The Memorial Day Parade is set for Saturday May 26th at 10 a.m.
Memorial Day Parade application can be downloaded here
Or
You may pick one up at the Sentinel Office (601 Main St in Westcliffe) or the Westcliffe Town Hall or the Silver Cliff Town Hall.
Board of County
Commissioners (BOCC)
—April 4, 2018
WESTCLIFFE, CO
by Jackie Bubis
The meeting started at 9 a.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance and roll call. Introductions of the public in attendance followed.
Commissioner Items
Commissioner Printz had no new items.
Commissioner Canda met with the Postmistress to make sure that the heritage road signs would be no issue in mail delivery. A group of citizens is working on a proposal to put up the heritage road signs (Kettle Rd, Macy Lane, etc.) along with the numbered road signs. Mr. Canda also asked Attorney Smith to look at the right-of-way up to the Hibbs tower. Continue reading BOCC: Staff Reports; Landfill, Water Trucks, Extension Office, Health Nurse
Photo courtesy of Wetmore Voluntary Fire Department
Press Release
Custer County Sheriff’s Office
On Wednesday, March 28th, at approximately 05:30 a.m., Custer County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call from two female passersby of a structure fire at Bishop Castle, located on State Highway 165 at approximately twelve thousand block. Rye, Beulah and Wetmore Fire Departments were dispatched along with two Custer County Sheriff’s deputies.
Rye fire arrived on scene first and reported two structures were burning and had collapsed within themselves. The gift shop/residence and a small outbuilding were destroyed. There was no one living in the residence at the time of the fire. Fire had begun to creep up the mountainside but due to recent snowfall, the fire did not progress into the trees.
Wet Mountain Fire Department arrived on scene late afternoon to put foam on the structure as it remained hot and smoldering. Bishop Castle was closed to the public until the investigation was complete. The castle was not damaged in the fire.
Custer County Sheriff’s Office concluded their investigation of the Bishop Castle fire. An arson investigator in conjunction with our investigator determined the cause of the fire will be unknown but most likely electrical. Total loss of the two buildings is estimated at approximately $185,000 dollars which includes the buildings and contents. The castle has been released back to owner Jim Bishop and is open for tourism.
Custer County Sheriff’s Office wishes to express our condolences to the Bishop family in the loss of the buildings.
by Dan Bubis
Colorado law requires that municipalities hold a referendum before providing cable, telecommunications, or broadband service, unless the community is unserved. Our community is not unserved, we have several providers and yet we have not seen a ballot issue addressing whether taxpayer funding should go to providing either broadband or telecommunications. For the County to engage in the provisioning of these services they stand a reasonably good chance of being sued.
One of the major problems with the CCEDC’s proposal is that they don’t really have a plan beyond building towers. They have no commitments from any providers of Internet or Cellular service. While “if you build it, they will come” may work in a movie, businesses need more concrete commitments to ensure success. AT&T has demonstrated an unwillingness to increase their current equipment and they already have a tower. If the existing Internet providers could make the use case for additional towers, they would erect those towers. Perhaps the CCEDC is planning on providing access to the towers at no charge. Then how will maintenance and support be funded. See the map of DD Wireless (now Secom) towers for an idea of existing coverage. Continue reading Comments on the CCEDC Broadband Tower Proposal
FORTY-YEAR HOME-GROWN SUCCESS Congratulations to Entrepreneur Russ Hartbauer
by Fred Hernandez
The year was 1978 in America. A good year. The average cost of a new house was $ 54,800, monthly rent was $260 and the price of a gallon of gasoline was 63 cents. Bacon was at $1.20 /lb. and eggs were 48 cents a dozen. On the international scene the big news was Egypt and Israel had signed the Camp David Peace Accords brokered by then President Jimmy Carter. Continue reading FORTY-YEAR HOME-GROWN SUCCESS
The Custer County Board of County Commissioners solemnly declared January 31st as Ben Rusher Day in memory of Ben Rusher’s heroic effort to save his drowning brother last summer. Shown is Commissioner Printz reading and presenting memorial plaques to Ben’s father, John Rusher, and mother, Elin Parker Ganschow.
Photo by George Gramlich
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by Dan Bubis
This is a general overview of the reasons why so many citizens of Custer County signed the recall petitions and will vote YES to recall every County Commissioner in November. It is not exhaustive.
Keith Hood and the Boards – In the first meeting with Hood and Printz on the Board, the Board members brought their prepared lists to appoint the county boards. Traditionally, the boards stayed the same unless there were vacancies to fill. This board removed members and put on their allies and friends. One of those removals – Keith Hood from the Planning Commission brought pushback from the Planning Commission members.
1/31/17– This violated the rules of the Zoning Resolution and Kattnig was outraged that he had to follow the Zoning Resolution. Mr. Hood was reinstated. Continue reading LTE Reasons for the Recall
Eva (née Adams) Colgate, 88 years old, was so incensed by the actions of the County Commissioners over the last six months, she decided it was time to take action. Eva grew up in the valley and worked on her daddy’s dairy farm until she went to college. She moved back to the Valley after a career teaching Home
Economics. Even though she had to move to Cañon City due to health reasons a few years ago she is coming back as a certified Take Back Custer County Petition Circulator to gather signatures to throw the current deceitful Commissioners out of office. As a Custer County land owner, Eva says,“What they do effects me.”
God Bless, Eva. Go Get ’em.
(Editor/GG: A phone call to The Editor on July 5th, re the proposed County criminal outdoor lighting ordinance by a native resident. Printed with permission from Eva Colgate.)
“George. This is Eva Colgate.
I just got my Sentinel. I read your article on the new Custer County change in outdoor light fixtures. It is a wonderful article.
I was Eva Adams. I grew up in Custer County on a dairy and I stumbled around with a coal oil lantern all my childhood doing chores for my daddy. My daddy worked with the REA to get electricity into Custer County.
It absolutely makes me furious that these do-gooders and these silly people want to take our lights away.
Just leave us alone.
If you want darkness go into the mountains.
Let us please have our lights so we can function and do our chores. One farmer says his barn light saved his life a few times.
If there is anything Eva Colgate can do to stop this nonsense, please, please, let me know.”
(Editor/GG: Eva, and our whole beloved County: We made a mistake electing these three left-wing County Commissioners and we can right the wrong NOW. Sign the recall petition for each of these deceitfully elected Commissioners, Bob Kattnig, Jay Printz and Donna Hood and get rid of them. Send them back to the lying liberal swamp they came from and restore traditional, western and American values to our County government. TAKE BACK CUSTER COUNTY!)
by George Gramlich,
News and Commentary
“…as we march towards being Boulder South…”
My, my, my. I can hear then Commissioner candidate Bob Kattnig stating unequivocally, about two and a half years ago, in the Sentinel’s office, to my face, that he was a “conservative Republican”. He then listed the usual conservative talking points that he adhered to politically. Sounded good to me. Although his family were life-long democrats, and he was a long term, tenured professor at an Arizona university (warning signs, maybe?), he insisted he believed in limited government and traditional conservative American values.
“Honesty” was one of his big themes. Yes, honesty. A “man of his word” or a similar phrase was used often. “I will treat people fairly” was another. Hmmmm.
Continue reading Republican Dinner Void of Recently-Elected Republican-Ticket Officials
