SUMMIT COUNTY - Local medical marijuana dispensary owners were scrambling this week to keep their doors open.
Sunday is the deadline for the centers - as defined by new state laws - to apply for a state license. The next opportunity will be summer 2011.
"I'm getting ready to deliver a bible of paperwork," said Cory McNeill, owner of the Breckenridge Loft. "The most highly scrutinized license ever given out in American history makes it very nerve wracking."
There's a business application and a personal one. The latter requires a 10-year employment and business association history, detailed personal financial information, fingerprinting, copies of all higher education degrees and more.
Meanwhile local governments are dealing with their own stacks of paperwork. Breckenridge Town Council recently passed an emergency ordinance to allow two of its roughly seven dispensaries to change hands before Aug. 1.
And with another state legis

BRECKENRIDGE - Building plans for a lot along Highway 9 north of Breckenridge have run into hard times, and town officials are giving the potential developers one last chance before abandoning the parcel's annexation.
The roughly 4 acre lot - across County Road 450 from 7-Eleven - on county land was approved several years ago for mini-storage and commercial space.
But the site's high visibility led to negotiations between developers and the town for annexation: The developers wanted access to town water and town leaders wanted input on the aesthetics of what's been called the "gateway" to Breckenridge.
A year ago, it appeared the two parties had reached a compromise for development separating commercial space, affordable housing and mini-storage units into thirds. The town would develop the 1.6 acres in the middle for housing.
Today the Entrada property, purchased in 2006 for $2.5 million, is under foreclosure with a Sept. 3 sale

The Arkansas River's flow could fall below optimum rafting levels for a few hours next week as searchers seek access to a hazard where they suspect a missing woman's body could be lodged.
"Hopefully it'll be a small, little bubble going down the river," said Stew Pappenfort, senior ranger at Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, adding that the flow will likely return to normal after four to six hours.
Reducing flows to aid in a rescue is an unprecedented method in the area, and engineers at the Bureau of Reclamation are working on the specifics of its orchestration, he said.
First-year, off-duty raft guide Kimberly Appelson, 23, disappeared shortly after she was ejected from a boat near Frog Rock rapid on July 11.
The Breckenridge resident fell out near a notorious underwater sieve, which works likes a narrow tunnel of rocks funneling water and creating high pressures. At least six people have died at the site since 1990.
Search crews have had di

BRECKENRIDGE - Seasonal traffic messes have Breckenridge officials considering electronic signs at two key locations, but not all of the town's council members are on board.
"This is the antithesis to what our community's done over last at least 20 years with signage - how the town looks, the feel," Councilman Eric Mamula said of a suggested sign placement along Highway 9 north of town.
The highway sign would be double-sided, and it would be used to direct arriving vehicles and give departing vehicles a report on Interstate 70 traffic and road conditions. A single-sided sign at the base of the Breck Connect Gondola would also offer conditions - as well as potentially persuade guests to stay in town until traffic dissipates.
The other six council members at Tuesday's work session said they would support the signs. Mayor John Warner said the signs would help with parking, preventing the unnecessary idling of vehicles.
"It's

BRECKENRIDGE - The 41st annual Colorado Association of School Executives Convention kicked off bright and early Wednesday with a special speaker - Colorado's Commissioner of Education Dwight Jones. The three-day conference is being held at Beaver Run Resort in Breckenridge.
Jones said he sees himself as a service provider for educators in the state, and he acted as the introductory speaker for the convention. With three days of keynote speakers, clinics and networking, the school executives conference aims to help educators invest in themselves as school leaders who will, in turn, invest in Colorado's kids.
Jones was appointed to his post in June 2007 and, under his guidance, the Colorado Department of Education works to serve and support the field, partnering with schools and districts on education initiatives. The department also directs resources to the districts with the most need.
The commissioner's leadership has recently focused on closing the a