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Tamales from Blue Corn Modern Mexican

The corner of Colorado Avenue and Fifth Street in downtown Grand Junction was once a bustling little area on mornings and early afternoons.

Christie Aschwanden / KHN On a sunny Saturday this month, Ruth Hatfield was sitting with a friend’s dog on a sidewalk bench in downtown Grand Junction. Back home in Snowmass Village, 120 miles away through winding Rocky Mountain roadways, local officials had just shut down indoor restaurant dining as COVID-19 cases reached some of the highest levels in Colorado. Here in Grand Junction, though, restaurants were open, and Hatfield had sought out those with the local health department’s “5-star certifications,” a designation meant to reassure people it is safe to patronize businesse...

Christie Aschwanden | KHN GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — On a sunny Saturday, Ruth Hatfield was sitting with a friend’s dog on a sidewalk bench in downtown Grand Junction. Back home in Snowmass Village, 120 miles away through winding Rocky Mountain roadways, officials had just shut down indoor restaurant dining as the number of coronavirus cases reached some of the highest levels in Colorado. In Grand Junction, though, restaurants were open. And Hatfield had sought out those with the health department’s “5-star certifications,” a designation meant to reassure people it is safe to patroniz...

Christie Aschwanden/KHN Requirements for Mesa County’s 5-star program include mask enforcement for employees and customers, regular cleaning schedules, hand sanitizing stations and spacing of furniture. On a sunny Saturday in January, Ruth Hatfield was sitting with a friend’s dog on a sidewalk bench in downtown Grand Junction. Back home in Snowmass Village, 120 miles away through winding Rocky Mountain roadways, local officials had just shut down indoor restaurant dining as COVID-19 cases reached some of the highest levels in Colorado. Here in Grand Junction, though, restaurants were open...