Moffat County, Craig join forces for coal transition talks

Craig and Moffat County officials recently met to discuss local priorities in the community’s transition away from coal.

During the joint meeting, Craig Mayor Chris Nichols shared that the city and county have been involved in what he described as “information gathering sessions” with representatives from Tri-State Generation and Transmission, and various state and federal agencies. Nichols said that before the next session, which is scheduled for Tuesday, the city and county need to reach a consensus on their combined coal-transition priorities and requests for community assistance.

“Each of the members present represent part of the community,” Nichols said. “That’s why we’re here — for input.”

City Economic Development Manager Shannon Scott said that conversations surrounding Craig’s future after the coal-fired power plant closes have always revolved around job creation and workforce retention, as well recouping lost property taxes.

She highlighted the need to target “industries that would fit within those guidelines and be equitable to what we’re losing out on.”

Regarding Tri-State’s role in Craig’s future efforts, there was a clear consensus that a locally controlled project fund bankrolled by Tri-State would be a preferred outcome.

“From the county’s perspective, we feel like it’s hard for the 14 people sitting here to come up with a list of priorities for the community,” Moffat County Commissioner Tony Bohrer said. “We want it to be a public process.”

Nichols concurred, observing that a locally formed board could direct funds for “economic development purposes — business improvement, business incentives, projects as they come up in the community.”

Scott added that one benefit of a board would be local control over how the funds are spent without first “going through all the hoops of state and federal agencies.”

Moffat County’s Natural Resources Director Jeff Comstock interjected to remind the group that there was more than money at stake in the transition.

“It’s easy to think of all of this in cash — it’s easy to allocate that,” he said. “The tougher part is the assets that Tri-State has that may not be immediately available, like land, water and buildings.”

Comstock noted that the community and its elected officials historically have held “very strong policy positions about that water staying in the valley.”

Comstock’s statement drew strong agreement from Bohrer, who focused particularly on Tri-State’s water rights.

As opposed to the physical structures found at Craig Station, “Tri-State didn’t create that water,” Bohrer stated. “It was Moffat County’s and western Colorado’s before it was ever Tri-State’s. They didn’t develop this or create this. It was ours.”

Returning the discussion to the community’s possible asks, the group reiterated its shared preference for local control over any potential payouts from Tri-State.

“I think that is one of the most important parts of this — not begging somebody else for outside money,” Bohrer said.

Commissioner Melody Villard seconded Bohrer, arguing that having to submit individual project pitches to Tri-State for approval would not only remove local control, but potentially stifle economic growth.

Responding to a second option proposed by Tri-State for the city and county to hand-pick some projects that Tri-State could directly fund, Comstock stressed the need for broad community involvement and a “true public process.”

Remarking that such a proposal would involve “bad governance” that made him and others “uncomfortable,” Comstock argued against the second option.

City Council member Derek Duran pointed out that the outcome will affect more than just the city and county officials, referencing the school district, the hospital and “other pillars in the community.”

“I know we have our priority list and the county has their priority list, but we need to be thinking of them as well,” Duran said.

To wrap up the discussion, Nichols shared his understanding that the group’s ask on Tuesday would be the creation of a local board with control of funds from Tri-State.

Duran commented that in previous meetings with Sen. Michael Bennet and Tri-State’s CEO, he’d repeatedly heard that the respective leaders hoped to set a good example for closures with the Craig Station process.

“All of these politicians are saying we want Craig to be the example,” Duran said. “Let’s just shoot for the moon and ask for it…