Sale and closure of the monastery has been a possibility for years, as the monks of St. Benedict’s have grown older and their community has gotten smaller. Five monks celebrate Mass there now, down from 18 members present in 2009.
Author Archives: Kaya Williams
Kaya Williams is a freelance journalist based in Aspen, where she covers everything from public health to land use to ski culture. She was previously the Edlis Neeson Arts and Culture Desk reporter for Aspen Public Radio and, before that, a staff reporter for the Aspen Times and the Snowmass Sun.
Posted inEnvironment
St. Benedict’s Monastery announces last Mass Jan. 11
Contemplative Outreach of Colorado’s post on their website Dec. 5 indicated a sale of the monastery was imminent, but also stated that “we do not know who the buyer is or what will be forthcoming at this time.”
Posted inLand Use
Boom in private clubs highlights tensions between belonging and exclusion
Club spaces can get “demonized,” because of their very nature: The same thing that gives one person a sense of belonging points out to another that they don’t belong.
Posted inEnvironment
Aspen’s cultural scene tests the ‘theory of abundance’
Sources see this abundance as a benefit to the consumer, to the community and to humanity at large. Yet, they also recognize that Aspen’s cultural scene could be viewed as an embarrassment of riches.
Posted inEnvironment
Aspen’s World Cup ski racing future depends on clarity around Lift One corridor development
An FIS spokesperson relayed concerns from race officials that “some of the proposed developments in that zone could potentially restrict the space and infrastructure needed to deliver a top-tier event” and, in turn, negatively impact Aspen’s World Cup prospects.
Posted inEnvironment
Now ‘Chalet Alpina’ and an Aman hotel, two lodging projects in the Lift One corridor work through city permit review
Earlier projections from developers indicated construction would already be underway by now, but to date, no one has started major digging on their projects. Many of their plans are intertwined, requiring collaboration between stakeholders to ensure the order of operations flows smoothly.
Posted inEnvironment
St. Benedict’s Monastery sale falls through
It’s one of the largest contiguous properties in the region, sparsely developed and surrounded on several sides by conserved land.
Posted inEnvironment
‘Say a prayer that all this comes to a happy conclusion’
The Open Space and Trails team has received “some indication” that the potential buyer is “conservation oriented,” according to Kinsley, but he would not say how they received that indication.
Posted inSocial justice
COVID-19 was ‘the great accelerator.’ Its impacts are still rippling out.
“It’s convenient for people not to think about the pandemic, and sometimes you sound like a bit of an oddball when you talk about it,” said Katherine Sand, director of the resource center Aspen Family Connections. “But I think it’s a defining moment in our lives.”
Posted inSocial justice
Long-COVID patients seek awareness and understanding for a still-enigmatic condition
They have told this story before, to doctors and specialists and holistic medicine professionals and family and friends, and they have told it again and again until they could find somebody to believe them — somebody, at least, to listen.