Stories in this list received the most page views on SummitDaily.com from April 6 – April 12. 

1. VIDEO: Colorado skier has close encounter with bear at Keystone Resort on closing day

Closing day at Keystone Resort appeared to coincide with the end of the winter denning season for bears — as a black bear charged across a ski run Sunday, April 6.

Brian O’Neal, a Greenwood Village resident, had a close encounter with that bear Sunday. O’Neal said he was skiing with his son. It was their first run of the day. They were cutting from the Peru Express chairlift over to the Summit Express chairlift on Last Chance, a green beginner run.

— Ryan Spencer

2. Colorado will stop issuing new licenses for grocery stores to sell hard alcohol after governor reluctantly signs bill 

Grocery and big-box stores in Colorado will no longer be able to apply for state licenses to sell hard alcohol under a bill signed Thursday, April 10, by Gov. Jared Polis. 

Senate Bill 33 is hailed as a win for independent liquor store owners and craft alcohol producers who’ve been reeling since the introduction of wine in grocery stores, the result of a 2022 state ballot measure. 

“The bill is truly a victory for independent retail liquor stores and the craft beverage industry and the economy it supports from the farm to the table,” wrote Chris Carran, a board member for Colorado Independent Liquor Stores United, in a text message. 

Carran, who owns a liquor store in Silverthorne, has repeatedly called attention to the disadvantages independent stores face compared to corporate chains, which are able to negotiate lower prices through bulk orders. She said small businesses are often where local brewers, winemakers and distillers stock their products. 

​​Currently, a few dozen grocery stores in Colorado hold a liquor license, including the Western Slope’s sole Costco, located in Gypsum, which began selling hard alcohol in 2018. Stores with existing licenses would be able to continue selling under the bill, but lawmakers say it will give independent businesses peace of mind for the future. 

— Robert Tann

3. ‘Speechless at the thought:’ Rural Colorado leaders worry state cuts to road and bridge funding will put languishing projects farther out of reach 

Road and bridge projects in Colorado will lose tens of millions of dollars in funding over the next two years under state lawmakers’ proposed spending plan — one of the largest cuts being considered as legislators look to close a $1.2 billion budget shortfall. 

The budget package introduced last week would cut $64 million from the State Highway Fund in the 2025-26 fiscal year and another $50 million the following fiscal year. Lawmakers say they would eventually make up for the reduction by boosting funding in later years. 

The cuts, however, could have immediate impacts for a running list of the state’s highest priority highway projects. Leaders on the Western Slope fear it will delay planned infrastructure investments that they say have already languished. 

“Transportation is historically very underfunded in the state of Colorado,” said Margaret Bowes, executive director for the Colorado Association of Ski Towns, “and it is just so critical to mountain communities.” 

Unreliable transportation, from irregular bus lines to poor road conditions, can threaten rural residents’ ability to commute to their jobs, especially for those who’ve been priced out of the ski towns where they work. As vacationers continue to flock to resort areas year-round, many communities are also “being overwhelmed with too many cars” that accelerate road deterioration, exacerbate congestion and threaten safety, Bowes said. 

— Robert Tann

4. Summit County to pay more than $4 million in total to developer for work on frozen housing project on U.S. Forest Service land

The Summit County government will pay more than $4 million in total to a developer for its work on an affordable housing project that has been put on hold indefinitely, according to county officials.

The Summit Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday, April 8, approved a termination letter that ends a pre-development agreement with Servitas, a housing development company, related to the housing project on U.S. Forest Service land.

Summit County manager David Rossi wrote in the letter that the project “has faced a number of challenges which have called into question the overall viability of the Project and the County has elected to terminate the Project.”

Planned on a parcel of U.S. Forest Service land near Dillon, the construction of the 162-unit workforce housing project had previously been expected to start this year. But the county announced in February that the project was on hold, with no current timeline for when it might resume.

Summit County communications director Adrienne Saia Isaac said Thursday, April 10, that the county’s lease of the U.S. Forest Service land remains in place and the county is hopeful that a housing project there will eventually move forward.

— Ryan Spencer

5. Photos: Imperial Challenge held at Breckenridge Ski Resort

The Imperial Challenge was hosted by Breckenridge Ski Resort on Saturday, April 5. The Imperial Challenge is a race that tasks competitors with racing from the Breckenridge Recreation Center to the base of Peak 7 and, after transitioning to uphill gear, climbing to the top of Peak 8 at 12,987 feet. The final leg is downhill to the finish back at the base of Peak 7.

— Summit Daily staff