march
i
2017
INSIDE:
LOCAL EVENTS see what's Happening
Middle School Radio Windsor Middle School students launch streaming radio station
Power To Play opens up 52,000-square-foot facility
Answers to your questions about windsor
Critter gitter
antique furniture business success
501 8th Ave. P.O. Box 1690 Greeley, CO 80632
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March 2017, Volume 1, Issue 8. Published by: Greeley Publishing Co., publisher of The Greeley Tribune, Windsor Now, The Fence Post and Tri-State Livestock News
on the cover Basketballs surround Michael Peterson owner of Power 2 Play, sports complex at 5699 Crooked Stick Dr., in Windsor. The massive gym complex took 15 months to complete & is now hosting a number of tournaments, pick-up games and events. 2
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
Inside P r e m i e r
F e at u r e s
8
Windsor's MIDDLE SCHOOL students launch streaming radio station
12
Power To Play Sports
opens up 52,000-square-foot facility
4 Answers to the most-asked questions about Windsor
16
Passion for refinishing
antique furniture turns into a full-time job, and a successful business
20
CRITTER GITTER
Cisco uses pamphlets to educate public
6 Calendar of Events Things to do in Windsor The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
3
Answers to the most-asked questions about the town of Windsor Have you wondered where to go to pay a ticket? Does the town have ordinances to regulate pet ownership? Who do I call about a big pothole? And why is the sky blue? Except for the color of the sky, the town of Windsor answers these and dozens of other questions to help Windsor residents navigate municipal government and be a well-informed citizen. Here is a sample of some of the useful information on the Windsor FAQ: Are there regulations for temporary signs in Windsor? Yes. Most temporary signs require a permit, which you can obtain from the Planning Department. A temporary sign cannot be displayed for more than 60 days per calendar year. Temporary signs must be directly related to the use of the lot on which it is located and must be made from durable material that will not deteriorate in wind or bad weather. These signs cannot be attached to trees, landscaping, traffic signs, utility or light poles or other similar structures, and cannot be located within the road right-of-way. For specific requirements, please contact the Planning Department at (970) 674-2415 and refer to Sec. 16-9-130 of the Municipal Code.
Can I have a home occupation/business? What are the requirements? All businesses in Windsor require an approved business license through the Town’s Finance Department. Applicant’s looking to have a home-based business shall complete the Home Occupation Registration section of the business license application. Home occupations shall meet all requirements of Sec. 16-10-20 of the Municipal Code.
Do I need a building permit to work on my own home or if I am finishing my own basement? Yes. Work that involves adding or removing walls, new structures, moving or installing plumbing or electric, or finishing a basement requires a building permit, even if you are doing all the work yourself. The town requires a building permit in order to conduct the required inspections and make sure that the construction meets the building code adopted by the town of Windsor. For additional questions, please visit the: Building Permit Information web page at http://windsorgov.com/137/Building-Permits.
Do I need a permit to re-roof my house? Yes. The town requires a building permit in order to conduct the required inspections and make sure that the construction meets the building code adopted by the town of Windsor. Please contact our inspection company SAFEbuilt at (970) 686-7511 for any specific questions about the roofing code.
Do I need a permit to build a fence around my house? Generally, no, as long as the fence meets the standard fencing regulations. For questions, please contact the Planning Department at (970) 674-2415.
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november 2016• • premier premier ••The Best Of Windsor Magazine march 2017 The Best Of Windsor Magazine
Do I need a permit to build a shed and where on my property can I put it? In accordance with Section 16-8-30(d) of the Municipal Code, a permit is only required if: » the proposed shed exceeds one hundred-twenty 120 square feet; » is taller than 8 feet at the peak. If a permit is required, the structure shall meet the Town’s setback and offset requirements. No accessory building, regardless of its size, shall be located any closer to the front property line than the rear corners of the principal building (accessory buildings are only allowed in rear yards). Do I need a permit to build a deck, porch, pergola, or patio cover? Yes.Any structure, including decks and porches less than 30 feet above the ground, require a building permit per Sec. 16-4-20 of the Municipal Code. Please note that any structure must be located on your property and meet the town’s setback and offset requirements. Prior to beginning any construction, it is recommended that you contact the town of Windsor Permit Technician at (970) 674-2436 to see if a permit is required.
Do I need a permit to install a sprinkler system? Yes. A building permit is required to install a sprinkler system whether you are hooking up to town of Windsor water (potable water) or if you are hooking up to a non-potable system in your subdivision. A sprinkler permit generally takes about 5-10 minutes to issue on the same day you apply. If you have questions about the cost of a sprinkler permit, the permit process, or whether your subdivision is on a non-potable irrigation system, please contact the town’s Permit Technician at (970) 674-2436.
— Source: Town of Windsor, www.windsorgov.com/faq
The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
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Mar. 24
An Evening with Clint Black, 8 p.m., Lincoln Center Magnolia Theatre, lctix.com /clint-black.
mar. 24
mar. 25
Teen Night at the CRC, 6 p.m., Main Gym, Windsor CRC, 250 11th St. Windsor. windsorgov.com/ Calendar
Coffee with the Mayor, 7:30 a.m., Coffee House 29, 1039 Main Street, Suite K, Windsor. (970) 674-2400.
mar. 27
Tax Preparation Help, 4 p.m., 720 3rd St., Windsor. clearviewlibrary.org/
apr. 8
Mar. 29
Family Video Game Night, 5 p.m., 720 3rd St., Windsor. clearviewlibrary.org/ calendar
Anne of Avonlea, 7 p.m., The Rialto Theater Center, 228 4th St., Loveland. rialtotheatercenter.org
Apr. 1
Disney On Ice, 11 a.m., 3 or 7 p.m., Budweiser Events Center, 5290 Arena Cir., Loveland. budweisereventscenter.com/ events 6
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
or r ds a in nd ts
W le n o r t o Ca ve gs ds n n E i i Th W in do Apr. 13
Che Malambo, 7:30 p.m., Lincoln Center Magnolia Theatre, 417 Magnolia. lctix.com
Apr. 17
We’ll Read Anything, 6:30 p.m., 720 3rd St., Windsor. clearviewlibrary.org/ calendar/
Windsor Middle School students launch streaming radio station
Kristen M.White // For Premier
P
ersonality. The interests of others. Voice inflection. Technology. These are all things a core group of students at Windsor Middle School are learning as they get the school’s very own radio station off the ground. KWMS Wizard Radio is a streaming radio station, produced by four seventh-graders in the school’s successful media productions
program. Via computer, tablet, smartphone — anything with an internet connection — students, staff, families and community members can tune into the school’s station and get an inside peek at Windsor Middle School life. “Our media productions program has been successfully running the past four or five years and our students partner with the Clearview Library District and the town of Windsor to do promotional ads and spots,” said Windsor Middle School Principal Eric Johnson. “We wanted to 8
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
‹Logan Keener, 13, right, leans in to the microphone as he reads the birthdays for the week with Ian Mayhew, 11, left, on Tuesday at the Windsor Middle School radio station. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
Travis Finning, 13, smiles as he gets ready to record for short promotion for the Windsor Middle School Radio Station. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer ˇ
dive deeper into other avenues for kids as they
Keener and Ian Mayhew, all seventh graders — who
explored career options and got into things
Swafford said are “really driven and interested,” and
that really intrigued them.
wanted to take on the radio venture. It didn’t take long
“They’ve gotten really good at video, so
for them to be up to speed in what had to be done to
we started playing with the idea of a live
launch the radio station.
broadcast and that spilled into the idea of a
“Picking out the music was a lot of work, because
radio venture.”
we have to have it be middle school appropriate of
One of the radio students, Adam Lieber,
course,” Cassey said. “There was a lot of prep work
provided the springboard for the school’s
behind that, looking up things online and such. We
exploration into radio because his father, Karl,
started with all the new hits and tried to single out the
works in radio and has started many radio
ones that were maybe different or what we thought
stations both locally and regionally.
would be better on a school site and then narrowed it
Karl was happy to come and give the
from there.”
students a crash course in how to set things
Lieber explained that he and his fellow students
up for the radio station, take them on a field
created a spreadsheet and prescreened songs. Those
trip to tour the K99 station and really lend a
were passed along to the teachers to be screened again
beginning hand.
to ensure they were OK in language and content for a
“Karl is the guy who I connected with to get
middle school audience.
all of this started,” said Christy Swafford, the
From there, the songs — more than 100, Swafford
educational technology coach at WMS who
guessed — were grouped into different folders on
helped get the radio station up and running,
the computer, such as in-the-moment top hits or less
along with Doug Kathan, who teaches the
popular songs. The music is set up to automatically
broadcast class that the students are a part of.
loop from the various folders, and the students decide
“We had no knowledge of radio. We didn’t
how often a song should play.
know the vocabulary, the process, anything.
In addition to music, the radio station features
Karl taught us about things like liners —
weather reports for the week, as well as lunch
‘You’re listening to KWMS radio’ – and
information for the school.
showed the kids the real radio station. I think
With the basics under control, lately the students
they were surprised to see that it wasn’t as
have been able to work on other additions, changes
glamorous as they expected!” There were four students in the broadcast class – Bree Cassey, Adam Lieber, Logan
ˆBreelyn Caffy, 13, fills out the schedule for her classmates on Tuesday at the Windsor Middle School radio station. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
9
“
“For me, it’s hugely gratifying to see these kids energized and passionate about what they’re doing and leaving a positive mark on the building.” and improvements to the station. Cassey, known as “Radio Rebel”
few middle schools, so she’s excited that the Windsor students are
on the air, is recording spots like “Trending topics” that explore
doing something cutting edge. She’s enjoyed watching them take
hot trends at the middle school level.
ownership of the station, working on finding their personalities and
“It’s really fun getting the segments on the air, and picking out
improving the inflection in their voices when they record segments.
the songs is fun too,” Cassey said. “It’s really cool to know that we
“Middle schoolers are shy, and blending is safer at this age, so
can put something in the school that other kids can work on, cool to know we helped create it.” Lieber said he loves working with the technology aspect, and he likes recording the liners from classmates or school staff. He said he’d love to see the station become more advanced as it goes on, adding in sound effects and more “professional” bits to the broadcasts. “There’s a lot of work in
“
seeing them come out of their shell and take ownership of it, to think about their voices is great,” she said. “They’re thinking of their audience too – they’re speaking to their peers, not just to a teacher like they would
“For me, it’s hugely gratifying to see these kids energized and passionate about what they’re doing and leaving a positive mark on the building.”
putting together a 30-second segment, more than you’d think,” he said. “It might take 10
in a classroom assignment.” Within the radio program, Johnson sees manifestation of the school’s three fundamental principles – collaboration, community and critical thinking.
“They’re working together. And the media productions class is just
minutes to get the information, five to write it down and make it
one period a day, but how does the radio station run when you’re not
sound good, and then record it. It’s work.”
there? That’s solving problems. It’s making our school community and
It’s that work that Johnson and Swafford are so proud of,
the community at large better for having this program in it,” Johnson
watching the students put in so much effort to make the radio
said.
station successful.
“For me, it’s hugely gratifying to see these kids energized and
Swafford said when she began doing research, she found many
passionate about what they’re doing and leaving a positive mark on
high schools online that offer a streaming radio service, but very
the building.”
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march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
‹ A poster welcomes people to the recording studio as Adam Lieber, 13, works on after class on Wednesday at Windsor Middle School. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
To listen If you want to listen to the Windsor Middle School’s radio station, go to wms.weldre4.org, and on the main page there is a link for the radio station. It's only available as an online service (not on the traditional radio dial).
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www.IMTAWindsor.com The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
11
Power To Play Sports opens up 52,000-square-foot facility in west Windsor, fulfills owners’ lifetime dream Kristen M.White For Premier
Michael Peterson stands center court by the logo for the Power 2 Play sports complex in Windsor. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer ˇ 12
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
M
ichael Peterson loves basketball.
It’s probably the one thing in his life that he loves most, besides his 15-month-old daughter, A.P. The Minnesota native played the sport in high school and continued throughout college “like a lot of guys out there,” he said, and then went on to coach at those same levels. That was originally his main source of income — coaching. His own business, Power To Play, was something he did on the side. Power To Play organizes events for basketball and some volleyball. Peterson started it about 17 years ago to cater primarily to youth basketball through tournaments, leagues and club teams throughout Colorado.
Years ago, Peterson took a leap of faith and made Power To Play his main focus. It started with 16 teams in 2000. Now, Power To Play has about 3,200 total teams.
This year marked a huge landmark — literally — for the northern Colorado based company. After 15 months of building and construction, Power to Play opened the doors for its new 52,000-square-foot facility at the beginning of February in western Windsor.
The complex — which sits on 4.7 acres of commercial land near the Budweiser Events Center — features six basketball courts with volleyball nets that swing down from the ceiling with a push of a buttom. There are 187 parking spaces, with 180 more on the way for the west side of the building, according to Peterson. There is also an outdoor patio area facing north that Peterson has already rented out for graduation parties and other celebrations.
Three courts sit on each
side of the building, and between those is a lounge area that Peterson describes as “a sports bar without the alcohol.” Seven TVs and professional basketball memorabilia — featuring big-name players such as Larry Bird and Stephen Curry — hang on the walls, while bar tables and large sofas fill the area. The area also has fronts for concessions and Power To Play swag, as well as a kids’ play room.
Peterson has about 175 basketball and volleyball officials that work for the company, as well as 40 part-time employees,
and six full-time employees.
He said he had two partners in bringing the facility to fruition: Eric Greene, owner of Mail N Copy in Windsor and now
co-owner of the facility; and John Turner, who is the sport complex’s land owner. Greene has printed items for Peterson’s business for years, and they’d sometimes play basketball with each other. One day, Greene said Peterson and he decided to follow through with building an official location for Power To Play. Since Greene The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
13
Basketballs surround Michael Peterson owner of Power 2 Play, a sports complex at 5699 Crooked Stick Dr., in Windsor. The massive gym complex took 15 months to complete and is now hosting a number of tournaments, pick-up games and events. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
had previous business experience, he decided to help out with that aspect.
After all, his love for basketball was as profound as Peterson’s.
“I have a passion for kids and sports and basketball, so for me, it was an easy fit,” Greene said. “This (complex) puts Windsor on the map for competitive basketball.”
Power To Play is located across the street from the Budweiser Events
Center on the Windsor side of Larimer County Road 5. The exterior
For more information Call: (970) 800-3035, email: info@powertoplaysports.com VISIT: http:www.powertoplaysports.com/.
landscaping for the building will be completed come spring when the winter weather begins to disperse, Peterson said.
He said as much as he loves the sport of basketball, he tried to make the
facility more family-oriented than just player-focused. That’s why there are no bleachers, but rather 1,000 chairs with backs for support. It’s also why he chose Windsor as the facility’s location, after scoping out various locations near the Interstate 25 corridor.
“Windsor is a really good sports town and it’s really active,” he said. “If
you could pick a spot in the country to run our type of family destination
Hours The complex is open from 6 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Friday, for “pick-up”,“drop-in” and “open gym” time. This includes volleyball and basketball play.
environment, there’s no better place in the country. You can do anything safe and family-driven here.”
He also said where the facility is located is easy to get to from all areas of
northern Colorado — Fort Collins, Greeley, Loveland, Johnstown, you name it. That makes it a more convenient place to host large tournaments, and is easily accessible by teams all around the region for practices and more.
“It’s like the mecca of northern Colorado,” he said.
Peterson said more than 16,000 people have experienced the facility in its
first month. That number is from people visiting for weekend tournaments, pick-up games and practices.
Stacy Johnson, director of economic development for Windsor, said the
facility is a huge opportunity for the town to continue to capitalize on its youth sports programs. She said it will also likely draw in tourism regionally and nationally, which then spreads to Windsor’s other local businesses, 14
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
Hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 am-8 pm Sat. 9 am-5 pm, Sun. 1-5 pm
www.clearviewlibrary.org
720 Third St, Windsor
• Friendly helpful staff • Programs for all ages • Books, CDs, Dvds, Ebooks, Video Games, Books on CD, & more • Wireless access and wireless printing • Computers and laptops with internet access • Visit our bookmobile for Books, Dvds, story times and more! Check the library’s website for the latest bookmobile schedule
970-686-5603
restaurants and more. That’s obviously a good thing, she said, especially
Where to go
since Windsor officials will continue to grow the amenities on that I-25 corridor as much as possible.
Power To Play Sports is located on the east side of Larimer County Road 5, across the street from Budweiser Events Center. Its address is 5699 Crooked Stick Drive in Windsor.
“We knew it was an ‘if you build it, they will come’ scenario — we
just didn’t know how many,” Johnson said. “It’s a good testament for how powerful youth sports is in this region. … Everything we can continue to do to diversity our revenue streams and our industry is huge because it makes us more stable as an economy.”
Peterson attended the University of Northern Colorado for graduate
Cost is $5 for a daily pass. Memberships include single-person for $240 a year, or $20 a month, and family memberships for $360 a year, or $30 a month. Seniors get in free. Members receive full access during available hours with a membership card.
school and got his master’s degree in sports management. That was his stepping-stone to the Front Range. He hasn’t looked back since then, even though sometimes he feels nostalgic for his small hometown of about 400 people in the Midwest.
He said 25 years of his life in the sports industry led up to the moment
of opening Power To Play’s complex. He always dreamed of owning his own basketball facility as a teenager, but he wasn’t sure if or when that day would come.
“This is all about having a passion, and loving it,” he said. “This facility
will open up avenues for everybody, whether that’s the kid casually playing basketball or the hardcore athlete.”
Future goals? Peterson said expansion. He eventually wants to grow up to
10 courts.
“We’re already too small,” he said with a laugh. “We need more space.”
Also on his to-do list is to build a 2,500-seat capacity college facility for highend training purposes and to attract more competitive playoff games at the
Tax season doesn’t need to be taxing.
state and collegiate levels.
But for now, he’s relishing in his basketball dream.
Peterson still makes sure to shoot some hoops to this day, obviously on
the shiny new courts in his new complex. Those shiny new courts are also where he enjoys watching A.P. sprint her little legs from sideline to sideline. The facility is not only his dream-come-true, but a place where he can now combine his two greatest loves into one place.
“You always hear people say they wake up every morning doing what they
love,” he said. “I just can’t believe that actually am doing what I love.”
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15
Passion for refinishing antique furniture
turns into a full-time job, and a successful business
By trevor reid // For Premier Photos by: Joshua Polson
A
16
s an industrial arts teacher at Windsor Middle School, Dan Stauss spent his nights in the late 1980s refinishing furniture, a passion he picked up from his brother.
As an industrial arts teacher at
members the day he turned his eyes
Windsor Middle School, Dan Stauss
to refinishing furniture.
spent his nights in the late 1980s refin-
ishing furniture, a passion he picked
on July 4 and said to my brother,
up from his brother.
‘You ought to buy furniture. You
could make more money doing fur-
“I got so busy, I thought, ‘I really
“I went to an auction with him
don’t have time to teach,’ ” Stauss, 56,
niture,’” Stauss recalled.
laughed. “It was kind of a passion that
turned into a vocation.”
his brother refinished antiques at
From that day on, Stauss and
In 1992, Stauss opened Memory
night and sold the antiques at flea
Lane Antiques, where he offers cus-
markets in Chicago and Milwaukee.
tom refinishing, refinished antiques
When Stauss opened Memory Lane
and home décor. While his brother
Antiques, the store was in a small
went to medical school at University
location that once belonged to a
of Wisconsin, Stauss joined him on
bakery. Over the years, his business
trips to find antique glassware to sell
has grown to include about 13,000
for extra money. Stauss vividly re-
square feet. Stauss credits his di-
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
“
You start doing business with one person, you start talking, you find somebody else, so you go visit that person,” he said.“You start to develop relationships throughout the country. The best tool I have isn’t the table saw. It’s a cell phone.” verse inventory for keeping business booming.
“We have gifts and home décor for people who don’t
even like antiques. We have refinishing and custommaking of furniture. We also do commercial work, like we did the Pelican Lakes Sandbar restaurant,” he said. “We’re the only place in the state that re-silvers mirrors. We do upholstery also.”
But for Stauss, the best part of his job is the antiques.
Lately he’s been doing a lot of retrofitting, incorporating old materials into something new. He pointed to a bar built with reclaimed corrugated metal and reclaimed teak timber as an example of his work.
“Younger people like straight lines; they don’t like
real fancy stuff. They love the industrial look,” he explained. “That’s fun because it challenges your mind.”
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(970) 460-9607 ‹ Dan Stass works on a refurbishing project on Tuesday at Memory Lane Antiques, 426 Main St., in Windsor. Stauss own the store with his wife Theresa and has been working in restoration for 35 years.
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The Best Of Windsor Magazine • premier • march 2017
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With an online store, Stauss has
customers as far as Florida and
Shad Hilzer carefully sands the edges of another restoration project on Tuesday as he helps at at Memory Lane Antiques, 426 Main St., in Windsor. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
New Hampshire. People from Fort Collins, Denver, Wyoming and even Montana come to visit the shop inperson. Stauss said he’s had customers help him unpack antiques he just acquired and buy them on the spot.
At
Memory
Lane
Antiques,
customers can see the process the antiques go through. With antiques coming from the Midwest, the East Coast and the South, antiques are disassembled for safe transport. After epoxying the antique back together, Stauss has it sanded by hand. The quality of workmanship means Stauss will spend from 2460 hours on average refinishing an antique.
Finding upper-end antiques to
work on is one of the greatest challenges in the business, according to Stauss. After 32 years in the business, he said it can be like navigating an “underground network.”
“You start doing business with
one person, you start talking, you find somebody else, so you go visit that person,” he said. “You start to develop relationships throughout the country. The best tool I have isn’t the table saw. It’s a cell phone.”
For MORE info Location: 426 Main St., Windsor Phone: (970) 686-7913 Hours: Mon-Sat: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sun: Noon-4 p.m. Website: memlaneantiques.com Alex Roth leans down to varnish a chair that is being restored on Tuesday at Memory Lane Antiques, 426 Main St., in Windsor. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
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march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
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19
CRITTER GITTER
Cisco uses pamphlets to educate public By Allison Dyer Bluemel // For Premier Photos by: Joshua Polson
M
ost mothers learn to lock their kids in the house when they know their kids get into mischief. But the mother of Windsor resident
Scott Cisco learned when he was young to lock the door behind him at their Florida home.
Cisco would wander out of the house and adventure,
returning with alligators and other critters, sparking his interest in wildlife early on.
Today, that love and interest has transformed Cisco
into the Critter Gitter of Northern Colorado.
His business works in humane, live-trap pest control
throughout northern Colorado, based out of his home and 50-acre ranch in east Windsor.
He prides himself in responding quickly and profes-
sionally to his clients and their needs, from raccoons to bats to snakes.
“It’s a real toss up between who is more wild, the
people or the wildlife,” he laughed.
Between Florida and Windsor, Cisco learned to trap
with his grandfather up in Cheyenne. However, Wyoming’s trapping regulations allow for non-live traps, unlike Colorado.
“Colorado sees that as inhumane,” he said.
His experience in Wyoming prepared him for all
types of wildlife, a resource that local code enforcement and Colorado Parks and Wildlife utilize from time to time around the region.
20
Critter Gitter of Northern Colorado Owner Scitt Cisco holds a bat during a job. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
“(We’ll call him) if there’s something we’re not really
equipped to deal with,” Windsor Code Enforcement Of-
ficer Jeremiah Sauter said. “It’s not just that he’s going
said.
to go in and do whatever it takes to fix the problem. He’s
got that holistic approach to wildlife management.”
it’s the dream.
However, he prefers to steer clear of the Denver
“We don’t hate each other, we just ain’t friends,” he Though his work doesn’t seem glamorous to many, There’s no doubt he stands out in Windsor: tall and
metro area as much as possible.
a little wilder looking than most of the residents. But
spend five minutes with him in the King Soopers Star-
“I’m not really into the big city,” he said. “That’s wild-
life that’s out of control.”
bucks — where they know his order on site — and it’s
easy to tell how grateful Windsor residents are for his
To many, Cisco’s experience and confidence makes
him seem fearless.
services.
While he doesn’t mind the animals — laughing that
“I’ve been doing this my whole life,” he said. “I’ve
they’re sometimes easier to predict than humans — he
always been a people person.”
won’t work with insects.
march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
Many times, his customers call him in a panic after
they discover an unwanted guest. What sets him apart, Cisco says, is his quick response time.
Even if it’s 11 p.m., he’ll show up to help with a prob-
lem at someone’s house, offer them some advice on future pest prevention and do it all with enthusiasm.
“When people call me, I like to be able to respond as
quickly as possible,” he said. “I’m a talker. I love to talk and love to listen (to the customers).”
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As part of educating the public, Cisco carries with
him pamphlets of his making that cover wild animal and raccoon prevention, as well as literature from Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Larimer County Parks and Open Lands.
“To me it’s common sense,” he said. “It’s first na-
ture.”
There’s nothing else that Cisco would rather be do-
ing, he said.
“I dreamed of (doing this),” he said. “It’s my drug of
choice.”
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Critter Gitter of Northern Colorado Owner Scott Cisco holds three raccoons after trapping them. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
Whenever people ask him how he’s doing, there’s a
decent chance he’ll respond with a chipper “better than I deserve.”
“I work at Columbine Health Systems because... the smile on a resident’s face.” Chelsea Ebert, Activity Director
. . . e r a C We s r e tt a M It
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march 2017 • premier • The Best Of Windsor Magazine
Working as northern Colorado’s resident Critter Git-
ter allows him to use “a God given gift” while also helping the people of the region.
“At Critter Gitter, we believe in three things: faith,
family and critters,” Cisco said. “To be able to do what I love and get paid for it is unbelievable.”
Though Cisco’s dedication to the job has remained
the same, he said the animals and problems he sees are getting wilder.
He said it’s the stuff of reality TV.
“If this doesn’t become a reality show, somebody’s
missing out,” he laughed.
“
It’s a real toss up between who is more wild, the people or the wildlife
Two skunks on a job worked by Scott Cisco of Citter Gitter of Northern Colorado. Joshua Polson//Staff Photographer
While that gives him more chances to chase the rush
of close encounters and adrenaline in the moment, it means more unease in the community itself.
With a wetter season, he’s seen more skunk and
snake calls this year.
“I’m running out of time,” Cisco said.
VISIT OUR GOLD LEVEL CAT FRIENDLY PRACTICE Robin Downing, DVM, MS,
CONTACTs To get a hold of the Critter Gitter of Northern Colorado, call (970) 219-1629 or go to www.crittergitternoco.com.
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www.windsorvet.com 415 Main St. • Windsor, CO 80550 970-686-9664 • 866-DR-ROBIN
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