Plans are progressing on the construction of a shooting range on the Pawnee National Grassland in northeast Weld County with the environmental analysis process to start next week.
The proposed range would be built on a section of U.S. Forest Service land near the intersection of Colo. 14 and Weld County Roads 90 and 57. It would be on the south side of Colo. 14 and the shooting would be directed to the southeast. The 1,000-yard range will be buffered by 8-foot berms on both sides, and a
20-foot berm at the southeast end of the range, and would require about three acres of land, said Lori Bell, grassland district ranger. The site is about 12 miles east of Pierce.
It is being partially funded by a $97,000 grant from the Colorado Division of Wildlife and a $25,000 grant from the National Rifle Association, Bell added.
Weld County Commissioner Dave Long said the plan has been in the works for about a year and would, hopefully, draw shooters to the range and reduce the number of power

Democrats U.S. Rep. Betsy Markey and Sen. Michael Bennet along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will host a forum next week on agriculture, conservation and rural development.
The forum, which will take place from 1-2:30 p.m. Thursday, will allow participants to provide feedback on agriculture, conservation and rural development issues and will include a conversation about the 2012 farm bill, according to a Bennet news release.
The administrator of the USDA’s Farm Services Agency in Washington, D.C., and Colorado’s state USDA executives will discuss the programs currently available and their requirements. Staff from the offices of Sens. Bennet, Mark Udall and Markey will be available for a discussion of the challenges and opportunities agriculture producers and rural communities are facing.
The event will take place at Aims Community College in Beaty Hall room 102, 5401 20th St. in Greeley.
Anyone interested in attending can RSVP to agriculture@bennet.senate.gov

Just about two weeks after Amy McCarty almost lost her life to the West Nile virus, she swung her legs out of the bed she shared with a man she didn’t know and went to the living room in her Platteville home.
Dan rubbed his eyes and shuffled out of the bedroom after her. He’d gotten somewhat used to these late nights after her battle that peaked on the July 4 weekend, when she had a seizure in the bathroom, and her father, who lived next door and stopped by to fix her toilet, found her and got her to start breathing again before he called 911.
Amy woke up in the hospital a few days later, in a fog, and found a man kissing her forehead and holding her hand. She looked around the room and saw children. Those must be my kids, she thought.
When she asked others who they were, she quickly discovered their feelings were hurt by the question. These were longtime friends, co-workers and even family. So when Amy was released from the hospital, she patiently waited for memories of the man and

DENVER – Dan Maes likes to brag about taking down the political machine in becoming Colorado’s Republican gubernatorial nominee. The way he’s going, it may be the only victory in a short-lived political career.
Republicans have spent the week desperately trying to get the tea party favorite to quit the race amid a series of embarrassing missteps that culminated with bizarre claims about his shadowy undercover law enforcement career in Kansas in the 1980s.
Prominent Republicans, including former Sen. Hank Brown and Senate candidate Ken Buck have abandoned Maes, as have several prominent tea party leaders. All cited character issues with Maes.
Maes vowed to stay on the ticket, depriving Republicans of a chance to find a new candidate before a Friday ballot-certification deadline. That means the party is likely stuck with Maes,
who says he’s staying in the race for voters who are fed up with the political establishment.
“People are sick and tired of pow

FREE ADMISSION DAY, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Centennial Village, 1475 A St., Greeley and Meeker Home Museum, 1324 9th Ave., Greeley. Details: (970) 350-9216.

SKATE SCHOOL FREE FUN SKATE, 12:30-1 p.m., Greeley Ice Haus, 900 8th Ave., Greeley. Try the skate school program for free. Details: (970) 350-9402 or www.greeleyicehaus.com.

GREELEY FARMER’S MARKET, 7:30 a.m.-noon, Depot, 902 7th Ave., Greeley. Details: (970) 350-9783 or www.greeleygov.com/fm.

LOW COST VACCINE CLINIC, 11:30-1:30 p.m., Humane Society of Weld County, 1620 42nd St., Evans. No appointment necessary. Details: (970) 506-9550.

CRABTREE BREWERY DOG WASH, 2-4 p.m. at Crabtree Brewery, 625 3rd St. No. D, Greeley. $10 small dog wash, $15 medium-large dog wash. Includes a free beer. Details: (970) 506-9550 or www.weldcountyhumane.org.

PETSMART MOBILE ADOPTION, noon-2 p.m., Petsmart, 2833 35th Ave., Greeley. Leave with a new best friend. Details: (970) 506-9550 or www.weldcountyhumane.org.

WINDSOR HARVES

Saul Castaneda said the feel of bubbles on his feet was funny.
Serenity Aguirre was more excited about the spider volleyball game.
And Seth and Adam Aguilera said it was all about supporting the motto of the school.
But whatever the reason, the students at Maplewood Elementary School, 1201 21st Ave. in Greeley, agreed on one thing: Having field day at the beginning of the year was way more fun than waiting until the end of the year.
Teachers and administrators at Maplewood decided to mix things up a bit this year when they opted to host the annual field day on Friday, only weeks into the school year, instead of waiting until the end. About 450 students – the entire student body – took a break from classes to play games.
The idea came about when teachers including physical education teacher Will Smythe and principal Mark Thompson were talking about how they could promote togetherness among students and staff who were combined for the first time from two different s

Greeley police have arrested more teenagers in the assault of a jogger in Glenmere Park.
Police Sgt. Joe Tymkowych said Friday that seven teens have been arrested in an Aug. 24 assault on a 47-year-old Greeley woman. A 17-year-old girl turned herself in to police on Thursday.
Tymkowych says the suspects could face charges of disorderly conduct and engaging in a riot.
Police say the victim was jogging in the park when she saw a large group of teens surrounding a girl she said was beating up another girl. When she shouted at the girls to stop, the girls called her names and threatened her.
As the woman took out her cell phone to call 911, one girl in the group rushed at her and hit her several times in the face.
The woman said the girls in the crowd encouraged the girl to beat up the woman, and some recorded the assault on their cell phones.
The victim suffered cuts and bruises to her face, and the girls all ran from the park before police arrived.
The 17-year-old girl realized th

A decision signed between a Fort Collins irrigation company and the U.S. Forest Service Thursday could affect how the city of Greeley operates its reservoirs in the Poudre Canyon northwest of Fort Collins.
The decision gives the Water Supply and Storage Co. a 30-year easement for operations at Long Draw Reservoir, near the top of the Poudre Canyon. It requires the company to participate with the U.S. Forest and Park Services in the restoration of native trout populations and the installation of an early warning system to provide around-the-clock monitoring at the dam at the reservoir.
Jon Monson, director of Greeley’s water and sewer department, said that while the city has a small share in the Water Supply and Storage Co., the decision will have an effect on Greeley.
“Any success like this regarding the operation of a reservoir is important. Long Draw captures water from the Grand Ditch on the Western Slope,” Monson said.
But in addition, it will give the city s

Emily Eikenberg is tired of her mom coming to school every day and eating lunch with her.
Day after day of eating lunch with her is getting old for the 10-year-old who just wants to eat lunch like all her other fourth-grade classmates. But Emily has arthritis in her feet and asthma, and if she doesn’t eat right, she said it causes problems with her ailments.
“I hate it,” she said. “I wouldn’t mind it once in a while, but not every day.”
Emily said eating right is tough because she doesn’t have enough time to get through the lunch line at Meeker Elementary School and eat her meal before she has to go back to class.
Elementary students in Greeley-Evans School District 6 have 20 minutes for lunch, spokesman Roger Fiedler said. Grades and classes are staggered throughout the lunch period. Multiple classes or grade levels are not served at once.
On Wednesday, Jeremy West, director of nutrition services for the district, timed the classes at

DENVER – Anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce failed to show up at an April 5 deposition although he was repeatedly notified that he had to appear, the Colorado attorney general’s office said Friday during Bruce’s contempt-of-court hearing.
To drive home his point, First Assistant Attorney General John Lizza called longtime Denver lawyer Mark Grueskin.
Grueskin represented Kim Haarberg, who was attempting to determine whether Bruce paid for the signature petitions that put three anti-tax and government-limiting initiatives on the November ballot.
The deposition – which was part of an administrative law hearing looking into Bruce’s potential involvement – was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. April 5 at the Colorado Springs offices of the law firm of Sherman & Howard.

To read the full story, go to www.denverpost.com.