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WESTERN: Students reignite land back movement, A9
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VOL. 142. NO. 15 | THURSDAY, APRIL 13, 2023 | $1.00
State bill stands to ‘crater’ rural health care New building may improve retention and patient volume Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
(Editor's note: This is the second of a two-part update on Gunnison Valley Health. The first appeared in the April 6 edition of the Times.) The state-wide landscape for healthcare going in 2023 is more challenging for rural providers than it was just a year ago, as Gunnison Valley Health executives are looking at slimmer profit GVH A6
INSIDE
TODAY
NEWS: Upper Gunnison awards $300K in community grants, A15
COMMUNITY: Western magic show brings color back to chemistry, B1
Morgan Raspanti
Maybe you can put all of your eggs in one basket On Easter Sunday, April 9, American Legion Post 54 hosted the annual mass egg hunt at Jorgensen Park. For more, see A16 and A17.
School district approves architect for facilities improvement project Board will continue to explore feasibility of ground source heat at GCS Bella Biondini Times Editor
The Gunnison Watershed School District Board has
SPORTS: Hausdoerffer wins free skiing championship, B7
OBITUARIES A3 OPINION A4-A5, A14 CLASSIFIEDS A18-A21 SPORTS B7 ONLINE GUNNISONTIMES.COM
selected an architectural firm to lead the design work for major district-wide improvements following the passage of its $95 million bond last fall. In November, ballot measure 5A passed by a slim margin and is supported by a property tax increase of 5.7 mills, or about $200 per year for every $500,000 of assessed residential property value. The bond includes funding for projects at all of the district’s schools — Lake Preschool, Crested Butte and Gunnison Community
Schools, Gunnison High School and Marble Charter School — and places priority on security improvements, relieving overcrowding in the North Valley and building maintenance. During a regular meeting on Monday, April 10, the school board approved a $4.5 million contract with the Denver-based architect TreanorHL. The district’s owner’s representative, Artaic Group, which is overseeing the school district facility upgrades and acting as the project manager, assisted the
district in the selection process for design services. The school board chose an owner’s representative in January, kicking off the start of the long-term project. According to Artaic Group representative Christopher Guarino, the group is in the process of helping the district hire a project team, which includes the architectural firm and eventually contractors. Artaic interviewed three potential architectural firms last week, but selectSchool board A6
Western Slope no longer experiencing drought conditions Above average precipitation bodes well for Blue Mesa Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
The Upper Gunnison River Basin, alongside the rest of the
Western Slope, is no longer recording drought conditions as of last month. It is a welcome change from the beginning of the year when nearly 30% of the county was registering “abnormally dry conditions,” the least severe tier in the U.S. Drought Monitor. Freedom from drought conditions means that in just two years, the basin has slowly Drought update A7
Mariel Wiley
Traces of winter were still present at Hartman Rocks over the weekend.