FEATURE: Cindie Sorensen, owner of Zenzen Gardens, in Paonia is experiencing deja vu coming off last year’s closure of CO Highway 133 that cut off tourism traffic from Glenwood Springs and Carbondale.
Now she and numerous businesses in the North Fork Valley in Delta County are facing the closure of US 50, the highway between Gunnison and Montrose, often used by tourists traveling west to a number of Western Slope destinations including the Zen Zen Gardens.
TOP STORY: Paonia's Master Plan is in its final stages, reports the Delta County Independent. Paonia Board of Trustees hopes to approve the plan at the June 11 regular board meeting with a celebration and presentation on June 6 at Blue Sage Center For the Arts by Phoenix Rising, LLC. Final public comments must be turned in by May 13 followed by a presentation of the entire draft to the Paonia Planning Commission on May 22.
The Family Dollar store in Ridgway Closed abruptly last week, reports the Ouray Plaindealer. The story was one of several hundred unprofitable locations set to shutter this year. Earlier this year, Dollar Tree, which acquired Family Dollar in 2015, announced it would close 600 store locations in the first half of 2024.
Delta County will host the groundbreaking ceremony for the North Fork Miners Trail project this Friday, May 10th, at 2 p.m. at the Delta County Fairgrounds boat ramp in Hotchkiss. The 1.2 mile trail stretches from North Fork High School and Crossroads Park to the Delta County Fairgrounds in Hotchkiss.
Once finished, trail commuters will journey along the North Fork of the Gunnison River corridor to access North Fork High School, North Fork Swimming Pool, Recreation District, and the Crossroads Baseball Fields. The North Fork Miners Trail will connect Hotchkiss with nearly 10 miles of the Nature Connection’s completed single-track biking at Crossroads Park.
The County has reached agreements on all trail land and rights-of-way for public access, and the grants will provide funds for trail construction materials and installation costs, including a pedestrian/non-motorized bridge over the scenic North Fork of the Gunnison River. The project's success was made possible through the cooperation of landowners, who generously allowed the trail to cross their property lines.
