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Main, News...
Ouray housing project scores federal funding
Nearly $1.5M coming to Waterview, but type of homes in second phase unclear
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
March 11, 2026
The Waterview Homes affordable housing project will receive $1.46 million in federal funding to begin a second phase of development, but it's unclear what that next phase will look like. The Ouray Cit...
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Main, News...
County venue to hire manager
Commissioners agree to pick leader for 4-H Center, fairgrounds, could reopen space in late spring
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
March 11, 2026
Ouray County commissioners will hire a salaried manager for the 4-H Event Center and Fairgrounds, rather than an incentive-based position as previously discussed. During a meeting Tuesday, commissione...
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Blood moon rising
Main, News...
Blood moon rising
March 4, 2026
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Main, News...
City: No to more remote governance
Ouray council rejects member's request to attend more meetings from afar
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
March 4, 2026
The Ouray City Council on Monday unanimously rejected a councilor’s request for greater leeway to participate in council meetings remotely, agreeing it’s vital for elected officials to face constituen...
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A dilemma 25 years in the making
Main, News...
4-H EVENT CENTER
A dilemma 25 years in the making
Commissioners determined to improve fiscal health of facility plagued by management, use questions since its donation
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
March 4, 2026
The dilemma of how to manage, finance and use the Ouray County 4-H Event Center is coming full circle, reflecting conversations that happened more than 25 years ago when the facility was donated to th...
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Bright start, cloudy future for bus service
Main, News...
Bright start, cloudy future for bus service
Two years after launch, OurWay ridership has doubled. It’s unclear if grant money and matching local funds will help it keep running
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 25, 2026
Georgia Evans greeted the bus driver with jugs of milk and water in her hands and boarded the 11-seater OurWay shuttle, headed home from work in Ridgway to Montrose. She noticed it was a different bus...
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Main, News...
Backcountry road closure eyed
County to shut off portion of Yankee Boy Basin to vehicles this summer due to environmental damage
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 25, 2026
Ouray County commissioners on Tuesday directed staff to pursue closing an upper section of Yankee Boy Basin this summer to motorized traffic, in response to a resident’s request to reduce environmenta...
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Helping the helpers: The anatomy of a complex rescue
Main, News...
NEIGHBORS AND HELPERS
Helping the helpers: The anatomy of a complex rescue
Volunteers saved an 11-year-old girl from the bottom of a cliff thanks largely to the skills of Mike Gibbs, who's made a career out of training rescuers
By By Nancy Lofholm Special to the Plaindealer 
February 18, 2026
It took Mike Gibbs all of five seconds on that morning in early August to figure out it was time to execute one of the world’s most complicated rope rescues. A car had tumbled 320 feet off the edge of...
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Main, News...
Bills to give reservoir to Ouray debut in Congress
Administrator: City can afford repair expenses, which are still unknown
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 18, 2026
U.S. House and Senate bills to transfer ownership of Crystal Reservoir from the U.S. Forest Service to the city of Ouray made it to subcommittee hearings in Washington, D.C. last week. Both bills are ...
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Main, News...
EMS plans to shift staff, save costs
Chief seeks to rely less on higher-paid paramedics
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 11, 2026
Ouray County Emergency Medical Services wants to implement a new staffing structure this spring to save costs and prepare for a combined fire and emergency services authority. During a Jan. 28 work se...
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Formerly a cash cow, bloom wilts on cannabis
Main, News...
Formerly a cash cow, bloom wilts on cannabis
Industry slump marked by reduction in wholesale flower prices leaves just one grow facility in county, shaves local government tax revenue
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 11, 2026
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Michael Cox is the former general manager for Dalwhinnie Group, the landlord for Dalwhinnie Farms. The cannabis industry’s downturn has rea...
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New county manager seeks to lead with heart
Main, News...
New county manager seeks to lead with heart
After careers in big cities and large governments, Antonio Mendez is shifting his perspective
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
February 4, 2026
Ouray County is unlike most places Antonio Mendez has lived or worked before, and Mendez brings experience unlike the county has seen in two decades, or possibly ever. Ouray County’s new manager grew ...
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City leader pulls police from patrol duty
Main, News...
City leader pulls police from patrol duty
Administrator cites concerns about training, liability; sheriff's office assumes full control of services in Ouray
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
February 4, 2026
Ouray City Administrator Michelle Metteer has pulled the police department’s two remaining officers off of patrol duty and reassigned them to administrative tasks, citing concerns about liability and ...
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Onward and upward
Main, News...
Onward and upward
January 28, 2026
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Main, News...
Town prepares for legal battle
By Erin McIntyre erin@ouraynews.com 
January 28, 2026
Editor's note: This article has been corrected to reflect that Ridgway Lodge LLC is the owner of MTN Lodge. Ridgway retains attorney after MTN Lodge owners say they won't pay taxes on long-term worker...
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Main, News...
County eyes budget cuts
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
January 28, 2026
Manager: Looking for ways to avoid cutting employees Ouray County leaders have loosely settled on wanting to cut $500,000 from the county’s 2026 budget, anticipating they will have more unexpected exp...
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ICE FARMERS GET THEIR CROP
Main, News...
ICE FARMERS GET THEIR CROP
A long-awaited cold snap allows Ice Park to open, just in time for festival
By LIA SALVATIERRA 
January 21, 2026
After weeks of planning for the worst, the Ouray Ice Park has ice to offer after all, just in time for the 31st Ice Festival this weekend. Ice Park Executive Director Peter O’Neil has spent the past t...
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Judge delays assault trials
Main, News...
Judge delays assault trials
Attorneys say they're not ready; cases will be heard by Montrose juries
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
January 21, 2026
The trials for two men accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl in Ouray County in 2023 have been postponed, even as the woman and the judge presiding over the cases expressed concerns about ...
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Ice Park to open, resurrecting season after weeks of warm temperatures
Main, News...
Ice Park to open, resurrecting season after weeks of warm temperatures
By LIA SALVATIERRA 
January 20, 2026
After weeks of planning for the worst, the Ouray Ice Park has ice to offer after all, just in time for the 31st Ice Festival this weekend. Ice Park Executive Director Peter O’Neil has spent the past t...
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Welcome to the snow-deo
Main, News...
Welcome to the snow-deo
January 14, 2026
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Editor Picks
City takes plunge on hot springs repairs
Main, News...
City takes plunge on hot springs repairs
Council approves $286,568 contract to resurface, replace tiles in overlook pools in September
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
April 22, 2026
The city of Ouray will spend more than $280,000 to resurface the hottest soaking areas at the Ouray Hot Springs Pool this fall, a repair pool managers say is vital to maintaining one of the city’s mos...
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County backs down on road closure
Main
County backs down on road closure
Rather than block access to upper Yankee Boy Basin, commissioners focus on managing, restoring
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
April 22, 2026
Ouray County has decided against closing the upper section of Yankee Boy Basin road to motorized traffic, and will work with the U.S. Forest Service and volunteer groups to keep drivers on the main ro...
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News
County leaders campaign for merger
Commissioner claims benefits to combined fire, EMS; Log Hill Fire District concerned about structure, cost
By Lia Salvatierra lia@ouraynews.com 
April 22, 2026
Ouray County leaders last week campaigned for a combined countywide fire and emergency services authority at a Log Hill Mesa Fire Protection District meeting, while the district’s board of directors a...
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News
City keeps status quo on Via Ferrata operations — for now
Climbing course to open soon under new municipal management, as users seek changes to guide fees, weight restrictions
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
April 22, 2026
The Ouray Via Ferrata is scheduled to open May 1 under a new municipal management structure, even as city leaders and commercial guides debate whether to tweak key details like guide fees and weight r...
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News
Federal officer charged with assault over confrontation at Durango ICE protest
By By Chase Woodruff Colorado Newsline 
April 22, 2026
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer is facing charges of assault and criminal mischief in Colorado state court after an investigation into an October 2025 incident in Durango in which he seiz...
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First responders receive first COVID-19 vaccines

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