision Charter Academy. It’s a role that allows her to build relationships with every Vision learner. “It’s an amazing way to get to know kids,” she said. “In order to be a good counselor you have to establish a relationship with kids, but I don’t have access to them every day in the classroom like the teachers. Now they know me, and I make sure they know how I can help them in other ways. If they’re struggling with something, they know me; they trust me.” Ten years after launching Food For Thought, Webb is still amazed at how many facets of the community continue to come together to make it work. The idea, she recalls, came from a radio announcement she heard about the Kids’ Aid backpack program in Grand Junction. About that time,
Gavan appointed to Colorado PUC BY TAMIE MECK Staff Writer
Gov. John Hickenlooper announced last week that John Gavan will serve as the newest commissioner of the Colorado Public Utilities
John Gavan
INDEX
Accent ........................... A4 Activities ....................... A7 Back Page ................... D8 Business ........................ A8 Church ........................... D6 Classifieds .................. D1-2 Editorial ......................... A2 Legals ......................... D3-5 North Fork Times ........B1-6 Obituaries ..................... A6 School Zone .................. A5 Service Directory ........ D7 Sports ..........................C4-6 Surface Creek News ...C1-3 TV Listings ..................B3-4
Commission. Gavan will serve a four-year term as an unaffiliated member of the board and replaces PUC commissioner Wendy Moser, whose term ends in January. The PUC regulates telecommunications, gas, electric and transportation utilities and establishes regulatory policy for exercising oversight and control of regulated utilities. The PUC “will likely play a significant role in efforts to shift the state toward renewable energy,” according to a Dec. 20 announcement of Gavan’s appointment by Joe Smyth with Clean Cooperative (www.cleancooperative. com). “I am very pleased to have been appointed as a commissioner to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. With a long history of involvement in the telecommunications and GAVAN TO A3
she was looking to create an in-house service learning program at Delta Opportunity School, so she met with the man who started Kids’ Aid, then tweaked that program to fit the needs of Delta Opportunity School. They initially reached out to 12 kids from BELA Preschool, their neighbor at the time. “It’s been amazing to see
how quickly the program grew from there,” she said. “But during those first few years, we barely stayed ahead. Every donation of $10 or $20 was highly valued. We made the rounds of all the service organizations; it was such a great opportunity for the kids to be out in the public speaking, receiving praise and support for the program.”
And there was great buyin from the DOS students, because many of them had experienced hunger in their lives. “It really does give our students peace of mind, as well as nutrition over the weekend they may not have otherwise,” Lincoln Elementary School principal Joe Mock said of the program.
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The recipients of the Food for Thought program aren’t the only ones to benefit. The program has provided an opportunity for older students to develop skills in public speaking, budgeting, shopping, inventory and nutrition.
Marijuana licensing, zoning regulations begin to take shape BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Two ordinances related to the establishment of medical marijuana facilities in the City of Delta passed on first reading at the Dec. 18 meeting of the Delta City Council. One ordinance deals with zoning; the other concerns licensing. Council, staff and the city attorney discussed both matters briefly at the end of a two-hour work session before moving into the regular meeting to take formal action. During that meeting, council member Gerald Roberts voted against both measures, saying the 20-minute discussion in the work session was not sufficient. “It’s premature to vote on this,” he said, a stance he made clear at the beginning of the meeting when he made a motion to remove both ordinances from the agenda. His motion died for lack of a second. It’s likely some changes will be made between first and second readings, but action was required if there’s to be any hope of adopting the regulations before the expiration of a three-month moratorium on the acceptance and processing of medical marijuana facility applications. The moratorium was enacted during a special city council meeting on Nov. 13, just days after voters in Delta
Fee-free days listed for 2019
approved the establishment of medical marijuana facilities. At that time, Roberts noted it would be difficult to develop and enact licensing and zoning provisions in just 90 days, but he voted in favor of the emergency ordinance, recognizing that a unanimous vote was needed to get the process started. In response to Roberts’ concerns at the council meeting, councilmember Chris Ryan noted, “I agree we still need to have discussion on this, but I think it’s highly appropriate that we move forward tonight. One of our commitments was to do this in a timely fashion. That doesn’t mean that we can’t do due diligence. As you well know, we have two readings coming on this and we will have other opportunities for work sessions, as well.” “If you do want to take more time, you can certainly do that but you should consider extending the moratorium if you do,” city attorney David McConaughy advised. Just in case, he recommended putting that step on the January meeting agenda. For the next hour, he went through specific provisions of the ordinances, seeking council input on several questions. Ordinance #17 deals with zoning and land use regulations for medical marijuana. In the A-1 district, cultivation
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park will waive its entrance fee on four days in 2019: • Saturday, April 20 — Start of National Park Week/National Junior Ranger Day • Sunday, Aug. 25 — National Park Service Anniversary • Saturday, Sept. 28 — National Public Lands Day • Monday, Nov. 11 — Veterans Day Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park normally charges $20 per vehicle, $15 per motorcycle and $10 per pedestrian or bicycle. Entrance fees are good for seven days. The entrance fee waiver for the fee-free days does not cover user fees for camping. An annual pass to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is available for $40. This pass admits the permit holder and all accompanying passengers in a single, private, noncommercial vehicle to enter the park. The annual $80 America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass allows unlimited entrance to the more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all national parks.
of medical marijuana is a use by right. Medical marijuana cultivation and medical marijuana sales are a conditional use in B-2. In the B-3 district, medical marijuana testing is a use by right; medical marijuana products manufacturing, research and development are conditional uses. The I (industrial) district allows medical marijuana testing facilities as a use by right, and as a conditional use, cultivation, products manufacturing, research and development and sales of medical marijuana. Performance standards are uniform throughout the land use code: Medical marijuana cultivation facilities must be licensed through the State of Colorado and the City of Delta and shall comply with the following additional standards: a. No noise, dirt or smoke shall be observable off of the premises. b. No owner of real property or person in charge thereof shall allow, permit or cause the odor of marijuana to emanate from that premises to any other property. c. All outdoor lighting fixtures shall be shielded so that the light source is not directly visible off the premises. d. No medical marijuana cultivation facility shall be located within 100 feet of MEDICAL MARIJUANA TO A3
Library hours change Beginning in January 2019, Cedaredge Library will be open on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Delta Library will be open on Mondays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. No other hours will be affected for either library. The Cedaredge Library is open Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. It’s closed Sunday and Monday. The Delta Library is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. It’s closed Friday and Sunday. Hours and locations of all five libraries in Delta County can be found at www.deltalibraries.org.