FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ANNOUNCES 2006 BOARD & OFFICERS

Trinidad, CO (March 24, 2006) – Trinidad-Las Animas County Economic Development recently welcomed five new Board members and a new slate of officers for the 2006 operating year. Incoming Board members include Jim Davis, Kathy Garlutzo, Donna Haddow, Nancy Lackey, and D. Fay Smith.

Jim Davis begins his second journey with the Economic Development Board, having been a Board member previously from 1998 through 2002. Jim and wife, Suzanne, have been residents of Las Animas County since 1996 and property owners since 1992. His background is in the investment/investment banking field, having spent the past 35 years in that career. He has owned his own investment banking firm, providing capital formation for public and private corporations, as well as municipalities. Since moving to Las Animas County, Jim has been active in the community forming and serving as President of the Santa Fe Trail Ranch Metropolitan District, which completed utilities in that development and obtained a water service contract with the City of Trinidad to provide City water to the development. He also worked on establishment of the Stone Ridge Metropolitan Districts 1 & 2 for the Cougar Canyon development and is the Districts' Board President.

Kathy Garlutzo is a Trinidad native. Kathy, together with her husband Jim, have owned and operated Elite Jewelers in downtown Trinidad for the past 16 years. Kathy feels the experience of owning a small, independent business gives a whole new perspective on the importance of developing a wholesome and thriving community. She feels that her experiences will be able to shed some light on the needs of the community, especially in reviving the downtown Trinidad area.

Donna Haddow has more than 22 years experience working in various medical offices in the Trinidad area. In 2002, she was hired as Administrative Assistant to the Executive Director of the South Central Council of Governments (SCCOG). One year later she transferred to the position of Loan Officer for the SCCOG single family, owner-occupied Housing Rehabilitation Program working with funds from a Community Development Block Grant, Rural Development Housing Preservation Grant, and Energy Solutions Grant and servicing the $2.7 million dollar loan portfolio. On January 3, 2006, Donna started as the Executive Director for the newly-formed Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO) sponsored by the South Central Council of Governments. The CHDO program will provide decent, affordable housing for the residents of Las Animas and Huerfano Counties through new construction or acquisition and rehabilitation of existing properties for sale or rent to low-to-moderate income households.

Nancy Lackey brings 28 years of real estate sales, development, and management experience to the Economic Development Board and is from the Ft. Collins and Denver areas. While working in Ft. Collins, she concentrated in the residential sales area with emphasis on new subdivision start-ups, executive corporate relocations with companies such as Hewlett Packard, Anheuser Busch, Eastman Kodak and site acquisitions for Taco Bell and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Her affiliations in the Denver area were with Re/Max of Cherry Creek and Re/Max 3000 as well as a commercial property management company. She and her team managed nearly one million square feet of office space, including medical facilities and government security areas as well as office space throughout the Denver Metro area. Nancy is the owner/broker of Sangre de Cristo Properties, in downtown Trinidad, and Mountain Trail Home Sales which is a representative for Genesis modular homes. Nancy’s research of the housing market in this area indicated a shortage of new homes in the $200,000-300,000 dollar price range. Her newly-developed sales center to display a new version of these modular homes, which are built to the IRC building code, is available for viewing at 3019 Toupal Drive. Nancy hopes to have four of these modular home units on display by mid-summer.

D. Fay Smith has more than 24 years experience in business administration. In 2004, Fay and her husband, daughter, son in-law and four-month-old grandson, relocated to Trinidad from Midland, Texas. After listening to community needs, and in an effort to give back and to help the local economy, she opened Just Shoe Me, Inc., a boutique shoe store located in downtown Trinidad in the historic McCormick Building (in the same location as Trinidad’s first shoe store). Prior to opening Just Shoe Me, Inc., Fay served as a retirement plan administrator for Inwest Pension Management. In this key management position, she managed the retirement plans for more than 60 companies in excess of $1million. While in Midland, Fay volunteered for seven years with the Special Olympics and served as a coach for soccer, basketball, and track. She received her undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Midland College.

These new Board members join existing members Clyde Nash, Charles Griego, Rosemary Fabec, and Cindi Rowan in taking on economic development issues facing Las Animas County.

Clyde Nash has served on the Economic Development Board since 2003 and has been elected as the Board’s President for calendar year 2006. In addition, he serves as Chair of the Board’s Business Development Committee. Currently, Clyde is an employee of Trinidad State Junior College functioning as Program Manager for the TSJC/CDOT program, Instructor of Business Law, and the Career and Business Partnerships Coordinator. He holds degrees from Iowa State University and Cooley Law School. His prior business experience includes Superintendent of Industrial Engineering, Human Resources Manager, and Secretary/Treasurer for a Research and Development Company. He is a licensed attorney in the state of Michigan. Clyde and wife, Theresa, have been residents of Trinidad since 1999.

Charles Griego has served on the Board since 2005 and was recently elected as Vice-President. Additionally, he serves as the Chair of the Economic Development Board’s Community Development Committee. He is a retired Letter Carrier and was involved with the National Association of Letter Carriers as an officer and served on the Employee Involvement Steering Committee. After his retirement, Charles attended the University of Southern Colorado where he earned his BA/BS Degree in Business with an emphasis in accounting. He was an adjunct instructor of accounting at Trinidad State Junior College and owned and operated an accounting and mortgage business. He is currently employed with the Colorado Department of Labor as an Employment Specialist where he helps veterans find employment and training.

Rosemary Fabec has served on the Economic Development Board since 2003 and for two years in the capacity of Vice-President. This year, she has been elected to the position of Secretary/Treasurer in addition to serving as the Chair for the Board’s Infrastructure Development Committee. Rosemary is the retired Business Manager for Trinidad School District #1 and the former Chief Accountant for the City of Trinidad. She has a degree in Business Administration and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). Prior to entering the accounting field, Rosemary ran a corporation serving the aerospace industry in Arizona, Texas, and Oklahoma. As a founding director of Noah's Ark Animal Welfare Association, she has served as its President for several years. Rosemary also presently assists her husband in property management of their real estate holdings in Trinidad.

Cindi Rowan moved with her family to Trinidad from Ft. Collins in 2001. She has served on the Economic Development Board since 2003 and was President for 2004 and 2005. This year, in addition to serving as a member of the Board, she serves as the Chair of the Board’s Downtown Development Committee. Cindi is a Landscape Architect and owner of Rowan Design and Consulting LLC, a landscape architecture and environmental consulting firm and Arid Oasis, Landscapes of the West, a landscape design/build and retail nursery company. Her recent projects include the design of the Trinidad Downtown Park, design of the Carnegie Public Library landscape, and the Trinidad State Junior College Educational Foundation Xeriscape Demonstration Garden. Cindi writes a regular column on landscape topics for the Trinidad Chronicle News and gives regional workshops on Xeriscape and landscape issues. Recently, she gave a presentation on Firewise landscapes at the American Society of Landscape Architects national conference in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Cindi developed a program in design and planning at Trinidad State Junior College and is part time faculty. Cindi has also previously served as President of the Corazon Y Animas Main Street Group, which focused on downtown promotion and revitalization. She is very involved with downtown revitalization organizations statewide and regularly attends revitalization and historic preservation conferences. Cindi and her husband are in the process of restoring the historic Aultman home which they share with their two boys and a variety of pets.

These nine, dedicated, volunteer Board members for Trinidad-Las Animas County Economic Development are passionate about developing tangible economic development tools and strategies for Las Animas County and the communities therein. They continue to work with the Final SWOT Report compiled from Trinidad’s Community Assessment, performed by the Governor’s Office of Economic Development & International Trade held last Fall, and have, as a result, created four subcommittees to focus efforts on the recommendations made in that document. As the Board continues to develop its 2006 goals and objectives and prepares for the Community Assessment Team’s follow-up – scheduled for Wednesday, April 12 – volunteer opportunities exist with each of these established Economic Development subcommittees (Business Development, Community Development, Downtown Development, Infrastructure Development) for interested, motivated individuals wishing to take an active role in shaping the growth and future of Las Animas County.

For more information on available volunteer opportunities, the Economic Development Board, the established Board subcommittees, the Trinidad Community Assessment, or the scheduled Community Assessment follow-up, please contact Meghan Harris Russell, Executive Director for Trinidad-Las Animas County Economic Development at (719) 846-9412 or via email at ed@tlac.net.

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