- The Good Samaritan Center food pantry in Cortez sees an increase of roughly 40 percent in the number of people it serves.
- At $125 million, Latigo Wind Farm will be the largest private construction project in the history of San Juan County, Utah.
The Good Samaritan Center food pantry in Cortez is seeing an increase of roughly 40 percent in the number of people it serves. Center Director Kristen Tworek tells KSJD the center helped 4 thousand 842 people in all of 2014, but by the end of August of this year it had already assisted nearly that many, with the average up by 162 people per month. The center, which provides emergency food staples for low-income residents of Montezuma and Dolores counties – often in the lag time before they can start receiving food stamps – is also seeing more clients who come back three or more times. One-third of its clients are children. Tworek comments, “When I’m hungry and I have to go to a meeting, I can’t concentrate, so I’m sure hunger causes problems in schoolchildren as well as working people and the elderly.” Tworek says donations have not kept pace with the increased demand and the center will probably have to dip into its small savings at the end of the year. Anyone wanting to donate non-perishables such as canned food and cereal can do so at the center, which is located at 25 South Beech Street. It is open Monday through Thursday from noon to 2.
In regional news, the San Juan Record reports that the Latigo Wind Farm will be the largest private construction project in the history of San Juan County, located in southeastern Utah. The $125 million project, which is currently under way, will erect 27 wind turbines on 3600 acres of leased private land north and west of Monticello. The Record reports that sPower Corporation, which owns the project, says it will produce electricity for up to 60,000 people. It is the fourth large wind park in the state of Utah.
