This week at Aspen Journalism, we published the most thorough fundraising analysis to date on the campaign fundraising picture in the 3rd Congressional District race between incumbent Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert and Democratic challenger, former Aspen City Council member Adam Frisch.
Data Desk Editor Laurine Lassalle looked at the candidates’ federal campaign finance reports and came back with some interesting findings. Boebert has emerged as one of Congress’ top fundraisers, bringing in more than $6.2 million this cycle. It should come as no surprise, given Boebert’s national profile as an avatar for conservative causes, that she has raised 77% of her itemized contributions through the third quarter of 2022 from outside of the 3rd Congressional District.
Frisch, on the other hand, was far behind the incumbent in contributions through the second quarter and had leaned on personal wealth to fund his campaign through a series of loans, as well as a heavy helping of contributions from Aspen-area residents.
But after the June 28 Democratic primary, which Frisch narrowly won, and some polling in early October that showed him within the margin of error of beating Boebert, Frisch’s fundraising picked up. He raised $1.7 million in the third quarter, besting the incumbent’s $900,000. Along with that success came a higher proportion of out-of-district dollars — 66% of itemized donations for the quarter, brining the campaign total to 60% of itemized funds raised. Goes to show that in the mostly rural, sprawling district, fundraising success tends to mean reaching people elsewhere.
Also this week, Lassalle’s Data Dashboard checked in on city of Aspen traffic counts. It was a mixed bag through the winter; January-through-March counts exceeded last year’s and were up and down as it relates to the 20-year average. Summer brought months of road construction on Highway 82, which had significant impact on traffic patterns, as any local driver already knows. That was reflected in the car counts, measured on the highway near the Cemetery Lane intersection, which were down sharply as more cars used a construction detour that missed the counter. There was a lull in construction for most of July, but perhaps drivers had become accustomed to avoiding the highway, as numbers were down 3.3% from last summer and 7.4% off the 20-year average for the month. In September, which saw the most severe traffic back-ups with lane restrictions on the Castle Creek highway bridge, fewer cars passed over the counter than in any September over the last 20 years. But, it’s safe to say that many of those cars not counted were backed up down the McLain Flats Road detour, waiting to get into Aspen via the West End side entrance of Power Plant Road.
And over at Tracking the Curve, as new case incidence rates trend down, we’re keeping up on other useful metrics, including local booster-vaccine uptake rates and how much COVID-19 is showing up in the wastewater throughout the valley.
Thank you for reading, and supporting, Aspen Journalism.
With gratitude,
– Curtis Wackerle
Editor and executive director
Out-of-district fundraising a key source for Boebert, as Frisch gains ground in third quarter
About one-fourth of Frisch’s itemized donations are from Aspen
By Laurine Lassalle | October 26, 2022
Boebert, among Congress’ top fundraisers, has seen 77% of her itemized contributions come from outside the district. For Frisch, who has raised almost $350,000 from Pitkin County, out-of-district donors made up 60% of itemized contributions.
Data dashboard: Construction skews car count data, but July numbers were down
The Roaring Fork at Stillwater ran at less than 50% of average as more water flowed east than west.
By Laurine Lassalle | October 26, 2022
• Construction at the entrance of Aspen plummeted car count readings.
• The Fork ran at 103% of average below Maroon Creek and 49% of average at Stillwater on Oct. 23.
• Air temperature reached up to 67°F in mid-October in Aspen.
Tracking the Curve
Garfield County has reported 15 new COVID-19 cases since Thursday and Eagle County has added 13 cases. Pitkin County has recorded one case since Thursday.
By Laurine Lassalle | October 25, 2022
Aspen wastewater facility had the highest load of virus in the valley with 289,700 copies per liter on Oct. 13 before dropping to 20,100 copies on Oct. 17. Glenwood Springs recorded 134,000 copies on Oct. 17, Snowmass Village had 63,600 copies, while 18,000 copies were reported on Oct. 18 in Basalt’s sewage.
PitCo Open Space scales back spending, looks for opportunities
“Since [a 43% spike in trail use in 2020], as citizens have returned to a slightly more normal life schedule, OST trail system user numbers dropped approximately 16% in 2021 and 17% in 2022. So, while the spike in user totals has calmed down since pandemic levels, data is showing that much of that use has remained, especially in summer months.”
Source: aspendailynews.com | Read more
Mountain towns aim for net zero emissions as snowpack forecast to drop 50 percent by 2080
“‘Mountain communities are able to show how we can implement projects in renewable clean energy in our buildings and transportation systems faster than at the state level,’ Langmaid said. ‘We can be leaders of best practices with these federal dollars to prove the benefits of these projects.'”
Source: aspentimes.com | Read more
How two big Denver suburbs are approaching the reality that they’re running out of water
“City water agencies are ramping up those tap fees charged to developers to link to local water systems to pay for higher water acquisition and distribution costs amid the historic Western drought. The tap fees have risen so high that homebuilders are arguing — out of self-interest, but also reflecting concerns of town officials — that water fees are a major contributor to the lack of affordable housing on the Front Range.”
Source: coloradosun.com | Read more
Northern Water board lowers initial Colorado-Big Thompson quota for first time since 2010
“‘The board wants to make sure that all of its participants and customers are aware that business as usual will be difficult in light of things that are happening on the Colorado River,’ Gimbel said. What’s happening on the river is that the demands for water far outpace current supplies and the country’s two largest reservoirs — Lake Powell and Lake Mead — have reached critically low levels.”
Source: coloradosun.com | Read more
Gila River tribe will take offer to conserve water, but Yuma farmers say it’s not enough
“Yuma farmer John Boelts, who serves as first vice president of the Arizona Farm Bureau Federation, recoiled at the characterization of his neighbors’ request of $1,500 an acre-foot as ‘outrageous.’ He believes their plan, whose economics he said the Bureau of Reclamation never seriously considered or discussed with farmers, would have bought the kind of long-term efficiencies that the government is seeking.”
Source: azcentral.com | Read more
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