Humane Society Needs Your Help

The Powerhouse Science Center welcomes in summer with its new exhibit, Pterosaurs: Ancient Rulers of the Sky. Durango Transit will be free June, July and August to encourage people to ditch their cars in favor of public transit. West Side and Triangle Mobile home parks receive an award for the work the community has done to maintain affordable housing for their community. And La Plata County Humane Society is beyond capacity and needs your help. You’re watching the local news roundup brought to you by Kroegers, Ace Hardware and Serious Texas Bar-B-Q. I’m Connor Shreve. The La Plata County Humane Society is in desperate need of help. As of last Wednesday, the shelter was past capacity and suspended all owner surrender until June 5th. If you are in need of assistance with your animal, please call the shelter to find alternative services. If you’d like to help, there are a few ways to do that. First is to adopt. All adoption fees have been reduced and the annual adopt-a-thon is this weekend. The Humane Society is always on the lookout for people willing to foster animals. There are a few adult dogs who are in need of a loving foster home. Donate. The average cost of care for a pet per day is $25, and with an average stay of 27 days, the cost for care per pet comes to about $700. Any donations will help with costs associated with spaying and neutering, vaccinations, food and water, staffing, and any behavioral or additional vet care. Lastly, participate in the Humane Society Spay and Neuter program. La Plata County has a pet overpopulation problem, so please do take the time to spay or neuter your pet and encourage others to do the same. The Powerhouse Science Center kicked off the summer exhibit last weekend with a welcome party to celebrate Pterosaurs: Ancient Rulers of the Sky. The traveling exhibit highlights the flying reptiles that ruled the skies between the late Triassic through the late Cretaceous periods of the Mesozoic era, about 228 to 66 million years ago. Fly through an immersive landscape as a pterosaur, using your arms to flap, duck and lean in one of the eight digital interactive stations and explore fossil replicas of several pterosaur species. The exhibit encourages exploration of the evolution, diversity and lifestyle of pterosaurs and will be open through September 17th. Durango Transit will offer free transit June, July and August this summer, thanks to funding from the lodgers tax and Colorado’s ozone season transit grant program. The goal of the program is to encourage more people to use public transit to reduce summer traffic and reduce barriers to public transportation. With Clean Commute Week approaching June 24th through 28th, there is time to get in practice by hopping on the transit. Don’t forget to sign up for the Business Commute Challenge by June 9th to help reduce emissions, congestion and make a positive difference in the community this summer. The acquisition of the West Side and Triangle Mobile Home Parks won an Eagle Award this past month. The Eagle Award, established in 1990, celebrates the extraordinary accomplishments and outstanding leadership in housing and support services. The award recognizes agencies, individuals, projects and programs that go the extra mile to ensure safe, fair and affordable housing for all Coloradans. West Side Mobile Park was purchased by the members of the community after an outside company made an offer to purchase the park. And shortly thereafter, the new co-op purchased the neighboring Triangle Mobile Home Park to ensure housing stability for the inhabitants. The award was received by Alejandro Chavez, vice president of the West Side Co-op, Lisa Bloomquist Palmer, Executive Director of Homes Fund, and staff members from 9 to 5, Common Good Management and Elevation Community Land Trust. Learn more about these stories and other stories online at durangolocal.news. Thanks for watching this edition of the local news roundup, I’m Connor Shreve.