Rangely gears up for more growth

RANGELY — The town council welcomed Mike Cerise, who is coming from Glenwood Springs, as the new owner and manager of the Parkview R.V. park. The park will be renamed Aspen Grove Park.
Cerise has submitted and gained approval for plans to renovate the park, which includes upgrading sewer and electric lines, new water taps, regrading and landscaping of the lots, resurfacing access roads and completing curb and gutter with privacy screening around the property.
Other amenities will include a storage yard for boats or other vehicles and possibly future picnic shelters, a playground and a restroom/shower facility. The work will be done in three phases over the next two years and a total of 94 spaces will be available. Work on Phase 1, the first 22 spaces on the west end of the park, will commence immediately and will be complete in three months.
Carl and Peggy Rector, owners of the Silver Sage Park, are also upgrading 24 new lots on their property. Rector stated, “We’ve even had requests for 50 more spaces, but we don’t have that much room.”
Town approval was given for the completion of utility installation in Kennedy Drive for the new Ridgeview subdivision adjacent to La Mesa.
Approval was also given for the removal of the non-functioning air conditioning unit from the roof of the town hall so that bids for repair to the roof structure itself may commence. Upgrades to the town water system are continuing and overall system pressure is up 5 percent. A critical need at the treatment plant involves creating a separate storage area and ventilation system for the powdered sodium fluoride that is added to the water supply. In its concentrated form, the powder is extremely toxic and must be handled manually to load the 50 pound bags into the system. Even while wearing the most extensive safety gear the operator is still at risk if a major spill occurs. The council agreed to accept renovation proposals as soon as they are made.
The council accepted the 2007 audit that was completed by Colorado CPA of Rangely. They also granted permission to Charlie Hickman, art teacher and co-founder of the Waving Hands Art Club, to begin the process of repainting the retaining wall mural on South White Avenue. The work will involve stripping the old paint, repriming the wall and applying the new paint. Designs are still being considered and suggestions may be made to Charlie or Wendy Roberts of the Rangely Arts Council as soon as possible.