By Shannon Lukens.
Routt County Commissioners listened to race staff with the SBT GRVL cycling event Tuesday morning, and they listened to public comment with many rural residents still opposed to the bicycle race, held Aug. 18.
Commissioner Tim Corrigan thanked the many people packed into the Commissioners’ Hearing room for their respectful public comments, as did Commissioners Sonja Macys and Tim Redmond. Corrigan said they are not talking about prohibiting the event, but about the scale and nature of the bicycle ride/race, which has 3,000 participants riding through rural Routt County. He also said that the economic impact should be considered, as race organizers say it brings in over $5 million to the community.
SBT GRVL owner and co-founder Amy Charity also told commissioners that SBT GRVL is a small business, that spends over $200K locally on local businesses and vendors.
Corrigan says he’ll direct staff to schedule another public meeting in the next few weeks. He says the event is a transition for the community as we are dependent on the tourist trade to support local businesses. “We will be looking at some limits on scale and nature of the operations,” said Commissioner Corrigan.
Amy Charity was encouraged.
“Having just finished the meeting, I’m encouraged by some of the commissioners’ comments, Corrigan in particular, stating that this isn’t a shutdown. Let’s really find a way to having another working session and see if we can work through some of the challenges that are still out there. And economic does mean something. We are a local small business. And we are helping with the tax revenue shortage that is occurring right now in Steamboat. That’s important. Not to mention lives that we are impacting in a positive way so I am hopeful that we can find solutions and continue this event.”
Commissioner Corrigan said his goal is to have the permit process finished this fall. Commissioner Macys also said she will not sign off on the race if there are 3,000 people. Routt County Sheriff Doug Scherar also said it’s too big in his opinion. He will also be looking at video from SBT GRVL staff of two people harassing riders on County Road 44 and 26, where they had to call 911.
More on the Story — SBT GRVL organizers and opponents meet with Routt County Commissioners
Northwest Colorado Energy Initiative has put out a second survey on Coal Transition and future energy options. It’s 22 questions and takes about eight minutes. The link is on our website. LINK TO SURVEY
The Steamboat Sailors Cross Country Track team says 75 athletes are on the team this year. Head Coach Lisa Renee Tumminello says it is a young team.
“We have almost 30 brand new to cross country athletes. So super exciting, young team, which means the leadership can take over and help kind of raise them up in the sport of cross country.
The team just competed in the Battle Mountain Husky XC invite in Edwards, Colo. The Sailor Ladies Varsity team finished 4th with Tig Loomis and Emerald Weber making the podium in their event. The Steamboat Springs Varsity Boys were 6th overall with Asher Rowan, Quentin Nance, Benji Langness, and Jacob Gonzales all having top finishes.
Other competitors: Novella Light, Davis Brosterhous, Evie Fisher, Gigi Lobeck, Grace Olexa and Izzy Drobek. For the boys, Xavier Knott, Gavin Hendricks, William Reilley, Miles Damore, Wrigs Neeley, and Drew Picking.
More on the Story — Steamboat Sailors XC track has large, but young team this year
Check out what’s happening in the Yampa Valley on the Community Calendar on our website.
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