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.
Category: Environment
Aspen Journalism’s “Connie Harvey Environment Desk” is named in honor of the longtime Aspen environmentalist.
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 inEnvironment
Local public-lands group moving from crisis reaction to long-term plan
This was not a typical summer season for the White River National Forest, but thanks to unprecedented efforts from local organizations, visitors may not have noticed. The U.S. Forest Service did not hire seasonal workers to manage the influx of crowds, but it did offer incentives for employees to quit. Funding shrank and uncertainty grew. […]
Posted inEnvironment
Transportation coalition seeks consensus on high-occupancy toll, congestion-pricing recommendations
The Transportation Coalition for the 21st Century has narrowed down its potential recommendations for relieving traffic congestion in the Roaring Fork Valley to two scenarios: congestion pricing or a hybrid plan that would start with a high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane and work toward congestion pricing. Both scenarios include carpooling and public-transit incentives.
Posted inEnvironment
Private ski area proposal near Steamboat divides community
As Routt County awaits the first public hearing on a proposal to develop a private ski resort and elite enclave 20 miles south of Steamboat Springs, there is widespread anxiety and divisions across the community are deepening. Reanna Sullivan, whose hillside home faces the prospective ski area, ticks off concerns associated with many new high-end […]
Posted inEnvironment
Cutting up the commons
As generous and readily available as local land grants were, the Roaring Fork Valley was small potatoes compared with enormous public land grants that mark vast Western landscapes today and could foreshadow a similar trend if the political powers that be in Washington take on the directives and intentions of the current Trump administration.
Posted inEnvironment
Snowmass Village’s wilderness water source poses unique wildfire risk
“There are some quite vulnerable systems in the Roaring Fork Valley — Snowmass being at the very top of that list — that really need some advance planning,” said a senior hydrologist with Wright Water Engineers.
Posted inEnvironment
When the insurance company sends a fire crew
“The fire department’s job is to put the fire out. We come in with a different mandate — to protect the home or commercial building. We apply our skills appropriately, adding to what the fire department is doing.”
Posted inEnvironment
‘The public is losing out’
Working two full-time jobs was taxing, and it’s true that the federal government pays far less than local governments in the same resort communities. But the real push to leave the agency came from Washington.
Posted inEnvironment
RFTA to study how Rio Grande Trail’s railroad corridor can be used for mass transit
The Roaring Fork Transportation Authority will consider new ways to use its railroad corridor, which extends from Glenwood Springs to Woody Creek and includes the popular Rio Grande Trail, to alleviate traffic on Highway 82 and respond to the valley’s transportation needs.