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.