New U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity has been reported in Moffat and Routt counties, according to Jerry Hernandez, executive director of local nonprofit Integrated Community. Hernandez said the organization received multiple reports from local community members regarding ICE arrests in the Yampa Valley on Tuesday, including at the Sunlight Crossing apartments on the west side of Steamboat Springs. On Wednesday afternoon, citizens of Craig contacted the newspaper and said that ICE officers had closed a portion of Barclay St. due to an apparent operation on the street. This was verified by personnel at Yampa Valley Kids who also emphasized that the operation was contained to the street and not targeting any particular businesses. Officials from the Craig Police Department said they were not aware of the situation. Integrated Community, which assists and supports immigrants, posted a warning on its Facebook page just before 1 p.m.
When Yampa Valley residents struggle with too-high medical costs for everything from lab tests to necessary screenings to new prescriptions, one important step is simply to ask if a healthcare discount program is available for that need. “My recommendation is to reach out to some of these programs and see what they can find that makes it affordable,” said Dr. Barbara Novotny, medical director and physician at South Routt Medical Center in Oak Creek. Novotny said nonprofit medical clinics — including South Routt Medical Center and Northwest Colorado Health in Craig and Steamboat Springs — can provide primary and family care on a discounted sliding scale based on household income. South Routt Medical Center also offers a 30% discount for self-pay. Northwest Colorado Health offers financial assistance programs so that cost concerns do not prevent people from seeking care.
A coal plant in northwest Colorado has limped along — generating power for only about three weeks so far this year — after President Donald Trump’s administration issued emergency orders for it to remain open past its planned retirement. Craig Unit 1 — one of three coal plants in Craig — was scheduled to shutter on Jan. 1, nearly a half century after it first began generating power in 1980. But on the eve of the plant’s planned closure, U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued an emergency order to keep the coal plant operational. Since Trump began his second term, his administration has issued multiple orders to keep Craig Unit 1 — as well as six other coal plants across the country — open despite planned closures.
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From local festivals to major entertainment venues, Craig’s Nick LaGorga is helping communities connect through live music while envisioning a growing role for entertainment in Moffat County’s future. For LaGorga, the magic of live entertainment is not necessarily found beneath the stage lights or in the reception of a performance. It is found behind a soundboard and in the satisfaction of helping musicians deliver a memorable performance. It is also rooted in watching a community gather around something it loves. As owner of Yampa Valley Entertainment, LaGorga has built a business around making those moments possible, providing professional sound, lighting and production services for events throughout Northwest Colorado. But for the Craig resident, the work also represents an opportunity to strengthen the communities that have become his home. “Entertainment really does bring all of those connected pieces together because it’s a common interest amongst everybody,” LaGorga said.
