MARCH 11 - 18, 2026
THE DEFINITIVE SOURCE FOR GRAND JUNCTION BUSINESS & COMMUNITY NEWS SINCE 1994
VOLUME 33, ISSUE 11
THEBUSINESSTIMES.COM
Cost-share could save Community, Montrose hospitals up to $31M Tim Harty
I
The Business Times
f two area hospitals see the $19 million to $31 million they stand to save via a cost-saving partnership, their respective CEOs may want to grab a handful of that cash and buy Angelina Salazar a nice dinner. It was Salazar in her role as CEO of Western Healthcare Alliance who figured out Community Hospital CEO Chris Thomas and Montrose Regional Health CEO Jeff Mengenhausen were looking for each other. They just didn’t know it, because they’d been looking in their back yards for a solution that actually was just a little farther down the road. Both were looking for a hospital to partner with on things like buying supplies and sharing IT services. Thomas thought that partner might be Family Health West in Fruita, but he said talks never gained much traction. Mengenhausen thought that partner might be in Delta or Gunnison. No luck. Salazar heard from each CEO about their experiences and knew who they needed to talk to instead. As Thomas tells it, “She basically posed a question: Why don’t you two guys start talking about what you can do together?” As Mengenhausen tells it, he was conversing with Salazar when she told him, “You know, you both are wanting kind of the same thing. Jeff, you should talk to Chris.” See story Page 5
Clifton gets Tropical Tropical Smoothie Cafe’s owners open Clifton location; eye eventual stores in Fruita and Montrose. — See Page 2
Katie Lang, left, and Alejandro Ramos opened their second Tropical Smoothie Cafe in the Grand Valley — this one at 571 32 Road in Clifton — with a soft opening in mid-February and a grand opening to close February and start March. Smoothie is in the business name, but Tropical Smoothie Cafe also has a food menu with bowls, wraps, sandwiches, etc. Photo by Tim Harty.
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