Cozy Home Project Finishes First Unit in Glenwood Springs

"New windows, paint, furniture and clean carpets go a long way in creating a sense of home."

That’s the bottom line for the first finished unit of the Cozy Home Project, a housing initiative launched by Mountain Valley Developmental Services in January. It’s a simple statement, but it cuts through the usual bureaucratic noise about affordable housing. This isn’t just about square footage. It’s about dignity.

Sara Sims, writing from Glenwood Springs, notes that the project is already making progress. They didn’t do it alone. The effort relied on a coalition of local partners: Black Hills Energy Community Grant, the Kiwanis Club of Glenwood Springs, Habitat for Humanity Roaring Fork Valley, and Belmont Clean & Restoration.

The result is a finished residential home. The partners added the physical improvements; the organization provides the structure. Sims says they are now moving on to the next home. It’s a tangible win for a community that has struggled with housing density and affordability for years.

While the housing project focuses on bricks and mortar, another letter highlights the political friction in the region. Susan Sullivan of Carbondale isn’t mincing words about Representative Jeff Hurd.

She acknowledges Hurd’s work on the Shoshone water rights acquisition. Water is life in the Roaring Fork Valley. Protecting those rights is non-negotiable for local agriculture and municipal use. But Sullivan argues that water rights alone don’t make a representative.

"There remains a significant gap between rhetoric and the defense of our democratic institutions," Sullivan writes.

She’s calling for a representative who doesn’t just attend photo ops. She wants someone who actively protects voting access and rejects the "polarizing partisanship" stalling progress in Washington. She’s asking for a firewall for democratic institutions, not a rubber stamp for partisan extremism.

Sullivan points to Alex Kelloff and Dwayne Romero as alternatives. She argues that the Roaring Fork Valley has options that prioritize the Constitution over party loyalty. It’s a challenge to the current congressional delegation: deliver substance, not just optics.

The third letter takes a different angle entirely. It’s not about policy or politics. It’s about character. A former educator, who spent 30 years as a wrestling and football coach and Athletic Director, is making the case for Dan Loya for sheriff.

The writer knew Loya since fourth grade, when the family moved from Carbondale to Glenwood. They lived in a trailer in West Glenwood Springs. The family had seven siblings. They worked hard and didn’t expect handouts.

Loya excelled in sports. He earned four varsity letters in football and wrestling. He was a four-time state qualifier in wrestling, a three-time state placer, and a two-time state champion.

The writer uses Loya’s athletic discipline to predict his administrative competence. "Hard work, commitment, dedication and perseverance are only a few attributes that come into mind," the writer says.

It’s a personal endorsement, but it’s rooted in the same values the other letters espouse. Hard work. Local roots. Accountability.

The Cozy Home Project is building houses. Sullivan is building political pressure. The coach is building a case for leadership. All three are asking the same thing: are we getting results, or just noise?

The housing project proves that local partnerships still work. The political letter proves that voters are watching. The endorsement proves that character still matters in public service.

Sims says they are "on to the next home." That’s the kind of forward motion the rest of the community needs.