Category Archives: 2019

2019

Westcliffe Sales Tax Increase Voted DOWN

Westcliffe Sales Tax Increase Voted DOWN
State: Prop CC a Big NO GO

by George Gramlich
In a somewhat surprising result, the citizens of Westcliffe voted down the 50% town sales tax increase proposed by their own Town Council and Mayor Paul Wenke. The vote was a pretty conclusive 106 against to 89 for the measure. There wasn’t much public discussion about the proposed tax increase until Westcliffe citizen and real estate broker, John Johnston, wrote a very informative Letter to the Editor a few months ago exposing some fiscal points that were not well known. That letter could have very well influenced the defeat of the tax increase.
Custer County held to her conservative views in decisively defeating the TABOR-killing Proposition CC by a huge margin, 67.77% (1,516 votes) against to only 32.23% (721 votes) for.
Prop CC was defeated at the state level by 55.12% to 44.88% despite millions of dollars of out-of-state donations spent on trying to get it passed.
Custer voters also voted heavily against Proposition DD (water taxes) with 63.64% (1,425) against to 36.36% (814 votes) for. However, Prop DD just barely passed at the state level 50.48% to 49.52%.
School Board: In District 1, DeeAnna Pratt beat Maria Duran-Shy 956 to 853. Jacob Shy ran uncontested in District. He received 1,303 votes. Daniel Kriegh lost to Newell Woodbury in District 3 with Woodbury getting 810 votes to Kriegh’s 740 vote tally.
County wide, only 2,252 out of the 4,090 registered voters voted. About 2,230 voters voted for the two statewide issues (Prop’s CC and DD) while about only around 1,500 voters voted in the school board races. And all issues and candidates were on the same ballot.
All results are unofficial as of press time.

2019

Custerites You Did It! Fundraising Goal Met

Custerites You Did It!
Fundraising Goal Met for
Deputies’ New Body Armor

by George Gramlich
It all started a couple of months ago when local realtor Josh Martin asked my friend and Sentinel Vice President Fred Hernandez to help with an idea he had. Due to a recent incident, Josh want-ed to do something nice for the Sheriff’s Office. Maybe buy them some equipment that they might need. So, Josh and Fred went to see Custer County Sheriff Shannon Byerly. The Sheriff said there was something they could help the Sheriff’s Office with: getting new, rifle rated body armor. He also mentioned that there is a charitable organization in Colorado Springs that specializes in helping local law enforcement agencies obtain rifle rated body armor. That organizations is SHIELD616. Continue reading Custerites You Did It! Fundraising Goal Met →

2019

Every American Male Should Read This Book

The Godfather, Business
and Manhood: Every American Male
Should Read This Book

by George Gramlich,
A Book Review

Robert Gore, ex-Los Angeles bond trader, blogger (straightlinelogic.com), author “The Golden Pinnacle”, and an avid Sentinel reader, recently sent us his latest book, “Everything I Know About Business I Learned From The Godfather”. It is outstanding.

Robert is a huge fan of Mario Puzo’s “Godfather” novel and Francis Ford Coppola’s “Godfather” movies. He’s a pretty bright guy, with an MBA (a degree he calls “useless”) and a law degree. He survived a career in the rough-and-tumble world of big-time trading in stocks, bonds, commodities, and credit default swaps for two firms in Los Angeles. After decades in the financial swamp, he quit to write full-time. He’s now also an investor and executive in a technology startup.

Continue reading Every American Male Should Read This Book →

2019, Letters

Westcliffe Wants a 50% Sales Tax HIKE Taxpayer Wants to Know Why

Westcliffe Wants a 50% Sales Tax HIKE
Taxpayer Wants to Know Why

A Letter to the Editor;
by John G. Johnston
The Town of Westcliffe is counting on your apathy to get away with increasing your sales tax by 50%. Since I have lived here…and long before that, the town has had one of the healthiest budgets anyone could ask for. I ask the trustees to find a government with a higher percentage of wealth and reserve. Continue reading Westcliffe Wants a 50% Sales Tax HIKE Taxpayer Wants to Know Why →

2019, Letters

Letter to the Editor: Supporting our Law Enforcement

Letter to the Editor,

While doing research for an article, I came upon a book which has been in my personal library since 1987. The following was written by the author, Dean Grennell, and may be found on Pages 81 and 82 of his book, Handgun Digest; A complete overview of hand gunning today.

“Like an upheld mirror, police service guns reflect the conditions of society. Cops are not warriors; they are the representatives of the public and public support is their real weapon. If such a public becomes so selfish and indifferent it places all responsibility on police officers, it is doomed to chaos and destruction. Continue reading Letter to the Editor: Supporting our Law Enforcement →

2019

Westcliffe Town Meeting: New Pro-Tem Selected, Zoning Map Amended, Town Joins Rotary , Building Sale to Pay Debt

—September 3, 2019
WESTCLIFFE, Colo.
by Lisa Frank
The meeting began at 5:30 p.m. with a call to order and the Pledge of
Allegiance, roll call and a recognition of visitors.
The Consent Agenda was passed by a majority vote.

Old Business: None
New Business:
A. The resignation of Audrey Gluschke was accepted by the Board. Ms. Gluschke’s moved from town to the county, making her ineligible for a Town Board position. Continue reading Westcliffe Town Meeting: New Pro-Tem Selected, Zoning Map Amended, Town Joins Rotary , Building Sale to Pay Debt →

2019

AMR Brings the Big Dogs

by Jackie (Muddy) Bubis

August 23, 2019

The West Custer County Hospital Board had a special meeting on Thursday to give AMR an opportunity to present options for them taking over emergency medical services in the county. They invited the Board of County Commissioners but did not provide reserved seating for the commissioners. When asked prior to the meeting why this was, it was stated this was protocol and that this was “their” meeting. However, as the meeting began and AMR made their presentation, the hospital board and their administrator were very quiet.
The clinic conference room was packed with over forty people with overflow in the hallway. Continue reading AMR Brings the Big Dogs →

2019

Meet the Custer County Dive Team

by Sentinel Staff


The all-volunteer public response dive team for Custer County began back in March of 2011, when Charles Cox and Bill Mazurek, both volunteers in the Custer County Sheriff’s Office Posse, got together and started a dive team for search, rescue and recovery purposes in water locations such as lakes, rivers, and ponds. The public response team is an asset to the County because a response dive team from Pueblo or Co Springs can take 24 hours or more to arrive on scene due to shift coverage. In contrast, Custer County’s Volunteer Dive Team is able to respond at a moment’s notice. Continue reading Meet the Custer County Dive Team →