Brief by Marcia Darnell
Sn Luis Valley – January 2004 – Colorado Central Magazine
.22 Trouble
Seven students at Ortega Middle School in Alamosa were suspended for bringing guns and ammo to school. Two .22 handguns and numerous bullets were found by the school staff. Law enforcement leaped on the little delinquents, and public opinion of the handling of the situation is good, although there are those who want the kids expelled. Three of them face felony charges.
AC 1, DOJ 0
Alamosa County did not violate federal law by holding at-large elections for commissioners, said the federal district court. The U.S. Dept. of Justice filed suit in 2001 alleging that the practice prevented Hispanic candidates from being elected. The judge found that, with one exception, in every primary election since 1978, an Hispanic candidate seeking the Democratic nomination won it.
Swift Work
Dean and Pattie Swift were named Conservation Farmers of the Year by the Colorado Association of Conservation Districts. The couple and their two children operate a flower seed company near Jaroso. In addition, they preserve wet lands, riverbanks, and soil on their farm.
Davis Goin’ Down
Joe Davis, former Eastside Energy president, was convicted of felony forgery. Davis falsified bank documents to rent office space and buy a tractor. Eastside, which was supposed to be a biomass energy plant, is kaput.
Housey Fall Down
The Hunt House, also known as the Ball Mansion, will be demolished. The former senior center was the home of territorial governor Alexander Cameron Hunt and is the last remnant of Alamosa’s founding in 1878. Now it will be a parking lot.
After serving as territorial governor in 1867, Hunt went on to head the land-development subsidiary of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, which laid out new towns along the tracks. Hunt, who was partial to Spanish names, christened some of those towns, among them Alamosa (Cottonwoods), Salida (Exit or Gateway), and Durango (for Durango, Mexico).
Scam Scraped
A routine customer service survey uncovered an embezzlement scheme in a local insurance agency. An employee had been filing fake towing claims and keeping the money. The fake claims were discovered when the home office sent out questionnaires about recent service.
Brief Briefs
* Anthony Lobato from Center received the Friend of Extension award from the CSU Cooperative Extension. He has served on the CSUCE state and regional advisory boards for several years.
* State Rep. John Salazar of the San Luis Valley announced his candidacy for U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis’s seat. Salazar, brother of state Attorney General Ken Salazar, is in his first term in the state house.
* A giant U.S. flag was stolen from an Alamosa business. A $1,000 reward is offered for its recovery and the arrest of the perp.
* The Alamosa City Council actually denied a liquor license to an applicant. The new bar, McCool’s, is too close to other taverns in the area, according to residents.
* VectraBank has sold its branches in the San Luis Valley to First Southwest Bank. A Vectra spokesmen said their top priority was finding buyers who would understand the region. Three of the new bank owners are based in the Valley.
* CDOT is planning to do something about that nasty intersection at U.S. 160 and 285 in East Alamosa. Just what that’ll be hasn’t been announced.
* Alamosa resident Harry Hard turned 102 on Dec. 3. The retired teacher, poultry farmer, coach, and archeologist says staying active has kept him going.
* Alamosa Senior Citizens Inc. received the R.J. Montgomery Award for Human Services from the El Pomar Foundation. The award comes with a $15,000 prize.
