All posts by sentineladmin

2018, BOCC

BOCC: Printz Has Epic Temper Tantrum Over His Texas Registered Subaru

It was another very interesting Custer Board of County Commissioners meeting Tuesday, July 31st. It seems that the Sentinel’s picture of a certain BOCC Commissioner’s car, a Subaru with Texas plates/registration, that we ran a few weeks ago caused one Commissioner to have another meltdown in public. Under that picture, we had asked a rhetorical question along the lines of ‘Guess which Commissioner is driving this car to work?’. This has been going on for a long time. (Note: The transcript of the temper tantrum )

Well, we found out who owns the Texas Suby on Tuesday when Commissioner Jay “Lone Star” Printz asked for some time at the beginning of the meeting to discuss an “important” matter. Continue reading BOCC: Printz Has Epic Temper Tantrum Over His Texas Registered Subaru →

2018, Uncategorized

The Passing of the Guard: Chief Jack Slater Retires

On the Grade: Neighbors Helping Neighbors
The Oak Creek Fire Department
The Passing of the Guard: Chief Jack Slater Retires

Story and photos
by George Gramlich
It was 1988 when Jack and Audrey Slater, owners of The General Store on Oak Creek Grade, (they’re on the Fremont side about a mile north from the Custer County border,) decided that due to their remote location, some sort of firefighting capability was needed on the Grade’s plateau. (The “plateau” starts around mile marker 10 on County Road 255 and extends north past the Fremont County line to the National Forest Lions Canyon Trailhead campsite going down “the hill”. About five miles long.) Continue reading The Passing of the Guard: Chief Jack Slater Retires →

2018, Custer County Kids

Wet Mountain Minors – First Place Standing

by Amy Moulton
The Wet Mountain Minors youth baseball team kept a firm hold on their first-place standing with a week of blowouts. On Tuesday, July 10th, a hard-hitting home run by Grant Rusk, a triple by Colt Moulton with an RBI and walks from the Tigers’ pitchers started out the game with a strong lead. Then Moulton pitched three strikeouts, only allowing one run to end the inning at 8-1. In the second inning, Braden Troyer hit a triple with an RBI, which was followed by three runs by walk. Taylor Bradford finished the batting with a double, hitting in two RBIs. Kate Doughty pitched for the first time this season, getting the ball across the plate for two strikeouts, four runs by hits and only two runs by walk. Relief pitcher Rusk Grant came in with three strikes in a row to finish the inning at 14-7. Continue reading Wet Mountain Minors – First Place Standing →

2018, BOCC

June 29th BOCC: Tourist Board Members Feud

Board of County
Commissioners (BOCC)

—June 29, 2018
WESTCLIFFE, Colo.
by Jackie Bubis
The meeting started at 9 a.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance and roll call. Introductions of the public followed.
The minutes from June 20th and 25th were approved.
Commissioner Items:
All Commissioners reported on meetings they attended.
Commissioner Canda urged the citizens to be patient with the roads. Because of the drought conditions, the washboard conditions are exacerbated. The Road & Bridge Department is working on the roads on a priority basis. He also reported that load testing is complete on the runway at the airport but results are not back yet.
Commissioner Flower reported: CDOT has put up lit signs for us at Wetmore and Hillside reminding our visitors of the No Open Burning in effect, CSU Extension will have an interim agent here the week of the second and will be paying the full salary and they expect to have a new hire by sometime in September.
Attorney Items
Attorney Clint Smith worked on several legal documents for various offices and did the annual ethics review with the Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Adjustment.
The Board reviewed vouchers and signed checks.
Next on the agenda was a discussion about a possible workshop with the Tourism Board. Greg Smith and Angie Arturburn were in attendance. After discussion, it was decided that the presentation of the new branding materials that resulted from the branding grant would happen during the BOCC meeting on July 31st.
Another Tourism Board item was next: appointment of a member to replace Robert Weisenbach who resigned recently after the combative meeting regarding who must be on that board. Mr. Printz began a discussion by saying that the Tourism Board had become very difficult and contentious. Changes were suggested and approved.
First, the Board approved removing Brent Bruser (at his own request) from the tourism board. Greg Smith objected and stated that if this was done, he would resign as well (effective July 31.)
Next, the Board approved that no member of county boards were to be paid in any way for their services. This referred back to a possible conflict of interest from board member Greg Smith getting paid for services he provided to the Tourism Board. It was noted that Smith did recuse himself when those items were approved.
Last, the Board approved that no commissioner should be a member of any of the boards overseen by the BOCC. Mr. Printz has been a voting member of the Tourism Board and when this motion passed, he resigned his position on both the Tourism Board and the Attainable Housing Board.
Christopher (Kit) Tyler, owner of the Westcliffe Inn was appointed to the Tourism Board. Letters of interest for becoming a member of the Tourism Board are being taken at this time. No further appointment will be made until after more letters of interest are received and the Tourism Board makes recommendations.
Evan Brooks with SSC, Inc. representing AT&T FirstNet Cell Site appeared before the Board to discuss the lease of land to AT&T for a tower on county land near the Sheriff’s Office. After discussion, the Board voted to move ahead with the negotiations for this lease. This tower will provide AT&T FirstNet service and also better service to the AT&T customers in the area.
The Board approved an updated IGA for shared responsibility of radio tower maintenance between the County, the Sheriff, the Fire Department and the Clinic.
The Board approved the Auditor’s Report.
Dave McCain requested action to free up a small triangle of land (.6 acres) that was dedicated to the County for the Blumenau Fire Well. After discussion with the County Attorney, who stated that the county did not own that land or have any interest in it, the Board voted 2-1to sign a quit claim deed on that property. The reason Mr. Flower voted no was because the County had no ownership or interest in the property.
Sheriff Byerly discussed a contract with the school for a School Resource Officer. The school has set aside $25K for the 2018-2019 school year for this purpose. The Sheriff’s Department will provide an off-duty deputy during school hours who will be paid by the school. The Board authorized the Sheriff to sign the contract.

Uncategorized

Silver Cliff Honored

by Fred Hernandez
In the bygone era of the early 1800’s when people had to care for each other, organizations formed to act as security nets for the workers of this country. Conditions were always difficult and sometimes downright dangerous. Men lost their lives in the course of making a living to support their families. Wives and orphans were left to fend for themselves in the harshest of conditions. To alleviate some of the hardship, fellow workers banded together and formed associations with the main purpose of helping the unfortunate families who lost their breadwinners. One such group was first founded in Virginia at the beginning of 1800. By 1830, it had a counterpart in California, but it really took off in 1849 at the start of the gold rush. From then on it grew rapidly. Continue reading Silver Cliff Honored →

2018

Murder on the Grade

6/29/2018  From Page 2

 

 

 

Just a small sample of the incredible amount of broken down vehicles on the victom’s property.

Photo by George Gramlich

by George Gramlich
The Big Horn Ranch subdivision is located in the southern part of Fremont County off Oak Creek Grade (County Road 143). It is quite a large subdivision with small lots and large agricultural lots. About 30 families live there year-round. Most of the residents in Big Horn are retirees. It is about one mile to the Custer County line.
The main (and only) road going into the ranch is Shoshone Drive. About two miles in, there is a road veering off to the north called Chinook Drive. About a half a mile up Chinook is a private drive. On that private drive is Loa Kennedy’s property.
Loa Kennedy was murdered Sunday morning, June 24th on her property. Allegedly, quite brutally. Continue reading Murder on the Grade →

2018

Greg Lopez Speaks Locally

Greg Lopez Speaks Locally: “It’s About All Of Us”

by Fred Hernandez
R ick Castor, campaign coordinator, announced the start of the meeting at 6 p.m. on June 13th at the Lange Hall of the Lutheran Church on 3rd Street in Westcliffe by calling Pastor Adrian Washington to the podium. Pastor Adrian, Custer County representative of the LOPEZ FOR GOVERNOR campaign, gave a prayerful invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Immediately thereafter, the energetic candidate, Greg Lopez, was up and running with one of his familiar mantras: “It is not about Denver or Boulder, it is about all of us” referring to the 64 counties that make up the Centennial State, a nickname resulting from becoming a state of the Union in 1876, one hundred years after the nation was founded. It was a good-sized audience of about seventy-five enthusiastic citizens eager to hear from Mr. Lopez about his plans and platforms. The only veteran among all those vying for the position, Lopez, who became the youngest Colorado Mayor (City of Parker) at age 27, recounted his experiences not only as a mayor but as City Manager as well, a position which involved him in all aspects Continue reading Greg Lopez Speaks Locally →

2018, BOCC

Planning Commission Puts the Dimmer Switch On Printz’s Dark Obsession

Lights Out for the “Printz of Darkness”
Planning Commission Puts the Dimmer Switch On Printz’s Dark Obsession

Planning Commission Workshop
by Jackie Bubis
On June 13th, the Custer County Board of County Commissioners (Mr. Canda was not present) and the Planning Commission met in a workshop to review changes in the Zoning Resolution. The Planning Commission began working on revising this document late in 2016. In January 2017, when there was confusion with the then BOCC (Kattnig, Hood, and Printz) about appointments to the Planning Commission and then in July when the same board referred issues of Dark Skies and shipping containers to them, the work began in earnest.
The workshop began with Commissioner Printz stating that he thought the removal of a definition of “light pollution” was a “self-serving” effort by the Planning Commission to kill Dark Skies. He went on to spend the next nearly forty-five minutes proselytizing for Dark Skies. He believes that the public meetings held by the Planning Commission on the subject were “staged” and “biased,” and was not representative of the opinions of the community. (Editor/llv: Perhaps, as there were many Dark Skies Advocates from out of county.)

Continue reading Planning Commission Puts the Dimmer Switch On Printz’s Dark Obsession →

2018, Uncategorized

Hospital District Board: WHERE IS OUR SECOND AMBULANCE THAT WE PAID FOR?

Another Hospital District Mirage

by George Gramlich,
News and Commentary
The critical issue of not having a 2nd Custer County EMS (CCEMS) ambulance with a qualified crew reliably available still plagues Custer County (CC) and its citizens. Not to mention that the Clinic has NO doctors. (See below.) This problem has been with us for a long time and has been quite visible for the last seven years or so.
It was supposed to have been solved with the large EMS mil levy ($280,000) voters approved in 2014 but that has NOT happened.
After reading multiple incidents on the daily Custer County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Incident Report and listening to them on the scanner, the Sentinel reached out to the Sheriff’s Office (SO) and asked if there were any statistics available for times when a 2nd CCEMS crew was needed and called and was NOT available. It turns out that there was. The SO was gracious enough to compile a spreadsheet from 1/29/18 to 6/12/18 showing the cases where someone in Custer County needed an ambulance crew while one was busy on another call and CCEMS could not provide the 2nd crew. To say the least,it is very, very alarming.
In a four-and-a-half-month period, FIFTEEN TIMES CCSO Dispatch requested a 2nd crew and CCEMS was UNABLE to answer those calls. In those cases, thankfully, Deer Mountain EMS was able to send their primary or SECONDARY ambulance to help CC out. On at least one call, Flight for Life was also called as it was uncertain if Deer Mountain could make it in time. (Flight for Life would have caused the patient to incur an enormous bill, of $10,000 to $20,000!)…

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