Local Government

In March of this year, residents of two mobile home parks in the Roaring Fork Valley received notice that their owner intended to sell the properties. Residents fear spikes in rent and displacement in one of Colorado’s most expensive regions. In June, Carbondale’s Board of Trustees pledged a million dollars to help these residents purchase their homes.

A rogue motion at the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission meeting this month sparked a discussion about lethal control of grey wolves in Colorado.

KDNK’s news team brings you local and regional news from the Roaring Fork Valley ... and beyond.

The Garfield County Library District and its Board of Trustees have been under fire for three years. What began with complaints about Japanese Manga books at the Silt Branch evolved into the Garfield County Commissioners taking control of the trustee appointment process in 2024. Normal trustee meetings have since turned into yelling matches worthy of the Jerry Springer Show. Megan Webber has been covering the meetings for The Sopris Sun since January. Here she talks to KDNK's Amy Hadden Marsh about the meetings and the new trustees.

The Carbondale town staff met Tuesday, June 10th to hear community concerns and receive the newly formed Latino Advisory Board's first big pitch.

Senate Bill 3 was recently signed into law by Jared Polis, prompting the BOCC to pass a resolution in support of firearm rights. SB3 will restrict access to semiautomatic guns, and bans their manufacture in the state of Colorado. Garfield County Commissioners say this is an overstep of state power.

Some Garfield County residents are drawing attention to the Garfield County Library District budget, complaining that the library has too much money and that some of it should be returned to taxpayers. At last week’s Garfield County Commissioner meeting, library staff set the record straight, and then some.

Carbondale’s Latino Advisory Board recently filled five of its ten seats. Town Trustee Christina Montemayor says that the Latino community is underrepresented in local politics and she aims to empower Latinos in Carbondale to make their voices heard. Here’s KDNK’s Lily Jones.

Efforts to remove books from public and school libraries have been increasing nationwide. According to PEN America, a non-profit that champions the freedom to write, there was an unprecedented surge in book bans during the latter half of 2023.Here in Colorado, a battle has been playing out in Garfield County, where some community members have been calling for the removal of certain books from public libraries. They have been lobbying the Garfield County Commissioners to override the library board and take action. Now the Commissioners are at odds with the library board. The commissioners are planning on appointing candidates for three open positions on the Garfield County Libraries Board of Trustees, despite the library board already reappointing two trustees. Rocky Mountain Community Radio’s Maeve Conran spoke with Amy Hadden Marsh who says what’s happening in Garfield County is part of a national trend.

Three Garfield County Library Board of Trustee positions are open - in Carbondale, Glenwood Springs, and New Castle. But the library board and Garfield County Commissioners disagree on how to appoint the two incumbents.