Regional News – The Durango Herald

Postal Service floats idea of driving Western Slope mail to Denver and back before delivery

Angry customers, including county clerks, mayors and city managers, say proposal to modernize Grand Junction processing and save money spells trouble

DATE: Feb 24, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Grand Junction Council rejects tent ban, citing lack of alternatives for unhoused people

In September, city leaders abruptly closed a downtown park commonly used for camping

DATE: Feb 23, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Mesa County passes resolution declaring itself a ‘non-sanctuary county’

‘I want to point out this is not intended to be cruel to immigrants,’ commissioner says

DATE: Feb 23, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

The Blotter, Feb. 16-20

Tuesday 3:23 a.m. A person at the La Plata County Jail, 742 Turner Drive, was arrested for a warrant. 8:15 a.m. A man who allegedly refused to leave Manna soup kitchen, 1100 Avenida ...

DATE: Feb 21, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

None of the above? Some Colorado Democrats eye ‘noncommitted’ option

Concerns about Biden’s age and handling of war in Gaza prompt hope for alternative at national convention

DATE: Feb 19, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Inaugural Mixed in Mancos to spotlight local artists

Three bands will have their original songs recorded and put on a CD and vinyl record

DATE: Feb 19, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

What killed a 1980s program to kick-start a green home revolution in Colorado?

These houses were once the federal government's answer to the energy crisis

DATE: Feb 19, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

After getting dinged for lack of transparency, state lawmakers setting up new rules for themselves

Legislative leaders say they’re trying to clarify the line between informal conversations and official business.

DATE: Feb 19, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Ski resorts’ long history of immunity threatened by Colorado Supreme Court case

Case involves a teen who was paralyzed after a fall from a chairlift

DATE: Feb 18, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Bereft of Boebert, 3rd Congressional District Republicans chart new path

What happens when the most recognizable Republican in Colorado hops across the Continental Divide ahead of a nationally anticipated election rematch? Candidates in Colorado’s expansive 3rd C...

DATE: Feb 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Colorado lawmakers postpone hearing on short-term rental tax measure

Colorado lawmakers have delayed a hearing on a bill that would tax short-term rentals as commercial properties. Property owners from around the state were expected to show up at the Capitol ...

DATE: Feb 16, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

The Blotter, Feb. 14-15

Thursday 12:28 p.m. A man found inside Kroeger Hardware store, 8 Town Plaza, was arrested for trespassing. 3:11 p.m. A man at Walmart, 1155 South Camino del Rio, was arrested for the...

DATE: Feb 16, 2024 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Photos: Parade launches 2024 Connie Mack World Series in FarmingtonFans line street as players march on Main Damp, overcast weather cooled off the crowd lining Main Street on Friday morning for the 2024 Connie Mack World Series Parade. The hourlong parade began shortly after 10 a.m. in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Fans line street as players march on Main

Photos: ‘Mini Takes the States’ tour stops in DurangoHundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Hundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Photos: Boxing returns to DurangoAnimus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Animus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Photos and video: Going for the gold by devouring piesContestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Contestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Photo: Fireworks light the sky in DurangoDurango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Durango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Photos: Working with woodLocal craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

Local craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

2024 Fourth of July Parade draws crowd Thursday in downtown Durango

Photos: Downtown Durango hosts Fourth of July ParadeDowntown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Downtown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Durango Rotary Club, Parks and Recreation department host Independence Day events

Law enforcement conducts active threat training at Park Elementary SchoolResidents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Law enforcement agencies across Southwest Colorado sent officers to participate in active threat training this week at Park Elementary School in Durango. Those in the neighborhood can expect police vehicles parked on the premises, officers in tactical gear conducting exercises inside and outside the school, and signs advising that training is in progress. The sounds of shouting, airsoft weapons and the popping of a starter pistol will also be audible near the school, said Karla Sluis, spokeswoman for Durango School District 9-R.Sluis said that members of the school district’s safety department have gone door-to-door with flyers notifying residents around Park Elementary School about the training.

Hosted by the Durango Police Department and the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office, this week’s voluntary training invited officers from law enforcement agencies across a five-county region of Southwest Colorado encompassing La Plata, Archuleta, San Juan, Montezuma and Dolores counties.

La Plata County Sheriff’s Office deputy Durango Police Department Deputy Mike Latham, lead instructor for this week's training, said Wednesday and the first half of Thursday were mostly preparatory, teaching officers the school’s layout and devising scenarios, whereas the latter half of Thursday and Friday residents should anticipate some noise as active threat scenarios play out.

Latham said active threat training teaches officers proper protocol during active threat scenarios, especially in densely populated areas where they have become increasingly common.Park Elementary School is not the only Durango School District facility law enforcement has conducted active threat training. Latham said schools lend themselves well to this sort of training because, “It gives us all kinds of doors to work on, different rooms, different scenarios we can run. We can pretend it’s a mall with nice big corridors, we can even pretend it’s an outdoor area in the gymnasium.”Latham has participated in active threat training multiple times in the past and described the drills as exhilarating and nerve-wracking. He said one of the training’s main goals is teaching officers how to manage stress and remain calm with lives on the line.

“I take a pulse oximeter in the morning and get a baseline on their heart rates,” Latham said. “And sometimes, just before they’re about to engage a threat, I say ‘Timeout.’ Put it (the oximeter) on there, and their heart rate’s skyrocketed to 140, 150, 160 just in training.”

Latham said throughout his career active threat training has evolved to become safer for officers and fall in line with increasingly professional police standards.“When I first started we were just running into halls and rooms hoping for the best,” Latham said. “Now the tactic is still to get there, still stop the taking of lives, but tactics are much better than they were 20 years ago.”

Residents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Postal Service floats idea of driving Western Slope mail to Denver and back before delivery

Grand Junction Council rejects tent ban, citing lack of alternatives for unhoused people

Mesa County passes resolution declaring itself a ‘non-sanctuary county’

The Blotter, Feb. 16-20

None of the above? Some Colorado Democrats eye ‘noncommitted’ option

Inaugural Mixed in Mancos to spotlight local artists

What killed a 1980s program to kick-start a green home revolution in Colorado?

After getting dinged for lack of transparency, state lawmakers setting up new rules for themselves

Ski resorts’ long history of immunity threatened by Colorado Supreme Court case

Bereft of Boebert, 3rd Congressional District Republicans chart new path

Colorado lawmakers postpone hearing on short-term rental tax measure

The Blotter, Feb. 14-15

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