Western Colorado

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State pet among bills guv signs

Gov. John Hickenlooper signed several measures into law on Monday, including a bill declaring shelter dogs and cats as the official state pet. Though some called that bill frivolous, others said it will be helpful in shining a spotlight on ...

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Palisade High speakers tout many successes of seniors

When her 209 other classmates were hitting the books at Palisade High School this winter, senior Natalie Combs was halfway around the world. Combs, 18, had always wanted to do a mission trip, so she jumped at the chance to travel with a ...

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Debate still on: a contentious Legislature by whose choosing?

DENVER — A year ago, when the control of the two chambers in the Colorado Legislature was split between the two major parties, GOP legislators chided their Democratic colleagues over civil unions. At the time, Republicans repeatedly ...

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Tea time at the art gallery

During a day best spent lavishing time and love on mom, Sara Muller of Grand Junction couldn’t pass up the combination of art and tea at the Blue Pig Gallery in Palisade. The mother of two boys, ages 1 and 3, first enjoyed a brunch with ...

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Fruitlands Forever saves 58 acres

Three more parcels totaling 58 acres now are protected under conservation easements in Palisade’s peach orchard country, thanks to the help of Mesa Land Trust. Thirteen acres owned by James and Laura Sanders are included in the latest ...

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Disputed sentence upheld in bias killing

A Clifton man who claimed he was misled about a plea agreement in the 2009 murder of a man has lost his latest appeal. Michael Simpson, 28, who is serving 72 years in the unprovoked shooting death of 50-year-old Marco Acosta-Estrella in ...

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Junction cupcake baker makes TV debut

One local baker introduces her command of all things cupcake to a national audience on an upcoming episode of “Cupcake Wars.” Pattie Dravis, owner of Pattie’s Tiny Cakes, will appear on the Food Network show at 6 p.m. Sunday ...

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Man lays family’s claim to oil shale

A Grand Junction man says his family’s oil shale claims covering thousands of acres in northwest Colorado are valid and an analysis by the Center of the American West at the University of Colorado at Boulder says he might have a ...

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Reduced roadkill: Fencing cuts collisions; more sections erected

Ever since the Colorado Department of Transportation erected wildlife fencing along Colorado Highway 82 in the Carbondale area in 2009, “it’s made a remarkable difference in roadkill,” said local wildlife advocate and ...

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In a class by herself

The blue and gray halls of DeBeque High School are lined with photos of each graduating class. Some frames squish together dozens of head shots. Others show just a small huddle of students. One, from 1916, shows a single graduate. The ...

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