ROUTT COUNTY IS IDEAL FOR PHOTOGRAPHING STARS | OUTDOORS 6C
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WESTERN ARTS
COLLEGE PREP
Home arts competitions display resident residents’ creations
Rams quarterback dreams about next level
ROUTT COUNTY 1D
SUNDAY, AUGUST 16, 2009
SPORTS 1C
VOLUME 123, NUMBER 5 • STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, COLORADO • www.steamboatpilot.com
Tax a campaign issue
Obama makes it personal President in state speaking about health care reform Liz Sidoti
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
GRAND JUNCTION
President Barack Obama invoked his own anguish about the death of a loved one as he challenged the debunked notion that Democratic efforts to overhaul the nation’s health care would include “death panels.” “I just lost my grandmother last year. I know what it’s like to Obama watch somebody you love, who’s aging, deteriorate and have to struggle with that,” an impassioned Obama told a crowd as he spoke about Madelyn Payne Dunham. He took issue with “the notion that somehow I ran for public office or members of Congress are in this so they can go around pulling the plug on grandma.” “When you start making arguments like that, that’s simply dishonest — especially when I hear the arguments coming from members of Congress in the other party who, turns out, sponsored similar provisions,” Obama said. In a debate in which he often sounds professor-like, Obama spoke with a rare bit of emotion that seemed to counter that of vocal health care opponents as he referenced the beloved grandmother who helped raise him and who he called “Toot.” She died of cancer at age 86 on Nov. 2, two days before he won election to become the nation’s first African-American president. He talked about her death while answering a question about misinformation being spread about Democratic health care efforts during a town hall style gathering in a high school gymnasium. “Health care is really hard. This is not easy. I’m a reasonably dedicated student to this See Protests, page 7A
Only $225K of an estimated $4.6M collected from use tax Brandon Gee
PILOT & TODAY STAFF
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS
One of the thorniest political matters of 2008 is resurfacing as a campaign issue for the 2009 Steamboat Springs City Council election. Last fall, City Council conMATT STENSLAND/STAFF sidered an ordinance that would The One Steamboat Place project at the base of Steamboat Ski Area had a have prevented city accountants building-use tax deposit of $2.9 million that has not been reconciled. from collecting what they esti-
mated was $4.6 million owed to them by construction contractors. The ordinance concerned a city Finance Department plan to begin requiring reconciliations of building-use tax deposits collected in conjunction with construction permits. A 1991 ordinance gave the city the right to require such reconciliations, but the provision had never been enforced. On March 10, 2008, city offi-
cials sent their first letter to all holders of open building permits informing them that they would be required to reconcile their building-use tax payments beginning June 2, 2008. The reconciliations were to apply to all open building permits issued in the previous three years and all permits going forward. Construction contractors arSee Use tax, page 8A
Calf riders test grips at fair Theo Hansen, Kaiden Decker walk away with top times at event
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yler Boyer bounded up after a brief calf ride Saturday, rushing out the arena gate and throwing his fists up in an elbows-bent superhero pose. The Hayden 9year-old competed in the STORY BY Routt County BLYTHE TERRELL Fair’s first youth calf riding event. Tyler participated in the 8- to 10-year-old division, the group that rode bucking steers. The 11- to 14-year-old group rode bucking bull calves. Seven children rode calves Saturday afternoon. “It was hard,” Tyler said after he was safely out of the arena. “I forgot to put my feet out in front of me.” But he said he’d do it again “any day,” and wound up getting a chance at a second goround Saturday. It was “a lot better this time,” Tyler said. “I actually put my knees out in front of me and squeezed hard.” Theo Hansen, of Steamboat Springs, won the younger division and has a chance to compete again today. He can forfeit his time and ride again or keep Saturday’s time of 2.8 seconds.
SUNDAY FOCUS
MATT STENSLAND/STAFF
Thirteen-year-old Kaiden Decker, of Hayden, rides a bull Saturday during the Routt County Fair calf riding competition. His ride lasted 3.89 seconds.
Theo, 9, said he’s gone to the Steamboat rodeo and always wanted to be a bull rider. Still, getting onto a bull was nerve-racking. “Right when I got in the chute, I was like, ‘I can’t believe
I’m doing this,’” Theo said. “I was freaked out.” Theo’s parents weren’t thrilled about his riding again today. Fair Manager Jill Delay also wasn’t thrilled about the calf
riding. But people had requested that the event be added to the fair schedule, so Delay said organizers decided to try it out. Rain delayed the mutton bustin’ event before the calf riding, so the riders were more than an
hour behind schedule. That might have numbed the enthusiasm for a few participants — several decided not to hop on the back of a See Fair, page 7A
Steamboat man fights identity theft Suspect appears in court, suspected of opening accounts in Wening’s name Zach Fridell
PILOT & TODAY STAFF
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS
Chris Wening has gone through two paper shredders in his attempt to keep his identity and personal information safe, but when he got a call about a suspicious order at a retail store in California, he realized he had been taken advantage of despite JOHN F. RUSSELL/STAFF Chris Wening pores through the paperwork he’s collected since finding out his his precautions. Wening, a retired Steamboat identity was stolen earlier this year. Wening since has spent months tracking his credit. PAGE DESIGNED BY ALLISON MIRIANI
OUTSIDE
INSIDE Business . . . . . . . . Classifieds . . . . . . . Comics . . . . . . . . . Crossword . . . . . . . Happenings . . . . . .
ROUTT
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Horoscope . . . . . . . Obituaries . . . . . . . Outdoors . . . . . . . . Viewpoints . . . . . . . Weather . . . . . . . . .
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COUNTY’S
VIEWPOINTS
An afternoon thunderstorm. High of 69. Page 2A
NEWSPAPER
Springs resident, said that when he got a call informing him that his order was ready to pick up, from a chain home improvement store in California he had never visited, he jumped into action. That was in April. On Wednesday, after months of investigation by the Steamboat Springs Police Department and months of credit monitoring by Wening, a suspect in the case appeared in Routt County Court.
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Lawrence Lee Chiles, 66, is accused of using Wening’s driver’s license number and his Social Security number to open store accounts and place orders in California. After hearing that an order in Wening’s name for several thousand dollars worth of goods was ready to be picked up, Wening immediately got on the phone and started the process of notifying all the credit card agencies he uses, the three credit bureaus
and local police. It took Wening 60 to 80 hours to file all the reports and put the credit locks on his accounts. “We’ve always been real careful about shredding data,” he said. “You don’t leave that information around, especially Social Security numbers.” As he notified each of the credit agencies and the com-
DELIVERY PROBLEM?
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LAST WEEK: Should a medical marijuana dispensary be zoned like an adult business? Results/5A
To report home delivery problems, please call 970-871-4250 on Sunday from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Missed papers will be delivered by 10:30 a.m.
THIS WEEK: Will a City Council candidate’s position on Steamboat 700 determine whether you vote for that person?
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See ID theft, page 8A
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