Brief by Marcia Darnell
San Luis Valley – April 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine
WCV Win
It’s a win-for-now for opponents of Wolf Creek Village. A court settlement requires the U.S. Forest Service to redo the environmental impact statement. The agency will do the new EIS itself, instead of outsourcing, like last time.
“It’s a temporary victory,” said Chris Canaly of the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council. “It means the public will have another opportunity to participate and hopefully this time around issues that were never addressed in the last EIS will be taken more seriously, things like the impact of the Village itself.”
For more information on this and other environmental concerns in the Valley check: www.slvec.org.
Awash in Water
Be careful what you wish for. Now that the Valley finally got a healthy snowpack and soaked lands, flooding danger is high this spring. All eyes are on the Rio Grande and its tributaries as agencies plan for evacuations. The up side: aquifers are filling again and there should be plenty of wet stuff for irrigation this summer.
The hard winter was hell for Monte Vista, which has battled frozen water lines all over the city. Apparently the pipes were originally laid too shallow, and now the city is paying thousands in overtime for city crews to keep them thawed and running. Residents are also suffering, having to choose between frozen pipes within their homes, which could lead to big plumbing bills, or letting faucets drip at night, thereby creating big water bills.
School Solicits $$$
Adams State College is asking students to approve $35 million for renovations and new buildings on campus. The vote for a capital fee is slated for late March, and would mean an extra $10 per credit hour at the school, currently one of the cheapest in the state. Part of the money may be set aside as an endowment for scholarships and grants.
Brief Briefs
Alamosa County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Thompson saved a 3-year-old boy from drowning in a pond. He’s been nominated for a medal of valor.
Tiny San Luis was the host to the annual convention of DARCA, the Ditch and Reservoir Company Alliance.
Home Depot axed its tentative plans to come to Alamosa.
Adams State College’s Rex Gymnasium has been placed on the city’s Registry of Historic Places. The gym was built in 1939 as a WPA project and is undergoing renovations.
The Blanca Centennial Committee is compiling a cookbook to note the town’s 100th birthday this summer.
Antonito wants its depot to be a stop on the San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad. Meanwhile, the railroad is protesting Creede’s request for abandonment of the rail tracks in town, indicating possible future service for Creede.
Former state Sen. Lewis Entz received an award from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and by the Colorado Aeronautics Division for his work to promote aviation in the state.
Catlin’s Greenhouse on U.S. 160 had five of its greenhouses collapse under the weight of snow and ice. The owners plan to replace them before the sales season begins.
Jason North is the new director of the Alamosa County Chamber of Commerce. He moved here from Stowe, Vt., where he was a retail manager at the ski area.
Art Del Barrio is the new director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Luis Valley. Saphire Valdez-Ruybal was named youth of the year by the organization.
Alamosan Tom Ford was inducted into the Colorado Agriculture Hall of Fame. He has grown potatoes for half a century, and has served on many administrative and promotional boards.
Former Alamosan Garrett Haley is to compete on “American Idol.”
Principal Jeff Bilderbeck of Evans Elementary School in Alamosa paid up. He promised his students that if they met reading goals, he’d dance for them — dressed as Little Bo Peep.
Debra Goodman announced the organization of the San Luis Valley Tourism Council.
