NORTH FORK TIMES
SURFACE CREEK NEWS
THE WILD WEST
ARTISTS AT WORK
SUMMER TAKEDOWN
Crawford celebrates Pioneer Days with parade, fireworks, B1
Edge of the Cedars exhibit opens at Cedaredge Middle School, C1
400 wrestlers expected to compete in Paonia duals this weekend, C7
DELTA COUNTY
SPORTS
JUNE 6, 2012 VOL. 129, NO. 23
75¢
INDEPENDENT
www.deltacountyindependent.com
Republicans face off in primary BY HANK LOHMEYER Staff Writer
Republican candidates for county and state house seats in the primary election met in Orchard City on May 29 for a question-and-answer forum. The two-hour-long event attended by some 50 people was hosted by the Delta County Republican Party Central Committee, which was also responsible for choosing and submitting questions. The primary election mail ballots are going out this week. Official election day is June 26. The Republican primary will see a contested race
for District #3 Delta County commissioner. In District #2, incumbent Bruce Hovde is running unopposed. In the District #3 county commissioner race, Peach Valley farmer and chiropractor Dr. Roger Bentley faces North Fork rancher and businessman Mark Roeber. Bentley is an area native. He has served for six years on the Delta County Planning Commission. Bentley has placed an emphasis on private property rights and the U.S. Constitution in his campaign. He has notable political backing from a base of the party’s
Constitutional conservatives and area Tea Party supporters. Roeber is a Delta County native, a North Fork rancher, and a co-owner of Homestead Meats. He has served as president of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. Roeber’s family heritage of 123 years ranching in the North Fork Valley ensures a broad base of
support from party members and others for his candidacy. During opening statements that each candidate gave at the May 29 session, Bentley described himself as a “fundamental conservative candidate.” He wants to “whittle down” the numbers of county regulations. “The county has enough planning regulations,” he said, adding that he is
opposed to zoning and building codes in the unincorporated county. Roeber in his opening statement noted his experience in business, both in ranching and retail meat merchandising. He stated support for personal property rights, and outlined three other main campaign themes: support and PRIMARY TO A3
City manager search launched BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Fred Rainguet of KRW Associates, an executive search firm, met with the Delta City Council recently to begin the process of hiring Delta’s next city manager. The opening will be posted with the Colorado Municipal League, Colorado City and County Management Asssociation, International City/ County Manager Association, the Delta County Independent, and on the city’s website. The application deadline is 5 p.m. Friday, June 29. The job description was altered just slightly. Qualified candidates must have a master’s degree (public administration or business administration degree preferred) plus three years of experience in public sector administration.
Non-profit and private sector executive level experience may be considered. Candidates with a bachelor’s degree may also apply, but they must have eight years of progressively responsible experience. In the past, the council has required just five years of experience. The salary range is up to $103,000, depending upon qualifications, plus an “excellent benefit package.” That’s the same salary paid to former city manager Joe Kerby, who also received housing as part of his compensation. Housing, vehicle allowance, severance package and other elements of the employment agreement will be worked out with the successful applicant, and will likely involve the input of the city attorney and the applicant’s attorney.
County bans open burning BY HANK LOHMEYER Staff Writer
The Board of Delta County Commissioners, in concert with other Western Slope county governments, on Monday adopted an immediate ban on “open fires.” According to the wording of the county’s ban, “For the purpose of this order, ‘open fires’ shall be defined as all outdoor fires, including but not limited to agricultural burning, campfires, warming fires, fused explosives, fireworks of all kinds and brands (except with a permit issued pursuant to state or municipal laws), and the prescribed burning of fence rows, wildlands, trash and debris, but (does) not include gas barbecues and charcoal fires in enclosed fire pans of permanent fireplace locations.” Dry weather combined with occasional high winds
and tinder-dry wildland fuels conditions have led to the county’s annual burn ban being adopted this year weeks earlier than normal. The ban will stay in effect until such time as it is specifically repealed by the BoCC. The ban applies generally in the unincorporated areas of the county. Sheriff Fred McKee submitted an official request for the ban. Local fire chiefs are in agreement with the move, said Rob Fiedler, emergency manager for the county. County commissioner Bruce Hovde said that a recent meeting of regional county governments also provided impetus for Delta County’s move now, as other Region 10 counties adopt their own burn ban measures. There are some exceptions BURN BAN TO A3
Photo by Pat Sunderland
George Bock (left) offers tips on playing Devil’s Thumb’s 18 holes to a trio of golfers from Montrose. Bock is one of several men and women who volunteer at the golf course. Devil’s Thumb saves on payroll expenses and the golfers get free rounds of golf in exchange.
Marketing is key to future of Devil’s Thumb BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Expenses at Devil’s Thumb Golf Club have been cut to the bone; the only way to make the golf course viable is to increase revenues. That was the message delivered to the Delta City Council last week by Peter Elzi of THK Associates, the firm hired to conduct an operational audit of the heavily subsidized city-owned golf course. The work session was attended by members of the men’s and women’s golf clubs, several of whom volunteer at the facility to help keep payroll costs down. Members of the Citizen Financial Task Force were also interested to hear what Elzi had to say in his preliminary report. Several of those in the audience are both golfers and members of the Citizen Financial Task Force, which was formed to come up with revenue-enhancing and cost-cutting ideas for the 2013 budget. Since it opened in 1999, Devil’s Thumb Golf Club has relied on transfers from the city’s municipal light and power fund to offset revenue shortfalls. Annual transfers of $400,000 to $550,000 have been slowly draining the municipal light and power fund to the point where the
fund is in danger of being completely depleted by 2014. Then, as councilmember Bill Raley points out, both the golf course and the municipal light and power fund will be bankrupt. Elzi cautioned against looking solely at the numbers, because a golf course can be a great asset to the community. It provides employment, scenery and open space, and it can stimulate economic development and recruiting efforts. A community doesn’t close its parks or libraries because they cost money, he said. “With that said, we don’t believe that the utility fund can continue to subsidize this course at the rate at which it has in the past four or five years to the tune of close to a half million dollars a year,” he said. “At some point the utility fund will run out of adequate resources to continue that subsidy even if they wanted to.” Elzi estimates the subsidy to the golf course costs every municipal power user in the city $22 a month. Having analyzed staffing levels, maintenance, equipment and the need to maintain the quality of play, Elzi said the problem is not one of expenses, but one of revenue. He stressed the need to
increase greens fees and annual passes, and recommended tripling the marketing budget to draw folks from outside the area with discretionary income. The local population is simply not large enough to support the golf course, especially since participation rates lag behind state and national averages. We’ve not only got fewer golfers, those golfers have more options. To illustrate that point, Elzi compared the number of holes in our trade area to the number of residents. In Delta County, the ratio is 676 persons to a hole. In Colorado, the ratio is 1,146 persons for every hole. “That’s the real crux of the problem,” he said. “We can’t count on just the Delta and Delta County resident to support this facility.” The rate increases proposed by Elzi are significant, particularly for peak times. While most golfers said they’d be willing to pay a bit more for greens fees and annual passes, they preferred to focus the discussion on marketing the award-winning course. Others thought the pricing should be a better value, citing the draw of Walmart. Elzi said the rate increases would have to be gradual, to avoid driving off too many DEVIL’S THUMB TO A8
INDEX
Fire restrictions
Speak out
NCA in-holding acquired
Accent ........................... A4 Activities ......................A11 Agriculture .....................B6 Back Page ................... D8 Business ........................ A5 Church ............................B5 Classifieds .................. D1-2 Editorial ......................... A2 Legals ......................... D3-6 North Fork Times ........B1-8 Obituaries ..................... A9 School Zone ............... A6-7 Service Directory ........ D7 Sports ..........................B7-8 Surface Creek News ...C1-6 TV Listings ..................C4-5
Already this year, many areas around Colorado are experiencing dry conditions, low humidity, wind and dry vegetation. In addition to fire restrictions in Delta, Gunnison and Mesa counties, the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service have instituted “Stage One Fire Restrictions” on the Grand Mesa Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests (GMUG) and Bureau of Land Management lands within Delta, Montrose, Ouray and San Miguel counties. Statewide restrictions can be found at www.co emergency.com/p/fire-ban-info.html.
The Board of Delta County Commissioners is hosting a constituent forum Tuesday, June 12, at the Orchard City Town Hall. Citizens who wish to discuss any issue with county commissioners Olen Lund, Bruce Hovde or Doug Atchley are invited to stop by between 6 and 8 p.m. Tuesday night.
A 400-acre in-holding along the Gunnison River in the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area is now in public hands, Western Rivers Conservancy and the Bureau of Land Management announced this week. The acquisition secures the conservation of 400 acres of fish and wildlife habitat along the Gunnison River that was proposed for gravel mining and real estate development. The newly secured property is located along the Gunnison River near the entrance of the NCA. The property includes habitat for the federally threatened Colorado hookless cactus, bald eagles, northern leopard frogs and a wide variety of other plants and wildlife. The lower Gunnison River is also critical habitat for endangered Colorado River Basin fish such as the Colorado River pikeminnow.
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