News

• New Development Opportunity Comes to Ilium
• Community Conversation Explores Resiliency in Not Normal Times
• Cat Movie Fisher with Risho Unda

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New Development Opportunity Comes to Ilium

New types of development will be allowed in the Ilium Industrial Park.

“The Ilium Industrial Park has seen an increasing demand for diversified services from residents in the area and there is, of course, an ever-increasing demand in the R-1 School District for housing to be built,” said Nicola Kerr, San Miguel County associate planner, at San Miguel Board of County Commissioners meeting last month.

The Ilium Park Owners Association submitted a proposal to the county for a “substantial” Planned Unit Development — or PUD — amendment.

“The first portion of this proposal is to add three new allowed uses,” Kerr said. “The first new allowed use would be a flex space. Uses could include food and beverage, processing such as brewery distillery – but we have nixed those so no brewery distillery – but yes, coffee roaster, bakery, caterer, local services such as laundry/drycleaning, arts and crafts, construction trades.”

Kerr said a brewery or distillery was eliminated due to water needs.

The next use would be health, medical, wellness and event services.

“That would include health and medical uses, a sports club, exercise and personal fitness facilities, massage, physical therapy, and events spaces,” Kerr said.

Finally, the amendment would allow for a variety store, which could include things like a small market, home office or kitchen supplies, or toys. A potential variety store would have a maximum area of approximately 1,000 square feet — roughly the size of the Placerville and Sawpit Mercantiles.

Outside of the additional uses, Kerr noted the amendment also proposes adding 20 units of deed-restricted housing density with three people per unit — an additional 60 residents. It would also expand who is eligible to live in the units.

“Instead of restricting the housing to persons only employed in the PUD, it would now be open to employees of the R-1 School District,” Kerr said.

Ryan Kasuno submitted the PUD application on behalf of the Ilium Park Owners Association. He said the goal is to provide space for the wants and needs they’ve heard from the community.

During public comment, Teresa Brachle of Telluride Gymnastics spoke in support of the amendment. The new use types would allow the gymnastics gym to relocate to Ilium as it loses its current location in Lawson Hill.

“We have an opportunity to acquire some land in Ilium, if this land use code passes,” Brachle said. “That would allow us to build and move into a permanent home for Telluride Gymnastics so we can continue serving the community in the most meaningful way we can.”

Ginny Gordon said she supports the gymnastics gym but questioned whether the county is comfortable with the area shifting into something new.

“To say in the staff memo that ‘some of the proposed uses could make the neighborhood more compatible with a higher residential population’ to me is an admission that this will no longer be primarily an industrial park,” Gordon said. “So, I think that’s your primary question: is this an industrial park or are we transitioning into something else?”

Krista Kimball, a business owner in Ilium, said she is less concerned about losing space for industrial uses.

“A lot of the people who are there right now own, us included,” Kimball said. “They own their lots. I don’t foresee them wanting to get rid of them unless they’re done with their business. I don’t foresee it pushing people out. I think it will broaden the scope of what can be done in the Ilium Valley.”

San Miguel County Planning Director Kaye Simonson said the impetus for the amendment comes from the community.

“We’ve had a lot of inquiries from people trying to locate businesses, trying to establish here in the community, or trying to expand their current business and they’re being faced with the reality that there isn’t much of any place for them to go,” Simonson said. “So a lot of what generated this proposed amendment was to answer those demands that we were hearing from and that IPOA was hearing from.”

But County Commissioner Anne Brown said she has concerns about the area shifting from light industrial to other uses.

“I’m concerned about having any land on the east end of the county for light industrial and heavy commercial,” Brown said. “I just feel like it’s imprudent of us to throw up our hands and say we want people to have land that makes more money and we’re going to export all of that outside of the east end of the county.”

Commissioner Galena Gleason supported the amendment, saying she believes a market need will keep the industrial component while new uses could improve livability for residents of Ilium and Two Rivers.

“Amenities like being able to go grab a cup of coffee, or buy a gallon of milk, or go to an exercise class – these things that make living in a neighborhood more comfortable,” Gleason said. “I’m taking that into consideration when considering these uses. At the risk of potentially losing some light industrial space – which I actually don’t foresee this happening if there’s still a real need and those light industrial uses are going to be allowed there in perpetuity. It’s not like we’re limiting that, we’re just allowing for greater uses which I feel will serve the community.”

After nearly three hours of discussion, county commissioners approved the amendment 2-1, with Commissioners Lance Waring and Galena Gleason voting in favor and Commissioner Anne Brown voting against.

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Community Conversation Explores Resiliency in Not Normal Times

It’s fair to say we are not living in normal times. So how do we stay well anyway?

That’s the topic of the next Community Conversation — a series of events aimed at helping to make tough conversations a little easier.

“This really stems from national conversations, as well as local changes, and existential dread, crisis, concerns that we’ve been hearing from our community across the board,” said Grace Franklin, San Miguel County public health director.

“How can we recognize these stressors and really reduce the impact of them through resiliency practices,” Franklin said.

The series is a collaboration between San Miguel County Public Health, Tri-County Health Network, Communities That Care Coalition, Raices Sin Frontera and the Wilkinson Public Library.

The conversation will be led by Resilient Colorado, a Mancos-based nonprofit working to build trauma-sensitive communities across the state.

“It’s not just going to be a presentation or a classroom setting,” Franklin said. “The concepts will be discussed and we’ll break into groups and really make it applicable to our lives.”

Franklin said the goal is to help bring resilience more actively into everyday life.

“It’s taking this concept and helping apply it in each individual life, as well as hearing from one another in ways that might expand your own perspective and really ground that you’re not alone in these kind of feelings and challenges to change your own behavior,” Franklin said.

She said she hopes the conversation can ground participants and help create a toolbox for resilience.

“I would love for folks to be grounded a little bit more in the science behind how our brains work,” Franklin said. “The more we can name things and understand how our bodies, our minds respond to different stresses or traumas, that can empower us to have that level of awareness.”

But she also hopes to foster true community connection.

“Having people from all different walks of life in Telluride and San Miguel County really connecting and finding those common ground pieces and spending time together,” Franklin said. “I think that’s huge.”

The “These Are Not Normal Times: How To Be Well Anyway” Community Conversation will take place Thursday, March 12, starting at 5 p.m. The community is welcome. There will be Spanish interpretation, food and child care.

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Cat Movie Fisher with Risho Unda

It’s Wednesday and time for another installment of Cat Movie Fisher, a segment where Telluride High School’s Risho Unda chats with members of the community about their favorite movie. Today we’re rebroadcasting a conversation with athletic trainer Matt Oakes. This story originally aired in November 2025.

Story beings at 9:05.

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Telski Bike Park to Close this Summer for Lift Upgrades

The Telluride Bike Park will be closed this summer while the Telluride Ski & Golf Resort upgrades Lift 4.

Telski made the announcement last week.

According to the resort, work will begin immediately after the mountain closes in April and is expected to continue through the summer.

The resort says the closure will include all downhill, technical and freeride trails. Cross-country trails will remain open and accessible from San Sophia Station.

The Telluride Ski Resort is scheduled to close for the winter season on Sunday, April 5.

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The Fig Hosts Community Reading of “Almost, Maine”

On a cold night somewhere in northern Maine, the northern lights are dancing, and the people of Almost, Maine, are feeling their feelings in stories of love.

This week, The Fig, a local arts collective, is hosting a reading of “Almost, Maine” by John Cariani.

The play features a series of vignettes — short scenes that explore love, connection and magic under the northern lights.

The reading will feature roughly a dozen community members sharing the story in a scaled back, intimate setting.

The Fig’s reading of “Almost, Maine” will take place Thursday, March 12, at Coffee Cowboy General Store. The event is free and open to the community.

The Coffee Cowboy will host a pizza party starting at 5 p.m. The reading will begin at 6 p.m.

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Fort Carson Soldier Dies in U.S. War Against Iran

A soldier based at Fort Carson in Colorado Springs has died while deployed in support of the U.S. military operation against Iran.

The Army says Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington died Sunday from injuries he suffered during a March 1 attack on an American base in Saudi Arabia. He was 26.

Pennington was from Kentucky but served in the Army’s First Space Brigade headquartered at Fort Carson.

Gov. Jared Polis has ordered flags in Colorado to fly at half-staff on the day of Pennington’s memorial, which hasn’t been announced yet.

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Friends Dispute ICE Gang Claim in Glenwood Springs Arrest

A Glenwood Springs resident was arrested last month by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which accused him of being a member of the MS‑13 gang.

Friends and family dispute that claim, and the advocacy group Voces Unidas says ICE has lied about key facts of the case.

The man is being held at the ICE detention facility in Aurora.

For Rocky Mountain Community Radio, KDNK’s Lily Jones spoke with his friend and landlord, who attended his most recent bail hearing.

According to Jones’ reporting, Juan Carlos Membreno Portillo is originally from El Salvador. He had been renting basement accommodations in Glenwood Springs for roughly five years when ICE agents arrested him near City Market in mid‑February. His friend and landlord, who has asked for his identity to remain confidential out of fear of retaliation, attended his bail hearing at the ICE detention facility in Aurora.

“The prosecutor had a document from El Salvador that said Juan Carlos … accusing him of being a gang member, I guess, but it was in Spanish, so the judge gave the prosecutor another week till the 12th to have that document translated,” his friend said.

This means that Portillo will remain in detention until the next bail hearing, after which his friend hopes he will be released.

“The guy is just a really nice guy, that’s all I can say and I’m gonna do anything I can to help him out,” his friend said. “And in fact, if I offered, told his lawyer that I would be glad to sign a, some kind of responsibility form where they allow people to come to the United States if they have a sponsor.”

Portillo’s friend and landlord says his tenant runs a crew for Aspen Roofing and has always paid his rent on time.

He was the only person present for Portillo at the bail hearing. His boss at Aspen Roofing was expected but did not show up.

Portillo’s wife was also absent, the source speculates, out of fear.

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Moose Population Declines in Wyoming

Each year, wildlife biologists count the region’s moose to keep track of population trends.

In recent years, those numbers have shown a sharp decline, a fraction of what wildlife managers want to see.

That’s part of why the Wyoming Game and Fish Department uses aerial cameras to count the creatures.

But as KHOL’s Jenna McMurtry reports for Rocky Mountain Community Radio, sometimes that’s not enough.

Story beings at 17:55.