Rifle to conduct community survey

The city of Rifle will be soliciting feedback from residents regarding services and priorities through a community survey. Over the next few years, the city will be making decisions that affect a wide range of services including, but not limited to, public safety, parks and recreation and street maintenance. City Council wants to make sure its priorities are aligned with the needs of the residents.

“A community survey is one way to allow residents to share their opinions, perceptions and suggestions about municipal services,” said City Manager Matt Sturgeon.

The city has contracted with an independent third party, ETC Institute, to conduct the confidential random survey. The survey will be administered through a combination of mail and phone beginning June 1, and a toll free phone number to assist respondents with the survey will be set up in advance. Also, there will be a website for those randomly selected who wish to complete the survey electronically. All completed surveys will be sent directly to ETC Institute for tabulation. A final report will be completed by ETC Institute with a description of major findings, overall results of each survey question and a benchmarking analysis that shows how Rifle compares to regional and national norms.

Rifle Chamber moving to new location

The Rifle Area Chamber of Commerce will be moving its office to 100 E. 11th St. Chamber leaders expect to be fully moved into the new office in the middle of June. The transition may lead to interruptions in phone and email services. Please call 970-625-2085 if you have any questions and cannot reach the chamber.

Helping Hands Camp work projects

Helping Hands Camp, a free camp for church groups and families, will be doing work projects to prepare for the summer camping season June 5-7 beginning at 10 a.m. Friday and ending at 11 a.m. Sunday at 7802 County Road 319 in Rifle. The prioritized maintenance list and registration are available at http://www.tepeebiblecamp.org. All meals are provided. Participants can bring a tent or RV or stay in one of the cabins or rooms. For questions or paper registration forms call Skip or Marie at 970-876-2108.

Rifle Heritage Day to feature fashion show

Children ages 3-10 are invited to participate in a “ dude and dudette” fashion show at the Ute Theater and Events Center from 1-2 p.m. June 6. Kids are encouraged to come dressed in their favorite outfit, Sunday best or “howdy doody” style.

Colorado Mesa University Student Showcase winners announced

Four local students were named winners at the sixth annual Colorado Mesa University Student Showcase Friday, April 24, in Grand Junction. Congratulations to the following winners:

Dakota Klossner from Parachute took first place in the Physical & Environmental Sciences v with her project “Post Tamarisk Removal Baseline Data Collection for Basic Flow, Sedimentation, Channel, Vegetation and Soil Processes of no Thoroughfare Wash.”

Amanda Jablonsky and Jazmin McFarland from Parachute took first place in the Business category with their project “Western Skies Resort.”

Francisco Hernandez from Silt took first place in the Social & Behavioral Sciences category with the project “Areas of Outstanding Recreation Opportunity: Utilizing Geospatial Data to Incorporate the Public’s Perceptions in the Bureau of Land Management Land Use Planning Process.”

The showcase featured 235 projects presented by more than 500 undergraduates from Colorado Mesa University and Western Colorado Community College. The projects included scholarly and/or creative activities ranging from artistic exhibits, paper presentations, posters, readings, demonstrations and performance. The showcase builds on classroom experience and is a venue where students can share their work with faculty, student peers, and community members.

Rifle Chamber announces scholarship winners

Coal Ridge High School graduate Katie Barner, and Rifle High School Graduate Brock Clark were recently awarded the Rifle Area Chamber of Commerce Scholarship. Each graduate received $1,000 to use in their college endeavors.

Vagneur wins Blue Vase Award

Laurie Vagneur, of Rifle, recently received the Farmers Insurance Blue Vase Award, which is given to Farmers insurance agents who have excelled in life insurance at the beginning of their time as an agent. The successful achievement of this prestigious award qualifies Vagneur for an exclusive achievement award entitled the Toppers Club, which is hosted in various locations.