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Volume 5, Number 29 | August 29, 2013

Celebrating the win

The “End of the Dam Affair” party in Redstone Park on Aug. 25 attracted more than 100 folks who sipped beer, socialized, listened to acoustic rock & soul and took in two or three short speeches explaining why they were there. The Crystal Valley Environmental Protection Association and other groups organized the party to celebrate the West Divide Water District’s relinquishment of its water rights on the Crystal River, which pretty much relegates a 56-year-old proposal to dam the river at Placita to the dustbin of history. Now, the groups are investigating Wild and Scenic designation for the river. For a brief history on the whole dam affair, please turn to page 7. Photo by Lynn Burton

Fighting hunger at home – can you dig it? By Sue Coyle Sopris Sun Correspondent

I

n a YouTube video made last April, El Jebel resident Kim Doyle Wille speaks excitedly in front of Carbondale’s Third Street Center and gestures towards several brown, seemingly lifeless garden beds behind her. The spring wind buffets the microphone and tries to drown out her words, but Wille is nothing if not determined. Today that determination is stronger than ever, and the bare dirt beds have been transformed into abundant vegetable gardens. Wille is founder and director of Plant a Row to End Hunger (PAR-TEH) a philanthropic enterprise providing fresh, organic

produce to those who could not otherwise afford it. The network of gardens stretch from Aspen to Rifle, Gypsum, Eagle and Paonia. One of the largest plots is part of the Good Seed Community Garden at the Orchard Church in Carbondale. These gardens provide food for Lift-Up as well as other food banks and residents of western Colorado. “I feel like I was put on this earth to do this project,” said Wille. That sense of purpose is contagious, as hundreds of volunteers have contributed in large and small ways to the project. Seeds, many of them precious heirloom seeds, were donated by a variety of individual and commercial contributors. Topsoil

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and compost were delivered by Pitkin County Landfill. But the most important resource is the hundreds of helping hands that have dug in the dirt, hauled rocks and soil, planted, weeded, watered and tended the garden plots throughout the summer. According to Wille, 1,200 packets of herb and vegetable seeds were distributed to over 200 gardens, and 35 plots were built and planted in only 30 days. Campers and staff from the Extreme Sports Camp, a summer program for autistic young adults, pitched in to build rock borders, plant seeds, lay recycled cardboard under the wood chip paths and contribute whatever labor was needed. Students from Diane Alcantara’s summer

ESL (English as a second language) class have done the same, as well as speaking about their gardening experiences on the Andy Zanca Youth Empowerment program on KDNK. A recent visit from The Sopris Sun to the Good Seed Garden joined Diego and Genesis, two young volunteers from the ESL program who have stayed on after summer school was over. Wille calls them “my regulars.” They showed off the “broccoli forest,” which was planted by a Sunday school class from The Orchard and is exactly what it sounds like. With the help of Wille, the kids hunted for ripe squash and collected mounds PAR-TEH page 15

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Carbondale Commentary The views and opinions expressed on the Commentary page do not necessarily reflect those of The Sopris Sun. The Sopris Sun invites all members of the community to submit letters to the editor or guest columns. For more information, e-mail editor Lynn Burton at news@soprissun.com, or call 510-3003.

Zoning 101: e basics EDiToR’S NoTE: Carbondale is beginning a 16- month process to rewrite its zoning code and develop a unified development code. The town hired Clarion Associates to facilitate the process and help to write the new code. The Carbondale Planning and Zoning Commission is writing a series of articles explaining the basics of zoning. This is the first installment. Earlier this year, the Carbondale Board of Trustees approved the Comprehensive Plan for Carbondale. The Comprehensive Plan will serve as a guide for future development in the town for at least the next 10 years. This was a long process, served well by actively engaged citizens and we are grateful for all the public input. We simply could not have accomplished this task without your help. Thank you. But the hard work is not over; in fact, it has just begun. The approval of the Comprehensive Plan is not the end of the journey, but rather the beginning. While the Comprehensive Plan is a guiding document, the zoning code makes it law. Many of you have never read a zoning code, and wouldn’t know how much it affects your property. So, we’d like to take the space of this article for a primer on zoning. Hopefully, after reading this series of articles, you will understand what a zoning code is and is not, how it will impact future development in our town, and why it is important to you.

What’s a code? What is a zoning code? A zoning code is a multi-part document that carries the force of law. A zoning code is usually accompanied by a zoning map. The first part of a zoning code typically defines the various zoning districts and the allowable uses in those districts. For example, if you own a building along Main Street between Second Street and the post office, you are forbidden from tearing it down to build a new warehouse; warehouses are allowed in other zoning districts, but not downtown. The zoning code also conveys a property right by identifying what CAN be built. So, again (back to Main Street) the property owner has a specific right to build a three-story multiuse building lot line-to-lot line. Allowable uses are considered a “use-by-right.” If a proposed development meets the zoning requirements, the zoning municipality (Carbondale in this case) is compelled by law to allow it. If a development application is denied for reasons besides non-compliance of the zoning requirements, the applicant could sue and most often win.Anyone that follows redevelopment in Aspen is familiar with this phenomenon. The bottom line is this — if a site is zoned for a bank then the property owner has the right to build a bank. The remaining sections of a zoning code are specifically interesting to folks that are planning to build a building. Typically, a section exists for each of the zoning districts that describes the density allowed, the orientation of the building on the site, setbacks from property lines, open space requirements, landscaping and irrigation, parking requirements, and any other factors a developer would have to consider in order to get a plan approved. A zoning map shows how various parts of town are zoned and is as binding as the zoning code itself. Hopefully after reading this article, you understand the basics of a zoning code. The next article in this series will cover the various types of zoning. – The Carbondale Planning & Zoning Commission

Letters

The Sopris Sun welcomes your letters, limited to no more than 400 words. Letters exceeding that length may be edited or returned for revisions. Include your name and residence (for publication) and a contact email and phone number. Submit letters via email to letters@soprissun.com or via snail mail to P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, CO 81623. The deadline to submit letters to the editor is noon on Monday.

Thanks to the rodeo Dear Editor: Another great rodeo season has come and gone for the Carbondale Wild West Rodeo and it was huge. Many thanks go out to Mike Kennedy, Melanie Cardiff, Dave Weimer, Tom Harrington and Diane Teague for their outstanding efforts to keep Carbondale’s heritage alive. The rodeo could not happen without its volunteers. Folks, everyone out there DONATES their time to make the rodeo a success. All of the proceeds go to the contestants. Thank you all.

I have to thank my good friend Carson Weller, who videotapes all of the rodeos and shows them at the Pour House after the rodeo. The cowboys and cowgirls love to come in and see how they looked in action. Thanks also to our new announcer, Derek Barton, who brings the action to life with his great knowledge of rodeo. Kudos to Carbondale’s public works and recreation department for maintaining the arena and grounds so well. Last, but not least, thanks to our fellow sponsors who make the rodeo possible. Without tremendous community support,

2 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

this event would not be possible. Thanks, Carbondale. Skip Bell, manager The Pour House Carbondale

Media hates natural gas drilling Dear Editor: Local groups and newspapers protest the oil and gas industry using well placed articles and films that deceive readers with blatant lies and sensationalism to paint a picture of natural gas extraction that has hurt Garfield County. Tourism and natural gas extraction are the two biggest industries in Garfield County and one of these has suffered of late in the chains of regulation, restriction and protest. It is easy to see the direct relationship between the economic success of the Western Garfield communities and the success of the natural gas industry. The past several months we have heard stories about benzene contamination in Parachute Creek and for good reason. The spill of poisons into water is deplorable and we should be angry and disappointed with those responsible. However, everyone, especially local newspapers, should resist the urge to demonize an industry created from the demand to heat our homes, to fuel our grills, our outdoor heaters, our lighters, our cars and soon, much of our electrical grid. Natural gas is a “clean” burning fuel when you look at the alternatives. Does anyone really want more dams, more coal burning and more nuclear waste being buried in Utah? And no, wind and solar won’t cut it. We cannot sell our entire heartland to “green” energy companies who may not survive with tens of millions in government handouts. More importantly, we do not want the government or a private company to buy the land from beneath our heartland’s farmers just so they can put in thousands of windmills and solar panels. The Post Independent is the most guilty when it comes to condemning the industry. Since July 19 they have printed three articles that declare that there is not enough benzene in the water to be a threat to anyone’s health, yet the articles are titled something like “Benzene Levels Continue to Rise.” For the average moron, this headline is enough to sway their opinion to the side of the opposition. If this average moron would actually read the article they will find that the PI’s crack reporter, John Colson, attempts to spin the story come up short, so they create a title that will do more to harm the industry and the people of western Garfield County. And why do they do that? I suggest you ask the editor of the paper, Drew Munro and his crusader John Colson. I do not pretend to understand the environmental left. Many people of the Roaring Fork Valley fall in lock step with the theories laced in his anti-drilling propaganda that the Post Independent prints as gospel. The members of the anti-gas groups never search to discover how the natural gas industry operates and how it supports western Garfield County. They want no one and nothing to

disturb their perfect little bubble and they damn the world in which we live because the energy sources we use have a cost associated with them. We should move into the future without discounting a fuel source that not only makes our local economy strong, it also makes the world a cleaner and more efficient place to live. We know that the industry will improve their extraction methods and that it is only in their best interest to make the process clean, efficient environmentally responsible. For those that think capitalism creates environmental tragedies in the name of profit, you are absolutely wrong. In this age of environmental awareness, mass media and watchdog groups, it is not profitable or marketable to be careless. If our citizens want the entire county to thrive, and not only the Roaring Fork Valley, I implore everyone to consider who’s backyard they’re really affecting when they donate time, money or conversation to a movement that wants to abolish a local industry. Our federal lands are there for all of us to use, including gas companies that purchased leases legally. The abolitionist philosophy the anti-gas extraction groups employ will only lead to greater conflict, expense and economic hardship. If the industry’s opponents continue to insist that “no” is the only answer then there will be no hope for a healthy, productive and profitable western Garfield County. Dylan Lewis Silt

To inform, inspire and build community. Donations accepted online or by mail. For information call 510-3003 Editor/Reporter: Lynn Burton • 970-510-3003 news@soprissun.com Advertising: Bob Albright • 970-927-2175 bob@soprissun.com Linda Fleming • 970-379-5223 linda@soprissun.com Photographer: Jane Bachrach Ad/Page Production: Terri Ritchie Webmaster: Will Grandbois Sopris Sun, LLC Managing Board of Directors: board@soprissun.com Debbie Bruell • Barbara Dills • Will Grandbois Sue Gray • Colin Laird • Laura McCormick Jean Perry • Frank Zlogar Honorary board members: Peggy DeVilbiss • Elizabeth Phillips David L. Johnson

Sopris Sun, LLC • P.O. Box 399 520 S. Third Street #35 Carbondale, CO 81623

970-510-3003 www.soprissun.com Send us your comments: feedback@soprissun.com The Sopris Sun is an LLC organized under the 501c3 non-profit structure of the Roaring Fork Community Development Corporation.

In the U.S. today: Teaching skills that matter most By Debbie Bruell Sopris Sun Correspondent At the same time that discontent with U.S. educational policy is mounting, our local school district is preparing for a visioning process for the community to explore and define what we want locally for the education of our children. The Sopris Sun is running a series of articles that addresses some of the key concepts and issues at the center of national and local discussions about educational reform. This article is the third in that series. No Child Left Behind (NCLB), signed into law in 2002, made standardized testing the focus of national education policy. In the name of accountability, NCLB required states to test all students and deliver increasingly severe punishments to schools that did not achieve high enough test scores. Meanwhile, critics of NCLB point out that some of the most essential skills students need to succeed in the 21st century are skills that are not even included on standardized tests. In this age of the Internet and Google, when people have infinite information at their fingertips, the nature of work has shifted. As education researcher Tony Wagner states, “the world no longer cares how much students know, but rather what they can do with what they know.”

21st century skills The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (www.p12.org) argues that the “3R’s” (meaning reading, writing, math and other core content areas) must be fused with the “4C’s”: critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity and innovation. Recognizing the importance of these “21st century skills,”a group of governors and

chief education officers from various states began working together to develop a common set of standards that would incorporate these types of learning skills.The result of their work is the Common Core State Standards. While the standards that states created in compliance with NCLB generally focused on the basic level of achievement that all students must master, the Common Core standards were designed to be more academically challenging and focused on “higher order thinking skills” (i.e., the ability to analyze and evaluate information and create new knowledge, in contrast to the more basic skill of understanding information). Some examples of Common Core standards include the following: • “With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others.” (fourth grade Language Arts); • “Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author’s point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).” (sixth through eighth grade Social Studies); • “Follow precisely a complex multi-step procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks; analyze the specific results based on explanations in the text.” (11 through 12th grade Science); So far, 45 states have voluntarily adopted the Common Core standards. Colorado has adopted the Common Core and also continues to maintain some “unique to Colorado” standards. Re-1 Assistant Superintendent Rob Stein views the shift to the Common Core standards very positively. “People are afraid of standards,” Stein told The Sopris Sun, “but

we should be looking at the Common Core and asking ourselves,‘Is this the kind of stuff we want our kids to know?'” Stein believes that most teachers and parents would answer, “Yes.” In “An Open letter to the Architects of the Common Core,” education journalist John Merrow argues that the Common Core is “using all the right words and saying all the right things,” however, our systems are nowhere near capable of measuring the qualities that matter most to a child’s education and future success. According to Merrow, “things that aren’t being tested won’t end up being taught.” The Common Core State Standards Initiative has responded to such criticisms by working to create a new kind of test aimed at testing higher order thinking skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving.This test — from the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) — will be computer-based, allowing for results to be received much more quickly than standardized tests done on paper. (Of course, the fact that many low-income schools may not have the computers necessary to take these tests clearly presents a problem).

Standards, testing continue Although the Common Core presents a new approach to state standards, and the PARCC is working toward a new approach to testing, neither of these new developments questions the overall focus on high stakes standardized testing that continues to dominate our national education policy. Critics point out that there are essential aspects of children’s education which simply don’t fit into the standards/testing model, such as children’s social-emotional development and creating a sense of community

among a classroom of children. Another criticism raised against the Common Core standards is that these more rigorous standards could mean that it will be even more difficult for students to score “proficient” on the standardized tests. Adoption of the Common Core could open the door to more low-income schools being shut down and more private corporations getting public funds to create charter and voucher schools. While President Obama has granted many states flexibility from NCLB’s mandates and attempted to shift from a test-and-punish approach to a test-and-reward approach, he is continuing President Bush’s legacy of focusing educational policy around high stakes standardized testing. In some ways, Obama has created even higher stakes to be associated with test results.

Teacher evaluations Obama initiated the “incentive-based” Race to the Top (RTT) competitive grant program. States are awarded RTT grants based on the extent to which they commit to a long list of items relating to their data and accountability systems. One of these items is linking teachers’ evaluations with students’ test scores. In 2011, Colorado was one of seven states to receive “Phase 3” of RTT funds. One year prior to receiving this grant, the state legislature passed an “Educator Effectiveness Bill” (Senate Bill 191) that established new requirements for evaluating teachers and principals. Among other things, this bill requires that 50 percent of a teacher’s evaluation be determined by the academic growth of that teacher’s students. Re-1 Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Rick Holt emphasizes that SB 191 also includes a professional practice SCHooL ViSioN page 13

Yara Viallacara photographs Andie Ruiz, Aalya Santos, Junior Santos and Luis Merez at Crystal River Elementary School during the first day of school on Aug. 26. Kindergarten starts on Sept. 3. Photo by Lynn Burton

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 3

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Town considers ACE Hardware leaf-bag proposal Sopris Sun Staff Report Carbondale is considering a proposal from Ace Hardware for the town to underwrite part of the cost of providing paper leaf-bags to the public, according to town manager Jay Harrington’s most recent weekly report.The idea is to entice the public to switch from plastic leaf-bags.The proposal calls for the town to pay for 25 percent of the 33 cents per bag cost, which would then be offered for free to town residents. “It would be a small cost to keep plastic bags out of the landfills,” Harrington’s memo states. “We have more than sufficient funds in the bag fund.” The “bag fund” was created when the town trustees banned plastic bags at City Market last year and imposed a 20-cent per bag fee on paper bags. The Carbondale Environmental Board considered the ACE proposal

Monday night but did not forward a recommendation to the trustees. In a sampling of other items from Harrington’s Aug. 23 weekly memo to town staff (as paraphrased by The Sopris Sun): • The street crew installed a donated Betty Gold sculpture on the green lawn on the north side of town hall.The Carbondale PublicArts Commission will also be installing additional sculptures in and around Promenade Park (west of the Dinkel Building). • The street crew continues to perform repairs in the River Valley Ranch subdivision. They have encountered significant areas with compactive clay soil that must be removed and replaced with good backfill. • Aspen Earthmoving has pulled an excavation permit to begin deconstruction and construction at 319 Main Street.A new threestory building will be built at that location.

• Pickleball court paint stripping was completed on the remaining two tennis courts at North Face park. Every Saturday morning from 9 a.m. to noon the courts are reserved for pickleball play. The program is organized by Sonny and Bernie Darien. • Fall recreation marketing strategies include: Brochure inserted in the Sopris Sun and distribution through the schools, the library, City Market, town hall and the recreation center. The brochure information is meant to drive the reader to the website where they can sign up online. An e-mail blast to 480 subscribers and past program participants will also be sent out to highlight programming and registration deadlines. • Gateway RV Park had a total of 32 reservations the week of Aug. 19-23. • The Nettle Creek water line failed on Aug. 22. It has been repaired.

Town trustees roll out marijuana tax for November vote Sopris Sun Staff Report At Tuesday night’s meeting, the Carbondale Board of Trustees unanimously approved language to put a sales and excise tax question for recreational marijuana sales on the Nov. 5 ballot. The taxes would be five percent respectively, for a total of 10 percent on retail sales. The state of Colorado is also asking vot-

ers whether to approve statewide marijuana sales tax of 10 percent and excise tax of 15 percent. The tax revenue is earmarked to“ … fund the enforcement of regulations on the retail marijuana industry, other costs related to enforcement of marijuana laws, education and public health programs associated with marijuana consumption including prevention of

underage consumption, and other city expenses, and with the resulting tax capable of being lowered or revoked in the sole discretion of the board of trustees of the town of Carbondale … ,” states the ballot language. A staff memo says that the projected annual marijuana sales would be $3.225 million, with the town collecting $161,250 in sales tax.

SOPRIS LIQUOR & WINE Be Responsible!

Cop Shop The following events are drawn from incident reports of the C’dale Police Dept. SATURDAY Aug. 17 At 10:41 a.m. a woman called police to report a porcupine sleeping at the residence on Garfield Avenue where she was house sitting. A wildlife officer was not available so police gave the woman a trap. SATURDAY Aug. 17 At 11:45 p.m. police responded to a report of a female screaming at the entrance to the Highway 133 trailer park. Police were unable to locate the woman but were told a screech owl had been in the area and it might have been making the noise. SUNDAY Aug. 18 At 12:34 p.m. a citizen called to report suspected drug activity on Eighth Street. Police told the citizen there was a licensed medical marijuana grow operation at the location in question. SUNDAY Aug. 18 At 10:39 p.m. police received a call about a fight involving approximately 10 individuals in the Third Street Center parking lot and in the street. Upon arrival, the fight was over and witnesses said it was “more verbal than physical.”

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4 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

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Photo by Lynn Burton

Photo by Will Grandbois

Cumbia rules! Grupo Kaoba (bottom left) got folks up and dancing (top left) on Sunday afternoon at the 11th annual Festival de las Americas in Sopris Park. The dancing continued on stage during early evening showers that sent some folks under tents. Club Rotario puts on the festival – which celebrates South, Central and North America – and proceeds go to scholarships for local students.

Photo by Lynn Burton

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THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 5

Scuttlebutt

Send your scuttlebutt to news@SoprisSun.com.

Amelia Shelley: Librarian of the year Garfield County Libraries announced that library directorAmelia Shelley has been selected as the 2013 Colorado Librarian of the Year. “This award recognizes exceptional achievement by any Colorado librarian and is judged on the nominee’s improvement of library service, superior customer service and contribution to the development of innovative approaches to library issues, and contribution to the library profession,” said a press release. The library board, staff and community representatives participated in the nomination process, and gave several examples of how Shelley has contributed to her community and libraries at large.The Colorado Association of Libraries gives the award, which will be presented during the association’s conference in Loveland on Oct. 18. On a related note, the new Glenwood Springs Library opens on Sept. 14, completing a multi-year project that created upgrades or new libraries in Parachute, Rifle, Silt, New Castle, Glenwood Springs and Carbondale.

Thanks for your memories The Sopris Sun is planning articles to mark Carbondale’s 125th anniversary as a town and we’re specifically looking for important/interesting/noteworthy/quirky events, items and dates from the past 25 years. These items can be just about anything, ranging from the town trustees voting to make the Carbondale Nature Park an official dog park, to building the new town hall, the North Face fiasco, or the Trish Bader-led Ram girls basketball team

chalking up a three-peat at the state tourney. Please send your thoughts to news@soprissun.com. Photos are also welcome.

Heads in the clouds Raquel A. Koch was the first correct respondent in last week’s “What’s that cloud look like?”contest, recording her e-mail entry at 2:05 p.m. on Aug. 22 (not long after the Sun hit the streets in Carbondale). Next was Frosty Merriott at 9:46 p.m. the same day. Third place goes to Jody Ensign, who walked down from her office in the Third Street Center to the Sun HQ at about 10:43 a.m. on Aug. 23, entered the open door with her nose in the newspaper and exclaimed,“It’s a bear.” Specifically, it was a black bear, probably a cub according to staff photographer Jane Bachrach. Stay tuned for more of Bachrach’s cloud photos but in the meantime, you can check out the Aug. 22 pic on page 6 of the Sun’s website (soprissun.com).

AO at TRT Singer/songwriter AO Forbes appears at Thunder River Theatre at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 6. Forbes, a long-time CRMS teacher, will be performing selections from his recently-released first CD “Simple Magic.” He’ll be backed by an all-star band that includes JD Martin, Jan Garrett, Beth Ansel, Chris Bank, George Weber and Sarah Graf.“Simple Magic”consists of 11 tracks, written over the past 40 years. “It’s a complete record of a life’s most precious and universal milestones,” said a press release, “recorded through the lens of AO’s desire to

The Manaus Fund’s Valley Settlement Project held its first El Busesito pre-school graduation ceremony at the Third Street Center on Aug. 23. El Busesito (The Little Bus) is a mobile pre-school serving low-income children in Carbondale and Glenwood. The staff members shown here are Kenia Reyna, Amanda Friend, Nicole Marsac and Alicia olave. Photo by George Stranahan personalize complex human issues.” Song titles include:“Touch of Kindness,”“First Love” and “Seize the Day.” Tickets are $15 at aoforbes.com and at the door. Thunder River Theatre is located in downtown Carbondale, west of the Dinkel Building.

Update

got the PhD

Folks celebrating their birthday this week include: Tyler Treadway (Aug. 29); Lynn Kirchner (Aug. 30); Veronica Smith (Sept. 1); Lori Haroutunian (Sept. 2); Kathy Webb Kim Kelly and Pat Pier (Sept. 3); and Terry Kirk (Sept. 4).

Chelsea Tiernan (Roaring Fork High School class of 2003) recently received her PhD in neuroscience from Michigan State University. Congrats to Chelsea.

AJ Hobbs, Carbondale’s representative on the Garfield County Energy Advisory Board, attends his first meeting on Sept. 5, according to a semi-anonymous caller to The Sopris Sun.

They say it’s your birthday.

UPCOMING EVENTS AT THIRD STREET CENTER Carbondale Family Dental welcomes

Dr. Rebecca Steinbach Please call or visit out website to request an appointment

970-963-1616 • 889 Main Court www.carbondalefamily dental.com

September Schedule September 4 SPELLBINDERS - dedicated to restoring the art of oral storytelling to connect elders to youth, weaving together the wisdom of diverse cultures throughout time. Pianist, Sunni Raleigh September 11 Music, Poems and Quotes on Interspirituality with Rita Marsh Board Chair at Davi Nikent and Musician Barry Chapman September 18 Riley Skinner performs with her group FRAGILE LUNG September 25 John Norton, Personal Trainer and T’ai Chi Instructor

Carbondale Culture Club CONNECTING OUR COMMUNITY WITH EDUCATION, ENTERTAINMENT & ENLIGHTENMENT We ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture and, if possible speak a few reasonable words.” – GOETHE Bring your lunch or buy one at Lisa’s Café and relax in a “Chautauqua-like” atmosphere hosted by Lisa Dancing-Light.

The Culture Club meets every Wednesday from noon – 1:00 pm in the Calaway Room

Third Street Center • 520 S. Third St, Carbondale CO 963-3221

www.thirdstreetcenter.net for details on all tenant organizations and additional events

6 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

West Divide/Placita Dam: A brief history By Darrell Munsell For over a century, ranchers in the Divide Creek area south of Silt and Rifle looked to the Crystal River for irrigation water. Their hopes were lifted by a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation plan to divert water from large reservoirs on the Crystal River to the dry mesas of the Divide Creek area. The plan, the West Divide Project, was included as a priority item in the Colorado River Storage Act of 1956. The project included the construction of two reservoirs on the Crystal; one on Yank Creek, a tributary to Thompson Creek; and two in the West Divide Area. The proposed Osgood Dam just south of Redstone would have created a reservoir larger than the Ruedi Reservoir and would have flooded the village of Redstone and the Redstone Castle. The second proposed dam on the Crystal, the Placita Dam, just downstream from the turnoff to Marble, would have created a reservoir that would have flooded the largest and most ecologically valuable wetland in the Crystal River Valley. In 1957 the Colorado River Conservation District filed for and obtained conditional water rights for the West Divide Project. The decree stipulated that water from the Crystal River was to be used for “generation of electric energy, domestic and municipal purposes, industrial purposes, including but not limited to the production of oil shale, irrigation purposes, and stock watering purposes.” The water rights would be perfected, or made permanent, upon completion of the project. The

West Divide Water Conservancy District was formed in 1964 as the administrative, fiscal, and taxing authority for the project. In short, it was charged with the authority to complete the project. The Department of the Interior changed the West Divide Project in 1966 by enlarging the Placita Dam and Reservoir by combining the water rights of the Osgood and Placita reservoirs. When built, the Placita reservoir would back up water nearly to Marble. The main justification for the project was no longer to meet agricultural needs but to provide water for industrial and municipal demands associated with oil shale development. Although the West Divide Project received Congressional authorization in 1968, it was not funded. Along with a host of other reclamation projects, the project was deemed economically infeasible in the late 1970s by President Jimmy Carter’s administration, and the federal government withdrew its support for the project in 1982. Despite this determination, the two river districts have filed diligence applications every six years with the Colorado water court to maintain the conditional water rights of the project with the hope of utilizing them in the future. Clearly, the West Divide District was still determined to construct a dam at Placita. No matter how many alternatives to the 1968 plan the Bureau of Reclamation and the West Divide Board considered over the next several years, and there were many, the response to them both nationally and locally

Aspen Valley Land Trust’s 10th Annual Save the Land Dance

Crystal River Environmental Protection Association member Bill Jochems (right) shakes hands with Pitkin County open Space board member Tim McFlynn at last Sunday’s Crystal River celebration in Redstone. Photo by Lynn Burton was always “economically and politically infeasible.” The ranchers could not afford the water diverted from the Crystal River, and municipal and industrial demand was not forthcoming, especially after the oil shale bust in 1982. But it was the organized local opposition that put a stake in the heart of the project. Nearly from the first year of its founding in 1972, the Crystal Valley Environmental Protection Association (CVEPA) opposed the

construction of dams on the Crystal River and the diversion of its waters. Dedicated environmentalists, the members of the association described the project as a boondoggle that would destroy the river and valley. Throughout the decades-long struggle during which the river districts refused to abandon a conditional right to dam the Crystal River, CVEPA held firm to its position of no dams PLACiTA DAM page 8

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Trees, Shrubs, Perennials

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THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 7

Placita Dam continued om page 7 It’s My Party! livening things up Sopris Sun Staff Report It’s My Party! recently opened its doors in the Sopris Shopping Center on Highway 133. “Whether you’re in need of balloons or piñatas, or are having a luau, fiesta night, baby shower, birthday or any celebration in between, It’s My Party! will help you make it a special occasion,” said store co-owner Sandy Graetz. Sandy is joined at the store by her daughters Jamie and Andrea. “We’re a family owned and operated party supplier,” Sandy continued. Sandy said she has always dreamed of having a party business. “Let’s face it, this valley was in need of a party store,” she told The Sopris Sun. Each of the three owners have their own unique strengths. “We work together in any situation that has come our way.” When asked about the best thing about operating a business in Carbondale, Sandy replied,“Our community. From Aspen to Glenwood, and everywhere in between, we have such a wonderfully dynamic, committed community, who really supports local businesses. This is truly the reason we chose to open It’s My Party! in the Roaring Fork Valley. We couldn’t do it without the support of all of you.” It’s My Party! also carries solid tableware in numerous colors, themed party décor (such as first birthday), novelty candy, custom-made gift items and more. “If we do not have what you’re looking for, we’ll do our best to find it.” Sandy said that in the next year she and her daughters will be incorporating more party/event planning and expand their retail business. “This will enable party-goers to hire us to do the decorating for their celebration/event.”

on and no diversions from the Crystal River. CVEPA gained strong allies in this struggle to save and protect the Crystal River and Valley. Pitkin County joined the environmental group in the many hearings and lawsuits that were required to defeat the West Divide Project. Other groups supported the effort: Crystal River Caucus, American Rivers, and Trout Unlimited. Finally, in April 2011 the Colorado River District abandoned most of the Crystal River conditional water rights, including the Osgood Reservoir, while maintaining conditional rights for a small 4,000 acre-foot Placita Reservoir. The determination of the river districts to defend the remaining conditional rights in water court once again stirred opposition. Pitkin County, along with American Rivers, Trout Unlimited, CVEPA, and Crystal River Caucus, filed motions challenging the river districts in their effort to maintain the rights. A trial in water court was set for August 2013, but was canceled when the districts reached an agree-

Sopris Sun Staff Report

Local attorneys say that for more than 50 years, the West Divide Water Conservancy District did little to demonstrate diligence on their conditional water rights as required every six years, other than to generate engineering and hydrological studies — many pieces of paper but virtually nothing physical on the ground. For those 50 years, nobody challenged West Divide’s conditional water rights, so they remained in place and theoretically might be sold to an entity such as a coalition of oil companies with the financial wherewithal to construct the multi-million dollar West Divide Project. That worst-case scenario for the free-flowing Crystal River finally started to be put to rest last year when Pitkin County and others lined up to challenge West Divide’s

EVERYDAY PRICE

$5.99 per pound Available at:

Carbondale Community Food Co-op 559 Main St., Carbondale 963-1375 www.carbondalecommunityfoodcoop.org Community owned, local, natural food store, at affordable prices.

(The Crystal Valley Environmental Protection Association and others asked Darrell Munsell to write this brief history of West Divide and the Placita Dam. it was handed out at Sunday’s “End of the Dam Affair” party in Redstone).

West Divide legalities: A brief history

GROUND BEEF All Natural, Lean, Pasture Raised Beef

ment with Pitkin County this past June to abandon the West Divide Project that pertained to the Crystal River Valley. At long last, CVEPA’s concerted effort, along with its allies, has, at least for the time, saved the Crystal River and Valley from further environmental degradation. There is always another campaign to be waged, however. That campaign has started. CVEPA will be working with Roaring Fork Conservancy, Crystal River Caucus, American Rivers, and Roaring Fork Group of the Sierra Club, to bring about the designation of the Crystal as a Wild and Scenic River. Such a designation will be yet another valuable protection for the Crystal River and Valley.

“Farming the way it should be”

Potter Farms Carbondale 970.963.4922 pottage@sopris.net

KEEP THE SOPRIS SUN SHINING Your financial support is a critical part of our community news effort DONATIONS ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE

Donate online at www.soprissun.com Send a check made out to the Sopris Sun LLC, P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, 81623 Take out an ad for your business by contacting: Bob Albright (C’dale to Aspen) • 970-927-2175 • bob@soprissun.com Linda Fleming (Glenwood Area) • 970-379-5223 • linda@soprissun.com 8 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

conditional rights, based on the contention that it had not demonstrated diligence to use those rights. The upshot? West Divide and the Colorado River Conservation District are voluntarily giving up the water rights that could allow a dam at Placita (between Redstone and the Marble turnoff). A water judge in Glenwood Springs is expected to sign off on the agreement in late September. One other thing: an observer pointed out that although “everybody” in the Crystal Valley opposed the West Divide Project, the West Divide District’s directors were appointed by a judge, who was also appointed. “Thus it was with great joy that we celebrated last Sunday … celebrated the achievement in court that had been unattainable at the ballot box.”

Tips on eating sustainably; it makes a difference By Sue Gray Sopris Sun Contributor Starting in the 1950’s, fishing fleets began encircling pods of dolphins with large nets to catch yellow fin tuna schooling beneath them. The dolphins drowned in the process. By the late 1980’s nearly 100,000 dolphins were killed each year by this method. In 1986, the Earth Island Institute organized a consumer boycott of tuna to urge U.S. tuna companies to adopt dolphin-safe fishing practices. People around the world joined the tuna boycott after seeing a video of hundreds of dolphins dying in tuna nets in the Eastern Tropical Pacific fishing grounds. As a result of the boycott, the world’s three largest tuna companies agreed to stop selling tuna caught by netting dolphins. Following that, the U.S. Congress passed the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act to support “Dolphin-Safe” labels on tuna products, so that consumers could make informed choices at the supermarket. Through these efforts, reported dolphin deaths in the ETP have dropped to under 3,000 annually. This example proves that ordinary people can contribute to the sustainability of our planet by making good choices about the food they eat. Here are 10 things you can do to eat sustainably: • go meatless once a week. It takes about 2,400 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef, and the meat industry is responsible for nearly one-fifth of man-made greenhouse gas emissions. A large amount of oil is required to grow feed for animals, and to process and transport them. Going meatless once a week is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint. See meatlessmonday.com • Choose meat from sustainably raised animals. Factoryfarmed animals are crowded together in unsanitary conditions and must be given antibiotics to keep them from getting sick. They’re often fed unnatural diets and given growth hormones as well. On factory farms, thousands of animals excrete tons of waste that is held in open-air lagoons that pollute the surrounding air, land and water. Grass-fed cattle and free-range chickens are healthier and could keep us healthier too. Grass-fed beef has up to six times more omega-3s than factory farmed, grain-fed meat. Omega-3 has been shown to improve our cardiovascular system, brain function and may help prevent cancer. • Buy free-range organic eggs. The food given to corporate egg-factory hens contains synthetic pesticides, fungicides, herbicides and fertilizers. The hens live a miserable life in pens they cannot even turn around in. In addition to“Organic”and “Free-range,” look for labels such as “Certified Humane” or “Animal Welfare Approved,” meaning that the chickens were treated humanely. Even better, buy eggs from local sources or raise the chickens yourself! • Know your fish. Poor fishing practices are depleting fish populations, destroying habitats and polluting the water. When buying fish, choose those that are abundant, well managed, fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways, and low in contaminants such as mercury and PCBs. To help you pick the right fish, the Monterey Bay Aquarium website has

lllustration by Sue Gray

a printable pocket guide and an app for mobile devices at montereybayaquarium.org. • Buy local or grow your own. Corporate farms notoriously employ soil depleting methods of food production. Oil-based fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides kill crucial micro-organisms, machines encourage erosion and allow topsoil to blow away. Increasingly, plants are being modified by adding in the genes of other plants, animals and even bacteria (GMO).And the transportation of food from distant areas uses a lot of fuel and produces pollutants. Plus, plants begin to lose nutrients soon after harvesting, so the less time between the farm and your table, the more nutritious the food is. • Eat what’s in season. “Fresh” tomatoes in the winter? Yes, we can buy anything we want all year round thanks to importation from the southern hemisphere. But it’s important to consider the distance food travels because of the energy consumed in getting it to our table. In-season food guides are available on the Internet and at your public library. • Drink shade-grown coffee. The world’s tropical forests extract carbon from the atmosphere, provide animal habitat, and contain important medicinal plants.Burning and clear-cutting rainforests to create large coffee plantations produces roughly 16 percent of man-made greenhouse gas emissions. These plantations sap nutrients from the soil and are dependent on chemical fertilizers. Shade-grown coffee preserves rainforest health and diversity. • Buy unprocessed foods. Factories that produce processed

Thank you to our Sustainability supporters: The Good Seed Community Garden

Thanks Biorganix Organic Tea Extract and David Bernhardt for his contribution in creating an all organic non-GMO garden for the Community! YOU CAN PREPARE YOUR SOIL NOW FOR NEXT YEAR.

Learn more: David Bernhardt 970-456-7337 davidbrnhrdt@yahoo.com BIORGANIXLLC.COM

food use a lot of chemicals and fuel, and create waste and pollutants. Processed foods come with a lot of packaging,too.Buy bulk nuts, beans and grains, make your own meals and snacks, and eat fresh fruit and vegetables to cut down on packaging waste. • Don’t waste food. The U.S. throws away about 40 percent of its food supply each year. Shopping smart and cooking smart are good ways to reduce waste. Composting food waste turns it into a useful resource. Home and community gardeners can donate their excess produce to the needy instead of allowing it to rot. Visit liftup.org. • Ask questions, demand sustainable. When ordering in a restaurant or buying food from a market, ask how the animals or vegetables were raised or harvested. Food retailers play a crucial role in sustainable production. When you ask businesses in your community to provide sustainably raised or responsibly harvested products, you help make change happen. Remember, 97,000 dolphins a year were saved by people just like you demanding sustainable food choices.

MORE INFO:

For information on local organic farm-share vegetables, meat and eggs, go to sustainablesettings.org. For information beyond the Roaring Fork Valley go to: Greenerchoices.org Sustainabletable.org Foodandwaterwatch.org

This page is underwritten by the Carbondale Environmental Board.

Crystal River Meat Market 689 Main Street (970) 963–9996 www.crystalrivermeats.com

10 am - 6 pm Monday - Saturday

U-Pick

at Orchard Valley Farms

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*Voted Best Ice Cream 2010, 2011, 2012 – Boulder Weekly Crystal River Meats Market is your local everyday Farmers Market offering local produce, dairy, meats, and more.

A scenic drive over beautiful McClure Pass on Hwy 133.

orchardvalleyfarms.com 970-527-6838 15836 Black Bridge Rd., Paonia, CO

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 9

Community Calendar THURSDAY Aug. 29

To list your event, email information to news@soprissun.com. Deadline is noon on Monday. Events take place in Carbondale unless noted. For up-to-the-minute valley-wide event listings, check out the Community Calendar online at soprissun.com. View events online at soprissun.com/calendar.

at 8 p.m. No cover.

ROTARY • The Mt. Sopris Rotary meets at Mi Casita at noon every Thursday.

FRIDAY Aug. 30

LIVE MUSIC • Steve’s Guitars in the old part of the Dinkel Building presents live music every Friday. Info: 963-3340.

MOVIES • The Crystal Theatre presents“The Way Way Backâ€? (PG-13) at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 30-Sept. 5. LABOR DAY SHOW • The 18th annual Redstone Labor Day Weekend Art Show opens with a public reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Artists include: Megan Crawford, Mark Simpkins, Robert Kausch, Jim Hontz, Sue Hontz, Pam Wadsworth, Ida Burnaman, Karen Alldredge, Carol Murphy, Brigitte Heller, Barbara Sophia, Libby Riger, Kris Kosmowski, Noemi Kosmowski, Lee Huntsman, Larry White, Chloe Depamphiles, Judy Milne, Cindy Cole, Dave Moore, Marylou Felton, Amber Sparkles, Jan Legersky, Betty Eschenroeder, Lynne Anderson, Roberta Stokes, Jim Cox, Dale Darnell, Irving Hill, Rande Brewer, Eric Allen, Patti Cappa, Eliza Rogan, Betts Rodden, Kyle Samuelson, Jim Cox and Roberta McGowan. The show will include: watercolor, oil, pastel, collage clocks, photography, sculpture, ceramics, turned wood, fused glass, hand-woven baskets, hand-dyed silk and bamboo clothing and hand crochet sweaters, jewelry, etchings, painted feathers and leather, encaustic, furniture and birdhouses, masks and confetti quilt wall hangings. Proceeds beneďŹ t the Jack Roberts scholarship program for Roaring Fork High School students. Info: 963-7002. LIVE MUSIC • Carbondale Beer Works on Main Street presents the Steve Skinner Band

LIVE MUSIC • Rivers restaurant in Glenwood presents the Leonard Curry Trio (Americana) from 9 p.m. to midnight. No cover. BOOK SIgNINg • The Redstone Art Center hosts a book signing for Nancy Addison (“How to be a Healthy Vegetarianâ€?) from 6 to 9 p.m.

SATURDAY Aug. 31 LIVE MUSIC • The Black Nugget on Main Street presents the Hot Apostles with special guest Larry Patrick Nix at 9 p.m. No cover. FUN RUN/WALK • The Labor of Love 5K Fun Run/Walk will be held on the sidewalks of River Valley Ranch. The Fun Run/Walk takes place at 9 a.m. and a Kids Dash takes place at 9:15 a.m. A donation of $10 is suggested, with proceeds going to Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers. Prizes (donated by local businesses), snacks and beverages

will take place following the fun run. Info and registration: RVR Ranch House or 963-6300. BASALT UNION REUNION • There’ll be a reunion for Basalt Union High School graduates and attendees (1940-1999) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Basalt High School. Bring a potluck dish, lawn chairs and memories. There’s no fee and the public is invited. For details, call Janice Duroux at 927-3549. THOMPSON HOUSE TOURS • The Mt. Sopris Historical Society gives tours of the Thompson House Museum on Saturdays from 2-5 p.m. The cost is $10. The museum is located directly behind the River Valley Ranch public tennis courts in the historic Thompson House. Info: 963-7041.

MONDAY Sept. 2 LIVE MUSIC • Carbondale Beer Works hosts open mic nights with Patrick Fagan Mondays at 7:30 p.m. LIVE MUSIC • The Hotel Colorado hosts a Monday night jazz jam on its patio at 7 p.m. The sessions are open to jazz musicians of all levels, although shoes, dress pants and a collared shirt are required. For more information visit the Roaring Fork Valley Musicians Facebook page or contact Zack Ritchie at 987-9277. TWO STEP • Two Step Tuesday continues at the Third Street Center at 7:45 p.m. through Sept. 30. The cost is $7. Info: 379-4956.

TUESDAY Sept. 3

presents free jazz with the Redstone Hysterical Band (John Riger, Bruce Imig, Jeff Andrews, Stephanie Askew and Michael Askew) outdoors on the grass from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The ďŹ nal show of the season is on Sept. 17. ASTRONOMY • The Carbondale Library presents “Astronomy for Everyoneâ€? with Kevin Manning at 7 p.m. Following an indoor presentation, participants will go outdoors to view celestial objects in the night sky, such as the rings of Saturn, craters on the moon and more. BOOK CLUB • The Carbondale Library Book Club discusses“Unbowedâ€?by Wangari Maathai at 6 p.m. Info: 963-2889. gW MARKET • Glenwood’s Downtown Market takes place on Tuesdays from 4 to 8 p.m. There’s live music starting at 5:30 p.m., plus locally grown produce, honey, artisan wares and more. Credit and debit cards accepted, along with EBTs. Info: 618-3650.

WEDNESDAY Sept. 4 ROTARY • The Rotary Club of Carbondale meets at 7 a.m. at the Carbondale ďŹ re station. Info: eagleriver@sopris.net. CULTURE CLUB • The Carbondale Culture Club at the Third Street Center continues its lunchtime presentations. Info for booking musicians, poets, musicians and the like: 963-3330. FARMERS’ MARKET • The Carbondale Farmers’ Market takes place downtown from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.Wednesdays through Oct. 2.

LIVE MUSIC • The Redstone Art Center

CALENDAR page 11

##

# LABOR DAY

Early Deadline for

In observance of Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 2, the ad reservation deadline for the Thursday, Sept. 5 issue is 12 p.m. Friday, Aug. 30

10 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

WEEKLY SALE ITEMS PLANT of the week This week’s plant (shrub):

Blue Mist Spirea (Caryopteris)

PERENNIAL of the week This week’s perennial:

All Perennials!

PRODUCT of the week This week’s product:

Fountains

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EagleCrestNursery.com Eagle Crest Nursery

400 Gillespie Drive, El Jebel, Colorado 81623

Community Calendar

continued from page 10

Save the Date

Hold the Presses

SATURDAY Sept. 7

Community slide show

LAND DANCE • The Aspen Valley Land Trust holds its annual Land Dance at 5:30 p.m. at Tybar Ranch south of Carbondale. Entertainment will be provided by Anita Witt, her horses Trigger and Jose Cuervo, and Spanky the dog. The Derringers will also perform. Tickets are $85 before Sept. 1 and $100 after that date. There’s also a new rate for those 40 and under: $40 until Sept. 1 and $50 after that date. Info: AVLT.org or 963-8440.

Further Out

THURSDAY Sept. 5

SAW TAKES OVER • Artists from SAW (Studio for Arts & Works) present their work at CCAH’s R2 Gallery in the Third Street Center starting tonight from 6 to 8 p.m. The installations will be designed specifically for the R2 Gallery space. “There have been some challenges sharing the vision and process of certain projects with a group of independent artists, but we are learning a lot and are really excited about the work we are putting together,” said co-curator Amy Butowicz. Each piece will reflect the influence of multiple minds and hands of artists who work in a

Ongoing

MAYOR’S COFFEE HOUR • Chat with Carbondale Mayor Stacey Bernot on Tuesdays from 7 to 8 a.m. at the Village Smithy on Third Street.

wide variety of mediums, according to a press release. The show continues through Sept. 27. Info: 963-1680 or carbondalearts.com.

SATURDAY Sept. 7 LEgION gOLF TOURNAMENT • The Women’s Auxiliary of the American Legion of Carbondale hosts its Roaring Fork Scholarship Golf Tournament at 8 a.m. (shotgun start). It’s $40 per player; four clubs per team; 18 holes; awards and BBQ to follow at the Legion. Info: Julie at 309-5417 or the Legion after 3 p.m. at 963-2381.

CCC • Staci DeBolt’s show “The Giving Chair” at the Carbondale Clay Center concludes on Aug. 30. Info: 963-2529.

Third Street Center on Aug. 30. The artist couples included in the show are K and Mark Cesark, Sue Drinker and Dick Durrance, Wewer and Steve Keohane, Nancy Lovendahl and Scott Keating, and Annette and Andrew Roberts Gray. Info: 963-1680.

CCAH SHOW CONCLUDES • The CCAH show “Cohabitation, Cooperation, Collaboration: A Most Unusual Project” concludes at the

HASSIg CONTINUES • The Nugget Gallery in Aspen presents the work of Chris Hassig through Sept. 25. Info: chrishassig.wordpress.com.

The Mt. Sopris Historical Society presents its second annual Community Photo Archive slide show on the Pour House’s west-facing exterior wall at dusk on Sept. 6.

RFHS kicks off fall sports season Fall sports action for Roaring Fork High School starts for the girl’s volleyball squad on Aug. 29-30 (the Glenwood Springs tournament). The football team travels to Basalt for a 7 p.m. game on Aug. 30. The boy’s soccer team hits the road for a game against Basalt at 4 p.m. on Sept. 3. Next week’s Sopris Sun will include complete schedules.

Albums mutate at KDNK KDNK and CCAH host an opening reception and silent auction for Album Mutations from 6 to 8 p.m. on Aug. 29. The show features record album artwork that local artists have altered. The reception takes place at KDNK, located at 76 S. Second St. For details, call 963-1680.

Spellbinders perform a CCC The Carbondale Culture Club features Spellbinders and pianist Sunni Raleigh at the Third Street Center from noon to 1 p.m. on Sept. 4.

BEER RUN • Independence Run & Hike stages a four-mile beer run Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and a group run Saturdays at 8:15 a.m. Info: 704-0909. BILINgUAL BOOK CLUB • The Carbondale Branch Library holds a bilingual book club every Wednesday from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Info: Alejandra at 963-2889. gRIEF AND LOSS • Hospice of the Valley, in

partnership with Grand River Hospital, is offers an ongoing Grief and Loss Support Group that meets the first and third Monday of every month. Info: Sean Jeung at 544-1574 or hchotv.org. BILINgUAL STORYTIME • The Carbondale Library at 320 Sopris Ave. offers a bilingual storytime with Alejandra at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesdays. It’s for kids 1-5. Info: 963-2889.

Crystal River Ballet School Classes begin September 4th Enroll by October 1st to par ticipate in The Nutcracker Located at Bridges High School~455 S. Third St., Carbondale CO 81623 Enroll online www.crystalriverballet.com Phone: 970/704-0114 Email: msjeni@crystalriverballet.com

Things are heating up at Lisa’s! The Gorilla’s have her all fired up and things are cookin’. Stay tuned for something new next week!

New Snackage on the Menu:

TERIYAKI CHICKEN SLIDERS

On 3 Hawaiian Rolls w/ Wasabi Slaw and Lisa’s Homemade Garlic Teriyaki Sauce Be sure to cool off your hot self with Lisa’s amazing

Pomegranate Ice Teas

LISA’S BACK PORCH IS OFFICIALLY OPEN! 9AM–2PM 520 S. 3rd Street Third Street Center, Carbondale

FOR CALL-IN ORDERS & CATERING CALL 618-4352 The food might be messy but worth every napkin!!

FOR RENT

AT THIRD STREET

AFFORDABLE LONG TERM RENTAL SPACE AVAILABLE AT THIRD STREET CENTER 1100 sf and 850 sf, both suitable for office or group artist space, and artist spaces of 275 sf in group studio. Use of common spaces, meeting rooms, copy/print facilities, break rooms included in rent. Call Jody 963-3221, email director@thirdstreetcenter.net

Grow and benefit through the vitality and synergy of TSC THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 11

Community Briefs

Please submit your community briefs to news@soprissun.com by noon on Monday.

Closed for Labor Day Libraries, schools, government offices, the post office, banks, most non-profits and some private businesses will be closed for Labor Day on Sept. 2.

Chamber seeks volunteers The Carbondale Chamber of Commerce is looking for volunteers to help out during their annual golf tournament on Sept. 20. There are two shifts available. For more information contact Joslyn at Joslyn@carbondale.com.

Work the peak Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers and the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative are teaming up for two long weekends of work on Maroon Peak. The first project will construct a climbing ascent trail on Maroon Peak’s lower slopes and restore the old trail on North Maroon Peak. The dates are Sept. 6-8 and there is a deposit fee of $35. For details, call 927-8241.

OLP taking applications Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers is looking for high schoolers to participate in their Stewardship and Outdoor Leadership Experience (SOLE) program, scheduled for January through June of 2014. Applications are due Sept. 13. For details, visit rfov.org or call 927-8241 for more information.

Hazardous day approaching fast The town of Carbondale holds its household hazardous waste day across from town hall from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 7. For details, call 963-1307.

Lift-Up volunteer gigs available Due to a shortage of volunteers, Lift-Up in Carbondale is looking for folks to coordinate its Holiday Food Distribution this year. Tasks are relatively simple and are spread over several weeks, according to a press release. There are two sessions: Thanksgiving and Christmas. Both distribution dates are scheduled about 10 days before the holiday. For details, call Debi Boyle at 618-0631.

Colorado West springs one After 40 years as “Colorado West,” the non-profit is changing its name to “Mind Springs Health” as part of a series of changes to branding and organization, according to a press release. The behavior health institution’s overhaul brings six new board members to the table: Jerome Evans of Glenwood Springs, Brad McCloud of Grand Junction, Carol Skubic of Grand Junction, Jill Hilty of Grand Junction, and Carl Walker of Gypsum.

The kids are BACK IN SCHOOL Drive carefully, be observant and watch our for the little ones!

Carbondale’s Alec Nykerk (right) brings the ball up against Glenwood Springs in the fall season’s first U12 boys game at Hendrick Park on Aug. 25. The game included some pretty fancy footwork on both sides. The boys tied 1-1. Photo by Lynn Burton

Our Children, Our Schools

“What do you want to BE when you grow up?”

“Happy, Healthy & Creative.”

We s our Children! TRADITIONAL SCHOOL MODELS FOCUS ON MAKING A LIVING RATHER THAN MAKING A LIFE. This is where we and 13 year old Logan Laplante think something needs our attention. If we teach our children to make a life for themselves — inside there WKH\ ZLOO oQG RXW KRZ WKH\ ZDQW WR PDNH D OLYLQJ DV ZHOO &KHFN RXW /RJDQ V inspiring TEd talk on SchoolHacking on our website.

What would Making a Life look like for Carbondale’s kids? This message brought to you by the Town of Carbondale.

12 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

Educate yourself or others today @ www.carbondaleconversation.org

As summer ends, August shows the way Most things in life are an extension of the end of August. A tran- and thrust back into the world of my peers. Even now I prefer tromping around and fishing. And although sition of sorts. A back to school and schooling. All in the face of the fact that fall, whether you define it by the turning of aspen leaves, friends are second only to family, I still can’t shake the feeling that frost on the ground, or days spent looking at the ticking of the being immersed in social situations where I don’t know many people is only a rung or two above having to figure out clock, is just around the corner. the underpinnings of a ground squirrel colony. That And so, after a long summer, or a short summer, is, unless I am dancing or in some way in the act of or a summer as close to perfect as possible, or quite possibly a summer spent without soaking any of the By Cameron Scott recess, recession, and/or general rambunctiousness. Not that I am lost, a lost cause, or causeless, but actual summer up, August is ending, September is starting, and the official date for the Fall Equinox is Sept. 22. That I often find the end of August just plain ceaseless. A bit of a birth gives those of us reading, editing, re-reading and having skipped and a death. The last long slog up a willow jammed drainage. A sudden shave and haircut and collared shirt for going out to dinover this column, a little over 20 days of summer left. When I was a kid I spent my summers three different ways: ei- ner when I feel like wearing a jet red Mohawk and three-year-old ther in an Airstream trailer in central Oregon tromping around cin- Doc Marten’s and eating around a campfire under the stars. Or a der cones with my family, sitting in my grandpa’s duck boat at dusk parilla. Or a siesta. Or a sestina. By the end of August I am always terribly hungry and capable throwing poppers and listening to loons deepen the stillness of the Minnesota night, or at home, typically restless and bored out of my of devouring meat, naps and poetry. Not necessarily in that order, mind. Always, though, at the end of August both the adventures but all necessary. And so for your end of August, beginning of September, and and boredom would end. I never loved public school, not like I loved college, and not like first steps out into this brave new world, whether you are scoutI’ve loved a lot of things since: being a summer-camp director and ing elk, bombing 100-mile trail runs, mountain biking 4,000-foot fly-fishing guide, or sitting with my back against an aspen tree descents, driving back and forth to work, waiting for your tomawatching the afternoon light shift. But every August, right around toes to finally ripen, or buying back-to-school clothes, remember the time I was just beginning to feel like I could officially disappear there isn’t much summer left. The mountains are singing their swan from the world, I was given a quick right turn, tucked away onto song. And the time of grasshoppers , though at its peak, will swiftly the school bus with my heart pounding at 1,000 miles a minute, come to an end.

Tailgate

Duende for August Year of the snake, month of the walrus, every day the ice caps melt as Los Angeles thirsts and Phoenix thirsts and Denver thrusts out its wings like a vulture tracing the wrist of the land where all and nothing is delicate just full of births and deaths as the inner casualties return from vacation and the external casualness descends like a pall mall in plaid, crushing beer cans and someday I’ll quit trying to understand August, like someday disco will return, rerun, and burn, already, it’s happening, lies in un-forgetting, August, sometime I’d like you to be truly un-regrettable like Morse Code, un-blunted and sharp as a double rainbow before sleep. – Cameron Scott

School vision continued om page 3 component that he sees as a great asset in terms of helping teachers and their evaluators understand the key elements of high quality, engaging instructional practices. Nevertheless, by linking teachers’ evaluation with student test scores, SB 191 has made the high stakes of standardized testing

even higher for Colorado’s teachers.

Visioning While our district is committed to a visioning process for the community to define what it is we want for our children, our district is also required by law to follow state

and national mandates connected with standardized testing. Everyone from the superintendent and school board members to principals and teachers is under pressure to achieve high test scores. How will that pressure impact the kind of changes they are willing to implement in our schools?

The last article in this series will focus on the following question: Will our district be stuck between the competing pressures of state mandates and community desires, or can our schools provide the kind of education that our community decides we want in spite of the pressures on our district to achieve high test scores?

Check out our new website! Carbondale’s www.soprissun.com community supported, weekly newspaper Featuring: • The E-edition • Linkable, searchable news

Plus: • Fun polls • Easy calendar submission • A live Twitter feed • More photos ... and videos, too!

The Sopris Sun, LLC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit subsidiary of the Roaring Fork Community Development Corporation. Sopris Sun, LLC #26-4219405

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 13

Shopping | Dining | Culture | Recreation

VISIT BASALT & EL JEBEL At the confluence of Frying Pan and Roaring Fork Rivers

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

A $3 cover for Springsteen? Ask Dr. Lankering S. Michael Jundt Special to The Sopris Sun

Not just Bruce and the E Street Band, but George Thorogood and Southside Johnny as well, and on the Jersey Shore no less! What a way to begin an interview. It certainly got my attention, but Dr. Tom Lankering is good at that. Tom is from New Jersey and his musical recollections are from that time when all of us could still afford a good concert ticket. When asked what brought him to the Roaring Fork Valley, Tom replies, “destiny,” and means it. “I became a ski instructor,” says Tom. “I received my certification in upstate New York, and unlike the majority of my fellow instructors, I chose not to remain there but, headed west to ski country. So I made a barBasalt Longhorn FOOTBALL! gain. In exchange for bringing a friend’s stereo equipment to Aspen, he would provide me with a couch to crash on.” (Tom reAugust 30, 7:00 pm at Basalt High School. minds me that the 1970’s style speakers he was transporting Basalt vs. Roaring Fork. were roughly the size of a large armoire). “The first morning I woke up and got out, Aspen felt like home.” Town Hall closed for After a couple of years in Aspen, Tom decided to return to school in order to become a chiropractor. “I had always carried Labor Day, September 5, the notion of entering into a clinical field, but I had never felt that reopens 8 a.m. Tuesday, September 6. our traditional medical profession had it right in terms of understanding the body’s own ability to heal itself, so I chose the chiropractic field.” Tom worked the next several years both as a ski Dr. Tom Lankering instructor and piano player during Aspen’s winter season. Playing the likes of Andre’s, the Paragon, and the Hotel Jerome helped pay his way through chiropractic school in Davenport, Iowa. “In those early days of mine in Aspen, I really enjoyed being a ski instructor. But I could watch the skiers on the Bell Chair early in the day and just know for certain that they could use a good chiropractor before their day was complete.” Twenty-nine years later, Tom is renowned in the Roaring Fork Valley for his chiropractic abilities. He specializes in bio-energetics. His energy work evaluates the body-mind connection using various techniques of nutrition, emotional release work and cold-laser therapy. Tom gave me a quick demonstration while evaluating a recent shoulder injury of mine. The process was fascinating and I learned more in 20 minutes about my physical, emotional and nutritional state in regards to my injury than I would have deemed possible. Dr. Lankering is also host of the “Healthy Lifestyles” program heard throughout with purchase of any Raw or Freeze-Dry Entree the week on Aspen’s GrassRoots TV. The format allows him to provide audiences with information not readily found in mainstream media, an area he believes is an important venue to learn alternative healing and quality of life techniques without Open seven days a week the influence of corporate propaganda. For more information visit www.lankerNext to City Market in El Jebel, 400 E Valley Rd. Ste I/J | 963.1700 ingchiropractic.com. Open M-F 10-6:30pm | Sat/Sun 11-5pm

SCHOOL IS IN SESSION! PLEASE SLOW DOWN AND DRIVE CAREFULLY!

“… I could watch the skiers on the Bell Chair early in the day and just know for certain that they could use a good chiropractor before their day was complete.”

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14 • THE SOPRIS SUN • www.SoprisSun.com • AUgUST 29, 2013

www.basaltthrift.org

PAR-TEH continued om page 1 of French ďŹ ngerling radishes. They learned how to remove a zucchini from its vine. They watered the pumpkin patch and the huge bed of tomatillos, dangling like miniature Japanese lanterns from their stalks. “Kim helps us by giving us food,â€? said Diego, “and we pay her back by helping her.â€? When asked about her favorite vegetable, Genesis doesn’t hesitate. “Potatoes,â€? she said with a grin. “They’re awesome!â€?

Big plans Wille’s plans for her organization are as many as her gardens. She anticipates “an abundance of foodâ€? in the next two to three weeks and hopes to do a fresh food distribution for Thanksgiving. She wants to “geotagâ€? the gardens at different elevations, start canning and preserving classes, create a “Gardeners’ Harvestâ€? cookbook, ďŹ nd grants to support PAR-TEH, hold a “gardening boot campâ€? next spring and more. Most of all, Wille wants to help educate the public not only about hunger, but also about the importance of nutrition. “Fresh produce is expensive,â€? she explained, and when times are tough, “that’s the ďŹ rst thing to go.â€? Plant a Row to End Hunger operates under the 501(c)3 umbrella of CORE (Community OfďŹ ce for Resource EfďŹ ciency) and is an arm of the Roaring Fork Food Policy Council. It also collaborates with Hunger Free Colorado, among other organizations. According to Feeding America, the country’s largest domestic hunger relief organization, one in six Americans face hunger, or food insecurity, on a regular basis. Food in-

security is deďŹ ned as “a household-level economic and social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service. Feeding America has recently released a new study called “Map the Meal Gap,â€? which demonstrates that no county in the United States is exempt from hunger. Based on 2011 statistics, Eagle and GarďŹ eld counties have a food insecurity rate of 13.7 percent, while Pitkin County is only slightly lower with a rate of 13.3 percent. Those percentages total approximately 17,000 people in only three counties, and these numbers are expected to rise if Congress cuts beneďŹ ts to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as Food Stamps.) Under the current proposal in the U.S. House of Representatives, 47 million Americans will see their beneďŹ ts reduced and over 200,000 children would lose their free school lunch meals — in many cases, their only reliable source of daily nutrition. “If another country were doing this to our kids, we’d be at war, and it doesn’t have to be that way.â€? So says actor Jeff Bridges, narrator of the documentary “A Place at the Tableâ€? and founder of the End Hunger Network. The ďŹ lm was recently shown in Glenwood Springs by Hunger Free Colorado. Plant a Row to End Hunger understands it can’t solve this problem on a national level and it doesn’t aspire to. But Wille, her volunteers and others connected to the program say the program can provide healthy, organic, nutritious food to those in need – one row at a time.

FIRST FRIDAY • SEPTEMBER 6, 2013 WHERE 4th Street Plaza (at 4th and Main) DOWNTOWN CARBONDALE WHEN 6 - 11 pm FOOD SMOKE MODERN BARBECUE TICKETS $5 GENERAL ADMISSION (Food and Drinks Additional)

ACTIVITIES LIVE AUCTION AND DOOR PRIZES

LIVE COUNTRY BAND - Adam Ashley is back! WESTERN DANCING

Classifieds Submit classiďŹ eds to classiďŹ eds@soprissun.com by 12 p.m. on Monday. $15 for up to 30 words, $20 for 31-50 words. MUSIC LESSONS: I have taught string instrument students from ages 8 to 80 in my Glenwood Springs studio for more than 15 years. If you are interested in learning to play the violin, viola, cello, or double bass, please contact Lorraine Curry at (970) 379-3803 or currymusic@comcast.net. GET THE WORD OUT IN CLASSIFIEDS! Rates start at $15. Email classifieds@soprissun.com.

Service Directory Help for families in need. Food is available at LIFT-UP’s seven area food pantries, made possible by support from our caring community.

Mid-Valley Food Pantries Carbondale: Third Street Center, 520 South 3rd Street, #35 Mon, Wed & Fri: 10am-12:30pm • 963-1778 Basalt: Basalt Community United Methodist Church 167 Holland Hills Rd. • Wed & Thur: 11am-1pm • 279-1492

Learn more at www.liftup.org and join us on facebook!

VOLUNTEER SPORTS WRITERS WANTED for any or all of Roaring Fork High School’s fall sports. Experience not necessary but some familiarity with sports is a plus. E-mail Lynn Burton at news@soprissun.com or call 510-3003. Credit card payment information should be emailed to classiďŹ eds@soprissun.com or call 948-6563. Checks may be dropped off at our ofďŹ ce at the Third Street Center or mailed to P.o. Box 399, Carbondale, Co 81623. Call 618-9112 for more info.

B Z - B E J F T f % — FE OFTEBZ 8 Z S F W &

See Thundercat at

CARBONDALE ANIMAL HOSPITAL 234 Main Street

(970) 963-2826 Find us on Facebook

RII D )XOO 6HUYLFH 2LO &KDQJH RU RII DQ\ )XOO 6HUYLFH :DVK 3DFNDJH %XJJ\ &LUFOH &DUERQGDOH

Tue, Sep 3, 3:30 – 5:30, registration required free preview with Visiting Artist Rita Blitt

ages 6 – 8 ART CLUB I

Wed, Sep 4, 3:30 – 5:30, registration required free preview with Eliza Rogan wyly community art center 970.927.4123 wylyarts.org

Mon., Tues., Thurs., Friday 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Wednesday 10:30 a.m.- 6:30 p.m.

ZZZ VXQEXUVWFDUFDUH FRP

FREE wyly art clubs ages 8 & up ADVANCED ART CLUB I

Dr. Benjamin Mackin

BACK TO SCHOOL

$5 OFF OF EACH $25 PURCHASE

303 Main St. • Carbondale • 963-3940 • OPEN 7 DAYS

WINDSHIELD REPAIR AUTO GLASS REPLACEMENT

970-963-3891

Headlight Restoration Auto Glass & Side Mirrors

500 Buggy Circle, Carbondale, CO DAVID ZAMANSKY – Owner Operated

THE SOPRIS SUN, Carbondale’s community supported newspaper • AUgUST 29, 2013 • 15

RIDE FOR FREE

SEPTEMBER 3-6

The Roaring Fork Transportation Authority is pleased to announce that the first rural bus rapid transit system in the nation, VelociRFTA, launches SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013. The first four days of service, SEPTEMBER 3RD THROUGH THE 6TH ARE FREE! Come on out and try the new system!

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5TH, 2013

8:00am 27TH STREET STATION, GLENWOOD SPRINGS Ribbon Cutting, Speeches, and Food!

7:00am-10:00am BASALT STATION (UPVALLEY) Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

2:00pm-6:00pm RUBEY PARK Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

2:00pm-6:00pm BRUSH CREEK STATION Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2013

7:00am-10:00am CARBONDALE PARK & RIDE Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

7:00am-10:00am EL JEBEL STATION (UPVALLEY) Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

2:00pm-6:00pm RUBEY PARK Refreshments, Swag, and Information Table.

4:00pm - 6:00pm WILLITS - VelociRFTA PARTY! FREE FOOD, music, and fun for all! At the new Willits Station - Whole Foods parking lot.

Visit www.RFTA.com or call 970.925.8484 for more information. Para informaci贸n en Espa帽ol favor de llamar al 970.384.4871.