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Forest Service adds comment period for PitCo’s Maroon Bells operations takeover

Environmental groups call for more public input before feds outsource scenic area responsibilities to county

Officials with Pitkin County and the White River National Forest say the special-use permit is the best possible way to protect the Maroon Bells amid federal staffing and budget shortages, but public-lands watchdog groups are sounding the alarm that the move could inadvertently serve as a forerunner in efforts to privatize federal lands.

Elizabeth Stewart Severy bio image by Elizabeth Stewart-Severy

recent stories FROM THE WATER DESK

ASPEN’s LIFT ONE CORRIDOR development

FROM THE SOCIAL JUSTICE DESK

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Award-winning journalism

Aspen Journalism honored with nine awards in 2025 Better News Media Contest

Four first-place honors recognize investigative reporting, sustained coverage, social justice reporting and informational graphics

Aspen Journalism received nine awards in the Colorado Press Association’s 2025 Better News Media Contest, including four first-place honors, recognizing work produced across our local investigations, water, social justice, environment, data and history beats. The awards, announced Aug. 29 at the Colorado Press Association’s annual convention, reflect a tremendous breadth of work, with honors for…

Aspen Journalism Leaf by Aspen Journalism Staff
Noticias en Español

La ciudad de Glenwood Springs vota para demandar al propietario de las instalaciones de ICE por permitir que continúen las detenciones sin permiso 

Ni ICE ni el propietario respondieron a las notificaciones de infracción ni apelaron la decisión municipal de abril de revocar su permiso de uso especial

Un centro de detención temporal de ICE situado al oeste de Glenwood Springs podría estar un paso más cerca de su cierre después de que la ciudad votara el 6 de agosto a favor de demandar al propietario del inmueble, con sede en Florida, por presuntamente infringir la normativa municipal al permitir detenciones de inmigrantes…

Eleanor Bennett Headshot Por Eleanor Bennett
Local Public Data

Major changes proposed for PitCo’s short-term-rental regulations

More properties would be eligible, but a cap-and-lottery system would limit licenses by geographic zone

Pitkin County commissioners at a work session Tuesday asked for additional information about proposed changes to the county’s short-term rental regulations that would make more properties eligible for a license, while implementing new STR caps tailored to different areas.

Laurine Lassalle by Laurine Lassalle

NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL

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“CRISIS OF THE COMMONS” Public Lands series by Paul ANdersen >>

AWARD-WINNING SOCIAL JUSTICE REPORTING

Best Investigative Story Package: THE BILLIONAIRES OF ASPEN

Wealth and Property

The Aspen 80

Property records analysis shows where the Forbes billionaires list and local owners overlap

There have never been more billionaires in the world—3,028, by Forbes’ count, crossing the 3,000 threshold for the first time in 2025. It stands to reason that there also have never been more billionaires in Aspen, their collective influence shaping the community’s social fabric.

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Catherine LutzLaurine LassalleCurtis Wackerle by Catherine Lutz, Laurine Lassalle and Curtis Wackerle
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MEET THE Aspen Journalism NEWSROOM

Curtis Wackerle

Curtis Wackerle

Curtis Wackerle is the Editor and Executive Director of Aspen Journalism, where he guides the nonprofit’s mission to deliver in-depth, independent reporting on environmental and community issues in Colorado’s mountain regions. He has extensive experience in journalism and editorial leadership, including 14 years at Aspen Daily News, where he covered city hall and, from 2016 until joining Aspen Journalism in 2020, served as editor in chief. Under his direction, Aspen Journalism has grown as a trusted source for nuanced coverage of water, land use, public policy and socioeconomic issues in the West. He grew up in Portland, has a journalism degree from the University of Montana, and lives in Woody Creek. More by Curtis Wackerle

Heather Sackett

Heather Sackett

Heather Sackett is the managing editor at Aspen Journalism and the editor and reporter on the Water Desk. She has also reported for The Denver Post and the Telluride Daily Planet. Heather has a master’s degree from CU’s Center for Environmental Journalism and her reporting has been recognized by the Colorado Press Association. More by Heather Sackett

Laurine Lassalle

Laurine Lassalle

Laurine Lassalle is Aspen Journalism’s data desk editor, where she works to catalog and analyze local public data. She has a master’s degree in data and investigative journalism from UC Berkeley with an emphasis on environmental reporting. More by Laurine Lassalle

RECENT FREELANCE JOURNALISTS

Paul Andersen

Paul Andersen

Eleanor Bennett Headshot

Eleanor Bennett

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Tim Cooney

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Kari Dequine

Elizabeth Stewart Severy bio image

Elizabeth Stewart-Severy

Kaya Williams

Kaya Williams

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