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Aspen - Let's rock n roll

ASPEN, Colo. — Aspen’s economy continues to rip, with sales tax revenues posting a 13.6 per cent increase through February as compared with last year. Last year was also strong, with a 10.5 per cent increase compared to 2004.

ASPEN, Colo. — Aspen’s economy continues to rip, with sales tax revenues posting a 13.6 per cent increase through February as compared with last year. Last year was also strong, with a 10.5 per cent increase compared to 2004.

"The size of the economic engine in town has reached a new level," said Paul Menter, finance director for Aspen. "We're in a different economy than we were two or three years ago."

However, he said that when adjusted for inflation, the numbers are only as large as those in the mid-1990s, before a great deal of hand-wringing began about the faltering tourism economy and questions about the shift toward a more real-estate-based economy.

While some concerns about the tourism market remain, lodging and nearly every other sector also rose. Still, those gains pale when compared with the surging housing market, where real estate transfer tax collections this year have increased by 83 per cent through March. And this increase is measured against last year’s extraordinary rise.

Other ski towns similarly report major increases in sales-tax revenues during January. Crested Butte was up 24.7 per cent, Silverthorne 21.6 per cent, Winter Park 19.9 per cent, Snowmass Village 14.2 per cent, Vail 12.2 per cent, and Steamboat 12 per cent. The down-valley town of Glenwood Springs bested them all, however, with a January increase of nearly 38 per cent. The gain resulted from the addition of several big-box stores and other national retail outlets.

Rural houses may be capped

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. — Routt County, where Steamboat Springs is located, is looking to get more aggressive in regulating the flow of big money real-estate projects into rural areas.

County officials are considering limiting the maximum home sizes. Colorado’s Pitkin County, which is where Aspen is located, and Wyoming’s Teton County, also known as Jackson Hole, have already done so in an effort to limit visual impact and the consumption of energy and other resources.

In Routt County, planning director Caryn Fox told The Steamboat Pilot & Today that the genesis of the conversation is the county comprehensive plan. That plan stresses the desirability of preserving the rural character of unincorporated areas of the county.

Pitkin County recently enacted regulations limiting home sizes to 15,000 square feet. The thinking, in part, is that the larger the home, the more that it needs employees such as caretakers, landscapers, and others making regular visits, thus taxing the roads and other infrastructures.

In Teton County, homes on smaller rural lots are limited to 10,000 square feet, including accessory structures, although incrementally larger parcels are allowed incrementally larger homes up to 15,000 square feet.

Routt County is also considering a proposal to implement inclusionary zoning, which requires residential developers to include a certain percentage of affordable housing units within their projects. Inclusionary zoning has been adopted by a wide variety of resort towns in the West, although by only a few counties.

Major growth expected

KETCHUM, Idaho — County commissioners in Blaine County, which is where Ketchum and Sun Valley are located, are becoming more aggressive in addressing the projected doubling of population during the next 20 years.

The county has already instituted a moratorium on new subdivisions while it considers future settlement patterns. One major zoning change would reclassify land now considered unproductive agriculture to a new classification called remote and rural. In that zone, development would be restricted to one unit per 40 acres.

At the same time, reports the Idaho Mountain Express, the commissioners may steer new homes away from aesthetically and environmentally sensitive areas, called the agricultural/wetlands protection area, by allowing development rights to be transferred to an area near the down-valley town of Bellevue. Such programs are already in place in the Breckenridge area of Colorado’s Summit County and in Pitkin County, where Aspen is located.

The commissioners are also looking at setbacks in wetlands, riparian and critical wildlife areas, and increased development restrictions in the floodplain and hillsides. All of this comes after two years of deliberations.

Loophole remains

JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Across the West, there’s a sharp division of opinion about how land in more rural, unincorporated areas should be used. While some states have minimum lot sizes of 35 acres or more, county governments have the latitude of allowing exemptions.

The rationale most often is that ranch families, many of whom seem to be squeaking by, should have the ability to sell 5- or 10-acre parcels to stay afloat. In Wyoming, the Legislature specifically allows ranchlands to be divvied up among directly-related family members, so that children can stay on the ranch.

Planners in Wyoming’s Teton County speculate that subdividing of existing ranchlands under the state’s laws could yield 14,000 new lots. There, as elsewhere, a concern is that too many new lots will clutter the ranchlands, blurring the distinction between town and country. Similarly, efforts have been undertaken in Colorado’s Grand County, home of Winter Park and Grand Lake, to allow fewer exemptions.

With that possibility in mind, reports the Jackson Hole News & Guide, Teton County commissioners considered making the minimum lot size in rural zones 35 acres, while parcels in other (business and neighborhood conservation zones) are proposed to be 3 and 4 acres in sizes. But the commissioners rejected the proposal, partly because they had heard from real-estate agents they believed reliable that ranches are not being sold on the premise that they can be subdivided. "I think you’re chasing ghosts if you think this is a problem," said one agent at a recent meeting.

But, in fact, the subdividing is occurring in some dubious circumstances. The newspaper says a family from New York used the family exemption to subdivide a 32-acre lot.

The newspaper further suggests some disingenuous arguments against tightening the loophole. For example, one attorney who is a member of a long-time ranching family argued that if the exemption for family members is removed, her children might be relegated to affordable housing. This was after her family had sold 1,300 acres to Ross Perot Jr., who in turn is dividing the property into 35-acre parcels and selling them for millions each.

Jackson Hole sets new record

JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — It was a big winter by every measure in the Tetons. On the east side of the range, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort reported 475 inches of snow fell from Oct. 1 through late March, which is a major reason why the number of skiers is up 10 per cent this year. As such, Jackson Hole was expecting to not only break the record that had been achieved last year, but push well beyond to 440,000 skier days.

Jerry Blann, president of the ski resort, partially attributed the gain to a 6 per cent increase in airplane seats but also an 13 per cent increase in visitors "touching ground." In other words, there were more planes, but the planes carried more passengers.

On the west flanks of the Tetons, Grand Targhee is remaining open until mid-April, but officials there were expecting a 10 per cent increase in skier days. The resort as of late March had recorded 453 inches of snow for the season.

Aspen’s mansions full of gas

ASPEN, Colo. — Aspen continues to mull the implications of a report issued in February that finds that the city’s residents, workers, and visitors were collectively responsible for twice as many greenhouse gases per capita as the national average in the United States, itself one of the world’s leaders.

The study, which was instigated by town officials, found that private jets were responsible for 19 per cent of the greenhouse gases, commercial airlines for 23 per cent, and road travel – everything from tourists to commuters to locals – added up to 25 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions.

By contrast, 33 per cent of greenhouse gases are explained by buildings, almost evenly split between residential and commercial properties.

The Aspen Times notes that while the city diligently enforces a building code that demands energy efficiency in heating and cooling, any house of 10,000 square feet in size uses much more energy. The average house in Aspen is responsible for an estimated average of 19.5 tons of emissions per year, but a home of almost 8,000 square feet – mid-sized by the standards of Aspen – produced an astounding 171 tons of emissions.

Partly what explains such high tonnages is that carbon released into the atmosphere bonds with oxygen, becoming much heavier as a result. Much of this occurs not locally, but at the sources of power, such as coal-fired power plants.

Aspen has been concerned for decades about the implications of high energy use, and in 2000 the city and county adopted something called the Renewable Energy Mitigation Program. Nicknamed the Robin Hood program, it forces residential builders to find ways to offset energy consumption from so-called extravagant features such as outdoor pools, snowmelt systems, and large spas, or pay a fee that is then used to fund energy conserving features elsewhere in the community.

Vail’s snowfall 4 th best

VAIL, Colo. — Early in the winter Vail Mountain marketers were crowing that it was the snowiest winter ever. The pace slackened, and in fact, both Vail and Beaver Creek reported lower-than-average snowfall for February and March. Still, it remains the fourth snowiest winter since Vail’s inaugural 1962-63 season. As of early April, Vail had received 406 inches of snow, which ski company representatives said was 75 inches more than average.

Festival to focus on Mongolia

TELLURIDE, Colo. — Mongolia will be one focus at the Telluride Mountainfilm Festival during the Memorial Day Weekend. As it so happens, notes The Telluride Watch, this just happens to be the 800th anniversary of the founding of that country by conqueror Genghis Khan.

The festival, now in its 28 th year, casts a wandering eye at various mountainous locales in the world. What might be called celebrities from the world of mountain travel and adventure are also invited, and among them this year are filmmaker Willie Bogner, one of the first extreme ski cinematographers and also a designer of ski fashions. Also scheduled to attend is Eric Jackson, an Olympic champion freestyle and slalom kayaker. Yet another is Jack Tackle, a guide in the Tetons.

Festival director Arlene Burns, herself a filmmaker, also reports the festival films and presentations will give a great deal of attention to environmental themes: climate change, the peaking of world oil production, and community-supported agriculture, as well as challenging socio-political situations in such disparate places as Bolivia and Rwanda.

Big box stores tilt election

CARBONDALE, Colo. — Big boxes continue to stalk town politics in Carbondale, located 30 miles down-valley from Aspen. Voters in 2003 reversed the town board and rejected a 225,000-square-foot retail complex. That complex would have included a 125,000-square-feet spot for a Target or some other national chain. This year, after more testy debate, town officials imposed a cap of 60,000 feet on any store.

But some sentiment remains for hosting a national chain like The Home Depot, and one knowledgeable resident thinks town residents can have their cake and eat it, too. Corporate chains like Target and Whole Foods don’t like to deviate from their standard blueprints, said Don Ensigh, who founded Design Workshop, an influential land use firm in the West. But, he added, they will if they must.

"Those big companies are beginning to adapt themselves to town standards as being imposed here," he told The Aspen Times. He mentioned that New York City’s Manhattan borough now has a Home Depot that is limited to five floors.

Still, much hostility to big-box stores remains. The Aspen Times points out that a film with an anti-Wal-Mart message that was shown last fall in Carbondale drew 200 people.

Aspen tapping the brakes

ASPEN, Colo. — City officials in Aspen have decided to gently tap the brakes on the community’s roaring real-estate economy.

Laws had allowed construction of up to 37 free-market residential units within city limits annually. Most new housing is done by scrapping existing houses. City council members had considered a no-loaf proposal to allow no new free-market building, but instead settled for a half-loaf: 18 new units per year. Only Councilman J.E. DeVilbiss wanted a full-on ban, saying: "We need to get a handle on the magnitude of our situation."

Unaffected, reports The Aspen Times, are the multi-unit projects, which undergo a case-by-case review. Several major fractional ownership hotels are planned or already under construction.

Spinning real estate

CRESTED BUTTE, Colo. — Work has begun on a new base-area real estate project at Crested Butte that is now being called North Village. It is characterized in this way: "walking friendly; connected; diversified; mixed housing; density; smart transportation; and sustainability."

Writing in the Crested Butte News, the ski area’s special consultant, John Norton, insists that the precedents for such a village are Aspen and Telluride – but pointedly not other places.

"Biking trails leaving the village. Hiking trails. Water. Sunshine. Neighbors and neighborhoods," he adds. "In other words, something that hasn’t been proposed at the base of a mountain for more than a hundred years."

In other words, the new real estate project wants to come out of the womb feeling like it’s a century old. It’s getting dizzy at the base of Crested Butte, with all the spin that is occurring.

Ritz-Carlton could broaden appeal

TRUCKEE, Calif. — Following in the footsteps of Colorado ski resorts, Northstar-at-Tahoe continues to add real estate. The newest addition is a $300 million, five-star hotel to be called The Ritz-Carlton Highlands, Lake Tahoe. Construction is to begin this summer.

As has become usual, the hotel’s 172 rooms will be privately owned, about half fully and the other half in time-share. The hotel is being developed by Colorado-based East West Partners and its funding partner, Crescent Real Estate Equities Co., which is developing 1,450 town homes and condominiums nearby.

Reminiscent of the Ritz-Carlton completed at Beaver Creek several years ago, the hotel will feature steeply pitched roofs with shed dormers, sheltering porches and stone fireplaces in a style sometimes called "parkitecture," as it is inspired by Old Faithful Inn and other national park structures built in the West early in the 20 th century. The principal designer is Mark Hornberger, of the San Francisco-based Hornberger + Worstell Architectures.

Tom Dunlap, a manager partner for East West Partners, suggested that the hotel could "start to lay the groundwork to invite markets" that have not traditionally provided many visitors to the Lake Tahoe-Truckee area. He specifically mentioned Chicago. He also noted the 13 million people of the Bay Area, located within a 3.5-hour drive.

William C. Marks, managing director of JMP Securities in San Francisco, agreed that the Ritz-Carlton name should draw the hotel chain’s loyal customers who would not normally be going to Northstar, let alone Lake Tahoe.

Still unclear are the dimensions of demand for high-end accommodations in the Truckee-Tahoe market. "That is the question of the day," said Marks. "There is quite a bit of residential development, but in terms of hotels in the area, there really are not that many high-end ones."

Aspen getting more hydroelectricity

ASPEN, Colo. — In another case of the future attempting to recreate the past, Aspen city officials are continuing with their efforts to get more electricity from small hydroelectric plants.

Aspen was actually the first city west of the Mississippi River to use hydroelectric power to provide all municipal electricity, explains The Aspen Times. The plant operated from 1887 until the late 1950s, when the federal government’s proliferating dams yielded electricity that undercut the local supply in cost.

The city’s public works director, Phil Overeynder, says the restored turbines on Castle Creek would be powered by a fall of 330 feet from a reservoir. Assuming permits are awarded by the federal government, it will meet 8 to 10 per cent of Aspen’s electrical demand. Existing hydroelectric plants, one of them owned by Aspen, provide 30 per cent of the city’s needs, with the rest coming primarily from coal-fired power plants.

The restoration will cost up to $2.5 million, which will be amortized over 20 years. However, after that, it would provide power at little cost, as such plants have a 50-year life. It could be operating by next year.

Conservation agreement struck

TRUCKEE, Calif. — Developers and preservationists have struck a key agreement in a disputed valley between Truckee and Lake Tahoe that is rapidly being developed. The valley includes Squaw and the Northstar ski areas. The agreement will now allow a revised development plan to proceed.

One of the key developers, East West Partners, had settled with environmental critics last year, agreeing to levy a transfer tax on real estate, with the money to be used for preservation of environmentally sensitive areas in the valley but also construction of affordable housing. Thus spared from a lawsuit, East West was allowed to proceed with development.

Now, DMB Highlands Group has reached a similar accord. The developer has pared development plans, eliminating 27 holes of golf and 76 home sites. Affected were two projects, the Siller Ranch and the Hopkins Ranch. The developer also will collect a real estate transfer fee, which is expected to total $72 million during the next 25 years, with the money to be used for preservation of sensitive areas, restoration, and construction of lower-end housing. Still, to be built is an 18-hole golf course and 653 housing units, which will be located adjacent to but not within Truckee.

Partly at issue, explains Truckee’s Sierra Sun, was the nature of geographic decision-making. Officials in Placer County, which is located primarily on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, near Sacramento, authorized the development, but Truckee – located in a different county – was to absorb most of the impacts of traffic and the need for affordable housing.

Still outstanding is a lawsuit against Placer County, which approved the master plan that condoned substantial building totals. Officials contacted by the Sierra Sun indicated they believe a settlement is likely.

Latino students protest

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — Dozens of Latino students in South Lake Tahoe used cell-phone text messaging to organize small rallies last week against proposed immigration laws.

One student, who was among 15 classmates assembled at school district headquarters, told the Tahoe Daily Tribune that the proposed laws are racist. The newspaper reports that the school district has 1,500 Latino Students. As of the last census, South Lake Tahoe was 26 per cent Hispanic.

Other students walked out of high schools at nearby Truckee, North Tahoe, and Incline Village, but the largest protest of students was at Carson City, Nevada, where 300 students marched to the state capitol in protest. While some of the students carried Mexican flags, a new group of protestors planned to wave American flags. "We want people to know we have respect for this country as well," Karla Orozco told the Tribune.

Latino workers were also planning to hold more public demonstrations on April 8. In Telluride, landscape worker and volunteer firefighter Oscar Meza said his newly formed Hispanic Union is encouraging a general strike. He is encouraging immigrants to wear white, to stay away from work, and not spend any money. He told The Denver Post that there is no big problem in Telluride, but they want to show support to demonstrators in other states.

Parishioners try to prop up church

SILVERTON, Colo. — The 30 parishioners at what may be the oldest church in continuous operation on the Western Slope are trying to raise $40,000 to complete restoration of their small, wooden structure.

The cornerstone for the First Congregational Church of Silverton was laid in 1880, and it was immortalized in the 1950s when Ansel Adams photographed it, reports the Durango Herald. The church is included in this year’s Ansel Adams calendar.

But more than 125 years of harsh winters, rainy summers, and desiccating high-altitude sunshine have taken their toll, reports the newspaper. The roof had bowed and the walls had splayed when restoration work began in 1998. Some $300,000 in grants have been awarded since then.

40-foot buildings considered

HAILEY, Idaho — Buildings in downtown Hailey, located about 10 miles downstream from Ketchum and Sun Valley, may soon be allowed to go 5 feet higher, to a maximum of 40 feet. As explained by architect Cheryl Pearse, this small increment will allow creation of three-storey buildings with taller and more aesthetically pleasing first-floor retail spaces. Developers taking advantage of the option, however, would be required to provide at least one residential unit in their buildings. The Idaho Mountain Express says that city officials believe the small increment will help revitalize the city’s downtown area by fostering both residential and retail.

Harley-Davidson store coming

DILLON, Colo. — Step by step, Summit County is gaining everything you might want in a city. The newest additions will be a Chili’s Grill and Bar and a Harley-Davidson service and sales shop. The Summit Daily News says local Harley riders seem to be excited about staying closer to home for servicing. "We spend thousands of dollars in parts and maintenance and so on through Harley-Davidson," said Mark Volger. "Why give it to Denver? Why give it to Glenwood Springs?"

Wolf Creek village gets OK

WOLF CREEK PASS, Colo. — As had been expected, the Forest Service has given Texas billionaire and developer Red McCombs authority to cross Forest Service land to the highly-contested 286-acre development he plans next to the Wolf Creek Ski Area. The ski area currently has no lodging, but McCombs’s project contemplates nearly 2,200 housing units plus commercial space.

Critics have contended that McCombs used access to key Bush officials, greased by past campaign contributions, that yielded outside influence on the Forest Service decision-making process. In a conference call with reporters, the Rio Grande Forest Service supervisor, Peter Clark, insisted that he felt no outside influence. "I have had no attempt from the outside to influence my decision," he said.

Environmental critics, including Colorado Wild, a watchdog over ski area activities, have long suggested a lawsuit challenging the Forest Service decision would be likely. Colorado Wild has filed one against Mineral County over its authorization of the project, and two against the Forest Service over release of records associated with the decision-making process and the process itself. As well, the ski area and the developer have filed lawsuits against each other.