Here are some picks from the newsroom.
In 2012, Dolores voters agreed to match a $3 million BEST grant to upgrade Dolores Schools. In 2014, the investment paid off with a major expansion completed on time and within budget.
This winter, teachers and students began moving into new elementary classrooms, new science labs, upgraded locker rooms, and a technical center focusing on agriculture and vocational trades.
Students and staff endured a construction zone for much of the year as workers, and contractors of FCI Constructors expanded the campus. Some adjustments were made, including raising the elevation of new buildings to comply with updated federal flood plain requirements.
The project sparked a lawsuit between the school and an initial architect firm over cost overruns.
TDRs dropped by new set of commissioners
Loved or hated, the system of Transferable Development Rights in the Dolores Valley was canceled in 2014.
The required zoning system had put a cap on total development in the river valley and was seen as long-term protection for a water source relied on by 27,000 people.
TDRs were established by different commissioners in 2003.
A set number of building rights called TDRs could be bought and sold among property owners. One 10-acre parcel equaled one TDR, creating a development cap of 625 new homes in the valley.
To exceed the one residence per 10 acres, an additional TDR would be purchased from another landowner. But none were recorded to be sold.
When it was canceled, the Dolores valley's land-use regulations reverted back to the accessory-dwelling allowance for each 10-acre parcel, potentially doubling density. A lawsuit was filed by proponents of TDRs but was dropped.
Pedestrian sidewalks installed along 145
Dolores stepped up for pedestrians, hikers, and cyclists this year. Sidewalks were installed on both sides of Colorado Highway 145. The $200,000 project was funded mostly by a Colorado Department of Transportation grant.
The town also led the effort to build a non-motorized trail on the west end of town that switchbacks up the mesa. The Overlook Trail will eventually be six miles and connect Dolores with the House Creek Recreation Area and Boggy Draw trail system.
The town was awarded a $25,000 grant from Great Outdoors Colorado to provide labor from the Southwest Youth Corps. They installed the first ¼-mile section this fall. The San Juan National Forest plans to complete the trail to House Creek in the next two years. The Kokopelli Bike Club built the 2-mile section from House Creek to the Bean Canyon trail.
Key to the success of Dolores' portion of the trail was the negotiation with a private landowner to provide a permanent, 700-foot trail easement.
Further up the valley, the San Juan National Forest improved the trailhead of the Geyser Spring trail. A new access point and wooden bridge across the Dolores River were installed. The sulphur spring is the only geyser in Colorado, and erupts into a bubbly, frothy state every 45 minutes.
Boater-safety fences go up in Dolores River
Tensions were running high this year between boaters and landowners.
For nearly a year, the Dolores River Boating Advocates have been thinking about a fence that would ease boater/landowner tensions after a boater became tangled in barbed wire below the surface.
The solution was installed by a group of volunteers from the Dolores River Boating Advocates. The group strung a cable up high above the river and hung down from the cable long pieces of PVC pipe. The pipe keeps the cattle on their ranch and boaters can slip through the fence, parting it like you would a beaded curtain.
Parking closed at swimming hole
A popular swimming hole near the intersection of Riverside Avenue and Eighth Street was shut down to parking this summer after complaints of loud parties and trash.
The parking lot and portable bathroom installed to accommodate river users were removed. The parking areas were blocked off with boulders, and no parking signs were placed along the section of road.
Both sides of Riverside Avenue near the swimming hole are now no-parking zones year-round, including for residents.
This action angered some local residents and families who had been swimming at the local spot for generations.
Hydro project floated for Plateau Creek
The Dolores Water Conservancy District investigated the possibility of a hydro-electric plant on Plateau Creek, a tributary of McPhee Reservoir.
The district holds a feasibility permit and chipped in $30,000 for a 45-page investment memo released this year.
Private businesses would fund and build the large plant, estimated to cost $1.3 billion.
The steep, slickrock grade of Plateau Creek where it enters McPhee Reservoir is ideal for a type of hydroelectric plant called pump-back storage.
The system requires two reservoirs under 10,000 acre-feet to be built on Plateau Creek, one above the other. A pumping system would be installed to deliver water from the lower reservoir to the upper, charging the system like a battery.
When peak demand on the grid requires extra power, the water from the upper level is sent through a penstock that runs turbines, generating electricity that would be delivered onto nearby transmission lines.
The system makes profits by selling electricity to the grid during periods of peak demand when prices are highest.
A third reservoir, called Re-regulation, would augment evaporative losses of the two power reservoirs. It was also revealed that Re-regulation would back up into shale barrens at Lone Mesa State Park, killing two rare plants, the Lone Mesa snakeweed and Mancos Shale packera.
Forest travel management plan underway
This summer, the U.S. Forest Service started a planning process that will determine a travel management plan for 244,550 acres of federal land stretching from the Westfork River north to the Rico Mountains and Lizard Head Pass.
The area of study includes Stoner Mesa, Taylor Mesa, Black Mesa, Lizard Head Wilderness, Priest Gulch, Dunton, Calico Trail, Bear Creek, Scotch Creek, Roaring Creek, Ryman Creek, the Dolores River and many other places in-between. A proposal shows several closures of trails to motorized vehicles, and a seasonal motorized closure during hunting season.
High-speed Internet arrives in Dolores
Fiber optics arrived in Dolores in November, including at the school campus.
Cedar Networks is providing the faster internet service. The fiber-optic upgrade is significant, offering 20 Mbps of power, with "burstable" capability of up to 100 Mbps or more. Typical Internet service in Dolores is rated between 1 and 7 megahertz on a copper, Direct Service Line,
The company needs six businesses to sign up in Dolores to make installation worthwhile. The rate per customer would be about $100 per month, with a 3-to-5-year contract that includes a phone line.
High-speed Internet from fiber optics benefit business including online ordering, real estate, web-design, finance, hotels, tourism, and online education.
The fiber optic feed to businesses is a dedicated line that won't crash during high-use periods. The 20 meg service is "up and down" - industry parlance for fast uploading and downloading.
Road Runner bus service starts up
Daily bus service from Durango to Grand Junction resumed in 2014. Road Runner Stage Lines offers one round trip per day, seven days per week, with stops in Mancos, Cortez, Dolores, Rico, Telluride, Ridgeway, and Montrose. No commercial carrier has served that corridor since Greyhound ended its Salt Lake City-Albuquerque route in September 2011.
One-way fare for the motor coach service by Road Runner Stage Lines is $40. The bus leaves Durango at 7 a.m. and reaches Grand Junction at 12:43 p.m. The Southern Ute Tribe received $220,000 in federal and state money to buy two motor coaches and prepare them for the service. Federal Transportation Administration money funneled through the Colorado Department of Transportation will cover operational costs up to $245,000 annually above fare revenue. For a schedule go to: http://bit.ly/1Ab5iLI
Other highlights:
Lizardhead Cyclery in Dolores was named one of the best bicycle shops in the nation by Adventure Cycling magazine. Owner Nicholas Tyson Jones was awarded the 2013 Braxton Bicycle Shop Award by the magazine, which featured his shop in its February issue this year.
Dolores Schools received a $20,000 anonymous donation to start a student theater group. The school spent $10,000 to upgrade the sound system used for performances.
Dolores saw its first trial in decades last May. An alleged scuffle in a local bar led to a charge of disturbing the peace. After four hours of conflicting testimony from witnesses, a jury acquitted the accused.
The Galloping Goose Historical Society Museum added to their exhibit in 2014. A collection of photos by Fred Springer show the Galloping Goose No.3 at Ophir and Lizard Head Pass in 1951. Also a model replica of Locomotive No. 20 created by Bob Walker is on display. The famous train ran on the Rio Grande Southern Railroad from Durango through Dolores between 1915 to 1952. It was featured in the movie Ticket to Tomahawk. A history of all seven Galloping Geese, new lighting and display cases were added to the museum as well.
Colorado Highway 145 was repaved from Cortez to Dolores. The $8.5 million project included a major rebuild of the bridge over the Dolores River. A portion of the highway schedule was delayed to accommodate nesting habitat for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.
Shannon Livick contributed to this article.
