Pollution levels rise in RMNP
By Lisa Pogue
What began two decades ago as a study on acid rain in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), has lead to evidence of existing damage caused over the years by nitrogen deposits.
According to the National Park Service, RMNP is downwind of many man-made sources of air pollution, including large amounts in Denver and along the Front Range, allowing for nitrogen particles to be carried into the Park by the wind. The pollutants are deposited in rain, snow and as dry particles, contributing to visibility reducing haze in the Park.
Studies show unnatural ecosystem changes in RMNP, with annual nitrogen levels estimated to be around 15 times higher than pre-industrial or "natural" levels. According to almost two decades of research, total annual wet and dry nitrogen deposition monitored in the Park averages around 4.4 kg/ha per year. The natural level is said to be around .25 kg/ha per year.
Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey and NPS have reported changes in the Park's soil, water and plants in which the pollutant uses up the natural buffering agents and leaves the ecosystem vulnerable to future acidification. Notable chemical changes are occurring on the east side of RMNP and are thought to have originated in the 1950s, officials said.
Though certain amounts of nitrogen can benefit some plants by acting as a fertilizer, the pollution contributes to the formation of ozone haze and is harmful to human health.
With pollution concentrations increasing by two percent each year for the last 20 years, scientists are unsure if the effects can be reversed even if nitrogen levels are reduced at a later date.
The air in RMNP is noted as relatively clean compared to other national parks near large cities and the National Park Service plan to work with Colorado air quality regulators to determine options for reversing the trend before it worsens.
Mixed opinions voiced on elk management
By Lisa Pogue
A series of meetings kicked off Monday in Estes Park as a part of continuing efforts towards an agreeable solution to elk overpopulation in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP).
Around 50 concerned citizens gathered at the Holiday Inn for the first of four public discussions addressing a 20-year plan for the maintenance of a wild and free-roaming elk population while ensuring the Park's natural vegetation conditions.
"Comments were all over the board," said RMNP superintendent Vaughn Baker. "There were strong pros and cons for each alternative."
With the elk population in RMNP having more than tripled since 1969, concentrations and migration patterns are ranging outside of natural conditions, officials said. As a result, willow and aspen stands are being depleted faster than the vegetation is able to regenerate, depriving other wildlife of necessary food and habitat needed for survival.
Plan alternatives brought about by the first round of public workshops last year warranted over 1,100 comments, including multiple suggestions of reintroducing wolves into the Park and utilizing fertility control methods. Officials have ruled out proposals for open hunting in the Park as well as trapping and relocating the elk.
All public comments were taken into consideration, resulting in these five draft alternative concepts to be discussed during the workshops:
Maximum lethal reduction of elk â removal by agency staff with a targeted range of destroying about 2,200 elk in the Park over a 20 year span.
Maximum elk fertility control â using a reversible, time-released compound inhibiting reproduction in cow elk for multiple years. Approximately 400 elk would be treated each year and up to 3,000 acres of fencing would be installed to protect vegetation.
Wolf reintroduction â placing 14 to 20 gray wolves in the Park. Further scientific consultation is needed to estimate effects this alternative would have on elk distribution and numbers.
Using public marksmen in the Park â gradual lethal reduction under controlled conditions, in which marksmen would be accompanied by officials in the removal of around 70 cow elk each year for the next two decades.
Combination of lethal reduction and fertility control â focused on maximizing flexibility and adjusting methods based on monitored results.
A sixth alternative, in which no action would be taken, is also being tossed around. If implemented, the elk population would be expected to fluctuate between 2,200 and 3,100 and the National Park Service would continue to monitor conditions, using fencing in selected locations, observing elk for signs of chronic wasting disease, and destroying those suspected of having contracted the fatal condition.
Due to the wide range of opinions on the matter, it will be difficult to reach a consensus on how to resolve the problem, officials said. "There was a great interest in the option of reintroducing wolves into the Park," Baker said of Monday's meeting. "The groups didn't see any one method that would work alone, there was a lot of interest in combining methods."
The planning team welcomes suggestions from the community and will use public input to refine and fully develop the alternatives, with hopes of producing an environmental impact draft statement this winter, said Baker. A second meeting took place Tuesday in Boulder and further discussions are planned for Aug. 18 at the Grand Lake Lodge, and in Loveland on Aug. 23, at the Pulliam Community Building. Both meetings are from 6 to 8:30 p.m.
Approaches will be fully analyzed and presented in a statement to be reviewed in the winter of 2005.
For more information, to be added to the mailing list, or to submit comments, visit www.nps.gov/romo/planning/elkvegetation. Letters may be placed in drop-boxes located at RMNP visitor centers, the Moraine Park Museum, and at the Estes Park public library. All comments must be received by Sept. 13.
Space for rent
By Robin Ferruggia
While real estate sales in Estes Park are on the upswing, the community's rental market is floundering.
Competitionand a problematic economy are the main reasons why some local property managers are struggling to keep their units rented.
The rental market is one of the worst in years, according to the preliminary results of a rental market survey, Rita Kurelja, program manager of the Estes Park Housing Authority who did the survey, said.
"It's real soft. It's probably plain old bad," Bob Smith, property manager at Coldwell Banker Estes Village Properties Ltd., said.
Smith, a property manager and real estate investor, owns three rental properties.
"All three were empty at the same time, which was anightmare," he said. One was vacant for a year before it was rented in July. Another remains empty after ten months.
Many property owners are under a lot of stress trying to decide what to do with their properties, he said. Although they are losing money on their rentals, they still have mortgages to pay.
"The bank wants their payment every month. They don't care about the rental market," he said.
Smith is borrowing money to maintain ownership of his properties, hoping things will get better.
"I can sell out and redeploy the money someplace else," he said, "but where would I put it? Real estate's still a good place to put it. That's a no-brainer."
Indeed, property values in the area are rising.
"Last year was a record year," Eric Blackhurst, an agent with Anderson Realty said.
The average price of a single-family house in the area for the first half of 2004 was $351,900, up from $286,700 last year, he said. A total of 98 homes sold in the first half of 2004, and 95 homes sold during the same period last year. The numbers are from the biannual Multiple Listing Service report provided by the Estes Park Board of Realtors. The report focuses on sales by MLS agencies in Estes Park, Allenspark, Pinewood Springs and Drake, Blackhurst said.
The average price of a condo rose from $207,600 during the first six months of 2003 to $251,000 in the comparable period in 2004. The number of condos sold increased dramatically from 49 to 72.
The increase of condos on the market is one of the economic causes ofthe slow rental market.
"We have more rentals than we can fill," Judy Anderson, property manager for Anderson Realty, said.
Some motels are being converted into condos.Small, older cabins are being sold individually because lodge owners make more money that way than if they sell the entire lodge as one package, Blackhurst said.
"Many people who depended on the stock market to support their vacation homes here are less able to,"Anderson said, "so they rent them out. People who purchase a second home up here and then lose their job try to rent their place so they don't have to sell it."
The subsidized housing market is another major source of additional units. Kurelja's survey found there 349 apartment rentals Estes Park and of those, 116 , excluding the housing authority's units, are subsidized, she said. "That's a significant amount of subsidized units for a town of this size."
"There's way too many of them. It's not fair competition. It's the government competing with the private sector," Smith said. "I don't think my tax dollars should be used to compete against myself."
Andersonagrees the large number of subsidized units is a problem, although she supports the housing authority's programs, she said.
"Talons Pointe has taken 44 families that were renting in the private sector outof the private sector. Vista Ridge, a mix of affordable and market rate housing, takes some families from the private rental market to private home ownership."
"Low interest rates have helped a lot of people buy," Smith said. "The government is encouraging people to buy their own homes."
But not all parts of the Estes Park rental market are suffering.
"Vacation rentals are doing pretty good," Glenn Smith, property manager for Ponderosa Realty, said. "People love to come to Estes Park."
Ponderosa Realty has 180 to 200 rental unitsof every kind, Glenn said.About 80 0f those are vacation rentals.
"Long-term rentals are a little slower over the winter, but the market has picked up a lot lately in the last two months," he said. This winter Ponderosa Realty had eight to ten vacancies but only one or two this summer.
The cost of rentals is not a cause of the vacancies because people in every income bracket rent, Glenn said
"Rents up here are comparable to Fort Collins and Denver," Smith said. "You'd think it would be more expensive in a resort area." One bedroom apartments rent for approximately $400 to $500 amonth and two bedrooms cost $650 to $700 a month, he said. Small two bedroom houses rented for $700 to $750 two years ago," Anderson said. "There are affordable rentals in the private market. It depends on what you consider affordable."
Rental costs didn't go up with property values, Smith said. Years ago rental units paid their own way and investors were able to make about 20 percent in profit. But property values started going up "real strongly" about ten years ago.
"$200,000 is the entry level for any property now," Smith said. The mortgage is at least $600 a month. Costs of insurance and maintenance raise the owner's cost to $900 a month, but he can only get $700 a month rent.
"It's very difficult right now," he said.
Riding horseback to paint the Rockies
Estes Park Plein Air 2004 â Painting the Parks begins
By Janice Mason
The Plein Air painters have arrived and artists Don Sahli and Tricia Schulze embarked on an adventure last week, travelling on horseback to paint the parks.
With three pack horses carrying food, camping gear, paint and easels the artists went in search of the perfect setting.
They first arrived at Fern Lake and camped there for three nights. "We took our easels on our backs and hiked up to Odessa Lake," said Schulze. "It was magnificent. It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen, and I have been all over the state. Don agreed â it took our breath away."
Sahli said about Fern and Odessa Lakes, "it was almost too pretty. It was just wonderful and magical. I can't wait to put my studies together with the photos I took to develop these into some majestic paintings."
The Ranglers came back with the horses, and Sahli, his family and Schulze traveled to Sand Beach Lake in the Wild Basin area to paint and camp there for two more nights.
"The lakes were so different from each other," said Sahli. "Sand Beach was beach, rocks, and bristle cone pines â just magnificent." He enjoyed taking his family to the Sand Beach Lake area. He painted his kids swimming and playing there.
Sahli's apprentice and Estes Park Plein Air painter Schulze has been an artist for 25 years â working with Sahli for the past three months.
"I'm very influenced by his work," she said. "I think he's an incredibly talented artist. Don has introduced me to the Russian school of realism. I have a minor in art history, but never really studied Russian art until I studied with Don."
"You can really recognize a Russian painting by its beauty of color," said Sahli. "Being that my teacher was Russian, the galleries I show in are carrying Russian paintings â pretty much museum quality work. It's really catching on â it has such an emotional appeal."
Sahli, an American painter and teacher of the Russian School of Painting, apprenticed with the famous Russian colorist Sergei Bongart. Bongart immigrated to the United States in 1948 and died in 1985. Sahli studied with Bongart as his last apprentice from 1981 to 1983.
"You know how you throw a pebble in a pond and it makes a ring?" said Sahli. "The amount of people that he (Bongart) affected with his teaching was quite enormous. Now that I have my own school and teach, I understand why he taught and his teacher taught."
Sahli founded the Sahli School of Art in Evergreen, Colo. in 1995.
"I felt I needed to teach also. As a painter you learn so much from your students' mistakes, as well as their questions. I don't have any rules or formulas."
Sahli averages about three or four paintings a day when painting on-location. "It's a very spontaneous way to work," he said. Out of all of his works, he will submit about six paintings for the Plein Air event.
Art enthusiasts can view Sahli's freshly-painted works from Aug. 28 to Sept. 30. His paintings, along with eight other artists' works, will be on display at the Cultural Arts Council of Estes Park Fine Art Gallery.
Meet all of the artists on Aug. 28, when the exhibition and sale opens at noon at all galleries. Earthwood Collections, Red Stallion Gallery and Wands Gallery will be showing new works created by the remaining 52 artists. The exhibition will be on display through Sept. 30.
For additional background on Sahli visit his website at www.sahlistudio.com. For a list of addresses and hours of participating Estes Park Plein Air 2004 galleries, call the Cultural Arts Council of Estes Park at 970-586-9203, or visit www.EstesArts.com.
Our Life in Estes:
A clean slate
Fresh faces plan for upcoming school year
By Valerie Pehrson
The Park R-3 school district welcomes five new administrators to the fold this year. The team is enthusiastic and eager, and is looking forward to implementing positive changes and making a fresh start after the tumult of the last few months.
Pam Livingstone is the new elementary school principal. She said the thing that she looks most forward to is meeting the children and getting in to the community of Estes Park.
"It's a big change from the school district I came from," said Livingstone. "In Cherry Creek you meet your students and the parents, but in Estes Park there has already been a great welcome from the whole community."
Livingstone is no stranger to Estes Park. Her family has owned a cabin near the YMCA of the Rockies since the mid-1930s.
Estes Park Middle School's new principal is Micheal Jobman. He comes to Estes via Nebraska. For the past four years he's been a junior high and elementary principal in two districts in Nebraska, and prior to that, Jobman spent eight years as a middle school physical education, health teacher, and coach in Minnesota.
"I like making a difference with kids," said Jobman, "helping them get through the middle school years, as they can be difficult times and it can be a challenge." Jobman encourages communication between parents and the school, and encourages parents to call, e-mail or drop by with concerns or greetings.
Diane Rastatler is the new assistant principal at the high school, and she has settled in to her office comfortably. The bulletin board beside her desk is loaded with pictures of her own children and former students, as well as a Penn State pennant.
Rastatler previously was in Weld County School District 6, and for seven years was an administrative intern at Greeley West High School, and principal at Johnson High School.
"I think my kind of personality matches well with high school students," Rastatler said. "I have teenagers of my own and I understand and appreciate everything about teens." She laughed and said, "I don't know how many people can say that."
"I'm anxious to meet the kids up here, and eager to bring my connections from Greeley to the Latino community here in Estes Park. I think all of us want to have participation from the community, not just parents and students, and we've made some positive changes because there are some great people here who deserve the best. This administration, as I know it, is bringing them that," said Rastatler.
Incoming superintendent Jeff Miller is positive and enthusiastic about the year ahead.
"We are really pleased with the quality of the staff we've brought in, and I think the community will be pleased with what's going on. We are training everybody right now on proper accounting for purchasing items and paper trails and so forth and it's very important we keep the board of education informed about our financial status," stated Miller. "And that's not only good for our board, it's good for the public too."
Miller is eager for the school year to begin.
"I'm looking forward to the opening of school," he said, "of getting our kids placed properly, working with them, increasing student activities and athletics, and giving our staff enough resources and support to do their jobs."
Miller has spent 30 years in the Miami/Dade county school district in Florida. For the past five years he has been working with private developers to open up public charter schools in the workplace.
Tackling the daunting task of sorting out the business end of the school district is Kenn Jankowski, a familiar face to many involved in Estes Park sports programs, as he was a former coach. His new job as director of business services suits him down to the ground, as he was a former president of a Fortune 500 company that handled human resource outsourcing.
"My former job translates well to this position," said Jankowski. "The HRO business is fundamentally finance and accounting, payroll processing, insurance administration, and information technology for small and midsized businesses."
"Were I in my former position, I would knock on Jeff's door and say, 'Jeff, why don't you outsource all of your back office operations to us? We'll keep all your same employees, however; you come on to our systems, policies and procedures, so everything is identical in terms of business processes and the results they try to drive.'"
Jankowski won't be able to continue coaching this year with the new demands on his time.
"I won't be able to coach because my activities are going to be devoted to making sure the district is on sound financial ground, and that we restore the financial integrity to all of the things we are doing within the district."
He's excited about the opportunity to partner with Miller.
"He [Miller] has all the right strategies, the right expertise and know-how to be a part of the process that is particularly exciting and motivating. We will all take this school district again to the forefront of academic excellence."
Miller invites all interested members of the community, not just parents of students, to come to school board meetings. They will meet at 4 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month, and the third Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m.
Let the school games begin
Fall season practice for most Bobcat and Ladycat sports began Monday
Fall sports for Estes Park High School began in earnest on Monday, Aug. 16, as high school football, volleyball and cross country participants began practice.
The Estes Park High School golf team competed in the Greeley West Invitational Monday in Greeley at the Highland Hills Golf Course. The boys shot a 294 in the tournament won by the 5A Boulder Fairview boys who shot a 224 to edge Greely Central by four strokes.
Fall sports for the middle school also began Monday, Aug. 16. The exception is middle school Volleyball which will begin practice on Monday, Aug. 23.
â ¢ H.S. football parent meeting Monday, Aug. 23 6 p.m. High School Student Center.
â ¢ Cross country parent meeting, Tuesday, Aug. 24, 6p.m. High School Student Center
â ¢ H.S volleyball parent meeting, Tuesday, Aug. 24, at 7:30 p.m. High School Student Center.
The middle school is in need of a coach in the following areas;
â ¢ Middle school volleyball assistant
â ¢ Middle school girls basketball assistant or head coach
â ¢ Middle school boys basketball assistant
If interested or need further information please contact athletic director Dave Chapman at at 586-5321 #3320.
Willa Jean Graves
Willa Jean Graves, 84, a longtime resident of Estes Park, died Friday, Aug. 13, 2004, at the Estes Park Medical Center.
Born Willa Jean Wolford on Nov. 12, 1919, in Lincoln, Neb., she graduated from Denver East High School and married Dalton Verry in 1939. She and Dalton lived in Estes Park from 1950 to 1958. Willa Jean moved back to Estes Park in 1975 where she married Byron L. "Barney" Graves on Dec. 14, 1975. He preceded her in death in 1995. Willa Jean was an administrative assistant at the Estes Park Chamber of Commerce for five years and retired from that position in 1981. She was a member of the Community Church of the Rockies, PEO Chapter AV, the Estes Park Women's Club, the Estes Park Area Historical Museum and Friends of the Estes Park Library.
Willa Jean is survived by one daughter, Susan Varra of Broomfield, two sons, Brian Verry of Estes Park, and Bart Verry of Los Angeles, two stepsons, Steve Graves of Clarkston, Michigan, and Butch Graves of Salida, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 19, at the Community Church of the Rockies. Memorial contributions may be made to PEO Chapter AV in Estes Park, care of Allnutt Funeral Service, 1302 Graves Avenue, Estes Park, CO 80517.
To view the obituary and sign the on-line guest book, please visit www.allnutt.com.
James A. Bowman
James A. Bowman, PhD of Littleton and formerly of Estes Park, died on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2004, He was 82.
He was born in Oak Park, Ill., and educated at Loyola University, earning his PhD in Chemistry at Northwestern University in 1950. He retired from Martin Marietta in 1989. Bridge, sailing and golf were things he enjoyed in addition to many family gatherings. Jim was a loving husband, father, and grandfather who will be missed greatly.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Joan, and their children: Michael, David, William, Robert and his wife Theresa, Mary Patricia and her husband Cosby, Bruce and his wife Kit, Barbara and her husband Toni, Peter, Paul, Andrew and his wife Tina, and Jean. Also surviving are 11 grandchildren; Louise, Anne, and Erik Bowman, Sandra and David Jr. Cosby, Alexander and Jeffrey Bowman, Quin and Corey Bowman, and Emily and Grant Bowman. He is also survived by his sisters Margaret Hopkins and Winifred Bowman, and one brother, Rev. R. Peter Bowman.
A funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 20, at St. Mary's Church, 6853 S. Prince St. in Littleton. A reception will follow in the church hall. Dr. Bowman will be interred that afternoon in Estes Park.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Samaritan House of Denver in care of Allnutt Funeral Service, 1302 Graves Ave., Estes Park, CO 80517.
See www.allnutt.com to view on-line obituary and sign guest register.
Donald Raymond Maerz
Donald Raymond Maerz, 62, of Kalispell, Mont., died July 27, 2004 at Brendan House in Kalispell.
He was born Jan. 9, 1942, in Milwaukee, Wis., was he was schooled and raised by Oscar and LaVerne Maerz. He moved to southern California where he married Susan Barnett and became a master mechanic for a large trucking company. Maerz moved to Estes Park in 1976, where he lived for 25 years. He worked as a mechanic for Jim's Wrecker and Jim's Construction Materials. He later moved to Kalispell where he spent his remaining years.
He is survived by his only daughter, Katheryn Janetski and her husband Jack; granddaughters Jacquelyn and Madeyn Janetski and a sister Janet Hale.
Cremation took place on July 28. On Aug. 14, his ashes were placed high in the Rocky Mountains where his heart had always been.
Cards and remembrances can be sent to his daughter at 505 Trumble Canyon Road, Columbia Falls, MT, 59912.
Randy "Big R" Pencis, 38, died Aug. 5, 2004. A memorial service will be held Friday, Aug. 20, at 11 a.m. at the American Legion Hall in Estes Park.
For more information, contact Staci Pencis at 290-4944.
A full obituary will be published in a future issue of the Trail-Gazette.