Mercy Regional Medical Center will open its Bayfield clinic for three days a week once construction is complete.
“We’re excited about the opportunity to be here,” said Will McConnell, a representative from Mercy and its parent corporation, Centura Health.
He and several hospital staff members attended this week’s meeting of the Bayfield Town Board.
If the demand is there, the clinic could open for four or five days a week, he said. Staff members will include a medical doctor and physician’s assistant.
Mayor Rick Smith told the clinic contingent that Bayfield appreciates having the clinic come to town.
“We’ve really been lacking on the medical side,” Smith said.
The clinic will occupy about 3,200 square feet in the Bayfield Center Plaza on Wolverine Drive. It will have five exam rooms and one room for procedures.
After the presentation, the board thanked Debbi Renfro and Tom Au for their service as town board trustees. Renfro has been on the board since 2008, Au since 2006. Renfro said it has been a pleasure serving the people of the town.
Town Clerk Kathy Cathcart swore in returning trustee Michelle Sower and new trustees James Sanders and Matthew Salka. They were elected to their seats in municipal elections April 1. The new trustees will be asked to tour town facilities and attend a Colorado Municipal League conference in June. There also will be a board workshop during the next month.
In other business, the board approved a $10,923 contract with Goff Engineering to work on drainage issues at Sunrise Estates in Bayfield. Flooding has been an issue in the subdivision since its inception.
Town Manager Chris LaMay said the town is hosting a farewell reception for former town attorney Dirk Nelson, who left his position to be city attorney in Durango. The reception will be at 5 p.m. April 24 at Bottom Shelf Brewery.
Smith introduced Nelson’s replacement, Jeff Robbins, who has worked as an attorney in Durango and for La Plata County.
Roger Zalneratis of the La Plata Economic Development Alliance will start working in Bayfield once a month on issues in the area. He will be at town hall Monday, LaMay said.
The worn-out “Welcome to Downtown Bayfield” sign in Joe Stephenson Park is being replaced with a new one in about two weeks, said Ron Saba, director of public works.
