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Grand Junction ‘Rumble’ rallies support for conservative movement in Colorado
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Grand Junction ‘Rumble’ rallies support for conservative movement in Colorado

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice The Rocky Mountain Rumble held Sunday in Clifton gathered Western Slope conservatives under a shared mission: fighting for rural Colorado's future and energizing the community ahead of crucial elections. Hosted by Rocky Mountain Voice's founder Heidi Ganahl, the event underscored the importance of unity, local leadership and economic opportunity as the region grapples with state and federal overreach. Mesa County resident and attendee Vicky Murphy says she's been a political junkie for years, often speaking her mind and she's noticed a change in locals around her lately. "People that I’ve known for years who never opened their mouth about politics are suddenly very chatty," she said. "They have passion [and] concern, and they ...
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Prop. 127’s ‘unintended consequences’ could be devastating, leaders in Northwest Colorado say
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Prop. 127’s ‘unintended consequences’ could be devastating, leaders in Northwest Colorado say

By Lindy Browning | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice Members of the Associated Governments of Northwestern Colorado (AGNC) were joined recently in a discussion of Proposition 127 by Gaspar Perricone, of the Wildlife Conservation Project and formerly a political advisor, legislative director to the Colorado Department of Natural Resources and regional director for Sen. Mark Udall. If supported by voters, Prop. 127 on the Nov. 5 statewide ballot would ban hunting of mountain lions, bobcats and federally-protected lynx. The measure is the result of an animal rights activist group, Cats aren’t Trophies (CATs), a 501(c) (3) organization who gathered enough signatures to place the issue on the ballot. This is the same process that led to the reintroduction of wolves in Colorado, often ter...
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On Western Slope, opioid crisis continues and sheriffs say it is leading to mental health, crime
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

On Western Slope, opioid crisis continues and sheriffs say it is leading to mental health, crime

By Lindy Browning | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice Mesa County Sheriff Todd Rowell and Delta County Sheriff Mark Taylor have had  a constant battle fighting the opioid crisis in their counties since 2017, when it first started impacting western Colorado. MESA COUNTY When opioids first appeared as fentanyl on the Western Slope in 2017-18, each pill cost $18. Now, because of increases in the supply, they are $2 a pill.  "Fentanyl is a 45-minute high, and we see people taking up to 40 pills a day. It makes zombies out of people in our community,” Rowell said. In Mesa County, according to Rowell, law enforcement and first responders have had to administer Narcan - a medication that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose - 114 times in the last year. “That’s one person every t...
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Pinyon Avenue homicide victim identified
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Approved, Local, Westernslopenow.com

Pinyon Avenue homicide victim identified

By Ryn Lewis | Westernslopenow.com The Mesa County Coroner’s Office has identified the human head and hands found in January by the new owner of a recently sold home at 2988 Pinyon Avenue. Officials have identified the victim of the Pinyon Avenue homicide case as Amanda Leariel Overstreet, a resident of both the Grand Junction and Harris County, Texas areas. Overstreet was the biological daughter of the previous homeowner and was believed to be about 16 years old at the time of her disappearance; she had not been seen or heard from since April 2005. Officials say there is no record that she was ever reported missing. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE WESTERN SLOPE NOW
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U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert listens to Western Slope leaders on energy, water and land use 
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert listens to Western Slope leaders on energy, water and land use 

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice Meet Bryce and Lisa Casto, sixth-generation ranchers on the Western Slope, who are worried that the Dolores Monument designation will close their roads and leave them unable to care for their livestock.  Bryce understands the importance of local communities managing the land around them. “When it's locally controlled, we control it better because we will harvest whatever can be harvested," he said. "It's close to home, so we want to make sure we're taken care of.”  Their livelihood depends on the very issues discussed at Colorado Mesa University on Oct. 5 with U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, during a listening session in which participants were encouraged to bring their concerns — and those of many like them — to the foref...
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Colorado ranching groups file petition to pause more wolf reintroductions until depredations are addressed
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Approved, KOAA News, State

Colorado ranching groups file petition to pause more wolf reintroductions until depredations are addressed

By Stephanie Butzer | NBC 5 News More than two dozen organizations that represent agriculture and livestock producers in Colorado have filed a petition to delay future gray wolf reintroductions until depredations are addressed and mitigation tactics are fully implemented. The Colorado Cattlemen's Association, based in Lakewood, announced the petition, which is addressed to the CPW (Colorado Parks and Wildlife) Commission, on Monday. In addition to that association, the other petitioners include Middle Park Stockgrowers Association, Colorado Farm Bureau, Club 20, and Colorado Wool Growers Association. Local livestock and stockgrowers associations from across the state also joined the petition. READ THE FULL STORY AT NBC 5 NEWS
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Navigating Colorado’s legislative landscape at the Club 20 debates
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Navigating Colorado’s legislative landscape at the Club 20 debates

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice As Colorado elections draw near, the Club 20 debates offer a glimpse of the possible representation from which to choose in the state legislature. With Democrats holding a supermajority in the House (46-19) and a near supermajority in the Senate (23-12), the Club 20 debates last week were crucial for voters who want their interests represented. Water rights, agriculture, the housing crisis and healthcare were key issues dominating the discussion, as rural and urban Colorado face differing challenges. Where common ground can be agreed upon is a task often left to state lawmakers to tackle. Water Rights Water management was a central theme across all debates, with candidates recognizing the importance of securing Colorado's w...
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Small town near Vail ends long legal battle with win over developer in $48M settlement
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Approved, Local, The Colorado Sun

Small town near Vail ends long legal battle with win over developer in $48M settlement

By Jason Blevins | The Colorado Sun Minturn, a village of about 1,100 people along a defunct railroad near Vail, has bested a $25 billion real estate company, securing a transformative $48 million settlement that ends a long legal battle.  “I don’t think they ever thought that a small town like Minturn would be strong enough to stand up to them. But we did,” said Lynn Feiger, a Minturn councilwoman and nationally acclaimed lawyer who helped the former railroad town win the settlement from real estate giant Lubert Adler. “I always thought Minturn could win if we stayed the course.” It’s been a long course for Minturn, where a Florida golf resort developer named Bobby Ginn dreamed big on the slopes of Battle Mountain above the town. With visions of a private ski hill, golf cour...
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Shape the future of energy: AGNC survey calls for community voices in Northwest Colorado
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

Shape the future of energy: AGNC survey calls for community voices in Northwest Colorado

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice As Colorado’s coal plants close and the state pivots to new energy solutions, the future of Northwest Colorado’s economy hangs in the balance. The Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado (AGNC) is leading an effort to ensure rural communities play a central role in shaping this transition. At the heart of this initiative is a public survey, open through September 16, 2024, giving residents the chance to voice their preferences on energy sources and help guide the region's future. With coal once providing stable jobs and affordable energy, the challenge now is to identify new paths that protect both livelihoods and local economies. Building on strong foundations The Northwest Colorado Energy Initiative (NCEI), operating...
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Stagecoach Mountain Ranch, a lavish members-only ski and golf resort, could turn town upside down
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Approved, Local, The Colorado Sun

Stagecoach Mountain Ranch, a lavish members-only ski and golf resort, could turn town upside down

By Kari Dequine Harden | The Colorado Sun Fifteen years ago, Jennifer and Adam Fernley came across an abandoned hilltop cabin for sale in the northwestern Colorado community of Stagecoach.  Overrun with mice and other rodents, the house had been flooded by frozen pipes. But the couple knew immediately they’d found their slice of paradise. A house painter by trade, Adam took on the work of repair. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
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