News

• Ski Patrol Sets Up Mini Food Bank at Strike Picket Line
• Telluride Housing Lottery Opens Friday
• The West End Roundup with the San Miguel Basin Forum

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Ski Patrol Sets Up Mini Food Bank at Strike Picket Line

Telluride Ski Patrol was at Oak Street Plaza this week offering free meals and groceries to support people impacted by the Telluride Ski Resort closure.

After months of failed contract negotiations between the Telluride Ski Patrol Union and the Telluride Ski Resort, known as Telski, ski patrol announced a decision to strike. Following that announcement, the Telluride Ski Resort closed Dec. 27, citing “ski patrol’s unfortunate decision.”

Ski patrol began handing out food Tuesday.

“Today we got a food bank going for the Telski employees and other members of the community who might be affected by the resort shutting down,” said Matt Racicot, a member of the Telluride Ski Patrol who lives in town.

“We have food available in the form of some to-go bags that feature a little dinner filled with chili items, and a breakfast-lunch bag, and then we have other groceries that people can come and get. We’re hoping to hand out food to over 200 people today,” Racicot said.

The food bank at Oak Street Plaza was inspired by Park City Ski Patrol, which contacted Telluride Ski Patrol in support. Park City Ski Patrol went on strike for higher wages last winter, resulting in increased wages for beginning and experienced patrollers.

“They know the kinds of things that communities need in a time like this. They generously donated over $1,000 worth of groceries,” Racicot said. “We think it’s important because we know there are a lot of people out there who had no say in this decision for the resort to close. And we’d like to extend any hand that we can for those people.”

David Miller, a seasonal worker for Telski from Maryland, came to the food bank to pick up free food.

“I’m really glad that they’re out here to be a resource for us,” Miller said. “Ski patrol is doing everything they can to help the situation because a lot of people are out of work.”

Miller said he found out about the food bank through an email from Telski.

“They’re really good at like letting their workers know what’s available to them, so that’s really good,” Miller said. “You can tell that the mountain still cares about all its workers and is doing everything they can to like provide for them right now.”

Wednesday marked the fifth day of the Telluride Ski Patrol strike. Tom Sokolowki, also known as Socko, has been a ski patroller for 53 years. He said he has been overwhelmed by the support from people passing by the picket line.

“Just the other day, we were picketing in Mountain Village Plaza and the guy that owns the Philly cheesesteak cart came up to us and said, ‘Hey this woman just stopped by and bought you guys thirty sandwiches,’” Sokolowki said. “That’s like three hundred dollars, you know.”

Hunt Worth, who has worked for ski patrol for 41 years, said the strike is for the future of younger patrollers.

“One of our big issues is that we need to make it possible for the young folks coming into ski patrol to make it a career, and right now, that’s not possible,” Worth said. “We have lots of guys come in, and then after two or three years of training, they leave because they can’t afford to be here anymore.”

Dakota Schlag, a member of the ski patrol union who lives in Placerville, agreed with Worth.

“Even though we’re in our fifth, sixth years here, there’s still so much institutional knowledge that we are losing year after year because there are so many better-paying jobs,” Schlag said. “A lot of folks are saying, ‘Well, they should just be happy to work,’ and that it’s fun. That is true on some days, and other days it is not true. We deal with people dying, we deal with very dangerous work conditions up there.”

Worth and Schlag said the strike is a symptom of a financial dynamic in Telluride that has persisted for decades.

“People realize that the situation in Telluride is not sustainable for the service workers,” Worth said. “This is a long-term problem, and we’ve been dealing with this for thirty years. And even though town has built a lot of employee housing and subsidized housing, it’s still way, way short of what’s needed.”

As the community moves through the uncertainty, Schlag encouraged people to engage in conversation with ski patrol.

“I would say to folks on the other side of the aisle, we’re out here every day, we’re going to be, and if you have questions, just please come up and talk to us and have a face to face, we’re more than happy to be transparent,” Schlag said.

As drivers honked in support of ski patrol, Worth shared his appreciation for the community.

“We realize how hard this is for everybody,” Worth said. “And we’re just hoping that this can create a change for everybody in town.”

In a statement, Telski said the resort is working on a plan to safely reopen Lifts 1 and 4 as quickly as possible. The company said a certain number of medical providers are required to operate the mountain and that it has formed a recruitment team to hire qualified and experienced personnel to temporarily fill gaps and allow the mountain to reopen.

KOTO News will continue covering the Telski closure and its impact on the community. Those affected who wish to share their stories can contact KOTO News by emailing [email protected] or calling 970-728-3206.

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Telluride Housing Lottery Opens Friday

Homes for local residents in the town of Telluride will be available through a housing lottery next month.

“It’s very exciting. The lottery application period is opening this Friday, Jan. 2,” said Lindsey Mills, communications manager for the town of Telluride.

Three deed-restricted housing units are included in the lottery.

“A three-bedroom, two bath at Entrada – which is over by Shandoka but on the river,” Mills said.

The Entrada unit was built in 2009 and is just over 1,500 square feet. It will be sold for $532,940.

“There’s a two-bedroom, one bath at White House – which is over by the Carhenge parking lot,” Mills said.

The White House unit was built in 2007 and is approximately 767 square feet. It will be sold for $312,147.

“And then finally, there’s a one-bedroom, one bath at the Meribel Residences – which is behind the Chase Bank on Main Street,” Mills said.

The Meribel Residences unit was built in 2012, is roughly 479 square feet and will be sold for $146,100.

The San Miguel Regional Housing Authority is administering the lottery for the town. Mills said there are several requirements applicants must meet to qualify.

“You’re going to prove that you’ve lived here and worked here,” Mills said. “The deed-restricted program requires presence required employment – so you have to have worked in the Telluride R-1 School District in the last year. You’ll do proof on income to make sure you qualify for these units. There’s an area median income (AMI) limitation for each of these three units – so you can’t make more than certain percentage based on the tier.”

To officially apply for the lottery, applicants must submit their application in person to the San Miguel Regional Housing Authority.

“If they can accept the application on site, right then, they will, then they’ll roll you into the lottery after reviewing everything, as long as you do qualify,” Mills said. “If there’s something else that’s needed, they may send you away to gather the rest of that information, and then you can schedule one more appointment to finish that application, officially submit, and be entered into the lottery.”

The housing lottery will take place Friday, Jan. 30.

Applications open at noon Friday, Jan. 2, and will remain open through noon Friday, Jan. 16.

Application materials and appointment signups are available at smrha.org/lottery.

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The West End Roundup with the San Miguel Basin Forum

Today on the West End Roundup with the San Miguel Basin forum KOTO’s news team chats with editor Regan Tuttle. In today’s headlines: X-Ray Technology at the Basin Clinic, Nucla Cell Tower Causes Concern, and the Nucla Mustangs remain undefeated.

Story beings at 8:05.

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A Look Back: Ramadan Brings Fasting, Prayer, and Charity & Yom Kippur Brings Atonement and Remembrance

As 2025 draws to a close, KOTO News is revisiting some of its biggest stories from the past year. Today’s rebroadcast looks back to February and October, when members of the community shared their religious and cultural traditions.

We begin with Tabassum Siddiqui sharing her observation of Ramadan.

Story beings at 13:45.

Followed by Stephen Wise sharing his experience of Yom Kippur.

Story begins at 18:50.

More featured stories from the year, along with KOTO’s full daily newscasts, are available at koto.org under the News tab.

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Telluride Foundation Awards $1.2M to Regional Nonprofits

The Telluride Foundation is awarding more than $1.2 million in grants to over 80 regional nonprofit organizations this year.

The grantees include food security programs, watershed groups, medical clinics, public health initiatives and arts organizations serving San Miguel, Ouray and west Montrose counties, as well as Rico.

In addition to its annual grants, the foundation continues to offer emergency financial assistance to local families and individuals through its Good Neighbor Fund. The program is designed to help residents remain in the community and keep households intact during periods of financial hardship.

Good Neighbor Fund assistance may be used for expenses such as housing, transportation and medical treatment.

Applications for the Good Neighbor Fund are available at telluridefoundation.org.

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Former Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell dies at 92

Former U.S. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado has died. He was 92.

Campbell began his congressional career representing Colorado as a Democrat before later switching to the Republican Party. During nearly two decades in Congress, serving in both the U.S. House and the Senate, Campbell helped establish national parks and was a prominent advocate for Native American issues.

He also served as chief of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe and was widely recognized as a jewelry designer. In addition, Campbell was a member of the first U.S. Olympic judo team.

In 2012, Campbell escorted the official Christmas tree to the U.S. Capitol, a role he described with enthusiasm.

“Ever since I was a teenager, I got through college by driving a semi. And the only difference with this is it’s so long, but police go with you. There’s police escorts, and I tell people, it’s kind of fun having red lights and sirens in front of you then chasing you,” Campbell said.

Ben Nighthorse Campbell was 92 years old.

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National Park Gift Shops Ordered to Remove DEI-Related Items

The Trump administration’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion has expanded to gift shops in national parks.

The administration has ordered national park gift shops to remove items that promote diversity, equity and inclusion or gender ideologies. The U.S. Department of the Interior did not answer KHOL’s questions about whether books on Wyoming history could be affected, saying instead that a review of items is underway with park partners to “ensure our gift shops remain neutral spaces that serve all visitors.”

Books about Heart Mountain — where the U.S. government forcibly incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II — are currently sold in park stores.

Ray Locker, communications director for the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation, said removing such materials would limit access to important regional history.

“So if that book happened to be removed from the shelves and from the store, I think that would be, you know, really a bad thing, and it would limit people’s ability to find out more about this part of history, which happened, you know, just a few hours away from Grand Teton National Park,” Locker said.

The Heart Mountain Interpretive Center is located about 15 minutes north of Cody. Locker said the foundation has received nothing but support from Wyoming’s elected officials.