Rifle–Graham Mesa Elementary School in Rifle will remain closed today while the fire department tries to find the source of a suspicious odor that sent nearly two dozen people to the hospital yesterday. 22 students and a teacher were treated for dizziness and shortness of breath after the odor was detected just before noon Thursday. Carbon monoxide, natural gas and food poisoning were all ruled out.
Glenwood Springs–Garfield County will be getting a mineral lease royalty check for about 10 million dollars this year. State officials say Colorado’s share of severance taxes went up in 2010.
Denver–Final arguments will be delivered today in a lawsuit accusing the state of Colorado of violating it’s constitutional promise to provide a thorough and uniform education system. Challengers say the state’s tax and spending limitations severely impact poor school districts.
Grand Junction–Grand Junction parks and recreation employees will now be trained about Colorado’s breastfeeding laws after an city worker told a young mother to leave the pool area and feed her baby in the bathroom. The incident took place last week at the Orchard Mesa Community Center.
In other news…
MONTROSE, Colo. (AP) – Despite high unemployment, one western
Colorado farmer says he can’t find enough local workers to help
pick corn.
John Harold said he decided to try to hire more homegrown
workers this summer because he thought more Americans needed jobs
and because the cost of hiring legal, immigrant workers rose under
the federal H2A visa program. Harold says he’s paying the American workers $10.48 an hour and advertised in newspapers in Colorado, New Mexico and Oklahoma. He got plenty of applicants but he says most didn’t stick with the job. He said most worked for less than six hours. For every
three workers he hired, only one stayed on.
DURANGO, Colo. (AP) – Thousands of people are expected to roll
into southwestern Colorado this weekend for two motorcycle rallies.
Ignacio is hosting Bike Week and the Sugar Pine Ranch Rally is
being held north of Mancos. Motorcycle rallies elsewhere have struggled this year. But Sugar Pine Ranch Rally co-chairwoman Joyce Humiston says campsites and hotel rooms have been going fast and that some RV parks are sold out.
