Notified — 2016, a wild year for Southern Colorado news
December 30, 2016 |Marijuana, elections and jobs, oh my.
You made it. We made it.
2016, we bid you adieu. But before you go, we want to take a quick recap through everything that happened this year in Southern Colorado news — good or bad.
This week we’re noting the big stories we covered this year. If there were three major topics of news this year, they’d have to be marijuana, elections and economic development. We covered them thoroughly, as they shaped our region. After the jump, read on for all the 2016 memories — good, bad and ugly.
And while we’re here, a quick editor’s note: Thank you for reading Notified this year. PULP Newsmagazine is a small (but mighty) news organization often delving deeper into Southern Colorado issues. Notified is just a part of what we do, so if you want more, pick up our papers on newsstands around the region, tell your friends about our work and keep on reading. You keep us going, and we’ll keep you Notified. Eh, see what I did there?
Cannabis
The topic that dominated the news week after week this year in Southern Colorado was undoubtedly marijuana. From an election fight over the future of the marijuana industry to the Pueblo County Sheriff Office’s many illegal grow busts, it was a busy 12 months of never-ending developments in the industry and law enforcement of the substance.
The biggest stories:
- Pueblo lost the cannabis cup in March, but it wasn’t all the city’s fault.
- The ballot fight over whether to continue to allow the recreational marijuana industry operate in Pueblo County led to a major dark money discovery. Could it be the ultimate dark money scheme? It’s still unknown who bankrolled Safer Pueblo’s campaign in support of Ballot Questions 200 and 300.
- This month, Theresa Wolf looked into why the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office is selective about what the agency publicizes on recreational marijuana store stings. That story revealed no coordination between county officials and the sheriff’s office, and a question of whether the law enforcement agency was politicizing the one violation in an unknown number of sting operations.
- When PULP started Notified earlier this year, one of our first stories was the slippery slope of statistics Pueblo’s medical community seemed to be sliding down rather rapidly. St. Mary Corwin hospital CEO Brian Moore stated half of babies tested for drug use had THC in their blood. Alarming, but worded for dramatic effect? Maybe. Out of 52 babies born at St. Mary Corwin, 11 were tested and five tested positive for THC.
Elections
Whether you’re excited for what Jan. 20 will bring in terms of a new president or dreading the thought of Donald Trump leading America to greatness (again), 2016 was one heck of a ride for politics — from the leader of the free world right on down to the local ballot questions.
Here were the biggest Southern Colorado-related stories this election year:
- Buried deep down in the October DNC Podesta leak was an exchange between former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Hillary Clinton’s aids. “We need to win Pueblo in the caucuses and the general and they always feel ignored,” Salazar wrote. Oh yeah, and the Clintons could maybe gain $100,000 from a fundraiser put on by a local couple.
- Rain barrels are finally legal. It was long awaited.
- How does a congressman represent a district that stretches from Pueblo to the Colorado-Utah border? Ramsey Scott looked into it.
- Trump came to Pueblo and everybody was like, “wait, why?” But PULP had the explanation. Less than two weeks later Hillary Clinton showed up too.
Economic Development
Pueblo was promised big things in economic development this year. Jobs on jobs — 500 to be exact. The Pueblo Economic Development Corporation released a goal for the first time ever. But it wasn’t met. It was less than half way met. But economic development spilled over into other issues, too. It wasn’t all PEDCO news.
The most important narratives of 2016:
- Pueblo is second worst in the country for brain drain.
- Pueblo’s four job announcements, explained.
- The Colorado State Fair did not do so hot this year.
- Despite a plan for expansion, Pueblo government and urban development officials couldn’t say what the economic impact of the current convention center is. Now they can. Essentially the current impact is the same impact that’s expected in the future.
