In rural counties, pandemic money was used with suspicion

Moffat County, in northwest Colorado’s excessive nation, and Cheyenne County, on the southeastern plains, present how the distribution and use of COVID-19 aid funds diversified as a lot because the state’s geography.

Roughly $63 billion in support from 22 main packages streamed into Colorado after the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020 and restrictions and shutdowns cascaded throughout the financial system.

The financial impacts in Moffat and Cheyenne have been totally different from communities alongside the Entrance Vary and even neighboring counties, the place tourism and snowboarding are large enterprise and the financial shock waves first hit the toughest.

Avisionews’s evaluation of the billions in support and tens of hundreds in loans confirmed that Colorado’s rural counties, exterior the mountain resort counties, obtained considerably much less federal pandemic help, $7,202 per resident, than different areas. Resort counties, against this, obtained $11,652 per resident, whereas metro areas obtained  $9,574.

Each areas are rural, however Moffat, thirty fifth in inhabitants out of 64 counties, was simply 53rd in per capita funding at $6,832, or 39% under the state common, in response to Avisionews’s evaluation. Cheyenne County, 59th in inhabitants, was seventh in per capita funding at $12,721, about 25% larger than the common per-resident quantity.

Regardless of the variations in funding, the counties confronted related challenges in maintaining on prime of the help out there. They didn’t essentially have all of the sources that public businesses and companies had in additional populous components of the state.

“I do know there have been lots of people who have been actually pissed off with the (Paycheck Safety Program) as a result of it was complicated as as to if you even certified,” mentioned Jennifer Holloway, govt director of the Craig Chamber of Commerce.

In Moffat and Cheyenne counties, companies deemed as important and allowed to maintain going in the course of the pandemic — farming, ranching, coal mining, energy vegetation, oil and fuel — are among the many cornerstone industries. Xcel Vitality’s 229-turbine, 500 megawatt Cheyenne Ridge wind farm straddles Package and Cheyenne counties.

Searching and fishing, which thrive on social distancing, are additionally large attracts in each areas. Moffat County, with virtually 2 million acres of public land, is thought nationally for its elk and deer herds. Searching within the county generates about $12 million yearly, in response to a report by Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

“What’s good about rural is we’re extra open than the cities. Our six toes of social distancing may be very simple to determine,” mentioned Debbie Knudsen, the city clerk for Cheyenne Wells.

Companies in Cheyenne, Kiowa and Package Carson counties did nicely in acquiring PPP loans, however most rural counties, like Moffat, and particularly Costilla and Crowley, lagged behind. Past having a smaller focus of companies, rural areas additionally are inclined to have extra restricted banking sources, which made it tougher for debtors to navigate the bureaucratic maze and get the assistance they wanted.

Cheyenne County has a inhabitants of practically 1,750 individuals and is 1,781 sq. miles in measurement, or about 1.1 million acres. Moffat County has a inhabitants of 13,283 and is 4,743 sq. miles, or roughly 3 million acres.

In some methods, the bigger distances and fewer individuals allowed extra locals to help one another, serving to the areas climate the pandemic, residents mentioned.

“All of us work collectively and assist one another,” Knudsen mentioned. “We help our companies right here as a result of it’s vital.”

Nonetheless, native companies didn’t shut and cut back to the extent they did in different components of the state, Moffat County Commissioner Melody Villard mentioned. “We have been impacted, however I don’t assume in the identical manner as another areas of the state as a result of we’re sparsely populated.”

The companies and organizations that have been affected received help from locals who possible grew up with the enterprise house owners or know them from crossing paths in the identical group, she added.

“We rallied round neighboring companies and located methods to nonetheless help them even when they weren’t capable of be open,” Villard mentioned.

Nonetheless, because the county emerges from the pandemic’s financial fallout, one other disruption is looming that can have “a a lot larger impression for probably an extended time on our revenues,” Villard mentioned.

The three models of the Craig Station coal-fired energy plant and a mine that provides it should shut down over the following few years as utilities and the state attempt to meet targets for cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions. The closures will have an effect on about 700 direct high-paying jobs and help companies, on prime of phasing out a serious supply of native property tax income.

Banking on group

Though Cheyenne County is certainly one of Colorado’s least populated counties, it obtained the third-highest quantity in cash per capita via the Paycheck Safety Program. Greg Weed, CEO of Cheyenne Wells-based Jap Colorado Financial institution, mentioned his employees labored arduous on reaching out to space companies.

“We’re a small group financial institution. That’s what we do,” mentioned Weed, whose grandparents began the financial institution in 1944.

A considerable variety of the greater than 240 small PPP loans organized by space banks went to farms and ranches. “We tried actually arduous to see that nobody was missed,” Weed mentioned.

Extra space farmers and ranchers certified for the loans within the second spherical after the rules have been modified. The cash offered farmers with the assistance they wanted in the course of the worst a part of the pandemic, Weed added. The loans are forgiven if a majority of the cash is spent on payroll.

Two PPP loans of $11,747 every helped “tremendously,” mentioned Stan Wells, who owns OYO Lodge Cheyenne Wells on U.S. 40. Each the pandemic and the departure of some oil business staff led to a lull in enterprise.

The lodge, previously referred to as the Path Inn Motel, additionally serves as a home violence useful resource and psychological well being respite, Wells added. Whereas it’s been a battle to make ends meet, the lodge is now usually 75% full, with enterprise wanting up, he mentioned.

Mitchek Farms GP in Package Carson obtained a $12,641 mortgage in April 2020, with one other one for $21,250 taken out by Ervin Mitchek, who runs the enterprise with two relations, in February 2021. Daughter Debbie Mitchek, who works because the secretary, acknowledged that the cash was a assist, then summed up a sense prevalent within the closely Republican county: “None of us are large authorities individuals.”

The youthful Mitchek mentioned in a phone interview that she nonetheless believes “the federal government ought to have accomplished none of it.”

Megan Wendt mentioned the PPP loans she and her husband, Derek, received for his or her oilfield companies firm allowed them to maintain a lot of their staff when demand plummeted. Nonetheless, Wendt, who additionally runs a cattle operation and a propane enterprise in Cheyenne Wells, mentioned she is a bit cautious of the “free” cash given out in the course of the pandemic.

“It’s a good factor to a sure extent, however who is aware of the place it should come again to chew you within the years to return,” Wendt mentioned. “We utilized and adopted the necessities. That’s all we will do.”

Wendt and Sons Oilfield Service, which works primarily in North Dakota, obtained PPP loans of $498,486 and $465,500. The Wendts didn’t apply for help for his or her different companies.

Considerations about strings hooked up to the federal support induced the city of Cheyenne Wells to carry off on spending it. Knudsen, the city clerk, mentioned the city will obtain $208,000 in American Rescue Plan Act cash. The help will go towards upgrading 5 of the city’s water wells to the most recent state requirements.

“If we spent it the mistaken manner, there was worry that we’d should pay it again. So, they held onto it,” Knudsen mentioned.

Funding the entrance traces

“We’ve not forgotten” those that’ve died, mentioned Cheyenne County Public Well being Company Director Kelli Adamson. “Our hearts proceed to interrupt.”

Adamson, who described Cheyenne as a “small, technically frontier” county, mentioned every demise “was felt extremely deep by not simply the households, however each neighbor, church pal, grocery retailer attendant.”

The Colorado Division of Public Well being and Setting places the county’s whole variety of COVID-19 instances at 321, confirming 9 deaths amongst these. Well being care suppliers in Cheyenne County and throughout the state obtained hundreds of thousands of {dollars} to reply to the pandemic that stuffed hospitals early on and in subsequent surges of the virus.

The Keefe Memorial Well being Service District obtained $2.94 million from the U.S. Well being and Human Companies Division’s Supplier Reduction Fund via the Well being Assets and Companies Administration. Keefe Memorial Hospital in Cheyenne Wells, with clinics in Prairie View and Package Carson, secured one other $103,253.

A portion of the cash was used for bonuses and different measures to retain staff, hospital spokeswoman Shannon Borders mentioned. The hospital and clinics additionally employed extra employees to deal with the inflow of sufferers.

Keefe Memorial Hospital additionally spent the cash on know-how to assist look after COVID-19 sufferers, similar to transportable and stationary digital imaging, laboratory tools and provides offering fast check outcomes, Borders mentioned.

“Over 150 miles separates KMH from the Denver metro space, so these upgrades enable our suppliers to look after sufferers who might not in any other case have entry to well being care,” she mentioned in an electronic mail. “We’ve efficiently helped sufferers recuperate from COVID within the consolation of their hometown.”

The Cheyenne County Public Well being Company obtained about $685,207 to help a broad vary of COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 testing “and epidemiologic surveillance-related actions.” Adamson mentioned the company obtained an extra $125,881 in COVID-specific immunization funds.

The hospital in Craig, Memorial Regional Well being, didn’t see its first large COVID caseload till round October 2020, when instances in different components of the state started to say no.

“That’s when looking season will get actually ramped up right here, so there have been much more individuals locally. That’s after we actually began to see a spike,” mentioned Jennifer Riley, the hospital’s chief working officer and interim CEO. “Our hospital was very full.”

The hospital was additionally short-staffed as a result of staff fell sick. A second wave occurred within the fall of 2021, maintaining the hospital busy via the vacations. State knowledge present Moffat County with a complete of two,999 instances and 41 deaths resulting from COVID-19.

At one level, Moffat County’s positivity charge — the share of all coronavirus exams which are optimistic — was among the many highest within the nation, she added. The hospital and well being suppliers handled resistance to the vaccines and masks. Riley mentioned the county’s vaccination charge is about 50%.

“The vaccine mandate undoubtedly began to erode the employees,” Riley mentioned. “Craig may be very conservative and that interprets to our workforce as nicely.”

She figures that 25 to 30 staff ended up leaving due to the vaccine mandate. Others retired early, took jobs as visiting nurses or left well being care due to COVID. Memorial Regional Well being has about 360 staff and at the moment has 80 job postings on its web site.

Riley mentioned, early within the pandemic, the hospital’s former CEO Andy Daniels may see that almost all elective companies would possible be halted to scale back the unfold of the coronavirus. Daniels and different rural hospital representatives succeeded in getting approval to proceed these companies and elective surgical procedures — what Riley referred to as “our lifeblood of help” — at critical-access hospitals.

The critical-access designation is by Medicare and usually applies to hospitals whose volumes is perhaps low, however present a security internet for rural areas. Memorial Regional Well being’s means to supply elective companies helped offset the losses when visits to the clinics and emergency room dropped, Riley mentioned.

The federal cash that the hospital obtained consists of $5.5 million from Well being and Human Companies, about $3 million in PPP cash and $986,000 in American Rescue Plan Act {dollars}.

The Craig hospital additionally obtained $7.3 million in Medicare accelerated funds, that are paid again over a variety of years by utilizing the cash for future claims. Riley mentioned the hospital has set the cash apart in case of an emergency, however in any other case will use it for Medicare bills.

Overcoming disadvantages

Anna Lighthizer and her aunt opened their enterprise, The Scorching Pickle Restaurant and Lounge, in a brand new location in Craig in November 2020, “as scary and loopy as that sounds.” The pandemic was in full power, they usually didn’t renew their administration settlement with the bowling alley the place they began the restaurant.

Lighthizer obtained a $10,000 grant from town to assist make it via the powerful spots, however missed out on different alternatives as a result of she didn’t learn about them or was unsure concerning the necessities. The restaurant added seating to a patio when inside seating was restricted, provided supply and curbside service and received by with plenty of help from the group.

“The group undoubtedly got here collectively, they usually made certain they ordered from us. I used to be attempting to patronize smaller eating places on the town,” Lighthizer mentioned. “We’re all out for that very same bread and butter, however we’re all in it collectively, too.”

Andrea Camp and her husband, Dale, together with one other couple, purchased the West Twin Cinema in Craig in 2019. After transforming the constructing, they opened for enterprise in December 2019. Quickly, COVID-19 began spreading.

“We barely had simply gotten the doorways open and had simply gotten the enterprise again up and working and ended up being closed down in March of 2020,” Camp mentioned.

The movie show received a $10,000 grant from the Colorado Workplace of Movie, Tv and Media, a $5,883 mortgage via the federal Financial Harm Catastrophe Loans and Advances program and $25,000 in grants from town.

“Truthfully, it actually has made the distinction in us having the ability to maintain the doorways open,” Camp mentioned. “Our working bills are comparatively excessive, with having to do social distancing and restricted capability and restrictions.”

Camp mentioned the theater house owners thought it was vital to maintain the enterprise open “and never have one other empty constructing” sitting downtown.

For Metropolis Supervisor Peter Brixius , maintaining the institutions open in Craig, which has about 9,000 individuals, was a precedence.

“In a small group, you’ll be able to’t actually afford to see a lot of these companies go stomach up,” Brixius mentioned.

The town used roughly $642,000 of its $2.85 million in federal aid funds to help native companies. The town added $170,000 from its basic fund.

Brixius mentioned town is now taking a look at what it might do to handle a scarcity of reasonably priced housing in Craig and among the labor shortages which have develop into a widespread downside in the course of the pandemic. A few of the aid funds will assist with coaching for brand spanking new cops.

Moffat County Faculty District RE-1 was like college districts throughout Colorado and the nation when the pandemic hit: scrambling to determine how you can maintain college students and staff secure whereas making certain instruction continued. They despatched children residence with iPads, got here up with lesson plans and utilized for the federal aid cash that may assist maintain every little thing rolling and staff on the payroll.

Nonetheless, there have been variations for the Moffat County district due to its small employees and distant location. Staff checked on college students to ensure that they had entry to the web. In some instances, individuals went to highschool to obtain materials and district staff arrange wi-fi hotspots for properties.