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<br /> <br />14 PAGES TODAY <br />VOL. 69-NO. 120 <br /> <br />Service Center for Montrose, <br />Ouray and San Miguel Counties <br /> <br /> <br />MONTROSE, COWRADO 81401 <br /> <br />PRICE <br />1St <br /> <br />rrSll <br /> <br />"Best Little Daily in the U.S.A." <br />WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22,1976 <br /> <br />Officials praise vote on Dallas <br /> <br />By GUY KELLY <br />Daily Press Stafl Writer <br />After more -than 20 years of <br />planning, hoping and dreaming <br />the voters in the Tri-County <br />Water Conservancy District <br />yesterday assured tl)e future of <br />the Uncompal1gre Valley by <br />voting overwhelmingly in favor <br />of the Dallas Creek Project. <br />By a 9-1 margin,.S,I97 to 613, <br />qualified Tri-County electors ap- <br />proved a contract with the <br />federal government calling for <br />the repayment of $28 million of <br />the $54 million total cost of the <br />Ridgway Dam and Reservoir. . <br />"It doesn't seem possible that <br />we've finally realized the <br />dream," City of Montrose <br />Mayor Robert Strong said this <br />morning. "1 think it was a clear- <br />cut mandate that the people of <br />the Uncompahgre Valley want <br />the Dallas Project." <br />Harold Westesen, president of <br />the Tri-County Water Conser- <br />vancy District, was very pleased <br />with the turnout of voters and the <br />result of the election. <br />"To us ,. he said "this means <br />that the People of the valley are <br />in full support of the Dallas Pro-. <br />ject and the Ridgway Reser- <br />voir," <br />"We feel that it was due large- <br />ly to the efforts of Bob Schmitt <br />(who handled tbe publicity for <br />the pro;ect) and many, many <br />concerned people who gave their <br />time and effort so generously to <br />distribute the information. 1 <br />thank everyone for their sup- <br />port. <br />"Now that the election is over,' <br />we have our work cut out for us. <br />Frank Carlson (Bureau 01 <br />Reclamation engineer) will be <br />the project engineer. Work will <br />begin in 1977 On relocating U.S. <br />Highway 550 around the reser- <br />voir. <br />"A field station will be built <br />below the reservoir site and the <br />Bureau of Reclamation will <br />proceed with their work in ob- <br />taining specifications for the <br />d;1m and rights-ol-way for the <br />dam and reservoir." he said. <br />Tbe dam will be located <br />between Ridgway and Colona on <br />the Uncompahgre River and will <br />create a reservoir with 1,000 sur- <br />lace acres and about 80,000 acre <br /> <br />feet when full. Construction of <br />the dam will begin next <br />September, according to the <br />Bureau of Reclamation. <br />"It's good to know that we're <br />going to keep our water right <br />here," Strong said. "It can only <br />help u.s in the future." <br />Robert Lewis, Colona, who <br />served as president of Tri- <br />County from its inception in 1957 <br />to 1971, expressed gratification <br />at the vote. <br />"I've said all along Ithoughtit <br />would pass strongly," he said. <br />"I didn't anticipate that much, <br />but these are good folks, and <br />they've got their feet on the <br />ground, and 1 believe they know <br />what's best for the valley. <br />"I'm delighted to hear it. 1 <br />really am." <br />James Mowbray, City of Delta <br />mayor, said he was highly in <br />favor of the project and was glad <br />it had passed. "It will mean ad- <br />ditional storage and will give us <br />more domestic water," he said. <br />"Delta is growing and the pro- <br />ject will satisfy the demand for <br />more and more water," accor- <br />ding to Mowbray. <br />"Economically," Ed Nelson, <br />manager of Montrose County of <br />Chamber said, "it's the best <br />thing to ever hit this community. <br />If you don't think so, talk to the <br />people in Delta and Olathe. <br />Even here, we'd be hurting for <br />water in four or five years. I <br />think it's terrific." <br />Jan Fincham, the president- <br />elect of the Montrose County <br />Chamber of Commerce, echoed <br />Nelson's sentiments. "It will be <br />a great asset to the community. <br />The vote was an indication of <br />strength and confidenoe in the <br />Dallas Project. The support was <br />overwhelming. <br />"Anytime you have construc- <br />tion it will bring in employes and <br />it will turn over in the form of <br />retail sales," Fincham said. <br />Harold Anderson, manager of <br />the Uncompahgre Valley Water <br />Users Assn., was also pleased <br />with the results of yesterday's <br />special election. "I'm happy <br />that the election went that way," <br />he said. <br />"We're in the project to con- <br />tract for over 10,000 acre feet of <br />supplemental irrigation water. <br /> <br />It will be a big help to the <br />farmers in the valley during the <br />summer when we're usually <br />short of water." <br />Two Ouray County spokesmen <br />who opposed the Dallas Cre'ek <br />Project said they were not sur- <br />prised with the result of the elec- <br />tion. <br />"I rather expected the <br />favorable vote," Ouray County <br />Commissioner Warren Comerer <br />said. <br />"I was sure of the outcome, <br />but the Ouray County Com- <br />missioners felt the hardships on <br />Ridgway from the project need- <br />ed to be aired. We'll continue to <br />try and sol ve the problems <br />there. " <br /> <br />Kent Nelson, an attorney and <br />freelance writer living in <br />Ridgway said the large tUrnout <br />in favor 'of the project was <br />reminscent of the election of <br />Richard Nixon in 1972. "The ma- <br />jority has been wrong before," <br />he said. <br />"It's about what 1 expected <br />with the massive publicity <br />program the Tn-County putout. <br />It's too bad the opposition didn't <br />have the same resources'. <br />"There was a good economic <br />argument to be made.against the <br />.project and the people in Mon- <br />trose and Delta will prObably <br />suffer in the future. Maybe I'll <br />be proven wrong," Nelson said, <br />"but 1 doubt it." <br />