Founders’ Day returns after hiatus

PAGE 2 WEEKLY REGISTER-CALL PAGE 3 WEEKLY REGISTER-CALLApril 10, 2025April 10, 2025

TODAY COULD BE YOUR LUCKY DAY

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As seen through the databanks of Chat GPT

talk about hot /f_ires

I often wonder if readers in rural Gilpin County grow

weary of all the dual-city headlines.

We still believe there should be one school district in

Gilpin County to lower the taxes in the northern end of

Gilpin.

WR-C still favors a passenger train stop in Rollinsville

to boost tourism and recreation. With the Eldorado Ski

Resort for sale, new owners may find the passenger train

stop quite appealing. Tourists could “ride the rails” to

Rollinsville and spend the day in Nederland or Black

Hawk and Central City, taking advantage of van sched-

ules and casino promotions.

The food pantry debate appears to have reached a

resolution. It will be situated near the current pantry.

The costs have nearly doubled over the past few years.

Last year, I visited the pantry and found it clean, well-

managed, and stocked with healthy food items. It is rare

for a county to operate a food pantry, but we must con-

sider that the only nearby full-service grocery stores are

located in Nederland, Idaho Springs, and Evergreen.

The county is well-served by excellent gas and conve-

nience stores that offer many commodities; however,

grocery shoppers looking for fresh produce, meat,

chicken, and fish must venture outside the county.

The latest turmoil involves the significant fires that

occurred in Central City this year. The Black Hawk Fire

Department deserves considerable “KUDOS” for arriv-

ing first at the fire scenes within minutes. This is a highly

professional fire department, well-funded by the City of

Black Hawk.

Central City has experienced two fires in recent weeks.

Gary Allen, the iconic

fire chief, has admirably

served the city for 50

years. Another out-of-

town fire consultant,

Michael Hogan, informed

the Central Council that

a new fire department

would cost between $10.5

and $19.8 million. That’s

a substantial expense

for a city of around 800

people to sustain, es-

pecially considering its

many aging buildings and

dwindling ownership.

It would benefit both

cities to establish com-

mittees to work out an

agreement that enhances

fire coverage for every-

one.

together will also help

if government funding

decreases like County

Commissioner Jeff Aiken

warned when he returned

ground. He served for

eight years on the Central

City Council.

for saving lives with such

a rapid response to the

fires, but a discussion

between the towns is

needed—and soon.

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Weekl y Register-Call

Central asks BH for meeting to

discuss ﬁre-aid situation

Central City Manager Dan-

iel Miera has requested that

leaders from neighboring Black

Hawk convene to discuss the

ongoing situation concerning

the mutual-aid fire department

agreement between the two

cities.

Last week, Black Hawk in-

formed Central of its council de-

cision on March 26 to terminate

the long-standing mutual-aid

agreement effective April 30.

Black Hawk’s aldermen unan-

imously voted to terminate the

agreement after hearing how its

paid professional fire depart-

ment was the first on the scene

and successfully extinguished

two major fires in Central City

on Feb. 12 and March 20. Cen-

tral City, which has a paid chief

but primarily relies on volun-

teers, lacked sufficient resources

to combat the two blazes.

Because of the recent fires,

Black Hawk officials said their

city is “subsidizing” Central

City. They claim leaders in that

community have been talking

about fire department improve-

ments for nearly a decade but

haven’t made any significant

changes.

Central’s reliance on its

neighbor incurs costs for Black

Hawk’s fire and police depart-

ments while pulling its re-

sources out of town, potentially

endangering Black Hawk’s resi-

dents and casino guests if a sig-

nificant alarm arises. The Feb.

12 fire at the Gold Mountain

Village Apartments, which took

the life of 75-year-old Kathleen

Reffle, resulted in Black Hawk

Police Department Sgt. Levi

Marston and Officer Sean Web

being taken to the hospital for

smoke inhalation. The two offi-

cers were the first on the scene,

navigating through heavy smoke

to alert residents and evacuate

the building.

Miera stated that he believes

Black Hawk will respond if

another situation arises that

jeopardizes the lives of Central

City residents.

The Black Hawk mutual aid

termination letter was received

by Miera early last week. “It’s

unfortunate to have received

the letter that we did,” Miera

commented. “It doesn’t seem

to say they won’t consider not

assisting us if it were neces-

sary. I would have much rather

seen any concerns that Black

Hawk had with us discussing

party-to-party…and not using

the termination of the mutual-

aid agreement as the starting

point. We have reached out to

Black Hawk to see if they have

any interest in sitting down with

us for a conversation about it.

I haven’t had any confirmation

of that interest, just yet, but I’m

“I think that talking through

these things and trying to figure

out where deficiencies are and

how we can become better

partners and neighbors,” added

Miera. “It’s always important

– no matter what the topic is.

Ultimately, I do believe that the

highly-trained professionals

with Black Hawk and Timber-

line Fire Protection District

can get to the point where – if

we need their assistance – I’m

hopeful they will be there.

Ultimately, we’re all one com-

munity, although obviously,

there are different jurisdictions.

However, we’re all there trying

to serve the same purpose and

to serve and protect the com-

munity. I don’t think it’s a secret

that some have more resources

Earlier in March, Emergency

Services Consulting Interna-

tional’s report on the Central

City Fire Department’s present

and future needs was presented

to city aldermen. One of the key

points was that Central City –

like many organizations across

the country – is having difficulty

recruiting volunteers.

“Often-times, most volun-

teers have full-time jobs,” said

Miera. “We’re always extremely

thankful for the service and

dedication we’ve always had

from our volunteers. However,

the [shortage] is something

we’ve identified, and know we

have gaps. We’d like to begin

to make long-range progress. If

you look at our fire department

budget, we have, over the years,

added more and more resources

whenever possible. We had one

paid position, which has been

the norm for decades. Now,

we’re starting to add additional

paid positions. We’ve also spent

money on equipment and train-

Miera acknowledged that

Central City has faced financial

challenges due to declining

casino revenues in recent years.

“We’re doing the best we can

with what we have, and I think

that’s what we’re going to con-

tinue to do. Our revenues aren’t

what they are for our neighbors.

Obviously, the resources and

service levels are going to be dif-

ferent. I think we always want to

be there to assist our neighbors

whenever we can, to the extent

that we can. We are always look-

ing for partnerships. It’s unfor-

tunate that we’ve had two fires

in a short period of time. That’s

the reality we’re just dealing

According to stories reported

by the Weekly Register-Call, the

relationship between Black

Hawk and Central City over the

decades has been filled with

multiple stories. While the two

cities have worked together at

times, there have been situa-

tions where the disputes be-

tween elected officials resemble

a Hatfields vs. McCoys scenario.

Both cities collaborate to

manage the Black Hawk Central

City Tramway buses, offering

visitors complimentary rides

to casinos in the surrounding

communities. The Black Hawk-

Central City Sanitation District

oversees the wastewater lines

and a treatment plant on High-

way 119 that serves residents,

businesses, and casinos in both

areas.

However, it’s not uncommon

to hear elected officials make

barbed remarks or pointed com-

Founders’ Day returns after hiatus

Patrick Henry Sweeney

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