Denver Snags Outdoor Retailer Show For Next Five Years

Utah's loss is Colorado's gain. A dispute over Utah's decision to ask the federal government to rescind the national monument designation from Bears Ears has led to Outdoor Retailers deciding to move their trade shows to Denver for the next five years. The decision was announced Thursday.

The director of the shows, Marisa Nicholson, made the announcement in Denver along with Governor Hickenlooper and Mayor Hancock.

"We received submissions from truly incredible outdoor cities - a testament to the strength of the outdoor community,” said Nicholson. "Denver is the undeniable industry choice. Bringing these organizations together and basing the show in a state that places such a high value on outdoor recreation is the best move we can make for the outdoor industry."

The shows have called Salt Lake City home for the past 22 years. (For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

The organization says the their three shows - the Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show, Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, and Outdoor Retailer Winter Market - are expected to bring more than 85,000 attendees each year to Denver. Those people are expected to contribute an estimated $110 million to the city in direct spending each year.

The first Denver show - the Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show will take place January 25-28, 2018 and will take place at the Denver Convention Center.

"Colorado’s Outdoor Recreation Industry Office could not be prouder that Outdoor Retailer selected Denver as its new home," said Luis Benitez, director of Colorado’s Outdoor Recreation Industry Office. "The State of Colorado and Outdoor Retailer share the common belief that protecting public lands is not only good for the economy, but also, for the soul.

"We're especially excited to send a heartfelt welcome to all exhibitors and attendees and look forward to serving and promoting the industry for many years to come."

The trade shows started exploring a move earlier this year when President Trump ordered a review of 21 years of National Monument designations by his predecessors including President Obama's decision in December to designate 1.35 million acres as Bears Ears National Monument.

While President Obama's designation had been praised by conservationists and the tribal nations with ties to the area, it was opposed by many officials who said the designation was too broad.

"When President Obama designated the Bears Ears monument in December, he did so ignoring the voices of Utah leaders who were united in opposition, and even more importantly, ignoring the voices of the local Utahns most affected by this massive land grab,” Utah's senior senator, Orrin Hatch said in April.

Meanwhile, the coalition of five Tribes that make up the Bears Ears Commission - the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Pueblo of Zuni, and Ute Indian Tribe - which was established by the presidential proclamation are still waiting for a response from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to an offer they made last month to meet.

"Our people were forcibly removed from the Bears Ears area in the mid-1800s but we have always continued to return to this cultural landscape for ceremonies, hunting, gathering of herbs and medicines, and other purposes," the commissioners wrote in March. "We have heard reports that the Trump Administration may be considering actions to reduce the size of the monument or to eliminate it entirely

"From our standpoint, any such actions would be absolute tragedies in terms of impacts on our people today and the eternal values and traditions of our many generations of ancestors."

It's not clear that - even if the Interior Secretary suggests scaling back Bears Ears or another monument - the president would have the authority to do so.

In 1938, when Franklin Roosevelt was considering abolishing Castle-Pinckney National Monument, which had been established by Calvin Coolidge, his attorney general wrote he didn't have the authority to do so.

"The Executive can no more destroy his own authorized work, without some other legislative sanction, than any other person can," Homer Cummings wrote.

Photo of Bears Ears - Josh Ewing, courtesy Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition.