FOCUS 2021 - The Durango Herald

Our View: Council takes a big step toward humane housing

Last week, the city of Durango, through its elected City Council members, took a first step indicating the seriousness of the city’s commitment to deal with the seemingly intractable problem...

DATE: Aug 30, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Ohana Kuleana

Community garden should be saved

DATE: Aug 25, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Tree tales

Once upon a time in a small university town, a college president about the height of Napoleon and with a matching complex decided he wanted to build a parking lot on the site of a large park...

DATE: Aug 21, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Housing

Potential hotel conversion could ease housing crisis Since January, as part of our FOCUS 2021 series of editorials, we’ve been addressing the lack of affordable housing and housing for unshe...

DATE: Aug 16, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Ready to compost?

Anybody remember the “Garden Song”? “Inch by inch, row by row Gonna make this garden grow Gonna mulch it deep and low Gonna make it fertile ground …” Written by David Mallett in 1975, accord...

DATE: Aug 4, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Good news

Local governments take steps toward real solutions for housing crisis in La Plata County

DATE: Jul 24, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Bipartisanship

State Sen. Don Coram stubbornly models how to avoid polarization, work with others

DATE: Jul 21, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Plastic ban

Law ridding stores and restaurants of bags and containers will help environment

DATE: Jul 17, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Orphan wells

Bennet advances pollution solutions

DATE: Jul 14, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: ‘The churn’

One possible solution for local businesses

DATE: Jun 30, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: More tourism?

Business growth must look beyond tourism industry

DATE: Jun 26, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Our View: Race-norming

Old racist ideas die a slow death

DATE: Jun 11, 2021 | CATEGORY: Editorials

Final phases of project underway at Camino del Rio and Main Avenue

Photos: Marching for women’s rightsDurango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Durango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Photos: Durango High School football DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

Gallery: Animals, super heroes and other creatures take over Main Avenue

Photos: A fun and spooky day at school

Haunted house northeast of Durango gets bigger every yearCody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Durango resident Cody Petersen said when he moved into his home at 15 Edgemont Way several years ago, his house on the corner looked lonely and spooky.Today, it’s a madhouse. Halloween decorations are splayed practically on every inch of his lawn, in the trees and up and down his home.

A group of school-aged kids stop in front of his house every day to pose with a little gothic doll in the lawn, he said. It’s the favorite attraction amongst hundreds of decorations Petersen bought locally and online as early as July in preparation for Oct. 31, Halloween.He said he doesn’t want to think about how much money he’s spent on fog machines, animatronics and Christmas lights, but the bill easily totals several thousands of dollars.

For trick-or-treaters on Halloween, whom he encourages to visit, jumpscares abound at Petersen’s home, featuring animatronic spiders, growling wolves and other monsters, he said.He’s working on his own animatronic coffin, which shakes and rattles, and a pulley system that will push and pull a ghost up and down the yard, but neither will be ready for this year’s Halloween.He said he has fond memories of his parents decorating for the holidays during his upbringing and he’s a huge horror genre fan. So he enjoys going all out on decorations for the spooky season. He justifies his hobby with the logic his kids will only be in high school a few more years, and it isn’t as cool to decorate the lawn for Halloween when one doesn’t have children living at home.But the neighbors enjoy his haunts as much as the rest of the community. He said his Halloween scene has gradually grown larger every year; at least 50 trick-or-treaters turned up at his home last year.“I'm a home inspector, so I do have a lot of tools and no fear of trying things out,” he said.

He said typical Halloween animatronics cost $400 a piece, but they only last one year or so without breaking. That’s frustrating, he said, and he believes he can do better by building his own.He said this year’s display and experience is more organic than past years thanks to his handiwork. Among his myriad decorations, trick-or-treaters can spot easter eggs referencing “Beetlejuice,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Pet Sematary.”Among the horror props are real animal bones Petersen said he’s found on hikes across the countryside.“I've got ghosts and spiders and witches and that kind of thing,” he said. “Here in Edgemont, we have giant spiders for real. ... We get these huge wolf spiders that are bigger than my hand. I mean, huge, bigger than tarantulas.”

Petersen said he was motivated to make his first decorations within the first month he and his wife moved into the home on the corner at 15 Edgemont Way.A lone pine tree, a typical Christmas tree that would be strung up with lights and ornaments in December, stood out to Petersen in the yard, he said. He just felt compelled to decorate it and light it up.He said he thoroughly decorated the tree and left it lit year-round. Within a month of moving into the house, his neighbor died. The man was old and suffering from Alzheimer's.

Months later, the man’s wife approached Petersen and told him she and her husband’s last salient moments together were spent looking out at Petersen’s lighted Christmas tree, pretending it was Christmas. In the following hours, the man succumbed to delirium. He died several days later.“I don't know why I had that tree, why I lit it, but that's why that tree, even when Halloween is over, all year round, that Christmas tree always stays lit now,” he said.Petersen is a horror movie fan, and in particular he’s always enjoyed the sinister character Michael Myers of the “Halloween” franchise.

He said every year, after thrilling trick-or-treaters at his home, he takes to downtown and East Third Avenue in his Michael Myers costume, bearing a giant bowl of candy, to continue the fun.The highlight of his yard, the creepy doll neighborhood kids like to pose and take pictures with, is Petersen’s “elf on the shelf,” he said. He likes to move the doll around the house, sometimes propping her up to hold animal bones.“I have a real busy and pretty stressful job,” he said. “I just love the fall so much. And to come home, it's just a good way to wind down and, you know, de-stress, just go out and work in the yard.”cburney@durangoherald.com

Cody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Reader-submitted photos of Halloween decorationsLast week, we asked readers to submit photos of their Halloween decorations or a neighbor’s decorations. We received dozens of photo submissions. We have selected some of the most spooky, elaborate and fun photos to share in this gallery. Enjoy!

Photos: FLC volleyball returns homeFort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Fort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Photos: Expert leathercrafter and collector estate sale near IgnacioItems belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Items belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Photos: Pro boxing in DurangoLegends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Legends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Our View: Council takes a big step toward humane housing

Our View: Ohana Kuleana

Our View: Tree tales

Our View: Housing

Our View: Ready to compost?

Our View: Good news

Our View: Bipartisanship

Our View: Plastic ban

Our View: Orphan wells

Our View: ‘The churn’

Our View: More tourism?

Our View: Race-norming

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