Tiny Towns December Meeting Recap

in Blogs, Monthly Calls, economic development

DCI's final Tiny Town Meeting of the year took place last week on December 5th and afforded the Tiny Town Team a moment to reflect on the topics that were the most meaningful as well as ones to explore in the new year. Communities also shared their holiday plans in Colorado’s Tiny Towns, all while these community leaders continue to wrestle with finalizing the budget. In addition, the meeting had guest speakers Dawn Thilmany and Rebecca Hill from Colorado State University to share resources for Tiny Towns.

The Tiny Towns in attendance this week were San Luis, Ophir, Yampa, Brookside, Red Cliff, New Raymer, Moffat, and Kiowa County. Some holiday celebration highlights included:

Eads- Merry on Main
Ophir- Sledding Party
San Luis- Maneto (Little Brothers) Christmas do Oremos along with a town tree and luminari all down main street
Yampa- Parade with Santa Clause
Walsenburg- Parade of Lights
Hot Sulphur Springs- Christmas and Winter Songs concert
Brookside- Holiday brunch
New Raymer- lights and Santa Claus visit

Beyond holiday plans, the Tiny Town team reviewed the discussions held throughout the past year and highlighted some favorite topics and potentials ones for next year. Topics ranged from understanding what stores work in small towns, to grant applications and management, and public private partnerships for redevelopment opportunities. The towns also shared resources regarding helpful grants, agencies, and support networks for each other.

DCI is honored to support this group of small but mighty champions and we look forward to another great year in 2023. Thank you!

If you know a Tiny Town that would like to be connected to other Tiny Towns in the state, please refer them to Kylie Brown, Rural Program Manager, at [email protected].