County, residents working toward new childcare facility
They said they plan to
have additional information
on the effort before the com-
missioners’ workshop meet-
ing, scheduled for Tuesday
afternoon, Feb. 20.
aware of our deadlines,” he
noted.
• Acting as the county’s
Board of Adjustments,
the commissioners
unanimously approved
an extension of a tempo-
rary housing permit for
Amber Cusano of Con-
estoga Road. The exten-
sion will expire on Nov.
14, the same time as her
permit to build a new
home on the property.
The nearly hour-long
hearing was like one
conducted in October
– filled with conten-
tious debate between
neighbors and Cusano
over allegations involv-
ing disputes over vari-
ous issues, ranging from
unleashed dogs to trash,
sanitation and com-
plaint calls to the Gilpin
County Sheriff’s Office.
housing and potential
changes to funding the
county’s emergency
dispatch center. Central
currently pays Gilpin
about $30,000 a year for
dispatch services.
Senior Reporter
Added County Manager
Ray Rears, “We consider it
abandoned property.”
Nearly three months after
the Eagles’ Nest Early Child-
hood Center closed, Gilpin
County leaders and residents
continue searching for a
new agency to launch a new
childcare center.
Previously, Gilpin officials
said the county provided
$410,000 to the Eagles’
Nest since 2019, includ-
ing $160,000 in 2023. The
county leased the building
for $1 annually to the non-
profit organization.
Denton, who once had a
child attend the previous
daycare facility, said there
are about six residents
conducting work on the
new operation. They are
trying to determine staffing
needs, pricing, by-laws and
other aspects of the opera-
tion. They will seek seven to
nine residents who want to
volunteer on the new orga-
nization’s board of directors.
She expressed optimism that
the new group could have
programs available early in
the summer.
• Resident Kathleen Bal-
four complained about
potential rec-center fee
increases, noting the
county plans to spend
$1.3 million for a new
food pantry and another
$100,000 to rehabilitate
the East Portal Cabins.
Lyndsey Denton, the coun-
ty’s commissioners’ clerk,
has spearheaded a resident
task force to help secure a
new operator for the Eagles’
Nest building, which Gilpin
County owns. She and resi-
dents Kathleen Balfour and
Amy Carr reported on their
progress during the Gilpin
Board of County Commis-
sioner meeting on Tuesday,
Feb. 13.
In other business during
the commissioners’ meeting:
• The BoCC approved ap-
plying for a $200,000
grant from the Colorado
Department of Commu-
nity Affairs. The Strong
Communities grant will
help the county pay to
revise its land-use code,
conduct a housing needs
and assessment study
and create an infrastruc-
ture needs implementa-
tion program.
• Resident Roxy Goss
reported more than 20
volunteers to help at the
food pantry, including
herself, who spends six
or seven hours a week
there. She noted others
help raise produce at
the nearby community
garden and donate those
items to help support
needy families and
individuals served by the
pantry.
The three volunteers said
they are working to create
a new non-profit organiza-
tion that would lease the
Eagles’ Nest facility from
the county. However, many
details on the project remain
unresolved since the group
began meeting regularly in
January. A survey conducted
among residents in Decem-
ber showed that most par-
ents are looking for childcare
Mondays through Thurs-
days, the same days the
neighboring Gilpin County
School District building is
operational.
Carr said she has oper-
ated a childcare center in
the Boulder County area but
would like to work in Gilpin
County, where she resides.
• The commissioners
voted to advertise for a
temporary maintenance
worker but delayed a
vote to hire temporary
help for the public works
department.
Gilpin County Attorney
Brad Benning said some
equipment was left behind
in the Eagles’ Nest building.
When the former operation
closed, it owed money for a
loan it had received from the
Small Business Administra-
tion. He said the SBA didn’t
meet a Feb. 9 deadline to
remove the property, so it
remains within the county-
owned building. “They were
• The BoCC accepted a
$9,164 federal Food and
Drug Administration
grant. The Gilpin County
Public Health Agency
will use the money
received annually to pro-
vide inspections, annual
licensing, education, and
support for nearly 100
retail food outlets.
• Rears said the county
can accommodate
residents with mobility
issues at BoCC meetings.
He said the county will
provide a ramp and an
accessible parking space
to residents who make
such a request at least 24
hours before a meeting.
• Rears announced the
county commission-
ers would meet with
Central City’s alder-
men during a workshop
session on March 19 at
Central’s city hall. The
two groups will discuss
