By BRITTNY CAMPOS
Special to the Herald Times
RANGELY | At the Rangely board of trustees meeting Tuesday, trustee Matt Billgren wanted to let everyone know he felt the road rally had a “substantial impact to our economy here in town.” The town did some trash pickup and helped spread the word about the rally. Billgren spent Saturday at the spectators’ site and said people came from all over, not just locals. He feels the town needs to promote the events and really have a presence, maybe with a hospitality tent where water or sunscreen packets are given out to show appreciation for visiting the town and to improve the spectator experience. Trustee Andy Key wants to assist with communication. The council wants to figure out what they can do for the upcoming hill climb race.
Public Safety Committee
A public safety committee meeting occurred on July 23 with the police chief, lieutenant and the head dispatcher. Mayor Andy Shaffer believes there are communication issues not internally but externally that need to be resolved. There is a pressing need to resolve grievances externally and work together as one. The primary goal of the meeting was working together.
Blueprint 2.0
The Town of Rangely has received a Grow Your Outdoor Recreation Industry award from the Colorado Blueprint 2.0 program.
Utility Department Update
Jeff LeBleu gave an update on the Tanglewood project. Everything has been completed except the services, 13 of the 19 are done. The plan is to complete services by Thursday, then dig up the west end, cut and cap the old main and tie the main into that valve. Moon Lake has been laying their lines. When that is done they will be preparing for curb, gutter, sidewalks and then the road. Various problems have slowed construction. Completion is expected the third week of September.
Police Update
The police department is partnering with IdentoGo to cover the fingerprinting for nurses, schools and any other type of fingerprinting required for employment. That will take a large burden off the police department. All they require is internet service. A power outage happened recently, bringing to their attention a need for a better generator for the police department along with Town Hall. The chief wanted to make sure the council knew what a great job the head of dispatch is doing and commended Officer Hamblin in regards to his quick handling of a sexual assault case. They will be working to replace the officer who recently left.
Town Manager Update
Peter Brixius has been working on an agreement with Chevron to assist with the distribution of their potable water system. They want to work with the town to help offset some costs. The contract with Better City ends at the end of July. Better City is a nationally-recognized firm that helps communities with economic development. They have collected a lot of data about Rangely and that data is accessible digitally.
