Show cortez absorbs boom calls it growth contoz a bustling city of about 2 1500 aw people hai ha enjoyed a healthy and prosperous growth but not a boom as the result of 0 the branit uranium in mining activities the city now Is benefiting from operations of but one uranium mine in montezuma county and it has been in ope operation ration only since last october there th ere has been uranium activity vity sin since cc 1945 however during t the he past part several years yeam bank deposits dep 0 s its in the busy southwestern colorado C city have increased au substantially because of 0 uranium and some companies op era erate ie from fro m headquarter headquarters in cortez according Arr ordin g to the cortez chamber of commerce a recently completed survey shows the population of cortez and its trade area to be in excel of cortez is the co county u ny se seat t a of f montezuma county and the largest city in its trade area its stores warehouses and allep i are the CLo economic heard of a tremendous geographic area with the growth came problems only recently county and service organizations became concerned with coning and still but little definite action has been taken the city ity itself is zoned hitting the pocketbooks of everyone in the community and its area atea have been the advances in food and clothing prices but the rise has not ot been out of line when considered c red with other similarly simala I 1 sized communities in the V U 7 a rent however is up an average of 15 25 per cent due largely to oil exploration and drilling in that area public officials and residents of cortez and its environs have other and more serious problems too for example the growth in population since IMS 1945 about 1400 has bas overtaxed the local hospital present school system and some other facilities however corter la is veil well staffed with professional peo pie such as physicians dentists ele sawyers and others housing Is also a problem but city officials are hopeful that a sew ew unit project which will be started this spring will ease case this situation dean P hanson manager of the cortez chamber of commerce comments actually cortez is enjoying a very healthy growth a prosperity due to many economic actors factors our geographic location in the colorado plateau is certainly advantageous uranium Ls darn important and cortex cortez boasts about being in the center of things cortez Is leaved by a municipal 0 owned water system w which ch takes water from irom the do dolores ore river water rights are adea adequate at to serve r erv about persons and now serves 8 about be because cause the water is 11 chlorinated and rates high with health authorities the city council is anxious to serve more users common laborers in the area receive about per hour for their services and there is a plent ful supply except when seasons seasonal employment io in a agriculture gri culture demands more wo workers rk e rs semiskilled semi skilled labor Is hard to find common laborers on construction projects receive per bous and semiskilled get per hour skilled workers in the construction field get as much as to 2 25 per hour the colorado employment service office in cortez has haz been efficient in supplying labor needs contributing to the economy of the district are four large truck lines which operate regular schedules into the city these freight companies are among the biggest in the thi plateau area and offset the disadvantage of their being no railroad to serve the district bus transportation is offered to an major points and frontier airlines often offers four flights dally from the montezuma county airport community services are as much in line with needs as Is presently feasible cortez has a public school system rated as excellent bovid providing a high school and aa an e elementary emen school which has been erected since the war still stir another calkins elementary has been remodeled and an additional grade school now under construction will be completed during the school term total enrollment is about 1159 1150 with in the montezuma county high school athletic teams of the high school compete in the class A state program 2 and the school boasts an outstanding band there is both softball and baseball on the city owned park facilities during summer months and cortex has an old tuners timers baseball organization providing reccea tion for kids nine through IS year years of age presently public spirited citizens are busy collecting coll ecUng funds for a municipal swimming val pool and engineers are sire drawing a preliminary plan for it to lure the fishermen of the state the state fish and game department provided funds for development of penny denny lake as a fishing area and park two miles east of cortez that project vas wal completed in 1954 serving the town now is a new sanitation district which has provided the new sections of cortez with sewer laterals literals late rals and adequate disposal treatment this system was completed in 1954 adding an invigorating factor for added productivity of labor laboz and recreation is the distinctive climate in the cortez district summer and winter each have four months spring and fall fail are two months average precipitation for cortez is 1356 inches and the a average v temperature is de g rees coolest month of the year is january jrees average temperature of 27 4 degrees and the warmest is july which has an average temperature of degrees all in all cortez and its adjacent area is a nice place to live work and play |