Ear to the ground

“The best part was, he told me he’d been stuck in traffic.”

- A local woman after being stood up 45 minutes for a downtown business appointment

On the Money

Blue hair and Geritol may be in La Plata County’s future.Money Magazine, a publication known for its annual list of “America’s Best Places to Live,” recently added Durango to the lineup as a perfect spot to spend the Golden Years.

The October edition of the magazine listed Durango (“It gets its name from the Basque word for ‘water town.’” How many of you knew that?) among the top six destinations to retire.

Proximity to water and the Animas River were crucial. “Many baby boomers dream of retiring somewhere by the water,” the magazine wrote. “These half-dozen places are on a lake, a river or an ocean – yet won’t sink your retirement budget.”

In addition to waterfront,Money was looking for communities with good medical care, relatively low taxes, affordable housing, well-rounded demographics, and lots of indoor and outdoor activities.

“Vacationers flock here to kayak (the Animas has Class V rapids), wield their fly-fishing gear (rainbow and brown trout are plentiful) or simply take in water views … Now many of those weekend warriors are retiring, setting up base camp in condos near downtown and feeding their outdoor addiction daily.”

The other baby boomer hotspots included Sequim, Wash.; Marble Falls, Texas; Dunedin, Fla.; Beaufort, S.C.; and St. Joseph, Mich. But unlike these other Golden destinations, Durango boasted another stand-out feature – the highest home prices of the six retirement spots.

“In part because Durango snuggles up against the mountains, which limits the supply of buildable land, there has been no real estate bust here. The median sale price in La Plata County is up 18 percent through the second quarter of this year. Result: The typical three-bedroom home goes for $500,000, making Durango the priciest of the six towns on our list.”

A ticket to McCain

Just in case you missed it, Durango is apparently the next 2008 election battleground. Republican presidential candidate John McCain is pulling into town this Friday for a “Road to Victory” campaign stop at the Durango High School football field. Doors to the rally open at 4:30 p.m.

Colorado voters have been enjoying a great deal of swing state attention this year. McCain’s running mate, Sarah Palin, visited Colorado this week, drawing a crowd of 10,000 in Grand Junction. And Democratic vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden held rallies in Pueblo and Colorado Springs last Wednesday.

People interested in seeing the “maverick” up close must obtain a free ticket prior the event. Visit www.colorado.johnmccain.com to get on the list. Tickets will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis.