Boulder: zen and now

As such, she and residents have to embrace the rural lifestyle. Everyone here does, because it is two hours to the nearest real grocery store, and 90 minutes from a medical clinic. There are no movies for the town's residents. Instead, there is quiet and a commitment to rural life.

Despite its remoteness, the community is taking innovative steps to take care of its residents. For example, because affordable housing is scarce in Boulder, many workers at the restaurant end up living in tents and trailers during the spring, summer and fall months when the restaurant is open.

So the two owners of Hell's Backbone Grill bought a nine-bedroom house where employees of the world-class restaurant could live affordably during the restaurant's season.

Marci Milligan, president of the Lotus Community Development Institute, traveled to Boulder in July to tell the Town Council about the Utah Workforce Housing Initiative, a program that helped channel a $25,000 grant toward down payment and closing costs for the house.

The financing alternatives also included a no-interest second mortgage that allows affordable rents for employees who want to stay in Boulder year-round, Milligan said.

Boulder is one of the five pilot communities for their program. The town has been proactive in asking for planning help from county and state officials, she said. The project was an opportunity to leverage a small amount of grant funds to make a large and lasting impact in the lives of local service workers, she said.

"The project has gained tremendous support and has generated good will amongst local neighbors," Milligan said in a written statement. "The owners of Hell's Backbone Grill followed the new local-first commitment and sought out alternative solutions ... so that all might benefit."

And in a county that has struggled economically, some Boulder residents place their confidence in their own creative recipes for a healthy community.

Garfield County officials said recently they want to develop the whole county as an off-road or ATV playground. That isn't a good fit for most Boulder residents.

"We've asked them to think of the county as a mosaic and to recognize that some areas have built business plans on a quieter form of recreation," Vargas said.

"That is the main business of Boulder," she said, "preserving what we have.

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E-mail: lucy@desnews.com