Noticias

• Survey Looks at Health and Wellbeing in the Region
• Coming Up Next, Telluride
• General Assembly Adjourns

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Survey Looks at Health and Wellbeing in the Region

Anecdotal data is abounding when it comes to mental health, housing challenges, substance use in the region. But how do residents actually feel about their health and wellbeing in the community?

That’s the question at the heart of the Community Engagement and Behavioral Health Survey.

The survey, conducted every two years, collected responses from nearly 900 residents across San Miguel County and the West End of Montrose County. The findings were presented last week at an intergovernmental meeting with representatives from San Miguel and Montrose counties, Telluride, Mountain Village, Norwood, Nucla and Naturita.

“The survey looks at three different areas for data collection: community life, mental health and substance use,” said Lauren Norton of Tri-County Health Network.

About 60% of respondents said the region is an excellent or very good place to live. However, Norton noted an increase in negative perceptions compared with the previous survey.

“There was an increase in the fair or poor responses since 2024,” Norton said.

About 8% of respondents rated the region as a fair or poor place to live.

Norton said the timing of the survey may have influenced responses.

“We talked about what a difficult winter it was and the moment when this survey came out could have some influence on that,” Norton said. “It is interesting to note that response did increase and you may see that trend around some of the more challenging aspects of what this winter was like for folks.”

Nearly 80% of respondents said they completely or mostly agreed they can trust people in their community, though that percentage declined from the previous survey.

About 70% said they make an effort to be part of the community, while 60% said community involvement is part of their identity.

The survey also highlighted concerns about loneliness and isolation. Nearly 40% of respondents reported feeling lonely, including feelings of lacking companionship, feeling left out or isolated from others.

“Noticing which groups are higher, it’s younger people, low income, LGBTQ+, as well as the Spanish speaking or Latino population, with the highest numbers there,” Norton said.

Housing affordability remains a significant concern in the region.

“We are trending in a negative direction,” Norton said. “Seventeen percent of people in 2024 said they worry about having a steady or consistent place to live in the next six months, now we’re up at 22.2%.”

Food insecurity also increased, according to the survey. Norton said the percentage of respondents reporting concerns about food lasting or having enough money to buy more rose from 18% in 2024 to 24% this year.

The survey found high rates of poor mental health despite growing openness around discussing the issue. About 55% of respondents reported experiencing three or more days of poor mental health within the previous 30 days.

“Women being at a much higher norm than men. Young people at a much higher norm than older demographics. Low income, the Spanish speaking community somewhat,” Norton said. “Certainly, the highest being the LGBTQ+ community with the highest amount at about 98.7%.”

Questions about substance use revealed that about 75% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed alcohol is important to social life in the region, down from 80% in 2024.

“Very positive downward trend from 80% in 2024,” Norton said. “Overall trending in a good direction in terms of people believing that alcohol use is deeply ingrained in the culture.”

The survey showed regional differences as well. In the Telluride and Mountain Village area, 84% of respondents said alcohol was important to social life, compared with 60% in the West End.

Norton also said many respondents reported being negatively affected by substance use, either personally or through someone close to them.

“Quite a few people saying a great deal, and somewhat — being more than half our community saying they’ve felt that impact in their lives,” Norton said.

Despite the challenges highlighted in the survey, Norton said the region still has many positive factors that local governments and organizations can reenforce to support residents’ health and well-being.

Full results of the Community Engagement and Behavioral Health Survey are available at Tri-County Health Network.

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Coming Up Next, Telluride

Telluride Town Council is meeting on Tuesday with transportation safety, and housing policies on the docket. This week on Coming Up Next, Telluride, Communications Manager Lindsey Mills shares what to expect.

Julia Caulfield (JC): Town council is meeting on Tuesday. Where are we going to begin the day?

Lindsey Mills (LM): We’re starting the day with executive session. So that exec session is slated to take about 40 minutes. The topic is Mill Creek. And then we’ll head into action items and back into the public meeting right around 10:40.

JC: And what is town council going to be talking about there?

LM: To kick off the public portion of the meeting, we’re going to be talking about the adoption of the Transportation Safety Action Plan. There’s two line items right away, general adoption of the plan and then also consideration of a resolution to adopt Vision Zero, which is essentially a policy that complements the TSAP – Transportation Safety Action Plan, establishing a goal of eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2040.

You know, this is a pretty reasonable effort based on our current traffic safety standards. The Marshals department has reported very, very low incidence of major traffic accidents throughout town. So it’s something that is achievable and something that the team is bringing to the table for council to consider.

And then we’re going to touch base to wrap up our action items. Right at 11:35 we’re going to be touching base on our final action item of the day surrounding fire restrictions.

So this is really just an administrative detail being added as an ordinance to outline how fire restrictions can be put into place. Previously it was through a special meeting of town council. Council is interested in making that ability to put fire restrictions into place a bit easier with a staff level review moving forward.

JC: Then town council will break for lunch. It will come back and as usual have presentations and proclamations, appointments to boards and commissions and the like. And then it’s going to head into two public hearings, one of which I think is going to be of note for people, but will also come back during the Telluride Housing Authority. What is this talking about?

LM: So at 1:40 we’re going to be seeing a consideration of an amendment to the employee rental housing policies. So the policies are about to go into full review for their biannual review. But the big, big piece here is that the team is looking at building a Resident Advisory Committee to allow our tenants to have a say in that policy review. So this started with the Telluride Housing Authority and is moving forward into a full adopt and implementation as well.

JC: Then we’re heading to administrative reports where there’s a number of things within the manager’s report and also the Telluride School District coming to council. What are all these conversations going to be?

LM: We’re going to see a recap of the seasonal winter community housing program. We have RV parking and camper parking in Town Park throughout the winter. We’ll get a report from the team on how that program went this year.

We’ll take a look at first quarter financials with our finance department and then we’re going to discuss an RFP for outside consultants to actually review the rental housing policies. So giving a third party an opportunity to take a look at the policies, see where they see holes or make some suggestions on how we can improve that process moving forward. So this will be kind of the first discussion of this and then the THA will actually review this at 3 o’clock as well.

The Telluride R-1 School District is coming to the table to present a discussion of funding and a mill levy override. John Pandolfo will be presenting on that as well.

JC: Then as we have noted, there’s several topics that town council will be discussing earlier in the day before jumping in and sitting as the Telluride Housing Authority. So folks will have heard some of these already. But what is the Telluride Housing Authority going to be talking about on Tuesday?

LM: The Telluride Housing Authority is going to see some redundant line items.

Council and the Housing Authority have to review this amendment to the rental housing policies to create the Resident Advisory Committee. So this should be a pretty quick line item after discussion will have taken place earlier in the day.

Then finally they will also review this update on the request for proposal for outside consultants to review the rental housing policies.

So a bit of overlap here for that 3 o’clock hour with the Telluride Housing Authority. But the big key is that those big discussions will actually take place likely during the council line items. So if you’re looking to tune in, you’re looking to public comment, you do have two opportunities, but the bulk of the discussion will be taking place during the council line items.

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General Assembly Adjourns

Colorado’s General Assembly has officially adjourned for 2026. In this installment of Capitol Conversation, statehouse reporter Lucas Brady Woods wraps up the session.

Julia Caulfield (JC): Since we last talked, the General Assembly officially wrapped up. I would love to hear from you just how those kind of final few days went at the General Assembly.

Lucas Brady Woods (LBW): It actually ended on a pretty positive note overall. It was a pretty calm last day — very collegial, very celebratory — but that’s despite actually some pretty big partisan clashes in just the last couple days of session.

Democrats were planning on introducing a measure that is intended to counter a ballot measure coming in November that is about natural gas. Republicans were really upset about this, and so they actually decided two days before the session ended on having every bill read at length on the floor, which really delays proceedings.

They actually delayed proceedings so much that Democrats abandoned this one measure. So that was a pretty big clash in the last couple days.

But once that was sort of resolved, the remaining time was pretty calm and straightforward, and they finished at a reasonable hour on the last day.

JC: I know there’s always a number of welcome speeches or kind of beginning-of-the-session pomp and circumstance, you might say. Is there likewise at the end of session? What are you hearing from lawmakers maybe on the floor as they wrap up?

LBW: Oh, there are tribute after tribute after tribute on the last day of session. It really does go on and on.

This year, there were some pretty big names transitioning out of the General Assembly, at least in their current role, because they’re term-limited.

One of those is House Speaker Julie McCluskie, who is the first female speaker from the Western Slope. She gave a big speech, and there were tributes to her.

Others on their way out or term-limited included House Majority Leader Monica Duran and Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez. So there’s a lot of turnover this year as we go into the next General Assembly. Of course, it’s Polis’ last year, so there was definitely a lot of reflection on those changes that are coming.

JC: As we have mentioned before, or as you have explained, now that the General Assembly is finished, Gov. Polis does have now 30 days to sign all the bills he’s going to sign, veto the bills he’s going to veto and the like. Do we know a bit about kind of what his plan is?

LBW: Gov. Polis does a bill-signing tour across the state, so he should be in every corner of Colorado at some point with some bill to sign because there are a lot of them.

Lawmakers pass hundreds of bills every year. This year is no different, even though they faced some constraints with the budget and other things.

But I think it’s going to be one to watch out for, especially his vetoes. There is talk that he may be vetoing more bills this year than he has in past years. So that’s going to be something that I’m watching out for.

JC: You are obviously keeping on working hard, so just because the General Assembly is done, you’re not done.

But I do want to hear from you now that you’re stepping out of General Assembly mode: What is the thing that you’re going to miss the most about reporting on the General Assembly and being at the Capitol?

And what is the thing you’re going to miss the least, or be the happiest to not have to do anymore now that the General Assembly is over?

LBW: I’ll start with the latter. That’s an easy one: not having to wear my suit every day.

But one thing I’m going to miss is really being in that building. It’s a special experience seeing all of these lawmakers hash out policy.

As much as we talk about the division and the partisanship, they do hash out some policy, and they do make some difficult decisions and compromise with each other.

I always miss seeing that — seeing our government really work in person in those hallowed halls of the Capitol and feeling like you’re really seeing democracy happen in real time.

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Danny Rosen Featured at Talking Gourds Stories and Poems

this hanging stuff is completely silly – ape with drill chimp with cable – self-absorbed stones – hung on the heels of kinks in the mind – sacred act – rock benediction – resurrected lithics shall not suffer – drilled to the core – open to the soul of the stone – relieve the pain of the bound grain – healer of an earthen ache – guilty of nothing but gaining not ground but what follows underfoot

• An excerpt from “Suspended Erosion” by Danny Rosen

Danny Rosen has worked in geology, astronomy and construction. He is also a bookstore owner and poet.

This month, Rosen will serve as the featured poet for the Talking Gourds Stories and Poems event.

Rosen will give a presentation on his work followed by a question-and-answer session. Attendees are also encouraged to bring a poem to share, either their own or one written by another author. The theme for this month’s optional writing prompt is “Hanging Rocks.”

The May Stories and Poems event will take place Tuesday, May 19, at 5:15 p.m. at the Wilkinson Public Library.

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Utah Data Center Faces Growing Opposition

A proposed data center in northwest Utah is drawing growing opposition over concerns about water use and environmental impacts near the Great Salt Lake.

Hundreds of people rallied at the Utah State Capitol on Thursday, May 14, to protest the project, known as the Stratos AI data center.

The proposed development would cover more than 40,000 acres in Box Elder County, making it one of the largest data center developments in the world.

Earlier this month, on May 4, Box Elder County commissioners approved the project despite significant public opposition.

Critics say the development could worsen drought conditions and further threaten the shrinking Great Salt Lake.

Dita Seed, with the Center for Biological Diversity, said residents are increasingly frustrated by the project and its potential environmental impacts.

“People, I think, see this as a moment where the disconnect between this action that, you know, these elected officials are subsidizing versus the crisis that we’re in in terms of a drought, and, like, I’m watching dust blowing off Great Salt Lake right now,” Seed said. “People are like, ‘Wait a second, we can’t have this,’ and pushing back in numbers larger than I’ve seen in years.”

Opponents of the development are now working to place a ballot referendum before voters to challenge the county commissioners’ approval of the project.

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Chronic Wasting Disease Detected at Elk Refuge

Chronic wasting disease has been detected for the first time at the National Elk Refuge, where thousands of elk gather each winter.

The refuge provides winter habitat for one of the largest elk herds in the country.

For Rocky Mountain Community Radio, Sophia Boyd Fliegel reported that conservation groups had anticipated the disease’s arrival.

Teddy Collins, with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, said the discovery was expected.

“I’m not that emotional because I knew this day was coming,” Collins said.

In recent years, the fatal neurological disease has spread closer to Wyoming’s largest feed ground. Collins said it remains unclear how quickly the disease will spread among elk populations.

“We cannot keep operating in the status quo when the science clearly states that feeding operations, whether it’s state-run feed grounds or the National Elk Refuge, these feeding efforts will have negative impacts on Wyoming’s elk herds,” Collins said.

In a press release, state and federal officials said refuge staff will increase monitoring efforts, reevaluate existing programs and implement additional biosecurity measures to protect both wildlife and people.

State officials have previously announced efforts to reduce elk dependence on feed grounds in an effort to prevent animals from gathering in unusually dense numbers during the winter.