Grand County Matters

I think we all know that Grand County has tremendous art, art exhibits & art events. But I bet you didn't know there is a plan underway to create a new space for the Creative Arts!

Today I talk with Steve Fitzgerald, Chair of Fraser Public Arts Committee & Executive Director of the Fraser Valley Arts Organization.

www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

Did you know that Grand County EMS responded to 2,600 calls in 2019, and expect ongoing growth to 3,500-4,000 calls in 4-5 years? And, 56% percent of those calls are for Grand County residents, 22% are for Colorado residents and another 22% are from out of state visitors?

Did you know GCEMS also has a specialty team for mountain medical rescue and a special team who works with Grand County SWAT teams? And, did you know GCEMS is a County department but is not funded by the General Fund?

Join me for a chat with Grand County EMS Chief, Robert Good, while we discuss the monumental task of covering the 1,870 square miles which comprise Grand County.

www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

New on Grand County Matters...

Denver Water was founded in 1918 and has built an elaborate collection system to route snowmelt to the Front Range for Denver Water customers. Denver Water began diverting water through the Moffat Tunnel in the 1930s to deliver water to the City of Denver.

Jessica Alexander, Environmental Scientist at Denver Water, walks us through a variety of topics including the Colorado River Cooperative Agreement (CRCA) which began a long-term partnership between Denver Water and the West Slope. Grand County Learning by Doing was born of the CRCA agreement. More information available at www.grandcountylearningbydoing.org

Online at GrandCountyMatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!!

New on Grand County Matters:

Denver Water was founded in 1918 and has built an elaborate collection system to route snowmelt to the Front Range for Denver Water customers. Denver Water began diverting water through the Moffat Tunnel in the 1930s to deliver water to the City of Denver.

Jessica Alexander, Environmental Scientist at Denver Water, walks us through a variety of topics including the Colorado River Cooperative Agreement (CRCA) which began a long-term partnership between Denver Water and the West Slope. Grand County Learning by Doing was born of the CRCA agreement. More information available at www.grandcountylearningbydoing.org

Available at GrandCountyMatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

Denver Water

KILLDOZER: The True Story of the Colorado Bulldozer Rampage

On June 4, 2004, Marvin Heeymeyer unleashed his gigantic, armored, tank-like bulldozer upon the town of Granby. It was an act of defiant, but misguided, revenge upon those who he perceived had done him wrong in a long series of local property disputes.

Patrick Brower, author and long-time Granby resident & businessman, sits down with me and discusses the event that led to the rampage, and the unintended outcomes which are apparent in today's society.

Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHIkrg_fy7Q

Killdozer on Amazon:
https://amzn.to/3dkB9nu

Tread on Netflix:
https://www.netflix.com/title/81206411

Book Website:
https://killdozerbook.com/

www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!



Sponsored by Sanderson Commercial Real Estate
The name Grand County trusts when specialization matters - 970-531-9926

Martin J. Smith - Going to Trinidad

Award-winning author, and Granby resident, Martin J. Smith discusses the little-known history of Trinidad, Colorado, and his new book, Going to Trinidad.

Once dubbed the "s*x change capital of the world" by the New York Times, Trinidad was known to the worldwide transgender community between 1969 -2010, as the destination for 6000 patients seeking relief from gender dysphoria. Going to Trinidad explores the medical history of gender confirmation surgery as seen through the eyes of two patients with very different journeys.

No matter which side of the discussion you fall; the conversation is quite interesting and very enlightening.

The book is available on Amazon.

www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

Alaina Nash - Short Term Rental Economy

The Short Term Rental industry is critical to Grand County's economy. With the growth of DIY rental platforms such as airbnb & VRBO, as well as property aggregators such as Evolve Vacation Rentals and others, in addition to more tradition full service platforms and providers, the Short Term Rental (STR) ecosystem is also critical to Grand County.

Alaina and I dive into the facts, attempt to educated, and discuss a variety of the issues related to STR in the area: housing, staffing, work load, economic impact, and much more.

www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

Andy Miller - Man of many hats

President, Upper Colorado River Watershed Group
Founder & Project Manager, Grand Huts Association
Town of Fraser Trustee

Join us for a wide-ranging discussion on water to huts to development and learn some interesting details:

Grand County has 300 miles of impaired streams & rivers
WRT Water Rights: No one owns water; they have a right to use the water.
The Broome Hut near Berthoud Pass to 17 years to get a permit to construct and has a rooftop freshwater capture system with 1200 gallons of water storage!
The most exciting development in Fraser is known as Riverwalk District with an arts center, commercial outdoor space for restaurants and entertainment.
For more info:
http://ucrwg.org/
http://www.huts.org/
https://www.frasercolorado.com
[email protected]

Kirk Klancke, President, Headwaters Chapter, Trout Unlimited

Let's talk about water! Kirk and I discuss the challenges with stream health in Grand County.

We cover a wide range of topics, including the history of water diversion, the chronology of water projects including the Grand Ditch, the Moffat Tunnel, the Three Lakes Project and the Windy Gap project. The result of these water projects has decrease the water flow on the Fraser River by 60%.

We had a little fun with fancy terms - Macroinvertebrates aka bugs, play a HUGE role in stream health and the fish who live there.

To volunteer: https://coheadwaters.org/
To lean more about Colorado's water plan: https://cowaterplan.colorado.gov/

Most important: Plan a visit the Headwater River Journey exhibit and interaction experience in Winter Park. You will not be sorry! https://headwatersriverjourney.com/

Online at www.GrandCountyMatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts

Trout Unlimited
Save the Fraser River
Colorado Headwaters Land Trust

Grand Crew program for at-risk High School students in Grand County

Maggie Michalowski, Grand Crew Program Coordinator at Middle Park High School, along with Sam Taylor, a student in the Grand Crew program.

Grand Crew is designed to help at-risk students who may be struggling in the traditional education process. The program tailor’s education to individuals with traditional and non-traditional learning experiences.

For the past four years; Grand Crew has helped students graduate with a diploma--students who otherwise would have been likely to drop out of school altogether. Graduates have moved on to college, armed forces, careers in tech, food service, and more.

Grand County Matters updated their phone number.

New on Grand County Matters Podcast:

Cori Sanders shares her story as a 5th generation Grand County family. Having grown up as a resort kid, Cori and her family face the same seasonal employment challenges many Grand County residents face today, dubbed the Seasonal Syndrome.

Descended from Swedish homesteaders in the early 1900's, Cori's early ancestors found Grand County to be similar to their native Sweden. Some years later, Cori's great grand-dad was the first mayor of Fraser in the 1940's, and was apparently quite a character.

Online at www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

Patrick Brower is the Enterprise Facilitator for the Grand Enterprise Initiative and has lived in Grand County for most of his adult life. Patrick is passionate about building a strong future for Grand County by supporting local business owners. His role is to support the development of new and existing businesses in the county.

The Grand Enterprise Initiative is a community driven economic development program that relies on community involvement and participation to be successful. The program provides free and confidential business coaching through a proven successful method called Enterprise Facilitation.

Patrick provides free and confidential business coaching to anyone in Grand County. Please contact Patrick if you live in Grand County and have the desire to start, modify or expand your own business. You can reach Patrick by phone at 970-531-0632.

You can find all the shows online at www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

Brian Werner - Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.

Have you ever wondered what happens to all the water in the reservoirs and lakes in Grand County? What is it for? Where does it go? Who manages it?

In 1937, the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District was created to jointly operate and maintain the federally-owned Colorado-Big Thompson Project, with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The Colorado Big-Thompson Project collects supplemental water west of the Continental Divide for delivery to approximately 1,021,000 people and 615,000 irrigated acres in Northeastern Colorado for agricultural, municipal, domestic and industrial purposes.

https://www.northernwater.org/

Rami & I discuss Strawberry Creek Ranch - event venue, horse boarding facility, working ranch, and much more. We review a little history of the venue and discuss the incredible beauty of the property.

Unlike the big fancy wedding venues; Strawberry Creek has a Bridal Cabin rather than a Bridal Suite. Between the view and the flowers; the cabin is like nothing you have ever seen before.

Fox, coyote and bear are common visitors to the area. Not everybody gets to say they have a real bear at their wedding.

http://strawberrycreekranch.com/



Strawberry Creek Ranch 9N Event Venue and Equestrian Center

Tara Sharp, Executive Director of the Kremmling Area Chamber of Commerce, shares her love for Kremmling, the tremendous sense of community among residents, as well as the many and varied recreation opportunities in the area. We also discuss our shared love of Saint Bernards!

Listen to all the episodes online at www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

Also - check out Tara's 20 under 40 interview on the Sky Hi News: https://www.skyhinews.com/in-depth/20-under-40/tara-sharp-proves-one-person-can-make-a-difference

Brett D. Schroetlin is the Sheriff of Grand County. Sheriff Schroetlin was sworn into office in January 2015 and is now in his second term. Grand County home to over 15,000 year around residents, thousands of second homeowners, and visited by over 2 million people annually.

Sheriff Schroetlin is a 4th generation Colorado native, who was born and raised in Loveland, Colorado. Sheriff Schroetlin knew early in life that his dream was to go into law enforcement and serve his community. At the age of 14, Brett began serving as an Explorer Scout for the Loveland Police Department and remained active for nine years, accumulating over 4500 hours of volunteer experience as an Explorer and Advisor.

We discuss the broad scope of the Sheriff's office and the 1850 square miles for which the Sheriff is responsible. And we take a really interesting tour of the jail, dispatch & a patrol vehicle.

Listen to all the episodes online at www.grandcountymatters.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

I have been getting a few inquiries about how to listen to Grand County Matters via podcast apps rather than clicking the links at grandcountymatters.com. Here are a few pointers...

Apple Podcasts
This built-in app will do everything you need and it’s totally free. You can stream and download podcasts so you never miss an episode.
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/apple-podcasts/id525463029

Google Play Music
Android users, you’ve also got a free built-in podcast app. It does everything that Apple Podcasts does, so you can start listening in seconds and subscribe to keep it up.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.music&hl=en_US

Spotify
While some of us might think of Spotify as a music service, it added podcast functionality in 2015.
https://www.spotify.com/us/download

You can also listen at many other podcast providers where the show is published such as Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Pocket Casts, Deezer, Listen Notes, Player FM, Podcast Index, Overcast, Castro, Castbox, etc.

credit to: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a34044805/how-to-listen-to-podcasts/

New on the show...

Tom shares his unique journey to Grand County and some great history of Nordic ski jumping in Grand County. Primarily, however, we discuss the Winter Park Ski Education Foundation (WPSEF) which was established in 1987 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The foundation was formed to:

- Support the training of athletes and competitors in programs offered by the Winter Park Competition Center
- Develop and support skiing and snowboarding competition
- Support entry-level programs to introduce kids to snow sports
- Assist athletes reach their potential and possibly fulfill their dreams of becoming a world-class competitor or Olympic champion.

The WPSEF provides both merit and need based support to athletes. In a typical year, the foundation provides tens of thousands of dollars of support to offset the cost of programing and competitions for aspiring athletes.

The WPSEF is run by a volunteer board of directors and works with the Winter Park Competition Center to facilitate various fundraising efforts. With no staff and minimal administrative expenses, nearly all funds raised go to supporting the mission.

Learning more at https://www.wpcompcenter.org/

Find all the podcast episodes online at www.grandcountymatters.com

Catherine Ross, Executive Director of the Winter Park & Fraser Chamber of Commerce

There is more to the Chamber than great events and Thursday evening concerts in the park...

Catherine shares the purpose of the Winter Park & Fraser Chamber is to support, promote and increase business opportunities for its members and the community. In the aftermath of the fires of 2020 and Covid 19; the scope of the Chamber's work across the community is more apparent now more than ever.

In our broad ranging talk one of the key points emerged when discussing the future of Grand County. Regardless of what part of the County you call home; we are all tied to a common set of concerns - fires, water, public lands, intelligent/smart growth. We are all truly in this together.

Episodes online at www.grandcountymatters.com

Find more about the Chamber at https://www.playwinterpark.com/
Find Winter Park Today at https://www.winterparktoday.com/



Winter Park & Fraser Chamber - Colorado

Julie Martin, Recreation Director for the Town of Granby

The Granby Recreation Department offers all sorts of programs, including youth and adult sports, youth day camp, adult enrichment and fitness classes, special events and preschool programs with only 3 full time staff!

Did you know the Rec has 32 events in the spring of 2021! And, regardless of where you live, all Rec programs cost the same (resident v non-residents).

Find all the details online at https://www.townofgranby.com/recreation

Granby Recreation Department
Julie Henrekin Martin

Eagle Wind Sound is a full-service recording studio located in Winter Park which combines professional top-of-the-line equipment, decades of recording experience and a breathtakingly inspirational environment.

Owner & Co-Founder, Tony Rosacci, is an artist/producer-owned and understand the importance of providing a creative workflow environment, "The goal is to put 'the artist' first, thereby creating an atmosphere conducive to the capture of historical performances."

Eagle Wind Sound is loaded with a vast array of instrument and microphone choices ‘in house’ including an assortment of rare and vintage backline amps and caters to musicians & artists of all skill and experience levels.

Checkout the virtual tour: https://bit.ly/38yWIyn

Online at www.eaglewindsound.com

New on the podcast!

Mountain Family Center has been serving the people of Grand County for 42 years. Originally started by a handful of volunteers who simply wanted to help their neighbors, the Mountain Family Center is now a central distribution system for food, clothing, financial assistance and special services for individuals and families across Grand County and parts of Jackson County.

Helen joined the Mountain Family Center as Executive Director in 2013 following careers at the National Sports Center for the Disabled, Grand County Rural Health Network, The Grand Foundation and the Kremmling Memorial Hospital District.

Interesting facts:

- Mountain Family Center will buy $30,000-$50,000 in groceries annually
- In-kind food donations in a normal year would be approximately $150,000. In 2020, with Covid and the wildfires, in-kind donations from local grocery stores and food suppliers will exceed $500,0000.
- In 2020, the organization will hand out over 20,000 food totes to children in need

Listen to the show for more amazing facts and learn more about the scope of Mountain Family Center offerings, and how you can help!

Find all the episodes online at www.grandcountymatters.com

New on the Grand County Matters Podcast:

Emma Trainor, Publisher of the Sky-Hi News, shares the inside details on the Sky-Hi News, the relationship with Colorado Mountain News Media, the many publications offered as well as services related to digital media & marketing for small business. In addition to Emma’s path to Grand County, we cover what it is like to live & work in a small community and that “good news” drives people forward.

Did you know:
- There are only 2 reporters & 1 editor to cover all of Grand County
- The paper is printed in Gypsum and delivered twice weekly for distribution around the county
- East Troublesome Fire coverage was viewed 735,000 times online during October

Find all interview online at www.grandcountymatters.com

New on Grand County Matters Podcast:

Meara McQuain , Executive Director, Headwaters Trails Alliance

Meara moved to Grand County over 15 years ago after exploring many communities in Colorado after spending her summers in Estes Park as a child. Meara joined HTA in 2014 after working for over 20 years in the non-profit sector. Working for HTA allows Meara to pair her education in ecology and environmental science with her passion for outdoor recreation. Meara’s hobbies include biking, skiing, hiking, SUPing, backpacking, bluegrass, music festivals, camping with her family, and recently adventuring with her pup, Arlo.

Find all the interviews online at: www.grandcountymatters.com

New on the podcast:

Schelly Olson, a fulltime Grand Lake resident for the past 16 years, wears many hats. Her day job is the Assistant Chief of Administration & Community Risk Reduction at Grand Fire Protection District. Her side gig is acting as a Public Information Officer on wildland fires across the country. And, in her “spare time,” she is the chairperson of the Grand County Wildfire Council, a not-for-profit organization focused on helping residents prepare, prevent, mitigate and survive wildland fire events.

We talk about a wide range of topics related to Schelly’s work in and around wildland fire, firefighting and fire prevention. Particularly, the Williams Fork and the East Troublesome fires. The latter claimed Schelly’s family home (one of nine first responders to lose their primary residence in the fire). We also discuss the kindness of the community and the heroic efforts of the firefighters and emergency responders across many agencies during and after the wildfires in Grand County.

You can also see Schelly on First Responder Friday at https://youtu.be/9poaa0apZEQ

See all the interviews online at: www.grandcountymatters.com

Grand Fire Protection District No. 1 Grand County Wildfire Council

Grand County Matters updated their info in the about section.

Much to our surprise; Santa called into the show Christmas morning immediately following his big night delivering presents. Although we only had the chance to chat for about 15 minutes, Santa shares a few interesting facts about his workout routine, reindeer food and some insider information on the naughty list. Turns out Santa is a big fan of Grand County!!

Merry Christmas and thanks for listening.

www.grandcountymatters.com



Santa' portrait by Jonathan Meath - Jonathan Meath, CC BY-SA 2.5

New on Grand County Matters Podcast:

I had a great conversation with Shanna Ganne, Executive Director of the Grand County Historical Association.

Did you know Grand County is home to 4 museums and gift shops featuring local history? Not only that; did you know there used to be a mining camp and an airstrip at the bottom of Lake Granby, and that President Dwight Eisenhower used to hang out in Grand County? Or that the first Allosaurus fossil was found in Grand County? Listen in for more fascinating details.

Find all the podcasts online at: www.grandcountymatters.com

Find the Grand County Historical Association online at https://grandcountyhistory.org/

Grand County Colorado - Official Tourism Information
Grand County Historical Association

New on Grand County Matters:

Miranda Fisher, General Manager of Always Mountain Time, operators of The Lift FM & KRKY Ski Country Radio.

Miranda shares her history, her journey to Always Mountain Time and her love for broadcasting & media. We cover the mountain lifestyle, the role of radio in support of small business, the current state of radio in the streaming & satellite entertainment world and the role of innovation and staying in front of the curve.

Find the podcast online: www.grandcountymatters.com

Always Mountain Time The LIFT FM KRKY 930AM/101.9FM Ski Country