This Week in the City

August is almost gone - where did the summer go? City crews have another busy week ahead.

The Water crew is working on the sewer line in the alley behind the Gunnisack Restaurant. They also continue to keep water in the City irrigation ditches, even with the low flows in the River.
The Streets crew is finishing up the prep work on the 100 Block of West Georgia Avenue. This is in preparation for the asphalt overlay after Labor Day. Pothole patching will take place when the City can obtain asphalt hotmix from the local asphalt plant. Slurry Seal of several streets will take place the end of September or the first week of October. The call for crack sealing bids will be posted the end of this week. It is best for the streets to cool down a bit before starting crack sealing. Tree grinding continues and the resulting chips will be hauled to the City Wasterwater Treatment Plant to be made into compost. The grinding keeps the organic tree material out of the landfill and provides a useable end product.
The Electric crew opened the bids for change-out of rotten utility poles and they are continuing utility pole inspections. The Electric crew is also preparing for the burial of the overhead electric line on the old Ruland School site that is now the entryway property into Western State College. The line burial will take place after Labor Day.
The Parks & Recreation employees are extremely busy with the maintenance and cleaning at the Community Center. The recreational ameneties are closed this week. Please see the prior post below for details on the closure. The Recreation Office is open all week and is accepting registration for the fall programs. The Community Center will reopen next week. On Monday, September 6th - Labor Day - the pools will be open from 8am to 9pm. There will be no early morning swim. The climbing wall will be open from 1pm to 8:30pm.
The Finance Department continues to receive and post utility bills, is working on an inventory of City fixed assets, and is starting work on the 2011 budget.
The Communications employees and Police Department continue to answer calls and provide service to citizens and visitors alike. Just a reminder - SLOW DOWN in school zones and throughout the community. School is back in session, so keep your foor light on the accelerator and watch out for the kids on their way to and from school.
The City Clerk's team is evaluating RFPs for a new City website and is preparing obsolete records for a mass shredding project.

Just a reminder - all City offices will be closed on Monday, September 6th, in observance of Labor Day. Police, Communications and the Fire Department will be working for emergency calls. Have a safe and productive week.

And in fantastic news - the City has been notified that it will be receiving $75,000 in grant funds from the Department of Local Affairs. This money will be used for repair of the downtown irrigation ditches. The project planning has been completed and prep work and purchasing of the necessary materials will be started. The actual reconstruction of the ditches will start in the spring.

What's Happening

City Employees are busy this week with a variety of projects. The Finance Department has finalized this month's utility bills and they are in the mail to all utility customers. Remember - they are due Friday, September 10th. The 2011 Budget planning process has started.
The City Clerk's Department staff is completing the paperwork from this past week's Municipal Court session. Court is typically held every other Wednesday at 2pm at City Hall.
The Communiciations and Police Departments are busy with calls. College is back in session with the annual influx of students and this results in increased calls for service.
The Street & Alley crews are busy removing and repairing the concrete curb and gutter on the 100 Block of West Georgia Avenue. This work, like all of the work done on the 100 Block of West Virginia Avenue, is in preparation of the street paving that will take place on these streets, and other locations, in September. Slurry sealing will take place on various City streets after Labor Day. A schedule of streets will be listed in a later blog posting. And of course, refuse and rcycling pickup continues.
In the Parks & Recreation Department, the Fall Recreation Program registration is starting. The Progam guide is available on-line at http://www.GunnisonRec.com and click on the parks and recreation department link or brochures can be picked up at the Community Center, located at 200 E. Spencer Avenue or at City Hall, 201 W. Virginia Avenue. Remember - the Community Center facility will be closed next week for annual maintenance and cleaning. The schedule can be found in the August 11th blog posted below.

This weekend, start out with free music on the Gunnison Arts Center patio starting at 5pm on Friday evening. This is the last free Fridays at 5 concert of the year. If music isn't your thing, there is fun for the kids at the Gunnison Community Pool with the Dive at 5 Fridays. Supervised pool games provide acitivies for the kids. Public Viewing of the night sky through the 30" telescope will take place at the Gunnison Valley Observatory. The gates open at 7:30 P.M. For more information go to http://www.gunnisonobservatory.org/ On Saturday morning, the Gunnison Farmers' Market will be set up on the 100 Block of East Virginia Avenue and will have a wide variety of fresh produce, baked goods and other crafted items. Gunnison Partners will be holding their fundraiser "Pedal for Partners" from 8am to 2pm. The ride ends at the Jorgensen Event Center on East Tomichi Avenue. Saturday evening at 7pm, local historian Dave Primus will be talking on "Beneath the Blue Mesa: The Gunnison River Valley Before Blue Mesa Reservoir". The talk will be held in the Savage Library on the WSC Campus. Sunday, the Gunnison River Restival folks will be hosting a fundraiser Horseshoe Tournament at Legion Park from 11am to 7pm. The Gunnison Arts Center will host their final "Sundays at 7" at Legion Park.

Have a safe and fun weekend in Gunnison.

What a Weekend

Thanks goes out to all of the organizations that put in huge amounts of planning and execution efforts for all of the great events that took place in Gunnison this past weekend. A special thanks goes out to all of the City employees that helped make each of these events a smooth-running reality. The Streets & Alleys crew for all of the barricading work, Police Department for traffic control, Communications/Dispatch for taking emergency calls, Refuse crew for picking up all of the mountains of generated trash and the Parks & Recreation crew for all of their event work.

The Carvin' Up Colorado woodcarving event was spectaular. If you didn't get a chance to see the carvers in action, the finished wood sculptures are on display at Legion Park. First place went to Ken Braun's "Predators". Second place went to Tom Zimmer for his "Circle of Life" and third Place went to Forrest Dorman's "Wildlife Experience". The hollowed-out bear, "Ol' Sppoky" carved by Stevie Songer, was the People's Choice Award winner. Congratulations to all of the talented carvers.

The Gunnison Car Club's 23rd Annual Car Show was a success. The "Rev Tones" provided great music on Friday evening. Mayor Stu Ferguson presented a City proclamation to Wil Cooksey - "The Man Who SAved Corvette". Mr. Cooksey was honored with having the weekend declared "Wil Cooksey Days in the City of Gunnison". He was a wealth of information on the Corvette cars. The Car Show's Annual Mayor's Trophy was awarded by Mayor Stu Ferguson to a 1931 Ford Pickup Truck that is lovingly and carefully under construction. The Best of Show Trophy was awarded to a black, "checkered flag-themed" Corvette.

The 24 hrs. in the Sage was well attended out at Hartman Rocks. Intrepid mountain bike riders toughed it out over 12 hour and 24 hour time period races. That's an amazing amount of biking! Congratulations to all of the racers and finishers.

FABULOUS WEEKEND AHEAD!

It'll be a fun-filled, fabulous weekend in Gunnison. Starting Thursday evening, and continuing until 5pm on Saturday evening, the 5th Annual "Carvin' Up Colorado" takes place at Legion Park. Eleven wood carvers from Colorado,Nebraska, Washington, and Oklahoma will turn "leftover" logs into works of art. This year's theme is "Outdoor Colorado". The tree stumps are from the 100 block of North Wisconsin and even the City's 2009 Christmas Tree! What a great way to recycle our trees!

Friday evening will be busy downtown. Free music will start at 5pm on the Gunnison Arts Center patio - just off Tomichi Avenue. Then head "uptown" to the first four blocks of North Main Street for the start of the 23rd Annual Gunnison Car Show. The Friday night cruise-in starts with car registration at IOOF Park at 5pm. The cars will be on display in the street while "The Rev Tones" provides rockin' music on the stage in front of Gunnison Savings & Loan. Opening ceremonies start at 6pm on the stage with presentation of the flag, singing of the Naitonal Anthem and presentation of a City proclamation to Wil Cooksey - "The Man Who Saved Corvette". Enjoy dinner and a brew at one of Gunnison's great restaurants and stroll among the cars and pick out your favorite!

The Gunnison Valley Observatory will be holding public viewing at Friday evening starting at 8pm. There will not be a mini-lecture on Friday, just viewing through the 30" telescope and smaller amateur scopes set up at the facility. The scope is the largest, publically owned and publically accessible telescope in Colorado.

Saturday morning will see the Gunnison Farmers' Market taking place from 9:30am-1:30pm, on the 100 Block of East Virginia by the IOOF Park. After stocking up on fresh produce and other tempting products, head over to Jorgensen Park (500 block of East Tomichi) to see up to 500 cars entered in the Gunnison Open Car Show. The Car Show runs through 3pm, when prizes and awards will be given. Across the street at Legion Park, the tree carving continues with prizes awarded at 5pm. On Saturday from 9am to 4pm, the High Octane Arts & Crafts Festival takes place at Legion Park. It's a chance to stock up on beautifully crafted items - maybe start that early Christmas shopping (yikes!)

Out at Hartman Rocks Recreation Area (south of Gunnison) - the 8th Annual 24 Hours in the Sage Bike Race takes place starting at High Noon. Over 250 expert moutain bike riders will participate in the challenging 12 hr. and 24 hr.!!! bike challenge over the beautiful and exciting Hartman Rocks trails. Go out to watch and cheer on these amazing athletes.

Back in Gunnison, Western State College and the Community welcomes back the WSC students with the annual WSC WOW event. Starting at 5pm, students and community members will gather on the first three blocks of North Main Street to enjoy games, fun, eating contests, and music provided by the bands "Iola", "Hillside Avenue", and "Dressy Bessy" .

Over at the Fred Field Western Heritage Center at the Rodeo Grounds, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation will be holding their annual Fundraiser Banquet. There is always great auction items to bid on. Ticket information is available at 641-1087. The Gunnison Observatory will be hosting a "by-reservation only" viewing event at the observatory on Saturday night starting at 8:30pm. Tickets must be purchased in advance during the day at the Car Show at Jorgensen Park. "Cars in the Stars" will be the mini-lecture during the "by-ticket only" viewing event. Just think - Galaxy, Nova and ?? Subaru.

After all of the Saturday excitment, the Car Show participants will hold a Sunday morning breakfast run from Gunnison to Crested Butte starting at 8am at the Wal-Mart parking lot. Sunday, after breakfast at one of Gunnison's yummy restaurants, head out for fishing, hiking, biking, boating, kayaking, rafting, more fishing, swimming or games at the City Community Center, mini-golf at the local course or full golf at Dos Rios Club, or strolling through the historic buildings, sculpture garden and art galleries of Gunnison. The Gunnison Arts Center will be holding a Historic House Tour from 1 to 4pm. More information on tickets can be found at www.gunnisonartscenter.org Finish out Sunday by grabbing your picnic basket, lawn chairs or blanket, and refreshments and head over to the Gunnison Arts Center Sundays at 7 music at the Legion Park pavilion. Have a relaxing, enjoyable, fun and safe weekend!

Fall Recreation Programs Registration

It's time for Fall Recreation Programs and the Gunnison Parks and Recreation Fall Offerings will be avilable to view on-line on August 24th. Brochures will be available for pickup at the Gunnison Community Center on Wednesday, August 25th. Registration beings 8am on Wednesday, August 25th. Many programs start the 1st and 2nd weeks of September, so register early!
The Community Center is closed for cleaning September 1st thru 4th, but the office will be open for registration and general information. Feel free to stop by the Community Center at 200 E. Spencer Avenue, or visit the website at www.GunnisonRec.com to get registered for programs. For more information, call 641-8060.

West Virginia Avenue Closed

The City Water crew and the Streets & Alleys crew have the 100 Block of West Virginia Avenue closed. The Water crew is repairing/replacing a water main by Bank of the West. Better to repair the line while the street is torn up - before new asphalt is placed. The Streets & Alleys crew continues to remove damaged concrete curb and gutter and asphalt in preparation for the upcoming street overlay. The Crews appreciate everyone's patience during the street closure. It'll be a great improvement for drivers, parkers, bikers, long-boarders and pedestrians once the project is complete.

Another Great August Weekend

The weather forecast is calling for a beautiful weekend! Start out this evening with free live music on the Gunnison Art Center patio. Local music artist Kevin Walter will be playing starting at 5pm. Follow this with dinner and libations at one of the local great restaurants and pubs. At 8pm, head out to the Gunnison Valley Observatory, located across from the Hartman Rocks Recreation Area, for the astronomy mini-lecture series and viewing through the 30" telescope and smaller amateur scopes. You may even see some of the Perseid meteors that are dancing through the skies at this time of year.

On Saturday morning, after breakfast and coffee at one of the local restuarants or coffee houses, head on over to the Gunnison Valley Farmers Market. Fresh, local and Western Slope, produce is abundant at this time of year. The Top of the World Garden Club's Annual Flower Show takes place from 2 to 4 pm at the County's Fred Field Western Heritage Center at the Rodeo Grounds. Follow this up with rip-roaring, mud-flinging, fun at the Gunnison Mud Runs at the Rodeo Grounds! Public viewing again takes place on Saturday evening at 8pm at the Gunnison Observatory.

On Sunday, enjoy the great outdoor recreation opporunities the Valley has to offer and finish out the summer weekend with Sundays at 7 at Legion Park. "Mountain Holler" will be providing free music. Bring your lawnchair or blanket and kick back for some great music.

Community Center Closure Dates

To our valued patrons: The Gunnison Community Center and Aquatics Center will be closed the following dates for their annual cleaning:

Pool - closed August 29th thru September 3rd

Climbing Wall and Gymnastics Gym - closed August 30th thru September 3rd

Entire Building - closed September 1st thru September 3rd

Offices will remain open Monday, August 30th thru Friday, September 3rd from 8am to 5pm for Fall Program Registration. Program registration information can be found at: http://activenet13.active.com/gunnisonrec

YES, there WILL BE a Young at Heart Senior Meal on Wednesday, September 1st and Friday, Setpember 3rd.

On Labor Day - Monday, Setpember 6th - the offices will be closed but the building will be open from 8am to approximately 9pm. There will be NO early morning swimming available on Labor Day.

For more information - call 641-8060 or stop by the Community Center at 200 East Spencer Avenue.

Sewer Slip-What??

Having run a television camera through some sewer main lines throughout town, the City Water and Sewer crew are now involved in fixing the major leaks they found during their search. The crew - along with a contract company - are slip lining the leaking sewer mains. A flexible, concrete-type material is fed into the sewer line via a sewer manhole. The material is then expanded to fit the pipe diameter, heated to cause it to harden, a machine re-opens the pipe openings through the slip lining to each service line and voila - the sewer leak is repaired without having to dig up the length of the sewer pipe. It is faster and less costly to repair sewer main lines in this manner. Although there are temporary street lane or alley closures, the process is much faster than having to dig up the pipe, install a new one and then refill and repair the torn up asphalt or concrete. Joe Doherty, Water & Sewer Superintendent, thanks everyone for their patience during the lane and alley closures. It's a dirty job but one that needs to be done!

What's Happening on Wisconsin Street

The Public Works crew continues their work on the 100 Block of North Wisconsin Street. Having removed the old, rotten cottonwood trees, they have removed the huge stumps that had buckled the concrete in the sidewalks and curb and gutter. The old roots had also grown into and collapsed sections of the buried irrigation ditch culvert. The sidewalk and curb/gutter have been removed and the buried irrigation culvert has now been replaced. In the coming weeks, the sidewalk will be replaced through the City's 50/50 concrete program. The adjacent property owners will pay for half of the replacement costs of the concrete. This work is in advance of the street repair/resurfacing work that will take place on the 100 Block of West Virginia Avenue and the 100 Block of West Georgia Avenue. The potholes have been multiplying on West Georgia and this section will soon sport a new overlay - much to the relief of motorists and bicyclists alike. The City workers appreciate everyone's patience with the street and sidewalk closures and thanks them for their diligence and safety in the work zones. We will all appreciate the new asphalt and sidewalks once the projects are complete.

Lots to Do in Gunnison

Well - the daily monsoon rains continue and we are all ready to start quacking and waddling on webbed feet! Good thing sandals and flip-flops are the footwear of most Gunnisonites! Even with the daily rains, there is a lot to do this upcoming summer weekend.
Start off Friday evening with the First Friday Gallery Walk downtown. You can begin at the Gunnison Arts Center, listen to free music provided by "Mountain Holler" on the patio, take in the wonderful artwork inside the Center and then head to the other Gallery Walk venues. A list of participating art galleries can be found at the Arts Center. If art isn't your cup of tea - head over the the Gunnison Community Pool at 200 East Spencer for the "Dive at 5" Program. There is supervised pool games for the kids. Follow up your activities with dinner at one of Gunnison's fabulous restaurants. Then head out to the Gunnison Valley Observatory for the Summer Lecture Series and listen to Dr. Richard Olenick speak on "Dward Novae" and look at the stars through the 30" telescope and smaller amateur scopes. If it's clear, you might be able to see some meteors - the start of the Perseid Meteor Show that peaks this coming Thursday/Friday eveving.
Saturday morning, head to the Gunnison Farmers' Market located on the 100 Block of E Virginia, adjacent to the IOOF Park. You can purchase locally grown produce, get some great artisan breads and pastries, buy a bottle of western slope wine, peruse the local arts and crafts and visit with just about everyone in Gunnison. Saturday afternoon you can enjoy fishing, hiking, biking, kayaking, rafting, tennis, softball, basketball, climbing and just about every other kind of outdoor recreation. If the rains do come, head over to the Gunnison Pioneer Museum and enjoy the fascinating exhibits. You can learn a lot about the history of the Gunnison Valley. There is also the Gunnison Community Center for indoor recreation - swimming, basketball, play pool, foosball or pingpong, or just hang out by the TV. There is also a 3-D movie playing at the Ruby Cinema on the WSC College Campus.
Sunday you can finish out the weekend by attending the Gunnison Arts Center Sundays at 7 to hear "Gypsy Jazz Social Club" provide music at the new pavilion at Legion Park on East Tomichi Avenue. Have a great weekend. Quack!

FUNducation Starts Soon

School starts in 3 weeks and Gunnison Parks and Recreation is now taking registration for the FUNducation Program. This program takes place at the Gunnison Community/Aquatics Center and is open for all kids in grades K-4. FUNducation, offered Monday thru Friday, begins after the end of the fill school day and ends at 6:00 PM. Transportation to the Community Center is provided by the public school buses. There is a variety of daily after school activities to keep your child safe, healthy and happy. Each day is individually designed to inspire and entertain your child. Please call Parks and Recreation at 641-8060 or stop by the Community Center at 200 E Spencer Avenue to get information and to register.