According to Post editor Greg Moore, corresponding via e-mail, "We just felt like Colorado Sunday had run its course."
The section was introduced in the late summer of 2005, and from the beginning, it suffered from focus issues, among other things. An item about it from a September 8, 2005 Message column reads:
Rather than establishing its own identity, it borrows liberally from other portions of the paper -- Style, A&E and more. Take a segment called "Out There," which happens to be the same name as a Travel section column by former Westword-er Robin Chotzinoff. Do Post employees bother to read their own paper?
The "Out There" name was changed in Colorado Sunday shortly thereafter. Former Post managing editor Gary Clark stressed that "the editors knew at the time they titled 'Out There' for 'Colorado Sunday' that they were using the same name in two different sections. They believed readers would understand that the two columns contained different content that would appeal to each sections' readers." Nevertheless, he added, "they have reconsidered their decision."
In 2007, previous "Colorado Sunday" overseer Dana Coffield was bumped up to features editor, with Claire Martin taking over the CS brand. Martin subsequently began writing a "Colorado Sundaze" blog, but the most recent piece on it is dated April 29.
Cut to Sunday, when the following "note to readers" appeared under the heading "Outta Here."
This is the last day we will publish the Colorado Sunday pages in The Denver Post. Like a lot of Colorado attractions -- the old Elitch Gardens, Stapleton International Airport -- the section has had its day and is riding off into the sunset, as they say. We hope you have enjoyed our weekly tales of the people and places who keep Western traditions alive and those that create new ones.Of course, we will continue to find those stories and bring them to readers throughout the newspaper. We will also keep two of Colorado Sunday's favorite features, the photo-spotting "Find the Place" and the "Find the Word" puzzle. Look for them in the Travel section starting next week.
Moore confirms that "we may use a couple of features elsewhere and we will surely repurpose the talent used to put it out" before adding, "Thanks for noticing."
Which is as clear an indication as any of why the plug was pulled on Colorado Sunday.