July 8th Commissioners Meeting

The Fremont County Commissioners Tuesday adopted final conditions for a conditional use permit approved last month for the resumption of uranium exploration by Black Range Minerals on the Taylor Ranch northwest of Canon City. The Commissioners also approved a retail liquor license in the Penrose area over the objections of another liquor store owner.

The Commissioners said the final conditions for Black Range reflect comments received in 78 e-mails and letters from both opponents and supporters of uranium exploration following the board's June 9th vote of approval. Among changes made from the draft conditions was issuance of an eight year permit instead of a ten year permit. Black Range's drilling operations will be limited to sunrise to sunset seven days a week but the firm will be allowed up to 60 days per calendar year to operate after sunset. Black Range must maintain documentation of legal water rights and if water is drawn from a source other than on the Taylor Ranch they must provide written notice to the county in the event impacts might be created from water trucks traveling county roads.

Black Range must reimburse Fremont County up to $35,000 in the first three years and $5,000 each year thereafter for the costs of hiring a third party hydrogeologist. The third party expert will review Black Range's groundwater and surface water monitoring plan and help guide the establishment of baseline groundwater monitoring data related to nearby domestic water wells in the Tallahassee area. The conditions also require comprehensive documentation by Black Range's driller and geologist regarding the plugging, sealing, and capping of each test bore hole.

All of the finalized conditions are listed in the resolution approved by the Commissioners and is available for review by clicking on the link on the main web page at www.fremontco.com.

Commissioner Mike Stiehl said that while many residents might disagree with him at the moment, he believes the exploration will go a long ways towards answering questions and putting an end to the stigma associated with having bought property around a large uranium deposit. Commissioner Ed Norden said it is important for the county to quickly bring the third party expert on board as well as getting the permit issued so the hydrologist who works for Black Range can resume her work in the field relating to surface and groundwater monitoring. Commenting on the controversy surrounding the uranium exploration, Commission Chairman Larry Lasha said it might be nice when you get some issues before you to "just not vote". But Lasha said "We don't have that luxury, we did not take this lightly".

The Commissioners have already compiled a list of qualified firms in Colorado who will be considered to handle the scope of work of the third party expert.

The Commissioners also approved a retail liquor store license for Jim and Jan Bradford to operate next door to Bradford's Handi-Mart at the corner of Highway 50 and 'N' Street at Penrose. The Commissioners approved the permit over the objections of Gary Iovinella who operates Penrose Plaza Liquor. Iovinella presented a petition with signatures protesting the liquor license saying a third liquor store was not needed in the Penrose area. The Commissioners said the Bradfords met their burden of proof for a community need by presenting their own petition with several hundred signatures in support.

In other business Tuesday the Commissioners:

• Approved a temporary use permit for Tony Ferrara to operate a pick-your-own-harvest, hay rides, country store, and barbecue for the Happy Apple Fall Harvest from August 9th through October 19th;
• Approved an increase in the per mile reimbursement for county employees who use personal vehicles for county business from 36 cents to 50 cents;
• and Approved a special events liquor permit and temporary use permit for the annual Belvedere Blues Fest at Merlino's Belvedere Restaurant from September 5th through September 7th.

June 24th Commissioners Meeting

The Fremont County Commissioners on Tuesday adopted a new fee schedule for building and septic system permits and adopted a new policy setting out how property owners can make temporary use of unconstructed county road rights of way.

The board met twice in recent days with County Building Official Mike Cox to review proposed fee increases for building and septic permits. The Commissioners said they wanted to come up with a fee structure that they feel is fair to contractors while still allowing the county to recover the county's costs of office work, field inspections, and travel. The new fee schedule does allow for a fuel surcharge but Cox said he tried to make sure that it was not particularly burdensome on people who live greater distances from Canon City. A copy of the new fee schedule is available at the County Building Department.

The Commissioners voted to adopt a Road and Bridge Department policy regarding "Use of Unconstructed County Road Rights of Way" . At issue is an effort to try to clarify under what circumstances property owners can make temporary use of county road rights of way which are currently not being used for any road accesses. It would restrict an adjoining property owner to use only the portion of the right of way (ROW) to the center of the right of way from the edge of his property. It would not allow any permanent structures; buildings, barns, trees, ditches, pipelines, signs, etc. Any fence in the ROW can be no more permanent than metal or wood posts and wire. The property owner would be responsible for maintenance during such temporary use. If the county or another property owner needed the ROW to provide access to other property the temporary use would have to be vacated.

Over the years the county has had requests or recognized on occasions that property owners make personal uses of county ROW. In some cases disputes have arisen between neighbors over who gets to use such ROW....if it is even available. This policy is intended to offer explanation as to when, why, and how such ROW's might be used.

The board granted a request by Front Range Aggregate to delete a contingency item from their reclamation plan which required the company to provide a mitigation plan for impacts to neighbors' water wells south of the Arkansas River in the Parkdale area across from the Front Range quarry. A consultant recommended by the neighbors to assess the situation said he didn't believe there would be any impact to wells across the river to the south.

The Commissioners required that Front Range Aggregate mail letters to neighbors inviting them to be heard at Tuesday's meeting if they were still concerned about the need for a water well mitigation plan. No neighbors attended so the board voted to delete the contingency item. The issue related to the amended reclamation plan the county OK'd several months ago which would have the quarry turned into a large water storage facility when the quarry is fully reclaimed.

In other business the Commissioners:

• Heard a presentation from CDOT (Colorado Department of Transporation) Engineers regarding a rockfall project in September that will require closings of Highway 50 in the Coaldale area and use of a county road for a detour;
• Approved a two lot minor subdivision for Stan and Kristina Hinton on 9.39 acres on the northeast corner of 10th and 'A' Streets in the Beaver Park area;
• Approved transfer of a conditional use permit for the Spotted Burro gravel pit along County Road 123 from Colorado Concrete to Rockbottom LLC;
• Approved another resolution extending the time for the refunding of revenue bonds authorization for Sangre De Cristo Hospice, and;
• Approved authorization for the chairman to sign a service agreement with The Engineering Company for the water study in the Pathfinder Park and Brewster area west of Florence.
  

July 1st Planning Commission Agenda Set

The Fremont County Planning Commission will resume discussion at its July 1st monthly meeting on amendments to the Fremont County Zoning Resolution. The Commission initiated consideration of various amendments to the resolution in June including creation of an 'Airport Zone District' intended to restrict development at the Fremont County Airport to aviation related uses. Other amendments deal with clerical issues and reorganizational items.

The Planning Commission will also consider changing the zoning for property at the airport. Airport property is now zoned 'Airport Industrial Park'. Under the proposal the county airport property would be rezoned under the new 'Airport' zone and the remaining area would be rezoned as 'Industrial Park Zone'.

Other agenda items for the Planning Commission include:

• A zone change request from Business Zone District to Agricultural Suburban Zone District for Matthew Brown. The property involved is 3.5 acres and is located on the north side of Highway 50 east of Swissvale Road in the Swissvale area of western Fremont County.
• Consideration of a three lot preliminary plan for Maple Leaf Estates by Edward and Linda Jarosz for their property on the southeast corner of Windsor Avenue and York Street in the North Canon area. The subdivision proposed would divide about ten acres into three lots of 3.52 acres, 4.45 acres, and 2 acres. Access to the lots would be off of York Avenue.

The Fremont County Planning Commission meets at 7 p.m., Tuesday evening, July 1st, in the County Commissioners meeting room on the lower level of the Fremont County Administration Building.

June 9th Commissioners Meeting

The Fremont County Commissioners voted to approve a controversial permit for uranium exploration in the rural Tallahassee area northwest of Canon City but postponed final adoption of permit conditions for another month.

The Commissioners voted 3-0 to approve the conditional use permit for Black Range Minerals to explore for uranium on 8,169 acres of the Taylor Ranch along County Road 2. Black Range said most of their exploration will be confined to 3,000 acres near the center of the ranch property.

Commissioner Mike Stiehl said approval of the exploration permit does not imply mining application approval. Stiehl said that while property values may be impacted, he believes it may be associated more with the stigma of the presence of uranium throughout the Tallahassee area rather than this specific application.

Commissioner Ed Norden said the board's decision was complicated by the fact that so many people made impassioned arguments for and against the application. Norden said the Commissioners didn't make the law of split estates, with different people owning mineral rights versus surface rights, but that's the issue the Commissioners were left to judge in fashioning a solution to try to protect property rights of both.

Of the board's decision, Commission Chairman Larry Lasha said "It was a struggle".

The Commissioners said they had developed a draft of proposed conditions which are available for review by clicking on the link on the home web page of www.fremontco.com. Norden said the conditions are intended to address hours of operation, documentation of a water source, access to the property, possible impacts to county roads, and requirements of a hydrologist monitoring each bore hole when they are sealed. A list of findings adopted in the board's resolution for the permit are also posted on the web site.

The Commissioners will accept additional written comment limited to the proposed conditions through 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, June 25th. Adoption of the final conditions is on the agenda for the board's regular meeting on July 8th.

The Commissioners Monday also conducted a public hearing on a site development plan for the new Penrose Public Library. The library site is located on the northwest corner of Dawson Street and 7th Avenue in Penrose. Karen Olmen of the Library Board requested that the Commissioners waive the requirement for hard surfacing of Dawson and 7th Streets. As recommended by the Planning Commission she said that would add $42,000--$45,000 to their costs and possibly kill the library project. District 2 Road Foreman Gary Wierton disagreed with a proposal to simply put down 4 inches of gravel....saying the roads have serious drainage problems and need to be brought up to county standards or they would simply lose all the gravel in a year.

The final motion by the board agreed to waive paving or chip sealing of those two streets with the county pledging to assist them in bringing the roads up to standards if the library district would go to work to see if they could contact some area contractors who might be willing to donate the necessary gravel. The landscaping requirement was also waived except for replanting of grasses. The Commissioners had general praise for the volunteer efforts that have gone into making the library project happen.

The Commissioners on June 9th also:

• Approved a special review use permit for Alltel Communications to erect a 100 foot wireless monopole tower on a 62 acre site owned by Jean Colon. The property is located directly southeast of the corner of Highway 50 and MacKenzie Avenue at the east edge of Canon City;
• Re-appointed Robert Henderson to the Fremont County Airport Advisory Board;
• Approved a special events permit for the Fremont Fairs and Shows Association's Ranch Rodeo on July 26th at the rodeo grounds south of Canon City;
• Approved a list of thirteen combined polling places for Fremont County's 30 precincts in the August primary election and November general election.

Hantavirus Precautions Urged

With the return of summer, state health officials again are warning Coloradans in rural parts of the state to avoid hantavirus exposure while cleaning cabins, buildings, sheds and barns that may have been closed up for winter.

Hantavirus is a serious respiratory disease carried by deer mice that are common to rural areas throughout the state. The virus can infect humans who inhale dirt and dust contaminated with deer mice urine and feces, when working in or cleaning out rodent-infested structures.

Two more hantavirus pulmonary syndrome cases in the state were confirmed last week, according to John Pape, a Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment epidemiologist who specializes in animal-related diseases. "We are up to four reported cases in 2008, including one fatality," he said.

The two recent cases occurred in Dolores and Delta counties on the Western Slope. Both patients were hospitalized but are recovering. Local health officials, in coordination with the department, are conducting investigations into how each individual was exposed to the disease.

Two other cases were reported earlier this year, one in Kiowa County in February and the other in Fremont County in early May. The person from Kiowa County did not survive.

Pape urged people to be particularly careful where there are mouse droppings and evidence that mice have been in and around the buildings or nearby wood or junk piles. A large, rapid increase in the number of mice around a home often precedes a human Hantavirus case and should be considered a red flag.

Property owners should rodent proof buildings by plugging holes or other mouse entry ways, and conduct year-round rodent control, using traps or poisons, or hire a professional exterminator. You should use special precautions when cleaning rodent infested structures; open doors or windows to provide good ventilation for 30 to 60 minutes before cleaning out structures; avoid stirring up dust by watering down areas of mouse infestation with a mixture of bleach and water. If live mice still are occupying a structure, rodent control should be done before extensive cleaning efforts. The structures should be thoroughly ventilated and any accumulation of dust, dirt and mouse droppings should be sprayed with a mixture of bleach and water before any cleaning begins.

Hantavirus, which is deadly in nearly half of the cases, begins with high fever, severe body aches, headache and vomiting. The onset of these symptoms begins from one week to six weeks after exposure.

Initially, there are no respiratory symptoms present. However, within one to five days, the illness quickly progresses to respiratory distress, including a dry cough and difficulty breathing caused by the lungs filling with fluid.

Deer mice are brown on top and white underneath. They have large ears relative to their head size. House mice on the other hand are all gray and have small ears. These small, gray house mice commonly found in urban areas do not carry the disease.

A photograph of a deer mouse can be viewed and downloaded at
http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/dc/zoonosis/hanta/index.html.

June 3rd Planning Commission Agenda

Zoning issues at the Fremont County Airport highlight the agenda for the June 3rd meeting of the Fremont County Planning Commission Tuesday evening. The Planning Commission is set to review several changes to the county's zoning resolution identified as the 26th amendment. Included in the changes is the creation of an 'Airport' zone district. An 'Airport' zone district has been under discussion by the Planning and Zoning staff with the Board of Commissioners for the past two years as a way to control development on airport facilities and the area immediately surrounding the airport. Regulations within an 'Airport' zone district are guided in large part by restrictions imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration. The 'Airport' zone district will generally require that any development within that district be aviation related.

Following consideration of the zoning amendment the planning commission will then formally consider a zone change on the property itself at the airport. The airport currently has two zoning designations. They include 'Airport Industrial Park' and 'Industrial'. The new zone districts being proposed are 'Airport' for the airport facilities and 'Industrial Park' for the industries located in the airport vicinity. The zone change basically means that Fremont County would abandon the definition of 'Airport Industrial Park' zoning. That means there would be only one industrial park zone district identified in county zoning regulations.

The only other item on the Planning Commission agenda is consideration of a request by Stan and Kristina Hinton for a two lot minor subdivision on 9 1/2 acres on the northeast corner of 10th and 'A' streets in the Beaver Park area at Penrose.

The Planning Commission meets 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 3rd, in room LL-3 on the lower level of the Fremont County Administration Building at 615 Macon Avenue in Canon City.

War Memorial Park Bricks Dedication

A ceremony to dedicate the latest addition of veterans names on engraved bricks at the Fremont County War Memorial Park is set for tomorrow. Veterans Service Office Betty Hanawalt says the dedication ceremony for the newly engraved bricks will take place at 12 noon at the memorial wall at the Fremont County Airport.

Pastor Jack Crosby will deliver remarks for the dedication which will also include a flag ceremony by the Canon City High School ROTC and a jet plane flyover by Airport Manager Richard Baker.

Hanawalt says 101 names of veterans, both living and deceased, have been added to the memorial wall. Hanawalt said a list of names to add to the wall had begun a couple of years ago and her office was working last fall to reach a benchmark of fifty names needed for another brick engraving order. But a concerted campaign during the 2007 Christmas holiday period produced a good response from veterans and their families to add names to the memorial.

If you're interested in adding the name of a veteran, living or dead, to the memorial wall you should contact Hanawalt at the Veterans Service Office in the Fremont County Administration Building. She maintains a list in hopes of accumulating another fifty names of veterans to issue another brick engraving order.

May 27th Commissioners Meeting

The Fremont County Commissioners tabled a final decision on a conditional use permit (CUP) for uranium exploration in the Tallahassee area northwest of Canon City following an eight hour marathon public hearing Tuesday.

More than sixty people testified before the Commissioners voicing both opposition and support to the plan by Black Range Minerals to resume uranium exploration on the Taylor Ranch along County Road 2 (Tallahassee Road). Black Range began exploration over a year ago but halted activities last fall when the company learned that exploration activities also require a permit. Mike Haynes, Black Range Managing Director, said the firm wants to explore on 3,900 acres in the middle of 8,169 acres of the proposed CUP area. Black Range wants to drill 800 test holes pledging to exceed state standards for sealing the test holes with bentonite and cement. Black Range also offered to develop a water well monitoring program and to monitor surface water for possible contamination.

Opponents repeatedly expressed concerns over possible cross contamination of underground water aquifers from the uranium test holes that could affect their private wells. They said threats posed by the uranium exploration have already significantly affected property values in what they describe as an area that is becoming increasingly residential in nature. Opponents also argued that continued exploration would create noise, traffic, and night lights in the pristine Tallahassee area.

Supporters of the exploration said they are confident the steps Black Range will take to seal the test holes will adequately prevent cross contamination. Some property owners also argued that they have long held both surface and mineral rights and should not be prevented from exercising those property rights. They said residents moving in to develop their 35 acre lots should have been aware that they were building in a uranium-rich area. Many added that they have used and drank water for years without health problems from their own water wells.

The Commissioners voted to table a decision on the CUP until the June 9th regular board meeting. The board noted that with the public hearing closed no additional public comment, letters, or e-mails will be accepted as part of the official record.

Routine business conducted by the commissioners prior to the Black Range public hearing included:

• Approval of a liquor store license renewal and 3.2 retail beer license for Forge Food Mart & Liquor;
• approved a special events permit for serving beer by the Fremont Center for the Arts for the annual Build Your Own Boat event June 28th at Canon City Recreation District Offices;
• and scheduled a public hearing for 10 a.m. June 9th on the proposed adoption of updated building codes for Fremont County.

County Nurse Retires after 17 years as Director

Fremont County Nurse Clarice Little will leave her post at the end of May after leading the Fremont County Nursing Service for the past seventeen years. Little has decided to retire from her work in public health where she has worked for twenty-seven years. Little began with the Fremont County Nursing Service in September, 1981, performing home health service, operating immunization clinics, and a multitude of other duties.

She became deputy director of the nursing service in 1985. After completing her Master's Degree in Administration she became the acting administrator in January, 1991, while the administrator was called to active duty with Desert Storm in Iraq. Little took over permanent duties as administrator ten months later.

The Fremont County Commissioners have announced that Becki Vettese is being promoted from her current post with the nursing office to become the new administrator. Vettese is a registered nurse who has worked with the Fremont County Nursing Service since 2001 working primarily in home health, immunizations, well child programs, and emergency preparedness. Vettese previously worked with St. Thomas More Hospital in Canon City as the Director of Obstetrics for one year and as nursing supervisor for two years.

Prior to moving to Canon City in 1998 Vettese also worked in obstetrics and pediatrics in Alaska, New Mexico, and Nevada with the Indian Health Service. Her husband, Dennis Vettese, is a pharmacist at St. Thomas More Hospital. They have three children (ages 28, 22, and 18) and two grandchildren.

County Commission Chairman Larry Lasha said Fremont County is fortunate to have someone of Vettese's caliber and experience to carry on the tradition of public health services in Fremont County.

He said the Board of Commissioners appreciates the dedication that Clarice Little exhibited in her work to the county nursing service over those 27 years and noted that Little can be pleased she leaves behind a well trained staff of professionals.

Countywide Stage One Fire Ban In Effect

Fremont County Sheriff Jim Beicker has imposed Stage One Fire Restrictions across all unincorporated areas of Fremont County. The Sheriff was preparing to put the restrictions in place when the county's first wildland fire of the season broke out Monday afternoon (May 12th) in the Copper Gulch area within the Deer Mountain Fire District. The fire was believed to have been ignited from a controlled burn that got out of hand and was spread by strong southwest winds onto BLM public lands. It quickly covered 200 acres by nightfall.

Sheriff Beicker said he had decided that conditions had warranted a fire ban and sought authorization from the county commissioners. Stage One fire restrictions were then imposed by the Sheriff which primarily prohibit all open burning. The specifics of a Stage One fire ban include:

A. STAGE ONE ALLOWED ACTIVITIES
1. Open fires only at developed recreation sites or improved sites;
2. Charcoal, propane or other contained fuel grill use;
3. Open fires in metal fire rings in campgrounds and parks;
4. Smoking only within an enclosed vehicle or building, at a developed recreation site, within a

designated smoking area with an approved container for discarding of butts, or while stopped

in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials;
5. Use of an approved spark arrestor for use of any internal combustion engine, only if equipped with

an approved spark arrestor;
6. Outdoor welding and grinding with proper distance from combustible materials, as long as there is

proper and appropriate fire protection and suppression equipment in place.

B. STAGE ONE PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES
1. All open fires, open burning and smoking if not specifically allowed above;
2. All agricultural burning including but not limited to weeds, brush, grass;
3. Use and/or discharge of fireworks or pyrotechnic devices,
4. Use of any explosives;
5. Open fires using rock ring burn pits;
6. Recreational below ground cooking;
7. Outdoor smoking except as specifically allowed above, including discard of cigarette butts at any

location or from any vehicle.

If conditions worsen the Sheriff would have the authority to impose an even stricter ban under Stage Two or Stage Three fire restrictions.

May 13th Commissioners Meeting

The Fremont County Commissioners Tuesday gave the Sheriff authority to impose a fire ban and approved a permit that will allow the former Broken Spoke arena at Penrose to reopen.

Sheriff Jim Beicker sought the Commissioners approval of a resolution to authorize him to impose fire bans this spring and summer due to the extreme fire danger conditions that have emerged in recent weeks. Beicker took a break from helping manage the Sheriff's wildland fire team response to the Ferguson Fire which broke out in the Copper Gulch area southwest of Canon City Monday afternoon. Beicker said conditions are such that even with a break from welcome rain showers, a day or two of sunny and windy weather would again leave conditions ripe for wildfire. With the Commissioners' approval the Sheriff announced he would impose Stage One fire restrictions which basically prevent all open burning and agricultural burning in unincorporated areas of Fremont County.

The Commissioners unanimously approved a special review use permit for the Crossroads Event Center which will open soon in the former Broken Spoke arena on the southeast corner of Highways 50 and 115 at Penrose. James Pickart told the Commissioners that he and his partners intend to operate a large animal veterinary clinic at the arena as the basis for their operation. He said the arena will cater to the owners of horses involved in competitive roping and rodeo type events. Pickart said scheduling arena events and operating a restaurant will help to round out the operation of the new business. Pickart said eventually a residence will be built on the site.

In other business the Commissioners:

• Approved a temporary use permit for the Penrose ATV Club to operate a Royal Gorge ATV Jamboree on June 7th at 0012 3rd Street in Penrose. Ron Faulkner said the event has been scaled back considerably to now feature only an outdoor concert that Saturday evening. He said they hope to do better planning next year to include an ATV rodeo and trail rides;
• approved a proclamation designating May as Foster Care Month in Fremont County;
• approved a zone change from Business to Ag Estates zoning for Tony Wish along Highway 50 at Coaldale. Wish has already torn down an old barber shop and is preparing a new home site on the riverfront property;
• approved four abatements referred from the County Assessor's office;
• and approved Fremont County's sponsorship of issuing a revenue bond through Wells Fargo to finance acquisition of new offices for Sangre DeCristo Hospice in Canon City. The bond issuance carries no fiscal liability to the county.