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VOL. 143 NO. 16 | THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 2024 | $1.00
Local post offices grapple with staff shortages Gunnison without permanent postmaster Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
A BLAST FROM THE PAST: Coco Warren, Myia Dantzler, Lily Berwanger, Skylah Inman and Tyr Elder hit the dance floor to relive their high school glory days during “The Awesome ’80s Prom” interactive theater production on April 12. The show was put on by the Western Threatre Company. For more, see B10. (Photo by Jacob Spetzler)
INSIDE
TODAY NEWS: Boaters pay-to-play at Shady Island, A13
COMMUNITY: Keepers of the greens, B1
OBITUARIES A3 OPINION A4 CLASSIFIEDS A15-A18 SPORTS B6 ONLINE GUNNISONTIMES.COM
3 days of
new mobile homes on property
Gunnison’s Frontier Land mobile home park is being redeveloped as planned, but it’s likely that many of its former tenants have moved on. At the end of March, Almontbased owner Courtney Scales, who operates under the company CCNB Properties, installed the first of 12 new mobile homes. Five more are scheduled to arrive at the property at 912 West Gunnison Ave. before the end of the summer. The remainder of the mobile homes will be delivered based
Earth day deals April 20-22
Post office A6
Frontier Land under Valley liquor stores redevelopment struggle with lost Owner installing beer, wine revenue Bella Biondini Times Editor
SPORTS: GHS track and field wins first, B6
Mail delivery through the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) in Colorado’s mountain towns has been less than adequate, according to a recent federal report. The
on interest, said Scales’ business partner Mike Carnes. He has worked in real estate for 25 years and splits his time between the Gunnison Valley and the Denver area. Last summer, park residents received a notice that the owner was terminating their leases and they had 30 days to leave their homes. By that time, Frontier Land had sat on the market for over a year. The park housed approximately 40 low-income residents, many of whom were Spanish-speakers or part of the Cora community, an indigenous group from Mexico. Many families had lived at the park for years and feared they wouldn’t be able to find another place to live — subject to the same high rent prices and low inventory that makes it difficult for other workers to find Frontier Land A6
State bill aims to help stores recover sales Abby Harrison Times Staff Writer
A recently-introduced bill may help Colorado’s familyowned and local liquor stores recover after a year of dwindling wine sales. It’s the latest in the state’s years-long battle between small liquor retailers and commercial grocery stores looking to get in on the profit. In 2022, Coloradoans voted in favor of allowing grocery stores to start selling wine, just four years after big grocers and convenience stores started selling full-strength beer. As a result,
liquor stores around Colorado, and the Gunnison Valley, saw a dramatic decrease in sales. Between 80 to 100 stores around the state have closed in the last year, according to Chris Fine, executive director of Colorado Independent Liquor Stores United. “It definitely made it difficult, you were kind of put into an adapt or die situation,” said Gunnison Liquor Store owner Dani Leach. Leach’s father, Ron, purchased the store in the mid 80s, and passed management over to her in 2016. House Bill 1373, introduced to the Colorado legislature last month, proposes to remove big grocers’ ability to sell hard liquor, but allow them to continue selling beer and wine. It Liquor A7
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